Hi Tom,
To start with, I have a couple replies to questions/comments in your comments on my poster. First off, thanks for your compliments on my writing. I often struggle to put pen to paper/fingers to keyboard, and it's nice to have the encouragement. I find that many people who go into sciences are at least slightly of the mindset of avoiding having to write essays, just as many people in the arts are there to avoid math. I wonder if anyone in the languages is approaching those subjects from the same perspective as Knight: why is writing so intimidating for some people, and how can we get across the key concepts without overwhelming students with really technical details. It's been great practice for me writing this blog, and it's great to get into the habit of recording my thoughts on what I'm teaching. The daily lesson analysis has been great for that too.
3 associates has been great. Any challenges have been offset by having a more balanced day. My afternoon has been prep, and then shop class (building paddles). It's so nice to get out of the classroom for half the day, and it makes me appreciate the value of having a balance in a classroom between listening time, speaking with partners/small groups, and body break/moving around time. Since there isn't much prep for the shop class, I feel like I only have to co-ordinate with two associates, and I feel that I've been balancing those classes well. I haven't loved all my lessons, but have kept Eric Finn's message in mind, and tried to focus on the value of recording what I didn't like in order to improve my teaching in the future.
One lesson that comes to mind is my physics lesson from Friday. In an effort to make my lesson on power more accessible, I tried to use an analogy of trucks dropping off boxes. The rate of trucks dropping boxes off represents the current, and the number of boxes per truck represents potential difference (so a truck is like a coulomb of charge, and a box is like a joule of energy). Then the rate of boxes being dropped off is (rate of trucks)*(boxes per truck)= rate of boxes being dropped off OR I*deltaV=P......this analogy made sense to me (and still does), but I'm not sure it was necessary, and I feel that is just confused students more. In retrospect, I'm not so sure about approaching power from that concept (P=IV). I'm thinking it might be better to just look at P=E/t, and bring in the connection to current and voltage after. I'd be interested in looking into this more. I don't feel like I had the concept of power down until I started prepping for this lesson, and I didn't find much in Knight on how to approach it.
In terms of overall class structure, there's a few things I've been doing in that class that I wouldn't want to do in my own class (in the name of not stirring the pot too much with my AT, as well as not killing myself redesigning lessons, I've been doing things more or less how she does them).
-I hate writing notes on the board
-I feel like when I teach the concept of something like voltage, and then follow that up by handing out a worksheet on V=E/Q problems that I'm sending the wrong message. Really what students end up "learning" is how to do algebra, not physics.
-I'm not creating a collaborative learning environment. My AT really stresses individual work, even with practice worksheets, and feels that any shared work will mean that struggling students will do nothing.
Ok, again I feel like I'm writing quite a lot...one more thing. I think I've missed the last couple days of daily lesson analysis, they've been a bit hectic. I haven't managed to separate students based on their preference for sitting and note taking, or being actively involved, but I did a 2 station rotation on thursday and friday. Each day, one station involved using the laptops to find information on the internet (flights on thursday, kijiji rideshares on friday), and calculating associated costs based on this information. The other station had almost no writing or hard math skills, and was more active. On thursday I brought my bike and gear for a road trip, and had students explore it, discuss the uses of various parts, and then guess costs of all the gear. On friday students played a memory card game about CAA.
For the most part I really liked how this worked, and that we were able to use the presence of two teachers (my AT and I) to our advantage. One student, however, JY, has a lot of anxiety problems. He generally sits in the back corner, and doesn't speak at all, except in a whisper one on one. He didn't want to join either of the stations, and this structure took away his option of a "safer"space in the back corner. More hands on activities are more difficult to adapt to a student who needs to sit on his own silently. A goal for the future is to find ways to a) Give someone like JY the a way to sit on his own and work through material by himself and b) expand his comfort zone in social situations by easing him into these more social lessons.
Thanks so much for reading, and for your thoughtful replies, and the incredible amount of dedication you have to this course.
