Thursday, June 11, 2015

Blog 6 What is Inquiry based learning.....?

This question (in my mind) will never have a definitive answer. My reasoning is because we are trying to develop a new culture from an old one. The new culture is a group of students who are questioning the reason why they are going through the motions of school and why they are learning the topics chosen for them. These predetermined topics are our basics for knowledge and it is our job as teachers in the 21st century to change the student culture from robots who are simply repeating over and over and over and over...... to robots who have intelligence and think for themselves. They may know how to make a wooden car that goes fast but what if by asking a simple question they begin to question how to make it lighter, how to make it stronger, or how to make it go without spending any energy. So, in my attempt to answer what is inquiry based learning it is not an answer but my explanation of a concept. Asking a question that will snowball a group of students to begin to wonder, ponder, and openly discuss a topic and seek the truth and knowledge needed based on desire. The desire to want to know rather than the desire to do what they are told.



WHEWWWW...... Wouldn't it be great if we had a magic question for all kids rather than having to find that question for each one? It is there. For most boys it is....here take this thingamagig apart and tell me how it works....At least I know that is when I am learning at my best. Experience of a situation that I created not someone else created for me. I like where http://teachinquiry.com/index/Introduction.html tells us that"inquiry starts with teachers as engaged learners and researchers with the foundational belief that the topics they teach are rich, living and generous places for wonder and exploration." This is true for most of us...we just have not found a magic potion to get kids to buy in. I think that once a single student buys in with the inquiry base it will attract others because the excitement is contagious!



 As far as the planning for the mini lessons is concerned, I hope I am not alone in the fact that I keep thinking A HA! I have it only to bail out and think of something else to work towards. I would like to have the mini lessons ease the students into the inquiry limelight. (and me as well) To make sure that it is authentic we will identify a standard (or the standard if I am using this as a template for all future lessons) so that we can identify what it is that we are aimed at. Once we have decided on the standard we can begin the next step. Knowing that it is social studies I would like to focus on one of the Georgia standards on water that I am familiar with.  For instance -
SS7G10 The student will discuss environmental issues across Southern and Eastern Asia.
a. Describe the causes and effects of pollution on the Yangtze and Ganges Rivers.
b.Describe the causes and effects of air pollution and flooding in India and China. 
I feel like I can create a question that will spark an evolution in the classroom. I would start with something along the lines of what could happen to someone who drank water directly from the Yangtze or Ganges river?  OR Would you be willing to take a drink out of the Yangtze or Ganges river?  I would then follow up with a why or why not, is there something about the river that may make it undesirable?  This will then open up the discover of religion in India and importance of clean water in those regions of the world, along with possibly a student coming forth with a why don't we do something about cleaning it up question. This in itself will help to drive the deeper knowledge and I do not think I will have to push for it. I think the curiosity would be there. As far as technology is concerned I would make sure that students have a lesson on appropriate sources. I would like to curate a few websites to make sure that they are on track for the accurate details and not someone's journal from a visit that may have been disgusted. Although I would have been disgusted I think that concern would be a better angle for the inquiry.   The third mini lesson I want to include would be an ethical based learning to make sure that when we present our findings from the inquiry, we are are doing so in a manner that is not a negative blog from someone visiting but more of a nurturing presentation to help others realize that this is the lifeline for these countries and they need help but do not even realize for the most part. 
 
 
I must admit I am struggling a little bit but I think I am headed in the right direction. I want the students to be active in the research and engaged but don't want to aim so high that I am disappointed in the outcome!
 
 

Thursday, June 4, 2015

Post #5 Mindset

My goals in the first week were to hone my skills of Inquiry based learning and to become better at Infographics. This is something that was really targeted for me this week. When it comes to the infographs I can see were the growth mindset needs to come into play for me. If I get frustrated while trying to create the infograph it will not be productive at all. I love the sense that the challenge for learning should be portrayed as exciting by the teacher. Carol Dweck is very encouraging in her interview. She tells us that we must be challenged to keep those neurons firing. It makes sense to me that if we are not challenged we are not improving our brain power.   Eduardo Briceno also touches on the need for challenges as he discusses Josh Waitzken, he was a chess genius and decided to become a genius at another field, Mixed Martial Arts. By creating opportunities to fail and experience he credits this to his ability to becoming a world champion. Pretty impressive. Briceno keeps mentioning that a growth mindset can change the way people act and behave in the presence of a challenge or when things become difficult. He also states that it will change a confidence in someone, for example fixed mindset brains are concerned with how others look at them and those with growth mindset do not. This could  change a child for life.
     Based on what I have learned about a growth mindset it is really not changing my goals but enhancing them. I know as I struggle to create my infograph I will have moments where I would like to stop. Although, if I embrace this challenge I will become better at the infographs and inquiry learning. I am going to do my best to recognize that the growth mindset in the creation of the graph will help me in the long run. Briceno tells us to listen to our fixed mindset when it says I can't do it and to add YET! As continued education students I am certain that most of us would fall into the growth mindset category or we would have stopped with our undergraduate studies. However, I do believe that we have both types of mindset at one time. We may take on certain tasks with fixed and others with a growth mindset.
            The creation of essential questions is something that I think we all do in education without being deliberate. This article "Learners Should Be Developing Their Own Essential Questions", is suggesting we be deliberate. As a teacher in social studies I open up a lesson with the unpacking of standards. Once we have identified what we need to be able to do and the things we need to know in order to do it, I ask the kids what sorts of questions we are going to be looking for. This is very similar except I do it as a whole class. After reading the article, I think that each child should have some time that is not influenced by others to hash out the question that they may ask to seek the information. It makes sense to me and I also think that this will help my inquiry based learning. Those questions are what creates the foundation and peaks the interest of the students. "Questioning comes naturally to children and seems to become a lost art and skill as people age." This is something that I remind myself with my 4 year old daughter as she plays 20 questions with me. Most that are "Why?" We have to be conscious of the inquiry and use it to direct students learning. I am really hoping that this will help me to direct my students in the future.