Reading Reflection 2

This week’s readings focused on building a professional learning community. The text described a learning community as the collaboration between teachers and students to further develop an experience. It seems that many of the teachers in the text talked about how they felt very isolated in their profession and this should not be the case. The main focus of a learning community is collaboration among professionals. Collaboration is a great way for teachers to share ideas and should be valued in the school system. Whether collaboration occurs between other teachers in the school or across the country there are many benefits that result from the learning community. First and foremost, collaboration allows teachers to share ideas about teaching and offer constructive feedback in order to improve lessons and classroom management. Collaboration also gives teachers the opportunity to learn more about different technological tools that they can use in their classrooms. Within a learning community, a teacher should never feel isolated because their work is a supportive team effort. The learning community affects teachers in many ways. As stated before, it decreases teacher isolation by giving individuals the opportunity to bounce ideas off of other teachers and to receive constructive feedback on those ideas. Teacher collaboration is valuable because other teachers may be able to suggest ideas that another teacher has not thought of. Different perspectives may make a project better or prevent it from going array once it is set into practice. The learning community affects students in many ways. Students benefit when teachers come together to make a project a better learning experience for them. When students are working on a project within their own learning community, they are working to solve real world problems. Students use skills such as brainstorming, communicating with other students and project management. These are all important skills that are practiced in project based learning and are developed in a learning community. A shared vision is important concept in learning communities. When teachers and students come together in the learning community, they share a common goal. The common goal is important because when people work together toward a specific goal, they create change in order to meet that goal. When building a learning community it is important to have everyone on the same page so that everyone can continuously improve. Our project in this class will rely heavily on collaboration between me and my partners. Throughout the process, it will be imperative that we discuss our ideas together and work toward a common goal. In our learning community, we will be able to suggest different ideas and receive constructive feedback on those ideas. Collaboration between the three of us will be important in order to be successful in this class.

Exercise Project Ideas?

Hey Girls, I am not sure if you saw the comment from Professor Peterson, but we need to decide what the overall outcome of our project is going to be. Are we creating an exercise program? Are we focusing more on sports or on the benefits of exercise? She said we need to let her know ASAP so if you get time, post some ideas. Jaimie

Collaborative Inspiration

Reading Reflection 1

When reading through this chapter there are many things that I must keep in mind when discovering new things in Project Based Learning. The chapter talks about how PBL will make me a better teacher, and can even make me more excited about learning. I love exploring and learning new things and I know that my students will too, which is also something to keep in mind. I must remember that students are open to today’s technology and that most of the learning that they are doing IS based in real life and their situations they encounter. I also must remember that I need to be an active learner just like my students.

            There are many benefits of the PBL approach. One of these benefits that really appeals to me is that the project is the center of the curriculum. When I was in fourth grade we did a project on Hawaii. All three of the fourth grade classrooms worked together to find all of the information we needed to know about Hawaii. The students used books and computers to find all of the information we needed and we had a luau at the end of the project. We got to present all of the work we had done to our parents and teach them about Hawaii as well. This helped me to learn about real-world activities and we all worked together to find the information about the Hawaiian Islands, which are also benefits to project based learning. Some other benefits were that our teachers all got to work together, which also helped all of the students work together and find out about places beyond our own backyards.

            Project- Based Learning seems really exciting and different too me. I know that it will benefit my students in many different ways. It gives the students the chance to explore things on their own while they expand their inquiry skill, with just guidance from their teacher. They also are able to explore all over the world and ask questions or exchange ideas with people all over the world. They learn to communicate with others to overcome misunderstandings, to make a great project and they will realize that communicating can help them to change the world. The students will learn to work together when others are depending on them and to work collaboratively to meet their deadline. Students will also better understand the rest of the world and the ways in which it works. PBL gives students the tools they need to be able to keep finding information for the rest of their lives.

            But Project-Based Learning will need to be approached differently than just regular projects in the classroom. Students must be taught to manage themselves and as teachers we need to be able to alter our expectations for what our students will do. We must be able to be flexible with our classroom and the way we interact with our students, their parents and our colleagues. We will always need to be open and able to communicate with them. We may need to interact with our students on a more personal level, especially if they are working in small groups and working on their own. While working through the projects we must make sure that we keep in mind what is really important during the research of this topic and what we will assess our students on.

             What has interested me most in this chapter was the New Technology High School. This going hand in hand with the New Technology model sounds like a great way for students to be practiced in today’s technologies. I also like how the students spend most of their time managing themselves which leads more time for learning. Of course, I wonder if the students ALWAYS manage themselves and if this is a realistic goal. When reading about the school I also was wondering if the students just sat on their computers all day doing projects. The chapter states that the technologies are viewed as tools, and not the focus of the projects they do. I also really like how the teachers are required to work together and create great projects for their students. I believe that we need to model how to work together to our students and give them room to learn on their own.

