Assessing interest in Science and diagnosing thinking skills.

Given that 9BY have completed the course set for the year, but we still have a couple of lessons to go I am trialling an activity with them.

I have provided them with some links to reputable providers of news and asked them to find a science article that interests them. They then need to post the link to a shared document, summarise it, and explain why they found it interesting.

Once they have found their article of interest, they were instructed to read other's articles and comment on them. I am using this as a diagnostic to see the areas of interest in the class, but also the depth of thinking skills that they are willing to apply.

Once I refine the process, as a spreadsheet is not a tool with finesse, I would like to use this as a homework task, but I still need to figure out how to manage the data that will be produced in a way that I can use. Particularly how to track who has been reading, thinking, and commenting without it taking up so much time as to make it unwieldy.

This will also be a task that can be extended for assessing student abilities at discerning fake news.

The importance of developing Critical Thinking in our students

In keeping up to date with Science news I came across an article talking about a study done by Stanford University. When shown a bunch of news sites, up to 80% of students could not distinguish between fake 'news' and real 'news'.



The study has yet to be replicated, but as an initial finding it is disturbing. I take it for granted that some items presented as news is not. I take it for granted that 'sponsored content' may not be accurate and will likely be very biased. This makes it more pressing that students be able to evaluate sources and recognise bias.

https://sheg.stanford.edu/upload/V3LessonPlans/Executive%20Summary%2011.21.16.pdf

It is especially important to inculculate this into students in the junior school as so little time is available to teach anything other than the content they need to pass achievement standards in the senior school. In addition, the ability to critically review the places they are getting their information from is a skill that will be much more valuable to many than the knowledge on how to safely light a bunsen. Although that skill is transferable to lighting gas hobs and barbecues.

The new Junior Curriculum - Research

The new junior curriculum is taking shape. The science department have worked on an outline for the year and for the units. We have decided how to structure the changes, and now we are working on a small section of the first unit each.
I am using my experience from teaching Social Studies for a year, specifically research skills, to plan the research component of the unit.

The research component will have basic research skills, and will include a research project. The initial project will be into a scientist. I have compiled a list of scientists they could research, and I have included a wide range of fields and cultures, with a focus on women and Maori. In addition I looked for ethnic minority scientists from Australia, Canada, and the US as these are cultures that some of our Maori students identify as being in a similary position to Maori, as exemplified by the support in the community for the Standing Rock native americans protesting the North Dakota pipeline.The intention is to make the students aware that science is for everyone not just old white men.

To encourage the students to be more introspective and thoughtful about the learning process, the will receive two grades for their piece of research. They will have one for the content of the research, and another for the process of research. What did they look for, what was successful. In addition they will be expected to do a reflection/evaluation of how they performed. I have set this up as a google form in order to make it manageable for staff to implement, but also to differentiate the questions the students are answering

Part of what we are trying to do is develop students into critical thinkers. The students are expected to compile a reference list, but for the higher level thinker I'm implementing a system to encourage them to think about the perspective of the source as an introduction to bias and to be wary of who they are listening to.

Inquiry goals

I've been thinking about my goals for next year, and trying to narrow down exactly what I will focus my inquiry on.

Given the big push we are putting in for the junior curriculum my goal is going to be focusing on year 9's mastery of skills.

In the current curriclum, the old one, skills are not taught as explicitly as some students need, and they are expected to pick them up obliquely while learning content. The new curriculum flips this on its head with the skills being the focus and the content being used as a means rather than the end in itself.

Pre exam jitters

It is the L2 Chemistry exam today. I went to talk to my students before they went in. Most have been strategically picking which papers to do and focusing their efforts.
The students seem upbeat and were surprised and happy to see me, saying that I'm the only teacher who has been to see them before their exam. I encouraged them to come and see me afterwards to tell me how it went.

Success on resubs

I have been working with some of the chemistry students who failed achievement standards earlier in the year. All those who stayed in the class for the full year have managed to achieve all the credits they were entered into, which means they are entering exams with 10 Chemistry credits under their belt.
They are also all intending to do Chemistry next year. I am quite pleased with that even though I still don't know who is teaching the Level 3 next year.

The last students to get their assessments needed more practice time. For the repeats I gave them lots and lots of practice questions until they felt ready. Part of it has been the maturing of the students.

