Readers, I watched some exciting education in progress yesterday that I simply must share with you. (**All identifying information will be kept anonymous, since, in my role as instructional coach, my relationships with teachers are confidential.)
Yesterday, I looked on as a group of students became teachers. These particular students struggle with math, requiring extra support during the school day. But, their teacher doesn't see this as a limitation. Instead, she promotes their mastery of mathematical objectives through her use of the following activity:
Once students have mastered a certain concept in math, having proven themselves on various assessments, it's time for them to become the teachers of this concept. They are provided with a sheet of problems, all based on this math concept they have recently mastered. They then work either individually or with a partner to choose which problems on the sheet would work best in teaching this concept to other students.
Already, the metacognitive juices are flowing! I heard students explain their reasoning behind choosing certain problems over other ones, and debating the order in which they should model the solution to each problem, realizing that the sequence in which they model the problems would help in their teaching. Once students have had some practice with these problems, it's off to the classroom's smart board!
At the smart board, students used ActivInspire to record screencasts that would visually display to viewers the students' (now teachers!) physical work on each problem, as well as allow viewers to listen to the step-by-step explanations of these mathematical understandings as said aloud and recorded by the students/teachers. I sat nearby, in awe, as I watched two students recording their instruction of a certain mathematical problem-solving technique. No longer were these mere children. No longer, especially, were these children who had been identified as math strugglers. The confidence they had in their own abilities was clear, as they solved problems while specifically explaining what they were doing with each step, and why they were doing it.
What made the difference? These students had been scaffolded to this point, receiving formative and summative assessment that helped them master the concept. They were able to use interactive technology, usually a plus for 21st century students. But, I think the biggest motivator was their audience.
Their audience was
not their classroom teacher. She had, instead, assured them that these screencasts would be uploaded to Edline for other students to be able to use as math resources. If there is any doubt regarding the impact that having an authentic assignment that will be viewed by an authentic audience has on a student's performance, this doubt would be erased after five minutes of watching these students in action. They
looked like teachers, up at that board, marking up their problem-solving in order to best demonstrate the how-to for their future "students." They
sounded like teachers, using mature, thoughtful, and meaningful ways to explain their steps. Heck -- I totally understood what it was they were teaching via their screencast and, trust me, I am
no math scholar.
The moral of the story, then, is this: Let's find more ways for our students to have authentic audiences other than their teachers. Let's find more ways to give them voices that can be heard by others, that can make them feel they have a genuine way to share what they know and what they can do.
The possibilities are endless! Readers, if you teach in my district and would like to explore this further, you know where to find me. . . :)
