Week 5 Theory to Practice

If students are cared about and that care is nurtured and attended to, and students return the relatedness of care to their teachers, then readiness to learn and higher understanding can take place because a pedagogy of care breaks down barriers to learning. Ok, so this is all well and good in the ideal, but what does it look like in the classroom? As an educator I believe in the power of the pedagogy of care and I will attempt to develop caring, nurturing relationships with each of my students. To begin the year, I will first learn their names as soon as possible and address then by name in a greeting as they enter the room.
Secondly, the first homework assignment that I give will be a survey for the students to fill out about favorites, some “would you rathers” and other questions that will help me ascertain some of their interests, maybe some passions and hopefully provide some insight into who they are.
Thirdly, I will have the students work on an “About Me” poem that delves into aspects of Me-ness like ethnicity, culture, background, musical interests, hobbies, sports, and anything else that makes me, me.
More generally, I will be open about myself, I will create an About Me poem to allow students a glimpse of who I am. I have a bio page on my website and I will direct students to that. I will make myself available for help when I have free periods and at scheduled times after school. I will attend their sporting, music, drama and other extra-curricular events. I will teach with humor, humility and the realization that the students are also teachers. I will scaffold the learning by providing tolls for reading and writing, like grammar rules, rubrics, checklists and graphic organizers. I will also scaffold understanding from knowledge to understanding, synthesis, empathy and analysis. This can be accomplished by working through Bloom’s Taxonomy, beginning with knowledge questions about a text and loving upward, encouraging the students to stretch.
I will begin each week with a Philosopher’s Café where the discussion, starting with an inquiry about the text under consideration, can go any where that the students want to take it.
Further, that this care is not passive in the giving or the taking means that both sides assume a responsibility to the ongoing attention of the relationship, which makes each accountable to the other and allows for the individualized understanding of the student. This means, I will offer real, constructive feedback, not just final grades. I will encourage revision and rewriting until the final product is excellent. I will tell the students if I do not know he answer, then I will find out the answer and get back to the students
Finally, I will embrace teachable moments that may appear disguised as interruptions. These “opportunities” for unplanned instruction are invaluable as they allow students to see your flexibility and ability to teach on the fly.

Website Reflection

I really liked the whole process of designing the website. It was easy to see how beneficial this would be to a teacher and to a classroom. Weebly made the process simple by providing templates and features that are easy to understand and use.
I had a hard time finding links for the literature page that made sense for 9th and 10th graders. But, once I had found web links and Youtube movies, I thought they made a significant difference to the webpage, and were an interesting addition to the novels that the classes would be reading. In the end, I was happy with the overall look and usefulness of the site. It is helpful for both students and parents. Students can access the various links as well as their homework assignments. Both students and parents can use the contact me feature to reach me outside of school hours.
I will definitely use this site in my future classrooms and I am actually excited to do exactly that. I would like to continue building the site so that the site is fully informative for both students and parents. I would include vocabulary lists, additional links, and project and paper rubrics and timelines. I think scaffolding students’ work is very important, and I would have a page with checklists, rubrics, grammar rules, and other useful tools for writing.
When I tested for 508 compliance, I found errors such as low contrast text, low luminosity contrast text, use of color cannot be the single method for indicating important information and images must have sufficient contrast. As these errors all seem to be related to the colors and contrast, I would use designations other than color to indicate important information, maybe add borders or shading and different font size. Also, I would make sure that the contrasts were stronger and therefore more easily read. Check out my website here: http://jeffersenglish.weebly.com/

Holocaust PowerPoint

This PowerPoint is an introductory lesson for a unit revolving around Lois Lowry’s Number the Stars. As the novel is historical fiction and deals with the Holocaust, resistance and what makes people hate other people, the lesson serves to introduce students to concepts in the novel with which they may be unfamiliar. The PowerPoint poses the Essential Question for the unit: How do people discriminate against other people? (How do they decide who is “us” and who is “them”) Why do they do this? Students should be thinking about this question throughout their reading of the novel and reading primary source documents to understand the historical context of the novel. The PowerPoint defines the Holocaust, again because seventh graders may have not been exposed to the topic at all.
The lesson then proceeds to the actors of the Holocaust. At this point we would discuss what it meant to be in any of these roles. Proceeding, we would talk about the historical context of the Holocaust, looking at social, economic, religious and political factors and exploring examples of each. We will look at the location of Denmark on the map (Number the Stars is set in Denmark) and discuss Denmark’s role in WWII and the impact on its citizens.
We will review a timeline of the Holocaust that we will match to the timeline of the book as the novel follows historical events accurately. We will define and discuss resistance, and hear audio and video clips of survivors and resistance fighters. We will discuss implications of the Holocaust today. The students should understand the broad context of the Holocaust as well as understand some of the micro-implications of the Holocaust on individuals. These understandings will inform their reading, comprehension and analysis of the novel.
I used transitions between slides. I tried not to use transitions that we cartoon-like as the tone of the lesson is somber and the material required respectful consideration. I used hyperlinks to connect to two websites that would be invaluable for student research and for deeper understanding, especially of the Holocaust’s impact on individuals. The first hand accounts are authentic representations of the history. I used images of children at the camp, a beautiful memorial in Miami and of the Star of David as that became a symbol of “otherness” and was very divisive in and of itself. The only challenge feature that I used was Smart Art graphics to represent the actors. I liked all of the smart art options, but had trouble fitting them to the theme of my presentation. I would probably use these more in a presentation about a simpler topic.
I learned that a PowerPoint can be enhanced by the judicious use of features like transitions and smart art graphics. I have used PowerPoint in the past, but I have not used many features and this is the nicest presentation that I have created and it is due to the advanced features.
A lesson can be enhanced using PowerPoint to view documents, present information in a differentiated manner, and engage visual learners. As well, the teacher can provide instruction while the PowerPoint is running, it is easy to stop and follow a discussion thread or take part in an activity, and then move on when the class is ready.

