My thoughts on connected learning are still being formed. Below is a list of questions I have about myself as a connected learner and about designing a classroom where equity is felt and connected learning is encouraged.
Internal concerns:
- When I feel that I need teaching guidance, who should I turn to first?
- How do I determine the quality of knowledge that I discover online?
- How much of my content should I create on my own? Is it okay to constantly “borrow liberally” as long as I adjust what I “borrow” to better fit my students’ needs?
- Do I feel that creativity is more valuable than knowledge? Should it be considered so?
- If I continue to blog (after my current class), what do I have to add that hasn’t already been said? In other words, “What’s my hook to get people reading and responding to what I’m writing?”
- How can I use connected learning to fulfill “Domain 4: Professional Responsibilities” of the Danielson Framework?
- What is the best balance between connecting online with other educators versus first-hand discussion/conversation with peers?
- Can I convey value to a topic that interests a student of mine if I have little or no personal interest in that topic?
- How comfortable am I (as a teacher) relinquishing my position as focus of the classroom if by doing so it enables discovery on the part of my students?
- At what point must I stop planning and develop as an educator through doing (trial and error)?
External considerations:
- How do I connect a topic like “graphing a rational function” to the life a student leads outside of the classroom?
- How can I find and persuade adults who use higher-level math skills at their occupations to visit my class and talk about their experiences?
- How do I encourage students who have mastery of a topic to spend time helping out those who are struggling?
- How much time can I dedicate to a student who is struggling without harming the pace for the rest of the class?
- If I move to a different part of the country to teach (I plan to), then what is the best way to discover the social climate that my students live in? How do I show them that I am interested in learning about it?
- How do I ensure that each student’s voice is being given the audience it deserves?
- Many of the stories we read and discuss seem to relate to English and /Social Studies classes. How best can I adapt these to a math classroom?
- If I allow technology to be used in my classroom, how do I ensure that the students are staying on task and not just texting or using Facebook?
- How much information should I give versus asking students to discover through their own work?
- What resources should I suggest for students who want to further their out-of-class learning?
As I created these lists I found it much easier to form questions that revolved around design than to pose questions about myself as a connected learner. Why is this? I believe it is because of my limited teaching experience. Until this semester I had not spent more than 70 minutes per day in a classroom environment. My brain tends to want to focus on practical application as opposed to theory. I am currently engaging in one-day fieldwork, but I have only completed two days so far.
As a blogging experiment I will continue my (connected learning) train of thought in this recording:
Here is some freewriting inspired by the quote, “Our society is more focused on personal achievement than community empowerment.”
Who doesn’t want to succeed? How awful does it feel when someone next to you “gets” something but you don’t? Is it natural to want to help another person? Do certain people get by by relying on others to provide for them? The act of trying shows engagement. Shared experience reminds people that others exist and can feel the same things that you do. Does it feel best only to win, or can enjoyment be found in the act of participating? Is “no person an island”, or are some people just better off on their own, doing their own thing?
Thinking about the topic of shared achievement reminds me that I really want all of my students to “get it”, whatever “it” may be. Any classroom decision that I make should be focused on this goal.
Thanks for reading,
Eric L.