Siftables

Please watch this AMAZING video ...I especially love the music bit at the end. This will seriously blow your mind. I cannot wait until the day that it is possible to have these as a class set. Wow.

A reflection on my inquiry; a compilation of thoughts and posts.

As a result of my Masters Inquiry Project, I have found myself to be remarkably changed. I am a professional learner, constantly yearning to gain more understanding of my students’ and their abilities. I seek to employ more effective methods in my own teaching, as well as share these insights with the colleagues with whom I collaborate. I do not feel that the classroom is a place for quiet, simple, traditional learning. Rather, I wish for my students to learn in constantly evolving ways. I desire for my students to add to my teaching abilities as much as I add to their basin of knowledge. I also expect my students to informally determine how I teach, sometimes dictating different teaching styles within a single class period. This inquiry helped me build upon this ability to be responsive, flexible and collaborative.

I believe that while I used the CST results as a preliminary data set for the analysis of my students’ achievement levels, I do not agree with lawmakers and policy determiners that this test is the only way in which students can be or should be assessed. If a teacher merely looks to this score to determine what to focus on each year, within each class, she is at a loss for differentiation. I am not a perfect teacher; I am far from the ideal instructor. I am not yet in my career highly effective either. However, using these scores as a determiner of student ability, may reflect on the ability of the teacher. Perhaps this test really is the mark of a good teacher, who does not teach to the test. Perhaps it separates those who lean on the crutch of standardized curriculum, and those who are capable of assessing their students and instilling the same knowledge in different and more effective ways. By using this standard to measure the children, I believe I am doing both my students and myself a disservice. However, when used in conjunction with other assessments—both formal and informal—I am able to truly create a differentiated instructional plan of the district-issued curriculum. In order to use this test more effectively, I did so in conjunction with other assessments and observations so that I could gauge my students’ abilities more precisely. I let it inform my research and rationale; however, what I did not let it do was dictate firm levels of ability for my students. I used it as a baseline from which to start my inquiry.

Lastly, in defense of my use of highly-involved strategies geared at the GATE-identified student, I would like to point out several reasons why I did not make immediate accommodations for my English Language Learners or my students with special needs. Distinguished Lecturer Eric Jensen reflected on GATE education in a lecture delivered at the district’s Office of Education titled “Enriching the Gifted Brain,” in the spring of 2009. He stated that enrichment is always positive, maximizing the capabilities of a student; “Enrichment is not what you do. There are no “enrichment strategies” unless they are contrasted with an impoverished condition.” I feel that this statement implies that for a student to be enriched, they must first come from a less enriched environment. I reflected on my other students, those who were not “gifted.” Jensen suggested that students who are identified as gifted thrive in school-based enrichment programs, because without them, gifted students become bored, disillusioned and are less likely to participate in school. Does this imply that because students are easily bored that we should provide them with more? I have found that through this inquiry, I have determined how to figure out when students are bored, and when they are overly challenged. I learned to truly observe my students and in doing so was able to modify the methods and strategies when necessary. However, I did not simplify the concepts. I felt this would have been a disservice to my students.

Indeed, does Jensen’s concept of providing enrichment then ring true with the non-gifted student who is also bored because he is having difficulty with a class? Should not the teacher then also provide a specific enrichment agenda for this student or class, whether or not the student is gifted? In my opinion, students—gifted or not—deserve a more enriched education. Jensen also provided “evidence” to support his claim that gifted students benefit more claiming that the “brains of the Gifted show far more connectivity between key spatial, language, math and working memory areas than more typical brains.” However, in one of my GATE certification classes, the professor discussed the development of the brain, stating that these synapses, these pathways of connectivity in the brain, are developed as a result of activity (enrichment). Should we not then again ask the question that the non-gifted brain would also benefit as greatly as the gifted one? That is why I chose to keep the concepts at an elevated level. I did not want to modify that piece of my inquiry for the English Language Learners. Instead, I chose to modify the way in which I taught those concepts. I provided more scaffolding within lessons, broke down assignments over more days, and in the future I will be making further modifications to the strategies and tools of instruction, rather than simplifying the curriculum and materials for my students at more basic levels. I know that they will benefit as much as my GATE-identified students did from this study, once I make these modifications to the delivery of the instruction.

The Grindstone

Utter chaos at the grindstone, my dear.
Today is unlike any other.
Bruised faces,
Bashed in separate places,
Please don't tell another!

Man watching from above,
Not seeing any love,
Not expecting any dove.

Incarnadined children at the grindstone, my dear.
Today is like yesterday.
Children wailing,
Their Elder's planning,
Just a normal day in May.

Man watching from above,
Not seeing any love,
Not expecting any dove.

People running around the grindstone, my dear.
Today is not the end.
Sharpening knives,
Ending lives,
Not ever meant to mend.

Man watching from above,
Not seeing any love,
Not expecting any dove.

People preparing at the grindstone, my dear.
Today is the start of revolt,
No one quits,
No one picks,
All ready to go forth.

Man watching from above,
Not seeing any love,
Not expecting any dove...

-May 2001

Another poem I found...

The Babies
(i can only assume this one was about the twins...)

Wisps of hair,
Shining like the full moon,
On a winter's night.

Tagged bellies,
Wrinkled and brown,
Like a sun-ripened prune.

Shrieks and whines,
Unfamiliar,
Like the sound of the wolf pup's cries.

Eyes wide,
All Alert,
As if to say, Where am I?

Little lungs stretched,
Little heart beat,
Little bodies very alive.

Smells of medicines and death and birth,
Not welcome.
Smells of babies and their baby powder,
Welcome.

The realization of love for two small and immobile bodies.
A silent promise of care.
All of this from a toddler.

