Creativity

Tina Ayers

521 Blog Post 3

 

 

Creativity is a way to get people to come up with new and meaningful ideas or ways of solving a problem. Students use creativity when they work in groups and are brainstorming ways in which they might approach a problem. The students analyze their work by comparing it to their group mates in order to maximize their understanding. Sometimes, however in our classroom it may be hard to find evidence that allows for students to use creativity to accomplish any assignments or problems. I co-teach in a high school geometry class, with the primary source of information coming from pre-formed skeleton notes that the department uses every day and the homework is a set of problems from the textbook. Everything is very cut and dry, but I don’t think that it is the department to blame because everything is so rushed that the issue seems to be a lack of time to implement any creativity. Projects and special activities may be seen as having the potential to eat up too much time; time needed to get through all of the state standards. We had an assignment that fostered creativity last week where the students had to make a visual representation to show the relationships between quadrilaterals; giving their properties, a picture of each and show how they are related. The outcome of the variety and creativity was pretty good and it helped the students make more connections. The knowledge acquisition is apparent in the proceeding next lessons while the students showed more comprehension through the lessons.

Problem solving a critical thinking occur in group investigations where the students are given a shape and asked to discover the properties by using various investigatory techniques. Such properties as: base angles of an isosceles trapezoid are congruent, etc.  The students use inductive and deductive reasoning to solve their geometrical proofs. The students are constantly being reminded of how the things that they are learning on any given day are definitely part of a bigger picture that will build on each other.

Communication, discussion, and collaboration usually occur every day in the classroom by having the students work in pairs to solve the examples that go with the day’s lesson. When it comes time for an exam, the students are given a full day to work in groups to complete a review worksheet. Discussion can take place during the lesson if a student asks a question and it may be possible for another student to come up with another explanation, but this is a rare occurrence, it’s usually the teacher talking and the students listening. The students collaborate to get their homework folders passed back through their row and back up to the front in a timed manner. The teacher will put up a timer ion the board and the students have, say 1 minute and 30 seconds to get the task accomplished. They work together to get it done in order to avoid getting a quiz at the end of the class if they don’t make it by the time the buzzer goes off.

Information literacy is taught to the students through the textbook, the teacher’s classroom website and through the notes. The use of this information on the teachers website should be used as a supplement to the students work and enhance their understanding. It should not be used as the primary source of information for their education. The information on the website is public, so they can technically save it or share it.

In our classroom we support and teach media literacy when we assign and do mathematical word problems. We always tell the students to analyze the problems and look carefully for key words, such as: median, equals, perpendicular, etc.  We also introduce the information to the students in different forms by showing them different visual displays from the internet, programs we’ve created, posters, and graphing calculators. This type of information we’ve used doesn’t have the risk of running into any legal issues because it’s YouTube, which is public.

In our class, we use the teacher’s website to post all notes packets, homework assignments, keys to the notes, and additional videos to supplement learning. Technology is used in a grade reporting system that the students have access to where they can check their grades and read teachers comments. This helps keep the students organized by giving them access to the daily pre-printed notes skeleton packets and homework worksheets and assignments. They are able to evaluate their progress in class and keep track daily if desired. A way to communicate with the teacher or e ach other using technology is via email.

The students are prompted to work independently on some assignments in class, and they are assigned homework every night which they usually do on their own. They get credit for doing their homework and suffer the consequences if they do not. They are allowed two late homework assignments per term. They may save them and get extra credit at the end of the term if they didn’t use them. This allows them to see the value in completing assignments. They are also not given leeway for accidentally forgetting their work, even if they did it. I think this prepares them for the real world by showing them that excuses or not, if you don’t have your work to submit, then it’s too bad.

The students are given opportunities every day to work in pairs and on someday they are to work in groups of four. The seating chart is switched up periodically through the term to give everyone a chance to get to know each other and use each other for their diverse sense of knowledge. They may get a chance to see a problem solved in a way that they m ay never have thought of which expands their understanding of the mathematics.

Creativity is something that needs to be let out of every individual in order to make the world a more diverse, enriching, and more sustainable place to live; to thrive in.

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After reading the article Conversing with Miguel, it brought back memories when Miguel talks about how he didn’t want to leave 8^th grade because he was afraid that the teachers wouldn’t care about him like his current teachers do now. I worked with students last year where the majority of them were ELL’s and most had IEP’s and 504’s. I know I cared about each and every one of them, but how do I know if they knew that I cared? Well, it just so happens that while I was at Wal-Mart tonight, I heard my name being called from a distance. “Tina!” as I turned to look, my poor eyesight wouldn’t allow for me to make out who it was. As the girls approached, I realized it was two ELL students that I worked with last year. I could tell that they were happy to see me. They asked me if I was coming back, and they look in their eyes showed that they were disappointed when I said I wasn’t. I guess this answers my question to whether or not the students could tell if I really cared. Sometimes it is the unspoken communication that we feel the most. It’s unfortunate that we can’t stay with the same teachers or students because there definitely could be a bond, but the students should not believe that there won’t be more teachers out here who will care about them in the future, because I can guarantee that there are. In order to address this issue in the classroom I could take extra time to encourage the ELL, and make connections. As a sharing point, I could introduce the class to a Japanese mathematician who recently solved the a solution to "the abc conjecture" in order to highlight cross-cultural contribution. We have one Japanese ELL in our class.

