Hey, so I thought the last post was going to be my final post, but here was an ebook one of my classmates created. I think it is important to find connections between different sources of media and music to course content to provide instruction to the students. This ebook does just that so you should check it out.
Thursday, December 8, 2011
Final Reflection for ESCI 310
This class has taught me a lot about science education. Whether it is how to complete an experiment, how to plan a unit r a lesson, or how to incorporate aboriginal content into my science classroom. This class has shown me so many examples of different things to incorporate into my classroom, whether it is the outdoor activities from the Project Wild manual, to the variety of engagement activities that I can simplify or extend in order to use in my classroom.
I think two of the largest lessons I learned through this course are that science doesn’t have to be scary and everything you do can make a difference to your students. Science used to be an intimidating subject area for me with lots of labs and equipment required to complete the experiments as well as a lot of set up time and preparation going into each activity. While being prepared and having things set up before the class starts are important, I realized the equipment required to complete an experiment doesn’t have to be fancy or complicated. Using household items from Dollarama is a great idea because it’s cheap and easy and very inexpensive.
I like to believe that every teacher can have an impact on their students’ lives, it just depend show much you are willing to work with your students and help them as individuals. One video that showed the impact that one person can have on many people is shown below. It is with David Suzuki’s daughter and what she taught some world leaders about saving their own environment and being conscious of what they are doing to the world not only their world, but the world for their children and grand children.
This class has taught me so much about education and teaching science in the classroom. I know if it weren’t for this class I would not be confident with my abilities to teach science. Not only is it important to understand some basic concepts of science, but it’s also important to be able to share the knowledge you know with your students. A large part of science education is sharing what you know with you students as well as allowing them to share what they know or what they have learned with you as well as their class. Science is best taught when the students get to learn and experience things for themselves, rather than being told what to expect and what to know. While this blog does not show everything I have learned throughout this semester, there are many more things I have learned and embraced that they have now become a part of me and who I am as an elementary science educator.
Final Project Reflection
One of the final assignments I completed for ESCI 310 was a unit plan. This was the first unit plan I have ever completed and it was definitely a challenge. I don’t want to place blame for the way our final product turned out, but I was not 100% satisfied with it. It was challenging choosing a topic because we did not want to do the same topic as another group, but we had chosen our topic on the very first day only to find out part way through the semester that two other groups had decided to choose that topic, so we chose another topic, only to be told a few weeks later that a few other groups were doing the same topic and the same grade level. This was really frustrating so we chose to do Grade 3 magnetism. As soon as we chose that topic and wrote it on the presentation sheet another group had said they were going to do magnetism, which was really frustrating I feel like we had planned out our lessons and ideas multiple times yet were too nice and not wanting to do the same content material.
Another challenge, which I believe was the largest hurdle for myself was my group mates. Cooperative learning groups are great when you work with them throughout the semester, but I feel like we rarely ever worked with our cooperative learning groups. This project seemed to be the only one we were fully required to work with those groups. I think by having us work with our partners more throughout the semester would have provided more of a cooperative learning experience throughout the class and specifically on this project. I felt like my group was a little divided, with two of us completing most of the work and the third group member completing her later and not to my satisfaction. By the time the third group member had submitted her work it was too late for me to go through and fix it and make it something I would be proud to hand in. Handing in a project that was not to my standards was really frustrating for me and is something I never had to deal with until now. This planning experience taught me a lot about who I would want to work with in the future as a group mate and who I would never want to work with again.While this planning experience was a great learning experience with many ups and downs, it was definitely a worthwhile experience. I learned a lot about people in my class, my group mates, and how to deal with certain types of people in the future. While I was not completely satisfied with the final product we submitted, I feel like it was adequate and my group mates felt it was adequate as well. I know for the next time I complete a group project like this that I will allow for more time for the final editing of the entire project so I will be satisfied with the outcome. I feel that my participation in the group was essential in getting the project done, even though it was not completed to my standards.
