Inquiry Learning (EDUC 4P17 Blog #3)

For my blog this week I am going to be discussing the concept of Inquiry Learning. The quote I have included above is from Benjamin Franklin and I believe that it describes Inquiry Learning perfectly. Inquiry Learning is about involving students in their own education and can be described as going where students' interests are (Drake, Reid & Kolohon, 2014). Learning is sparked from students completing the sentence, "I am wondering ..." Although it seems that Inquiry Learning is simply letting children do whatever they want, it is actually quite structured and needs to be implemented properly in order to be beneficial. Drake et al. (2014) state that "students can play an active role in the design of their own learning while still adhering to the rigour of the inquiry model," (p.97). I have done some research on Inquiry Learning to further my understanding of the topic and I have found a lot of information from the Galileo Educational Network's website and from a teacher blog by Angie Harrison. 

The Galileo Educational Network is an organization that provides innovative teaching and learning strategies (Drake et al., 2014). This network has done plenty of research of Inquiry Learning. They describe Inquiry Learning as using your questions to understand the things around you. They believe that understanding comes from people working together and interacting to solve problems, make discoveries and explore the world around them. 

In order to use Inquiry Learning properly, the following dimensions must be present:

1. Authenticity - there must be a real world problem to solve 

2. Academic Rigour - students should be building knowledge that leads to deeper understanding

3. Assessment - assessment is on-going, students are provided with feedback and teachers reflect on their contributions to students' learning

4. Beyond the School - students learn competencies that can be used in everyday life 

5. Digital Technology - technology is used to show different types of learning and is appropriate to the learning at hand

6. Active Exploration - students are actively engaged

7. Connecting with Expertise - students interact with adults other than their teacher

8. Elaborated Communication - students share their opinions and their support/ critique of other students' work 

Teachers can incorporate these dimensions into Inquiry Learning to make sure it is being done correctly. In order to implement Inquiry Learning in my future classrooms I will follow these steps. Before implementing this in my classroom I want to also do more research on Inquiry Learning by reading textbooks, looking at videos and blogs, attending conferences and hopefully seeing this teaching style in action. I found a video on YouTube that explains a teacher's point of view on how she started using Inquiry Learning in her classroom - you can view it here. I found this video very helpful because although I want to use Inquiry Learning in my classroom I am hesitant about how to incorporate it. My educational experiences have been in traditional classrooms and as I continue further in my teacher education I am continuously learning about different teaching styles. I think teaching is about trial and error and what works for one class may not work for another. I want to be open to trying new things in each class as I know each lesson and activity will differ depending on my students. My job as a teacher is to use my knowledge to help create learning experience that are meaningful for my students. I want to monitor and reflect on my practices to ensure my students are benefitting from my teaching. 

When reading up on the topic of Inquiry Learning, I came across Angie Harrison's blog. Angie is a teacher in Ontario who has written about her teaching experiences in her blog and specifically, her use of Inquiry Learning. In her blog, Angie reflects on her need to step back when students are learning and not give them all of the answers. She notes the importance of asking scaffolding questions such as "What do you think you should do?" or "What do you need from me?" in order to allow students to solve problems on their own. Angie talks about the importance of giving her students time just to be creative and to provide them with the materials to do that. Angie's blog is a great resource for other teachers as she shares her experiences, lessons, activities and videos of her class (I have left a link to her blog here if you are interested in reading it). I think teacher blogs are a great way for us to share our knowledge and to learn from others. Keeping a blog and reading blogs is a great way to try out new things and to be exposed to different types of teaching. I think EDUC 4P17 has exposed us to blog writing and I hope to continue my blog into my teaching career. 

Overall, Inquiry Learning is a new way for students to learn. It teaches students how to solve problems, work together, ask questions and become active in the world around them. When done properly I believe this is a great way for students to be active in their education and engage in their learning. I want to continue to explore this teaching style as I hope to use it in my classroom in the future. 

References 

Drake, S.M., Reid, J.L. & Kolohon, W. (2014). Interweaving curriculum and classroom assessment: Engaging the 21st century learner. Canada: Oxford University Press.

Harrison, Angie. Expanding teaching, exploring technology. Retrieved from: http://techieang.edublogs.org/ 

Galileo Educational Network. What is Inquiry? Retrieved from http://galileo.org/teachers/designing-learning/articles/what-is-inquiry/ 

Benjamin Franklin quote retrieved from http://www.quotesvalley.com/tell-me-and-ill-forget-show-me-and-i-may-remember-involve-me-and-ill-understand-9/

Getting to Know Your Students (Blog #2 for EDUC 4P17)

This week I wanted to blog on the topic of getting to know your students. This is a topic that I believe is so important to be a successful teacher. As teachers our job is so much more than teaching the curriculum. As teachers we have a huge influence on our students' lives and it is up to us to use that influence in a positive way.

In her article for Education World, Emma McDonald writes about the steps that can be taken in order to get to know your students. One point that I liked was that she pointed out the importance of showing your students you care. Nina Sears (n.d) adds that getting to know your students can be as simple as asking them about their day and making connections to their lives outside of school, noticing when they look sad or are behaving differently. Both writers note that it is important to acknowledge these things and not to hesitate to act on them. Although teaching is about students the curriculum, it is our jobs as teachers to support our students and make sure they are happy and comfortable at school. I think this is something that can be taken for granted and may be something that teachers loose sight of when things become too hectic.

