To Blog or not to Blog

Synthesis:

I believe that blogging can be effective in the classroom. It provides resources and tools that students can utilize for classroom activities. It also gives advice for teachers to use. Using technology in the classroom is sometimes a good thing, however there should always be a back up plan in case it does not work out.
Blogging:

The topic that I originally chose was classroom management. I believe that is a topic that many new teachers want to explore. There were not many articles that I found would be useful to me. Instead of exploring that particular topic, I decided to look at articles that fit the subject, but were more interesting and creative in nature. I think the articles I explored give me some insight into my future teaching. It is important as future teachers to really know our students and to make sure we always know what is going on with their hearts and minds. Knowing your students makes all the difference. I also found that adding creativity into STEM gets the kids that like the arts more interested. If the arts are added into STEM, it becomes STEAM, which covers all hands-on activities and makes way for being more creative in the classroom. Lastly, adding portfolio based assessment is definitely something I will be doing in my future classroom. It provides a way of assessing children in a low risk way, and it is easy to show the children and their parents their progress without using paper tests too much. By looking into these articles, I believe that it will give me some insight as to what I will be trying to include in my future classroom.

Reflection:
Honestly, this blogging experience has been a bit challenging for me. Most of the time there were not many articles available on the subjects I wanted to pursue. However, I think that it would be beneficial for other classrooms to use this. Blogging can give a voice to students who may be afraid to speak up in class. It provides an endless supply of information for both students and teachers to explore. I think that this experience taught me that there are many resources, techniques, and activities available to use in my future classroom. I may consider using resources I have read to improve my teaching.

Resources:

Huffman, P. D., Dr. (n.d.). ”Look What I Did!” Why Portfolio-Based Assessment Works. Retrieved March 20, 2017, from http://www.earlychildhoodnews.com/earlychildhood/article_view.aspx?ArticleID=495

Ramirez, A. (August 21, 2013). Creativity is the Secret Sauce in STEM. Retrieved February 22, 2017, from https://www.edutopia.org/blog/creativity-secret-sauce-in-stem-ainissa-ramirez

Wolk, S. (September 3, 2003). Hearts and Minds. Retrieved February 02, 2017, from http://www.ascd.org/publications/educational-leadership/sept03/vol61/num01/Hearts-and-Minds.aspx

Parent and Family Communication Doesn’t have to be Difficult

From using a technology tool to share assessments with families to sharing teacher pedagogy and theories with families, communication is key.

Initially I set out to find out how to communicate effectively with families about students. I found that regardless of the topic up for discussion that it can involve communication with parents and families. It is important to keep communication open and collaborate with families so that everyone is supporting the child.  For example, it is important to explain that children are not just playing all day at school. This misconception can lead parents to believe their children are not learning. However, simply sending home a newsletter explaining how lessons are fun but educational can reassure families that their children are working hard and learning. Upon discovering that parent and family communication can be associated with each category I became intentional in choosing articles that taught how the two topics could be connected. Another example was “A PDA for Assessment.” In this blog I explained how PDAs and other technology tools are useful for assessment but more importantly how they make sharing assessment data easier with families. The final example of how I related my chosen topic to the blog categories was my blog “STEAM and Mr. Rogers’ Neighborhood.” We were asked to find an article about STEM or STEAM and I made it relative to a well known family show from my childhood, Mr. Rogers. The article lists resources for parents and families that are fun and educational such as program listings and activities for different aged children. I began communicating with families by simply making and sending home a printout with activity ideas and directions. This will allow families to participate and be informed of what their children are working on in school. Cameras are also effective for documentation. It allows us to take a snapshot of a child’s work as they are completing it. This paints a picture of the entire process and also acts as a speaking point for parent and family conferences. I have taken pictures for my child study in another class and also to assess student learning throughout lessons. I am slowly implementing the technology and other tools studied throughout this blogging and field experience. Although I was not able to focus on ways to communicate with parents and families I am now able to better understand how to fully include them in the education process. Below are the listed resources and highlights from each that clarify my connections:

Ledoux, M. W., Yoder, N. N., & Hanes, B. (2010). The Use of Personal Data Assistants in Early Childhood Assessment. Computers In The Schools, 27(2), 132-144. doi:10.1080/07380561003801566

“Technology allows teachers to quickly document and assess, then share with parents and families” (Ledoux, p.1).

Novakovich, J. j. (2016). Fostering critical thinking and reflection through blog-mediated peer feedback. Journal of Computer Assisted Learning, 32(1), 16-30. doi:10.1111/jcal.12114

“The most effective comments, critical and directive, show that the reader understood the message, provide critical feedback for improvement or elaboration, and are the most meaningful” (Novakovich, p.1).