 This year I have identified the weaknesses that have come through from the Level 1 classes and I am planning how to ameliorate those at the start of the year to make the classes confident in their abilities from the start. Hopefully this will also address the relatively high attrition rate. Some of the attrition was due to bad course selection, but a few I think were because they felt discouraged when they didn't pass the first Achievement Standard.

Peer Assessment

I tried  a new style of assessment and marking with my Year 9 class.

For the end of astronomy unit they had to research astronomical cycles and their effects on the earth. There was a limited scope for personal choice, as there was a number of cycles they could choose from. The real difference was for them to do the marking of each others assignments.

For this I gave the students copies of the marking rubric and explained how to use it. The students worked in groups to mark each other and to feedback and feedforward to each other. The purpose of this exercise was to get the students to link the intructions of an assessment with the marking of it, to start showing them how the two are together so that in the future they can better tailor their efforts to where it will make the most difference.

Students took to the exercise and were very positive in their feedback to each other. The marking was accurate.

Some students didn't submit their work, but the exercise will have shown them the work that goes into marking regardless and hopefully will encourage them to respect deadlines.

Dancing year 10's

10NR are really into dancing along to their favourite youtube videos. Could there be a way to integrate the physics of music and/or the biology of movement into the areas of interest.

New classes highlight what you forget you know

For my interview at Ellesmere College I have been asked to teach a 15 minute lesson on the rock cycle. It has been interesting exercise in planning. I don't know their prior learning. I don't know their levels of literacy and numeracy. I don't know the balance of the class, are there a few brilliant kids amongst a bunch of strugglers, are there a few strugglers in a bunch of brilliant kids.
It's highlighted how I take for granted how much I know about the kids I teach. I know which kids I can throw challenges at and they will persevere till they succeed. I know which kids will need to be scaffolds. I know which kids will need handholding. I know which kids could be any one of those but will avoid doing anything if they can help it.

Passive Learners

10NR are very borderline learners. There are a number of them that are not engaged in learning, and I am struggling to find a path in for them. The ones that are capable are not interested in learning for learnings sake, but instead see Year 10 as an intermediate wasted year and will engage again when it is time for credits.
My usual strategies are not working. They are an odd bunch. They will passively watch something, and they will tutu with things, but not if it looks like learning activity. Although for Climate change they all opened the website and worked a bit at, for most of the class they work rate was so slow. It is highly frustrating when I can see that as long as they focussed that they would be moving mountains, but they are just so apathetic.

I am going to work on them having more video clips, and instant rewards. There does not seem to be any appetite for slog in this class. They don't appear to be any recognition that with hard work comes better rewards.

I'm going to have to ditch the daily quiz, as it is a waste of time until I can get some sort of engagement with the learning. I have persevered, and it is still a good tool to use with my other classes as a daily revision task, but this class might be better served with a mini video or similar, something they can passively sit through rather than actively read or write.

I don't like feeling like I am requiring less from my students, Ultimately if they can't read or write well their choices will be limited in life, and I don't want to do that.

Passive Learners

10NR are very borderline learners. There are a number of them that are not engaged in learning, and I am struggling to find a path in for them. The ones that are capable are not interested in learning for learnings sake, but instead see Year 10 as an intermediate wasted year and will engage again when it is time for credits.
My usual strategies are not working. They are an odd bunch. They will passively watch something, and they will tutu with things, but not if it looks like learning activity. Although for Climate change they all opened the website and worked a bit at, for most of the class they work rate was so slow. It is highly frustrating when I can see that as long as they focussed that they would be moving mountains, but they are just so apathetic.

I am going to work on them having more video clips, and instant rewards. There does not seem to be any appetite for slog in this class. They don't appear to be any recognition that with hard work comes better rewards.

I'm going to have to ditch the daily quiz, as it is a waste of time until I can get some sort of engagement with the learning. I have persevered, and it is still a good tool to use with my other classes as a daily revision task, but this class might be better served with a mini video or similar, something they can passively sit through rather than actively read or write.

I don't like feeling like I am requiring less from my students, Ultimately if they can't read or write well their choices will be limited in life, and I don't want to do that.

Ecology in a New Zealand context

I have been teaching the Ecology unit for Year 9's and the test is approaching. The test is focussed around introduced species and food webs, but the introduced species and food webs in question are based in British ecology.

For next year we should update it to include New Zealand examples. Possums as an introduced species would be relatively straight-forward to substitute I think and be able to keep the questions very similar to keep the task QUALMd

Possum's would also be animals that many of the students have experience with, especially those who are from farming and/or hunting backgrounds.