Jamie
Saturday, December 15, 2012
Friday, December 7, 2012
Teacher confusion
Hi Jamie,
Thanks for all that, I hope it helped to "get it out of your system." I wonder if we would make similar conceptual errors if we were teaching a biology unit???
I'm certainly glad that you had your wits about you (as I expected). This must have been incredibly frustrating and it shows the learning trap that goes with practice teaching. We always assume the associate knows all the right answers. It would appear that your associate is playing with mumb-jumbo.
I think the line that really caught my attention was the one you flagged:
A battery can deliver 1500J of energy to 100C of charge. How much current passes through in 5 seconds and what is the voltage.
Shouldn't it be something like "if a battery does 1500J of work on 100C of charge, what is the voltage?" and then "if 100C of charge passes a point in 5 seconds, what is the current?"
In this case I think venting was both essential and productive!!
You are reminding me of what can be so dangerous about elementary teachers often having such limited understanding of math and science. (someone mentioned to me that a math class is debating whether children should use calculators while learning math).
Yes, the water analogy can be helpful, but I think it really requires showing the differences as well as the similarities--and also asking the students if the analogy helps them BUT emphasizing that it's most important to remember that they are very different phenomena--just one is much easier to observe and connect to from everyday experience.
I'm glad you are so attentive to the students' misconceptions and the things they cannot explain. it might be interesting to put the 3 batteries question on a quiz--I bet many of them won't remember the right answer, and it would be interesting to ask them to explain their answers!!
I'm very grateful that you typed so much and thought of me as you struggled (suffered?). I look forward to discussing it in person in January!
Keep up the good work!
Tom
Thanks for all that, I hope it helped to "get it out of your system." I wonder if we would make similar conceptual errors if we were teaching a biology unit???
I'm certainly glad that you had your wits about you (as I expected). This must have been incredibly frustrating and it shows the learning trap that goes with practice teaching. We always assume the associate knows all the right answers. It would appear that your associate is playing with mumb-jumbo.
I think the line that really caught my attention was the one you flagged:
A battery can deliver 1500J of energy to 100C of charge. How much current passes through in 5 seconds and what is the voltage.
Shouldn't it be something like "if a battery does 1500J of work on 100C of charge, what is the voltage?" and then "if 100C of charge passes a point in 5 seconds, what is the current?"
In this case I think venting was both essential and productive!!
You are reminding me of what can be so dangerous about elementary teachers often having such limited understanding of math and science. (someone mentioned to me that a math class is debating whether children should use calculators while learning math).
Yes, the water analogy can be helpful, but I think it really requires showing the differences as well as the similarities--and also asking the students if the analogy helps them BUT emphasizing that it's most important to remember that they are very different phenomena--just one is much easier to observe and connect to from everyday experience.
I'm glad you are so attentive to the students' misconceptions and the things they cannot explain. it might be interesting to put the 3 batteries question on a quiz--I bet many of them won't remember the right answer, and it would be interesting to ask them to explain their answers!!
I'm very grateful that you typed so much and thought of me as you struggled (suffered?). I look forward to discussing it in person in January!
Keep up the good work!
Tom
My first Physics Lesson / A bit of Venting
I have to start with a bit of venting. I'm feeling a bit frustrated about the science class I've been working with. My associate teacher is really friendly and encouraging, but I can't help being really critical about some of her teaching choices. I know that physics isn't her favourite unit, and she is a biology teacher. She has clearly put a lot of work into learning physics for the grade 9 and 10 classes, but after working a lot on electricity in our class this fall, and reading through the chapters in Knight, several issues jumped out at me.
I am venting some of this here because I don't feel comfortable giving it all to her as feedback. I'd really like to, but don't feel the dynamics are right, and I know that I don't have too much experience. I've shared a couple of these things with her, trying to state it in a way that is not too critical sounding.\
Here are some of the things I've noticed:
She used an analogy of speed for current. I feel that this gives the wrong idea. If you compare a circuit to a highway, current is not represented by the speed of the cars, but by the number of cars passing a certain point.
