Technology and The Classroom

Over the last four weeks most of us have been introduced to some fascinating new technologies that schools have the opportunity to integrate into the classroom. With that said, I am wondering if anyone actually witnessed Smart-Boards, Clickers, Blogging, Blackboard etc being used during their observation experience. Although I did notice that about 50% of Limerick’s classrooms were equipped with projectors (along with 20 feet of extension cords and power bars hanging from ceilings) I didn’t see any other technologies being used. In fact one teacher actually used a 30’ T.V. to show a piece of footage, when he had access to an 80’ screen via the projector! Out of the 12 classes that my buddy and I observed only one went as far as using PowerPoint to deliver a lesson. One teacher (SS10) actually preferred to use the text Crossroads: A Meeting of Nations, printed in 1987, over a new text that was in the library. This was a surprise to me. Parts of me actually found some comfort in the fact that high school had not changed that much from when I graduated (2000) however, I was a bit surprised to see most textbooks that I used (that seemed dated even then) still being used. I am interested to hear about other people’s experiences during their observations, and particularly about how technologies were integrated. Although Lambrick Park is a “middle class” school, in my opinion they are slow to integrate technologies into the classroom, at least the technologies that we have been learning about. Is Uvic perhaps out of touch with the reality of most school budgets, and what most schools have access to? What are your thoughts?

The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly

I don't want to be the Debbie-Downer, and I'm so excited for those of you who have posted about wonderful and positive observation experiences, but I also feel like we need to look at the flip side of the coin. 

My observation was a positive experience in the end but there were moments within it where I definitely had the "why am I doing this moments?" And even though it ended up being something I walked a way from with a smile, I definitely have new worries that I never even would have considered pre-observation.

That is what is great about this program. We have time to come back to UVic, reflect, and talk it all out; we get to share the good, bad and ugly and learn from each other.

So what are some things (little or big) that you guys are now worried/concerned/nervous about?

I bet between all of us and Chris we can figure a lot of them out!!

My time at Wellington

From the other posts people have had some interesting experiences at their schools So I thought I would share some of mine. At the school I was at they had a couple of interesting program set up that I would like to hear people's views on. The first was free fresh fruit was put in classrooms for the students to eat, thus encouraging them to have a healthy snack. I think this is a good program but based on budgets these days I am surprised they can afford to do it. Another program they have in place is that at the start of the last period of the day everyone, students and all staff, are suppose to silently read for 20 minutes. Now in practice this is done with most of the junior student’s, grades 8-10 at this school, but is not done with the senior students and basically none of the staff actually read during this time. I think it is a good idea that is not working the way it was originally planned.

Another experience I got to do is going to a staff meeting after school. It was interesting to see all of the teachers acting like students sitting in their chairs doodling while people were taking. It was interesting to see all of the various programs that the school had running and to hear people talk about the progress of these programs. Since I went to the same school district I imagine many of these similar programs occurred at my school but I was totally unaware of them. This could show that all of the programs available to students are not always made clear.

I am also curious how many people got to actually stand up at the front of the room and teach. For one day I got the run all of my mentor teacher’s classes. I made up the notes for the day and gave all the directions for the students. My mentor teacher just watched and forced to the students to come to me for questions as I was in charge for the day. I feel that the students did respond to me and my mentor teacher told me I did very well. This is encouraging and I was glad to get the experience at the front of the classroom.

Words of Wisdom

Here's a selection of some of the best quotes from teachers I wrote down from my 2 week observation at Oak Bay High. Some are funny, some are serious. But they are all very insightful. Enjoy.

• Teacher: “Do you remember what we did last week?”

Student: “Wha?”

Teacher: “When someone asks you a question that you don't understand, you don't

say 'Wha', you say 'Pardon'”

• “Guys, you have to learn what chivalry is. It's very important. Ladies always go first”

• “All that matters is what you learn. Making mistakes is o.k.”

• “EXCELLENT! FANTASTIC! HIGH-FIVES ALL AROUND!”

• “Good rapport works way better than a good lesson plan”

• Teacher 1: “I smell burning, have you been burning something?”

Teacher 2. “I haven't burned anything yet today. Well, except for that one late student”

• “Is this making any sense to you guys? No? Not really? Ok, just forget it”

• “Homework. I don't assign a lot of it. Generally the kids who do it are the ones who don't need it, and the ones that don't are the ones who need it most. It's flawed.”

• “ I am going to ask you to read that one more time. But this time just a little bit... better.”

• “I am not super keen on the plot of this book. Not all us men are bastards.”

• “You walk into my class late, making a distraction, with no excuse, DURING a quiz?! Sit down and be quite. You're getting a zero.”

• “I want the answer to this one, and I am going to wait till I get it. Cause I know one of you has it in you”

• “Don't forget, kids mature!”

• “Did you actually just start that sentence with 'Ummmmmmm'?!”