Steuerwalt, K. M., & O’Connor, E. A. (2008). THE WE ARE REPORTERS PROJECT: DEVELOPING AN APPRECIATION AND PURPOSE FOR COLLECTING, RECORDING AND RECALLING DATA USING A VARIETY OF REPORTING TECHNIQUES. College Reading Association Yearbook, (29), 103-121.

“We decided to just demonstrate the activity and send instructions for it home to their families” (Steuerwalt, p.1).

Gillespie, L. l. (2016). It’s Never “Just Play”!. YC: Young Children, 71(3), 92-94.

“Communication is important to keep parents and families informed about what is being taught in the classroom and how their children are learning, and to assure them their children are not “just” playing” (Gillepse, p.1).

McMullen, M. B., & Apple, P. (2012). Babies (and Their Families) on Board!. YC: Young Children, 67(4), 42-48.

“The most important way to include families is by making a lasting and welcoming first impression. Offer several means and available times for families to be able to contact you. Welcome them into your classroom, and this will build a strong foundation for good communication and a positive relationship” McMullen, p.1).

Sharapan, H. s. (2012). How Early Childhood Educators Can Apply Fred Rogers’ Approach. YC: Young Children, 67(1), 36-40.

“The topic is relevant to my research because parents and families can be largely included in STEAM programs and lessons” (Sharapan, p.1).

The Practice With No Boarders or Boundaries

There is one characteristic and practice that the education field shares worldwide- creativity. Creativity from the teacher, creativity from the students- there is nothing mundane about modern practices in the education field. The addition of technology to the classroom alone has opened a whole new world for student based learning, assessments, and outlets for assessment. No longer do teachers teach to one level and leave struggling students behind or advanced students bored and void of challenges. Teaching has become individualized to each student’s developmental needs.

A prime example of how education has become individualized yet met with creative strategy is found in Reeve’s article, Mobile Learning- Using Student Feedback to Inform Practice. This passage shows teachers just how far educators can take both assessment and technology to meet individual needs of the students. Teachers took differentiating instruction a step further and used assessments to scaffold the games on the iPads for each child. Through this practice, children are getting targeted instruction and practice in a way that is engaging and fun and breaks the tradition idea of what learning looks like.

Classroom blogging has also become a very popular alternative for both reflective writing times and assessment. Frantz and Rowe share that blogging is a sound practice for developing both research and reflective skills. What better way to teach students to think through their choices or experiences, consider what they know to be true, and take time to seek further understanding and apply it?  Not to mention, students feel a sense of pride as they take the time to reflect, write, and publish their thoughts. Classroom blogsites are a relatively easy and highly effective tool that many teachers have embraced as they explore practices that require creativity and breaking out of the box of tradition.

Behavior management is another largely diversified practice which requires much creativity from both parents and teachers. Modern behavior management is based on each student as an individual. The techniques used must aid the student as individual, while also encouraging and enhancing the student’s ability to function as a productive member of a larger group. Price and Steed share the vast techniques and practices of behavior management for children with varying and challenging behavior. They stress the importance of the teacher knowing his/her students and working collaboratively with the parents to find a method that works best for that particular student.

Along with creativity comes a new wave of perspectives on how children learn best. Where once there was rote memorization, we have instilled deep understanding and exploration. Teachers have become facilitators of student initiated learning. As shown in Monte, Claxton and Lockhart’s article, A Multinational Study Supports Child-Initiated Learning,  it does not matter what country one is from. All children learn best when they are given the opportunity to make choices in their learning process as well as experience time in free play. Fatia and colleagues also found in their study of students in Malaysia that not only are children developing their social and verbal skills while engaging in play, but they are also enhancing their mathematical and literacy skills. They also bring to light the significance of learning in outdoor setting. Just another way of seeing how learning is no longer viewed as being confined to the classroom.

Further ways teachers are breaking the mold of the status quo and embracing creative yet sound practices is through inquiry based learning. Once again teachers are loosening the reigns and handing over them to their students who are becoming the master of their learning process. As noted in Metz’s article, Young Children Can be Sophisticated Scientists Too,we should see children with capacities to go beyond the grade levels they are in. Teachers must give their students opportunities to look past what they should know and embrace all that they can potentially learn. Further, Sever and Guven discovered that in the 7th grade class they studied, opposition to science was turned and test scores improved when inquiry based tactics were introduced to the class.

So whether you, the teacher, are considering your classroom management styles, uses or resources for assessments, or simply your teaching strategies, take the extra step to go beyond the box. Embrace both your own and your students’ creative potential and go wild with it!