Reading Reflection #1

           There are many things that should be kept in mind as one begins the journey through Project-Based Learning (PBL). I feel the most important thing for me to keep in mind is that students today are up to the challenge. Students, now, are growing up during the "technology era", and it shouldn't be surprising the amount of information they already know just from real-world experiences. Even though some schools and/or teachers may not be up to speed with such technology opportunities and the benefits of using these tools, students today will more than willingly rise up to the challenge. If students are willing to rise to the challenge, I only feel it equally important for teachers to meet half-way in their students’ efforts. Meaning PBL shouldn’t just be a part of the learning process because students are capable of doing it; it should be collaborative between teacher and student.             There are many important benefits of using the PBL approach. When a teacher uses PBL, the projects that arise form the centerpiece of the curriculum; the projects become the “real” unit, not just an add-on. PBL engages students in real-world activities and provides them with the opportunity to practice the strategies and disciplines of real-world scenarios. PBL enables students to work collaboratively to solve problems that are actually important or interesting to them; PBL can cater to the needs and interests of all students. And finally, the PBL approach integrates technology as a tool for discovery, collaboration, and communication. Using technology as a tool broadens students learning horizons and opens doors that otherwise wouldn’t be open without the tools.
            There are also many benefits to the student who participates in using PBL. While many, if not all, of the benefits are important, I feel that one of the most important benefits is the students’ sense of fulfillment, understanding, and success of real-world concepts. Through PBL, students will gain an understanding of other people, of how their world works, and how to better communicate with each other as a class/team and with others in their world. Through my use of PBL, I hope my students become curious and confident to explore because I know the experience will make their learning process that much more enjoyable and worth learning.
            As one begins to embark on the PBL journey, certain issues will arise that will need reconsideration. I think in order for PBL to be successful, one must have an open mind to change because this approach will test your teaching methods and your perspective on things. “Being able to adapt to change is essential for your students’ future success; it’s just as important for your own professional growth” (pg. 18). With that said, PBL will challenge your learning goals as a teacher. Be prepared to reconsider your expectations for what students will know and do. One of the more important reconsiderations I feel that PBL will challenge is the way a teacher talks and engages with the students. PBL will challenge teachers to “step off the stage” and interact with students differently, giving them the responsibility for their own learning. Other things to reconsider when using the PBL approach include: helping students become betters at managing their own progress, being ready to reconfigure the “hardware” of the classroom to facilitate teamwork and collaboration, reevaluating what you need to focus on and pay attention to, and being ready to reconsider which artifacts of learning are worth keeping.
            The New Technology High is a great example to learn about and understand the New Technology Model. The New Technology model is small by design and immerses students in real-world learning experiences with technology as the main tool. The model gives the teachers time and incentives to work together and share ideas. New Technology High, in comparison, promotes the preparation of students for their future by having them learn to think critically, collaborate as part of a team, and use technology as a tool to solve problems.

- Lauryn Hughes

Reading Reflection 1

            As one embarks on their journey of Project-Based Learning, they should keep in mind that the learning process is never over. Teachers need to be aware that they are learners in this journey along with their students. With the rapid advancement in technology, we are constantly learning about new innovations that teachers can bring into their classrooms. Also, as teachers and students complete projects, they will learn what worked and what did not work in the lesson and can make it a better learning experience the next time they work on the project.

            There are many benefits to Project-Based Learning. One of the biggest benefits is that students learn by assessing and solving real-world projects. This is extremely important for students to do because it makes their learning relevant. In a well-organized project, the students should never have to question the importance of learning the material. Another benefit of Project-Based Learning is that students learn how to work with their peers to solve the problems they are given. It is important for students to work collaboratively with one another to understand that it takes a team-effort to solve substantial problems. One cannot change the world’s problems single-handedly.

            Students who participate in Project-Based Learning are “learning to investigate open-ended questions and apply their knowledge to produce authentic products” (Boss & Krauss, p. 12). Active learning allows students to have a certain level of freedom in their learning. Students are encouraged to learn about what interests them and apply it to the context of the project. This authentic model of teaching is a great way to get students motivated to learn.

            When using the Project-Based Learning approach, teachers need to reconsider many things.  They must rethink their learning goals and expectations of students, as well as their classroom management styles. With collaborative projects, teachers will undoubtedly have different expectations for their students than a lesson plan that involves a lecture and a worksheet. Teachers will also have to reconsider how they will assess their students throughout the project to ensure that their students are learning and meeting the goals and expectations placed upon them.

            New Technology High is a great example of the New Technology Model. This model is all about authentic, active and collaborative learning and it seems that New Technology High is following this model to a T. The New Technology Model is successful because class sizes are small, which is beneficial because teachers have the opportunity for more one-on-one interaction with their students. It is also important to understand that the projects that are being assessed by students are related to real-world problems and are solved using the technologies that the 21^st century has given us. It is important to note that although technology is everywhere within schools such as New Technology High, it is not the main focus. Technology simply acts as a tool to assist students during the project, rather than being the focus of the project.