How I learned to hate school and then love it again and then it got complicated

How I learned to hate school and then love it again and then it got complicated

On Test Taking...
I learned to hate school in the ninth grade. Before entering high school, our skills were measured using a standardized test. This was a requirement for the private school my parents wanted me to attend. After receiving the results, the school’s counselor suggested I attended a regular high school because it would “...work more at my speed.” My mom enrolled me anyway, despite the counselor’s suggestions. Later in my high school career, we were required to meet with the counselor and fill-out applications for college. I chose the University of Oklahoma but, based on my pSAT exam scores, my counselor suggest I apply to a junior college because “...OU is very competitive.” I didn’t see her again until after graduating from OU and returning to my Alma mater. They wanted to offer me a job in the English department.

I learned to love school again in college. There wasn’t a specific instance that made me love it again, but the overall experience was encouraging. I know it had something to do with the lack of multiple choice exams. They were still present, but balanced out with an abundance of essay based exams. Essay based exams required me to explain my understanding of the curriculum and even develop opinions and support them with textual evidence. I couldn't depend on test taking tips such as "choose the most detailed and longest answer if you're unsure" or "fill in all Bs and Cs if you're running out of time". I had to know the material or fail.

I started to fall out of love with school again as a high school English teacher. I witnessed the phenomenon of standardized testing as a focus. My turning point occurred when a student met me during lunch to take a make-up quiz she missed the previous day. At the time, all ninth grade teachers were required to proctor the same generic quizzes as a check-up for our standardized curriculum. She brought her lunch and logged on to a classroom computer to take her quiz. After five minutes or less, she came to check the results with me. I logged on to our quiz program and reported, "You got a 100%! Good thing you did the reading at home." She replied, "Ha! I didn't even read it, Flo! I just guessed!" and presented her palm for a celebratory high-five. I left the palm hanging while scrambling to explain why it would benefit her to actually read the story rather than gambling between circling A, B, C or D on a computerized scantron. I don’t think I was very convincing.

When I learned to hate writing and then learned to love it again

On Writing...

I learned to hate writing in the seventh grade. In the seventh grade, I started attending a private school in a new state and had an English teacher capable of performing sorcery on my school writing. She could take a black and white, typed book report and turn it red in the blink of an eye. My English teacher, this sorceress, Mrs. W-------, used a black magic I had never heard of called Grammar. “Although your reports are creative...” she would say, “...your grammar mechanics are atrocious!” She recommended I be placed in a remedial English class. My mom, a teacher herself, found an after school tutor instead. I stayed in Mrs. W-------’s class and continued through her eighth grade English class.

I learned to love writing again in my sophomore year of college. In the advent of the Internet and computer technology, the greatest human accomplishment came in the form of Instant Messaging - the ability to quickly share text-based messages with friends over the Internet. Out of this phenomenon grew online journals. Motivated by a happenstance negative encounter with a friend’s girlfriend and possibly Chaucer, I wrote a satirical short-story based on this personal experience. Getting the experience off my chest and out of my mind was a relief. Later, I discovered my roommate had left feedback for me on my digital journal: “Dude this is the most hilarious vulgar but really intelligent sounding thing I ever read.” It was a huge compliment for two reasons: I hadn’t been complimented on my writing since the sixth grade and my roommate wasn’t the type to give positive feedback. We were more familiar to competitive smack talk, so this was a nice change of pace.

Insomnia Revelation #5,041-c: Out with the old school model, in with the social network model?

IN ORDER TO FOSTER STUDENT ENGAGEMENT AND INTRINSIC MOTIVATION, THE SCHOOL MODEL SHOULD BE REPLACED BY A SOCIAL NETWORKING MODEL TO SIGNIFICANTLY IMPROVE GRADUATION RATES.

Social media utilizes HOTS, critical thinking and Bloom's taxonomy through collaboration, communication and original creations.

OUTLINE

I. Problem statement

                a. phenomenon observed

                b. significance to research

II. Characteristics of Social Media model

                a. statistics of student use

                b. collaboration

                c. communication

                d. creation

                e. publication

III. Trends in traditional education

                a. standardized

                b. common

IV. Social Media Parallels with learning

                a. HOTS

                b. Critical Thinking

                c. Writing Process

                d. DICE 2010: "Design Outside the Box" Presentation

V. Blogging to Foster Critical thinking and Knowledge Retention

                a. stats on blogging

                b. as a social media tool

                c. as an educational tool; "Understanding derives from activity." - J. Dewey

                d. proposed effects of blogging as an educational tool

VI. Research

                a. reflective blogging (edmodo or edublogs)

                b. once a week

                c. peer feedback

                d. effects on standardized test scores

VII. Research results

                a. data

                b. tweaks

V. Conclusion

                a. significance to education

                b. next steps

Insomnia Revelation #5,041-b: School is Boring outline

Insomnia Inspired Revelation #5,041-b

So if I wanted to create a qualitative research project on the basis that school is boring and implementing publication practices into out curriculum can help, how would I start?

I'd start, of course, by creating an outline of taking points to be addressed in such a research paper.

Outline:

Let's go ahead and address the problem statement, because those little buggers are always so tricky. This should highlight the phenomena I've observed and also describe how researching it is a significant contribution to education community.

PROBLEM STATMENT:

There is a stereotype amongst students that school is boring because it does not appear to be addressing issues relevant to their lives but instead restricts creativity and free-thought to scantrons. Incorporating publication practices into school curriculum would curb the epidemic of boredom and engage students in school work. Engaging students would also motivate them to finish secondary education; a significant contribution to our community.

