#AEE412 Sunday Reflections 4: Collaborative Learning

Collaborative Learning is Grand!

This week our readings discussed group or collaborative learning, writing purposeful learning objectives, and facilitating instruction. All of the topics are important but it seems that collaborative learning techniques happened to stick with me the most. I believe this is because I have made the connection between utilizing groups as a teaching tool when I'm a teacher and having them used on me! Within our Ag Ed courses here at Penn State Dr. Foster, Dr. Ewing, Dr. Curry, and Dr. Rice demonstrate different ways to teach our students increasing their level of comprehension and moving to a higher level on Bloom's Taxonomy. Having these techniques demonstrated on myself, I hope to use some of them as I cross the line from student to teacher. 

Digging deeper into the tactics and structure of collaborative classroom activities, I can clearly see where this benefits students. Instead of simply listening to a lecture students can make more connections between the taught material and their own thoughts. Personally I gain vast amounts of comprehension in group situations. The fact of the matter is that many people see things differently. Just as our weekly investments focus on different points of the reading, group members will all pick a different facet of the content that they are working on and bring a different view to the discussion that they are a part of. Not to mention the fact that the way a teacher tries to teach something might not click for a particular student. Having group work allows for more discussion and even some clarification from other students. When used correctly collaborative learning can really make a positive difference in the classroom!

This week I found a great video from "Teaching Channel" which I have included a link to in my references. In this video, a high school teacher from Texas talks about the 1-3-6 approach to group strategies in his classroom. When a topic is being approached first the students individually comprehend what they learned. They then get into a small group of three and discuss the topic. Finally their group of three pairs with another group of three to gain even more perspectives and provide some personal views of the topic. If desired, each group of six can quickly share what they decided was the most common theme in their discussion. I like this approach to a collaborative activity and will have to test it out in the classroom to see how well it works in meeting comprehensive objectives!

Do you have any thoughts or tips on group teaching? Any stories or examples you would like to share? Please comment!

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References:

Groseta, K.J. & Myers, B.E. (2006). Using cooperative learning in formal and nonformal education. Retrieved from https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/pdffiles/WC/WC06200.pdf

Newcomb, L.H., McCracken, J.D., Warmbrod, J.R., & Whittington, M.S. (1993). Methods of teaching agriculture. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Pearson Prentice Hall.

(n.d.). Retrieved September 16, 2017, from https://www.teachingchannel.org/videos/1-3-6-protocol

Whittington, M.S. (2005). Writing objectives in secondary agriculture courses that challenge students to think. Agriculture Education Magazine. Retrieved from  http://www.naae.org/profdevelopment/magazine/archive_issues/Volume77/v77i5.pdf

I *faux* Taught the First Day of School!

This Wednesday in our AEE 412 "methods" lab, I taught my first day of school lesson! I think it went well as it was my second time teaching in lab and this go-round was much better and less nerve racking than the first. I found some "Gems" and "Opps" that I'd like to share. Gems are positive things that I did well and opps are opportunities where I could have done better. Here it goes!

Gems

• I feel that I was upbeat and enthusiastic through the lesson. 
• I transitioned well from greeting students at the door into bell-work and onto my expectations.
• I did well at keeping student's on task when taking an introductory quiz. Some students were trying to talk instead of staying on task, others were sleeping. I tried using engaging questions and proximity control to keep them on task.

Opps

• A few of the students probing questions could have been answered with more finesse. Some of these situations were downright hilarious and it was rather hard to keep a straight face and answer them correctly. Side note, the students were actually my fellow #PSUAgEd18 cohort members. 
• I wanted the students to introduce themselves using an activity with a large plastic ball which I would have written questions on. I could not find a ball at the local Walmart so I had to settle on a snowball game. It worked really well but it wasn't exactly what I was hoping for. 

Please comment and let me know how your first day of class usually goes. How do you respond when student's ask you awkward personal questions? What activity do you use to introduce yourself to the students? I look forward to reading your comments!

#AEE412 Sunday Reflections 3

Program Planning 101: Planning to Succeed

I just love when multiple classes share a common theme at the same time! This past week in both #AEE412 and #AEE413 we learned about the importance of program planning and how your curriculum connects to the rest of your program. Currently my focus is on lesson plans and where to start!