Priority Learners

The list for Priority learners has gone round again. It seems to be a blunt tool. Of the 8 or 9 students I teach on the list most of them are on there because they are doing so many externals that they haven't built up a lot of credits internally and so their counts are low.

Of the others I'm going to work two on one with the two who have not accrued any credits yet. It is difficult as they both have high absence rates compared to the rest of the class. I can work with that. What is really hard is neither of them will ask questions nor admit to not understanding when I ask them individually. If they cannot tell me what or where they are having trouble I struggle to effectively rectify their lack of understanding. Both students arrived into the class after the year started, so perhaps they have not integrated into the class culture as well as I would have hoped.

How to help students when they don't want it.

What to do about a student who doesn't want to be helped.
A student who is usually full of life came into class and kept herself apart. She took a computer and logged in. When I went to check in with her she avoided my gaze and started crying, but really wanted to not be noticed. I gave her a note to deliver to a teacher who was not teaching this period, but she just wants to be left alone. I have no idea what has upset her, but this class have a lot of stuff going on, with parents that cannot be contacted, or parents that are in jail, or long histories with CYFS. I really think she needs to talk to someone, but I feel at a loss of what to do when she doesn't want help.

Goggles!

L1SCE was doing a rates of reactivity experiment today. I must have used some variation on "Googles!" about 3-4 times a minute for the duration of the practical.
"put your goggles on"
"your goggles are less efficient when they are on your head"
"Do you value your goatee more than your eyes?"

E-tools in the classroom.

I have been using EdPuzzle in the classroom this year and sharing the use of it with others in the department, and the StileApp website is full of great resources for students especially those who are in need of extension.

The goformative.com site has been especially useful for senior assessments. it allows me to upload assessments and format them for students to complete the questions. I can track what they are doing and give them feedback in real time. I have used it with L1 SCE and L2Chem so far and although it would be best used with a touchscreen, especially for Organic chemistry where there is a lot of drawing of molecules, it has been great from my perspective. Due to the fiddly nature of some of the response mechanisms, students have not embraced it as enthusiastically as i have, but they do enjoy the real-time feedback.

When talking about this to others in the department they have shown interest, so it has been put on departmental meeting agendas. I have showed them what can be done with it, and we plan a proper session on how to use it later.

Year 9 Astronomy Assessment

The Astronomy unit has frequently not been completed for a number of years so there is no standard assessment for them.

I have decided to run an NCEA style assessment with my year 9's to introduce them to the style of research assignment they will have to contend with in the senior school, and I will use a comparitive mark schedule as well.
The students may choose the aspects of astronomy that appeal, and present in ways that suit them, within reason for both options.

Rethinking the programme

The formative for the Redox assessment has come back showing the students are not ready for the summative. I think I will need to reteach aspects, and give a lot more practice before many of the students are ready.
Coupled with the need for a number of them to repeat the other internals I am doubting if I will be able to get through the high number of credits that were initially planned. I have already removed a number of students from the final external assessment but now I am wondering if there will be enough time for the students who have been planning to do that assessment to complete it.

Dangerous Student

Yesterday I had a recalcitrant student who arrived with an attitude. There are obviously some other issues happening in his life that are interfering in his school.
He was removed from class but was reluctant. I don't think I can make much progress with him until these other things are dealt with. I left him in the corridor with the LSA. He was swearing and thumping the walls and was eventually convinced to go to the deans. I could not have him in the classroom as he was damaging the learning environment of others and had the potential to get physical with me, his peers, or the classroom environment.

The PTC's for reference

PTC’s

1. … establish and maintain effective professional relationships focused on the learning and well-being of all akonga

2. … demonstrate commitment to promoting the well-being of all akonga

3. … demonstrate commitment to bicultural partnership in Aotearoa New Zealand

4. … demonstrate commitment to ongoing professional learning and development of personal professional practice

5. … show leadership that contributes to effective teaching and learning

6. … conceptualise, plan and implement an appropriate learning programme

7. … promote a collaborative, inclusive and supportive learning environment

8. … demonstrate in practice their knowledge and understanding of how akonga learn

9. … respond effectively to the diverse language and cultural experiences, and the varied strengths, interests and needs of individuals and groups of akonga

10. … work effectively within the bicultural context of Aotearoa New Zealand

11. … analyse and appropriately use assessment information, which has been gathered formally and informally

12. … use critical inquiry and problem solving effectively in their professional practice

The Rock Cycle with 10NR

10NR have been more engaged in this Earth Science unit than for most this year. I believe it is a combination of a growing maturity and improved literacy skills, certain students having been relocated to another class and the change of teaching plans. I have been actively seeking more demonstative and interactive learning experiences and Earth Science is a unit where this is easier to do than in others.

