11Science in 2013 were a very loud class and as a result bit was difficult for the students to focus. The SCT at the time completed some student voice in their core subjects of english, science and mathematics.
As a result we came up with 4 expectations;
1. Always have a do now ready at the beginnjng of the lesson.
2. At 10 mins of silence every lesson.
3. Silence during critical learning time.
4. No distractions, electonic or other.
Takawai and Chris provided us with knowledge and increased our understanding on the history of Maori. It enabled us to construct our own informed view of our role as an educator. They unravelled a numbernof myths and mistruths. Our group came up with a number of different things we could put into place back at school. It is important to make links between school and our students heritage.
At the time this was a very challenging situation. The path that I went down to try and get help with 10Ruru ruffled a few feathers. I gained advice from my department but in hindsight I should have had more direct conversations with their dean and the deputy principal.
Through this experience I grew. I formed stronger relationships with senior management, through some tough discussions, as I got to understand where they were coming from. I had to articulate my thoughts and identify what the underlying issues were.
I was also able to be able involved in a class discussion with all of their teachers. It was a great session and I would have loved to continue with the process. Unfortunately, there was no follow up.
During my first year at Paeroa College my HOD completed a couple of formal observations. He felt the content was appropriate and I clearly expressed my expectations buy he felt that I needed to have work on getting silence during key teaching moments.
At the beginning of our second topic of term 3 I identified 5 student's who consistently achieved above the rest of the student's in the classm I decided to out them together in a group and give them slightly different work.
There first task was to create a game that would helo others to learn the chemical symbols for the elements on the periodic table. I gave them suggestions such as snap and memory. Their designs blew me away.
The boys designed a game of monopoly and the girls created a game based a around snakes and ladders with some great question cards. The class have trialed the games. The next step is to write up instructions and get each other to critique the games.
On Tuesday (9/9/14), SCT observed a full lesson. My year 9 Science class was researching chemistry in everyday situations. I began the lesson talking about everyday items an dlinking them to physical and chemical change. They then git in groups of 2-3 and armed with an ipad they researched their chosen topic whether be bombs, baking or glass.
During our mentor session later in the week, we wrote down 6 things that were positive in the lesson and 3 things that could be worked on over the coming weeks. From this we identified 2 things we both noticed that I could work on and they are going to form the basis of my teaching practice over the next few weeks.
My goals:
1. To define rolls within a group to encourage more team work.
2. To identify different ways that student's can share what they have learnt.
Here are some thoughts on the junior curriculum.
What do we want to see in our students? Self-motivated, inquisitive/problem solvers, team player, effective communication skills (verbally and written). Currently, I feel they are disengaged with Science. Many appear to find it too hard and boring. Is this across the board or just my classes? What is the data saying? Would it be worth, as a department, reviewing the data around certain topics to best inform our next steps?
Do we need to have a discussion around what is happening in primary schools? How do they manage their group work, what research projects do they do, is procedural writing common practise, what problem solving/fair testing do they do? I believe this kind of discussion would enable us to help our student’s transition into Year 9 Science easier.
Student voice can be so powerful. As a department, is it possible to develop a survey/questionnaire that we can put out to all Year 9 and 10 (possibly Year 11 too) to get a feel for what works, what they would like to see etc.
I like the idea of focussing on the Skills Required for Science. The Skill Profile is a great initiative. However, as a department we have addressed that it needs some work. I would like to see them used as a tool for the student’s to be able to identify the stage they are at and what the next steps are for them. Would a departmental review of the NZC values, dispositions and KC’s.
How can we link the key concepts to topics relatable by our junior students? We have fantastic overriding questions in our scheme. Are we making the most of them? Are we empowering our kids to find what interests them in Science? I would really benefit from workshop sessions around the key topics. We have a wealth of knowledge in our department. Together we can really enrich the program that we deliver to our students. I also belief such discussions would really bring the scheme to “life”.
There is such a strong need for research and fair testing in Year 11. Should this be the key ideas and we then bring in the key bio, chem and physic concepts. I understand that the mini research projects are a start. I would like to have a review of the latest mini research project. What were the limitations? What were key areas of weakness? What were the key skills we were wanting them to do? How can we be applying those skills through the rest of the course?
In summary, the key next steps surround discussions with our department. We have a wealth of knowledge amongst us. Let use our experiences, our data, our ideas and enrich our current program in ways that benefit our students.
If you have any questions please ask me to clarify.
We are currently answering the question "how is chemistry used for in everyday life?". So far, we have looked at what chemical and physical changes are and they have also researched a topic of their choice and they had to identify the chemistry involved. The topics included bombs, glass and baking. It invited lots of discussion and they connected with the research. It also highlighted the need to develop teamwork skills and to find different ways for them to share what they find out.
We are moving forward into looking at reaction rates and am going to base it around fire to begin with. It is a great context to revisit chemical and physical change. It also means that I can build on their prior knowledge when introducing the idea of reaction rates.
The sciencelearn website has got some great resources that I can use in the classroom.
http://www.sciencelearn.org.nz/Contexts/Fire/Teaching-and-Learning-Approaches/Alternative-conceptions-about-fire
http://www.sciencelearn.org.nz/Contexts/Fire/Teaching-and-Learning-Approaches/The-great-candle-experiment
http://www.sciencelearn.org.nz/Contexts/Fire/Teaching-and-Learning-Approaches/Light-a-candle
This will be of use too, http://arb.nzcer.org.nz/resources/science/material/6000/mw6292.htm
I was priveledged enough to join a group if DPs in the area on their visit to Mission Heights Junior School and Manurewa High School.
The highlights for me were seeing the engagement in learning. The honest spoken by the principal and deputy principals that showed us around was refreshing. The think tank session that was discussed is a great starting point. Staff pd was highlighted along with strategic planning surrounding long term goals.
DEEP which is a course that is run at mission heights was inspiring and a great way to encourage passion within the school. The discovery centre at Manurewa was a great way to foster inquiry based learning. The next step for them is to incourage cross curriculm involvment.
Next step for me is to investigate/research including inquiry based learning in my classroom.