 

References:

Fatai O., I. A., Faqih, A., & Bustan, W. K. (2014). Children’s Active Learning through Unstructured Play in Malaysia. Childhood Education, 90(4), 259-264.

Frantz, J. M., & Rowe, M. (2013). Developing reflection and research skills through blogging in an evidence-based practice postgraduate physiotherapy module. African Journal Of Health Professions Education, 5(1), 3-7. doi:10.7196/AJHPE.182

Metz, K. E. (2011). Young Children Can Be Sophisticated Scientists.Phi Delta Kappan, 92(6), 68-71.

Montie, J. E., Claxton, J., & Lockhart, S. D. (2007). A Multinational Study Supports Child-Initiated Learning: Using the Findings in Your Classroom. YC: Young Children, 62(6), 22-26.

Price, Charis L. “Culturally Responsive Strategies to Support Young Children With Challenging Behavior.” NAEYC YC. National Association for the Education of YoungChildren, n.d. Web. 05 Feb. 2017.

Reeves, J. L., Gunter, G. A., & Lacey, C. (2017). Mobile Learning in PreKindergarten: Using Student Feedback to Inform Practice. Journal Of    Educational Technology & Society, 20(1), 37-44.

Sever, D., & Guven, M. (2014). Effect of Inquiry-Based Learning Approach on StudentResistance in a Science and Technology Course. Educational Sciences: Theory And Practice, 14(4), 1601-1605.

 

Undercover Superheroes

Synthesis:

The articles that I chose for each of my blogging experiences seemed to be all over the place. There were no main points that stood out to me that connected them…at first. As I analyzed all 7 articles, one message became clear.

School is so much more than academics.

As pre-service teachers, our university classes are focused on how to teach math, English, science, and social studies. Afterall, these topics are what fill the average school day, or at least, that is what the average human eye sees. From an experienced and well-trained teacher’s eye, the classroom is so much more than these academics. Each of the children in their classroom has a story. They come from diverse ethnic, cultural, and family backgrounds, have different styles of learning that work best for them, and have experienced various life situations that have shaped them into the child that is sitting in your classroom.

As teachers, we then must take all of this information for 20+ students and apply it to the classroom environment and academic learning in order for each student to feel, safe, accepted, and important.

Our job as teachers is often underestimated–if only society knew that this is truly what our job consists of for most of the calendar year. I think the best thing to relate being a teacher to is an undercover superhero.

For example, my first article that I blogged about was about about accepting refugee students into the school environment. The teachers from this school made extreme efforts to put the social and emotional needs of the students first, before even worrying about the academics. This was done through home visits over the summer, and in one family’s case, the teachers would walk the children to and from their home, because the parents of the children were worried their children would be kidnapped on their walk home. (Budge and Parrett, 2009). These teachers also worked to help make the students feel accepted in their new environment, just like how one of my other articles talks about girls getting more involved in STEM subjects (Baker, 2013). It is crucial that teachers work to change society’s common misconceptions. Schools are meant for everyone, no matter their background, and all subjects are meant to be studied by all people regardless of sex and gender.

In addition, to these extra efforts, it is a teacher’s job to make the classroom environment a place where children can thrive socially and emotionally. Two of my articles focused on how teachers play an equal to the parent’s role in the social and emotional development of a child. They both must work to phase the child out of complete reliance on their parents so that they can grow to be independent and become their own person, which can then be seen in all of their interactions with other people, whether it be in the classroom, on the playground, or at home (Humphries, Strickland, Keenan, 2014) and (Mooney, 2015).

The other three of my articles focused more on academics, but one thing in common with them was that they all had to deal with some form of collaboration. One was about a sound science fair that children at a school got to participate in, while another talked about blogging and how collaboration is key to the impact the activities have on the students. (McCourt and Kelley, 2016) and (Nedder, 2017). Without collaborating and socially and emotionally interacting with one’s peers, students are missing out on an integral part of the learning process. This aspect of collaboration also applies to teachers, because they too must collaborate and work with their peers in order to best meet the needs of their students (Finello, 2011).

Therefore, it is so important for teachers to remember that a lot more goes into teaching than just knowledge of the academics. I have seen some of this in my field experience. You can tell that the teachers have a close connection to most of the students’ families and they know a lot about each student. I have observed that this knowledge allows them to teach with more purpose and with more goals in mind. Additionally, in this classroom, it is evident that the teachers work to help their children grow socially and emotionally, and not just academically. The students learn to collaborate with their peers and work through difficult situations by using their communication skills. As a pre-service teacher, this is something that I want to keep in mind, because I think in order for me to be a successful and effective teacher right from the start of my career, I must be aware of these facts and then work to apply them in my daily practice.

