Archive for the 'Lecture' Category

Fixed or Flexible Learning

Published April 3, 2009 choice , Classroom , Content , Curriculum , Diversity , Education , Evaluate , Learn , Learner , Lecture , Need , Power Point , PowerPoint , Presentation , Strategy , Teach Leave a Comment
Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

I recently talked to someone who teaches an online course.  She says that the college has supplied the lectures for each class.  I questioned how a college could think that the fixed lectures would fit the needs of the class. Then the person reminded me that high school textbooks,  textbook websites, textbook DVDs,  textbook PowerPointsand content websites present the material  in a fixed manner.  I think it is good for a teacher to see an exemplary lesson and then to modify the lesson for the class or  for the teacher to use the fixed  lesson as a jumping off point  but I do feel that teachers should not follow a book lesson blindly. Based on our students’  intellectual, physical and emotional needs, we, as instructional leaders, need to decide how to teach the selected goal.  We need to modify the lesson to meet various learning styles and learning levels in our class. We need to know when to abandon a lesson to teach a missing skill or a complimentary skill. We are the ones to show the students the connections between what they are learning and the big picture, to bring in our life experiences in that learning.

How do you teach your course?  Do you strictly follow the textbook (fixed) or do you modify the learning in a flexible manner based on your students’ needs?

My book, Formative Assessment: Responding to Students, is available through Eye-on-Education.

Reponding to Your Students

Pre-checking for Student Engagement Through PowerPoint

Published March 16, 2009 Answer , Class , communication , Curriculum , Edublogger , Education , Educational technology , Empowerment , Engagement , Focus , Instruction , Learn , Lecture , Lesson , Motivation , Participation , Power Point , PowerPoint 3 Comments
Tags: , , , , , , , , ,

Like many teachers, I use PowerPoint to guide the lesson. I like that I can have all the images, videos, quotes, essential questions, class activities, etc. in one place for the lesson.  Lately, I have been thinking more about student engagement during class. I’ve come up with a simple way to verify that students will be engaged.  I use a distinct color such as dark blue  in the PowerPoint to indicate  all the  student activities  such as questions to be answered, small group discussions, and  comparison charts to be done. Before I teach a lesson, Iscan my PowerPoint slides to see how often I am engaging the students- I simply look for the dark blue text.  Since I’ve begun doing this, I find myself  wondering how I could be talking/showing for so long without students being asked to think through the topic.  I find myself adding more opportunities for students to  become engaged with the material.

Go dark blue and see what happens in your class.

My book, Formative Assessment: Responding to Students, is available through Eye-on-Education.

Reponding to Your Students

Gladly would the teacher help the students to learn

Published April 20, 2008 Achievement , Assess , Assessment , assessment for learning , Formative , Formative assessment , formative feedback , Learn , Lecture , Teach , Teacher , Teaching Leave a Comment
Tags: , , , , , , , , , ,

Chaucer wrote “Gladly would he learn and gladly teach.” I would like to change that to “Gladly would he/she learn and gladly help students to learn.” Unfortunately some teachers think of teaching as presenting information and then testing on that info. In the formative assessment process, the focus is on helping the students to learn.

Glick wrote :”It is not what the teacher does but what he gets the students to do that results in learning” Our focus should be not on what the teacher does but on what the teacher helps the students to do. The teacher’s “best” lecture is not good if it does not help students to do something to learn the standard. Teachers should teach less and have students learn and do more in the class. The more students do in the class, the more teachers can observe them, diagnose them, and offer formative feedback to help the students so that the students can improve drastically in their learning.

Do you focus on teaching or learning?

Giving Students’ learning Choices Through Technology

Published March 27, 2008 Activity , Assessment , assessment for learning , Formative , Formative assessment , formative feedback , Guide , Lecture , Podcast , Podcasting , Power Point , PowerPoint , Sage , Standard , technology 3 Comments
Tags: , , , , , , , , , , ,

I like to rent Redbox movies, those red kiosco in grocery stores and McDonalds. I can preview the available titles from the comfort of my home; I can take my time to decide which movie I want. I can even rent the movie online so that it is ready for me when I get to the store. I can return it to any Redbox.

I wonder what school would be like if we could have more options and choices available to students. Sure all students have to learn the same basic standards. How much choice do we give the students in how they go about doing it? Do we provide lectures, demonstrations, guided instructions, interactive activities, group activities, and self-tests in various digital formats for them? By using technology we can have many different forms of learning the standard available to the students. What, if instead of lock stepping the class in terms of the students’ learning, we freed up the class to make their own choices? They can select in what order or format to see/hear/experience the learning.

We can start small with podcasts, emovies, and interactive Power Points as we build up our library. Imagine if a department (all English teachers in 9th grade) worked together to create these resources. Then we as teachers could really be guides on the side instead of the sage on the stage. We can spend time in providing formative feedback to students in one-on-one and small groups instead of being infront of the room “teaching”. When students experience a learning gap, we can refer them to a specific technology application that focuses on that learning gap. We can give more help to those who need one-on-one feedback.

Let’s use technology to help us better guide students in their learning.

Oprah’s Book Club, A New Earth, and Classroom Education

Published March 20, 2008 A New Earth , Academic , Concept , essential , Essential question , Example , Idea , Learn , learning , Lecture , Oprah , Tolle , Topic , Word Leave a Comment
Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , ,

I have attended two of Oprah’s online book club sessions on Tolle’s A New Earth. I am fascinated with how Oprah selects to present information. Other than the face shots of Oprah and Eckhart, there were two screens of quotes from the book. Then there were various people who are skyping in, emailing in (Oprah reads their email), and phoning in.

I am struck by several aspects.

When there is a compelling topic, there is no need for a “three ring circus” to keep people interested. Do we have compelling topics in our classes? Do we have essential questions that are really essential to students’ lives? The battles of the US Civil War are not critical but the differences that cause wars (personal, national, and international) is a critical understanding.

Words have to be carefully chosen to convey a precise meaning. Eckhart uses words like “form” and “ego” very precisely. How carefully do we select our words in the classroom or do we “wing” it? Have we planned out a powerful verbal or visual script that guides our students in their learning? Are our words so precise that students can see differences in concepts?

Big ideas need to be accompanied by vivid examples so that the ideas become “visible”. How do we take the big ideas/concepts in our subject area and make them visible to our students through concrete examples? Do we have a story, a visual, an emovie, or some technology to show that depicts the big idea?

Checking for Understanding Instead of Lecturing

Published January 26, 2008 Assess , Assessment , assessment for learning , Lecture , Understanding Leave a Comment
Tags: , , , , , , , ,

We feel so good as we lecture. We know that we have prepared well. We know that we have good examples and visuals. We have interesting stories. We feel that the students are basking in our teaching. However, we do not know if the students are learning the goal. They may be able to parrot back to us the major points but can they paraphrase these points in their own words? Can they identify examples of it? Can they apply the learning in a mini-example? We can stop every 5-10 minutes and make sure that they can demonstrate their learning through the use of various technology. Each time we will raise the bar of what we want them to learn in terms of the higher level thinking skills for the learning. Each time we will have them demonstrate that can reach that new level. Then we can really feel good about their learning!

Blog Stats

  • 815,652 hits
Design a site like this with WordPress.com
Get started