C4T Comments for Teachers Post 1

Wisdom Begins with Wonder
by Mr. Rice
  

C4T#1, Comment 1

What to do when students resist inquiry

In this blog post by Mr. Rice, he sets up a scene where a teacher has opened up his class to student inquiry. The scene is between a student and a teacher. The teacher is trying to provoke curiosity in the students to get them to explore the world with eagerness. The student, however, complains to the teacher that he doesn’t want to because he is “bored” and would rather work from a worksheet or textbook. The teacher tries to remain positive, before the scene goes downhill quickly when the student compares this method of teaching to another teacher’s and asks why not the latter? The teacher tries to explain why he thinks this method is better for learning and the student takes that as the teacher thinks the other teacher is a bad teacher.

In this scenario, the teacher is using inquiry-based methods instead of traditional teaching. This is where students must think critically and make decisions. Mr. Rice points out that by using inquiry, the student is responsible for his/her own learning and it removes the blame on the teacher for the student’s boredom or inability to learn. He gives an example of how he deals with this situation when it comes to his students:

“this is the perfect class for you! We’ve found an area where you need some work. The skills that I’m helping you to learn in this class will help you in future classes, college, careers, whatever. The ability to ask good questions and to find the answer to your own questions is fundamental to life. I won’t give up on you and I won’t think less of you for struggling or being frustrated. Don’t give up on yourself. How can I help you move forward?”

Through this example he then lists the steps that an educator using inquiry should use to deal with this type situation.

• Calmly acknowledge and affirm the student’s frustration
• Gently point out the fixed mindset (believe talents and abilities cannot be improved through any means) and lack of personal agency (capacity for human beings to make choices) the student is displaying
• Look at this as the student’s particular learning needs
• Understand this is a behavior of a need to learn and develop inquiry skills
• Make a note that this student needs help with inquiry situations
• Explain all of this to the student in student friendly terms
• Check back with the student often and give feedback to help ease his/her frustration.

Lastly, Mr. Rice asks his readers “What else should the teacher do in this situation?” This opened up for reader’s comments.

Most of the comments posted where in agreement with Mr. Rice’s blog post. My response was based on his example of how to deal with the situation between the teacher and student and his question of what else the teacher should do in this situation. Students often get more frustrated when told the reason they have to do something or learn something is it will help them in their futures. Instead of leaving it that way, the teacher may want to give an example of how learning this can help them now as well. I then gave a personal example of a situation that I dealt with recently.

I am helping a 10 year old girl I know with her reading. I explained to her how asking good questions in a discussion and learning how to find the answers out on her own could help her reach her reading goals for her class and how she responded well to my suggestions. I also posted that I would appreciate any personal experiences and opinions about this subject and left my contact information.

I posted my comment to his blog and it showed up immediately afterward on his page, but once I returned to the site my blog comment was not showing.

C4T#1, Comment 2

How to be a better teacher today – a long look in the mirror

Back to the drawing board.  It is the beginning of a new year!  Why not start out 2011 with a fresh start?  In this blog post, Mr. Rice suggests exactly that! 
He encourages teachers to step back and evaluate certain aspects of their teaching methods.  Some areas he concentrates on consist of:

·         Grading & assessment

·         Assignments & lessons

·         Pedagogy

·         Homework

·         Late work

·         Classroom management/ discipline

·         Standards & main topics

He mentions that when teachers are evaluating these subjects, they need to let go of all assumptions and think for themselves.  People tend to stick to what they are used to, but in education is that really helpful?  What does a teacher need to do to improve these areas in the classroom?

To fix some of these areas, he recommends asking these questions about each topic:

·         What do I do?

·         Why do I do it this way?

·         How well is it working? (he also advises teachers to ask students as well)

·         What are other ways it could be done?

·         What are barriers to change?

·         How can I learn more?

·         What criteria should help me decide?

·         What are my next steps?

Mr. Rice is leaving the rest up to the teacher.  After teachers have taken these steps, what did they learn?  What would they change?  Are they still making rookie mistakes?

I read the following comments.  Most people thanked him for his self-motivated criticism.  One teacher suggested not changing more than two things at a time or it can become overwhelming.  His last comment back stated that he has to push himself to change and he is now an UNgrader.  I had to investigate.

He now practices not giving students’ grades because he feels that "was evaluating student work and passing judgment on it".  This is a very interesting concept that I hope to learn more about.

My responding comment related to both blog posts because I found them both to be very interesting.  I responded from a student’s point of view and mentioned that if teachers do the same routine every year it has to be boring for both the teacher and the student.  Some students feel that teachers who aren’t interested in updating material will be “easy” because if they don’t care enough about what they are teaching why would they care about student responses? However, I have never thought about what it would take to change the way I would teach.  His methods of critical inspection really opened my eyes to the difficulty in changing something that has worked for so long.  I agreed with his statement: students need mentoring and formative feedback, not judgment!  So I asked, how do we make this possible?