Reflection:

Overall, I have enjoyed this blogging experience. While at times it was over-whelming and the time that the blogs took me to write was frustrating, I think I have come away from the experience with a better understanding of different aspects of teaching and education in general. I was able to connect a lot of what I saw in the field to my research and my writing, which I think was so much more beneficial to me than just a field journal. Blogging challenged me to do more higher-order-thinking in a safe and comfortable environment, which is a very valuable experience for a student like me.

References:

Baker, D. (2013). What Works: Using Curriculum and Pedagogy to Increase Girls’ Interest and Participation in Science. Theory Into Practice, 52(1), 14-20. doi:10.1080/07351690.2013.743760

Budge, K., & Parrett, W. (2009). Making Refugee Students Welcome. Educational Leadership, 66. Retrieved February 2, 2017, from http://www.ascd.org/publications/educational-leadership/apr09/vol66/num07/Making-Refugee-Students-Welcome.aspx

Finello, K. M. (2011). Collaboration in the assessment and diagnosis of preschoolers: Challenges and opportunities. Psychology In The Schools, 48(5), 442-453. doi:10.1002/pits.20566

HUMPHRIES, M. L., STRICKLAND, J., & KEENAN, K. (2014). African American Preschoolers’ Social and Emotional Competence at School: The Influence of Teachers and Mothers. Journal Of Education, 194(1), 11-18.

McCourt, S. s., & Kelley, S. S. (2016). ASSESSING THE UNSEEN. Science & Children, 53(5), 54-59.

Mooney, R. (2015). The preschool playground: a longing for a mother to a need for friends.Infant Observation, 18(1), 36-51. doi:10.1080/13698036.2015.1010445

Nedder, M. M. (2017). Blogging as an Innovative Method of Peer-to-Peer Educational Sharing. Critical Care Nurse, 37(1), e1-e9. doi:10.4037/ccn2017642

 

 

Bye Bye Blogging: A Blog about Blogging for the Class Blog

Throughout this semester, the blogging experience has made the learning experience for this class quite different compared to other classes. I feel as though I was learning on my own terms about my own chosen topic. This was definitely something that made me look forward to blogging and reading my classmate’s blogs. I must admit, though, that blogging was sometimes very time consuming and difficult because of the prompts and finding corresponding articles. Looking back on all of my posts, I can see some slight connections between each article I used. The connections are slight, but definitely make sense and work for something.

Connection #1

In my first two blog posts I wrote about the impacts of mindfulness in an early elementary school classroom and employing it through art education. The first article focused on the idea that children in urban settings face more stress than other children which can lead to them dropping out early because they do not have the coping skills to deal with said stress. Jodi Patterson, in the second article, wrote about how mindfulness practice is meant to teach students how learning through mindful practice in art, like drawing, can help students to deal with that stress because those students who do not know how to cope, can react very negatively. Her research included a study on tracking college students mindful practice throughout a semester. They tracked their feelings and if they believed they were learning throughout the process of learning to draw. I think it is extremely important for students to be able to track their emotions and self regulate in order to cope. Some students in urban areas deal with things that other students would not, for example, poverty, death, and just having to face things most children their age would not. Practicing mindfulness has been proven to show positive change in children in the classroom, as seen in Harpin’s article.

Connection #2

The second connection I made was about how important it is to create an environment for all students to get the best possible learning experiences. The third article by Tran discusses how creating a bilingual environment in the classroom, teaching in both English and Spanish, will help students excel in STEM at similar rates. Tran also touches on how we as educators must prepare our students for the world-leading STEM workforce that is constantly advancing and developing. The focus of this article is to create a classroom environment for students to develop and learn at the best possible rate you can offer them. The fourth article written by Jerles talks about how blogging in an elementary setting can help students develop better writing skills, better communication skills, and learn through their research. Even slower or less advanced readers and writers were able to add to the conversation through blogging with less apprehension. The general theme I see between these two articles is the importance of creating a classroom that will allow all of your students to excel at their best, fastest rate possible. Giving our students the best possible learning experiences in a not-so-typical classroom.

Reflection

Looking at the two connections I was able to make within my posts and articles, I can understand better what the goal of this blogging experience was. The purpose of blogging for our classroom was to expand our minds and our ways of thinking to different topics and studies that we may not have known about or heard of before. It is to help us, as future educators, get some ideas and thoughts under our belts before we make it into the classroom. Also to make us feel more prepared because we have done the research, we’ve shared it with our peers, and we seem to all be on the same page. Personally, I picture my class being very different from the traditional classroom. I picture teaching my students to be mindful of not only themselves but of their peers and their families. I want my students to feel comfortable in my class, enough so to challenge themselves without fear of failing. I want to create a classroom that will reflect those two main themes I found within my past research, to ultimately give my students the best chance at success that I can give them.