Tina Ayers

511                  

Management Approach

 

                                                 

        Discipline, as hard as it may seem, is a necessary tool in every teacher’s toolkit. If the discipline is too light, chaos may ensue. If the discipline is too harsh, anarchy may follow. There has to be as balance between the two. And, as we’ve come to find out, there are many approaches and philosophies in between. The main approaches I will use in a classroom management approach are: discipline with dignity, assertive discipline, noncoersive, and inner discipline. These approaches are grounded in an educational philosophy of the Reconstructionist because with the discipline with dignity it gives the students a sense of community. As with the assertive discipline it allows the students to realize that their actions affect other members of the classroom/society. As for the inner discipline it allows students to work jointly with their teacher to create a positive learning environment. I believe the nature of the learner is genuinely interested and willing to learn and make changes in themselves which will inevitably change our society. The subject matter being mathematics can affect society by teaching students the benefits of rigorous studying and gaining an in-depth understanding of material. The process by which the students can learn is broad. If the structure of discipline is intact, enforced, and internalized, then I feel that the learner will succeed through the support and guidance that the rules and regulations provide.

 

                                                                                                               

        In order to limit the amount of discipline that a teacher must use, it would be a good idea to put in some preventative measures, in hopes that this will prevent misbehavior in the first place. A preventative approach that I will use in the classroom will come from the inner discipline, dignity, and assertive discipline approaches. From the inner discipline standpoint, the students and I will come up with the class rules, and agree on the consequences. “Reasonable consequences are when teacher and student jointly agree on a set of reasonable logical consequences.”(Coloroso,1994). This is incorporates the Reconstructionist philosophy because it connects the students to society by group collaborating to come up with the rules. The assertive discipline approach suggests “There is a clear structure on how to respond to student disruptions through invoking consequences.”(Canter,1976). This has its place once the student-teacher created rules have been established. The teacher must show authority in some degree, or else the set rules won’t be effective at preventing any misbehavior. Looking at the dignity approach, we can “Establish classroom discipline upon a basis of dignity and hope” (Curwin and Mendler, 1983). The discipline that we do create must be fair and constructive. Once these rules have been established and the consequences understood, I feel that they will be a good measure at preventing misbehavior.

 

 

        Promoting responsible behavior is the main approach in the supportive approach. “Helping students to learn RESPECT for themselves, for other people in their communities, and for property becomes a pivotal feature of this comprehensive management approach.” (Kyle, 1999). In order to support positive student behavior I can implement a noncoersive method by developing appropriate curriculum. “Curriculum must be organized to meet students’ needs for survival, belonging, power, fun, and freedom. Provide a warm supportive classroom climate.”(Glasser, 1985). Sometimes students may have ideas misconstrued and need some guidance on what really is right or wrong. In order to compensate for that we can incorporate inner discipline by making “sure students differentiate between the reality and the problem.”(Coloroso, 1994).If the situation has been blown out of proportion, we should aim to take a step back and reevaluate and adjust our outlook. Being supportive in that I “Help students see that quality work is never destructive to oneself, other or the environment” (Glasser, 1985), I feel that students will make positive choices based on their internal moral compass. Helping students develop a sense of self will benefit them in their entire lives by helping them realize that their behavior, positive or negative, impacts the entire community.

 

 

       If the above techniques don’t work as intended, which I realize that they always won’t or else we wouldn’t be discussing the topic of discipline, then we will resort to the corrective approach. The damage has been done, now what can we do to fix it? It is okay to make mistakes, we all do it, and as Coloroso puts it we must “Get across to students that it’s OK, even beneficial, to make mistakes, and that no problem is so great that it can’t be solved.” After a mistake has been made the inner discipline approach also suggests that we look at the three R’s: restitution, resolution and reconciliation. Restitution means “giving back: the return of something to its rightful owner paying back: compensation for a loss, damage, or injury restoration: the return of something to the condition it was in before it was changed.”(Bing.com). Resolution as defined at Bing.com is “solution: an answer to a problem”. Lastly, Reconciliation is defined as “reconciling of people: the ending of conflict or renewing of a friendly relationship between disputing people or groups”.  As Coloroso puts it “That means they need to fix what was done wrong, figure out how to keep it from happening again, and heal with the people they have harmed.” This emphasizes the Reconstructionist view by being conscious of others and being considerate of their emotions as that will affect society either positively or negatively. As we have recently seen regarding the anti-Muslim YouTube video how destructive being inconsiderate of others can be. This approach to corrective discipline makes sense, and mimics what happens in the real world when laws are broken.