Online Activities and Social Networking

All teachers should be encouraged to create online activities for their students because this is a way of meeting students where they are. Students are already using the internet for personal interests all the time. As teachers, we can tap into an interest that is already strong, and use that interest to develop engaging lessons. From the experiences of online schools, there is much that can be applied to online activities in the traditional classroom. First, online courses have shown that, “some students feel safer expressing themselves online” (November 2010, p. 88). For students who are not comfortable speaking out in class, an online activity would provide a safe space for speaking their minds. The perceived anonymity of the web and the allowance for time to respond allows students a comfort level to freely express themselves without fear of ridicule from their peers. (November 2010) Second, the online courses serve to provide collaborative learning opportunities. The students feel that, “they are all in it together” (November 2010, p. 89). The students work together in ways that would be more difficult in a face-to-face classroom. Students can be paired up to perform an activity based around the internet; having to work together to negotiate the activity and complete the task. Having to work together to solve a problem informs an atmosphere of cooperation and joint problem-solving that is empowering to the students and to the classroom as a whole.
Twenty first century learning need not be hampered by social networking; teachers do not need to fear that students in the classroom are using social networking sites instead of learning. Instead, teachers can use social networking sites to facilitate learning. Will Richardson (2010) sees social networking sites as the means by which, “we’re willing to share our ideas and resources with the network for its betterment, because we get back just as much if not more” (p.85). I see social networking used in classrooms as a means of collaborative student and teacher space. As we use Facebook to connect with out network of friends, classrooms can use social networking to connect classmates to each other and to their teacher. Richardson (2010) sees this space as stressing, ”cooperation, interactivity, mutual benefit and social engagement” (p. 133). The great thing for students, then, is this space is personalized, published and involves reading, writing, exchanging ideas and sharing thoughts. For students, this covers a great deal of the literacies that we want them to acquire: digital literacy, social literacy, reading and writing literacies, and so on. The vision is that schools will realize that we must capitalize on the technologies that students are already using and that they want to use to enable a comfortable and successful learning environment.

References
November, A. (2010). Empowering Students with Technology.
Thousand Oaks: Corwin
Richardson, W. (2010). Blogs, Wikis, Podcasts and Other
Powerful Web Tools for Classrooms. Thousand Oaks:
Corwin

Video Theory to Practice

Students Cannot Achieve Self-Actualization without Food and Shelter

If students’ circumstances outside of school preclude them from coming to school able to learn, then they cannot acquire higher understandings nor construct knowledge. For example, in the video, “Is Anybody Listening?” the students were worried about their families. Jose’s father lost his job; Evelyn’s parents were trying to live their American dream when the bank foreclosed on their house. Now twelve members of Evelyn’s family are living in a one bedroom house. Another student said that she found it impossible to concentrate at school because she was thinking about her mother struggling to support their family. The students’ teacher said yet other students had nothing to eat at home. Maslow would posit that these students’ basic needs (survival-food and shelter) were not being met, and therefore the students would not be able to achieve the level of self-actualization (understanding). As a teacher, I believe that I must give my students a space to voice their needs and lacks and to seek solutions so that they can achieve their higher needs. Further, it is my responsibility as a teacher to seek ways to ensure that students’ basic needs are met so that we are able to get to the work of higher needs. I will strive to be aware of the contextual aspects of my students’ lives and recognize when I can provide a basic need like food.

Caring Teachers Help Students Reach Their Goals

If students are given the opportunity to participate in a reciprocal relationship of reflective care with their teachers, then those students will be open to acquiring the understandings and dispositions necessary to reach their goals. In the video, “Youth Voices,” Eric pointed to a specific exemplar teacher who helped him to find a job so that Eric could feel as though he was helping his father. Eric was very concerned about his father working too hard, being deported, being unable to find work and getting too old for manual labor. Eric indicated that his teacher also shared with Eric his own struggles to overcome a leaner difference and succeed. He encouraged Eric to pursue his goal of serving in the military and then working as a cop. The teacher specifically did so to show Eric that he had options for attending to his father’s needs, which the teacher could see were of paramount importance to Eric. Nel Noddings would say that the caring relationship between the teacher and the student and subsequent interactions had engendered a trust that acted as a powerful force for that teacher to use to show his student that there were viable, real options for him to achieve his goal. Without that relationship, the student would not have trusted in the advice and the teacher would have been unable to act as a significant influence in his student’s life. I believe that teaching is a privilege and that privilege needs to inform our relationships with our students. Teachers need to ensure that they are caring about their students and that the students are responding to that care. As a teacher, I will care about the whole student while he is in the classroom and when he is not.

