Week 9: Changes on the Horizon

Last week sparked many conversations between Mrs. Hoover and I in the classroom - things I am doing well and things I want to change or get better at.

I finished my first vet science unit last week - and was not really particularly proud of it. While I was teaching it similarly to what Mrs. Hoover would, it did not seem to work for me and therefore not my students either. When we prepared for the test, only about 1/3 of the students were answering the review questions. This did not make me feel good about my teaching, even though Mrs. Hoover thought that I was fine. Therefore, the morning of the exam I decided to use a testing technique Dr. Foster used with us last semester. I allowed the students to take the test, but when most of them were done I stopped them and said "I believe I am a fair person and that there were some things I could have done better, so you have 1 minute to use your notes. Go." I have them about 1 minute and a half. This class is also pretty divided which makes activities hard. Next, I stopped them and said, "I also believe that we learn best when we share with each other. At this time stand up and we are going to pass our tests every 10 seconds - this is purely information collection, no talking or writing anything down." After giving them a few minutes to change or add answers, I stopped them one last time: "Lastly, I believe that when we share with each we grow exponentially. At this time you have 1 minute to ask your classmates a question." I hope this instilled in them that while I am working to push them to the next level that I am not out to make them fail. I do however expect results in return and them to meet my expectations.

I also feel as though the way I am doing bellwork is not benefiting them. While I am asking questions that have to do with that day or review from last, my students are doing it for compliance. They are not using that time to get themselves in the mindset of the day or the information we have learned. While it is a classroom management technique, I don't want it to be busy work that my students feel is a waste of time. For this reason, I talked to Mrs. Hoover about changing my bellwork and I am going to implement it this week. Each Monday, I will be presenting a current Agricultural article to classes - that doesn't necessarily relate to their class. We will read the article on Monday's as a class, but then the bellwork throughout the week will pertain to that article. These questions will be more problem solving and critical thinking related as we work to solve current issues in the Agricultural world. My hope is that these help make students more aware of issues that are going on in the world that we may not necessarily talk about in class, while also tying in meaningful conversations to each day that may have never happened.

To see pictures from this week, check out my twitter! @Wright_KarlieM