 

References

Jerles, J. (2012). Blogging in Elementary School: Why, How, and What Teachers Can Do To Encourage Writing. National Teacher Education Journal, 5(3), 85-88.

Harpin, S., Rossi, A., Kim, A. K., & Swanson, L. M. (2016). Behavioral Impacts of a Mindfulness Pilot Intervention for Elementary School Students. Education, 137(2), 149-156.

Patterson, J. (2015). Employing mindfulness via art in education. International Journal Of Education Through Art, 11(2), 185-192. doi:10.1386/eta.11.2.185_1

Tran, N. A., Martinez-Cruz, A., Behseta, S., Ellis, M., & Contreras, J. (2015). The effects of Spanish English dual language immersion on student achievement in science and mathematics. JEP: Ejournal Of Education Policy, 57-77.

Started Rocky, Finished Smooth

Synthesis

In the beginning, I was ecstatic about mindfulness in the classroom and the benefits of using this new practice in the classroom to improve behavior. The concept of mindfulness is not hard to implement and you do not need special training to bring it into the classroom. Mindfulness is shown to improve focus, compassion, and encourage engagement in lessons. Using a few basic guidelines, a teacher can see improvement in a short amount of time. I wanted to continue looking at mindfulness, but how do we test the method to see if it is valid? George Thomas and Cathy Atkinson’s research showed the positive effects of implementing the Paws into the classroom.

There are many programs and there can be multiple issues with each one, so I would need to research to see what program would show the best improvement and how I would need to tweak it to have results in the student’s academics and attention.

To divert a little, I looked at play and how important the skills from playing can be in social interaction in visually impaired preschoolers. I found this article to be fascinating and the results shocking. As Albert Einstein once said, “Play is the highest form of research”. A teacher’s job is to help enable students with tools to help them solve problems. Play is one of the biggest tools that help children as young minds. Play is important because the children ask questions about how things work around them. Goldstein and Randolph discuss how literacy development is enhanced when children experience words in a more engaging way.  We as educators need to build on a child’s curiosity and guide them to discovering the answers.

Overall, each post built on to my experience in the field and helped me understand what to look for in the children’s behavior. Play, mindfulness, science, and literacy are all different, but with each one a teacher needs to know the child and how to enhance or incorporate each topic.

Reflection

 My blogging experience has helped me take the articles about certain topics that looked deeper into educational practices and change my pedagogical theory. After reading the articles, I connected them to my field and changed how I interacted with the children. Each topic helped me understand what assessments or learning practices are better for the different learning ages. There were many positives that came from blogging and one of them would be the feedback from our classmates. We all are experiencing various classrooms and through the different experiences we all had perspectives that contributed to our posts. I also enjoyed being able to explore some topics that interest me, but we never go in depth in our normal college classes. Blogging is a great idea to help teacher share ideas, educate ourselves further in new research, and share our experiences with others.

 

References

Goldstein, P. p., & Randolph, K. k. (2017). Word Play. YC: Young Children, 72(1), 66-73.

https://www.edutopia.org/blog/implementing-school-wide-mindfulness-program-patrick-cook-deegan

Ozaydin, L. l. (2015). Teaching Play Skills to Visually Impaired Preschool Children: Its Effect on Social Interaction. Educational Sciences: Theory & Practice, 15(4), 1021-1038. doi:10.12738/estp.2015.4.2746

Shorter, A., & Segers, M. (2016). Ornithologists by Design: Kindergarteners Design, Construct, and Evaluate Bird Feeders. Science And Children, 53(6), 41-47.

Thomas, G., & Atkinson, C. C. (2016). Measuring the effectiveness of a mindfulness-based intervention for children’s attentional functioning. Educational & Child Psychology, 33(1), 51-64.