Supporting Students in their Recognition of Social Injustices

If students recognize social injustices, students will take the initiative to become active agents of social change or reform, even when there are negative externalities. In the video, “Sit Down for Your Rights,” Matt Heffernan organized a sit in protesting the war. He did so realizing the potential for repercussions. Barbara Maniotis participated even though her counselor told her that it would ruin her life (as she was a high GPA student). Freire would consider the actions of the students as the students critically constructing their learning to act as a voice of protest against a social ill. The students read the word (they were literate about the war) to read the world (construct a meaning of the war that inspired them to seek a change or seek to make their concerns heard). Both the school teachers and administration did not support the students. I believe that teachers need to side with their students and for their students to encourage expressions of social injustice recognition to bring about grass roots changes. I can accomplish this by making the classroom open to dissent as well as to constructive critical considerations of the greater social, political and economic hegemonies.

Internet Workshops

The feedback that I received from my other groups members was positive overall. It was nice to hear that my objectives were clear and my scaffolding documents (rubrics and graphic organizer) were also clear. My group thought that the lesson was straightforward and would be easy for my students to follow. Two members suggested that the students' evaluation of the website should go beyond ranking and should include room for explanations or should specifically ask higher order questions. One member suggested that if the students did not have any background in research authenticity, then a lesson on research authenticity would need to precede this lesson.

I would use this internet workshop in a future classroom. I would use all of the feedback that I received to strengthen the lesson. Revising the evaluation forms would allow for richer assessment of the students' understanding of their research, not just their opinions on the research sites. Asking higher order questions would push the students to more thoroughly investigate research websites and consider any and all implications.I think it is important to bring technology and integrated research into the English or language arts classroom to encourage the collaborative read/write/publish aspect of the web and how that can have potential benefits for young writers.

The group consensus on the November's statement was that teaching students the skills necessary to critically evaluate and read a website for authenticity, purpose, bias and safety was of as paramount importance as learning any other fundamental skill. Students must possess these skills in order to make meaning from their research, use it appropriately and transfer their ideas across the curriculum. We also discussed how important it is for adolescents to be aware that anyone an publish on the web, and reading critically is vital to determining the validity of the research. Further, we agreed that initiating and maintaining an open dialogue on the subject with students allows for ongoing discussions as issues arise in the actual research. Lessons can be cemented when they are applied in real time, as the student is doing research and in the moment, the message of the lesson will be stronger than when it was theoretical. Finally, we discussed how critical literacy, ala Paulo Freire asks of students to "read the word, read the world." Students need to look beyond the printed word and consider the implications of the printed word for issues of social justice, media bias, and agenda. Then, the student is fully equipped to make his own value judgment and apply the understanding as needed to successfully accomplish a task.

Week Four Theory to Practice

I spent a lot of time this week thinking about care from Nel Noddings' perspective. She approaches teaching with a pedagogy based on the deepest and richest human emotion-love. While I know that I want love and care to be a part of my pedagogy and have included it in my philosophy of education, Noddings caused me to really think about what that actually looks like in my classroom. Previously I thought about it more long the lines of "I will care and therefore my students will know that I care." I had not considered the power of the care. As I said last week, when teachers are aware of their students' (and their own) emotionality, they can foster security, and inspire intrinsic motivation. But this seems to be somewhat clinical and more passive than I would hope for the application of my care.

Noddings (2005) sees care as the reflective and reflexive relatedness between student and teacher that is nurtured and attended to to ensure understanding and the readiness to learn. Noddings' concept of care breaks down barriers to learning like the dichotomy between desire for compliance and desire for non-compliance, instilling in students (through an extrinsic source) an intrinsic desire to learn. I was kind of blown away by this idea, that one could change a student's whole approach to school and to learning simply by letting her know that you care about her by and asking for reciprocal care.

Further, that this care is not passive in the giving or the taking means that both sides assume a responsibility to the ongoing attention of the relationship, which makes each accountable to the other and allows for the individualized understanding of the student. The student will feel cared about and will allow the teacher to know and understand her better which allows the teacher to teach her in the most effective way possible.

Noddings goes even further when she says that the teacher can take her individualized understanding of students and create curriculum, lessons, assessments and discussions that are both born of the care relationship, informed by the care relationship and affirm the relationship on an ongoing basis.

I know this is somewhat far-reaching and that not every student will be open to the care relationship or benefit from it to this degree, but I also know that I know what I (the carer) can do in the classroom to try to bring about the care/cared for relatedness. To me, this is the great privilege of teaching, that teachers are allowed to reach students at an emotional level that allows genuine insight into the educational needs of that student and allows the teacher to individualize teaching.