Use this space to record thoughts, feelings, and new learning from the past week in your BSU ED6334 course. Try to be thorough yet concise, and consider keeping your entries between 150 and 200 words if possible. Revisit the blog throughout the week to read classmates' postings as you're able.
The thing I think I most appreciate about chapter 9 is that it really got me to think about the importance of working with colleagues and how that can then affect our teaching. For the majority of this semester I have been thinking mainly about what I can do in my classroom and my thoughts have been mainly centered around my teaching and my classroom. So I really liked that this chapter got my mind to think more about those that I will encounter in my work and how working together and sharing ideas will be an important and signficant part of my teaching career.
Christina made great points about how collaboration can help us improve our abilities and strategies. Though we've talked about how to do this in our own classrooms, Chapter 9 helped us focus on how to expand this idea to help ourselves grow in our profession.
Change is hard. There has to be a reward. When we first started doing online classes, I kept stressing that this wasn't for everyone, and that you couldn't just throw a face to face class online and call it good. People seem to understand that now. Now we've moved into more complex discussions on how to engage students online, how to do effective assessment online, etc. Maybe that is a key starting point for all change - start with the broader picture and move to the more detailed ideas? If we can't see the broader picture, maybe we piece meal things together in a way that just don't work, and then we get frustrated with the entire process. Sounds like UNDERSTANDING BY DESIGN textbook copy, for those in the instructional design course as well as this one!
Keep on keeping on might be the advice for the masses. Keep trying, keep improving, and keep planning for positive change! Kayla
Change. Why are we afraid of it? Most of us seem to like the status quo in life and teachers are no different. It it's worked for 20 years, why would I change now?! This class has been great for me to learn more about what I can do in my classroom someday, especially since I don't have a lot of classroom experience. This chapter was a good reminder to me to value collaboration and what it can do for me and all students. Teachers can learn so much together. Learning online has been a major way for me to learn to change. Learning wikis, blogs, online discussion boards, and many other things has made me step outside my comfort zone and not fear change. Each time I try something new, it gives me courage to take the next step and that would be teaching these things to my students.
Finishing up some work on a Case Study with an 8th grade student, within this I have created interventions and applied some new techniques that I gleaned from text readings. The supervisor really liked the resources I was working with, so photocopied how to find them, along with website addresses. She has been teaching in the special education field for 20+ years, but felt that what I was doing and the resources I am using were valuable for her to apply with other students on her case load. So this small impact will make even farther reaching ripples in the pond to involve her students with learning disabilities in more effective ways. Since we(in the field of special education) have a vast parameter on developing curriculum as needed per individual / small group, it lends to quicker implementation of ideas, without the red tape. :) Collaboration does not have to wait in line for an outside okay to be put into practice...there is much more freedom investigating methods that work with the variety of students.
As I read the discussion posts from this week I learned that many of my classmates share the same demons as I do. Some of it stems from change or coworkers or whatever but I am ecstatic to know that there so many teachers out there who really want to their job better. When I started working on this degree I was sort of disillusioned about the future of my career. I was almost ready to file myself away as one of those who goes through the motions but des their job. My classmates have been a real inspiration and I've found that joy that I had before about teaching. I'm now looking forward to what the future brings for me, my family and my students.
Wow, so many great ideas this semester. I’ve just been thinking about all of the chapters I’ve read. I started the semester wondering how I was ever going to get all my reading done. I have two books in this class and two books in my other class. I’m down to just 3 chapters to go! Sometimes it’s good to just look back and reflect on what I’ve done.
So, what am I going to do with the information? I’m so glad we have the one-page summaries of the strategies in “The Strategic Teacher.” These will be a great resource for me in the future. I’m sure I’ll re-read many chapters, but the one-pages will help me find what I’m looking for quickly. There have been so many great ideas presented in each week’s discussions. I really value being able to see multiple perspectives on each topic.
My thoughts are directed toward how these strategies can be applied to online teaching. Many of them can be used “as is,” but some will need to be slightly adjusted to work in the online environment. The biggest factor online is the asynchronous activities. This makes group work and discussions a bit of a challenge. It will be interesting to see how emerging technologies, like web-conferencing and virtual environments (like Second Life) will affect online education and teaching strategies.