The Usefulness of a Simple Blog

Synthesis:
The blogging experience has been very interesting. At first blogging was very time consuming. I was not sure what articles would have the information I was searching for and be most beneficial for my teaching career. After becoming more comfortable with researching articles, I found that blogging can be a very useful tool to use in your classroom when you are unsure about a teaching strategy. Blogging can even be useful for your students, especially those who may not speak up in class and speak their opinions. Blogging allows everyone to have a voice and opens everyone up to new material.
Blogging:
The main topic that I focused on throughout my blogging experience was Classroom Management. I find classroom management to be one of the most importance concepts in teaching. If you have good classroom management, your day will run a lot smoother. By finding various articles and going in the field, I found various classroom management techniques. One technique that I read about and observed was the importance of routines. By creating a routine for your students, you are preparing for their day. If your students know what to expect each day, they can prepare themselves. In my field placement, the children know they have free play for half of the morning. After free play is over, the students will meet on the carpet for circle time. During circle time, the children will sing songs, tell the circle how they are feeling that day, go over the calendar, weather, letter of the week, and the pledge of allegiance. The teacher will pick out popsicles sticks, and the child she chooses, will get to pick what is done first. After circle time the class will split into small groups and do activities that correspond with either the letter of the week or theme. Small group activities are also an important aspect to classroom management. By allowing your students to socialize with other students and work together, they are developing their social skills and also problem solving skills since they are working in a group.
Another topic that found an interesting article on was assessments. This article was about an assessment done in France. This assessment was based on hyperactivity found in preschoolers. The study focused on the correlation between reported behavioral problems and academic and cognitive performance. Due to the hyperactivity found in some of the preschoolers, they were reported to have behavioral problems. That means their academic performance would have problems too, right? Wrong. The preschoolers performed well on academic and cognitive assessments. As teachers, we cannot assume a student will not do well on an assessment because they are hyperactive. We need to ignore labels. Rather than focusing on a label, we need to come up with lessons that will keep all of our students engage. In my field placement, the teachers always have activity planned throughout the day they get the children moving. Whether it be dancing to songs, searching the room for various objects, or their outside play before lunch, the children always get to move.
Reflection:
Overall, my blogging experience has been very beneficial. This is a technique I will be able to use in my own classroom. There are many resources to look to when I am struggling for lessons or with handling a student. I enjoyed taking what I read about classroom management in the articles, and using it in the field and at work. This will be a very helpful tool not only for myself but my students. This is definitely a tool I would consider to incorporate into my classroom.

Giannopulu, I., Escolano, S., Citeau, H., & Dellatolas, G. (2008). Teachers’ reporting of behavioural problems and cognitive-academic performances in children aged 5-7 years. British Journal Of Educational Psychology, 78(1), 127-147. doi:10.1348/000709907X204372

Gillespie, L. l., & Petersen, S. (2012). RITUALS AND ROUTINES: Supporting Infants and Toddlers and Toddlers and Their Families. YC: Young Children, 67(4), 76-77.
Zufiaurre, B., Wilkinson, J., & Albertin, A. M. (2013). WORKING WITH CHILDREN’S EMOTIONS THROUGH ROUTINES, PLAY AND GAMES: PROMOTING EMOTIONAL AND SOCIAL GROWTH AND SHAPING INCLUSIVE PRACTICES. Journal Of The International Society For Teacher Education, 17(1), 126-138.

Teaching – who is it all for?

Being in a teacher education program means that there is a lot of theoretical talk about the best methods, strategies, theories, and schools of thought in the field of education. In the midst of creating lesson plans, putting together student samples, editing PowerPoint presentations, and struggling to remember which researcher said what, the meaning behind our profession can get lost. Through all my various research for this blogging project, I have seen a thread emerge which brings me back to the most important thing in education – the students.

I have seen a thread emerge which brings me back to the most important thing in education – the students.

While a lot of times we say that education is really for the students, I would make the case that we do not always act like that is true. When I began researching in the beginning of the semester, I was interested in the subject of classroom management. However, my thoughts were more towards the idea of “How can I manage my students so that we can accomplish everything I plan for them?” Eisenman & Harper (2016) reminded me of something vitally important – the ultimate goal of classroom management is for students to LEARN. Sounds easy, right? But in the midst of day, with students throwing tantrums, quarreling, refusing to sit still, and blurting comments out in class, this truth can often be lost.

Let’s examine other aspects of our profession in which our focus can be taken off of the students. For example, giving children enough play and free time can be one. For primary school teachers, this can be very easily forgotten, even though research shows that it is incredibly important for children’s well-being. Play enables children to develop self-control, lasting relationships, emotional stability… not to mention it helps them relax and have fun (Fearn & Howard, 2012). However, with state requirements and testing taking up so much of our class time, student well-being is often trumped by “achievement” and “proficiency.” Children need time to play – it is healthy and healing. Why do we so often let their needs go by the wayside?

Speaking of testing, assessment is another area of education in which student needs are often trampled upon. As young as preschool, students are being assessed for purposes which are incredibly important, such as diagnostic tests, screening tests, and formative and summative assessments. We know that the preschool years are predictive of literacy proficiency later in life (Lonigan, Allan, & Lerner, 2011), and that assessing literacy (among other content areas) in preschool is an excellent way for the teacher to design proper interventions and instructions for young students. Lonigan, Allan, & Lerner (2011) advise that all assessing should be for the students’ benefit, so that they can learn. The question then becomes, is that always teachers’ goal? How can we be sure that it is?

