Reading Reflection 3

When starting a project the big idea should consider the framework of core concepts and processes.  If you only use a standard curriculum with typical results, learners can stagnate, and so can teachers.  Thinking of the big idea can be creative and should help you reach where you want to go. 

The question that came to my mind, is if these curriculum's and textbooks are boring and rigid, why are we using them in the first place?  I think as teaching gets more test/result driven there is a tendency to stick to the curriculum in a rigid fashion.  It takes effort and energy to think of a project, but it is worth it in terms of real world knowledge etc.  

The 21st Century skills are higher order thinking skills such as analysis , evaluation, and creativity.  The 21st Century literacy skills are inventive thinking, self direction, curiosity, creativity and risk taking, communication and productivity.  There is the boring biography assignment, and then there is the more creative biography assignment.  Literacy as the authors define it is,"Learning to be independent, aware, and productive citizens" (p. 49).  And they also mention the importance of authentic projects involving digital resources.  

The essential learning functions, 1.  Learning constantly in and out of the classroom with technology available.  2.  deeper learning and the importance of primary sources and information that isn't filtered but raw.  3.  Emphasis on show me don't tell me and using technological tools to do this  4.  Expression, sharing and building community.  Although on this one I have mixed feelings.  So many people are "tuned in"  to their IPODS and phones and the web that face to face interactions sometimes feel scarce.  If students feel they can isolate and just do everything online I question if that is healthy and useful?  5.  collaboration, working together can be a good thing.  6.  research and teaching your students to use quality sources, tagging tools and citation engines can keep them from being overwhelmed by 49 million results to a one word search.  It may also help to know how to think like a librarian and how to narrow a search from the beginning.  7.  planning, organizing, and managing a project makes it easier to complete tasks.  8.  Reflection and Iteration, considering other points of view via a blog etc.  will be useful.  

For our gardening project, our big idea will be gardening for a farmer's market and comparing a school  in Michigan and one in Chile.  As we move through the development process we need to make use of technology and various resources and work together to plan and manage and then reflect.

 

Reading Reflection #2

1. The focus for learning communities for teachers to be able to work together as a team. We create learning communities in our classrooms for our students to feel comfortable sharing their ideas but it's also important to have a professional learning community with staff and other teachers across the world. This way we can bounce ideas off each other, talk about ways we teach, and how aspects of projects are going in our classroom.
2. The benefits of having a learning community is to significantly improve the quality of time in the classroom. If teachers set up a professional learning community we will be able to discuss ideas and how to plan and implement these ideas. We can talk about how well certain aspects of a plan went or what needs to be changed. It puts teachers at ease and gives more input for the classroom so that our students are getting the best of us.
3. Learning communities affect teachers because it helps their confidence in the classroom. By being able to talk to other teachers they can connect and converse with colleagues and see what they are doing and what is working for them. This helps the overall attitude of the classroom and challenges the students. By having a professional learning community the teachers are less isolated, they are able to share responsibility, they have commitment to the mission which in turn creates more powerful learning.
4. Learning communities affect students because the expectations for them are being raised so they will be able to achieve more and they can feel comfortable sharing ideas. Setting a precedent of respecting everyone and listening to what each student has to say will allow children to explore their thoughts and ideas.
5. The shared vision in learning communities are similar to research-based visions which includes a clear mission, how members of the community are going to achieve this mission, pick teachers who are like-minded with yourself, collaborate with each other and see yourself as a student and learner again.
6. Concepts in this chapter contain to my project because I am going to be working with two other people so teamwork is essential. We need to be able to communicate and bounce ideas off each other so we can earn the best grade possible on our project. We need to be able to share responsibility and continuously improve our project.

websites chosen by Chris McGuire to review

Hi Group, I think these websites will be great.  One is for grants, one on farmer's markets, and one on school gardens in Chile!! Cool.


http://kalfound.org
http://www.kalamazoocity.org/portal/government.php?page_id=203
http://www.unesco.org/mab/doc/ekocd/chile.html

Reading Reflection 2

Team building is important in many fields and needs to be in education as well.  Collaboration and brainstorming are beneficial to teachers and students and a larger global community.  Often teaching can feel isolating and stagnant.  Learning communities changes all that.  Students benefit in numerous ways, by seeing teamwork/collaboration modeled and by engaging numerous people in a process they see that the world does not operate in a small bubble of isolation.