Dancing Spaghetti Engagement Activity
Part way through this semester I had to complete a short presentation in front of my class. This presentation had to be related to any grade in the Saskatchewan curriculum for science. I chose to do an experiment relating to the Grade 5 Curriculum. This experiment had a bit of magic in it when two “liquids” were combined.
Below is the lesson plan I used.
Dancing Spaghetti
Purpose: Allow the students to hypothesize what will happen
Allow students to observe a chemical change
Allow the students to develop explanations to explain what they observed
Allow the students to predict what was in the water and what the “mystery
liquid”/magic potion was in order to create the effect
Assess the ability of the students to consider the possible chemicals used in
the experiment without being told based on their observations
Entertain the students and get them excited about learning about chemical
changes through a hands-on experience
Through these actions I hope to teach the students about chemical changes by providing
them with the ability to take what they have previously learned about combining different substances and chemicals, the changes that occur, and helping the students make educated guesses about what else could be in the water.
Objectives and Indicators for Grade 5:
MC5.1 Investigate the characteristics and physical properties of materials in solid, liquid, and gaseous states of matter.
e. Pose questions related to the characteristics and physical properties of matter that are suitable for investigating using processes of science.
f. Observe and record characteristics and physical properties (e.g., colour, texture, mass, volume, hardness, flexibility, absorbency, strength, buoyancy, melting point, malleability, magnetism, and solubility) of different solids, liquids, and gases in their environment.
MC5.2 Investigate how reversible and non-reversible changes, including changes of state, alter materials.
f. Differentiate between changes to materials that occur rapidly (e.g., wood burning, explosives detonating, balloon popping, and glass breaking) and those that occur over extended periods (e.g., bicycle rusting, paint fading, and newspaper yellowing).
Materials:
O A tall, clear glass filled with water
O 3 pieces (each approximately 3 cm in length) of uncooked spaghetti
O 1 tablespoon of baking powder
O 4 tablespoons of vinegar (or a splash of vinegar- for a splash you may need a few small containers for the students)
Set up: Mix baking soda with water
Pour vinegar into smaller containers
Provide each table of students with a beaker, a small cup of vinegar, and a few
spaghetti noodles
Demonstration:
1. Have the water and baking soda pre-mixed. This is important in order to add to the excitement and mystery of the experiment as well as allowing the students to think creatively as to what was possibly added. The tall clear glass will be filled with the baking soda solution prior to the arrival of the students. Ask the pre questions at this point in time (see below for the questions).
2. Ask the students if they think the spaghetti will float or sink. Instruct the students to drop the pasta into the glass and observe what happens. The pasta should sink to the bottom.
3. Next explain to the students that to make the spaghetti dance in the glass it needs something special. It needs some “magic potion”. Add 4 tablespoons/a splash of vinegar to the baking soda and water. The mixture should fizz and bubble, but if it does not fizz or bubble add a bit more vinegar. Allow the students to observe what they have done. The pasta begins to float up and then down in the water and it appears as though the spaghetti is dancing!
4. Ask the students the remainder of the of the during questions. Ensure that the students have the opportunity to answer every question based on their personal observations at their table.
Possible prompts for the questions:
Explain that a chemical change formed and ask the students if they can
think of any reasons why it is a chemical change. Was a new substance formed (yes, a gas was produced) and what did we observe to show that a gas was produced (hear the fizzing, saw the bubbles on the spaghetti)? Does anyone know what kind of gas? Why was a gas produced? What is so special about baking soda and vinegar (introducing acids and bases may be too advanced but the students may be curious)?
Describe what is happening to the spaghetti pieces. I would anticipate an
answer that there are bubbles attached to it, but they disappear when it reaches the top, causing it to sink back down.
Explain to the students that the spaghetti will continue to dance as long as the vinegar is able to react with baking soda.
5. Ask the post questions. Allow the students to guess what could be in the water or what the magic potion was. Everything used can be found in a kitchen. Explain that the water had baking soda dissolved in it, which is why it looked like normal water, and that the magic potion was vinegar.
