- What was most surprising (or caught you off guard)? Explain.
- What was most challenging? Explain.
- What went especially well for you? Explain.
- Identify one major adjustment you have or will need to make, if any. Explain.
Friday, July 9, 2010
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What truly caught me off guard was how well the class have been keeping to their responsibilities and behaving. ARC has been emphasizing the importance of classroom management. While I feel this is vital, I am finding that my class requires very little 'maintenance'. The only discipline issue was keeping a couple of sleepyheads awake. The amount of student engagement may be a factor in this good behavior (my experience as a private music instructor may be helping in this area).
ReplyDeleteWhat is particularly going well for me is how well I am getting to know some students and already knowing their names:
Nathan told me that he wants to be an entrepreneur someday. Today, I told him that the systems of linear equations we were working on would lead to methods in maximizing profit (Linear Programming).
Zach is one of the hot shots in the class. I was able to win him over by giving him more challenging material.
The rest have not been as transparent, but I feel they are doing well.
It has especially been apparent to me today that I need to write up better lesson plans. While I did manage to cover the points that I outlined, there were a few gaps that I left undone, and it was in those gaps that I had to rethink my logic (these gaps are not that noticeable until the plan is put into action). As a result, there were moments I hesitated in class and lost momentum.
Not a perfect week, but a good start.
What truly caught me off guard was Lou saying his kids are keeping to their responsibilities and behaving!!! Lucky Lou! Seriously, despite our many hours of discussing classoom management, nothing prepared me for the constant vigilance it takes to keep my class engaged and on task while trying to instill knowledge with my lesson plans. It seems like I put so much time and effort into creating an information-filled plan, but what really keeps things flowing are the little tricks we've learned through our training. I have had the best success by talking for very short amounts of time (with only specifically chosen and succinct items written for notes)and breaking up the class time with student-driven or cooperative activities. The rewards systems I put in place have also made a difference since starting on Tuesday. However, this class requires my CONSTANT supervision to stay working - if I try to speak to my cooperating teacher for even a few moments, things fall apart.
ReplyDeleteOne other thing that is really working for me is spending as little time as possible standing up front at the board. Walking among the students seems to keep their attention much more. Perhaps this is because they are sticking "Kick me" signs on my back as I walk by - but at this time I am unaware.
One adjustment I know I need to make or be aware of is not getting caught up with trying to help one struggling student at the expense of the rest of the class. It is very difficult because my students have such a wide range of abilities and I tend to focus on the students who need the most help, especially if they are trying harder than the others. I need to put the differentiating techniques we have learned into place.
Overall, a successful but stressful week! I'm exhausted!!
The first week of teaching was an interesting experience. The students appear to be a mix of enrichment and true summer school students. The cooperating teacher that I am working with impresses me by his style and classroom management skills. During core we listened to charismatic presenters such as Tom Moore, Dr Fritz and Sharen Lom who kept your attention with humor and dynamic presentation. These people are easy to listen to and make the presentation fun. The cooperation teacher that I am working with is exactly the opposite. He speaks very slowly and in somewhat of a monotone (he does not speak this way in normal conversation). His presentation is passive and non threatening.
ReplyDeletePeople may think that this guy should work for Sominex instead of teaching, but all of the chapter content is covered in a memorial way. Now the natural reaction would be the students must run amok in his class. This is not the case. The cooperating teacher seems to lull these students into an academic trance. I have never seen a style like this before. Moreover, the students appear to be learning without classroom behavior issues. When I teach, I believe that the trance hasn’t worn off. Dr. Parres may have many tactics to prevent bad behavior, but I think the cooperating teacher has the most effective method that I have ever seen. I was speaking to Evan about this in class. To illustrate the cooperative teacher’s style I used a music metaphor (since Evan is a music man). Tom Moore, Dr. Fritz and Sharen Lom are like Heavy Metal Rock and Roll and the Cooperative Teacher is like elevator music.
Best regards
John
I was completely surprised by how low the standards were set for measurement of student success. In academics, we were told that low expectations are the main cause of low performance and based on what I have experienced in my class so far, I can see why. Ideally, once the students were told how they were to be evaluated, they would be held to that standard. Already I have witnessed and even participated in giving "compensation" for the students inability to achieve. It is somewhat disheartening because a number of my "low achievers" have demonstated they can perform well beyond the level they have "settled" into.
