My 2018 word is "open" - here we go again.
As I take steps towards true student agency in my classroom, there are of course some struggles to work through which I am experiencing, as I am sure many other teachers and schools are at the moment. One of these recent struggles which I have been thinking about a lot since the winter holidays is student motivation in subject areas because of technology that is considered "consumption". In other words, the use of Edtech when students aren't creating, and their motivation behind it. My students are very motivated by apps/websites like Mathletics, Khan Academy, Epic, Math Smash, and more. The core of it is that they are motivated. They want to be engaged in these activities. They prefer the myriad of choices in Epic compared to our small set of classroom or library books which are always the same. They prefer racing other students around the world to improve their mental math skills in Mathletics as opposed to paper drills. They prefer the choice of learning activities in Khan academy where they can choose which part of the math curriculum they feel they need to focus on the most as opposed to me forcing curriculum on them. They prefer fun, game-like math apps like Math Smash as opposed to working from a textbook for review. All of these second options are available to them, but they are motivated by the technology options, and therefore they usually choose them in their weekly planning (more info below*). My struggle: they aren't using this screen time for creation, but consumption. How much to I compromise their motivation just because they are spending time consuming technology at school? If these options are taken away, or lessened throughout the week, will their motivation to learn more in these subjects weaken? Are all of these options considered consumption if they are genuinely learning and improving because of them? They aren't sitting there playing Slitherio or Angry Birds at any point in the day. Is there some sort of middle ground where consumption as learning is still better than consumption as mindless gaming? Thoughts? The struggles continue, but hopefully I am helping my students become more responsible, independent, and flexible along the way. *In our school week, we both create and consume on the iPads and computers. In my class, part of the weekly planning is done by the students. They are currently usually choosing one 30 minute reading focused activity and two 20-25 minute math focused activities per day. On Mondays I check their timetables to ensure that iPad usage is spread throughout the week and each day. I am always shifting and shaping this experience with my students to make it better and am definitely open to suggestions of improvement to help my students.
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Following on from my "One Word" post/resolution to be more open, here is one of my current stumbles I have been thinking about over the Winter break.
I've recently had a parent say to me "when I was in school, and I am sure when you were in school..." and proceed to tell me the way I learned when I was in school. Not only was this parent making assumptions about my past, but they were also making assumptions that these practices are still relevant for their child.
I just saw this post on Twitter posted by @daveschmittou which made me think about it even more.
"Are you preparing students for their futures or for your past?" To be fair, even as innovative, forward thinking educators we don't really know the answer to this question. Or at least don't definitely know the "how" of it. All we can do is try new strategies and hope our students are on the right path. However, I also think that a good follow up question is how to get parents fully on board and understanding this way of thinking? Most of the parents in my class are fully on board with the changes I am making and the ways I am pushing their children to be more responsible and independent. It is the 1-2 parents who are having trouble seeing eye to eye with how my strategies are supporting their child's future. I sit, I listen, I brainstorm... I can only do what I know how to do, and keep trying. How are you, as an innovative educator, ensuring that your parents are on board with the changes you/your school are making? How do they get over their hurdles of "when I was in school..." or "I learned like this..." etc? How do you help them see if they really are preparing their children for their futures?
2016 brought me a lot of challenges, which led to a lot of change in 2017. But, because I was brave and "dove in" to my gut feelings about a lot of things, 2018 is about to bring a lot of changes again! Even though I have just moved to Switzerland, I have decided to move on again in July. I am joining a team which I look up to and model a lot of my current practices off of. I am so excited to learn from and collaborate with this forward thinking group of colleagues. And, happily, back to the sun!
As a lot of other teachers on Twitter and blogs this month, I have chosen one word for 2018. A broader guidance through the year, as opposed to the standard resolutions to try to stick to. My one word for this year is open.
Open-minded (first one that comes to mind as a PYP teacher, of course)
Open doors for my students, coworkers, and others Open with my sharing Open to new experiences Open to change Open to routine Open heart It is not that I feel like I am doing a bad job at being open. I just want it to serve as a reminder to myself to always continue to be open. And hopefully to pass this onto my students and those around me while doing it. From re-wording the daily schedule to letting the students choose what they feel they need to work on.
At the beginning of this school year I began thinking about how my student's days look. My first change was to assist my own questioning skills, as well as how the students are thinking about a lesson. I challenged myself by writing thoughtful inquiries onto the daily planner, and also matched PYP approaches to learning (skills), learner profile attributes, attitudes, and key concepts to each block of the day.
