Focus+Chapter+3

Focus Book Study Chapter Three Discussion

Now that you have read Chapter 3, what are your initial thoughts, questions, concerns.

Deb Z.: In a rush to meet the daily demands and expectations of teaching, it's easy to stray from our goals and objectives. Chapter 3 was a fresh reminder that clearly articulated goals and objectives are integral parts of successful lesson plans as well as practice! Practice! Practice! As a vocational teacher, I see firsthand how beneficial it is to provide sufficient guided practice that necessitates reading, writing, and mathematical skills. Having students demonstrate understanding and mastery of skills should take place routinely but doesn't have to be in the form of a written test every Friday. It's not so much that we follow a rigid lesson format; it's the idea that we need to use the basics: goals, objectives, a clear action plan that utilizes language and math literacy and a manner to frequently evaluate student understanding. As a 35-year veteran teacher often puts it to me: KISS.

debgslp: The chapter provided useful information to new and veteran teachers. New=idea of how to teach; veteran=reminder/review of what to include in lessons and how to make it an interesting learning time. I did not agree completely when Linda Hammond stated that the "single most important determination of success for students is knowledge and skills of child's teacher", though. You can be the best teacher and unless the student is motivated and willing to learn, then you become against a brick wall. Yes, we are to get students to learn anyway possible but when the child has other things on his mind (home, problems, etc..), then sometimes it is very difficult to get the material across.

Scott - One key issue here that I see a lot as a mentor to new teachers is their inability to set actual goals for daily classroom activities. Too often I see, "complete worksheet 23 and read pages 45-47" or something similar as classroom goals. Setting clear objectives is a huge key to what we do in class. Simply writing the learning goals on the board really helps guide students to the main ideas of the day. "Students will understand the differences and similarities between loyalists and patriots" is an objective. If they see that n the board at the beginning, they know what we are working for and then as a teacher, I can assess their knowledge of that objective before they leave. Another point made is the idea of many formative assessments throughout a lesson. I really feel like this is a comfort and experience issue. It's hard to shift from graded, traditional homework to quick checks, exit slips, discussion checks, and other non-traditional ways of assessing knowledge. It's also a managament issue to get kids up, together, talking, and back in a set amount of time. It takes practice! But it can work VERY well when it all comes together and the upside is drastically reduced "traditional" grading. "Frequency is paramount, but most of these almost-daily assignments don't need to be formally graded - only completed, checked off, or given credit if a quick glance reveals them to be an honest attempt.....(p. 87)" I can check 170 kids' vin diagram comparing/contrasting loyalists and patriots by circulating the room and checking for two-three key points. Then the kids can use that diagram to create a paragraph if I want them to do so. Again the paragraphs are a quick check of two-three keys and then I move on. "Write More, Grade Less!" I love it!

Teresa - I enjoyed reading about the two templates the author offered in the chapter. I can see how both would be beneficial to the students and make a class very interesting. Most students, especially middle school students, like to speak their mind. If they are guided, step-by-step, through the process, using formative assessments along the way, they will love giving their opinions to you and their peers. I thought the fish bowl concept was very interesting too, pertaining to the discuss and debate template.

Donna L.: I think sometimes we move too quickly through the steps of setting a learning objective and building background knowledge. With the poverty rate in our school system we should spend some time scaffolding with background knowledge and setting an objective. Do you know how confused you are if you ever a meeting and you have missed information and are not sure what is going on? In my mind if I do not have a "file folder" to pull to reference what I am hearing I often need double time to process so I can create a mental frame of reference, etc. Perhaps, as the authors suggest, we should take time to do this instead of pressing through the materials so quciky to "get it all in". @Scott- I agree in terms of the skills of beginning teachers. I have observed teachers and have asked for a lesson plan including a learning objective and some have asked me what I am referring to. Many stop doing these after the first week or two of student teaching. SO...should we have a more in depth training for our new teachers on an effective lesson plan, including the elements in this chapter? Maybe we should if we are serious about student improvement (and a lot of us older teachers could benefit from a review as well!). One other thing: it is not OK to privatize what happens in a classroom. Teachers are professionals and need to be held to a performance measure as any other professional would. It's not OK to close our door and do what we think is best and ignore lesson elements we "don't agree with"; we need to be accountable as a team and to one another; to the standards that makes us professionals.