What does the future hold for books?
Later on Saturday, I received an email from an English teacher who had been at a literacy meeting on Friday. She was asking about testing out various digital reader devices like Kindle, an iPad, Sony reader, etc. A discussion at the meeting on Friday had been related to the format that the teachers were comfortable reading. Not surprisingly, non-digital forms were the norm. However, they are interested in using digital devices both to try themselves and in the classroom. Clearly, they too see the shift that is occurring.
It is not a surprise. The media center at Saline High School is smaller than the media center at our previous high school. It does, however, have more computers. Amazon.com reported recently that sales of e-books now outpace traditional books on their site. On this blog I have been bemoaning the cost (not to mention backpack weight) of hard copy textbooks. There is a shift…. but the impact on how we teach and how we learn is still unknown. The question is how do we make the shift and do what is best for teaching and learning? For those of us who grew up with books as the main source of information, it can be a difficult transition.
Economic Integration?
There was an interesting article in the Washington Post regarding a recent study in Montgomery County, MD. (An aside – Mr. Steve Laatsch, our Assistant Superintendent for Instructional Services worked for Montgomery County Schools for 4 years.) The article shared results from a recent study that showed the positive impact of integrating students from low-income families into middle-class schools. The article noted,
Today, 95 percent of education reform is about trying to make high-poverty schools work,” said Richard Kahlenberg, senior fellow at the Century Foundation, a progressive think tank based in New York that published the report. “This research suggests there is a much more effective way to help close the achievement gap. And that is to give low-income students a chance to attend middle-class schools.
Perhaps economic integration is the key to closing the achievement gap that persists between students from low-income families and higher-income families?
Changing Education Paradigms
Saline High School teacher Ms. Ann O’Harris sent me this video about the changing paradigms in education. It is a thought provoking look at the evolution of the educational system. The speech is made by Sir Ken Robinson.
New Evidence supports PBL
There was an interesting post by Bob Lenz on Edutopia.org on Thursday. While his post was related to a study on the positive impact that a project-based instructional approach/curriculum had over a traditional textbook & lecture control group in an economics unit, the real interesting part for me were the questions he ended with…..
As exciting as this news is for practitioners and school leaders who support PBL, I am still left with some essential questions:
Do you think more people will decide to use PBL because we now have “hard” data to confirm our beliefs about student learning? If not, what will it take to convince them to use a PBL approach? Does data really help convince people to change practice? If not, what does?
Non-Discrimination Policy – 8015
The District will not discriminate against any person based on sex, race, color, national origin, religion, height, weight, marital status, handicap, age, or disability. The Board reaffirms its long-standing policy of compliance with all applicable federal and state laws and regulations prohibiting discrimination including, but not limited to, Titles VI and VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, 42 U.S.C. §§ 2000d. et seq.; and 42 U.S.C. §§ 2000e, et seq.; Title IX of the Educational Amendments of 1972, 20 U.S.C. §§ 1681, et seq.; Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, 29 U.S.C. § 794; The Americans With Disabilities Act of 1990, 42 U.S.C. §§ 1210, et seq.; the Persons with Disabilities Civil Rights Act, MCL §§ 37.1101, et seq.; and the Elliott-Larsen Civil Rights Act, MCL §§ 37.2101, et seq.
No person shall be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination in any educational program or activity available in any school on the basis of race, color, sex, religion, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, height, weight, marital status, or disability.
Much of the discussion has been around the issue of bullying and harassment: we also have a policy related to that subject – policy 8260. The regulations related to this policy includes the following language,
In order to provide a learning environment that is safe, conducive to the educational process, and free from unnecessary disruption, the Saline Area School District will not tolerate bullying, harassment, or hazing of students or staff by any of its students, employees, School Board members, vendors, contractors, or others doing business or associated with the school District. Bullying, harassment, or hazing of any kind is inappropriate and subject to this regulation. Of particular concern is bullying, harassment, or hazing based on a person’s sex, age, color, disability, height, weight, national origin, race, religion, sexual orientation, socio-economic status, or other personal characteristics.
