This week we begin learning about what I consider to be the "underdog" of math curriculum: probability. Talk about a concept that's often pushed aside, watered down, and forgotten about! It always seems to be the last on the list of math items to teach, it's rarely assessed in standardized tests, and goes little beyond the "colored marbles in a bag" realm. But I'm here to tell you that even though I'm teaching about it in the last part of the year, probability holds the top spot in my math heart!
As a student, I loved probability because it didn't seem as cut and dry as the other math concepts. Numbers and operations, geometry, measurement, they appealed to the kids who were satisfied with applying a formula to arrive at the right answers the first time. Don't get me wrong, I appreciated getting a correct answer just as much as the next kiddo, but there was something so intriguing about probability. I totally dug the idea that while I could predict the most likely outcome, there was a small chance that it (whatever "it" was) would go the other way. For me, probability was the "wild child" or "rogue" of the math world--it appealed to my brain. (Disclaimer: With progressive movements in the educational field, however, I do feel that all mathematical concepts can be just as intriguing with the right instructional approach).
I still feel the same way about probability as an adult and I don't think I'm the only one. Our culture is crazy about probability. It comes up more frequently in conversation than the other math concepts I teach about. I mean, look at all the hysteria over the Mega-Millions lottery...We couldn't go five minutes without hearing that we were more likely to be struck by lightning than win the lotto. But people still bought tickets, didn't they?
So I thought I'd search the Khan Academy website to polish up on my probability knowledge. Of course, I got hooked on their entire probability section. I've attached the first video from the probability series. It's super easy but the videos start to get reeeeeallly tricky after the first few.
Tuesday, April 24, 2012
Thursday, April 19, 2012
ITBS: I Teach Beyond Standardized (testing)
Let's get one thing straight--I am reminded on a daily basis how lucky I am to be at my current school. But this week I'm grateful on another level: it's ITBS testing week.
Our school chooses to use standardized testing for exactly the reason it was created: to measure specific academic skills and to gain information about students and classes for instructional planning.
Trust me, this is an absolute rarity in the education world. In public schools, standardized tests are required as part of the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB). Without going into too much detail, NCLB requires that states carry out annual testing for public education and more importantly, that each classroom, school, and district within each state shows "adequate yearly progress" (AYP) toward a proficiency goal.
In Missouri, proficient means scoring an 80% on a standardized test--equivalent to a B grade. Each year the schools are required to meet a certain "goal" of proficiency. Last year it was 75%. Now, here's the rub:
So 75% of my 24 students last year (18 kiddos) needed to earn a "B" grade on the state test. My class score was combined with the other 3 classes in third grade to determine whether we "met" or "didn't meet" our AYP goal.
I could argue that it's unfair, that our kids were behind one or more grade levels to begin with, or that the testing material was culturally and economically biased, but I'd really like to explore the level of anxiety teachers face about standardized testing:
Our school chooses to use standardized testing for exactly the reason it was created: to measure specific academic skills and to gain information about students and classes for instructional planning.
Trust me, this is an absolute rarity in the education world. In public schools, standardized tests are required as part of the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB). Without going into too much detail, NCLB requires that states carry out annual testing for public education and more importantly, that each classroom, school, and district within each state shows "adequate yearly progress" (AYP) toward a proficiency goal.
In Missouri, proficient means scoring an 80% on a standardized test--equivalent to a B grade. Each year the schools are required to meet a certain "goal" of proficiency. Last year it was 75%. Now, here's the rub:
That's not a 75% average, that's 75% of a class/school/district scoring proficient on a test.
So 75% of my 24 students last year (18 kiddos) needed to earn a "B" grade on the state test. My class score was combined with the other 3 classes in third grade to determine whether we "met" or "didn't meet" our AYP goal.
I could argue that it's unfair, that our kids were behind one or more grade levels to begin with, or that the testing material was culturally and economically biased, but I'd really like to explore the level of anxiety teachers face about standardized testing:
Everyone, everywhere experiences some level of "on the job anxiety." I think it's just part of being an adult. But these days, many public school teachers fear for their jobs because of the NCLB testing. I remember starting my mandated after-school tutoring for the MAP test (Missouri's standardized test) in October....the test isn't until APRIL! I heard horror stories about teachers fired over the summer after their dismal test scores surfaced. Being the perfectionist that I am, I worried myself sick over the test. I knew that the two weeks in April meant more to keeping my job than the entire rest of the year. And trust me, I'm not the only one. This type of anxiety can make amazing teachers doubt their talents, change their methods of teaching to "fit the testing style," and greatly reduce instructional time for developing skills such as reading fluency and expression, which aren't measured through standardized testing.
That's why I am unbelievably grateful to teach at a place that celebrates real education and learning over a standardized test. Sure, it's a valuable measurement tool we use to gather information about our students. But we care about SO much more here. And truthfully, it shows. Our students are capable of so much more than performing well on a test!
Tuesday, April 17, 2012
The Power of No
Last school year I sat down for coffee with a parent of one of my most rambunctious students ever. Our conversation started out as a brainstorming session on behavior interventions for this particular student, but soon shifted to a philosophical dialogue on the power of language.
She told me that over the years, her student--often classified as a troublemaker--frequently heard "Don't do this, don't do that, stop it, etc." from teachers, administrators, and even family members. She argued that the word NO "just didn't work" for her student.
She continued on by explaining that as we speak, our brains create mental images to go along with the words we hear. For instance, if you hear, "She went on a bike ride today," your brain would produce an image of a bike, a woman on a bike, a bike trail, etc. When you use the word no (or any type of negative) in a sentence, your brain is unable to create an image of nothing. In essence, your mind goes blank. She explained that when we tell our children what not to do, they have no mental representation for the action.
It blew my mind! It made total sense...what a simple way to look at classroom management. If I'm telling students "Stop talking, no pushing, or don't run," I'm negatively impacting their ability to carry out those tasks. However, if I replace the negative command with a positive statement, my students are able to create a mental image and carry out the task as they see it in their minds.
This goes beyond putting things into positive terms (which I'm all for, by the way). This means changing the way I think and speak to improve student achievement.
On a related note, I'm interested in reading the book Opening Minds: Using Language to Change Lives. That is, once I finish Awakened and Pedagogy of the Oppressed.
She told me that over the years, her student--often classified as a troublemaker--frequently heard "Don't do this, don't do that, stop it, etc." from teachers, administrators, and even family members. She argued that the word NO "just didn't work" for her student.
She continued on by explaining that as we speak, our brains create mental images to go along with the words we hear. For instance, if you hear, "She went on a bike ride today," your brain would produce an image of a bike, a woman on a bike, a bike trail, etc. When you use the word no (or any type of negative) in a sentence, your brain is unable to create an image of nothing. In essence, your mind goes blank. She explained that when we tell our children what not to do, they have no mental representation for the action.
It blew my mind! It made total sense...what a simple way to look at classroom management. If I'm telling students "Stop talking, no pushing, or don't run," I'm negatively impacting their ability to carry out those tasks. However, if I replace the negative command with a positive statement, my students are able to create a mental image and carry out the task as they see it in their minds.
This goes beyond putting things into positive terms (which I'm all for, by the way). This means changing the way I think and speak to improve student achievement.
On a related note, I'm interested in reading the book Opening Minds: Using Language to Change Lives. That is, once I finish Awakened and Pedagogy of the Oppressed.
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