If you need a little pep talk to inspire your role as a teacher (or as a student) here is a video I found from Kid President on YouTube:

                                         https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RwlhUcSGqgs

I found this video not only super adorable but also very inspirational. A question he asks many times throughout the video is "What are you teaching the world?" I think this is such a bold statement and really makes me think about how much influence we have as teachers. This video could also be inspiring to children who see a student just like them showing them that learning can be fun and that education is important. This video is a nice reminder that each one of us has the power to do great things in the world if we just put our minds to it.

On the topic of inspiring videos, I found another one on YouTube that was made by teachers and shows their views on the importance of knowing your students.

One teacher comments that you can't have good test scores or teach a good lesson if you don't have relationships with your students. This relates back to Emma McDonald's article as she notes that getting to know your students on a personal level is also the best way to avoid behaviour problems. This is because knowing your students allows you to understand their personalities, attitudes and any outside factors that may influence their behaviour. This knowledge then allows you to prevent misbehaviour and react to what goes on in the classroom. One teacher says that she spends long hours at school planning and creating lessons because each year she is given new students. This is touched upon by Susan Drake in our textbook on Interweaving Curriculum and Classroom Assessment. Drake, Reid and Kolohon (2014) write that although you will use the same curriculum each year, the way you teach it will be unique because of the differences in your class each year. Another teacher says that every child has a gift. I believe it is our jobs as teachers to bring out these gifts and use them to make each classroom unique and to allow students to share their gifts with one another. Remembering these things makes me so inspired and eager to teach!! We are given such a great opportunity to change the world and teaching can be so rewarding for ourselves and our students.

Last year in my placement class (EDUC 8P15) my professor got to know each and every student in our class on a personal level. In this class we presented chronicles about experiences that had made us want to become teachers. Some of these chronicles were very personal and my classmates revealed very emotional details about their lives to our class. After only a short time together, I was amazed at how comfortable we had become and how supportive we were of our classmates. None of this could have happened if it weren't for the actions of our professor. She shared personal information about her life with us, she let us know that she was always there to support us and made it very clear that this was a safe learning environment. Her effort to bring us all together was quite amazing and made our learning experience in that class so positive. Each of us definitely shared our gifts (as was mentioned in the video) to learn about the struggles and triumphs that people had gone through. If there was one message I could take away from that class it would be that everyone has their own story and everyone has had things happen in their lives that influence them on a daily basis. What my professor was able to convey to us through teaching and by leading as an example was that it is so important to get to know your students because each one of them is unique and has so much to offer. She also showed us that having students share their stories can not only bring them closer to you but also become closer and more supportive as a class. I hope to use this technique in all of my classes as it was such a positive experience for all of us.

I hope this blog has illustrated the importance of getting to know your students. I hope the connections, videos, and sources I have used have inspired you like they have inspired me!

References:
Drake, S.M., Reid, J.L. & Kolohon, W. (2014). Interweaving curriculum and classroom assessment: Engaging the 21st century learner. Canada: Oxford University Press.

McDonald, E. (October 4, 2015). The Secret Weapon: Getting to know your students. Education World. Retrieved from http://www.educationworld.com/a_curr/columnists/mcdonald/mcdonald013.shtml

Sears, N. (n.d). Building Relationships with Students. National Education Association. Retrieved from http://www.nea.org/tools/29469.htm

Teacher quote retrieved from: https://www.pinterest.com/SallyRideSci/we-love-teachers/ 

Growth vs. Fixed Mindset (Blog #1 for EDUC 4P17)

In class this week we learned about a concept called growth mindset. This concept intrigued me and I wanted to learn more about it. As a future teacher I want my students to enjoy coming to school. I want my students to be engaged and motivated in their learning and more importantly I want them to have self-confidence. All of these things are encompassed in the concept of growth mindset. Carol Dweck, a psychologist, professor and a major contributor to education, describes growth mindset as the belief that one's abilities can develop and improve. Opposite of a growth mindset is a fixed mindset, where one is afraid to take risks and believes that their abilities are unchanging or "fixed." Saying, "I'm not a math person," before a math test would be an example of a fixed mindset, where the student is already limiting themselves before evening looking at the test. Whereas looking at a math test and saying, "I'm going to try my best" would be an example of a student with a growth mindset.

In order to better understand this concept, I found a YouTube video that describes it quite well.

I believe adopting a growth mindset is not only beneficial for students but for teachers as well. This idea is discussed by Boyd in her article The Growth Mindset Approach: A Threshold Concept in Course Redesign. In this article she notes that teaching is not just about delivering information and that sometimes teachers are too overwhelmed with the pressure to meet curriculum expectations to think about meaningful learning. This is where Boyd calls on teachers to shift away from traditional learning and moving towards transformative learning. As a teacher, I believe having a growth mindset would change the dynamics of a classroom. Having a growth mindset, I would encourage my students to try new things, to make mistakes, and to persevere through challenges that they face inside and outside of the classroom. 

The more I research the topic of a growth mindset, the more I love it. I hope this blog entry has taught you something new and shown you a new approach to learning and to teaching. As teacher candidates I think it is important for us to think about how we would like our students to approach learning and what our role is in this process. For me, I want my classroom to be a safe and encouraging place where my students explore new territories and aren't afraid to make mistakes. 

For those of you who are interested in learning more about growth mindsets I have included a link to one of Carol Dweck's lectures on developing a growth mindset. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hiiEeMN7vbQ

References

 Boyd, D.E. (2014). The Growth Mindset Approach: A Threshold Concept in Course Redesign.                      Journal on Centers For Teaching & Learning, 629-644. 

Mindsets: How to Motivate Students (and Yourself). (2013). Educational Horizons, 91(2), 16-21

Mindset image retrieved from: http://carriekepple.com/2015/04/24/growth-mindset-vs-fixed-mindset-which-do-you-have/