Today I am spending my time writing a lesson plan and a unit plan. It does seem like a great deal of thought and planning must go into just one lesson! Now, I image all of the veteran teachers reading this and laughing as they say "Duh!" Remember I'm just getting started and am attempting to figure out my organization style of a lesson plan and how to fit standards as well as write clearly stated objectives. It's all new to me! 

Beginning with an end in mind is the advice that I have heard repeated the most. Think about what you want your students to learn and be able to do and then decide how you're going to get them to reach that goal. I feel that the approach to unit planning is similar as well. My hope is that I will figure out a way to create my unit plan and lesson plans with objectives that will satisfy what my students need to know based off of industry standards and local need. I am utilizing resources given to me in class and those I have found on my own.

Check out the Missouri Program Planning Handbook that I have linked below. Its a cool resource that I feel breaks down many aspects of a program and provides help in understanding why Ag teachers must have many aspects included in a successful program. Also check out the Strategies for Effective Lesson Planning from Michigan. They break down the steps they think should be taken very nicely.

Do you have any advice or suggestions to help me in starting my planning?

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References:

Agricultural Education Program Planning Handbook for Missouri Schools. (n.d.). Retrieved September 10, 2017, from http://dass.missouri.edu/aged/resources/handbook/

Newcomb, L.H., McCracken, J.D., Warmbrod, J.R., & Whittington, M.S. (1993). Methods of teaching agriculture. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Pearson Prentice Hall.

Strategies for Effective Lesson Planning. (n.d.). Retrieved September 10, 2017, from http://www.crlt.umich.edu/gsis/p2_5

#AEE412 Sunday Reflections 2

Where do I begin?: Planning to satisfy Bloom

This week our readings granted us a preview into the maze called "unit and lesson planning." This part of my journey has been looming on the horizon since I took the Introduction to Agricultural Education class here at Penn State. Just as demonstrated in the image above, I am looking at writing lesson plans and really don't know where to begin so I plan on jumping in. Thankfully this week's "Understanding by Design Framework" reading suggested that the best approach for starting a lesson plan is to go backwards and start with an end in mind based on goals and objectives. 

Now when students come into our classroom on day one we don't expect them to be a plethora of knowledge with the material and  they have to be ready to jump right in and learn. I hope that through trial and error my lesson plans will have lots of promise because the goal of this operation in its entirety is to benefit the growth and development of my students! Creating clearly stated objectives seems to be a piece of cake until you actually try. I expect the hardest parts for me to accomplish will be creativity and remembering to use Bloom's Taxonomy to create action oriented objectives. Through practice I know that I will get there and have this conquered in a short time. I hope that when I enter student teaching I will challenge my students using variety in the classroom and differentiation of methods. Lets face it, who wants to be lectured all day? Nobody. Plus simple lecture tactics will not allow the class to reach goals that include a higher learning level of Bloom's Taxonomy. It will take creativity on my part, but I'm ready to stretch my creative muscles!

I am looking forward to this week of class where I can discuss the readings with my fellow cohort members and see what they expect their strengths and weaknesses to be as we are introduced to lesson planning. Please comment with any questions or tips that you may have for me and I will be sure to keep you updated on the progression of my lesson planning experience!

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References:
Newcomb, L.H., McCracken, J.D., Warmbrod, J.R., & Whittington, M.S. (1993). Methods of teaching agriculture. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Pearson Prentice Hall.

Reardon, M. & Derner, S. (2004) Strategies for great teaching. Chicago, Illinois: Zephyr Press

Mctighe, J. & Wiggins, G. (2012). Understanding by design framework. Retrieved from http://www.ascd.org/ASCD/pdf/siteASCD/publications/UbD_WhitePaper0312.pdf

Fink, L.D. (2003) A self-directed guide to designing courses for significant learning. Retrieved from http://www.deefinkandassociates.com/GuidetoCourseDesignAug05.pdf

West Virginia University, (2010.). Bloom’s taxonomy. Retrieved from http://community.wvu.edu/~lsmong/Articulate%20Blooms%20Wheel/blooms_wheel.html

Ziff, B. (n.d.). Utilizing Blooms Taxonomy in Your Classroom. Retrieved September 4, 2017, from http://www.calstatela.edu/sites/default/files/centers/spedintern/hints11bloomtaxonomy.pdf

Let's Travel to Manheim!

In preparation for my student teaching experience I have been learning about my cooperating center. Below is my video, check it out and be sure to comment with questions!

