Reflection: Identifying Similarities and Differences, Homework and Practice, and Generating and Testing Hypothesess
Q: What kinds of technology can I use to help students identify similarity and differences?
Identification of similarities and differences can be accomplished a variety of different ways, and the use of nonlinguistic representation and graphic organizers can help reinforce understanding that helps students apply the strategy to other contexts. There is a wealth of technology resources that can help organize details as students make comparisons. Word processing programs come standard with tables, as well as drawing tools. There are auto shapes in Microsoft Word & Powerpoint that allow users to draw arrows, circles, etc. and you are able to type in the autoshape without having to draw an extra text box. Using word processors, you are not limited by templates; it's a blank canvas. Powerpoint also has organization charts that can be used to illustrate relationships between concepts. Spreadsheet programs are also useful in making comparisons; especially when there is data that can be calculated to demonstrate a point. The data can be converted to graphs/charts that are valuable way to support the comparison via the use of non-linguistic representation. Other applications that help facilitate comparisons and classifications include Webspiration, Kidspiration, Mindmeister, and Wallwisher to name a few.
Q: What is the purpose of having students do homework and practice outside of the classroom?
One of the common complaints I've heard from students when working with them in supplemental services has to do with the purpose of homework. Many see it as busy work that is an extension of what they were doing in the classroom--and upon reflection, I think that is how I also so homework (for the most part) as a student. While it is important for students to dedicate time to extending their learning of concepts introduced in school to truly gain ownership of the skills, it is equally as important for us as teachers to clearly communicate the purpose and what they can expect to get out of the exercise.
If I were a classroom teacher today, I might try to assign homework that requires taking the concept learned in class and apply it to something relevant to life outside of school. A few examples, depending on the subject: Apply operations of "parts of numbers" (fractions, decimals & percents) to your favorite recipe. Use excel to demonstrate how changing the number of servings impact amounts of ingredients. Elapsed time: Create a 30 second ringtone of your favorite song--what is the beginning and end time? email your file to share in class. Classifying living vs non-living things: look in your backyard and classify living vs non-living things. Organize your comparison in a table or spreadsheet. I would like to think that by taking the skill learned and practiced in the classroom and applying it to tasks that students can relate to will lessen the question of "why do I have to do this?" Of course, there are limitations based on the resources available to the students outside of school so the creating part of these tasks may have to be modified or completed in school.
Q: What technology can be used for Generating and Testing Hypotheses?
The process of generating and testing hypotheses is most definitely on the high end of Bloom's Taxonomy: students develop a hypothesis based on information they are provided, then investigate, analyze, question, and draw conclusions. Because this can be a complex process, the use of technology to gather, organize and present results can be extremely helpful for students. Students can use technology to research topics and gather information--Internet resources or electronic encyclopedias are just a couple of options. Spreadsheet software can be especially useful to organize and present the information: Data tables can be created to organize information as it is gathered, and the data can then be converted into a graph or chart to help provide a visual representation of the findings.
I loved reading what you said about homework. I think you are correct and the kids forget why we give them homework. I have thought about changing my lessons to have 2 days of lesson and one day of classwork/homework. I think of this for 2 reasons. 1. I can help kids who are struggling and 2. I think the kids would be more likely to get things done without feeling like it is busywork. Also, I really like your suggestion for elapsed time. I will be teaching elapsed time right after Spring Break so I might just use your idea along with some other modern ideas to make the lesson relate to the kids more. Thanks for the ideas!
ReplyDeleteSue, also on the homework concept, I liked your thought of creating homework that would put the lessons into terms from real life. Would that also be carried forward to the evaluation (tests and quizzes) as well? I have always been caught off guard when I've completed numerous homework assignments from the end-of-the-chapter sort of problems and then the teacher's end-of-unit tests are not at all in line with those examples.
ReplyDeleteWill, the idea with homework practice is to provide examples of applying the strategy in multiple contexts so that students really own the skill(s). If students have ownership, then having questions that are not a replication of unit work will be easier to handle; it's when we only provide experience from one perspective that trips students up when we ask them to apply it in another context in a test situation. Does that make sense?
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