Is the goal of teachers always to seek the students’ benefit? If not, how can we be sure that it is?

One thing that we can do as educators to ensure that our students are our main focus is to know our students and to have real conversations with them. Kinard & Gainer (2015) discuss this aspect of connecting with students in their work through engaging English Language Learners (ELL’s) in conversations centered around realia, or authentic objects brought into the curriculum. Allowing students to guide the curriculum, engage in authentic inquiry and theory-building, and have genuine discussions with peers and adults are all ways we can truly put the focus on our students. Knowing where they are in their higher-order thinking and development and using that knowledge to guide instruction is key.

In my field experience, I have seen good examples of students truly being the focus of their education, and I have seen bad examples of this. Coming to the same classroom week after week enables me to see teachers’ and students’ good days and bad days. What has come out predominant is that the teachers truly do care for their students. Even when the children are nasty, rude, inconsiderate, and ungrateful, the teachers still pick them up when they fall, encourage them in their quest for knowledge, and have their well-being in mind. To me, this is the core of education, that teachers care for their students. That everything teachers do is so that their students will benefit and will truly learn.

That is what I took away from this blogging experience and from my articles. While we learn about the educational theorists, the huge assortment of assessments, approaches to curriculum, participation strategies, and more, I hope we can keep our students at the front of our minds.

After all, it’s all for them!

References:

Eisenman, G., & Harper, R. (2016). Bibliotherapy for Classroom Management. Dimensions Of Early Childhood, 44(1), 11-17.

Fearn, M., & Howard, J. (2012). Play as a Resource for Children Facing Adversity: An Exploration of Indicative Case Studies. Children & Society, 26(6), 456-468. doi:10.1111/j.1099-0860.2011.00357.x

Kinard, T., & Gainer, J. (2015). Talking Science in an ESL Pre-K: Theory-building with Realia. Dimensions Of Early Childhood, 43(1), 16-24.

Lonigan, C. J., Allan, N. P., & Lerner, M. D. (2011). Assessment of preschool early literacy skills: linking children’s educational needs with empirically supported instructional activities. Psychology In The Schools, 48(5), 488-501. doi:10.1002/pits.20569

Connections Through Blogging

Reflection on Blogging

If you would have asked me my opinion of this blogging experience at any point this semester I would have told you it was time consuming, stressful, and not enjoyable.  I would still describe this process as time consuming, however when I think about it, I realize all of the benefits that came from this experience.  I learned how to do meaningful research, create and publish blog posts, and learned from my peers.  This blogging assignment provided me with many articles that contained a lot of information related to me as a pre-service teacher.  Not only were the articles I found helpful, but it was interesting to read the other articles my peers found.  We could share our thoughts and offer insight to each other.  This experience has helped me to see that blogging is very beneficial, especially in the classroom, and is a great resource for teachers.

Connections

The articles I used for each of the previous blogging assignments were not related in any way.  However, many of them were on topics I did not know much about and so reading these articles and blogging about them were helpful.  I gained a new perspective on some topics and learned more about other topics.

One article I chose was about STEM.  I was not that familiar with what STEM is and how it is incorporated into the classroom but an article from The Journal of STEM Education, helped me to understand a little more.   The purpose of this article was to express the need for more students to earn a degree in the STEM field.  The article suggested exposing children to science and technology concepts early so that children develop an interest in the STEM fields.  If they are introduced to these topics when they are young then there is a greater chance they will develop an appreciation and interest in STEM.   After reading this article I gained an appreciation for STEM and I better understand the importance of implementing it into the classroom.

Similarly, I used another article related to STEM.  This article was about arctic animals and how they stay warm.  My peers and I used this article to actually implement a STEM activity in a first grade setting.  We came up with a question; “How do arctic animals stay warm?” We then created an experiment that would test this question.  The students were able to feel the differences between the insulators arctic animals have.  This was a hands-on experiment and provided the students with inquiry based learning.  This is something I was not familiar with but reading the article, blogging about it, and then putting it in to practice was helpful and was a meaningful experience.

Another article I chose was about how blogging is beneficial to the classroom.  I did not have a lot of experience with blogging before this assignment so it was helpful to read this article.  The author is a teacher who gave advice for how to use blogging in the classroom.  The main take aways are that student choice is important and blogging is a really meaningful way for students to interact with each other.  Blogging is more beneficial to students when they are able to blog about topics that are interesting to them.  They are more willing to participate and will get more out of the blogging experience.

Even though my articles did not relate to each other there was one connection and that was the fact that reading each of these articles and blogging about them made me a more well -rounded person. I will be able to use the new perspectives and information to create more meaningful experiences for my future students.  The time, headaches, and stress were well worth the outcome of this blogging experience!

