In my five years here at Old Town High School I have had several exchange students who have enlightened me to where they have come from in terms of education. It never ceases to amaze me that many European countries have been allowing students to specialize for years. Students come here and are amazed by the limitless choices that we have for our students. I have been reading several articles and everything that I read applauds the US for our creativity and innovative thinking that our students are allowed.
The downside is always the same which is that our students are nowhere near as far along in math and sciences. Students from Germany tell me time and time again that chemistry is taught much earlier so that students have that background before they specialize. If we could increase our math and science ability we could integrate those sciences much earlier which would allow for students to gain more from their time in schools.
I am going to continue studying ways to help students to achieve more in their time here and ways to prepare them for their future. I want them to have the chance to be exposed to all the cool things that are out there for the future and most of all I want them to learn how to never stop learning.
Thursday, January 28, 2010
Saturday, January 23, 2010
schools of tomorrow and the curriculum that drives them
Well it is unanimous we have to change schools but while everyone agrees that schools are becoming outdated in their traditional form nobody wants to set forth how to change them. One article I read said that schools are building student for an industrial world and we need to make them more adaptable to students like keeping them open 24 hours a day.
Based on those thought I began to think about how we are already changing:
Virtual HS which is in reality a 24 hour a day school
Co-op which is working with professionals at a job you might like to have in the future along with Tech schools for training.
Standards based education where students decide what classes to take to achieve the standards thus developing their own curriculum.
So with all these new options for education are we really that far behind the eight ball of change. There is something to be said for traditional schooling and that interaction with a class that is engaged in learning. Being in a class that is making connections with what you are teaching and then inspiring others in the class to make more connections is an awesome feeling. I think the trick is going to be how do we combine the two ideas. Using the skills that work from a traditional class and integrate them with the new ideas from an ever changing reality.
Based on those thought I began to think about how we are already changing:
Virtual HS which is in reality a 24 hour a day school
Co-op which is working with professionals at a job you might like to have in the future along with Tech schools for training.
Standards based education where students decide what classes to take to achieve the standards thus developing their own curriculum.
So with all these new options for education are we really that far behind the eight ball of change. There is something to be said for traditional schooling and that interaction with a class that is engaged in learning. Being in a class that is making connections with what you are teaching and then inspiring others in the class to make more connections is an awesome feeling. I think the trick is going to be how do we combine the two ideas. Using the skills that work from a traditional class and integrate them with the new ideas from an ever changing reality.
Monday, January 18, 2010
Defining Curriculum...can it be done
So I began to search out a definition for curriculum and after looking at reputable sources like the Merriam-Webster dictionary, my apple dictionary, and google on-line (yes even google is considered a reputable source) I realized that curriculum is never really defined. Most places say curriculum is a collection of classes students take to achieve a goal. Well if that is a definition then I could achieve that life long desire to become an underwater basket weaver with just a few classes.
As I read more and more about schools and what they call curricula I have determined the following:
Curriculum can be anything you study that helps you achieve a set goal. For instance taking the college prep curriculum from a high school should help you achieve the goal of attending college and being prepared.
Curriculum is a set of classes like the science curriculum or the english curriculum is all the courses within those departments.
Curriculum is also what is studied while taking a particular course so you could have an extensive biology curriculum that covers everything from cell structure to organ systems.
Curriculum is set at a very broad level by the state and federal government and then at a local level by the teachers.
For my purpose I am going to say curriculum is a set of knowledge you obtain through studying and learning new things. So my biology curriculum that I am working on will be based on requirements set forth by the state and federal standards but tailored to suit the needs of my students.
The next step is going to be how to make this curriculum worth something to the students and the faculty that use it.
As I read more and more about schools and what they call curricula I have determined the following:
Curriculum can be anything you study that helps you achieve a set goal. For instance taking the college prep curriculum from a high school should help you achieve the goal of attending college and being prepared.
Curriculum is a set of classes like the science curriculum or the english curriculum is all the courses within those departments.