She also gave the charge of 1C = 6.25e18, but charge of one electron as 1.2e-10 (I pointed this one out to her after, I think it was just a typo in her notes)
These last 2 were in a note they were copying from the board => I hate to say it, but it came frighteningly close to a "dirty trick", except that the teacher wasn't in on it. The students dutifully copied down the note, and didn't question it at all.
On monday we did some practice reading meters. The class was divided into 3 stations, and they all ended up being really crowded. This meant that some students weren't even looking at the meters, let alone how the circuits were set up (just giving each other the answers). In my mind, the purpose of the lab was lost.
In taking up the lab, I noticed an error in the measurement of current in a parallel circuit:
____A1_________A2__________A3_____
| | | |
- L1 L2 L3
- | | |
L's lightbulbs, and A's are ammeters.
She said that: A1 = A2 +A3, since it is a parallel circuit.
Of course, since the lightbulbs are all the same resistance, the data collected from the meters backs this up, but it is not true in general. There should be an A4 at L1, giving A1=A2 + A4
The current at A3 is actually included in the current at A2.
(I hope the formatting doesnt make my circuit illegible)
In a worksheet later, the same circuit was used, but measured correctly.
(For this one, I was thinking that it doesn't really make sense to do a parallel circuit with 3 bulbs. 2 bulbs would get the same point across but in a simpler way - this would also free up some equipment, so that it might be possible to have more stations)
Today she gave out a worksheet with the following problem:
A battery can deliver 1500J of energy to 100C of charge. How much current passes through in 5 seconds and what is the voltage.
This one frustrated me so much! It doens't make any sense at all. There isn't even necessarily a circuit! Of course, I see what she is saying (if 100C pass through in 5 seconds, what is the current). One student asked me about the problem as I was circulating, so I brought it back to the teacher. She acknowledged that it was maybe not the best wording, and had students correct it, but then took up another problem with the same wording, and didn't change that one.
_____________________________________________________________
I know that venting isn't always the most productive excercise. However, I feel that if I try to give all of this as feedback, it won't be taken well. I also need to share it with someone who understants the fallacies of some of these explanations (and can maybe provide me with feedback if I've gotten anything wrong here).
Thirdly, I feel that it might be interesting for you to hear some of the misconceptions that are really out there, even among teachers. How can we effect change when it is not only the students who have misconceptions, but teachers who are reinforcing them?
(just a thought, that last one might be interesting to do as a "where and why is it wrong")
_____________________________________________________________
My lesson on Thursday - Potential Difference:
In an effort not to stir things up too much, I went with more or less what my AT had planned for this lesson. She had a worksheet with deltaV=E/Q questions on it. I started with the POE with three 1.5 volt batteries that we did in class (measuring the voltage when one is backwards). My main goal in doing this POE was just getting students to try to think critically. No one even suggested 1.5V as a possible answer, and when I suggested adding it to their guesses of 0, 3, and 4.5V, it was the one answer that no one could give an explanation for. Once we verified it, however, someone came up with a good explanation.
We then did a note on potential difference (she insisted on them copying down a note from the board). I really like the water analogy, with a waterfall turning a waterwheel (pot. diff. and a resistor), and a pump raising the water up (battery). The difference in height in a waterfall defines the energy difference, just like there is an energy difference on either side of a resistor. Potential difference is a measurement of this energy change per coulomb. Have you found this to be an effective analogy? Is there any added confustion it might create?