"Studies" Expectations

A poem I found...

Though they, the expectations, are insignificant to others,
They are of the greatest importance to me.
only by their being met,
can I be totally free.

I hope this class is challenging,
and helps me to forget,
my art of procrastinating-
I'm getting sick of it!

I hope the teacher pressures me
into doing my best.
I hope that shel'll provide me with
the info to pass the test!

I hope the students will respect
my beliefs, me methods, and me.
I hope that they + me,
will someday = we.

I hope that I will respect
my fellow classmates and my teacher.
I'll tackle the problems as they com,
and not dig my hole any deeper.

I hope that I will get a chance
to speak in front of class.
I am good at memorizing-
and I hope this helps me pass.

I hope that I can believe,
in you, yourself, and we,
And I truly believe that then I will be free,
To be I, myself, and me.

January 2001

wow.

collaboration is grand.
grand is collaboration.
collaboration nation.
put your pens up, breathe life into your pages.
make sure to See your coworkers.
they have the resources.
we have the mouths.
mouths to teach. to command. to attempt.
attempt to control.
fail to control.
accept undisinnoncontrol

Enriching the (non)Gifted Brain: Lecture Reflection

Recently, I attended a lecture that proposed extensive enrichment for the gifted brain. I couldn't help but wonder why the nongifted brain was never mentioned. Below is my reflection on the piece:

Reflection on Distinguished Lecturer Eric Jensen
Topic: Enriching the Gifted Brain”

Having just completed my training classes for my GATE certification through the UCSD extension center, I wasn’t expecting much new information from this lecture. However, I was pleasantly surprised when I saw the outline for the lecture. While my classes covered the idea of enrichment in more general terms, Mr. Jensen intended to focus on the topic specifically within the following guidelines: 1) What is Enrichment?; 2)Who is it for?; 3) Does it really work? And 4) How do I optimize Enrichment?

He stated that enrichment is always positive, maximizing the capabilities of a student. It should have a significant amount of time allotted to it as well, both in school and out. A crucial point to note was that there is no “enrichment” program in isolation; it can only exist in a context. He added that there is only an enrichment response in those students from lower conditions to a positive contrasting condition. In other words, a student is only being “enriched” if the activity in which they are engaged is an activity that is more productive and educational that their living situation would otherwise provide. I found this a troubling point, in part because of the implications for more wealthy students. Simply because their parents are well off doesn’t necessarily mean that they are being exposed to enriching situations. They need more enriching activities to have the same effect as a student from a lower socio-economic background. Jensen concluded that section with the following phrase that offered little solution to my reservations: “Enrichment is not what you do. There are no “enrichment strategies” unless they are contrasted with an impoverished condition.”

‘Then who is it for?’ my mind begged the question. Who should get enrichment? Jensen suggested that students who are identified as gifted thrive in school-based enrichment programs, because without them, gifted students become bored, disillusioned and are less likely to participate in school. Does this imply that because students are easily bored, we should provide them with more? Doesn’t this then ring true with the non-gifted student who is also bored because he is having difficulty with a class or unit? Should not the teacher then also provide a specific enrichment agenda for this student or class, despite the fact that the student is gifted or not? In my (new teacher) opinion, most students, whether gifted or not, deserve a more enriched education. Jensen also provided “evidence” to support his claim that gifted students benefit more claiming that the “brains of Gifted show far more connectivity between key spatial, language, math and working memory areas than more typical brains.” However, in one of my GATE certification classes, the professor discussed the development of the brain, stating that these synapses, these pathways of connectivity in the brain are developed as a result of activity (enrichment). Should we not then again ask the question that the non-gifted brain would also benefit as greatly as the gifted one?

So stepping aside from this question, I had another question to ask: Who says that Enrichment works? What is the proof? Jensen provided the following statement: “Exposure to an enriched environment promotes neurochemical, structural and neurophysiological changes in the brain and is associated with enhanced synaptic plasticity and improved hippocampal-dependent learning.” In other words, my students do not arrive at school “preassembled” by their DNA. Instead they are “glued together” through their life experiences—another point that supports my idea that the non-gifted student would benefit just as greatly from a school-centered enrichment program as a gifted student would. Research on enrichment shows that it can: increase new neuron production, improve recovery from a stroke, enhance learning and memory, improve reading and math scores, improve decision making, reduce aggressive behaviors, and help recover from stress disorders, alcoholism, and maternal separation. (Again, why are we only focused on the gifted students?)

Lastly, Jensen discussed how one “does” enrichment. There are two ways that enrichment can be provided. “Wide” means development in arts, social, cultural, health, emotional, spiritual and physical areas. “Deep” means targeted development in more traditional cognitive areas of reading, science, math and problem-solving. He stressed that enrichment did not mean more content within a set of curriculum. Instead, it provides the ability for the student to process the content more effectively. Jensen suggested the following seven ways to enrich the brain within a classroom context: social support, activity, managed stress levels, positive nutrition, learning to be engaging, challenging and meaningful, escalating skill-building, and sufficient time for change.
I found these guidelines to be somewhat helpful, but not in depth enough for me to have time to apply them to my classroom as such a late date in the year. I look forward to implementing some of these extremely vague ideas in my classroom next year, providing I get a job.

While there was a significant amount of information that described the idea of enrichment specifically, the one weakness of the presentation, in my opinion, is that we weren’t provided with examples of enrichment. Being a new teacher, I would have liked to have been given more information to add to my ever growing repertoire. Adding several specific activities within the sections that he discussed, or providing a general list of ideas would have been immensely helpful for a new teacher, as well as having value for a veteran teacher looking to add to their perhaps stagnant curriculum.