A must read...

For anyone interested in education, my dad just gave me an amazing book that looks at the need for a changing landscape of schools. While I am only one chapter in, I felt compelled to post this quote because it is hugely in support of moving toward computer-based, technology driven learning in order to better reach different learning styles.


From Clayton M. Christensen's Disrupting Class: How Disruptive Innovation Will Change the Way the World Learns

"Today's system [of education] was designed at a time when standardization was seen as a virtue. Much of the support behind...categorizing students by age into grades and then teaching batches of them with batches of material was inspired by the efficient factory system that had emerged in industrial America.. If the goal is to educate every student...we must find a way to move toward...a "student centric" model...Computer-based learning offers a way...Student-centric learning opens the door for students to learn in ways that match their intelligence types in the places and at the paces they prefer by combining content in customized sequences... As modularity and customization reach a tipping point, there will be another change: teachers can serve as professional learning coaches and content architects to help individual students progress- and they can be a guide on the side, not a sage on the stage."

The use of Applets and Video

Next fall I am going to attempt to combine the Khan Academy videos with GeoGebra Applets. While the website is still very much under construction, I'd enjoy some feedback from anyone, anywhere that seems at all interested or concerned.

To access the website, click here. Below are my thoughts on the advantages of this different way of teaching. (Many of the ideas are similar to my previous post on how rad Khan is.)

CALCULUS:

A video and applet approach to learning calculus, utilizing the Khan Academy videos and GeoGebra Calculus applets.

The traditional model of math education, presented rather perssimistically, is this: Teach a skill during class. Students practice it at home, oftentimes discouraged that they "got it during class, but couldn't figure it out at home." Consequently, teachers spend the majority of the next class going over the homework, usually rushing at the end to cram in the "new material." All the while, students who "get it" are bored; the middle students are receiving appropriate instruction; and the slower students are overwhelmed by the pace and do not have enough time to digest the new content.

The video/applet approach allows students to learn material at their own pace through online lectures. Then, using the applets as inquiry-based learning, students can make deep connections to the material. During the lectures, students can comfortably sit with a new topic. During the applets, the material comes alive.

Then, during the classtime, teachers can assist students in applying the newly learned skills. The classroom becomes a dynamic learning space. With the immediate help of the teacher and peers, students can grapple with much harder problems, while also ensuring that they have the basics down. With the teacher taking on the role of an "experienced learner/ problem solver," rather than the beacon of knowledge, students start to become more independent in the learning process. This truly sets them up to become life learners.

For this model to work most effectively, the role of the teacher in the classroom is to create opportunities for students to appropriately challenge themselves. It would be expected that the sharper students are working on more challenging problems on a daily basis. Equally relevant, weaker students -challenged at the right level- would develop greater confidence and their understanding and ability would grow exponentially.

The eventual goal is to allow students to move at their own pace on a weekly, monthly and even yearly basis. Why should two students of differing abilities both start and finish at the same place in an academic school year? By developing an ethos of independent, motivated learning, there is no reason to hold students back or inappropriately push students forward. Given this new model of class, students (ideally working in a small cohort) would move through the material at exactly the right pace for them.

Imagine that! Everyone appropriately challenged always, all year. That would breed intellectual excellence and excitement.

Summary of Daniel Goleman's "What Makes a Leader?"

As recommended by my Head of School, I am currently reading HBR's 10 MUST READS: ON LEADERSHIP. I just finished the first of ten: "What Makes a Leader?" While most of the research came from studying corporations and financial institutions, the findings certainly can be extrapolated to other areas, such as education. I think that Goleman's thesis- that EI is more important than IQ AND that it can be taught- has rippling effects into how we might think about teaching and assessing students. That being said, this is only a summary of his ideas:


Goleman states that while IQ gets you in the door, it is emotional intelligence, EI, that is the greatest factor for leadership. IQ and technical skills "are the entry level requirements for positions.... [whereas] EI is the sine qua non of leadership. "(p.1) He breaks down EI into 5 categories: Self-Awareness, Self-Regulation, Motivation, Empathy and Social Skills. While EI is important for all levels, it becomes increasingly important at higher levels of management. Most importantly, Goleman believes that EI, through deliberate practice and feedback, can be learned. Being mindful, we can view "on-the-job interactions as opportunities to practice. (p.9)"

5 components:


1. SELF-AWARENESS.
-You know your limits but challenge yourself
-"The decisions of self-aware people mesh with their values; consequently, they often find work to be energizing." (p.10)
-"frank in admitting to failure... [often possessing a] self-depracating sense of humor." (p. 10)
-because "they have have a firm grasp of their capabilities... they know...when to ask for help. And the risks they take on the job are calculated." (p.11)


2. SELF-REGULATION
-'People who are in control of their feelings and impulses- that is, people who are reasonable- are able to create an environment of trust and fairness." (p.12)
-"Self regulation... enhances integrity... Many of the bad things that happen in companies are a function of impulsive behavior." (p.13)
-unfortunately, "their considered responses are taken as a lack of passion." (p.14)


3. MOTIVATION
-"Driven to achieve beyond expectations." (p.14) Goleman makes a key point that to achievement for the sake of achievement is different from greed or a hunger for power. Motivated people just want to improve.
-these people "seek out creative challenges, love to learn, and take great pride in a job well done. They also display an unflagging energy to do things better...restless with the status quo...they are eager to explore new approaches to their work." (p.14)
-"People who are driven to do better also want a way of tracking progress." (p.15)


4. EMPATHY
-"...thoughtfully considering employees feelings- along with other factors- in the process of making intelligent decisions." (p.16)
-we need empathy because of "at least three things: the increasing use of teams; the rapid pace of globalization; and the growing need to retain talent." (p.17)


5. SOCIAL SKILL
-"...friendliness with a purpose: omving people in the direction you desire."
-it is important to build "rapport" with as many people in your campany as possible because, for change to happen, you will need advocates in all arenas
-"The leader's task is to get work done through other people, and social skill makes that possible."

Khan Academy's Approach to Education

Salman Khan just spoke my words. He beat me to it. I just learned about Salman Khna but, after watching his video, I realize that he and I are thinking the same thing: the current model of teaching mathematics should be flipped. Learning and traditional lessons should be viewed at home; the practice should occur in class where students are able to get help and work in groups.

As distance learning becomes more en vogue, and as schools continue to utilize the use of technology in the classroom, it becomes important for us to re-think traditional classroom experiences.

Take a typical math class experience, for example: Why does a classroom of 10-20 students start on the same topic at the beginning of the year and all finish at the same place at the end of the year? Doesn't it seem unreasonable that each individual student is learning at exactly the same speed? Is there a better method that allow students to learn at the pace that is right for them?


Here are two interesting clips looking at a the use of video to improve the efficiency of learning mathematics:

video 2
video 1

In a nutshell

Creating "Solutionaries"- A response to Zoe Weil's TED Talk

Zoe Weil, cofounder and president of the Institute for Humane Education, said in a recent TED Talk: “We need a bigger vision for the purpose of schooling... It should be this: that we provide every student with the knowledge, the tools, and the motivation to be conscientious choice makers and engaged change makers for a restored and healthy and humane world for all.” This is exactly what SEED will deliver its students. The thematic and interdisciplinary academic curriculum combined with the Experiential Program will produce graduates who are true “solutionaries.”

SEED academy will focus on issues of land use, the environment, social equity and global development. The emphasis will not merely be on debating ideas for an academic exercise. Rather, right from the start, students will be asked to decide on solutions for improvement. Most importantly, the students will need to engage in and implement these solutions. Weil professes: “We need to graduate a generation of solutionaries.” SEED will deliver just that.

As an anecdote, Weil describes a student who did a research assignment and after his presentation, he wanted to hand out leaflets. To Weil’s surprise, the student intended to hand the leaflets out onto the Philadelphia streets, not just in the classroom. Weil says: “He’d become an activist over night.” This is precisely what needs to happen. All projects should be public. Students must utilize social media such as Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube so that their ideas far exceed the walls of the school.

We have shared the idea of SEED to many educators and friends. We believe that the more we talk about it and the more feedback we get the better. Of the concerns people raise about the curriculum, the most common concern is whether graduates will be prepared. I absolutely loved the way in which Weil answered this same question:

“What would our graduates go on to do? Well they would do the same thing that graduates do today. They’d be business people and health care providers and plumbers and engineers... and beauticians... The difference would be they would perceive themselves as solutionaries. They would know that it was their responsibility to ensure that the systems within their profession were just and humane and peaceful. Why? Because that is what they would have learned in school.”

I’d like to thank Zoe Weil for an excellent talk (see talk) and further inspiring me to re-think how we educate.

A Perfect Size of School

Dunbar's number- 150- is the largest number in which groups of humans can maintain stable social relationships. This is the number of students on campus at any quarter at SEED Academy.