• “Guys, I am not gonna lie to you. I don't know the answer to that one”

That's about it! Why not add some of the quotes you picked up during observation in the comments?

Soak it Up...

Sounds like some really great observation experiences going on this past week or so. 3 days to go, take it all in and observe as much as you can as many of you are.
I've had the pleasure of reading your first entries into your eportfolio's and continue to be blown away by the diversity and expertise in our classroom.
Our first class back will be dedicated to debriefing the past two weeks, so bring your stories and we'll unpack some of those more memorable ones. Having submersed myself in the global education ventures that many of you have experienced, I'm particularly interested in how these BC school observations compare.

See you in class in one week.
Chris

How's Observation going?

Hey Everyone!!

One week down, one week to go! I am really looking forward to hearing stories about where everyone is and what's been going on, because Andrea, Rhy, Monica and I are basically at Hogwarts. Minus the brooms and moving staircases, SMUS is still pretty crazy. The highlights have been: unlimited caffine supply and food in the teachers lounge, backpacks dumped along the edges of buildings (instead of in lockers because it is such a "trusting" campus), teachers who LOVE their job (yay unlimited resources!), and really fun, interactive classes (including a fur trade simulation in SS 9 and building a brain from oranges and candy in AP Psych). This place seems created to make sure any kid who comes thrives. Usually the kids who end up here are pretty privileged anyways, so it almost seems like a microcosm of the rich getting richer in an educational sense...it's got me thinking, anyway.

Hope to hear what your highlights and thoughts are of these weeks! Just as a PS, Monica and I are chaperoning the dance tonight, themed "I'm On A Boat"...which I had to youtube to understand ("I swear I'm hip, kids!")...and I never thought I would be on a boat. How do these things get popular?! Rich kids on a boat...coincidence for a theme?!

First Day in a Rural District

Having been a city dweller for pretty much all my life, I have to say that my first day of observation at a more remote school district was a really incredible experience. What really impressed me was the community integration which occured with the school, and the dedication the teachers I spoke with and observed had to the community at large. Additionally, although the school lacked some of the extra elements which can be found in larger disctricts (ie. the latest technology aids, a more complete roster of electives for students for choose from), the administration and the staff more than made up for this with a strong relationship with community liaison organizations and through tailored extracurricular programs set up within the school.

Wow, today was more fulfilling than I expected.  I was nervous, but everyone was so welcoming.  All three of the teachers I observed each had their own unique, and excellent teaching techniques; I can’t wait to discuss them after observation.  One aspect I found fascinating was that I managed to pick three classes, with three different teachers, that coincidentally covered some of the same topic, but in many different ways, and at different levels.  I know in my science methodologies class, we have discussed that each science topic is taught in a spiral outline, through out a student’s education. In other words, each year the curriculum returns to the same topic, but is expanded upon with more detail.  It was nice to see the build up of detail, and depth in science 9 and 10 before I decided to observe physics 12.  In every one of the classes teachers discussed how the Earth’s poles might reverse any day now, and it really got the students to start great discussions.  Did everyone have a great first day at school?  I’m excited to go back tomorrow.

Body image

I should be writing up my reflection, but I was thinking about our discussions on Friday. Cullen brought up a topic that I found I felt very strongly about. He thought it was a very depressing subject but unfortunately, it is the reality of our lives today. Body image.

I probably feel so strongly about it because it has affected me in so many ways. I have watched my friend wither away to practically nothing when she became anorexic in Grade 12. I have heard my best friend, my sister, my mom, all talk constantly about how much they hate their bodies. I have seen advertising claim:

How to get amazing abs in 2 weeks!

or

Drop 10 lbs in 10 days!

I watched so many of my guy friends fight with their lean bodies to "get huge" by endlessly taking protein supplements, creatine, and eventually steroids. Finally, I have yo-yo dieted, spent endless hours at the gym, and had a constant negativity towards the way my body looked.
The reality is that body image is starting to take a negative effect at younger and younger ages. Cullen said that research is now showing girls as early as 6 years old have negative body image. 6 years old! Can you believe that 85% of women feel negatively about their bodies. And it doesn't only affect women. Although it isn't discussed as much, boys and men are constantly affected by negative body image as well. It all boils down to self-esteem. Where has all the positive self-esteem gone?
Cullen's question about body image was "Do you think this affects us as teachers?". I strongly believe that it does and it will. I think we should be informed of body image and how it affects our students. Unfortunately, as I have experienced first hand, people who are affected by the extremes of body image (anorexia, bulimia, etc.) are not an easy fix. They are so focused on the fact that they need to lose weight that they don't believe that they have a problem. Or some might realize it, but they don't believe that they will end up killing themselves. People like this need constant support and help. We concluded that as teachers, we should be able to realize these extremes of body image and somehow suggest that they get help. What do you think? How can we avoid negative body image? Can we even avoid it?
Here is a video about teen body image. I definitely suggest that everyone goes on youtube and looks at all the videos about body image, anorexia, etc. Some of them are incredibly shocking.