Explanation: When the spaghetti is added to the water solution it is expected to sink. This is because it is more dense and is heavier than what the water could support.
When the vinegar is added it is expected that the spaghetti will begin to float. If the spaghetti does not float add more vinegar. This is a chemical change that occurs between the vinegar and the baking soda that is dissolved in the water. This occurs because the two substances(a base and an acid) interact to produce Carbon Dioxide (CO2). The CO2 gas is visible in the solution as small bubbles that appear to attach to the spaghetti, causing it to rise to the top. When the bubbles reach the top of the glass it appears as though the bubbles are breaking causing the spaghetti to dip down again before having more bubbles attach, brining it back to the top of the glass.
Since the gas bubbles are less dense than the water, they float to the top. When they attach to the spaghetti they then cause the spaghetti to float up. This entire experiment relates to the chemical reaction that creates CO2 gas, which is less dense than the solution it is created in, and the spaghetti that is influenced by the density of the gas.
Safety: Do not put anything used in the science lab in your mouth
Do not have your face too close to the glass/beaker when adding substances
If anything happens to end up in a student’s eye, rinse immediately with water
Questions: Pre: Joke: How do you make a Kleenex dance? You put a little boogey in it.
Do any of you know how to make spaghetti dance?
What is in the small container?
How do you know?
What is in the big container?
How do you know?
What will happen when the noodles are added to the glass?
Will they sink or float? Why?
What could happen when you add the “magic potion” to the glass?
Any predictions? Why?
During: What happened to the spaghetti when it was added to the liquid?
Why did that happen?
What did you observe when you added the contents of the smaller
container?
Were there noises?
What did you see?
Did you smell anything?
Did we create a physical or chemical change?
What happened to the spaghetti pieces?
Did it rise and stay at the top?
Did you observe any changes to it?
Post: Do you think it was just water in the glass?
What could cause the mixture to bubble?
Why does the spaghetti continue to “dance”?
If the spaghetti sinks, what could we do to make it dance again?
This activity was great. Starting the lesson out with the riddle was a great start and got the students intrigued. I think that also having the baking soda and water premixed so it looked like water provided the mystery for the students and provided them with the opportunity to think beyond what they could see and hypothesize about what could be in the water. Overall I think my engagement activity went very well and it provided me with the confidence I need to be able to teach science in an elementary classroom.
Wednesday, December 7, 2011
Role of the Teacher and Milieu in the Science Classroom
The teacher is the facilitator of the learning that occurs in the science classroom. They are the one who provides the environment that will support learning and provides the some of the leadership that promotes learning in the students. The context and environment in the science classroom is created by the teacher but must have the support of the students in order to maintain the cooperative and safe environment. While these statements can be generalized to any subject area, it is especially important for science.
Science can be a challenging course to teach because there are safety hazards and a lot of activities that help to facilitate learning, but require a lot of classroom management from the teacher.
The first science class I observed in my pre-internship placement showed how science needs direct supervision and direct instructions from the instructor. I was observing the science/art class. These two subjects were combined for the day because the students were learning about plants and growing conditions and needed to plant their grass seeds in their small group. There are 30 students in the classroom and there were 4 smaller groups of students. One group at a time joined Mrs. Parker, the teacher in the reading corner to start their grass seed. Even though the students were being directly observed by the teacher, there was still some confusion as to whether the grass seed needed to be buried, or how much to put in, and how much soil to put in the cup. The students were looking at different variables that influence healthy growth in a plant so each had a control pot of grass seed and potting soil while others had bad dirt, some only gave their grass 2 hours of sunlight/day, another limited the water their grass received, and the final group planted their grass in a large container and smaller container to compare the differences of space. The other students who were not planting their grass seed at that moment in time were doing leaf prints by placing a leaf under a piece of paper and using a watercolour pencil to colour over the leaf and show the veins. Next the students went to the corner to put a bit of water on their watercolour pencil design and the reaction of the water with the pencil made the markings look like they were painted on. I think this lesson could have taught the students about hydrophobic and hydrophilic reactions a bit because of the art concept, but the planting of the seeds was messy and stressful enough I understand why Mrs. Parker focused on that activity over the art aspect. Providing supervision to 30 students is difficult, but having 30 students who sometimes need direct supervision for an activity and only having one teacher is definitely a challenge. Integrating Indigenous Studies into the Classroom
The Saskatchewan Ministry of Education has emphasized the importance of incorporating Aboriginal content into the classroom. Below are a few links we reviewed in class that I found worthwhile making note of based on the resources and information contained on them, as well as the ability for myself to include some of the information and resources from these sites into lesson plans.