ReplyDeleteIn all honesty, I am struggling to keep my head above the water. The amount of engagement required to keep the students on task is mind boggling. I have made just about every mistake you can make starting with being too lack in holding my most disruptive students accountable for their behavior. That will need to change if I am to have any chance to meet the objectives of the program. I am guilty of employing a strategy based on trying to get the students to like me. I thought I could build off that relationship in motivating my students to achieve. It has worked with the students who are inherently motivated to be there but has failed miserbly with the five or so students who turn the class upside down.
Can I get there? The second week will serve to let me know. I do feel that the amount of one on one instruction I have been doing is helping the students academically. To be successful, I will need to do better with the structure I have been given. As I think through how I will get there, dividing the work into chunks and addressing my problem students is where I will start but there is lots of work to be done ...
Interesting points.
ReplyDeleteJohn, your point fits in perfectly with the learning theories covered in methods. Learning occours with content is meaningful. Amusing presentation can garner attention but attention doesn't equal learning. There are likely other factors at play in that class. What do you think these other factors are? What is the academic level? How many kids? In regards to Bill's point, how challenging is the content?
Bill, I don't think anyone, especially teachers themselves, like to be presented information that was not meaningful. Low level, mindless presentations and work (that I take you have witnessed) is offputting to all of us. Think of a core (or methods) session or a training session in your previous career that was not challenging to you. This is why I have made a big deal out of making the content relevant and engaging.
My biggest surprise was that my students are responding to me (at least for the moment!). I’ll talk about this more in my classroom observation post – our other blog, because I’m using classroom management techniques to achieve this rapport, or perhaps I should say an uneasy truce? Seriously, I am getting to know them as individuals, and I greatly appreciate that they are responding to my efforts to some extent.
ReplyDeleteI’m working on a number of things! I need a stronger understanding of the curriculum. Randy correctly highlighted that I mixed objectives by putting equations with variables on both sides as examples while teaching 1-step equations. I have a tendency to accelerate from easy to harder examples too quickly. This may actually lead to a resurgence of classroom management issues, since they will gang agley if they become frustrated or get turned off. I need to remain focused on smaller steps, initiating, briefly teaching, practicing and formatively assessing (pop quiz!).
It is fascinating seeing which items are confusing to the students, and how to help them overcome these obstacles. Adding and subtracting negative numbers, multiplying or dividing by negative numbers, and fractions can stymie some of the students. I really appreciate the hints from Randy, Jaf and Jason (my cooperating teacher) as to how to address some of these. For example, it really helps to remind them of the simple mantra for multiplication and division (++ gives +, + - gives -, -+ gives -, -- gives +) whenever they are struggling to decide whether the result is positive or negative. Another example is Keep-Change-Change for subtraction or Keep-Change-Flip for division; once taught, students who are stuck can be prompted to complete the problem by reminding them of the rule.
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ReplyDeleteFriday was my first day to actually get to teach for a large chunk of time, and I was completely unprepared for the mini revolt that went on in the classroom. Up until that point, I had been given little chunks of class to present small pieces of info, and I had been helping one on one with trouble shooting. When the kids started acting up on Friday, I realized that I had not gone over MY expectations with them or presented them with my reward system. Thus, when the bottom began to drop out, there was no "pointing to the sign that said Respect."
ReplyDeleteI will begin again on Monday. I have my classroom expectations nicely typed out,(Thanks, Steven!)my parent info sheet ready to go, posters, and a big bag of candy to heap among my kids.I feel fairly confident in this approach. I think these kids are mostly ready to learn, but I need to provide the structure they need to get there. I'm not sure, but I don't think my C.T. gave them any course outline or expectations at the beginning.
I, too, was amazed at just how low the expectations for the students are and the wide range of knowledge levels in my classes. I go from having a student who should have passed Geometry with a high A but didn't because of absenses to kids who can't solve a one step equation in the same room. Like Janice, I find myself constantly attending to the same handful of kids while the rest of the class is on their own.I liked Randy's suggestion on Friday of grouping, and I will try to use that for peer helping instead of teacher helping.
Wish me luck on Monday!
Amy
I think for me, like Lou, the most surprising thing was how well-behaved the students are. For the most part they’re quiet, perhaps because they come from several different schools are don’t really know each other. Most are there for enrichment and about four are repeating. Two of those repeaters are the most challenging students. What makes them challenging is that they sleep; they don’t otherwise disrupt the classroom.
ReplyDeleteOne of the most challenging things for me is engaging the kids. I understand intellectually all of the benefits of engagement, but I’m finding that putting what I’ve learned into practice is a lot harder than I thought. Maybe ‘engaging’ isn’t the right word here, because as I said above, the kids are well-behaved and (most) do their work. ‘Stimulating’ might be the better word. The two days I’ve taught, I’ve come away with the feeling that the kids are bored, and I feel bad about that.