 

                                                                                                                            

         Discipline may have a bad rap, but I defiantly know the benefits that it entails. The preventative, supportive, and correction approach all must be combine to create one harmonious coherent plan to create a well-established conducive learning atmosphere. To prevent misbehavior we must develop rules and consequences. To support positive behavior we must entrust students with the principles to be their own moral guides. To correct, we must do so with dignity and resolution. The Reconstructionist view upholds dignity and respect for all through education. Without properly implemented disciple strategies, no student or teacher would be giving or providing justice.

 

 

 

References

Bing.com: Online dictionary http://www.bing.com/Dictionary/search?q=define+restitution&qpvt=restitution+definition&FORM=DTPDIA accessed September 23, 2012

Canter: Canter's Assertive Discipline  Assertive Discipline Handout   http://cc2010.csusm.edu/course/view.php?id=8866    accessed September 23, 2012

Coloroso: Coloroso's Inner Discipline Inner Discipline Handout   http://cc2010.csusm.edu/course/view.php?id=8866   accessed September 23, 2012

Curwin and Mendler: Curwin & Mendler's Discipline Through Dignity Discipline Through/With Dignity Handout   http://cc2010.csusm.edu/course/view.php?id=8866  accessed September 23, 2012

Glasser: Other Discipline Approaches Glasser's Noncoercive Discipline   http://cc2010.csusm.edu/course/view.php?id=8866   accessed September 23, 2012

Kern, Patricia: CLASSROOM MANAGEMENT: SUPPORTIVE STRATEGIES http://www.nasponline.org/educators/HCHSII_SupportiveStrategies.pdf accessed September 23, 2012

                                                                                                                                                                                          

                                                                                                                                       

Assessing ELL

Assessing EL at (i+1), i.e., Apply knowledge of text connections to make inferences. Use decoding skills and knowledge of both academic and social vocabulary to achieve independent reading. C. Summative- Students will complete and in class worksheet (vocabulary crossword)in order to asses what they have learned about the geometric vocabulary. Assessing EL at (i+1), i.e., Apply knowledge of text connections to make inferences. Use decoding skills and knowledge of both academic and social vocabulary to achieve independent reading.

Student is at current level of Early Intermediate.

A Successful SDAIE Strategy

A successful SDAIE strategy that I have seen is Think-Pair-Share - When asked to consider an idea or answer a question, students write their ideas on paper (think). Each student turns to another student nearby and reads or tells his or her own responses (pair, share). This is an oral exchange, not a reading of each other's papers. I have seen this in practically every classroom that I have been in. it is effective because it is quick and gets the ideas straightened out concisely. It gives each student a chance to test their ideas and correct them if they are incorrect. Then the lesson moves on.

Literacy Survey

Literacy Survey

 

1. When doing your math homework, do you read the chapter?

              (Circle one)        YES            NO

RESULTS: 25.7% said YES

                  74.3% said NO

2. If you answered YES to question 1, do you comprehend the material? Rate comprehension.

                (Circle one)            Low    1   2   3   4   5   6   7   8   9   10   High

3. If you answered YES to question 1, do you feel that the reading has helped you to become a better mathematician?

               (Circle one)       YES            NO

RESULTS: 75% said YES

                  25% said NO 

 

4. If you answered NO to question 1, please indicate why not.

 

             a. you don’t feel it’s necessary because you understand the problems.

             b. you don’t have time to read the chapter.

             c. math text books don’t make sense to you, they are boring, or hard to read.

             d. some other reason. Please specify:              

I don’t read my math textbook because: ____________________________________________________

RESULTS: 60% chose a.

                  17% chose b.

                  23% chose c.

5. Which type of material do you enjoy reading? Please indicate.

            Fantasy, Non Fiction, Technical Manuals, Textbooks, etc….

I like to read: __________________________________________________________________________

 

 

6. On this scale, indicate how much you enjoy or dislike reading.

                 (Circle one)         Can’t stand it   1   2   3   4   5   6   7   8   9   10    Can’t get enough

 

Thank you for your time J

 

 

 

Reflection:

I thought it was very interesting that most of the students who marked that they did not read their math textbook also marked that they did not need to because they felt as though they already knew the material. I can’t wait to see their quiz or the results to see if this information is true. I find it interesting how the students were pretty much all over the chart on whether or not they enjoyed reading in general, but most were somewhat in the middle. I think that for the future, this survey will help me to find ways to encourage the students to read their textbooks.

Social Injustice in School

In this photo there is a student who is eating his lunch alone in the back of the school.

I remember being alone at lunch wandering the halls acting as though I had something important to do. I would end up clear across campus by the parking lot sitting alone wanting for the bell to ring. I felt so scared and unwanted. Iwould wish I could have been invisible, or even dead. Questions I asked myself were: Why didn’t anyone want to be my friend? Why was I so unlikeable?

As a teacher this social injustice is hard to remedy. You can’t force other people to hang out with a student who is alone. You can offer to have that student come in for lunch, but usually that doesn’t work out because they need real peers, not some old teacher trying to relate to them.