Term 1 Week 3: Teacher Expectations & Student Engagement

 

Never Work Harder Than Your Students & Other Principles of Great Teaching

Jackson, Robyn R. (2009). Never Work Harder Than Your Students & Other Principles of Great Teaching. Alexandria, VA: ASCD.

Principle 1: Start where your students are

Principle 2: Know where your students are going 

Principle 3: Expect your students to get there

(Chapter 3 – pp. 77-101)

• It is important to have high expectations for our students. Expectations are different from standards. The standard is the bar and the expectation is our belief about whether students will ever reach the bar. 
• Expectations are based on our beliefs and values. We can only have high expectations of our students if we believe it is possible to help our students and if we believe that it is important to do so. 
• We also need to examine our expectations of ourselves. If we believe that we can reach a student we do everything that we can to ensure that the student is successful. However, if we tell ourselves that there is no way to help a student, we stop trying. If we are not confident in our ability to help students, we lower our expectations to goals that we feel we can comfortably achieve. 
• It can be disheartening when students arrive in our classes without the basic skills that they need to succeed but instead of focusing on what the students can’t do, develop ways that you can teach them the skills they need as well as get through the curriculum.

 Try this idea:                                              

1. Use these three questions (Dufour, Eaker & Dufour, 2005) to develop a plan you can use to be successful with your students. 1. What is it I want students to learn? 2. How will I know when they have learned it? 3. How will I respond when a student experiences difficulty learning?

 Adopt faith in yourself and the importance of your work

• We need to give ourselves time to periodically reflect on our practice and remind ourselves why we went into teaching and what we see as our fundamental role in our students’ lives. We must also be alert for times when our practice contradicts our values (Are we modelling the behaviour that we expect from students? Do we plan lessons that we know won’t challenge our students enough because challenging then more will take more work? …)

Try this idea:                                                  

1. Insist that students complete every assignment. If you really believe that the assignment was worth setting then it is worth completing. The consequence for not completing work or not completing it well should be that students have to spend more time getting it right. Do not offer the students the reprieve of a poor grade. Build time into the school day(during lunch, interval etc.) to work with students who do not complete their work and do not let students get away with sloppy or shoddy work. 

 Confront the Facts of Your Reality 

• Teachers do not and cannot have all the answers. We need to be reflective about our own strengths and limitations as a teacher; talk to our students and try to understand their perspectives; examine student data to look for patterns and trends and be open to more than one interpretation without placing blame on our students or ourselves. 
• There are four important questions to ask:

1. What are my current skills and teaching strategies? 
2. What are the requirements and the constraints on the teaching task at hand?
3. Are my current skills and strategies sufficient for the teaching task at hand?
4. If not, what can I do about it?  

Remember that expectations have more to do with us than with our students.

Professional Readings

Asking for help isn't easy for some students Chicago Tribune

Research from the University of Pennsylvania suggests that students' ability to speak up for themselves and seek help from a teacher often varies by socioeconomic status. Researchers tracked 60 students from 3^rd through 5^th grade beginning in 2008. Jessica McCrory Calarco, lead researcher, visited students' homes, interviewed their parents, and grouped them as middle class (at least one parent had a college degree and a professional career) and working class (most parents graduated high school and worked in service jobs). While observing students in class every week, she discovered that middle-class students already knew how to ask questions and therefore spent less time waiting for help, while many working-class students had to learn those skills from their teachers and peers. Calarco believes this insight has implications beyond one assignment. "We tend to assume that once you put kids in school, what they get there will help them overcome any differences they bring with them. But what this shows is...children have a meaningful impact on the way schooling is happening and what they are able to get out of it," she said.  

Empathy, Personalization, and High Standards

High school social studies teacher Rich McKinney left instructional spoon-feeding behind after he learned how students could use empathy to more deeply connect with and understand the lives of those they read about.