The biggest problem I ran into: not a single one of the students was able to make any attempt at explaining the word energy. They looked at me like I was crazy. Couldn't really avoid a mini lesson on different forms of energy, especially since the whole worksheet was on deltaV=E/Q. I think I got the concept across alright
I've got a lot of thoughts on my lesson, but I'm worried I've already written quite a bit, and don't want to write a book. I'm putting together a lesson and lab on Resistance and deltaV=IR for next week...not really sure how to approach that, but I'll take a look through the plethora of resources we've amassed
Thanks for reading,
Jamie
I am venting some of this here because I don't feel comfortable giving it all to her as feedback. I'd really like to, but don't feel the dynamics are right, and I know that I don't have too much experience. I've shared a couple of these things with her, trying to state it in a way that is not too critical sounding.\
Here are some of the things I've noticed:
She used an analogy of speed for current. I feel that this gives the wrong idea. If you compare a circuit to a highway, current is not represented by the speed of the cars, but by the number of cars passing a certain point.
She also gave the charge of 1C = 6.25e18, but charge of one electron as 1.2e-10 (I pointed this one out to her after, I think it was just a typo in her notes)
These last 2 were in a note they were copying from the board => I hate to say it, but it came frighteningly close to a "dirty trick", except that the teacher wasn't in on it. The students dutifully copied down the note, and didn't question it at all.
On monday we did some practice reading meters. The class was divided into 3 stations, and they all ended up being really crowded. This meant that some students weren't even looking at the meters, let alone how the circuits were set up (just giving each other the answers). In my mind, the purpose of the lab was lost.
In taking up the lab, I noticed an error in the measurement of current in a parallel circuit:
____A1_________A2__________A3_____
| | | |
- L1 L2 L3
- | | |
L's lightbulbs, and A's are ammeters.
She said that: A1 = A2 +A3, since it is a parallel circuit.
Of course, since the lightbulbs are all the same resistance, the data collected from the meters backs this up, but it is not true in general. There should be an A4 at L1, giving A1=A2 + A4
The current at A3 is actually included in the current at A2.
(I hope the formatting doesnt make my circuit illegible)
In a worksheet later, the same circuit was used, but measured correctly.
(For this one, I was thinking that it doesn't really make sense to do a parallel circuit with 3 bulbs. 2 bulbs would get the same point across but in a simpler way - this would also free up some equipment, so that it might be possible to have more stations)
Today she gave out a worksheet with the following problem:
A battery can deliver 1500J of energy to 100C of charge. How much current passes through in 5 seconds and what is the voltage.
This one frustrated me so much! It doens't make any sense at all. There isn't even necessarily a circuit! Of course, I see what she is saying (if 100C pass through in 5 seconds, what is the current). One student asked me about the problem as I was circulating, so I brought it back to the teacher. She acknowledged that it was maybe not the best wording, and had students correct it, but then took up another problem with the same wording, and didn't change that one.
_____________________________________________________________
I know that venting isn't always the most productive excercise. However, I feel that if I try to give all of this as feedback, it won't be taken well. I also need to share it with someone who understants the fallacies of some of these explanations (and can maybe provide me with feedback if I've gotten anything wrong here).
Thirdly, I feel that it might be interesting for you to hear some of the misconceptions that are really out there, even among teachers. How can we effect change when it is not only the students who have misconceptions, but teachers who are reinforcing them?
(just a thought, that last one might be interesting to do as a "where and why is it wrong")
_____________________________________________________________
My lesson on Thursday - Potential Difference:
In an effort not to stir things up too much, I went with more or less what my AT had planned for this lesson. She had a worksheet with deltaV=E/Q questions on it. I started with the POE with three 1.5 volt batteries that we did in class (measuring the voltage when one is backwards). My main goal in doing this POE was just getting students to try to think critically. No one even suggested 1.5V as a possible answer, and when I suggested adding it to their guesses of 0, 3, and 4.5V, it was the one answer that no one could give an explanation for. Once we verified it, however, someone came up with a good explanation.
We then did a note on potential difference (she insisted on them copying down a note from the board). I really like the water analogy, with a waterfall turning a waterwheel (pot. diff. and a resistor), and a pump raising the water up (battery). The difference in height in a waterfall defines the energy difference, just like there is an energy difference on either side of a resistor. Potential difference is a measurement of this energy change per coulomb. Have you found this to be an effective analogy? Is there any added confustion it might create?