Another great way to include Aboriginal content into the science classroom is through oral stories. Inviting an Elder into the classroom is a great way to hear about Aboriginal content from a first hand experience. Check out the Office of the Treaty Commissioner's website for Saskatchewan to find out information about traditions to follow if you are asking an Elder to speak. There are also many great worksheets and activities available on that website that you can use in your own classroom.
Below are some resources I looked over for a Science class out of a list of many, and these websites provided the most relevant and useful information for myself, as an elementary educator.
Enjoy!
Enjoy!
Monday, November 7, 2011
Books, Books, Books!
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| Here is a trade book I encountered as a student. |
October 6, 2011
What happens when you give a university student a picture book? Well usually they look through it and read it. Today was no different. It is important as a teacher to know what resources are available and many classrooms and libraries have picture or trade books available. While these books are fun to read, they may not always be as educational as you would hope. Today we went through a few books to determine what value they could have in a science classroom. Some books were about specific animals and habitats with vibrant pictures and would have a place in almost any classroom. Other books had a high entertainment value, but lacked facts and information necessary to educate students on a specific topic. The books with high entertainment value but a lack of facts would be great to be used in the set of a lesson plan, but an explanation would need to be provided to the students how sometimes things in books are not true and they may be exaggerated in order to create a story. Even as an adult and an educator it may be difficult to differentiate between fact and fiction in a book, especially if the fiction is presented like facts and if the teacher has little information on a particular topic.
Learning Through Inquiry
October 4, 2011
Today we experienced inquiry learning without even knowing. We started class by completing the task of drawing pictures of the four seasons we experience and writing the dates that each season starts on. Here is the poster my group created.
Notice the dates and identifying factors we have included such as rain boots, a bikini, leaves and snowmen. After completing this rather simple task we were then asked why the seasons change. Most of us had an idea that it had to do with the angle of the earth and the proximity to the sun, but none of us were absolutely sure. Through the use of models, like globes, we began to consider the possibilities.
Throughout this task it was frustrating to never be given or told the right answer as to why the seasons occur. We thought we knew the answer, but never being told whether we were right or wrong was not something I am used to because I have always been told whether an answer is wrong, and even after a few guess I was always told the correct answer. Instead we worked in our co-operative learning groups coming up with many different hypotheses based on our previous knowledge. Are seasons caused by the tilt of the Earth, are they caused by it’s path around the sun, or is it a combination of both ideas plus the way the Earth turns when the days change? We were given the opportunity to use globes and models to help our own understanding all while trying to answer the question presented to us as well as any other questions that arose in our group as we were trying to answer the initial question.
This activity was a demonstration of inquiry based learning in the sense that it posed one question that we, the students, were able to investigate at our own rate, and we were able to come up with our own ideas as to why the seasons change and choose the answer that seemed most reasonable and made the most sense, rather than being told why the seasons change, what causes the changes without being involved in our learning.
Extensions!
No I’m not asking for more time, although that’s what a lot of university students use that term for. October 4th brought about great discussion about extending an activity to gain deeper understanding and even possibly being able to use an activity at a different grade level. One specific example was an activity using one eyes and two eyes and directing a person standing opposite of you to drop a penny into a small cup/tin, based on when you think the penny is directly above the tin.
