Data Collection and Volcanoes

In the Edweek article, Changing the Public Image of Teaching, which was one of the reasons I started this blog, it says:

Become your own publicist…  stop being modest. “This is a tough one. It's in our nature to focus on the students and not ourselves. We create fun and engaging lessons so students have powerful learning experiences, not so we can have attention. However, if we want to educate the public about the amazing things happening in our school, we can't be shy. Call the local paper or news station the next time you have an exciting project or lesson that you'd like to share.” (Megan)
David said he wishes more teachers would push past that reluctance to share: “Keep the focus on school and students. Overcoming that reluctance is a positive contribution you can make to your own development—and our profession. It's an opportunity to model for students how we push ourselves to take some risks and stretch beyond our comfort zones.”

I was going to start with an interview with Amy Nestman, a colleague of mine from Kealakehe Elementary School, who is our District representative for Hawaii Teacher of the Year. She agreed to be interviewed, so that is coming. But I have a few moments this morning to write, so I decided to share my own reflections of my teaching. As I wrote about in the first entry, I was inspired by a Ted Talk by Chris Conley. Though he was speaking on a broad scale about meaningfulness and happiness, I applied it to my world in the classroom. I asked, just what is it that is important to me as an educator entrusted with helping to assist youngsters in fulfilling their own purpose in life? Do I do enough of those important things?

It is reassuring to me that the humane things I believe are important are also important to educators and society in general. For example, a quick google search for 21st century skills yields results like this: 

Learning and innovation skills increasingly are being recognized as the skills that separate students who are prepared for increasingly complex life and work environments in the 21st century, and those who are not. A focus on creativity, critical thinking, communication and collaboration is essential to prepare students for the future. 

We have been trained and are constantly reminded to focus on the standards, and this does not always mean we are also remembering to focus on these 21st century skills. It helps to be conscious of it, and count the ways you are. So I recalled my last week in school before break, and was relieved to know that yes, there was a match between what I believe is important, with what society is saying is important and with what I actually managed to do in my classroom.

1. In math, we are doing a unit on data collection. The mid-unit assessments were disappointing, but fixable with continued practice and teaching of how to use a rubric to self- assess to make sure you included everything you are going to be graded on. The lesson after the assessment was for students to conduct their own survey with a partner comparing two distinct groups answering the same question. As I was watching my students doing this, I was amazed and pleased with how engaged they were, and after some corrections and guidance on how to work together, I saw communication as well as collaboration. In our professional learning community, we had had a discussion beforehand on whether or not we should do this activity. The bone of contention was how to stay on schedule with the curriculum mapping. Half of us decided to do the activity and half skipped it, saying they will incorporate the skills in science. I am glad I decided to do it. The survey questions are not scientific, per se. Students are asking questions such as, how many pets, cars, or game consoles do you have? The questions are what the students are interested in, which means they are engaged in doing the work. The engagement leads to organizing themselves to get the work done, which requires communication and collaboration.

2. In science, we are studying the formation of the Hawaiian Islands, i.e. volcanoes. This is a project that I do every year that I teach fourth grade, and it is a project that students remember years later. Is it loaded with power benchmarks so that the students are learning something about science that will forever impact their lives? I wish. There are some science standards addressed, for sure. But what really counts is the collaboration - the working together to make their volcano. I watch how they problem-solve, how they manage the limited resources, how they negotiate the lines between leadership and "bossiness," how they demonstrate teamwork in which no one gets left out. 

So, that's the work I do, the work that I'm proud of. Now to figure out how to quantify it in terms of does it really make a difference in the lives of children. I mean, really? How can you know that for sure?