This is what some of those days looked like. As you can see, it has changed over time already.
My thought process here was to eventually get the students to label what skills they were learning in each block.. but how to do this was the next question.
As I read through my Twitter feed and some blogs, I saw more and more teachers offering ideas about agency in the classroom. How can I offer agency and freedom to my grade 3s while still providing some structure to the day to ease them into this idea? Do I need to tell them when they are doing certain things, and how to do them? No, of course not. These two ideas seemed to mesh into each other. I am taking it in small steps and have started with Guided Reading. Instead of choosing groups for my students and giving them a focus question, my questions became as broad as "what do YOU need to work on?" and allowing them to plan that one session per day. As a class, we came up with what we must do every week, what we should do every week or two, and what we could also do with some extra time. There is also a column for what they might want to do, if they have a proposal for a new activity.
At the beginning of the week, we plan what to do for the whole week. We also look at the approaches to learning so that we know what skill we are focusing on, and how we might improve on those skills. (I do also realise that on both of these screenshots I have written Attitudes to Learning instead of "Approaches to learning" oops!)
One of the things the student Must do is sign up for at least one workshop with me. This ensures that I am still hearing them read each week, and can focus on their needs (or what they feel are their most important needs that week). In the example below, it was based on the landform that they studied, but my idea for the next unit is to work on a different reciprocal reading strategy each day, and they can choose what one(s) they want to improve.
So far, it is working fantastically. I have noticed a change in the tone of the classroom during these Guided Reading sessions. Because I am not telling them what to do, they have more motivation to do it. They always enjoyed Guided Reading, but now every day they are doing exactly what they want to do, even if it is just because they know it is what they need to be working on. We just recently had Parent Teacher Conferences and I had numerous parents giving me positive feedback about this. It is really promoting independence, responsibility, motivation, and self-reflection.
I have already set a goal for myself of implementing this strategy into more areas of my classroom. The timetable below is a 2-week rotation for my class. I plan to introduce one new subject at a time, probably with Math next.
As a lot of PYP educators right now, I am researching and reading about agency in the classroom. The IBO has announced a stronger emphasis on student agency, which I believe is fantastic. I am looking forward to their next publication about "The Learner" to understand more about how they feel this could be expressed in schools.
As we fight through this tangled web of what it actually means for students to have agency, I would like to share my thoughts on what agency is and is not. I cannot find an overwhelming amount of tried and true resources about this yet, but feel like they are coming. Comments, ideas, and links are more than welcomed
What is agency NOT?
Agency is not slotting students into classes at specific times in the week, when they may feel unfit to perform a certain task or execute a certain activity just because you say it is time for them to do it. Exposure to a number of subjects and tasks, of course, but not forcing students in a rigid way. I am not even sure that simply providing structured choice is enough. It merely scratches the surface, making it look like the students are inquiring into their interests when really their teacher has still provided the information. Are they making any real decisions? Taking any real responsibility for what they are learning? Agency is not a checklist or ladder which the students work their way through at their own pace. This may be individualised in terms of ability, but it is definitely not personalised by interest or skill. It does not inspire students to be creative, to pursue their passions, to have an outlet of choice, or to become individuals ready for the real world. Do you have a daily checklist for life that you work though in an order prescribed to you by someone else who doesn't know your name? Doubtful.
So what IS agency?
In my eyes, agency is ownership. It is taking responsibility for their learning in the most independent way possible (of course this means small steps and scaffolding to get there). When students leave school, what do they need to be able to do? They need to be able to plan their day. To choose how to use their time. To gain knowledge in areas relevant and interesting to them. To express themselves in a variety of ways (of their choice). To use technology to assist their learning, scheduling, and communication. To be a responsible adult. My question then, is why schools are pushing a format which so clearly is not preparation for these things? What can we do as educators to break this pattern, and help students become fully prepared citizens? I hope that the IBO publications coming out over the next year will help us move along this journey.