Make Standards Engaging Bryan Goodwin

Bryan Goodwin's article addresses student motivation and what teachers and schools can do to improve it. One study that Goodwin cites shows that extrinsic rewards like money have no positive effect on student motivation and can even diminish their intrinsic motivation, making activities less enjoyable. In another study, for example, researchers rewarded young children for drawing pictures, but then the children became less likely to spend their free time drawing. Another study found that students develop their talents over the long haul when they are both intrinsically and extrinsically motivated----combining enjoyment of their studies with "serious goal-directness." Goodwin concludes that to achieve that combination, teachers can create lessons that are balanced between structure and autonomy but still communicate clear expectations for their students. Teachers can also model passion by showing students that their subject (e.g., mathematics, English, art) is worthy of a long-term pursuit.

Helping Children with Learning Disabilities Understand What They Read

Read more for information about how to use visual organizers, hooks such as hand gestures, and mnemonics to help your students with homework.

Term 1 Week 2: How to manage stress and ideas for Teaching & Learning

Never Work Harder Than Your Students & Other Principles of Great Teaching

by Robyn R. Jackson

Principle 2: Know where your students are going 

(Chapter 2 – pp. 54-76) 

The importance of Learning Objectives

• At St Mary’s we use the Lorraine Munro whiteboard configuration (Do Now, Learning Objectives, Homework) so that the students are prepared for each lesson and know what to expect. When creating Learning Objectives for our lessons we need to make sure that we distinguish between learning goals and the activities that we plan. Often our objectives are really learning activities that outline what we plan to teach/ what students will do in the lesson, not what we want the students to learn. 
• Learning Objectives need to focus on what students will be learning.
• To create effective Learning Objectives for each lesson, think about what the students need to achieve by the end of a unit of work. Then break this end goal into smaller objectives which will guide each lesson as they work through the unit.
• Clear learning goals should drive everything you and your students do in the classroom.
• Effective Learning Objectives will emphasise content (what students need to know or understand - e.g. Students will know the meaning of irony) and/ or process (ways of learning and skill development – e.g. Students will be able to explain how an author uses irony to strengthen his/ her argument).
• Unpacking standards/ final learning goals focuses lesson planning. It helps us to determine exactly what students should learn, select learning activities that are well-matched to learning goals and to students’ individual needs.
• State goals in terms of minimal rather than maximum acceptable performance. 
• Learning Objectives must be concrete and measurable (e.g. instead of students will write for a variety of purposes try students will write to persuade and to explain which is able to be assessed more easily and clearly).
•  Communicate goals to students and parents and hold students accountable for achieving them.
• Learning activities must match the Learning Objectives of the lesson.

Designing Appropriate Assessments 

• There are two things to consider when you are creating an assessment – will it give you an accurate picture of whether the students have met the learning goal and will it allow you to give students the feedback necessary in order to improve?

Try these ideas:

1. Break your learning goals down into the steps that students will take. Present these steps to the students visually so that they can track their own progress. 
2. Look at each learning activity that you use with your classes and determine what the ultimate learning goal is for each. Does this align with the Learning Objectives of the lesson or unit that you are teaching? Is the activity teaching a need-to-know 
3. Ask students to explain in their own words why they are completing particular tasks/ assignments/ experiments … Make sure that they can connect the activity to the Learning Objective 
4. Do more than just put the Learning Objectives on the board. Discuss with students what the objectives mean and ask for their opinions about the best way to help them reach the objectives. 
5. Explain to students how they will use what they are learning before you start something new 
6. Make connections between what they are currently learning and what they have already learned. 
7. Once the Learning Objectives for a unit/ Achievement Standard have been shared with students, ask them to set their own goal (in their own words) for the end of the unit. Get them to explain what they will need to do to be able to get there. Students can reflect on their progress towards their goal after formative assessments.

Managing Stress this year

These two articles have some good strategies to put in place so that you have less stress in your life:

• How to Manage Your Stress
• Stress Test

High Needs Students

• What are the most efficient methods for teaching students with learning disabilities?

