PEDAGOGY
According to Jean Piaget, students at the 7th grade level are just beginning to reach their stage of formal observations or their ability to think abstractly (Cullatta, 2013a). Because of this, students continue to need concrete, visual examples in order to accommodate their new knowledge into their schema (or background knowledge) (Cullatta, 2013b). As students learn, Piaget found that students assimilates or interprets the information they are learning differently based on their prior knowledge (Cullatta, 2013b). It is important in my teaching to activate this background knowledge. During first grade, students are introduced to the concept of why objects sink and float. In second grade, students begin learning how to measure the volume of liquids, solids and using scales to measure weight. During fourth grade, students build upon the idea of finding volume and mass and begin comparing different objects using units (Straus, n.d.). To begin my lessons, I often start with a KWL (what do I know, what do I want to know, and what did I learn) chart. By doing so, students are reminded of what they already know about the topic.
Discovery learning allows students to problem solve and discover answers to questions and relationships among concepts on their own (Discovery Learning, 2014). Research has found that as a result of students "exploring and manipulating objects," students are more likely to remember concepts (Discovery Learning, 2014). Currently, students in my classroom often perform experiments with step-by-step directions to discover answers to scientific questions and learn new content. To help solve my problem of practice, I plan on having more experiments where students investigate ideas by drawing upon their prior knowledge and create their own experiments to reach a new outcome.
Mastery learning changes the dynamics in the classroom from "every students gets the same amount of time to understand a topic" to "each student learns and masters the concepts at their own pace" (Cullatta, 2013c). In order for mastery learning to be successful, students must know what they are learning and how they will be tested, learn at their own pace, provided feedback at certain checkpoints, tested to ensure that learning has occurred (Cullatta, 2013c). Currently, students are given "I can" statements everyday so they are aware of what they are learning that day. These "I can" statements are referred to throughout the lesson and students are given a formative assessment to test their progress of learning. To receive feedback, students assess themselves, assess one another, or I will often give students feedback on their responses.
Resources:
Cullatta, R. (2013, January 1). Constructivist theory (Jerome Bruner). Constructivist Theory. Retrieved July 9, 2014, from http://www.instructionaldesign.org/theories/constructivist.html
Cullatta, R. (2013, January 1). Genetic epistemology (Jean Piaget). Genetic Epistemology. Retrieved July 10, 2014, from http://www.instructionaldesign.org/theories/genetic-epistemology.html
Cullatta, R. (2013, January 1). Mastery. Mastery. Retrieved July 11, 2014, from http://www.instructionaldesign.org/concepts/mastery.html
Discovery Learning. (2014, January 1). Learning theories RSS. Retrieved July 11, 2014, from http://www.learning-theories.com/discovery-learning-bruner.html
Straus, K. (n.d.). Science grade level content expectations. Retrieved July 6, 2014, from http://mi.gov/documents/mde/Complete_Science_GLCE_12-12-07_218314_7.pdf?20140706174026
Discovery learning allows students to problem solve and discover answers to questions and relationships among concepts on their own (Discovery Learning, 2014). Research has found that as a result of students "exploring and manipulating objects," students are more likely to remember concepts (Discovery Learning, 2014). Currently, students in my classroom often perform experiments with step-by-step directions to discover answers to scientific questions and learn new content. To help solve my problem of practice, I plan on having more experiments where students investigate ideas by drawing upon their prior knowledge and create their own experiments to reach a new outcome.
Mastery learning changes the dynamics in the classroom from "every students gets the same amount of time to understand a topic" to "each student learns and masters the concepts at their own pace" (Cullatta, 2013c). In order for mastery learning to be successful, students must know what they are learning and how they will be tested, learn at their own pace, provided feedback at certain checkpoints, tested to ensure that learning has occurred (Cullatta, 2013c). Currently, students are given "I can" statements everyday so they are aware of what they are learning that day. These "I can" statements are referred to throughout the lesson and students are given a formative assessment to test their progress of learning. To receive feedback, students assess themselves, assess one another, or I will often give students feedback on their responses.
Resources:
Cullatta, R. (2013, January 1). Constructivist theory (Jerome Bruner). Constructivist Theory. Retrieved July 9, 2014, from http://www.instructionaldesign.org/theories/constructivist.html
Cullatta, R. (2013, January 1). Genetic epistemology (Jean Piaget). Genetic Epistemology. Retrieved July 10, 2014, from http://www.instructionaldesign.org/theories/genetic-epistemology.html
Cullatta, R. (2013, January 1). Mastery. Mastery. Retrieved July 11, 2014, from http://www.instructionaldesign.org/concepts/mastery.html
Discovery Learning. (2014, January 1). Learning theories RSS. Retrieved July 11, 2014, from http://www.learning-theories.com/discovery-learning-bruner.html
Straus, K. (n.d.). Science grade level content expectations. Retrieved July 6, 2014, from http://mi.gov/documents/mde/Complete_Science_GLCE_12-12-07_218314_7.pdf?20140706174026