Chapter 9 is on change, something that needs to occur in schools. However, how the change process takes place can make or break if the changes are accepted. If a person in authority is draconian in imposing the change process, and does not respect the dignity of the people involved, they risk a mutiny. Such was the case in 1932 here in Manitoba, the height of the Great Depression. The Brandon School Division summatively dismissed ALL their teachers and replaced them with first year teachers in a cost- cutting measure. The resulting reaction was the creation of the Manitoba Teachers' Society, which has sometimes been very militant in the protection of teachers. From time to time, it has taken school divisions to court for violating the Labour Relations Act or the Charter of Rights. Absolute power corrupts absolutely, and change done in a despotic manner will only breed resentment.
As others have noted, our focus this week is on implementing school change. Although I have written several times, in this course and in ED 6336, “I want to share this (book, idea, resource, tool, strategy, etc.) with the teachers I supervise,” I actuality need to begin by sharing with the other members of the MNOHS administrative team. This is the time of year when we set institutional goals, introduce those goals to the faculty and get feedback, and make a plan for getting the work done over the summer. I’m enthusiastic about the changes I want to implement but also mindful of competing claims on everyone’s time. Fortunately, my colleagues were planning to review of our course design standards anyway, so this is an ideal time to summarize what I have learned in both BSU courses this semester (seven structures, twenty strategies to support four learning styles, and how to commit 100% to backward design) and to weave it in whenever possible. Lists and diagrams are helpful, so I think I’ll scan 5-6 “winning” pages from the three course texts as my visual aids and as a reminder to myself about what’s really important.
This chapter is a seems so easy to talk about, but in reality change is very difficult for most people. I kind of think this class seemed like a big change for a lot of folks. People seemed very uncertain with "dipping their toes" into the world of wiki and blogger and etc. Nancy had to modify the course several times to help us get comfortable with these "different" ideas. I was uncomfortable too with some of the technology, but I kept an open mind to the course and where Nancy was leading us. How do you deal with people who won't change? Do you say this train is leaving with or without you? Do you slow things down and listen to every groan and complaint? Its a tough one. I think you need to instill confidence in others encouraging them that they could be successful with the change. I also think we can model our own comfort with the ambiguity that comes with change.
I found chapter nine, the chapter on change to be very interesting. I also thought that this chapter was a lot easier to read than the last one. The authors offer a lot of good advice in this chapter on how to make changes happen. Another part of this chapter that I particularly liked is the "structures that help a teacher grow." We, as teachers, need to remember the factors listed on pages 277-78, if we want to have "deep, lasting change across classrooms."
I have been thinking about how much patience it takes for change to happen. Reading this week I thought about how I am affected by my collegues and how I have not been in the collaboration mode this year. I have focused on improving my teaching strategies within my classroom. Although these changes are positive they have been difficult. Especially when you tell other staff you need the student in the classroom learning through projects and different engaged learning strategies. Worksheets can no longer be sent with the student to the resource room. It is very difficult to develop 2 lesson plans for each subject. Sorry but my rantings come from experiences this last week. How do you get students to learn math when they do not attend class?
Hey...I'm a little late here, but I'd like to add my two cents about this week.
This particular chapter was quite meaningful, in that I am in the midst of thinking about an intercession class that I will be teaching and planning accordingly. The spring semester seems to have been one of change and transition. I suspect that given the experience of having taught my class for 2 semesters, I have a better sense of the pros and cons of it all. I seem to be in a personal transition as to the content of the class of my own pedagogical practices. I have come to realize that I need to make a number of changes...I like to think about it as a transition to a higher dimension of teaching, though that sounds a bit on the corny side. Ultimately the strategies and practices we have learned this semester will allow me to smooth out some of the rough edges and refine this course for future delivery.
My 2 year old daughter has been watching Lion King lately. There is a scene with Simba and Rafieki (The monkey) talking about change. Simba ran from his problems and now knows he has to change in order for things in Pride Rock to get better. Rafieki lets him know that change is not easy, it never it is....but it you can't change things from the past, you can only learn from those experiences. Hopefully we can all learn from our experiences and change things for the better. It is tough to be brave, but sometimes it just takes one person to start it!
The thing I think I most appreciate about chapter 9 is that it really got me to think about the importance of working with colleagues and how that can then affect our teaching. For the majority of this semester I have been thinking mainly about what I can do in my classroom and my thoughts have been mainly centered around my teaching and my classroom. So I really liked that this chapter got my mind to think more about those that I will encounter in my work and how working together and sharing ideas will be an important and signficant part of my teaching career.