The other challenging thing for me is, like Janice said, learning how to address struggling students individually, while not abandoning the other kids. I really want those repeaters to learn the material and to pass, so when one of them asks me a question as I’m circulating the room, I’m more than willing to spend a few minutes clarifying. But those few minutes might turn into 10 or 15, and that feels like too much.
I think one major adjustment I will have to make is learning how to make Geometry relevant, interesting, and meaningful for the kids.
Overall, a successful week.
Like Lou and Kathy, I was surprised at how well my students behave. As Kathy pointed out, it may be because the students don't all know each other. But I also think in my classroom it is because the kids have already established a good rapport with my C.T. They seem to really like him and really respect him - and this has been good for me, because they immediately accepted me as their new teacher and showed me the same respect they had been showing my C.T.
ReplyDeleteWhat I found most challenging was trying to fit a great deal of material into the summer school schedule. My C.T. has mentioned to me that there isn't a designated point that we must reach, but that we should try to get through 6 chapters in 6 weeks. On my first day I only got through one lesson, often trying to explain every little thing about the topic and giving the students examples where each possibility occurs so they can see what it looks like. I realized after that first day that I can't operate this way in summer school. (In the normal school year I would definitely try to hit every aspect of the material, but summer school is a different beast.) The next day I talked to my C.T. before class started to see what things I should hit and what things I could breeze over. I was able to get through three lessons worth of stuff that day, and I although it was just hitting the major points, I was glad that my students all seemed to understand the material really well.
As I mentioned in Methods on Friday, giving an example about an iTunes giftcard really piqued the interest of my students. They have not been shy about expressing their dislike of word problems, but I think that since this word problem was relatable they were able to understand it better. They even had an intuitive understanding of what the answer might be before we worked out the problem. I think the challenge will be to come up with more real-world problems that use algebra but that are relevant and meaningful to my students.
The major adjustment I would like to make this week is to come up with more opportunities for the students to work together on problems. In one of our Core sessions someone mentioned that often students learn the most from their peers. I think that this is an invaluable tool that many teachers ignore. From now on I will search for ways to weave partner or group work into my lesson plans.
I was caught off guard with how different the levels are in this one class. I didn't think the disparity would be this great. (I know,I was warned.) During my observation I was amazed at the passive and quiet nature of the class, but a few paired activities (or maybe the heat) has seemed to get them participating more. I was less nervous in front of the students than I was during the Microteach - although nearly five hours is a long time to be with a class. I enjoyed teaching new material, and seeing how the lesson I designed was received. I am woefully inexperienced at judging how long a lesson/activity/problem will take,and that definitely impacted my instruction. If I had more skill in this area, I would, for instance, know that if I still have an application problem to cover - and it requires at least 15 min's- I should eliminate some of the examples at the beginning of the lesson. This seems to be my greatest weakness. This lack of knowledge also impacts my LP'ing - the amount of prep. time I'm putting in seems inordinate. I'm not complaining, (really I'm not) but I must somehow be missing the boat here. I'm hoping that as this skill is practiced, I'll get better (and faster). This inadequacy is highlighted during the summer school condensed schedule. We are 'moving on' whether there is a firm grasp of the material or not, so I have to be ready with the next lesson plan. My CT is very supportive, and she said I did well in not getting flustered when the students asked me questions about tying the information to real life (apparently that can really get some newbies).
ReplyDeleteI was also caught off guard with how well behaved the class is despite the lack of Do Now's, active class participation, tickets, ball throwing, etc. I would have predicted more unwanted behavior as suggested by Dr. Perras. It was an enjoyable experience, but I'm hoping that the good behavior will continue, and that I'm not just enjoying a grace period as I really have to work on my time mgmt.
The most surprising thing that caught me off guard was there is no attendance list for my class. The students check in with the program at a different site in the morning so the program knows who is there and who is not. Also, the people who show up each day change. Apparently, some had to go to summer school and the summer school sent some people over to the program. The Conncap program is adjunct to New Britain city schools. I am going to address this problem by trying out name cards like we did in methods.
ReplyDeleteThe most challenging problem is to get the students to respond. I asked for volunteers to come to the board and no one responded. Since I did not know their names it was harder to get a “volunteer.” I plan to address this problem by instituting a reward system like Janice did with her class. Maybe they can be “motivated” to participate more actively that way. They have responded by answering questions, but they have been afraid to come up.