Two girls went to the SSC immediately at the start of the lesson as one of them had red raised knuckles and the seond went for moral support.

Today was the rock cycle which was the perfect time to do a hands on activity. The crayon rock cycle. an oldie but a goody. I have done it a few times before, but I have yet to perfect the execution.
10NR were as predicted very enthusiastic about the smashing of crayons with a hammer, the jumping on crayon bits, and the melting of crayon bits. I'm never sure how much I am getting through to them as to why we are doing the activity and getting them to link the smashing and jumping with the weathering and pressure that they represent.

The theory work that came afterwards was resisted, but after Friday the girls were insistent on music so the deal was as long as the work was being done, they could have music.

Oddly calm

Last Period on a Friday is usually a tricky lesson particularly with 10NR who are resistant to learning at the best of times. On Friday they were unusally docile.

The lesson started with a YouTube clip of the Tangiwai train crash from the docudrama on TV a while ago, then I explained Volcanoes, and set them to work. It was colouring and cutting and pasting, but they had to label stuff as they went. I also had clips of volcanic activity on the screen for them to watch. Perhaps it was the two pronged approach. As they gave up on one activity they were caught by the screen, and when they were bored of the volcanic clips they went back to the cutting and pasting. It probably isn't helping to develop a long attention span, but it did seem to keep them on topic in the classroom.

New and Improved Rock Cycle

After doing the crayon rock cycle with limited success I had to try a new way of doing things. In a quirk of timing just after  teaching it to my Year 10's I had the opportunity to do it as a demonstration lesson on a interview. This time I tried with playdough of different colours and textures. The playdough is less solid and rock like, but it has the advantage of sticking together when the rocks are sedimentary,and it is easy to break pieces off for weathering. The metamorphic rocks are less pronounced, but by working the playdough until all colours merge a satisfactory igneous rock develops. I think I shall work with the playdough version in the future.

Different assessment

Since there is no department wide assessment used for the Earth Science I have decided to to use as assessment a research project. They can research a natural disaster of their choosing, then present information about it in their own way be that a song or rap, an animation, a poster or a presentation.
Assessment

Edible Geology

10NR are a difficult class that is hard to engage in learning. For Earth Science I tried using their stomachs. At home I made mini muffins with choco-caramel lollies pushed into the middle, then at school we made jelly and sat them in the middle of sugar crusted patty tins. the intent was to make a model of the earth with the sugar as the crust, the jelly as the mantle, the mini-muffin as the Outer core and the lolly as the inner core.

The lollies needed to be pushed further in when they are put into the mini-muffin mix before baking, the jelly needed to be more concentrated, and the sugar needed to be put on after the jelly had set pretty solidly. The actual Edible earths did not turn out very well.
The main aim of engaging the class worked more successfully. Most of them completed the written portion of the class as I intimated I was going to hold their Earths hostage.

Maui and the Sun

I struggle to appropriately incorporate Maori culture in many Science lessons without it being a tokenistic inclusion, rather than a valuable learning tool.

In order to try and get the students to think about how myths were explanations of physical phenomenon I set homework to compare the myth of how Maui slowed the sun with the Scientific explanation.
I was looking for the idea of how the day gets shorter and shorter, but then longer again, could be linked with Maui's reaching of the sun and then slowing it down. So the story would repeat each year.
Google classroom assignment

Science as a junior option/ Science Fair Prep

I had a brainwave while talking to students about their options subject in the midst of an experiment into starch and photosynthesis.
Students enjoy practical work. Not enough have the resources to do their own experiments. We struggle to find the time to properly do Science Fair. Some students can't get enough of Science.
Solution: Add a Science Extension Option to the Options list that students can do for a semester which will include time to do Science Fair work.

Term 1 for Year10's -
Start with a grounding in planning experiments and data processing. Writing methods, drawing graphs, using proper language in writing reports.
Then support the students in independent research and experiments to prepare for Science Fair.

Test Post

In order to reflect on my teaching and my students learning I'm trialling blogger as a method to keep my ideas. Hopefully it will allow me to make little reflections frequently on what I am doing to better enable me to comply with the paperwork requirement.