791 Sensemaking and Research Design Bog |
Baggio, Clark and Dervin all say “focus on the learner.” Content is nothing without a learner. So I am going to try to convince teachers to increase student talk. And when I think about the learners, I think of teachers thinking, “I don’t want a loud, unruly classroom talking about whatever they want!”
So my thoughts this week have been thinking about “road blocks” to student talk. Why don’t we allow more student talk now? Historically, what has prevented student talk? What technology can help us increase student talk...or decrease teacher talk? What is innovative? I think the most innovative part of my action research is the simplicity. Student talk is not a new concept. Think-pair-share has been around forever. And yet, a seemily simple strategy can have a big impact on student achievement. I think that the simplicity will appeal to teachers. This does not require a new program, or software upload or curriculum. This strategy is “easy” to use and yet can dramatically change the way we teach and the way students learn. I don’t know if this is very outside of the box thinking, but I feel like in education, they keep reinventing the box. Instead, i want to exploring using tool in the box that has been overlooked. Reflections on Processes and CRAP. I love CRAP! Contrast, repitition, alignment and proximity; the four attributes of good design. Baggio’s book speaks to me. Simple design, clear message, less is more. I love it. When I read it, I am picturing good & bad website; cluttered and sparse classroom; word or confusing presentations. I appreciate that this book is a design book focusing on learning. In contrast, I don’t love Clark. I like Clark. I understand the need for Clark. I just wish that Ruth Clark’s book for Developing Technical Training was geared towards education. Although, I can find similarities and parallels between work place training and educational training, I find diagrams of toilets distracting. I know I am biased, but I feel that education is a special world. I think teachers are always designing lessons about procedures, concepts, facts, processes and principals...sometimes all at the same time. I wish this text was more geared to our specific field, with examples from various educational senarios instead of customer service senarios.
3 Comments
Kelley S. Miller
3/19/2017 03:28:07 pm
I also love reading Baggio. And, like you, I find that what I read in her book "sticks"- I find myself analyzing worksheets, whiteboards, slides, even TV commercials! Specifically, I think of the examples she shows of "well-intentioned" visuals and keep asking myself if she would use my classroom materials as examples of effective, or ineffective, design. I agree that her message of "simple design, clear message, less is more" resonates deeply with me as a learner and a teacher.
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Jennifer Wade
3/19/2017 06:09:47 pm
True, no one likes a loud classroom, that said, they need to be talking. I am not sure if you remember a reading specialist, Kay Soper. She came into my room one day years ago and I was apologizing for the noise level, to which she responded, "Nothing scares me more than a quiet kindergarten classroom." I never forgot that. As much as it can drive me crazy, I know they need to be talking. I know we all love to be in what we perceive as the orderly, quiet room with everyone working at a whisper. It does not exist. At least not all the time. And while we expect them to be speaking to the topic, with sentence frames, using academic language with a partner who is the proper language match for them, this is not ALWAYS a reality either. What if they are off topic, is that so bad? As I walk around listening to conversations they seem to get back on track. I know who is up to what, but if they are talking about something that interests them more, what is the real crime? A way to get them talking that is less annoying (sorry but it's true) is reciting poetry, singing, chanting phrases from big books. For me, if it's choral, it's creating the oracy without the chaos. At least for that moment.
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Todd Mills
3/19/2017 08:50:59 pm
Who doesn't love CRAP... great acronym for reality. I find Baggio interesting and insightful. I have learned a lot of this before when I was asked to teach a technology course with no curriculum. I tried to meet the students where they needed me most... specifically
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