The thing that went well was the students did not seem to mind that I had taken over the class from my C.T. I was introduced to them and then handed the sheet they were working on to go through the class to see how they were doing on the sheet. They would ask me for help like they had been asking my C.T. There did not seem to be an abrupt transition. They did not express much curiosity about me though. I have tried to engage some of the students in conversation, but they are still not sure about exactly how I fit in.
The major adjustment I have to make is how to get them interested in the math they are doing. I had to do a review session for their mid-term exam. Neither they or I had much fun doing that. I spoke to my C.T. and he said that review is the hardest thing to do. He said that the most effective technique you can do during a review is you have to show enthusiasm as you do the review. I hope and intend that the regular classes will be different.
I had a chance to teach on Wednesday in the last period and I have also taught Friday during the first period. I have realized what a great difference it makes what part of the day students are introduced to a new material in terms of being receptive and being able to focus their attention on it. I have realized that the long periods of 75, 70, 60 and 55 minutes are demanding on students. It will be challenging to keep them constantly engaged and on task during the whole day but I am using “Do Now” and math game/ puzzle worksheets to peek their interest in the topic that is being presented.
ReplyDeleteAs many of my fellow ARCies have mentioned it, the most challenging part of teaching for me was the wide range of knowledge levels in my classroom. How can I address the needs of all the students so they will all succeed this summer? When do I know to continue with my instruction even though some students were not able to finish the assignment on time? I believe this knowledge will only come with experience by being in the classroom.
I used one period on the first day to discuss my expectations, rules and protocols for the summer term and we discussed the terms of the social contract together. I was happy to see that everyone actively participated to design this agreement. I have also used a soft rubber ball to engage students and it worked very well. I realized that this technique takes a long time, so I will probably only use it at the end of a lesson.
I have realized that I need to be more conscious about making sure that students follow the contract and keep reminding them to honor their agreement. Starting this week I will begin referring to the contract when a disciplinary issue arises. I will also introduce students to my reward system on Monday.
I observed my cooperating teacher the first two days and started taking over on Thursday. My first day went so badly that when I went home on Thursday, I seriously contemplated not returning Friday. After reflecting, however, that I decided that I needed to get the class under control—and soon—if I wanted to pass and retain my sanity. I would have loved to have had their buy-in on class expectations, but my gut on Thursday was that it wasn't going to work with this class. Instead, I made a short list of my expectations and went over them with the class Friday morning. As they had never received a syllabus, I also made one of those (based on one that was floating around the class) for them. Finally, I gave them a parent contact information/signature form and explained that I was going to be calling each and every kid's parents over the next few weeks. I kept it positive and only received resistance from a couple of students who were already in trouble, either academically and/or behaviorally.
ReplyDeleteThe success of the information packet is undetermined yet; I'm wondering how many I'll get back. I will be getting the phone numbers from the main office anyway tomorrow so that I can start contacting parents tomorrow evening.
I've had a few attitude problems with one girl in particular. I have to confess that I wasn't ready to get so much flak from a female student, and she was so intimidating that I didn't quite know how to get her on board. I've moved her seat and tried talking to her one-on-one. So far I've been unsuccessful, but I'm hopeful that things will get better. (Her mother will be the first I call tomorrow, maybe even before I get to methods class!)
I just got done grading tests, and I'm very happy that some kids who I was really worried about did much better than I expected. I am not going to claim that it was all my doing, but I thought the test went very well.
Area for adjustment: Per my C.T.'s suggestion, I did a review prior to the test the first time block of each period, followed by the test in the second time block. Since I looked at the review problems and graded the tests, I realized that the sequencing of review and test being on the same day is a big mistake. Next week, I will be doing a review the day before the exam so I can see where the gaps are and address them before the exam.
Several things caught me off guard. I was surprised that although the kids want to go to the board and write out how they solved a problem the do not want to talk to the class and describe how they solved it. I was also surprised that at least half of what they write on the board is wrong. That is, the kids that volunteered don't have the right answers.
ReplyDeleteWhat is most challenging is realizing that we don't have time to focus on fractions even though the kids need it because we have to get to one and two step equations. I expected to have only a few kids that need extra help and I feel like the whole class needs it.
What went well for me was talking through the warm up with the kids. They were all listening, or at least being quiet. The biggest adjustment that I need to make right now is making the class more interactive. I am asking questions, but I feel like I am not really assessing how all of the students are doing. We are giving a quiz tomorrow, so that will give me more of a sense of how each student is doing.