ASCD's Five Most Popular Posts in 2011:

Myth of Bell-to-Bell Instruction Vs. "Golden Rule of 15 Minutes"
In this post, math teacher Kadhir Rajagopal describes his instructional style, in which he's never up at the board doing traditional direct instruction for more than 15 minutes per class period. Hear how he uses mini-lessons and "interactive teach-back" to keep his students engaged and putting their new knowledge to instant use.

Seven Ways to Go From On-Task to Engaged
We see examples of on-task but disengaged behavior every day: students mindlessly copying notes from a screen, listening to a lecture but daydreaming about what to do after school, robotically completing a worksheet. So, how do we ramp up both on-task behavior and real, meaningful engagement for our students? This post by motivation expert Bryan Harris shares seven easy ways to increase the likelihood that students are both engaged and on-task.

Should We Allow Students to Use Cell Phones in School?
Several education leaders share perspectives and experiences with varying policies toward student cell phone in schools. Most think cell phones can be responsibly used as part of classroom instruction. What do you think? Are cell phones welcome in your school?

Cure for the Cameron Diaz
While the movie Bad Teacher was welcome comic relief for some, this post provides an alternative, profiling several education-related documentaries released this summer: American Teacher, The Bully Project, Our School, and The Learning. Look for them available on DVD or view instant.

How Negative Social Proof Can Undermine Classroom Management
Negative social proof works in a similar way as positive social proof. Because most of us look to others to help us decide our own behavior, the practice of stressing the poor behavior of a few students may actually encourage and increase that behavior. This post by Bryan Harris says educators are better served to point out and discuss the positive behaviors of the majority of our students.

Term 1 Week 1: The Beginning of the Year - setting up for learning

The Beginning of the Year - setting up for learning

Hi everyone

I hope you all feel refreshed after the holidays and are as excited about 2012 as I am. Over the holidays I read a book that I think all teachers should read called Never Work Harder Than Your Students & Other Principles of Great Teaching by Robyn R. Jackson. The content ties in really well with what we talked about yesterday - encouraging and guiding students to manage their own learning and lives much more effectively.

For the first seven weeks of the year I will summarise one chapter per week and then if you want more information you can refer to the book - which you can borrow from me.

Jackson, Robyn R. (2009). Never Work Harder Than Your Students & Other Principles of Great Teaching. Alexandria, VA: ASCD.

Summary

This book encourages and guides teachers in adopting eight mastery principles:

1.       Start where your students are

2.       Know where your students are going

3.       Expect your students to get to their goal

4.       Support students along the way

5.       Use feedback to help both yourself and your students to improve

6.       Focus on quality rather than quantity

7.       Never work harder than your students

The book outlines each principle in more detail and explains how you can better practise the principle with your own classes.

Website for more information: www.masterteachermindset.com

So this week the focus is Start where your students are

Principle 1: Start where your students are

(Chapter 1 – pp. 27-53)

·                Getting to know you activities may be useful but they are not sufficient to really understand who students are.

·                Knowing your students means recognising what currency (behaviours that students use to acquire understanding and skills) they have and value and using this to help them acquire the understanding and skills that lead to high achievement (including both content and procedural understanding).

·                There is often a disconnect between student currencies and our expectations. We should reshape our approach to teaching so that we capitalise on what students bring with them to the classroom. To do this we should first examine our own beliefs about what is acceptable in the classroom, what makes a “good student”, and what constitutes learning.

Try this idea: (pp. 33-34)                       

Choose one class that you teach.

1.       Create a T Chart.

2.       On one side list the behaviours and characteristics of your ideal student. This list will help you to see what currencies you value.

3.       Place a star next to each characteristic that is necessary in order for the student to master the learning objectives of your subject.

4.       On the other side, list the characteristics, behaviours and values of the students in your class.

5.       Compare your lists to see what currencies your students are spending and what currencies you value.

·         What are the similarities?

·         What are the differences?

·         How many of the starred characteristics do your students already have?

·         What can you do to help your students acquire the characteristics that they need that they don’t have already?