I think this is sometimes an idealistic book.  The schools I've worked in always have a bit of a stressed feel to them (in Kalamazoo).  I also think the emphasis on shared goals, beliefs and values is important and finding the people you click with via blogs etc  is important.  I would also like to see more time allotted for teacher collaboration for PBL and not just during professional development or staff meetings, which happens A LOT in schools. 

I think as a teacher you have to be proactive in seeking out like minded colleagues that you could work on some grant funded or otherwise useful project. 

The authors discuss the formal/informal sides of beginning communities.  Some could be as simple as blogs or just meeting and talking.  Learning Communities should have a mission, teams, organization, a focus on student learning, oriented towards results, and be committed to self improvement and life long learning( Boss, Krauss). 

Learning Communities often begin PBL and can bridge geographical distance as well.  They emphasize how to learn together and to make time for it.  Teachers should be open minded and engaged in the process and become more intentional with their interactions with fellow teachers as well. 

Reading Reflection #2

     The focus of Learning Communities is to give teachers time outside of teaching to collaborate with one another. One of the objectives of this is to focus on giving one another critical feedback on their future plans or projects with their students so the teacher can see things he or she may have overlooked in the planning. Learning Communities focus on three main things; ensure that students are learning, create a culture of collaboration, and focus on the results.
     The benefits of Learning Communities are that learning becomes very relevant while still being challenging for both teachers and students. They are both gaining necessary skills that are used in the real world such as communication, motivation, and problem solving.
     For teachers, Learning Communities allow them to communicate with one another. They lose the sense of isolation and feel like they are part of a collaborative whole. There also becomes a shared responsibility for teachers to gain the results that they desire. So, their commitment to the students, each other, and learning as a whole improves making them more motivated and more powerful learners. I think it may be difficult if teachers cannot agree on how they should be collaborating, or if teachers differ in their ways of teaching. Closed mindedness would be a huge issue in this type of teaching.
     For students, Learning Communities provide for a more rigorous way of learning. They will be involved in more projects that can greatly benefit them in the future. Students must be more open to change and  more willing to participate in groups. Students may be more motivated to succeed in this type of learning due to the teacher's obvious passion and dedication to their education.
     The shared vision in Learning Communities is to shift the way of teaching by focusing on what the students learn, rather than looking at what you teach. Teachers are focusing on the results of their project, allowing them to see the bigger picture. Since they are focusing on the end result, they can better communicate with one another and work together to reach this common goal. When a group has a shared vision, they must have conditions they create to achieve their end mission.
     The concepts in the chapter relate to my topic, gardening, because of our overall end goal for our students. The main goal of our topic is allowing students to collaborate with one another on each aspect of the project. Students must also collaborate with professionals in the field. They will be constantly put in situations that will allow them to learn important skills needed in the real world. Handling money, preparing food, building with wood, counting, advertising by means of technology, a commitment to a greater goal, etc. All of these qualities can be seen in Learning Communities, and the rigorous approach that it has to learning and collaboration.

Virtual Penpals

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1rEetT5R4NTI-WcT_hwOUiaMchFa9AMpYC91zpD7ryts/edit

Concept Map Part A

Google Map

View Larger Map This map represents local farmer's markets in the Kalamazoo region. We will be asking our Penpals in Chile where their local farmer's markets are located.

Assignment III Websites

Hey group! These are the websites I'm using!

http://www.garden.org/
http://www.michigangardener.com/
http://michigan-garden.com/