The biggest problem I ran into: not a single one of the students was able to make any attempt at explaining the word energy. They looked at me like I was crazy. Couldn't really avoid a mini lesson on different forms of energy, especially since the whole worksheet was on deltaV=E/Q. I think I got the concept across alright
I've got a lot of thoughts on my lesson, but I'm worried I've already written quite a bit, and don't want to write a book. I'm putting together a lesson and lab on Resistance and deltaV=IR for next week...not really sure how to approach that, but I'll take a look through the plethora of resources we've amassed
Thanks for reading,
Jamie
Wednesday, November 28, 2012
Teachable Moments
Hi Jamie,
I was fascinated by your story of the red and blue shadows--and I meant to mention it when we were talking about optics, but of course it escaped me. Isn't it exciting when we can spot a relatively simple illustration of an important idea about a physics phenomenon?!
You idea of a kit of inexpensive physics equipment sounds excellent. It would be the sort of thing you can build over time, as you see things that can be put to use in illustrating physics concepts.
Thank you for telling your story POE style, I enjoyed that even as I anticipated what you might be going to say. I hope at least one or two of your friends were able to join in the delight.
Not to worry about the section reps issue--we all have many things to do, and a few will come and I'll get some ideas.
Tom
I was fascinated by your story of the red and blue shadows--and I meant to mention it when we were talking about optics, but of course it escaped me. Isn't it exciting when we can spot a relatively simple illustration of an important idea about a physics phenomenon?!
You idea of a kit of inexpensive physics equipment sounds excellent. It would be the sort of thing you can build over time, as you see things that can be put to use in illustrating physics concepts.
Thank you for telling your story POE style, I enjoyed that even as I anticipated what you might be going to say. I hope at least one or two of your friends were able to join in the delight.
Not to worry about the section reps issue--we all have many things to do, and a few will come and I'll get some ideas.
Tom
Sunday, November 25, 2012
Teachable Moment in Optics
I want to start with a teachable moment that I had last night while out at a folk show at the grad club. A friend of mine, knowing that I've studied physics, asked me why the banjo player, Old Man Luedecke, had two shadow of his microphone, one red, and one blue. I explained to her that since there was one red light and one blue light shining on the stage, two different coloured shadows were formed. "I know THAT," she said, but shadows are where the light has been blocked, so how can you get a red shadow with a red light?"
I figure you'll see the answer right away, but I'll do this POE style, and keep my explanation to the end of the post.
I just read the chapter on geometrical optics in the textbook. I really enjoyed it, and am excited to see some demonstrations tomorrow. This is a unit I remember struggling with a lot in high school, though I feel that I have a better understanding of it now. I do still need some work on the concepts.
To reply to your comments on my lat blog posting, the student I am tutoring is at Bayridge, though I don't remember the name of her teacher. I am tutoring her at the school, and asked her to check with her teacher about us going up to the physics room at the end of the day and playing with some circuit equipment. I'm not sure if that will work out, partly due to the politics right now, but I'd like to find a way to incorporate some hands on stuff in my tutoring. I'm trying to start a kit of inexpensive physics equipment that I could use when I'm tutoring.
I can't remember exactly what program my tutoring student wants to get into, but she's definitely doing this course as a means to an end. That's something that I feel is often a struggle in math and higher sciences....students who aren't very interested in a topic, but feel pressure to "keep doors open." I'd like to find ways to motivate and inspire these students to learn physics, but also feel that there may be an unreasonable pressure on all students to strive towards a university degree.
Ok, back to my teachable moment....
Most of the stage is lit by both red and blue, probably giving it a bit of a purplish hue, though our eyes adjust to this, and we see the colours as more or less "normal."
The microphone is blocking light rays. In one area, the red light is blocked, while in another the blue light is blocked. The red shadow is not cast by the red light, but by the blue light. Red light still reaches the area in which the blue light is blocked, and vice versa, causing red and blue shadows.