·                In his book Beyond the Big Test (2004) Dr William Sedlacek argues that student mastery of eight non-cognitive characteristics and skills are more likely to predict academic success than other measures of intelligence. These characteristics are:

1.       Positive self-concept

2.       Realistic self-appraisal

3.       Successful navigation of the system (e.g. how to access resources and how to use these resources to achieve goals)

4.       Preference for long term goals

5.       Availability of a strong support person

6.       Leadership experience

7.       Community involvement

8.       Knowledge acquired in and about a field of study

These characteristics align with the Values and Key Competencies of The NZC (2007). Values: Excellence; Innovation, inquiry and curiosity; Diversity; Equity; Community and participation; Integrity.

Key Competencies: Thinking, Relating to Others, Using Language, Symbols and Texts, Managing Self, Participating and Contributing.

Try these ideas: (pp. 36-37)

1.       Which of these non-cognitive characteristics do your students already have? Discuss the characteristics with your students and help them to see which they already have and how these characteristics will help them do well in your class. Look for ways to help your students develop the characteristics in which they are not strong while doing the normal work in your classroom.

2.       Enable students to share their own stories not only to learn more about them but also to make the curriculum more relevant. When giving an example in class, ask students if they have had a similar experience. When teaching a new concept, ask students to explain how the concept may be relevant to their community and own lives

3.       Early in the year ask students to identify at least three areas in which they consider themselves to be experts. Compile a list of classroom experts. During the year use student expertise to add to what you are teaching.

4.       Model for students different thinking processes used in completing a complex task. Ask students to come up with alternative ways to complete the same task using their own individual learning style and needs.

·                What can we do about students who have positive characteristics but refuse to use them in our classes? We need to make sure that students believe that what we are teaching them is relevant and worth the effort. We can do this by creating a classroom community of learners (use co-operative learning strategies to do this) and helping students connect what they value to classroom learning (differentiation strategies are useful to use for this).

·                Unfortunately not all students are motivated by the appeal of good grades so we should also aim to reward students in a way that is consistent with what they value.

Term 4 Week 6: End of year & starting a new year

This blog post will focus on some end of year advice and reflection ideas for teachers, as well as some readings to look at over the holidays around setting up for the beginning of a new year. I hope you all have had a rewarding year and that you have a restful holiday, ensuring that you make time for whoever/ whatever matters most in your life.

Ending the school year
There are many good strategies shared at these websites/ on these blog posts. I am sorry that some of these ideas are too late for you to implement this year but there are many that may be helpful.

• Ending the Year on a Positive Note by Mary Beth Hertz
• Finishing the School Year Strong by Larry Ferlazzo
• How to Stay Charged During the Final Weeks of School by Elena Aguilar
• Measuring a Teacher’s Effectiveness Goes Beyond Test Scores by Elena Aguilar
• Previous PD Bite on reflection and thinking about next year

Holiday Reading - refilling our reservoirs

• Term 4's Good Teacher Magazine
• To Teachers: How to Stay Hopeful and Inspired by Elena Aguilar
• Balancing Work and Life: The On-Going Challenge for Educators by Elena Aguilar
• Harness Your Students' Digital Smarts. Innovative teacher Vicki Davis leverages wikis, blogs, podcasts, virtual worlds, and other new media tools to connect students in rural Georgia to the world. http://coolcatteacher.blogspot.com/
• Teaching the iGeneration by Larry D. Rosen. Our children and youth are immersed in technologies that give them opportunities no previous generation has enjoyed. How will schools respond?

Starting the school year

Secondary students talk about what characteristics of a teacher have the most positive effect on their learning.