ReplyDeleteChristina made great points about how collaboration can help us improve our abilities and strategies. Though we've talked about how to do this in our own classrooms, Chapter 9 helped us focus on how to expand this idea to help ourselves grow in our profession.
ReplyDeleteChange is hard. There has to be a reward. When we first started doing online classes, I kept stressing that this wasn't for everyone, and that you couldn't just throw a face to face class online and call it good. People seem to understand that now. Now we've moved into more complex discussions on how to engage students online, how to do effective assessment online, etc. Maybe that is a key starting point for all change - start with the broader picture and move to the more detailed ideas? If we can't see the broader picture, maybe we piece meal things together in a way that just don't work, and then we get frustrated with the entire process. Sounds like UNDERSTANDING BY DESIGN textbook copy, for those in the instructional design course as well as this one!
Keep on keeping on might be the advice for the masses. Keep trying, keep improving, and keep planning for positive change! Kayla
Change. Why are we afraid of it? Most of us seem to like the status quo in life and teachers are no different. It it's worked for 20 years, why would I change now?! This class has been great for me to learn more about what I can do in my classroom someday, especially since I don't have a lot of classroom experience. This chapter was a good reminder to me to value collaboration and what it can do for me and all students. Teachers can learn so much together. Learning online has been a major way for me to learn to change. Learning wikis, blogs, online discussion boards, and many other things has made me step outside my comfort zone and not fear change. Each time I try something new, it gives me courage to take the next step and that would be teaching these things to my students.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteFinishing up some work on a Case Study with an 8th grade student, within this I have created interventions and applied some new techniques that I gleaned from text readings. The supervisor really liked the resources I was working with, so photocopied how to find them, along with website addresses. She has been teaching in the special education field for 20+ years, but felt that what I was doing and the resources I am using were valuable for her to apply with other students on her case load. So this small impact will make even farther reaching ripples in the pond to involve her students with learning disabilities in more effective ways. Since we(in the field of special education) have a vast parameter on developing curriculum as needed per individual / small group, it lends to quicker implementation of ideas, without the red tape. :) Collaboration does not have to wait in line for an outside okay to be put into practice...there is much more freedom investigating methods that work with the variety of students.
ReplyDeleteAs I read the discussion posts from this week I learned that many of my classmates share the same demons as I do. Some of it stems from change or coworkers or whatever but I am ecstatic to know that there so many teachers out there who really want to their job better. When I started working on this degree I was sort of disillusioned about the future of my career. I was almost ready to file myself away as one of those who goes through the motions but des their job. My classmates have been a real inspiration and I've found that joy that I had before about teaching. I'm now looking forward to what the future brings for me, my family and my students.
ReplyDeleteWow, so many great ideas this semester. I’ve just been thinking about all of the chapters I’ve read. I started the semester wondering how I was ever going to get all my reading done. I have two books in this class and two books in my other class. I’m down to just 3 chapters to go! Sometimes it’s good to just look back and reflect on what I’ve done.
ReplyDeleteSo, what am I going to do with the information? I’m so glad we have the one-page summaries of the strategies in “The Strategic Teacher.” These will be a great resource for me in the future. I’m sure I’ll re-read many chapters, but the one-pages will help me find what I’m looking for quickly. There have been so many great ideas presented in each week’s discussions. I really value being able to see multiple perspectives on each topic.
My thoughts are directed toward how these strategies can be applied to online teaching. Many of them can be used “as is,” but some will need to be slightly adjusted to work in the online environment. The biggest factor online is the asynchronous activities. This makes group work and discussions a bit of a challenge. It will be interesting to see how emerging technologies, like web-conferencing and virtual environments (like Second Life) will affect online education and teaching strategies.
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteChapter 9 is on change, something that needs to occur in schools. However, how the change process takes place can make or break if the changes are accepted. If a person in authority is draconian in imposing the change process, and does not respect the dignity of the people involved, they risk a mutiny. Such was the case in 1932 here in Manitoba, the height of the Great Depression. The Brandon School Division summatively dismissed ALL their teachers and replaced them with first year teachers in a cost- cutting measure. The resulting reaction was the creation of the Manitoba Teachers' Society, which has sometimes been very militant in the protection of teachers. From time to time, it has taken school divisions to court for violating the Labour Relations Act or the Charter of Rights. Absolute power corrupts absolutely, and change done in a despotic manner will only breed resentment.