While this activity can be completed with Kindergarten or Grade 1 students to show that seeing with two eyes is better than one, it can be extended into higher grades, even up to high school showing how depth perception is influenced when we use one or two eyes to see. These extensions all involve studying and understanding how humans see with two eyes and what could happen if we only have one eye, but there are many other extensions.
One great extension that brings nature into the classroom would be discussing eyes of animals and how other animals see. Bees have many eyes, predator’s eyes are placed and shaped differently than the eyes of their prey, so it is important for students to understand what differences there are and why the differences occur. Even the shape of different animals eyes play a large role in how they survive. It is important to understand the content you are teaching and to be prepared to follow up with different activities based on the discussions in class as well as the student's interest and understanding of the topic.
Wednesday, October 5, 2011
The 5 E's
The required textbook for this course is Seamless Assessment in Science: A Guide for Elementary and Middle School Teachers by Sandra K. Abell and Mark J. Volkmann. This is a great book with a lot of vignettes for different grades and different topics.
In the readings the authors discuss the 5 E process that ensures effective lesson planning and activities that are suitable for your students.
The 5 E’s are mentioned in this entertaining video that I was able to find online.
The 5 E’s are:
Engage- This is the hook that gets the students excited and motivated about the
topic and lesson and focuses the students attention on the upcoming
activities and learning outcomes.
Explore- This is what could be considered the hands on part of the class where
students actively take part in their learning by playing a leading role in the experiment or task.
Explain- This is where the students explain what they experienced in the explore
section and allows them to use proper terminology and past experiences to describe what occurred.
Elaborate- This is an extension of the lesson and allows students to deepen their
understanding by allowing them to consider what would occur in different situations and applying he concept they learned to different contexts.
Evaluate- while evaluation can occur at the end of the cycle, it should occur
throughout. Evaluation could occur in a variety of ways, whether it be
written, verbal, creative or artistic, any way you feel would be beneficial
to your students and to yourself.
Here is another visual aid that is useful in explaining the 5 E’s.
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| Photo retrieved from: http://web.wnlsd.ca/rocketry/teachers.htm |
* Although elaborate is replaced with the term extend, the concept is still the same.
I chose this image because it shows the 5 E’s plus the importance of evaluating at every level to ensure the students are learning and to allow you, the teacher, to make any changes necessary based on the needs of your students.
P.O.E
For some reason whenever I hear the term POE I think of the Teletubbies, specifically the red on who is named Po. While Teletubbies have some entertainment value, although it is very minor, these POE activities are definitely entertaining, even for a class of university students.
POE stands for Predict, Observe, Explain, and provides students the opportunity to play an active role in their science class. Students are presented with a few objects or supplies and asked to predict what will occur when the objects interact. Once the predictions have been made, the students take part in the activity to see what happens and they observe what happens. Next they explain what happened, why they thought that their prediction would happen, and they discuss what scientific concepts were present in the activity and use their observations to explain what forces and concepts were present.
My cooperative learning group titled our station Give Me A Hand and this is what it looked like.
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| What our station looked like |
The task is to remove the gloves from the jar and the students are able to follow the instructions. Next they observe whether or not they could remove the glove.
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| Removing the glove |
Once every student in the group has had a chance to try, they are asked to explain what they observed. They are then further questioned as to what happened and why that happened. This is a great activity that is easy to set up and I encourage you to try it and see what happens. I won't tell you what happens so you can make your own predictions, then observe what happened, and then explain why that happened.
Learning about the Curriculum
Today’s class was a great experience for me. I had never looked at the Saskatchewan curriculum for science in depth before today and Dean Elliot, a science consultant with the Saskatchewan ministry of education presented to us on the new curriculum that was released online last week. The curriculum for science classrooms in Saskatchewan can be found here, just click on what grade level you are interested in.