I'm not sure everyone around me was as excited by my mid-show physics explanation!
Jamie
I figure you'll see the answer right away, but I'll do this POE style, and keep my explanation to the end of the post.
I just read the chapter on geometrical optics in the textbook. I really enjoyed it, and am excited to see some demonstrations tomorrow. This is a unit I remember struggling with a lot in high school, though I feel that I have a better understanding of it now. I do still need some work on the concepts.
To reply to your comments on my lat blog posting, the student I am tutoring is at Bayridge, though I don't remember the name of her teacher. I am tutoring her at the school, and asked her to check with her teacher about us going up to the physics room at the end of the day and playing with some circuit equipment. I'm not sure if that will work out, partly due to the politics right now, but I'd like to find a way to incorporate some hands on stuff in my tutoring. I'm trying to start a kit of inexpensive physics equipment that I could use when I'm tutoring.
I can't remember exactly what program my tutoring student wants to get into, but she's definitely doing this course as a means to an end. That's something that I feel is often a struggle in math and higher sciences....students who aren't very interested in a topic, but feel pressure to "keep doors open." I'd like to find ways to motivate and inspire these students to learn physics, but also feel that there may be an unreasonable pressure on all students to strive towards a university degree.
Ok, back to my teachable moment....
Most of the stage is lit by both red and blue, probably giving it a bit of a purplish hue, though our eyes adjust to this, and we see the colours as more or less "normal."
The microphone is blocking light rays. In one area, the red light is blocked, while in another the blue light is blocked. The red shadow is not cast by the red light, but by the blue light. Red light still reaches the area in which the blue light is blocked, and vice versa, causing red and blue shadows.
I'm not sure everyone around me was as excited by my mid-show physics explanation!
Jamie
Sunday, November 18, 2012
Tutoring, and inquiry Labs
Always a treat to read your writing, Jamie!
VERY pleased to hear about the tutoring, and that a tip from Knight's book was helpful. Yes, seeing that student's class would be interesting for you. (Do you want to tell me which school she goes to? Perhaps I know the teacher... but perhaps I shouldn't ask!)
Let me know how she does on the test. Do you know why she signed up to take physics? Are her math skills good, so that it's all about getting the physics reasoning going?
I thought Ashley did a fantastic job on Thursday, and I was pleased that some people (like you) got really into things (while others were chatting about other issues, as is often the case with a real lab in a high school--having only one equipment setup didn't help).
I agree completely--inquiry labs need to be introduced along with many other broader changes to the physics classroom, to support and be consistent with the ideas behind inquiry labs. Good thinking!
Yours,
Tom
VERY pleased to hear about the tutoring, and that a tip from Knight's book was helpful. Yes, seeing that student's class would be interesting for you. (Do you want to tell me which school she goes to? Perhaps I know the teacher... but perhaps I shouldn't ask!)
Let me know how she does on the test. Do you know why she signed up to take physics? Are her math skills good, so that it's all about getting the physics reasoning going?
I thought Ashley did a fantastic job on Thursday, and I was pleased that some people (like you) got really into things (while others were chatting about other issues, as is often the case with a real lab in a high school--having only one equipment setup didn't help).
I agree completely--inquiry labs need to be introduced along with many other broader changes to the physics classroom, to support and be consistent with the ideas behind inquiry labs. Good thinking!
Yours,
Tom
Saturday, November 17, 2012
Money, Energy, and Inquiry Based Labs
I haven't found time to write a post for a while. I had actually started one a couple of weeks ago, and then couldn't find the words for all that I wanted to say, and didn't get back to it until now. I'll start with that.
I just got back from tutoring a student in grade 11 physics. I had my first tutoring session with her yesterday, and found it a bit overwhelming. There is so much foundation that is just not there, and I wasn't sure where to start. A lot of my questions about the concept of problems she was doing were met with blank stares. I did my best, and we got through some stuff, but I wanted to really think through my approach for today.
