Russ Cole
Chapter 1 Reflection
Dr. Cullen
Chapter 1 Reflection
Dr. Cullen
This
chapter discusses the concept of Partnering in detail. It explains that general
models of learning witnessed in the classroom, by which the teacher teaches and
the students learn, may not be effective models. Partnering is suggested as a
form of cooperation between the instructor and the student, by which the
students are allowed to teach themselves and the instructor acts as a guide and
aid in that journey. This chapter also offers some hints as to why technology
is often seen as ineffective within classrooms, and suggests partnering as a
possible fix.
The
Chapter emphasizes certain roles that each individual should play. For the
student he gives the following list of descriptors and objectives: Researcher (The student is responsible for
finding facts for themselves, rather than them being lectured as might happen
in a more conventional classroom), Technology User (the student is to be
allowed access to and become effective in using a wide array of technology in
order to accomplish their goal in learning), Thinker and Sense Maker (the
student should be aware that they are responsible for ultimately understanding
and applying the material they are studying), World Changer (the knowledge
acquired should be made relevant to the student by allowing and encouraging
them to apply the concept to the world around them) and Self-teacher (the
student should be able to teach themselves and acquire new information and
concepts independent of the instructor’s guidance).
The roles for teachers are also different from the standard classroom and are listed as: Coach and Guide (the teacher is not lecturer, but encourager and aid to the students’ independent and group studies. The teacher still has the information, but uses it to help rather than tell), Questioner and Goal Setter (The teacher keeps the course of the work on track and evaluates progress by setting expectations for the students to achieve) and Learning Designer (ensures the experience leads to the gain of knowledge).
The roles for teachers are also different from the standard classroom and are listed as: Coach and Guide (the teacher is not lecturer, but encourager and aid to the students’ independent and group studies. The teacher still has the information, but uses it to help rather than tell), Questioner and Goal Setter (The teacher keeps the course of the work on track and evaluates progress by setting expectations for the students to achieve) and Learning Designer (ensures the experience leads to the gain of knowledge).
Partnering
does lead to an increase in the apparent chaos of a classroom, though this has
to do with the style of learning and would be, in fact, controlled chaos.
Partnering also helps establish positive working relationships with parents and
staff as well, allowing people to interact more freely and learn from one
another.
From my
perspective, the partnering method is exactly the kind of classroom that I hope
to someday lead. Students do their best and will be better prepared to further
their education if they learn to teach themselves. Another advantage of
partnering not mentioned in the text is that, students free to learn in new
ways will be allowed to discover which ways work best for them, and thereby may
be led to understand some of their own talents and self worth. These factors
support the development of learners into effective workers and capable
thinkers, with goals and means. It is the kind of individual that I would hope
my class would enable students to become.
While,
at this moment, I have only a slight understanding of how I can implement this
in Biology, I hope that my Chemistry and Physics courses will allows students
as many opportunities with this learning style as I can incorporate and I
believe I will begin some of these methods immediately with my fourth graders
on Sunday Mornings.
For
Sunday Mornings, I plan on incorporating more small-group activities in which,
instead of reading as we normally do, I will ask them a question and allow them
to find the answer. I feel that this
will make them feel more empowered, as well as more respected if given time to
work. I also believe the basic principles of Chemistry could be effectively
studied and learned in small groups without significant lectures from myself as
an instructor. I feel this will encourage more responsibility for that
knowledge and a better understanding of it than lectures often bring.
I am
excited to apply the partnering method as the opportunity arises and I believe
it is the style of learning that I strive to support as an educator.
I liked your point about students being able to identify how they work best. Exposing them to metacognition early so that they know ways to frame learning in the future is great. I had not really thought about that aspect of the chapter, though it is kind of implied with some of the talk about rockets and such. However, it is nice to see clearly stated.
ReplyDeleteI think employing the techniques is great and hope your class enjoys it. One thing I might caution you on is to try to blend it with your current approach first. Have the lesson like what you normally do but with a more guided exploration (small part of the lesson) at least initially. Sometimes students go 'deer in headlights' if the format of the class they are used to gets changed noticeably or radically. Make certain to have enough of the old feel for the first part to get them comfortable with taking charge in their education. Otherwise it sounds great! Let us know how it turns out.
I too am really excited about being able to incorporate the ideas of partnering/ collaboration into a classroom. I think that the rows and teacher instruction way of teaching is very outdated and ineffective. There are some subjects that I struggle with how I will do this (reading), but other subjects seem to lend themselves perfectly to a partnering idea like Science and using a method like the Learning Cycle in the classroom.
ReplyDeleteAs far as the 4th graders in your Sunday School program I think that is a great place to practice this type of activity. Sunday School for years has been about reading a little pamphlet for the day and doing a little worksheet with it to fill the time while the parents do their own study. I think making it a more fun interactive learning adventure will help them take so much more out of the experience and encourage them that any kind of learning can be fun - especially if they are not getting this in school. Good Luck!