Hello! Back at it... new school year, new school, new country! I have moved to an IB school in Switzerland and am excited for the change. Settling in and getting everything organised, and I don't have a life yet so here I am blogging again, haha. I was plotting skills, etc with my new grade 2/3 team and made a chart for myself to keep organised... then decided it might be something worth sharing! Basically what I have done is taken the ICT skills from the IB's list and have created a resource bank of apps and websites for teachers to look at when they are making sure that everything is being covered. As outlined by the IBO in “The Role of ICT in the PYP,” these are not additional skills to the existing PYP skills. These should be used to support the 5 Essential Elements of the PYP and cross-referenced with the units. https://ibpublishing.ibo.org/live-exist/rest/app/tsm.xql?doc=p_0_pypxx_mon_1106_1_e&part=1&chapter=3 InvestigatingInvestigating is to carry out a purposeful inquiry or research, to test existing understanding, discover new information and create new understanding. Through investigation, learners critically evaluate a variety of sources, making connections and synthesizing findings to apply knowledge to real-life contexts. Apps
WebsitesComment on this post to suggest more! CreatingCreating is a process through which learners are provided with an opportunity to innovate and test boundaries. Learners construct meaning, apply critical thinking and original ideas to real-world situations, and share knowledge through self-expression, problem-posing and problem-solving, and reflection. Apps
Websites Comment on this post to suggest more! CommunicatingCommunicating is the exchange of information with various audiences using a range of media and formats. Effective communicators contribute to cross-cultural understanding, make informed choices when deciding on tools to articulate meaning, and provide relevant, significant feedback to others. Apps
Websites Comment on this post to suggest more! CollaboratingCollaborating is the process through which learners validate and negotiate ideas and reach a deeper understanding and a global perspective. Learners are empowered through digital media and environments and through active participation in creating and sharing knowledge. Apps
Websites Comment on this post to suggest more! OrganisingOrganizing is the ability to structure or arrange connected items. Learners understand that ICT systems can be used to inform, adapt, manage and problem-solve during their creative, communicative, collaborative and investigative processes. Learners make connections, transfer existing knowledge and independently explore new technologies. Apps
Websites
Becoming Responsible Digital CitizensBecoming a responsible digital citizen involves using ICT to make informed and ethical choices while acting with integrity and honesty. In a globally connected digital world, learners are empowered to be responsible for their actions, to value others’ rights and to practise safe and legal behaviours. Apps
WebsitesComment on this post to suggest more!
Student ReviewFirst the teacher told us our username and the password then we logged in and they gave us 10 questions. To they know our level . They gave us passage and questions. The passage is to read and the questions is to answer. If you read lots of passage and answered them correct you will get points.in different passages there is different amount of questions. I recommend students to use it so they get better and better at reading comprehension. Teacher TipsStudent ExamplesMy ReflectionMy students love using ReadTheory. As a teacher, it was easy to set up and all students have the same password to login. I use it as one of my Guided Reading groups, which gives me weekly data about their reading even if I am not right beside them. During the last few minutes of class, or if we have some free time somewhere, I also usually have at least one student asking if they can "do a ReadTheory"... of course! It keeps passages at their level while pushing them a bit further. Some have a hard time understanding why it is making them repeat the same passages... but it is because their comprehension is not high enough. A struggle we all know too well as classroom teachers!
Away from the tech for a minute, and focusing on the IBPYP curriculum for this post. First of all, what do I mean by unpacking the Essential Elements? Sometimes our Central Ideas, Lines of Inquiry, etc. are unclear to students at the beginning of a unit. Especially in an EFL environment, where more support is needed. Group discussions about the words we are using assist in a general understanding of our new unit. Reviewing the Learner Profile Attributes, Attitudes, Key Concepts, Skills, and discussing the Transdisciplinary Theme never hurts, either. I find this clarification a vital part of the beginning of any new unit. Students actually enjoy this routine, too, as part of their Tuning In process. At the beginning of a unit, I always get my students to create the display of our new Central Idea, Lines of Inquiry, Transdisciplinary Theme, Learner Profile Attributes, Attitudes, Skills, and Key Concepts that we are focusing on for the next 4-6 weeks. Before making our student created display, we would go through each of these words on the whiteboard... erasing evidence and clarification as we go... A few units ago I thought to myself... why am I erasing this? Why am I erasing their understandings, clarifications, and definitions of these words which we will be using every day for the next unit? What if someone forgets what that word means? Wouldn't it be easier and more meaningful to keep this brainstorm alive? Also, only one student was gaining a deeper understanding of that one word on the board when they were creating the display. (I would, however, also have mind maps around the room with the Lines of Inquiry and related topics as part of their Tuning In, to find out what they already knew - see my blog post about activities for each part of the Inquiry Cycle here). So I changed the way we did our unpacking. It is still student-created, but it is much more of a focus and workable board in our classroom throughout the entire unit. The next unit after my realisation we created one large web. The Central Idea was in the middle and everything else was around it. The students used post-it notes to each write their understandings of everything on the poster. I found they were much more clear about what we were about to inquire into. The next unit I wanted to have the same amount of thought from each student, but in a different way. I didn't want them to get bored with this process. This time I wrote the Central Idea and Lines of Inquiry on one large paper. Everything else was on a smaller paper. The large (green) paper was where we worked as a class to redefine/clarify/provide synonyms for words in the Central Idea and Lines of Inquiry. The smaller papers (orange and red) became mind maps where we individually added ideas to the words. We can still add to these throughout our current unit as part of our reflections each week/day as we go. How do you unpack your Essential Elements which you are focussing on for a new unit? We have one more unit to go this year, and I am brainstorming new ideas!