It was great seeing how the curriculum documents are set up and getting a peek at the new textbooks for grades 3,4, and 5. The pictures and activities within the book looked exciting and definitely caught my attention so I am sure they will be a great tool in any classroom.
One point I took away from this presentation by Dean Elliot was his image of a materials list for a unit in a science course. At first I thought the colours on it looked great, but the concept of this chart is what really struck me. There was a list of materials needed and this could be done for one experiment, one lesson, or even an entire unit. Once all of the materials are written down they are colour coded based on whether the school has them in a resource room, the school could order them, the teacher already has some or knows they could borrow the item from another teacher, or they are a low cost item and could be picked up by the teacher. I think I just liked how this chart was organized and how it shows that the teacher who plans in advance will ensure they have the supplies and materials needed when the time comes.
A second point that I found interesting was the discussion of The Scientific Method. I remember having the scientific method pounded into my head in my school experiences and how you had to follow this method to do well and do things correct. As was mentioned though was that there is no one method for art, so why are we limiting science to only one method. Science, although usually viewed as a linear subject with linear process, is able to be flexible and can allow for individual interpretations and unique experiences based on the individual student.
Overall this guest lecture was a great experience and put me a little at ease, especially when I realize I will be responsible for teaching students science.
What do you mean Aboriginal values and concepts in my science classroom?
Maybe this is just me reflecting on my past experiences in science, but until I came to Regina to work on my after degree, I had never considered including aboriginal concepts in a classroom. I did not realize science could have an aboriginal, maybe this is just me not knowing, but to think how to include it in the classroom is beyond anything I can think of. I feel like I don’t know much about aboriginal beliefs or how to include them into a science class.
* Update
After a trip to FNU (First Nations University) I have been shown how to include one aspect of Aboriginal culture into a science class. We went to the garden at FNU that contains Native Prairie Plants. It would be a great location to bring elementary students to see what naturally grows on the prairies and to discuss the features of the various plants that allow them to survive the weather.
After a trip to FNU (First Nations University) I have been shown how to include one aspect of Aboriginal culture into a science class. We went to the garden at FNU that contains Native Prairie Plants. It would be a great location to bring elementary students to see what naturally grows on the prairies and to discuss the features of the various plants that allow them to survive the weather.
It would be even better to meet with an elder and have them describe the value of these plants and what they are used for.
Learning Outdoors!
Today was a great day. We played a game we called Gopher, but the game goes by many different names including Oh Deer, Animal and Habitat, and many other names depending on the animal used.
How to Play
- The class is divided in half (Animal Group and Habitat Group)
- They line up in two separate lines with a few feet between them and turn their backs to each other
- Each team is instructed to choose (The individuals in the animal group chooses what they want, the individuals in the Habitat Group choose what they want to be)
- Our options were Shelter, Water, Food, and Space
- When the teacher says so, both lines turn around and face each other, and the animals must find an individual in the habitat group that matches their need.
- Not everyone’s need will be met or used. The animals who did not match with someone on the Habitat line are now a member of the habitat group while the animals who did match with a habitat person take that person back to their line and they are an animal for the next round.
- The teacher or a student volunteer will count after each round the animal “population”, and will eventually make a graph plotting the rise and fall of the population.
- This game can continue for as short or as long as wanted.
- At the end a class discussion can occur with the presentation of the graph. Students can discuss why there are ups and downs in the graph and what their experience was being an animal and not matching up. This activity will provide students with the ability to experience what happens to animals when their needs are not met and the impacts that could have on an entire ecosystem and the food chain.
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| Photo retrieved from:http://www.free-extras.com/images/gopher-8187.htm |
This activity demonstrates how to make a graph and show the various interactions within an ecosystem and how limited resources influence population sizes.
Shows that we cannot control what resources are available to use and that resources may not always be available if we need them.
Depending on the grade level of the students playing this game could be altered by adding more variables, such as a hunter or an environmental disaster or even human impacts. This activity can show the students what impact the things they do in their lives can have on animals and the environment around where they live.