I don't want to leave you all worrying that this is a neverending problem. There is some hope on the horizon. During Madrid's fashion week, they have banned skinny models from the catwalk. Models must have a high enough BMI to participate and work in the fashion shows. Also, Dove's Campaign for Real Beauty has set forth thought-provoking ads containing models with real bodies, confidence building programs for the next generation of girls, and all around messages that campaign real beauty, not artificial beauty. It's not a complete fix, but it's a start!

Where the Hell is Matt? (2008) from Matthew Harding on Vimeo.

If you're feeling overwhelmed and focusing too much on the little things in life...watch this...

observation

Alright, this is not a post to generate discussion, I just wanted to share that if you haven't looked up the school you are observing on the internet you should. I just looked up the school I am going to and it looks great! The school offers SO many different classes, some that I never even had the option of in highschool! Perhaps I will get to use my earth science classes after all.....

Artemis Girls and Alternative Schools

First of all I want to say how amazing and valuable I thought today’s presentation on the Artemis Girls was. I hope that everyone got as much out of it as I did. I think that this presentation brought up many issues that occur within the classroom today. The one that stood out the most to me was stereotyping.

I currently work with one of the girls from the Artemis school and I will admit that the first time I met her, societal stereotypes got the best of me. I saw this punked out girl with crazy, multi- coloured hair and ripped up clothing and in all honesty (that I am not exactly proud of) I associated what she looked like with a “problem child”. HOWEVER, the minute she opened her mouth, her high pitched, cute little polite voice introduced herself to me and right away I felt guilty that I let stereotypes invade my first impression of her. She was one of the hardest working girls that I worked with all summer. Thus, I have learned my lesson in judging a book from its cover (especially today after learning so much more about her).

As teachers we need to be very open -minded and non-judgmental towards our students. Just because a student does not dress in a collared shirt and sweater vest does not mean they won’t be a grade A student. And just because a student does not have straight A’s (or even B’s or C’s) does not mean that they aren’t full of intellectual potential. It may just take us (as teachers and mentors) to recognize their hidden potential and inspire them to show it in whatever way they feel comfortable. Maybe this is common sense to some people but I think it’s an important issue to discuss. The girls gave us some great advice today, to me the most important being to look at our students as individuals and equals, in and outside of the classroom!

Okay, I think I have rambled on enough of how I benefited today and I was just wondering what the rest of you think? What was the most important or valuable lesson that you took out of today, if any? Do you think it is realistic and possible to take certain aspects out of alternative schools and implement in the public school classrooms that most of us will probably be teaching in?

Cheers,

Gillian

Wired for Sex, Lies and Power Trips: IT'S A TEEN'S WORLD

Hey, I don't know if anyone is online, or watching T.V. right now Monday, 10:00pm, but there's a documentary on CBC right now that is really interesting about the role that the electronic age is having on youth's views on sex, sexual harassment, and how accepted these are in today's world. It's exactly what we've been talking about in our adolescent psych course. Here's the link to a trailer on the documentary if you missed it:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xMTWAZByqw8&feature=related

and a link to the documentary's website and CBC website:

http://www.itsateensworld.com/

http://www.cbc.ca/documentaries/passionateeyeshowcase/2009/teensworld/

It's also repeating on Sunday, Oct. 11 at 10:00pm PST on CBC if you've missed it tonight.

If you missed it, what are your views on the subject? Is society putting too much pressure on teens to portray a sexual image? Are teens growing up too fast?

Cheers,
Lin

Should religion be left out of the classroom???

Following our class on Friday I started to think about whether or not religion should be discussed in the classroom. It has a huge potential to lead to a heated discussion that is not just unproductive, but hurtful to some. Yet, religion is a part of every ones life, even if you are not religious, atheist or agnostic. Should religion really be left to the side because we as educators are afraid of the consequence of bringing it into our classroom. As a future bio teacher I will teach evolution, therefore I will bring into question religious beliefs even if I don't want to. I think it is also important to discuss religion, the more people understand each other the more respectful they tend to be towards each other.

As my classmates I want to know if you think religion should be brought into the classroom or not and if so what is the best way of approaching this?

Cheers, Tara

Making the Most of the Observation

I don't know about you guys but I'm getting pretty excited for the Observation, mostly because all this talk about high school classrooms is making me want to get in the midst of one!

In order to make the most of the Observation weeks, I was thinking we should share some ideas about what we are all going to try and watch for in particular, what we are going to purposefully "observe," field-study-style.  I'm sure there are lots of random classroom events and happenings that we will learn from but can't at all plan for, but I know personally there are some specific things I plan to pay attention to:

• how my sponsor teacher handles classroom management
• what techniques my sponsor teacher uses to hold students' attention for a whole block

How about you guys?? Any other ideas of what to watch and learn from?? 

P.S. Who loves corny motivational posters? I do. This one is a gem.