Matt Barkley's Blog

Race to the top

mbarks86 — Sun, 02 May 2010 20:19:37 +0000

This grant program has and is having a huge affect in Tacoma. 4 of our 10 middle schools have been identified as being among the top 5% of underachieving schools in the nation. 3 of these schools will go under drastic reformation by this September. The 4^th is exempt because of having a first year administrator. The smallest of the 3 (about 400 students) is to be shut down completely and the student population absorbed into surrounding schools and the staff will be displaced. The other 2 will remain open, but both will receive new administration, and all current staff will be displaced. For those staff they will have to either look for a job elsewhere, or re-interview for their job back.

So how does this impact me? In terms of my job security, it doesn’t. The 3 schools worth of displacements will not be able to “bump” current teachers based on seniority. The greatest chance for this to impact my classroom will be due to open enrollment options for the students whose school has been affected by this program. The 2 schools being re-staffed will be specialty schools; one focusing on math and science the other on the arts. Student’s who opt out of their previous school have the option to enroll at any middle school in the district. My school (Meeker) always proves to be a desirable school compared to others in the district. It will certainly be interesting to see the ripple effects throughout the 2010-11 school year.

Self Directed Learning

mbarks86 — Sat, 01 May 2010 13:41:20 +0000

Self directed learning seems to have several applications depending on the context its being used all though are centered on a common theme; the learner is responsible his/her own learning. The idea is that the learner is their best teacher. Students learning with this model have the latitude to meet course goals in their own way or define the goals they strive to achieve. A teacher’s responsibility is to teach the skills, processes and systems necessary for independent learning. Once equipped with the tools they need, the student prepares learning proposals or action contracts to the teacher to negotiate what they will learn. Students are self motivated to complete their proposed learning and once complete, assess their own work, demonstrate achievement and negotiate grades.

Giving students this much freedom seems scary. With the standardized way we are required to teach and assess, giving students the opportunity to decide what, how, and when to learn sounds like a standards based nightmare! I look at my students and have serious questions on their ability not to learn, but to self motivate themselves to take responsibility of their learning given the freedom this model suggests.

http://www.schoolwithoutwalls.com
http://www.swwhs.org/index.php/about-us
http://www.selfdirectedlearning.com/article3.html

EcoScenario

mbarks86 — Sat, 13 Mar 2010 18:55:23 +0000

http://www.fossweb.com/modulesMS/kit_multimedia/PopulationsandEcosystems

Password: Meeker105

Different Brains Different Learners – Chapter 8

mbarks86 — Sat, 13 Mar 2010 18:35:19 +0000

The Isolated Learner: Students with Autism or Asperger Syndrome

Pervasive Developmental Disorders (PDD)

Causes are unknown but may involve any of or a combination of
- Genetics specifically chromosomes 6 and 17
- In utero (hormones or toxins)
- 0-36 months old – impaired immune system (vaccines)
- 3-8 yrs gene expression
Symptoms
- Non-typical eye contact
- Fixation on specific objects
- Decreased expression of positive affects
- Lack of affect and sensory-orientated behaviors
- Alternating patterns of passivity and distress reactions
- Repeated behaviors (arm flapping)
- Difficult to:
  - interpret tone/body language/ facial expressions – respect personal space – regulate vocal volume -
Demographics
- Affects males 4:1
- More prevalent in certain cultures – may suggest genetic link
- Most PDD adults don’t reproduce – discredits genetic link
What teachers can do
- Provide low stress environment
- Predictable routines
- Assurances of safety
- Allow tools for self control (comfort items)
- Provide warning and explanation of upcoming scenario changes

Collaborative Learning Groups

mbarks86 — Sat, 20 Feb 2010 18:52:25 +0000

Learning Groups

Given the layout of my room I don’t have many options as to how I arrange my seating chart. Students sit in groups of four at five lab stations around the perimeter of the room and two table groups in the center of the room. In science students consistently work in groups and with partners on a variety of tasks. As a management tool I have developed a process for assigning groups and partners for each of the semi-daily tasks common to our class. When students are asked to work in their lab group they know these are their four table mates. Other tasks are partner activities; lab partners, reading/reviewing, and think – pair – share. For each of these students are assigned a specific partner to work with. On any given day students may work with none up to all the combinations of pairs. It takes a while at the beginning of the year for students to get the routine, but after it is established, it runs like clockwork.

