Tales of a PLTW novice, Day 1

So, it is the first night of a two week inservice on Project Lead the Way, an engineering and STEM initiative. I am taking this on the recommendation of a local math teacher, and as a member of the NE Iowa STEM council. I have to admit that I am initially skeptical, because I am a believer in process, not programs, but I am willing to give it an honest shot. I believe if systems are designed to do what is best for the students, supporting it is a no-brainer. So here are my questions:

1. What do students get from this?
2. Is this good pedagogy that is constructivist in nature?
3. Does this help to develop critical thinking, teaming skills, tech literacy, and long-term knowledge?
4. How does this knowledge transfer to other places?
5. How does this align with NGSS standards on a K-12 basis, and how does this compare to inquiry based kits already available?
6. How good is the research on PLTW student imterest and effects?

Here we go. I hope you follow the journey.

Will assessment ever catch up?

I was sitting at an in-service for ITSI-SU, a project that focuses on probeware in science classes.  All day, we have been speaking of critical thinking opportunities, including student data collection, analysis, interpretation, and reflection.  We have been doing this all year, as it was a yearlong commitment.

Now we've moved on and are talking about the new science standards and the value of content.  There's excitement, apprehension, and a realization that what we've been doing with this program fits right in.  

BUT

This is not a tool that leads itself to easy testing, and that's a worry.  While we have been utilizing claims, evidence, and reasoning, and there's reading and writing across the curriculum, it's messy.  How will that impact us, when others judge us based on student performance on bubble tests?

Here's a snapshot of some of the comments regarding traditional testing on current assessments, and the despair that may accompany it:

photo credit: roswellsgirl via photopin cc

"If I have three kids who aren't proficient, it throws off everything...."

"What if the cutoff score doesn't match from year to year?"

"What if I just have an off-year? When one student sabotages the test, does everyone have a consequence?"

"Can we trust 11 and 12 year olds to make a conscious decision to have a school have a good reputation or bad reputation?  You know, that affects property values."

"Are these tests being used in the way they are designed for, and what can we do?"  

Sometimes I just want to give up."

"Will the assessment ever catch up?"

That last question is one to pay attention to as we look at Smarter Balance and the Iowa Assessments for the future.  Because these ideas contained in the NGSS will NOT translate into easy multiple-choice tests.

The Next Generation Science Standards are written as performance expectations.  That is the minimum that all students need to be able to do.  And quite frankly, it's causing some concern.  How are you going to write a bubble test for something like THIS?

HS-ESS3-5.

Analyze geoscience data and the results from global climate models to make an evidence-based forecast of the current rate of global or regional climate change and associated future impacts to Earth systems. [Clarification Statement: Examples of evidence, for both data and climate model outputs, are for climate changes (such as precipitation and temperature) and their associated impacts (such as on sea level, glacial ice volumes, or atmosphere and ocean composition).] [Assessment Boundary: Assessment is limited to one example of a climate change and its associated impacts.]

Here's something similar (but not an exact match) that a student did for me this year.

Others may speak about the value of snapshots of data, but I will continue to believe the testing questions above are proof positive that good people are being pushed away from education by a total disregard for what the purpose of education is all about.  Real assessment is complicated and requires synthesis of ideas.

It's NOT about property values. It's NOT about teacher-bashing. It's NOT about testing.

It's about wanting our kids to be lifelong learners.  It's about wanting to find joy in the journey.  It's about creating, innovating, and critically thinking for the future of a complicated world.

Who's listening?

When I'm a Learner

I earned a degree.  

The state licensed me and printed my certificate. 

 It said I was a teacher and allowed me to walk into a classroom.

But what does that mean?

photo credit: mrsdkrebs via photopin cc

For I am still learning, day-by-day.

And if I ignore the words of my students.

Or treat them as subordinate, what does that say about me?

Hmmm. Where do I grow the most? 

When I sit in meetings or conferences that assume I am a blank slate,

I feel frustrated.  For I have ideas to share, as do the patrons in my room..

If I work to make my students architects of their learning.

Shouldn't my own professional learning experiences be the same?

Thoughtful opportunities that help me grow.
Give all of us chances to use our voices.

Instead of one-size-fits-all experiences that are top down.

When will that change so all stakeholders have a voice?

I wonder.