References

Rogers, J. r. (2015). Five Easy Ways to Bring Blogging to Your Classroom. English In Texas, 45(2), 38-40.

Shaw, S. (1999). Keeping warm. Science Activities, 36(1), 26-30. doi:10.1080/00368129909601033

Oyana, T. J., Garcia, S. J., Haegele, J. A., Hawthorne, T. L., Morgan, J., & Young, N. J. (2015). Nurturing Diversity in STEM Fields through Geography: the Past, the Present, and the Future. Journal Of STEM Education: Innovations & Research, 16(2), 20-29.

 

Wow, I actually enjoyed this! :)

Synthesis:

At the beginning of this blogging experience, I chose to focus on STEM Education since that’s what I am pursuing a minor in and is something that I am quite passionate about. With the classes I’ve taken so far in this minor, I have spent a little time researching this topic, but nothing as in-depth as we have  done the past couple of months.

Through blogging about research, theory, and practice, my passion and interest in STEM Education has increased now that I see what others are doing in the field and learned about how I can apply that to my own practice.

My first article focused on a study found on Edutopia that showed how video games relate to social and emotional learning, while also incorporating 21st century skills. The article mentioned a staggering statistic; 65% of our students that enter the classroom will have jobs that aren’t yet created (Maurice, 2016).

My next article talked about STEM use in Early Childhood Education and the three typical scenarios teachers face when teaching STEM subjects. The general consensus of this article was that most teachers do not feel comfortable with integrating STEM into their classroom because they don’t know where to start (Linder, et. al.,2016).

The third article I talked about a study that was conducted to determine just how young students can learn and comprehend STEM subjects. The study found that even preschoolers, ages 3-5, could actively engage in STEM-related activities (Moomaw & Davis, 2010).

My next article evaluated feelings pre-service teachers have toward teaching science. Overwhelmingly, pre-service teachers felt unprepared to teach STEM content areas so, strategies were introduced that pre-service have found useful when implementing science and inquiry-based learning into the classroom(Qablan & DeBaz,2015) .

My fifth article highlighted a study done on Icelandic children that showed a strong correlation between academic achievement and phonological awareness. This article didn’t directly relate to STEM, however, it did make me think of why and how we assess children. Assessment could be made more fun for students if we took a more hands on, real-world approach that STEM Education encourages (Einarsdóttir, Björnsdóttir,& Símonardóttir 2016).

The last article I read followed the story of a middle school classroom as they started blogging as a way of integrating the T portion of STEM. Overall, students were more engaged and wrote thoughtful, more higher order thinking posts (Wickens, Manderino,& Glover 2015).

All of these articles support the idea that STEM Education is not only needed, but necessary, in order classrooms. We need to prepare our students to think critically and use the skills they’ve learned in an abstract way. We will be doing our students a disservice if we don’t prepare them with these skills and instead, just throw knowledge at them an hope they get it.

Reflection:

This blogging process has actually been really fun for me. I have found that I enjoy writing in this context, and using research to back up my theories. I like that we focused on varying topics each week, but yet, had a consistent topic that we were really interested in. I think that I will continue to look into these articles and further my research skills. Also, I think that these skills are tools that would be a great addition to take with me, and implement, in a PDS or student teaching placement.

References:

Einarsdóttir, J. j., Björnsdóttir, A., & Símonardóttir, I. (2016). The Predictive Value of Preschool Language Assessments on Academic Achievement: A 10-Year Longitudinal Study of Icelandic Children. American Journal Of Speech-Language Pathology, 25(1), 67-79. doi:10.1044/2015_AJSLP-14-0184

Elias, M. J. (2017, January 06). How Gaming Connects to SEL and Career Readiness. Retrieved April 06, 2017, from https://www.edutopia.org/blog/how-gaming-connects-sel-and-career-readiness-maurice-elias

Linder, S. M., Emerson, A. M., Hefron, B., Shevlin, E., & Vest, A. (2016). STEM Use in Early Childhood Education. YC: Young Children, 71(3), 87-91.

Moomaw, S., & Davis, J. A. (2010). STEM Comes to Preschool. YC: Young Children, 65(5), 12-18.

Qablan, A. M., & DeBaz, T. (2015). Facilitating elementary science teachers’ implementation of inquiry-based science teaching. Teacher Development, 19(1), 3-21. doi:10.1080/13664530.2014.959552

Wickens, C. M., Manderino, M., & Glover, E. A. (2015). Developing Disciplinary Literacy through Classroom Blogging. Voices From The Middle, 22(3), 24-32.