Reinventing Project-Based Learning p. 2-24 Chapter 1
Reflection

1. Starting the journey through Project-Based Learning (PBL) I need to keep in mind that it is a lot of extra work for the teacher but it pays off immensely in the long run. Although it will be more time on my it is what is most beneficial to the students and it will help them learn and remember more of what they are doing. I also need to remember that I am not the only teacher working with PBL. Although not everyone is on board there will be plenty of teachers who have the same goal in mind as myself.
2. The overall benefits to the PBL approach is that students will be able to be self sufficient. They will remember and comprehend more of what they are learning. They will fine tune their problem solving skills so that in the end when the final project is done they can be proud of their work because they did it all on their own and it taught them a plethora of concepts. PBL engages not only the students but the teacher as well. So I will be able to learn along with my students instead of constantly talking at them.
3. For the students who participate in PBL they will become more engaged in what they are learning and they will be able to retain the context of what they are learning. They will become more independent and will be confident in their new found talent of finding out information on their own.
4. Some issues that need to be considered in the PBL approach is the amount of time and preparation it will take on my part as the teacher in order to prepare for these immense projects. In order for the students to get the most out of this experience and for the projects to go smoothly and have purpose I will need to put in a large amount of time to prepare for the entire thing and make sure everything the students do is helping and teaching them in some way.
5. The New Technology High School is a perfect example of the New Technology Model because every teacher in that school teachers with the PBL approach while incorporating technology. They have a smaller student body which allows the teachers to have more one-on-one time with each students, the students are able to work on real world projects, technology is intertwined with everything they do and they are able to share their projects and ideas with each other.

Reflection 1

As you begin your journey through project based learning, you need to remember how all encompassing it is.   And that there is an investment of time and preparation in advance as a teacher and then the focus and locus of control shifts more to the students.

 It is hands on and collaborative and builds team work.  Technology is an integral part of PBL.  It's empowering for students and teachers and should be considered a journey.  We need to remember that today's students are technology ready.  And that projects are worth doing.  This is real world experience for students and they will learn a great deal. 

We need to view blogs and various websites and get very comfortable with technology.  We need to know the foundations that sponsor this type of learning, Edutopia, Bill and Melinda GAtes Foundation, etc.  And to focus your journey and itnerests there are sites for social bookmarking such as Furl, del.icio.us, and Flickr that will help you gather ideas.  PBL also means that you think of creative ways to classroom manage and how we assess students and ourselves. 

There are numerous benefits to PBL.  Students develop commuication, inquiry, and flexibility skills.  Student's learning becomes richer and larger.  The focus on inquiry and student engagement and empowerment is really important in today's classroom. 

Reading Reflection 1: Reinventing Project-Based Learning, p. 2 to 24

1. As I start the journey through Project-Based Learning, I know that I cannot become discouraged with all of these new techniques and changes of teaching. What I'm enjoying most out of this approach is that the students feel all of the work that they put in matters. It's not just busy work for something that they will retain for a short amount of time; they will become life long learners through this type of learning.
2. The overall benefits of PBL are that not only are the students learning, being more engaged, and retaining the information, but the teacher is also learning along with them. The teacher gains the satisfaction of knowing that their students have really learned something, whether it be information on the subject or being able to problem solve with their team or even knowing how to use different tools to access a variety of information.
3.  The overall benefits of the PBL approach to students who participate are that the student's can pursue their own questions that they encounter while learning. This makes them less dependent on others and more confident in their own understanding. PBL increases the motivation in students while also improving their higher thinking and problem solving skills. In this type of learning, students can take the knowledge for their tools and the techniques in which they learn and apply it in real world situations which will allow them to be far more successful in life. 
4.  The issues that need to be considered in the PBL approach are that there is a lot of change from traditional teaching that needs to occur. Teachers need to be able to adapt and willingly change their   ways of educating.  Sometimes it may take a lot of communicating with other teachers and the student's parents for them to understand the reasoning and benefits of the PBL approach. Also, the way a teacher engages with students, the way the students are being assessed, the way student's manage their progress, and the simple layout of the room are all things that must be changed.
   
5.  I think that New Technology High sounds like a great place to work. Not only are the students partaking in the New Technology Model by being offered vast tools to access their information and create and complete their projects, but the teachers are also given planning time and opportunities to communicate and share ideas for successful teaching. The teachers are able to have an understanding relationship with each student, because the numbers of students are kept down. I love that technology is everywhere but it is not the main focus; instead, the technology is viewed as a tool to help them with their learning. New Technology High is a great example of a collaboration between administration, teachers, students, and experts in the field that really seems to be working.