In Malcolm Gladwell's The Tipping Point, he looks at the maximum size for any functioning group. He believes that at some number, intimacy and trust is lost, and thus the efficacy of the group diminishes. Supported by case studies and biological research, Gladwell explains that humans have the capacity to exist in groups of up to 150, citing numerous supporting examples.

Reading this in Gladwell's book was confirming. Envisioning SEED Academy, we want to have four sections of 10-12 students per grade level. Therefore the projected size of the 9-12 program at SEED academy is roughly 200. While at first this seems to have overshot Dunbar's number and Gladwell's finding, at any given quarter, 50 of the students will be off-campus in the Experiential Program. This leaves 150 students on campus.

Therefore, in a way by happenstance, we have envisioned a school size that will, according to Malcolm Gladwell, operate at maximum capacity without losing stable relationships.

Practical, Lifelong Skills

The EXPERIENTIAL PROGRAM at SEED academy teaches students lifelong skills, rarely taught in independent secondary schools. When teaching math, students often ask: "When will I ever use this?" While the answer I give- that students in high school are trained to think clearly and analytically- the truth is that I often wonder why more applicable skills are not taught.

Then I think: What are some things that an 18 year old should definitely know how to do? Speak another language. Change a tire. Start a good fire and be able to cook over it. Fix a leaky pipe and do basic home repair. Be alone, happily. Be honest with oneself. Grow food. Help others.

Freshmen Year: Students spend 10 weeks in the White Mountains, exploring watersheds and learning to BE in the woods. By the end, students will spend one week ALONE. With only a tarp, a lighter, access to a creek and some simple food, these students will live quietly by themselves for 7 days, developing a deep connection with nature and a deeper sense of self. They will come away from the program with an ability to be alone, with a love of (or at least an appreciation for) wilderness, and a resounding feeling of independence.

Sophomore Year: Students spend 10 weeks building simple homes in underprivileged communities. With a hammer as their tool, each student will learn about home maintenance and repair. More importantly, this altruistic endeavor will push students to think about what it means to give. Evening workshops will challenge students to consider their own privileges. The end goal is for students to become aware of disparities in opportunity and become committed to social equity.

Junior Year: Students spread their wings and spend seven weeks in a home-stay in either China or a Spanish speaking country. Students will learn to cross cultural bridges, challenge their view of the world, and come away fluent in their language of study. Then, students will finish the trip with three weeks on an organic farm. Learning about food production, students will have the chance to get their hands dirty while continuing to hone their language skills.

Senior Year: Students depart to the East, spending eleven weeks in the north of Thailand. Three weeks will be spent in a Buddhist monastary- living simply, practicing meditation. Three weeks will be spent at a UN refugee camp, helping indigenous groups who have crossed the Burmese border in refuge. Three more weeks will be spent teaching english in underserved schools. In the last two weeks, seniors will spend time processing their trip and their high school experience, as well as planning for their CAPSTONE PROJECT, where they will study, research, and then communicate on a topic

Graduating seniors will have spent 10 weeks in the wilderness, 10 weeks building homes, and 21 weeks out of the country. They will have lived in Buddhist temples and volunteered in UN refugee camps. They will have learned to build a fire and cook over it, and they will have grown their own food.

These graduating seniors are global citizens. They are worldly and self-sufficient. Their perspective is enormous, but not as large as their hearts.

Smart Presentation

These videos (the link is below) come from a presentation on Smart Use of Smart Boards. We looked at how Notebook Software interacts with SmartBoards and the use of Wikispaces for the presentation of class videos and notes.

In particular, we looked at how we might flip the notion of class time and homework time. In other words, we could create videos which students would watch at home. During class, after learning the skills at home, students would work on projects in groups to practice and deepen their understanding of the topics learned at home.

The role of the teacher becomes that of an "experienced learner," going from one group to the next, helping them consider the various problems, and making sure they understand both the theory and practice.

http://www.flipshare.com/viewFbReshare.aspx?i=b1fc9f15-541f-4689-a596-f2fbb7cd2a58&s=55896921&langmedia=en-us

SMART USE of SMART BOARDS

Tonight I'll be presenting on the Smart Use of SmartBoards to the NMH Math Department. A video of the presentation will be coming later. I see the use of SmartBoards not as flashy technology, rather a way to greatly improve the way in which we teach and structure the time in the classroom.

Please watch the video (which will be uploaded later) if you are interested.