Student ReviewThe app I am reviewing is pic collage. Teacher TipsStudent ExamplesMy Reflection
PicCollage is a great tool to use in any subject area at school. The student's creativity shines through in their choices. It is also a great starter for "appsmashing." By that I mean using more than one app. Students can create diagrams, reflections, posters, etc. in PicCollage and add them to an iMovie, Keynote, Book Creator iBook, etc. We use it a lot for homework. It is easy and hands on to ask students to find things around their home related to your unit and then upload their PicCollage onto Seesaw.
Tuning In
Tuning in is where we find out our students' prior knowledge. What do they already know about the Central Idea and Lines of Inquiry? I try to mix it up a little bit every new unit, however, I am finding that my students this year are actually enjoying the routine of completing the same structured brainstorming activities for each unit, and I have seen an amazing improvement in the way they are expressing their ideas (unit 5). As the point of the Tuning In phase is to draw on prior knowledge and find out where you may need to address some misconceptions, this phase is 100% student ideas and contributions.
Finding Out
Here I usually provide students with the opportunity to research and gain knowledge of the Central Idea in a broader sense. If we are learning about space, they would end this phase with a good grasp of space in general. Stats on various planets, moon phases, constellations, explorers of space, technology in space, etc. If we are learning about Ancient Civilisations they would research about more than one Ancient Civilisation, and the details about each of them. Their tools, food, religions, myths, art, etc. I would provide some opportunity for choice to create an even wider scope across the classroom, but some topics would be more specific to know that they have understood the basics and have a solid understanding to build the rest of their knowledge on for the remainder of the unit. The areas we focus on would of course depend on the Central Idea and Lines of Inquiry.
Sorting Out
Students begin comparing different aspects which they have researched as well as their classmates. Usually there will be some element of choice while still being guided on other elements. For example, in our Ancient Civilisations unit, students were to compare different aspects of Egypt, Greece, India, and one other Ancient Civilisation of their choice.
Going Further
This is usually the point where I get my students to choose something they are interested in/still wondering about our Central Idea/Lines of Inquiry. Depending on the unit there may be specific requirements or apps for them to plan to use in their creations. Depending on what the Central Idea is focussing on, this may drive what they choose. For example, our Ancient Civilisations unit had a heavy focus on tools, so our Summative Assessment did as well.
Making Conclusions
In this phase my students use their personal research to create a project which will show their knowledge. Part way through the year I begin to challenge my students by asking them to use more than one app. Book Creator and Keynote are great for the integration of this. Students can insert movies from iMovie or Spark Video, music from GarageBand, collages from PicCollage, Timelines from TimeLine, etc. The projects developed at this stage then become incredibly creative and personal.
Taking Action
This phase is linked with the Making Conclusions phase. Here they may be presenting their projects and reflecting on their learning. This may look different for every student, or every unit, or every project. For me it depends on the time of year, as I give them less and less structure and more and more freedom with every unit. Unit 6 in my classroom I plan to let them choose any app(s) or platform they wish to show their knowledge their own way. Reflections should show their action. Did their thinking change? Did they do anything? Are they acting differently? Did they make something to show others?
My Reflection
I love using the inquiry cycle to help me plan activities and units. I feel that it has fostered an enormous amount of creativity in my classroom. Providing choice seems to be a common theme. Choice of what to research (once the foundations are laid), choice of apps, choice of content, choice of action, choice of reflection. The students take a great amount of ownership after making all of these personal decisions about their projects.
While each individual phase may not allow for a huge amount of creativity, as a whole, the inquiry cycle is a great scaffold to students' creativity and inquiry through a unit. What activities or apps would you add to these lists? I may add more photos or resources as I remember them. |
Cindy KaardalPassionate Educator and Innovation Coach. Archives
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