We worked on making a system for organizing problems, and thinking through what is going on so that she isn't just memorizing equations. I felt like we mad a lot of progress, and I'm feeling a lot better about it now. I wanted to work on her understanding of the concept of energy transformation/transfer, and work, and I ended up using the analogy of money from 5 easy lessons. (energy is like money, kinetic = cash, potential = savings, work = spending/making money). It was so great seeing her suddenly be able to grasp the concept, and that was a great moment.
It's frustrating that so many students aren't getting what they need in courses like that, despite having the ability to learn. I hope to find ways as a teacher to prevent students falling through the cracks like that, even though I won't be able to spend that kind of 1 on 1 time with them.
~~~~~~ Back to the present ~~~~~~~
I've been working with that student for the past couple of weeks, and tutored her on Wednesday just before her unit test. In some ways she is making progress, but I don't think she's going to pass the test. She's about ready to give up on physics, and I don't know what to do about it. I don't think she should be writing a unit test right now - she's not ready for it, and it's just going to discourage her. It's really hard seeing all these great ideas in our class at Duncan McArthur, and learning about the effectiveness of concept based physics teaching, and then to see the effects of a teacher not doing that at all. Of course, I just know what's going on at the receiving end. It would be nice to sit in on that physics class and see what that actually looks like.
~~~
I really enjoyed our class on Thursday. It's really amazing that you can make the space for a student to bring something that they are interested in/have expertise in, and share it with the class. We are, after all, learning to be teachers. I really like the idea of inquiry based labs. I get the sense that for them to be effective, they would have to be part of a different type of learning environment. I feel that adding an inquiry based lab to a traditional physics class could be met with a lack of engagement. In a class where students aren't active learners, I would expect that it would be pretty difficult to get them to think critically/independently about the problem.
Jamie
I just got back from tutoring a student in grade 11 physics. I had my first tutoring session with her yesterday, and found it a bit overwhelming. There is so much foundation that is just not there, and I wasn't sure where to start. A lot of my questions about the concept of problems she was doing were met with blank stares. I did my best, and we got through some stuff, but I wanted to really think through my approach for today.
We worked on making a system for organizing problems, and thinking through what is going on so that she isn't just memorizing equations. I felt like we mad a lot of progress, and I'm feeling a lot better about it now. I wanted to work on her understanding of the concept of energy transformation/transfer, and work, and I ended up using the analogy of money from 5 easy lessons. (energy is like money, kinetic = cash, potential = savings, work = spending/making money). It was so great seeing her suddenly be able to grasp the concept, and that was a great moment.
It's frustrating that so many students aren't getting what they need in courses like that, despite having the ability to learn. I hope to find ways as a teacher to prevent students falling through the cracks like that, even though I won't be able to spend that kind of 1 on 1 time with them.
~~~~~~ Back to the present ~~~~~~~
I've been working with that student for the past couple of weeks, and tutored her on Wednesday just before her unit test. In some ways she is making progress, but I don't think she's going to pass the test. She's about ready to give up on physics, and I don't know what to do about it. I don't think she should be writing a unit test right now - she's not ready for it, and it's just going to discourage her. It's really hard seeing all these great ideas in our class at Duncan McArthur, and learning about the effectiveness of concept based physics teaching, and then to see the effects of a teacher not doing that at all. Of course, I just know what's going on at the receiving end. It would be nice to sit in on that physics class and see what that actually looks like.
~~~
I really enjoyed our class on Thursday. It's really amazing that you can make the space for a student to bring something that they are interested in/have expertise in, and share it with the class. We are, after all, learning to be teachers. I really like the idea of inquiry based labs. I get the sense that for them to be effective, they would have to be part of a different type of learning environment. I feel that adding an inquiry based lab to a traditional physics class could be met with a lack of engagement. In a class where students aren't active learners, I would expect that it would be pretty difficult to get them to think critically/independently about the problem.
Jamie
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