One Day of Learning Down... how many more to go?
What did I learn about being a teacher, about myself, about science?
After attending one day of classes I have realized I have learned a lot about myself, about what it means to be a teacher, and my eyes have been opened to what the area of science includes. My personal realizations have helped me realize I am in the right program because of the variety of courses I get to take, yet how interconnected all the courses are. Aboriginal people have been discussed in every class I have taken and the short film Two Eyed Seeing has shown me how important it is to consider the world view of native people and how valuable their views are and the importance of combining my personal views, the views of western society in general, and the views of aboriginal people in order to create a well rounded view of an area or even of the world and how understanding can develop concepts and create ideas that I would have never considered unless I opened myself up to be accepting of other people and their culture.
Until now, I never realized that science was so culturally related, tied to differing world views. What I remember from my school experiences didn’t involve looking at non-western views, but science was about theory and what one person had shown to be true, and how we could still show the principle at work in today’s world. The science I remember was very euro-centric and did not focus on alternative views or factor in various world views from different cultures and belief systems. I don’t ever remember discussing an aboriginal view, or even considering different cultural views in the science class, I am sure those views were discussed in social studies or even language arts class if the opportunity arose, but never in science. This has shown me that even in the past few years education is becoming more holistic, rather than focusing on one subject and one specific part, it is attempting to combine the cultural aspects, the language aspects, various parts of other subjects and teaching them alongside science to ensure that students are involved in their studies and that the classroom is an inclusive one.
Welcome to My Blog
I have survived my first few days of classes at the University of Regina. It is definitely a strange feeling being in third year courses with students who have known each other for the past 3 years, and to know no one and hear references to other courses that I have not taken. It’s definitely a unique experience being a BEAD (Bachelor of Education, After Degree) student. In my last degree, a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from the University of Alberta, I avoided most science courses because I did not want to do labs, but now I have a course teaching me how to teach science staring me down. Even though I have only attended one class, I know I will enjoy this course and I am looking forward to seeing what is involved when teaching science. and am interested to see how my personal view of science courses will be changed by this one course.
A concept we discussed on the first day of class was that of Cooperative learning. I have enjoyed reading the articles posted on the course website about cooperative learning because it is interesting to read about the concept. I have taken numerous courses at the U of A that had a cooperative component to them, although it was commonly referred to as Team Based Learning. The concept is similar from what I can gather so far, except the team based learning had individual tests/assessments followed by the team completing the same assessment. The team assessments showed how important it is for team members to work together and the scores on the team assessments were generally higher than the scores individuals received on their personal assessments. I am very interested to see how the team based/cooperative learning will work with the content in this course, and I am excited to see how different professors view and implement cooperative learning.
A recurring theme in a lot of my courses at the U of R is that of inclusion, or an inclusive classroom. I feel as though a large number of the people in my cohort have had these terms and the concept of inclusion drilled into their head over the past few years, and this is something I will have to define and determine for myself. At this point in time, from my past experiences and from what I have heard other students talk about, an inclusive classroom is a very large concept. To me it could be called an engaging classroom, where there is involvement from all students, everyone feels welcome, no one is left behind, different abilities are worked with, different cultures and beliefs are discussed, and students are taught to be accepting of others. The inclusive classroom would have students actively involved in not only the learning process, but the teaching process as well. Depending on the school and the make up of students in a classroom, each inclusive learning community or inclusive classroom will look different, but the concept is similar, everyone is accepting and willing to learn about others while teaching others about themselves. In Canada, specifically Saskatchewan, it appears as though inclusion relates to Aboriginal or First Nations people. An inclusive classroom with Aboriginal people may invite those students to share their culture with the other students, it would allow the aboriginal students to share the views and beliefs from their culture, and the teacher may even invite chiefs or elders into the classroom to teach the class about a different view. Differing worldviews need to be considered in the inclusive classroom, because without these views of the world, there would be a lack of diversity in the classroom.
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