TE 801 Week 4

Subject Based Groups

LOOKING AT STUDENT WORK

Questions to Consider When Discussing Student Work

Make sure that all members of the group first have a chance to examine the artifact of student work

 What are two different ways that you anticipate a child might solve this problem? How did this student solve this problem? Can you describe the steps that the student used to solve this problem? Why might the child have done this? What future questions might encourage the child to consider a more efficient strategy? On the basis of the childs existing understanding, what problem might you pose next and how might the child solve it?

Questions and Comments

What are your questions or comments about this activity? Was anything about this activity particularly difficult? Was anything about this activity particularly interesting?

Please post a blog

To the Blog of Student Work What is your analysis? How might you advance the students understanding? (Again, see the blog assignment description for more details) This (like the Noticing blog) should be very interesting for you to read seeing what each other are seeing

Subject-based groups

PROJECT 1 PART 2

Questions for your group to discuss

What are some moves that you saw your MT make that you thought were most effective? Why did you find these moves effective? How would you describe how your students talk about math?

Each Group
What was one teacher move that you thought was most effective?

Once Again
Please realize that you have posted your PPTs on the Wiki, and you can all see them. Why not view them and try read about all the suggestions (good MT moves) that your fellow interns have written about?

Linking Student Talk and Assessment

Stylianou et al. Reading Having a student simply report a numerical answer may make their thinking invisible. Right answers might reflect faulty thinking. Wrong answer might have a type of internal logic. It is students communication about mathematics (writing or talking) that gives us a window into their thinking.

Student interactions
This is why it is important that you begin to notice how students interact with mathematics (Project 1 Part 2) Do they talk about their ideas? Do they share their ideas? Do they think that math is only done by the smart kids who can get the answer?

Student interactions
Part of the challenge of a teacher and an intern (Project 3) is to get students to talk (to each other) about mathematics. Again, lets take realistic baby steps. The students are not ready to talk to each other about mathematical ideas right now.

Student interactions
The key is to start with something reasonable. Explain. Simply start by providing students the opportunity to explain their thinking. ASK FOR THEIR THINKING. (LOL They wont tell you if you dont ask i.e., the worksheet)

Explain.
Ask students to explain their mathematical thinking in writing (or by drawing a picture) Ask students to explain their thinking to a partner. Give students a chance to explore a problem, and walk around and ask them what they are thinking. (You dont need to tell them the answer or correct them, just ask them what they are thinking.)

Explain.
By simply asking the student to explain his or her thinking (to you; to the class; to another person), they are engaged in thinking. Even if their thinking right now is not complete, thinking about it will help them develop their understanding (of course, you can help them along with a few good advancing questions as well.)

Explain.
Wow. By just asking someone to explain., you are communicating a respect for them as a thinker. This is so powerful in its simplicity!

Todays new topic

BACKWARDS DESIGN

Backwards design
Most teachers (of all grades) usually teach, teach, teach (i.e., cover material) and then write the unit test the night before the test. This is a problem.

Backwards design
Backwards design says, START with what you want the students to learn. What is the big idea that you want your students to think about? What learning experiences will you design to help them think about it? That is the recipe for writing a unit plan.

GENIUS QUOTE
Teaching is a means to an end That is, teaching is not an end in and of itself

When you write a lesson: DO NOT START WITH WHAT WE WILL DO

Instead
Start your lesson plan with What students should understand Or, What students should be able to do Or, what I like best, What students should think about That implies that you are trying to get students to think about a specific big idea.

IF YOU JUST GIVE THEM AN ACTIVITY THEY MIGHT NOT BE THINKING ABOUT ANYTHING THEY MIGHT BE HAVING FUN AND STAY ENGAGED, BUT THEY MIGHT NOT BE THINKING ABOUT MATHEMATICS AND THAT IS THE WHOLE POINT OF THIS CLASS.

Big Ideas
Do you have an idea about what you will be teaching during your unit / GLT? What is the big mathematical idea that you want your students to think about? Discuss.

This is the first step of the unit plan

What are the big ideas that you are building your unit around? This is the first criterion that I will look for.

Project 1 Part 3
PRE-ASSESSMENT What is your big idea? What do your students already think / know / understand about the big idea that you are trying to get them to think about?

Pre-assessment
This need not be a practice test This need not be identical to what you will teach students during the GLT. But the information should help you: it should tell you something about how students are already thinking about the big idea you want to start to get them to think about.

Pre-assessment
You could give it to the entire class (a quick survey or a few quick problems) Or you could just take aside and interview a few students. The important thing is to JUSTIFY why you are using the pre-assessment you did and why you selected the students you did.

Pre-assessment
There is no right or wrong answer to this. But it is important to justify your instructional decisions. This makes your unit look impressive. I knew the big idea I was going to teach my unit aroundso I gave this pre-assessment, becauseIt helped me plan the activities I wanted to use / questions I wanted to ask / things I wanted my students to think about during the unit in this way YOU ARE A PROFESSIONAL!

For next week

Complete Project 1 Part 3 This is to be completed individually, in your own classroom. The final product I want to see is a PPT (see Project 1 description)

For next week

I dont need all the data But I do need a description of the Preassessment and a detailed explanation of its rationale, and a description of the results And you need the actual pre-assessment, the actual data, etc. to put in your portfolio.