• Start the Year Off Right: Ideas for Creating a Happy Classroom by Ken Messersmith
• Setting a Positive Tone: Advice for a New School Year by Karen Rasmussen
• Ten Takeaway Tips for Teaching Critical Thinking: Suggestions from educators at KIPP King Collegiate High School on how to help develop and assess critical thinking skills in your students by Mariko Nobori
• Previous PD Bite on setting up for the beginning of the year

Term 4 Week 2: Literacy and meditating

Reading and Strategies for Literacy


In our classes we should try to use reading strategies every time that we ask our students to read. This article defines seven strategies of effective readers and gives ideas about how we can teach each strategy.
Teach the Seven Strategies of Highly Effective Readers By: Elaine K. McEwan (2007)
To improve students' reading comprehension, teachers should introduce the seven cognitive strategies of effective readers: activating, inferring, monitoring-clarifying, questioning, searching-selecting, summarizing, and visualizing-organizing. This article includes definitions of the seven strategies and a lesson-plan template for teaching each one.

Literacy may have stolen brain power from other functions by John Timmer
The human brain contains many regions that are specialized for processing specific decisions and sensory inputs. Many of these are shared with our fellow mammals (and, in some cases, all vertebrates), suggesting that they are evolutionarily ancient specializations. But innovations like writing have only been around for a few thousand years, a time span that's too short relative to human generations to allow for this sort of large evolutionary change. In the absence of specialized capabilities, how has it become possible for such large portions of the population to become literate?

Professional Reading

• How Meditating Helps with Multitasking
• Improve Your Knowledge Daily - Good leaders are constantly seeking knowledge and new ways to learn, writes Art Markman. "There are no shortcuts to having high-quality knowledge, but effort spent learning new things effectively repays itself handsomely in the long run," he writes.

Term 4 Week 1: e-learning, promoting respectful schools and revision strategies

What’s on

World Teachers’ Day is celebrated on 28 October in New Zealand and Australia and internationally on 5 October. I think we definitely need to celebrate ourselves so treat yourself to something nice on Friday!!

Professional Reading

September’s Educational Leadership Magazine “Promoting Respectful Schools” is now in the library and able to be issued. Some of the entries are also available online so I have provided links. It has the following feature articles and columns:

• Bullying—And the Power of Peers - Philip C. Rodkin. This research synthesis explores who bullies and why and what educators and children can do to prevent bullying.
• What Students Say About Bullying - Stan Davis and Charisse Nixon. Kids speak out about which interventions ease or escalate the situation.
• Stepping Back from Zero Tolerance - Judith Browne-Dianis. Harsh disciplinary practices can have severe consequences for students.
• What's So Hard About Win-Win? - Jane Bluestein. Strategies for creating an environment that respects both adults and students.
• Confronting Racial and Religious Tensions - Stephen Wessler. When violence threatens, how do administrators provide outlets for tolerant listening?
• Respect—Where Do We Start? - Marie-Nathalie Beaudoin. Creating a supportive school culture starts with fostering a positive culture for teachers and staff.
• Building Safer, Saner Schools - Laura Mirsky. How restorative practices promote respectful behavior.
• Putting a Face to Faith - Charles C. Haynes. Face to Faith dispels stereotypes and helps students better understand their own and others' religious values.
• Breaking Silences - Robert A. McGarry. A plea for stopping homophobic name-calling and hate language.
• Learning from New Americans - Bill Preble and Carlton Fitzgerald. Inviting students new to the country to speak about their experiences builds their confidence and helps fellow students enlarge their perspectives.
• Looking Out, Looking In - Debbie Pushor. Rethinking how we talk and listen to families yields significant returns.
• Discussions That Drive Democracy - Diana Hess. How to teach students to talk about controversial issues in civil and productive ways.
• Life Lessons from the Philosophers - Scott Seider and Sarah Novick. Attention to respect has played a pivotal role in this school's superior academic achievement record.
• Letters to My Younger Self - Emilie Shafto. A college senior reflects on her life as a struggling 2nd grader.
• Commentary / The Threat of Accountabalism - Phillip C. Schlechty. Focusing only on improving test scores is a misguided school reform.
• Research Says… / Bullying Is Common—And Subtle - Bryan Goodwin. Many students bully to gain social status.
• Art & Science of Teaching / The Perils and Promises of Discovery Learning - Robert J. Marzano. Discovery learning works best when teachers prepare students and offer assistance along the way.