What Makes a Great Teacher?

mbarks86 — Sat, 20 Feb 2010 14:49:58 +0000

Parents have always been concerned with which school to send their kids; but the school they choose, statistically speaking, doesn’t matter nearly as much as the adult standing at the front of the room. This article states that “great” teachers do a number of things starting with the goals and expectations the students are held accountable for. In addition, great teachers are constantly evaluating themselves, actively involving students and their families in the classroom, maintain focus towards student leaning, and work relentlessly, refusing to surrender to the combination of low economic standing, bureaucracy, and budget short falls. The most important idea in this article is that teachers don’t need to be overly eccentric, flashy, or fancy to do a great job teaching.

Integrating Differentiated Instruction & Understanding by Design

mbarks86 — Sat, 20 Feb 2010 05:25:57 +0000

Understanding by design focuses on what we teach and what assessment evidence we need to collect. The primary goal is delineating and application of sound principles and curriculum design. Differentiated instruction focuses on whom we teach, where we teach, and how we teach. Its purpose is ensuring that teachers focus on processes and procedures that ensure effective leaning for all types of learners. The main idea behind chapter one is that not only are understanding by design and differentiated instruction mutually supportive of each other, they in fact “need” one another.
Chapter 2 defines why it matters to teach responsively. Responsive or differentiated teaching means the teacher is aware of his students and their individual learning needs. It requires a constant effort to establish positive rapport with individual learners and decide which approaches to teaching would be most beneficial to the students. Doing this allows us to continually challenge the student. A student’s learning increases when the work they are doing is a little too difficult, but more importantly when the support system is in place to keep them from falling.
Differentiation does not advocate individualization. It would be overwhelming to individualize student leaning plans for each student, but easy to put them into small learning groups based on similar leaning characteristics. Doing this allows the teacher to spend more time with groups who truly need the individualized help while stronger groups can help to support each other.

American Education Chapter 3

mbarks86 — Sat, 20 Feb 2010 05:22:18 +0000

Chapter 3 began with a history of desegregation in American schools. Citing ground breaking court cases such as Plessy v. Ferguson, a case infamous for illustrating the one drop of blood rule, and Brown v. BOE, which of course lead to the desegregation of our schools. Everyone is well aware of how our schools legally became segregated, but many people don’t realize schools continue to be segregated, all though through a different mechanism. The re-segregation of American schools is a result of increased residential segregation where families are moving into areas where their race is the majority. The result is schools with uneven racial compositions. The most segregated race, white. Studies show students in the minorities at school tend to struggle more and are showing increased dropout rates.

Personal IL Reflection

mbarks86 — Sun, 22 Nov 2009 18:34:20 +0000

Where am I? What do I need to work on?

1. Recognize when information is required and determine the extent of information needed.

I feel that I border proficient and advanced. I can easily develop effective, clear and complete research question and identify key concepts related to my research topic. I should work on identifying extensive information sources in numerous potential formats.

2. Access needed information effectively and efficiently.

The only detail stopping me from categorizing myself as advanced is the design aspect of the search strategy. I certainly don’t lay out a formal plan, but my search techniques are constantly evolving and being refined.

3. Evaluate information and its sources critically.

Proficiency describes my abilities in this category. I am confident in my abilities to recognize quality information and which sources are most appropriate for my topic. I will work on articulating how my sources relate to the context of the discipline.

4. Use information effectively.

Synthesizing and integrating information are the two criteria that keep me from calling myself advanced. I am able to use information to solve a problem and then communicate the purpose for solving the issue.

Learning Disabled Students

mbarks86 — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 21:33:02 +0000

Even though I had seen this video before it was a great refresher to remind me of the struggles that some students have in my class on a daily basis and brought up some points I was very quick to forget after seeing it the first time. Things like the pace of class and the time I need to allow for learning disabled students to process information so they have the same opportunities as the rest of the class to understand. It made me think of some of the work I expect my students to produce. Things like reading and taking notes simultaneously. I bet it’s really hard to take notes on something you can’t understand. I need to remember that sometimes when a student tells me they don’t know why they’re in trouble, they may be telling the truth. Usually this is the point my frustration boils over and I go a bit ballistic on the kid. I’ve always told my student’s that fair is not necessarily equal, but it’s always been related to discipline. I’m going to work to remember that equal is also providing the individual materials each student needs to learn equally.