Progressive Classrooms: Getting Started with a Long Way to Go



I have to say, I loved having Neil deGrasse Tyson narrate this. I was not surprised to hear this was at a private charter school in Washington D.C. as a school would need the funds to create learning environments that "meets students where they are" in terms of technology.

It is concerning to hear speak of middle school level being a last chance to learn necessary cumulative math skills before falling too far behind to catch up.

It is also a bit of a concern to expect students to have a computer at home and access to email in assignments. It would be great to have the expectation that students could use websites and email at home, but it may not be a fair expectations of all households.

It is very impressive to see the number of lap tops available to the students. The student's responses shows how they appreciate the resources and interactive learning. It's great to see the teacher has access to view each student's screen collectively. The teacher explains how it helps avoid ridicule of students who are struggling by allowing the teacher to see which student is falling behind and go provide some 1-1 time on the learning topic without disrupting the rest of the class.

Parents being able to log in and monitor how students are doing with homework and provide help is actually really inspiring to see if we can get parents more involved in their child's progress.

Having access to funds and being able to bring in new and more technology into our schools will always challenge teachers to continue learning and adapting, as one teacher acknowledges. But the advantages this school program demonstrates in student progress makes it crystal clear that moving forward with technology in the classroom is essential to relate to our students.

I don't have any children in grade school or junior high in my immediate circle in life where I would be hearing about progressive schools in the Chicago area. When I taught, South Suburban Community College had Smartboards (10 years ago), while the City Colleges of Chicago only had chalk boards, which can still make learning fun. However, I am excited to get into more classrooms for observation hours and student teaching to see what is really out there and available to teachers in my area.

Comments

  1. Kara McElwrathOctober 17, 2018 at 9:34 PM

    I'm glad you enjoyed this video, Cassidy. I did, too. And not just because of the amazing technology being showcased but also because the teachers (and parents!) got the professional development and support they need to use it well. That's impressive! At the end of the day, I think the quality of the teacher is what makes a difference - not the tools in her classroom. But a teacher who knows how to leverage whatever technology is available at their school can better prepare their students for the future.

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Final Blog - Helping Teachers' Lives

Helping Teachings: In reviewing the top 8 technology resources from the beginning of class and the 20 educational tools, there are still so many resources to explore.  I jumped on WeVideo, as I'm concerned about how to do screen captures if I ever do not have free access to CaptureSpace.  I did not sign up for an account, but with a free account, teachers can create 5 min. of material, and with an account for $3 a month, teachers can create up to 30min of material per month, which seems like plenty and worth the tiny annual free to continue creating fun and interactive materials students can access from home. There is just so much value to providing screen-capture instruction to help students complete homework assignments, refer back to lecture materials, and to cover information as homework and save time in-class for discussion and even deeper development and comprehension. I also took a closer look at Really Good Stuff, as I was hoping the site had the teacher supplies ...
Read more

"I Don't Know" - The 14th Incarnation of The Dalai Lama

As for Sir Ken Robinson's talk, I couldn't agree more that knowledge is more about what you don't know (what you are open to) than what you think you do know (what you are closed off to learning).  In fact, I will briefly note here that I practice Zazen, which is Buddhist practice, but that is not the pertinent point. So, I will jump right into my thoughts on what teachers could consider doing to better reach and engage students. Teachers could openly share with students their own biases. Biases tend to work themselves intrinsically into the way we think and communicate with others in ways that sometimes makes a bias sound like a fact or even wisdom, when it is more like an opinion or feeling. Even when we are aware of our own biases, they can still subconsciously affect how we treat people and probably affect how we teach. This kind of conversation between teacher and students (and students to teacher as well), in my opinion, would help c...
Read more