Friday the 9th was the first day I taught in earnest both classes Geometry in which I was observed then later Algebra 2. While I wasn’t perfect, the students for the most part remained quite in engaged and the material was well absorbed as was evidenced by my cooperating teacher as the students were able to the problems I left for them with little if any assistance.
ReplyDeleteI have also established a level of familiarity with my students. While tentative, there are bonds forming that are unmistakable; a girl that didn’t invest in herself or her learning all school year (as was explained to me) was finally engaged and actually working; while there were other teachers in the room, students were already showing a preference to have me help them. That meant a great deal to me. Granted, I may not have had an award-winning lesson plan, but what I am doing appears to be working. I even have students asking for help from me specifically. One student raised his hand and said this question is for Mr. S. (what I have them call me). Very rewarding indeed
Of course I have had a few minor discipline issues and I am working on them I had one student who loved to talk and complain about work has been thrust on him. He said at one point he could do my job and I invited him to. I had him up on the board teaching the class of course with some prompts from myself and the cooperating teacher. But heck it accomplished two of my main goals it got him not to be disruptive and engaged him and actually the other students were learning. I still have some work to do on his discipline as well as that of his partner in crime so to speak. Well the day finished off well. My second class (also the end of the summer school day) ended with a few students still gathered around me at the board going over how to solve absolute value inequalities. Wow the day was over and it is summer school and they were engaged enough to not care that their class was over.
My last blog post had me saying engagement, engagement, engagement well I want to add another important tool Empowerment!
My first day was the class' second week, so I arrived early, and met with my coop for ten minutes before class, where he brought me up to speed on a few minor issues like attendance, as kids came into class. They were well-behaved, and sat quietly waiting for the bell. There was no Do Now, just a list of the previous class' homework assignments. At 7:30AM, 7 of the 10 kids were there, and the teacher sat reviewing the book (for the day's lesson) while I began to review the next chapter as he requested. At 7:40, the teacher did attendance. The last student arrived at 7:45 and sat down, with no behavior modification or notice. Then, the teacher began walking around, looking at the student's homework. He then began the lesson on solving two-step equations, speaking so quietly I could barely hear him. I noticed that by 8AM, two students had their heads down on their books (again, there was no notice nor addressing the behavior *NOTE - buy lollipops @ the next Costco visit!)
ReplyDeleteThe teacher, who is a 30 year veteran of the Hartford school systems, follows the 'old school' approach of presenting the concept, doing some examples and asking the class "so the answer is.... " ARC Students shudder the thought! At break, we talked about 'engagement', which he knows about, but doesn't execute. There is one student who is a bit behind the curve, and one who is above it. I noticed the teacher went to the slower performing student and addressed the issue, going as far to say "Why don't you ask questions? If you don't understand, just ask a question, but you gotta ask.." This kid I worked with privately for twenty minutes or so, and I think he may be a bit embarrassed to not be getting a few concepts - especially percentages. I could tell he REALLY appreciated my help, and I will try to find a way to get him more confident, because he can do most of the math without too much trouble.
There is another student who is a 'LEft-brain' type - creative, and a gymnast, which she practices for two hours a day. She has trouble deciding what step to do first, and the teacher told her she needed to practice it like gymnastics, say an hour a day. She's clearly bright, but just isn't interested in the disengaged way the material is taught. I am going to try to ask the kids to fill out a form about their interests, then try to incorporate them into the examples. We all try to guess what interests the kids, why not just ask them?! Otherwise, the class is well-behaved, and should be making faster progress. They need higher expectations, which I will try to set. Anyway, this is just after my first day, and I will post more at the end of the week.
Like Lou, I am pleased to report that the only behavioral issues are sleepiness - especially from the one older student who is taking it for the second time (having previously failed it), and he's doing very well, in fact a bit bored.
ReplyDeleteThis is my greatest struggle right now - how to make algebra interesting. I've tried doing some of the ideas from our fearless colleagues (and keep soliciting ideas), but even if it's a practical example (I've tried examples like buying iPods, bank balances, monthly job income, and gym memberships), and the only things that perked my student's ears up was when I talked about Descartes, and how graphing has been used in engineering, architecture, etc. But so far, I am dissatisfied with my efforts with activities and trying to make the schema activator interesting.
I am pleased to see that the student who was having trouble in my previous post above, has reported that he understands it much better after I helped him, and that is very rewarding.
I would like to suggest to the class (so this is a test to see if Randy, or our colleagues reads my post) to create a blog to post DoNow's by topic, so over time we can compile a library. We might even be able to arrange to vote on them to rate them, or even something like the Trackstar site we did in Technology class sharing web links. Perhaps we can talk about this at a Methods class next week?