AVReading

The use of small groups within our classrooms has a number of advantages.  For starters, we know that students tend to learn more when they actively work to construct knowledge as opposed to when they are fed the information.  We have also learned that   co-constructing knowledge within a group tends to be even more effective and powerful.   Additionally, we have learned that mixed ability groupings offer a number of benefits, bringing together students with a diversity of learning styles and backgrounds for a common purpose.  And then there is the development of those “soft skills” of teamwork and problem solving, we often hear the business community and private sector tout as critical to their operations.            Still, using small groups can be messy.  Our Type A students aren’t often fans because they know that they could probably do the work in half the time if they could just d...

To continue our focus on classroom strategies for the year, this month’s newsletter will focus on managing the details of class.  Historically, we have called these “classroom management” strategies and practices, but my thinking has changed a little over time.  For starters, I am no longer really working to get absolute control over a class, to manage all of their choices and behaviors.   Instead, my objectives are to first, create conditions within the classroom where they are interested and engaged versus compliant; and second, create conditions where students learn to manage their own behaviors versus having me do it for them.  So in this context, “managing the details of the class” is more about the practices and structures we can employ to create those optimal learning conditions.  Door Greeting          In terms of perhaps the easiest, most powerful practice a teacher can employ, I would su...

Engagement Checks          Engagement checks are effective ways of both getting your class involved and completing quick formative assessments.   None of these are particularly new, but some of them may have fallen off your playlist and are worth bringing back. Get Up and Move:   I have signs on three walls of my class—Yes, I know it.   Maybe, I think I know it.   And No, I haven’t a clue.   On any given activity, when I sense that students are either tapering off (or just need to get up and out of their seats), I have them stand up.   I introduce a concept (ie. Developed versus Undeveloped Characters) and ask them to move to one of the three stations, and to talk with others in that group to review or learn the concept.   I then call on a few students from Yes and Maybe to discuss the idea.   After that I repeat the process two more times, and send them back to their chairs. ...

Welcome to a new school year, AVHS!  For those of you new to our building, the AVReading Newsletter is a monthly publication dedicated to promoting literacy.  Each year, the newsletters focus on a specific theme, and while I had one picked out this summer, I chose to change it last week, in response to an activity we did as a staff.  In that activity, we identified topics that we-- as a staff-- were most interested in studying, and instrustructional strategies was one of the most popular.   So for this year, the AVReading Newsletters will examine a wide range of instructional strategies.  This month’s newsletter, then, will focus on a general overview of what is to come.   Before doing that, however, it is important to put instructional strategies within the wider context of what we do as teachers and as a school.  For example, an emphasis on instructional strategies assumes that we are constantly working to connect our conte...

Closing out our year on educational research, I’ve decided to review an immensely thoughtful book entitled The Guide for White Women Who Teach Black Boys.  This text is not expressly research.  However, it does reference a large body of research from within the field of equity and race, and then complements it with testimonies from teachers (both of color and White), commentaries by researchers, and commentaries by many others who have been impacted or involved in the systems of school.                     The title of the book itself is pretty catchy-- some might say provocative.  But the authors decided to be very upfront with who their audience would be and what their purpose was.  In the opening chapters they construct an argument that establishes the tremendous inequities that exist in our system-- specifically if you are a young Black boy.  The authors intentiona...

Our focus this year has been on disseminating educational research.  And so this month, I have chosen a recently published study ( Journal of Research on Technology in Education ,  2019) on the use of technology within science classrooms.  The study is worth examination for a few reasons. First, it is a qualitative study, which produces a type of knowledge allowing us to better understand the lived experiences of others.  In this case, we have the opportunity to examine the teaching practices of high school science teachers and their use of technology in a way that quantitative research cannot quite get at.  Second, I wanted to learn a little bit more about innovative or interesting technology uses in the classroom. And finally, I was interested in finding something specific to science.                   The study, completed by Ceren Ocak (University of Georgia, Atlanta) and...

Here is the online practice for the MCA Reading test. 

            Since the 2016 elections, and the ensuing investigations over the proliferation of fake news, we have seen a renewed interest in teaching students how to evaluate the information they access online.  This month’s Reading Research Quarterly (Spring 2019) included a study that looked at how students process the credibility of information on the internet.                I found the study to be insightful for a number of reasons.  First, getting students to read their source materials with a critical eye is extremely important, and I wanted to know if there was something new (or if I had forgotten something important) on the topic.  Second, the study used a mixed methodology which means it had both quantitative and qualitative measures to collect and interpret data.   Finally, it examined the habits across both middle ...

Guidelines for Writing a Commencement Address The draft you write for consideration does not need to be a final version, but should give the panelists a clear idea of what you plan to say in your speech.  The traditional commencement address has had content which reflects back on the class's experiences and also gives advice or guidance for the future.  The tone should be one which inspires and motivates the listeners. Although the Commencement Address is directed at the graduating class, the message needs to be meaningful and appropriate for the adult audience present as well.  Content, language, or style which parents or grandparents might find offensive is not suitable for a Commencement Address. Humor can be an effective minor element of a Commencement Address.  The predominant message, and consequently the predominant writing style, should be serious, thoughtful and inspirational.  Format:  This might be helpful...

In our yearlong examination of current educational research, I found a very interesting study published in this month’s issue of American Educational Research Journal published by AERA.  The study was entitled “‘Despite the Odds’: Unpacking the Politics of Black Resilience Neoliberalism” completed by Kevin L. Clay of Rutgers University.  There were two things that initially caught my eye about the study.   First, the title seemed to question that idea of resilience, similar to the study that Jae Cody wrote about in last month’s newsletter, and secondly, it was action research-- a type of research that positions the researcher not only as a scientific observer but as an advocate, implementing an action step of some sort.  Action research is not a new methodology, but it hasn’t always gotten the same attention as the other forms of educational research.             In this case, the researcher...