My thoughts on how to implement homework have been changing since I began teaching 15 years ago. I teach math, so the curriculum is highly cumulative, and to gain retention, practice has been my major vehicle for getting that done. The biggest impetus for change in my room has been the impending implementation of RTI, a new young member to our math team and the ongoing discussion everywhere in education that we need to do something different to reach the current generation of kids.
My homework has been changing over the years to reflect some of this. This class continues to add to my inclination for changing some of my old homework ways. So what are some things that I have changed prior to this class and what are some ideas that I foresee for the future?
Changes that have been made are:
~small pretests with focus on single-skill type quizzes to place students on learning curve.
~more varied assignments based on current level of skill.
~more word problems for those who already have the skill and more practice-type for rest.
~less outside of class problems than my beginning years teaching.
~way more emphasis on the standards, even though my senior year of college they belabored the math standards. We read and discussed and aligned like crazy that year (1997!), but I think most of the rest of the subject areas were still pretty quiet and the standards rumble died down my first five to seven years of teaching.
~very well aligned homework and tests, AND those are aligned to standards. I don't think very much of my homework could be considered fluff. But, it is too much for some, too little for others and about right for the majority. Wish I could say it was the perfect fit for all, but I know it is not. I'm still trying to figure out how you can have 20 individuals working on different assignments based on their learning needs and still get them all to same standard expectations.
Some items for the future will be:
~differentiation, which I think is SOOOOOOOO much work, valid and worthwhile, but still a nightmare to navigate. I'm trying, but when it is me against 20 kids for 45 minutes with multiple different levels of skills, interest and learning styles, I know I'm not doing it well enough.
~more pretest, and actually using it to differentiate. Most of my pretesting has been for me, so I can see where each kid is and I can watch out for them. I haven't found a way to make it personal to them, so they take an interest in using it to grow and make some of their own choices.
~more department collaboration...appreciate the PLC time and look forward to solidifying our curriculum and moving onto other things that I know we can accomplish more easily as a math team than as a single teacher.
~gathering ideas from my colleagues from this class. I can do the reading and blogs and discussions, but what I really want is some good ideas. I like Leah's draft idea, like, why can't my homework assignments be given as drafts sometimes. They circle their five incorrect answers and then take another day to correct them, ask me for help or look it up in the book. I have been trying for years to get my students to read my comments and examples that I spend hours writing on their papers! I give homework and notes quizzes for exactly this purpose, so why not have rough draft days. When I have kids come study with me for tests, that is one of the first things I do to study. Reread their homework so they catch all those mistakes and learn from them. But, for the average kid, I know I'm not getting nearly enough of them to do that review of homework. I like Skeen's and Brossart's brief writing tasks each day. Ms. Hagen can get kids to come in after school for study sessions like no one else. I know the kids love to play jeopardy in Mr. Olson's room and cannot get enough hands on in ag, so give me your ideas. I know what works for one discipline isn't always going to translate to another, but my favorite part of our discussions is the "this is what it looks like in my room" contributions. Keep them coming!
Enjoyed reading your comments! I think we all change over the years and that is good. I truly believe you and your fellow math teachers have a huge task. Yes, you can measure the students' skills by certain assessments, but to implement teaching to all levels is tough. Differentiation in core areas is very time consuming and stretches the department very thin. I too love hearing colleagues ideas and trying new strategies that seem to work with other teachers. I feel being open with each other and sharing ideas has been the most rewarding element of the class.
ReplyDeleteI try my hardest to make what I’m teaching relative to their daily lives. I do realize that in my content area this is easier than most, but it can still be a challenge. Even the best students find themselves asking “why do I need to know this” or “when will I ever use this again”. Because education has developed independent learners we have also opened the door for students to ask “why”: why do I need to learn this. The old answer “because you have to”, no longer works.
ReplyDeleteI had to laugh at the welding students the other day. Mr. G gave them a project to make dustpan that could be used in the bleachers. Long story short, they needed to use the pythagorean theorem in order to find the dimensions so they could get started constructing the dustpan. A couple students were in my office trying to figure this out and I enjoyed watching them make the connection between math and ag ed. These are the type of connections we need to make for our students so they understand the importance of what we are teaching.
I work hard to implement math in my classroom and will be the first to admit to my students that I’m not the greatest at it. I hear comments all the time that “this isn’t math class, this is Ag class”. I merely smile and laugh and say you’ll thank me later.
Sharon, I enjoyed reading your blog. Trying to meet the needs of all of your individual students is really hard. I know that what I teach is completely different from math but in many ways similar. I'm always trying to have the band work together to perform a piece of music but they are all at different levels of playing ability and homework completion (practice) is all across the board. I try to work with them one on one whenever I can and difficult rhythms in a variety of ways. Hopefully as this class continues we will continue to learn tricks of the trade from one another. Our battles are not so different.....
ReplyDeleteOftentimes, we as educators feel overwhelmed and under prepared to effectively run a classroom focused on continuous academic progress for all students. Like students themselves, differentiation can take on many forms. Through continued collaboration we can work together to improve curriculum, teaching strategies, and assessments that meet the needs, interests, and abilities of all students. I enjoyed reading your blog!
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