Angela's Cooperating Center: Manheim Central High School

#AEE412 Sunday Reflections 1

John Wayne once said, "Courage is being scared to death...and saddling up anyway." This is an accurate representation of current  feelings about my #TeachAg journey. Am I scared? Yes. Am I here to cinch that saddle and ride for a full 8 seconds? Heck yes! I was casually reminded about my culmination of feelings while completing this weeks readings. Here is my take:

The first thing that I noticed while reading Newcomb is that teaching high school agriculture is neither a walk in the park nor a piece of cake. That seems to be common knowledge to almost anyone I talk to. I am running full speed ahead to prepare for student teaching this upcoming Spring and it is difficult. Deadlines, acronyms, technology, lesson and unit plans, variety...its scary. Scary like being a Jeopardy contestant and realizing that you forgot to put on pants after you got on the stage. At this point in time I have no idea what I don't know. Sometimes I have to take a breath and remember that I am not the only one that feels this way. I am almost certain that the other members of my cohort feel this struggle as well. We want to tackle it all and be wonderful educators that make no mistakes. This is not feasible. I WILL make mistakes but I will grow from them! Yeah you might have to face palm when you accidentally address an email wrong or pick yourself up off the floor when you underestimated how long a project would take to complete with a due date rapidly approaching. When teaching we will bomb lesson plans or freeze when figuring out how to take disciplinary action in a situation. Heres the key: Clarity will come, our teaching will get better, we will eventually memorize all of the Ag Ed acronyms. Right now we should put some elbow grease into getting things done and trying our best because we have the greatest support system imaginable. Through our professors, virtual mentor network, PAAE members, and PSU Ag Ed alumni the answers to our questions are a phone call or email away. 

Finally, remember what Wong said, the first day of school is very important in setting the tone for the rest of the year. When something is important enough to give you butterflies you really care. I would guess that even professional Ag teachers get butterflies on the first day of school. Its a good thing! I care about the future of agricultural education in high schools across this country. I know that this year won't be easy just as  being a teacher in a classroom after graduation won't be either. However, I'm like The Duke who never backs down from the challenge of a good fight. 

Reflection #3: The Hidden Lives of Learners

Welcome back to part three of three in my reflection of The Hidden Lives of Learners by Graham Nuthall.

Chapter 5: "How students learn from the variety of their experiences"

Once again the word "variety" peeks out at us in this chapter. A large focus was once again the way that students need three encounters with a piece of content to incorporate it into their stored knowledge. It is crucial to remember that not all students will come into your classroom on day one and have the same prior or existing knowledge. Recognize their starting level and work your hardest to raise their bar of knowledge no matter where they start out. After all we are trying to make the best better! (shoutout to my 4-H friends out there) I realize that I have yet to take my methods class but I already realize the importance of variety in the classroom. I can't wait to actually learn how to use variations in my lessons because I've read about it and have gotten excited! 

Chapter 6: "Ethnic differences and learning"

Looking back on my experiences with Agricultural and Extension Education in the past year I have been involved in many discussions about diversity in the classroom. While reading this chapter I was reminded about the necessity of recruiting and retaining a population in your classes that represent the demographics of your school. Many times children who are in the minority do not feel welcome or comfortable with a group of students, the majority of which are different than themselves. In the book we were presented a few examples where students would use an individuals differences such as their accent or ethnicity to bully them in a more personal way. When I enter the classroom I aim to create an inclusive environment where students will not be worried about whether their differences make them stand out but can focus entirely on learning and growing as individuals. 

Chapter 7: "Teaching for learning: a summary"

This chapter was the first to be written by Mr. Nuthall's colleagues after his death. It served as a summary of what the reader has gained from the book. Following is a list of a few recent key lessons I am taking away from my time spent reading the final third of this book.

1) Learning is highly individualized and can come from teacher directed and student directed experiences.

2) Inquiry based instruction (although not referred to directly in the book) will create lifelong learners who are able to direct themselves and utilize problem-solving skills.

3) Include everyone in your classroom whether they be a minority through their race, IEP status, or popularity peer group. If you notice that they are being bullied make sure to do something about it ensuring that you follow th policy of the school. 


I would like to thank you all for following along with my take on The Hidden Lives of Learners by Graham Nuthall. May we all continue reading for professional development and become better educators because of our efforts!