The New Model for Planning?
Declining budgets have pushed district leaders to lay off teachers, shorten school years, and cancel summer programs. Their cost-cutting gymnastics have increased K-3 class sizes, closed libraries, and deferred maintenance. And while a leaky roof might not affect student performance overall, curricular and instructional losses cut at the heart of the educational enterprise.
In brief, we argue that, for educators, a smart-money approach means adopting continuous improvement—the cycle of goal-setting, resource allocation, instruction, assessment, and analysis that tailors resources to school and classroom needs—as a core resource strategy for schools and districts, then making trade-offs that move resources from less-effective to more-effective uses.
Washtenaw International Baccalaureate
Here is a bit about the philosophy behind IB…
The IB philosophy is to foster tolerance and inter-cultural understanding among young people. IB attempts to accomplish this through a curricular framework that incorporates critical thinking, problem solving, and exposure to a variety of viewpoints. The IB philosophy emphasizes:
- Awareness of the similarities and differences among many cultures, understanding issues on an international scale, and responsible citizenship.
- The inter-relatedness of various disciplines and issues.
- A “Socratic” (question and answer) form of achieving knowledge in the classroom.
- Student-centered inquiry and communication.
Check out the presentation here and comment on your thoughts about this option for Saline Area Schools.
The Email Cycle…
The process in this graphic feels very familiar….
Key Components of a Quality Project
• A need to know – A unit should begin with a “hook” or “entry event” that grabs students’ interest and motivates them to think, I need to know this to meet the challenge I’ve accepted. The need-to-know event can be a video, a provocative discussion, a guest speaker, a field trip, or a mock letter setting up a scenario.
• A driving question – Larmer and Mergendoller note that, “A project without a driving question is like an essay without a thesis. A good driving question captures the heart of the project in clear, compelling language, which gives students a sense of purpose and challenge. The question should be provocative, open-ended, complex, and linked to the core of what you want students to learn.” Examples: When is war justified? Is our water safe to drink? How can we improve this website so that more young people will use it?
• Student voice and choice – The more, the better. This might involve students choosing a topic under the guiding question, choosing from a limited menu of options for creative products, or students deciding what products to create, what resources to use, and how to structure their time.
• 21st-century skills – Collaboration is a key component of project work – teams of three or four students planning their tasks, figuring out how to produce their product, and monitoring their work quality through self-assessment.
• Inquiry and innovation – For example, students working on an air pollution unit might generate a series of specific questions: What diseases can you get from air? How much do I have to breath it to get sick? Where do bacteria come from? Pursuing answers in books and the Internet – coached by the teacher – should lead to further questions.
• Feedback and revision – Students need to learn that most people’s first attempts don’t result in high quality and that revision is a key aspect. Students need to be taught that revision and reworking an idea or issue is a frequent feature of real-world work. (See Heritage/Woodland Meadows Campus pick-up & drop-off process) The teacher should provide ongoing feedback, bring in experts and mentors to look over students’ drafts, and provide rubrics and other guides to help students self-assess.
• A publicly presented product – Students should present their final products to an audience that might include parents, peers, community members, and government officials in a big-deal exhibition night. “Schoolwork is more meaningful when it’s not done only for teachers or the test,” say Larmer and Mergendoller. “When students present their work to a real audience, they care more about its quality.” Our staff is very good at providing opportunities to share work with a larger audience. Look no further than HornetTube to see that sharing student work outside of the classroom is becoming the norm here in Saline.
How much school email is too much school email?
There are two main reasons we use email….. it’s quick and it’s inexpensive. We also benefit from a high percentage of families that have access to email either at work or at home or both. In addition, since we have a large number of email addresses for residents in our community, other groups like to work with us to get information out to district residents. Often this is important information that we feel many people would like to know about what is going on in and around the Saline Area School district.
Any thoughts?
Scot Graden's Blog 