What In The World Is A Concept?

Ladies and gentlemen,

I don't know if anyone else struggles with this, but something that has recently been on my mind has been distinguishing between concepts and topics. Going through school, that is something that teachers never really clarified. They were one and the same. So I want to take the opportunity to reflect on what I have been learning this week through several learning experiences.

Initially, I thought that anything could be a concept. I thought that the French and Indian War and Culture could both be topics. Oh, was I misinformed! I was proven very wrong this semester when research and discussion brought me to the conclusion that there are certain requirements that must be met to be considered a concept. After spending time researching this concept versus topic debate, I have seen that utilizing the concept based lesson helps students to make generalizations and connections between topics, utilize higher thinking, and process more material. How cool is that?

I came up with this little visual to help me remember that a concept must be abstract, timeless, transferable, and universal.

It makes sense that we (North Carolina, specifically) are transitioning into this concept-based instructional method. If we want our students to be able to look at the big picture and utilize higher level thinking, shouldn't we provide them with this conceptual lens through which to look? I am so excited to begin the process of looking at the big picture of concepts. Recently, I have begun a concept-based unit plan, and looking at the possibilities that are present when you don't constrain yourself to one specific topic. I am glad that many teachers, especially in North Carolina, are headed in that direction! As NCTCS implies, "4a. Teachers know the ways in which learning takes place, and they know the appropriate levels of intellectual, physical, social, and emotional development of their students."

All of these changes to the instruction process make good practice for myself (and others) as we prepare for a classroom full of students of our own. If you take anything from this blog, I would hope that would be that conceptual learning has so much to offer students. I know it is soooo cheesy (no pun intended), but this visual is a reminder to me that, in the midst of writing a lesson unit, or plan, or whatever it is that you are writing, a concept must me timeless, abstract, universal, and transferable.  

Walk-In's Welcome

If you've ever had the opportunity to walk through the halls of an elementary school, there should be several huge, glaring nuances that catch your eye. However, let's say you have not been inside an elementary school since 5th-6th grade graduation. In case you haven't noticed, there have been monumental changes to the way our students are given individual instruction time.

Students are being "grouped" according to academic level, only to more different extremities.

While Response To Intervention (RTI) may seem like a relatively new concept, teachers and administrators have always had their own ways to utilize it.  I wholeheartedly believe that teachers act purely based upon the needs of students, which is a good thing.

I guess the real question that I'm trying to get at is this:

Is intervention the real solution?

So very often, we want to believe that, as educators, we can "fix" the way our students think, read, write, communicate, and see. But what if we are taking the wrong approach to how we deal with student needs? What if we could reassess the needs of both our schools and students? As Grant Wood says, "We can't intervene our way out of ineffective core instruction."

What if we took a look at what is being thrown at students before we actually throw it? There is so much potential in our students, if only we take a look at what is truly inside of them. I will admit that intervention is important. So very, very important. Providing students with extra help has and always will be a necessity. An educational right, even.

However, educators may be intervening on the wrong side of the desk. We will always have students who need the nudge or extra time, but should we be classifying every single student in the United States? If I have learned anything this week, it would be the importance of giving every student the right to an equal education. Herding students like cattle into individual stalls creates a divisive wall between students who are above and below average.

Maybe it is time to take a look at the instructional methodologies and core content that we have been sticking to for so long. As Standard One of the NCPTS states, "Teachers [should] advocate for positive change in policies and practices affecting student learning." Part of this includes speaking up for policy revision as necessary.  If I were a teacher right now, I would see what I could do for my students so that they are not wasting their time going through the motions of a system known as RTI. This is also written around Standard 4, which represents the need for "teachers [to] plan instruction appropriate for their students."

I want to take what I have learned from this reflection on intervention, and apply it to my future classroom. I have learned a great deal this week from the #edtalk on Twitter this past week.  I can clearly see that intervention is a frustration for many educators, and I cannot wait to see what changes come in the future.

Love Your Students!

Something that has been heavy on my heart this week has been student self confidence. While doing research for other courses, I really want to talk about one aspect of classroom management that people might not hit on so often. 

One of the greatest things that teachers can do for their students is providing a safe environment to be themselves. It is in that kind of environment where the student becomes the best "self" they can be. I have witnessed many classrooms succeed, and it was because the students felt comfortable enough to realize that it was okay to not be perfect. 

I took to Twitter to see how other people felt about this often unspoken of aspect of education, and I was not surprised. To give you a glimpse into the "Twitter-sphere", here is one tweet to show you: 

While doing more research, it came to my attention that some educators were adopting policies similar to this. I think this is progress, and I plan to adopt a policy in my classroom that allows students to be human, make mistakes, but most importantly, learn from those mistakes. 

Deep down, it is my belief that all students can succeed in something. It just might not be the way in which we expect them to. Could that pose an question of other issues? I don't know. But is it worth it to give students that kind of experience? That kind of love, support, and nourishment to help them succeed in their own personal goals. I want my students to come to me when they need someone to talk to or seek advice from. 

Furthermore, students should be able to see that you, as a teacher, strive to achieve personal goals as well. Enforcing a classroom-wide policy of accepting flaws and imperfections to build upon those would be a wise route to take. This could be a an opportunity to lead in the classroom, as is required by NCTCS. 

And So We Begin!

This week I have been through a whirlwind of both excitement and nerves for this experience in Social Studies Methods. However, I know that there are great things in store and there is much to learn!

To give you a bit of my background, I hail from the great state of North Carolina, where education is consistently a hot button topic. I am currently spending my undergraduate days at the one and only Gardner-Webb University, majoring in Elementary Education. I am very excited to pursue a career in the realm of public education, mainly because I see so much potential in it. I have worked with children my whole life.

The instruction of social studies has always been something that I have personally seen as a "partial struggle". I was eager and interested in learning the material, but too many times, the main method of instruction and assessment was memorization.

If there is one thing that I want to develop professionally, it is the ability to engage and assess my students far beyond regurgitation onto a sheet of paper. I've seen the difference in educators who check for mastery vs. memorization, and it is a world of difference. I want to be able to reflect on my practices and be able to better my pedagogy. 

For instance, in Tennessee, the educational realm is currently handling a situation. Teachers were recently hit with low ratings for quality of education. They are currently handling the situation of trying to make often dry material fun for students to learn. In some cases, that backfired by means of low scoring.  

Educational News Website "Chalkbeat" provides an interesting article about how test scores are controlling the way that students are learning. It also provides some insight on how, as an educator, you can avoid this way of instruction. 

I personally never want my students to feel like they are just a test score in my eyes, because I know all too well how that feels. I know many of us who grew up in public education also feel that way. But we can break that cycle by taking advice, reflecting, and being candid with students. 

I understand that it is hard to gain interest from students for certain subjects, such as social studies. However, that is when you know it is time to reflect and revamp your pedagogy. I cannot wait to grow into some of these strategies, and I hope you'll tune in for the next few months of my own reflection!  

PS- Feel free to check out Chalkbeat's article here: http://tn.chalkbeat.org/2015/12/15/as-tennessee-finishes-its-race-to-the-top-teachers-caught-in-the-middle-of-competing-changes/