Science & Literacy

In her article, Science & Literacy, author Marlene Thier identifies three strategies that help form the structure of support that students need if they are to be successful learners.  She states that "students need a compelling reason to read, write, listen, and speak, and meaningful science content offers that reason."  She points out that students need to be exposed to science-related issues that are relevant to their lives.  I agree with the author but, as a teacher of middle school students, I find that one of my biggest challenges is in convincing my students that authentic issues affect their lives.  This year in the closing reflection of an ecology unit, students were asked which assignment were the least valuable.  The predominant choice was one in which human impacts on the Long Island Sound watershed were discussed.  I did not test my students on this reading.  This is why my students thought that it was not valuable.  They "didn't need it" to be successful in my class.  Perhaps I did not do well to connect the reading to their lives.  Perhaps I did not develop and present clear performance expectations to help them direct the focus of their learning.

On the other hand, perhaps I did not help my students to develop effective strategies for reading the article.  In her article Thier demonstrated a technique that encourages students to develop strong and independent reading skills.  By making notations throughout the reading and by writing questions, notes and summaries, a student becomes personally involved with the reading.  While I did introduce a reading strategy with this assignment I do not feel that it was specific enough to be effective.

The third strategy that Thier describes involves metacognition, or, the ability and tendancy of a student to think about his or her own thinking.  While writing a summary of the Long Island Sound article I wanted my students to question their own understanding of the content and its application to their lives.  My lesson fell short.  My students were unable to target what they did and did not understand.  I like the author's suggestion to include group problem solving methods with direct prompts to direct their thinking.

Teaching literacy to support inquiry-based learning is a bit of an art.  This article was relevant for me because the strategies that were described are similar to techniques I use but they are more detailed and specific.  The school year has just ended but I have made my notations to use these techniques next year as I try to reshape how I help my students to develop their literacy skills.

Guiding Principles

I'm sure this is a work in progress.  Currently I use computer technology to do "old things in old ways" and "old things in new ways."  I am clumsy in my methods and understanding.  I have visions as to what I would like to do but, as of now, I have no idea how to get there. 

Already the organization of this class is throwing me off.  Do I go to the pbworks page? If so, where do I look?  Why are there comments and posts everywhere?  How do I go from a variety of blogs, to the class website, to the online readings, to trying out the webtools?  How the heck do I Tweet!! Arrrrgggghhhh!  I have so much to learn.  I'm sure it will all be better once school is not in session, we are not yet done… sigh.

That said - and I feel much better now that I have vented - I will begin the rough draft of my Guiding Principles.  This post is quite overdue but I just somehow missed the assignment on the Week One page.

Current technology usage:

J      I have a very simple webpage. On my webpage I post my class assignments.  I include files for project descriptions, rubrics, lab report templates and the like.  I have internet links and a calendar posted. 

J      I utilize some Smartboard and PowerPoint presentations.

J      I utilize some YouTube videos.

J      I utilize online assignments from resources such as http://www.sciencespot.net/.

J      I have my students organize some of their data on Excel spreadsheets.

J      My students produce and save some project assignments in class folders that are located and available only on our school computer system.

I've taken this class because I see more possibilities but, as I've said above, I don't know how to get there.  In any event, the technology that I incorporate for classroom usage must:

ü      Be accessible to all students.

ü      Encourage student to explore beyond the realm that is available in our school.

ü      Allow for differentiated learning.

ü      Encourage collaboration locally and globally.

ü      Enhance inquiry learning.

That's all for now.  Please bear with me as I come to the end of my school year.  My dad is sick too so I'm doing a bit of juggling.  Things will even out soon… I hope.

Setting the Stage

I bought my first computer in 1983.  It was a Commodore 64 - cutting edge.  It came with no software.  I had to write my own programs.  I played with it a little but mostly it sat alone in the corner of my bedroom.  I didn't have the skills needed to fully utilize my new computer.  

Flash forward. In the late 1990's the school in which I worked implemented a phone program that allowed students to call a number and they could access the night's homework - this was cutting edge technology.

Flash forward.  It is the year 2011.  I am a digital immigrant; my students are digital natives.  My students are adept at playing a variety of computer games, they easily access digital videos, they take and send photos with their cell phones, and they enjoy social networking.  But ask my students to independently access a file from my webpage and they are dumbfounded. 

In chapter 10 of the course text, Educational Technology in the Science Classroom, the author cites Pew Foundation studies where "the authors conclude that there is a 'digital disconnect' between limited use of technology in schools and extensive use of technology by students to complete academic work outside of school." This is not consistent with my observations. I see that my students more often than not are challenged to use the simple technologies that I incorporate in my classroom. As a result, while "the ultimate goal is to enhance student learning" I see that most of my endeavors to incorporate technology involve a high level of "instructional overhead" which limits our accomplishment.  Students do not at this time see the connection between the technology that so easily engages them in their free time and the investigations they are asked to conduct in the academic setting.

In a school where high stakes testing is the common practice my students have been trained to provide rote answers and to follow set procedures for solving problems (as in the "scientific method").  As I see it, in science education, the first challenge is to convince students that their technological savvy is transferable and applicable to their academic work. We need to have courses devoted to teaching technology methods so that the instructional overhead in a content area course is reduced. Then we need to convince our students of the value of the true inquiry investigation.  This would bring us to using technology to create new and different learning experiences as described in the article: "Evaluating Technology Use in the Classroom." 

Although I am on a slow learning curve with technology I am encouraged.  Appropriate use of technology in the classroom has the potential to open many doors to learning.  Once the "overhead" is dealt with there is incredible potential for differentiation, collaboration and creativity during inquiry and problem-solving activities. Through this course I look forward to exploring the possibilities that technology offers for not only my student's learning but my own.

Introduction

Hello! 
My friends call me Su and my kid's friends call me momma j.  I live with Allan, my husband of 25 years, 2 cats and a female dog named Rufus.  I have 2 college age children, Ian and Jessi, who live with us during the college summer session.  One of my favorite things to do is listen to Allan, Ian and Jessi perform in their band called the Ragamuffins.  When I'm not listening to the Ragamuffins I prefer to hike with Rufus along my favorite local river.

I have taught high school chemistry, biology, anatomy and physiology, and marine biology.  Currently I teach middle school life science.  We participate in the Trout Unlimited program, Trout in the Classroom, and we look for every opportunity to have class outside!