Curriculum is also what is studied while taking a particular course so you could have an extensive biology curriculum that covers everything from cell structure to organ systems.
Curriculum is set at a very broad level by the state and federal government and then at a local level by the teachers.
For my purpose I am going to say curriculum is a set of knowledge you obtain through studying and learning new things. So my biology curriculum that I am working on will be based on requirements set forth by the state and federal standards but tailored to suit the needs of my students.
The next step is going to be how to make this curriculum worth something to the students and the faculty that use it.
Tuesday, January 12, 2010
Relating the day to day to the Big Picture
When I first began teaching I thought to myself that making a syllabus and planning my class would be easy because I could just use my curriculum. Then the ugly truth of education came to light...curriculum is not a plan and the plan actually comes from within. Ok, so some of you are going "no kidding!!" But for a person who had never stepped foot in a classroom until I was entrusted with teaching 100 students what I know about science this was a scary revelation.
What did I do? I ran to the nearest friendly face and asked for help. Luckily for me there were several willing teachers who gave me books, old syllabus, and a flow chart of their classes. Of course the part that nobody told me what exactly the curriculum was for my subject.
Then I went home panicked about what I was going to teach in just a few days and began the hard part of outlining my course. It was not until months later that someone told me that the curriculum was just the MLRs and to follow them. Which did not make sense to me...how can that be the curriculum.
It was not until my second teaching job that I sat through my first curriculum planning meeting. It was really interesting to talk to others about what they thought should be in the curriculum. More importantly it was the first time I saw it relate to what I was teaching. I finally saw my class laid out from start to finish and how it applied to the goals we were trying to achieve. It was amazing to discuss this with other professionals and actually see what I was teaching was reaching the objectives.
I still don't know how to engage everyone but these are the insights I received from that exercise:
1. Every year you should sit down and see if what you do for each unit achieves your curriculum goals.
2. Let others review your projects, papers, and lessons. It will amaze you at how the new ideas freshen your activities.
3. Always stay up to date on new methods of presenting ideas. If you get stagnant then your class will lose the engagement of yourself and others.
If you have any ideas or insights I am always searching for more ideas on how to stay relevant and connect what I am doing to the big picture...
What did I do? I ran to the nearest friendly face and asked for help. Luckily for me there were several willing teachers who gave me books, old syllabus, and a flow chart of their classes. Of course the part that nobody told me what exactly the curriculum was for my subject.
Then I went home panicked about what I was going to teach in just a few days and began the hard part of outlining my course. It was not until months later that someone told me that the curriculum was just the MLRs and to follow them. Which did not make sense to me...how can that be the curriculum.
It was not until my second teaching job that I sat through my first curriculum planning meeting. It was really interesting to talk to others about what they thought should be in the curriculum. More importantly it was the first time I saw it relate to what I was teaching. I finally saw my class laid out from start to finish and how it applied to the goals we were trying to achieve. It was amazing to discuss this with other professionals and actually see what I was teaching was reaching the objectives.
I still don't know how to engage everyone but these are the insights I received from that exercise:
1. Every year you should sit down and see if what you do for each unit achieves your curriculum goals.
2. Let others review your projects, papers, and lessons. It will amaze you at how the new ideas freshen your activities.
3. Always stay up to date on new methods of presenting ideas. If you get stagnant then your class will lose the engagement of yourself and others.
If you have any ideas or insights I am always searching for more ideas on how to stay relevant and connect what I am doing to the big picture...
Greetings from a Curriculum Novice
This is not a blog with answers instead it is a blog seeking answers. I want to know what makes for a good curriculum and how do you design something that both engages students and teachers.
This blog will go about seeking answers to these question:
Can you create the perfect curriculum?
Is there such a thing as the perfect curriculum?
How do you get teachers to become engaged in creating the curriculum on a volunteer basis?
This blog will go about seeking answers to these question:
Can you create the perfect curriculum?
Is there such a thing as the perfect curriculum?
How do you get teachers to become engaged in creating the curriculum on a volunteer basis?
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