ReplyDeleteAs others have noted, our focus this week is on implementing school change. Although I have written several times, in this course and in ED 6336, “I want to share this (book, idea, resource, tool, strategy, etc.) with the teachers I supervise,” I actuality need to begin by sharing with the other members of the MNOHS administrative team. This is the time of year when we set institutional goals, introduce those goals to the faculty and get feedback, and make a plan for getting the work done over the summer. I’m enthusiastic about the changes I want to implement but also mindful of competing claims on everyone’s time. Fortunately, my colleagues were planning to review of our course design standards anyway, so this is an ideal time to summarize what I have learned in both BSU courses this semester (seven structures, twenty strategies to support four learning styles, and how to commit 100% to backward design) and to weave it in whenever possible. Lists and diagrams are helpful, so I think I’ll scan 5-6 “winning” pages from the three course texts as my visual aids and as a reminder to myself about what’s really important.
ReplyDeleteGood luck to us all!
Hi yall,
ReplyDeleteThis chapter is a seems so easy to talk about, but in reality change is very difficult for most people. I kind of think this class seemed like a big change for a lot of folks. People seemed very uncertain with "dipping their toes" into the world of wiki and blogger and etc. Nancy had to modify the course several times to help us get comfortable with these "different" ideas. I was uncomfortable too with some of the technology, but I kept an open mind to the course and where Nancy was leading us. How do you deal with people who won't change? Do you say this train is leaving with or without you? Do you slow things down and listen to every groan and complaint? Its a tough one. I think you need to instill confidence in others encouraging them that they could be successful with the change. I also think we can model our own comfort with the ambiguity that comes with change.
Mara
I found chapter nine, the chapter on change to be very interesting. I also thought that this chapter was a lot easier to read than the last one. The authors offer a lot of good advice in this chapter on how to make changes happen. Another part of this chapter that I particularly liked is the "structures that help a teacher grow." We, as teachers, need to remember the factors listed on pages 277-78, if we want to have "deep, lasting change across classrooms."
ReplyDeleteI thought that chapter nine was valuable reminder that there is more to teaching than just the lesson plans. It is about management, atmosphere and working to improve. It is so easy to be bogged down with what you don’t like about your situation, the kids won’t do this, the administration is doing that. Everyone has their own crisis, what is usually missing is a solution or any other type of proactive approach to improvement. Change is tough and it is easier to stay in a rut than blaze a new trail, excuse the cliché, but it’s true. So in the discussion post I mentioned the cuts my district is going through and the reorganization and while in the short run it will be uncomfortable and difficult my hope is that it is a catalyst for change and an improvement in the long run. Gabe
ReplyDeleteI have been thinking about how much patience it takes for change to happen. Reading this week I thought about how I am affected by my collegues and how I have not been in the collaboration mode this year. I have focused on improving my teaching strategies within my classroom. Although these changes are positive they have been difficult. Especially when you tell other staff you need the student in the classroom learning through projects and different engaged learning strategies. Worksheets can no longer be sent with the student to the resource room. It is very difficult to develop 2 lesson plans for each subject. Sorry but my rantings come from experiences this last week. How do you get students to learn math when they do not attend class?
ReplyDeleteHey...I'm a little late here, but I'd like to add my two cents about this week.
ReplyDeleteThis particular chapter was quite meaningful, in that I am in the midst of thinking about an intercession class that I will be teaching and planning accordingly. The spring semester seems to have been one of change and transition. I suspect that given the experience of having taught my class for 2 semesters, I have a better sense of the pros and cons of it all. I seem to be in a personal transition as to the content of the class of my own pedagogical practices. I have come to realize that I need to make a number of changes...I like to think about it as a transition to a higher dimension of teaching, though that sounds a bit on the corny side. Ultimately the strategies and practices we have learned this semester will allow me to smooth out some of the rough edges and refine this course for future delivery.
My 2 year old daughter has been watching Lion King lately. There is a scene with Simba and Rafieki (The monkey) talking about change. Simba ran from his problems and now knows he has to change in order for things in Pride Rock to get better. Rafieki lets him know that change is not easy, it never it is....but it you can't change things from the past, you can only learn from those experiences. Hopefully we can all learn from our experiences and change things for the better. It is tough to be brave, but sometimes it just takes one person to start it!
ReplyDelete