Ryleigh Provencher - ED 315 Blog

  Throughout this chapter, a couple quotes popped up and really struck me while reading. When I got to the section about ‘big ideas’ and organizing strategies, I was a little lost; however, this quote really resonated with me and I was able to connect the dots with what the author was intending to convey. The sentence was as follows: “organizing strategies or principles that will help students make sense of the information they are learning” (p.67) Question 2: How can you determine some common misconceptions that your students may have about a topic that you teach? How can you address these possible misunderstandings in your instruction? I think proposing a new concept/topic with an inquiry project/assignment is the best way to identify and combat any misconceptions the students may have. This way, the students can express their misunderstandings and correct them with new and accurate information without judgment. Question 3: How can you structure a culminating project so that it is au

Unfortunately, I believe this is a topic that comes up frequently in schools all across the country and like this scenario, aren’t addressed or are dismissed.  Questions: Which character in this scenario most resonates with you? Why? I would associate with Ms. Porter, as an advocate for sharing where the holiday actually originated and why it might not be celebrated by some. I am all for throwing a party, eating food, and especially being grateful, but the events that led up to what we call “Thanksgiving” today don’t resemble any of those qualities, and I believe it’s my duty as an educator to teach my students that.  Do teachers have an obligation to incorporate multiple perspectives when discussing holidays? Is this dependent on which identity groups are represented in the student population? This is where I believe it gets tricky. Obligation implies that it’s a requirement - and teachers can only be “required” to do something when it’s mandated by the administration or school. To an

In reflecting on the third chapter of this book, I really benefited from the graphics and words of advice offered. It was helpful to see how, in a simplified version, the use of backwards planning is applied to an actual unit of study. Sometimes, conceptually it makes sense, but I have a hard time imagining how I would actually lay out the information I’d need to teach a unit.  The book also mentioned that the process of backwards planning is a lot of back-and-forth and give-and-take and it’s almost impossible to get it right the first time. That calmed a lot of anxiety I had about trying to piece together my own lesson - especially being the perfectionist I am.  Question 3: A teacher’s greatest resource can be his or her colleagues. What can you and your colleagues do to help create a culture of professional collaboration within your school? When I read about planning the unit with another teacher / co teacher, it almost made me sad we can’t do that in this class. But I did realize I

Mr. Olson suggested that they call the event a Holiday Party and try to include “all of the holidays.” What do you think he meant by “all of the holidays”? Do you believe his suggestion is a good one? Why or why not? By referring to “all of the holidays”, I believe Mr. Olson was trying to compromise on keeping a ‘holiday’ theme while not singling out any one religion/holiday (for example, predominantly Christmas/Christian themed games). I believe this suggestion was the best from the parents, in terms of mediation, as the school administration didn’t exactly set guidelines for what can and can’t be included in the party. I more closely align with Ms. Mahdi and her thoughts that the school planned a winter party, and not a Christmas party; therefore, the activities should be more neutral in terms of theme.

The second chapter of Backwards Planning: Building Enduring Understanding Through Instructional Design gave more insight into Project Based Learning (PBL) and the six facets of understanding. In grades seven and eight, I had the opportunity to be a part of the pilot program for “Project i”, an independent learning environment (basically PBL principles, structured into an entire grade level). For two years, I was given standards to meet by certain deadlines and was told to create a way of demonstrating my understanding of that standard. This type of learning was student centered and my teachers bounced between a ‘sage on stage’ and a ‘guide on the side’. It was awesome to experience this type of education first-hand and now have the ability to see both sides (student and teacher prospective). In regards to the six facets of understanding, the questions available to test a student’s knowledge and retention are limitless. These facets provide a framework for the multitude of ways student

Case Studies on Diversity and Social Justice Education Paul C Gorski and Seema G. Pothini 1.  An equality view dictates that we treat all students equally. This is the view Ms. Grady has applied to her homework policy when it comes to Samantha. How might her perspective change if she adopted an equity view instead, taking stock of the barriers and challenges individual students experience and crafting policy to be responsive to those barriers and challenges? In this situation, an equitable practice would be to take into account the hard work Samantha puts in class while also acknowledging she has a lot of responsibilities at home - and still shows up to class. If this view was adopted, Ms. Grady would have a mindset of looking at the bigger picture and recognize (and appreciate) the effort Samantha is putting toward her schooling. While Samantha doesn’t do her homework, she comes to class, helps other students, and does very well on tests and quizzes. This shows that Samantha understa