I especially liked this column entry by Carol Ann Tomlinson - One to Grow On / Respecting Students which focuses on how powerful it is for teachers to respect their students (as opposed to wanting to be respected oneself). Tomlinson writes that teachers who respect students:

• Understand the power of beliefs in shaping their practice. They rid themselves of any covert persuasion they may have that kids who are like them in race, economic status, language, beliefs, or motivation are somehow better or smarter than those who are unlike them.
• Believe their work can make previously unimpressive students shine—and can raise the ceilings of possibility for impressive students.
• Teach students how to grow academically and personally.
• Enlist students' partnership in creating a classroom that dignifies each person within it.

e-learning: Professional Reading & strategies

• How to model technology use in the classroom - Veteran teacher Heather Wolpert-Gawron offers 20 tips for using and modeling the use of technology in the classroom. Teachers should involve students in setting up new technology, use digital tools -- such as document cameras, videoconferencing and interactive whiteboards -- throughout the school day and use tech-inspired vocabulary, even when talking about offline activities, she writes.
• Google for Educators: The Best Features for Busy Teachers - An article which explores user-friendly google tools which will keep you and your class inspired, inventive, and organized. I can see that giving students time to explore these tools within your subject context could keep juniors on-task and interested in learning as the term and year comes to an end.

Revision Strategies:
As senior and junior exams are coming up here is another handy revision strategy: Boggle - This strategy helps students to review material and develop their own individualised study guides.

Revision Bites - I put together some revision bites for junior form teachers to go over with their form classes a few years ago. If you have time you may want to go over some of the ideas with your classes - they are relevant for seniors as well.

Term 3 Week 10: Differentiation, blunders, brains and alots

Professional Reading - Differentiation

Five Hallmarks of Good Homework by Cathy Vatterott
Homework shouldn't be about rote learning. The best kind deepens student understanding and builds essential skills.

6 wild ideas for ideal schools
Education columnist Jay Mathews shares six examples from his readers of schools that work. Among them is an example submitted by ASCD's Katie Test of a public high school that focuses on students' academic and emotional needs. Students at Quest Early College High School in Houston have wellness plans, speak regularly with educators, begin taking college-level courses in their first year and complete community-service projects. Mathews notes that the six schools highlighted by readers focus on close teacher-student contact, collaboration and projects.

Early Achievers Losing Ground
A US study shows that many top students are losing ground as they transition from elementary to middle school and middle to high school. Researchers with the Thomas B. Fordham Institute said the findings raise questions about whether federal education policies aimed at helping low-performing students are harming those who are high achievers. "We've been making good progress for kids at the bottom and for poor and minority kids -- that's important," said Michael J. Petrilli, executive vice president. "It just can't be the only thing that we do."


Other Reading

Twenty of My Biggest Teaching Blunders by Todd Finley
We teachers make 0.7 instructional decisions per minute, according to research summaries by Hilda Borko and Richard Shavelson. We make them in contexts that shift from hour to hour in overstuffed portables with finicky projectors, after grading, without enough time to collaborate, without enough information and with too much. We look confident when we’re not, look enthusiastic during second period when demoralized by first. We speed up for the majority when a few need us to slow down. We make decisions about what’s important on festive days and during dark ones, such as 9/11, when raw grief and disorientation filled America’s classrooms like hurricanes of ash...

This is your brain on YouTube
Neuroscientists found a way to peek inside people's brains with MRI scanners and create images of what they see. Researchers showed subjects a succession of YouTube clips, and were able to create watchable, recognizable versions of the clips based only on data gleaned from the scans. "We are opening a window into the movies in our minds," said study leader Jack Gallant

The Alot is Better Than You at Everything

This is a funny, interesting blog post by a true stickler for the English language. Fellow sticklers will enjoy

"Any subject can be made interesting, and therefore any subject can be made boring." --Hilaire Belloc, French-born British writer and historian