Hmmm... immediately this seems too wordy and possibly too broad. Maybe I can tighten it after spilling the details of what needs to be surveyed through research.

Accordingly, I have a select number of proposals to share in regards to the effects of publication in the classroom, but first there needs to also be a clear definition of publishing as it is used for our purposes.

I. Define Publication

II. Proposals for the use of classroom publication

                a. Publication directly influences a student’s motivation

                b. Student work should be publicly displayed

                c. Students should be publicly recognized for high academic achievement

                d. Publication fosters critical thinking

                e. The formal School model should be replaced with the social networking model

Maybe that's a better problem statement altogether?

Ugh... okay let's start over (again).

Insomnia Revelation #5,041-a: School is Boring

Insomnia Inspired Revelation #5,041-a

As I often do, last night I lay awake with a cat lying across my legs in a cumbersome position. It felt as though some person had laid a burlap bag of wood blocks. I'm still unclear whether my cat is trying to keep my legs warm at night or just cease the blood flow preventing me from going to work the following morning.

So, I lay awake with thoughts of qualitative research dancing through my head. Isms and Ologys and genuine interests dance around like so many clay pigeons and I take aim but never pull the trigger.

What am I aiming at, anyway?

I've written and read about authentic pedagogy, critical thinking and Bloom. Technology should be an important resource to incorporate and I'm surrounded by it daily. I enjoy the writing process and blogging. My tentative problem statement regarding critical thinking and the connection to blogging has already been approved by two reliable sources. I'm still hesitant to ask teachers to relinquish control of their curriculum to me for an actual study.

What's missing?

Sure, a definitive understanding of aforementioned Qualitative Isms and Ologys. Yes, a classroom of secondary education guinea pigs. There's something else much more important that needs to link the professional research aspect with my genuine interests and goals; this study must answer a phenomenon I've witnessed and provide useable incite for educators.

School is boring.

That's it! My observed phenomenon is school is boring!

A bored classroom is an unmotivated classroom, at least that's the consensus from students I've worked with in the past. It is a problem and maybe we shouldn't be so harsh to attack the students that rebel against boring, uninspired curricula. That kid that can't stay seated the entire hour in your class? Maybe it's your fault and they don't need that IEP or prescription to Aderol. Maybe they need a teacher that strives to make learning exciting, relevant and interesting… and entertaining?

Education goes Hollywood. Educators start to advertise their class and graded projects should go viral.  Teachers need agents and better PR, too! How about a mysterious internet leak of an upcoming lesson plan for your English class? Release a teaser trailer while you're at it. Why do military, law enforcement and college students get discounts at car washes? Teachers deserve appreciation discounts too!

How do we make school NOT boring? The current curriculum and curriculum trends are either fostering boredom or something else. Current trends or phenomena I've observed include "cookie cutter" curricula aimed to provide each student with standardized instructional experiences aimed to higher performance on state and national exams. This practice doesn't seem prudent to fostering genuine knowledge retention. There is also an upcoming push of Common Core which some hope will emphasize critical thinking skills.

The above mentioned topics were the clay targets swarming around my head as the night stand alarm clock glowed 1:36 AM and I was scrambling to find the right net to trap these elements in a qualitative research project. As I see it... the common correlation to tie all this together is in the writing process, namely the publication step.

In theory, publication affects motivation, engagement, critical thinking skills, knowledge retention, entertainment value and boredom. So, my real qualitative research project should focus on the significant impact publication has in classroom curriculum?

Ontology, Epistemology, Axiology and back again

Ontology, Epistemology, Axiology and back again

(NOTES)

It’s easy to get lost in the -ology and -ism maze, and after rereading the same paragrpahs five or six times (minimum) in order to understand the message, I started considering if I needed to be tested for some learning disorder. There’s pills for everything so there must be a Latin term for not immediately understanding Qualitative research and the subsequent cure in pill form with such side effects as nausea, cramping, headaches, difficulty breathing, high cholesterol, post-traumatic stress disorder and insomnia to name a few. All the same symptoms that occur when thinking about conducting Qual research, really. Regardless, I had to take a few steps back to understand the purpose of the reading - what message am I supposed to take away.

Purpose: to understand your approach to qualitative research it’s important to understand its history.

What this tells me is qualitative research has multiple approaches. Great. So, Pasque has done the footwork and provided us the spiderweb of “history, definitions, contradictions, tensions, and dilemmas.”

Ontology questions reality. Epistemology ask “how do you know?” Axiology asks how values play into the mix. Everything is glued together by methodology - how the theory should be unraveled. Or is it philosophical assumptions that link us to our research approach? Actually, it’s both, arguably, and also our world view including the social justices we observe in our world. Also, a plethora of -isms and -ologys.

Which brings me to my four step process for beginning Qual research (as I see it, for now).

STEP ONE: So, as I see it, before choosing your philosophical roots for examining your research, consider whether you’re identifying a Truth or sharing a Perspective.

Step Two: Choose Philosophical Paradigms that best fit your study.

Step Three: Review the Methodologies that will best suit your study.

Step Four: Develop and explain the methods used to reach the goal of your research through (1) surveys and (2) follow and observe.

Right?

Cocktail Hour as Research Practice

Preparing Education Doctoral Students for Epistemological Diversity NOTES

Community of Practice - consists of (1) Participation and (2) Reification

• Accountability is necessary (p.4)

1. Participation

• Shared experience resulting from interaction
• Need to be local as shared experience can be effected in different settings
• Professional Conversation - my favorite aspect of the Community of Practice

2. Reification

• Process of the community to produce a product of practice
• Lesson plan, rules, documents, symbols, tools, etc.
• Activities in which teachers engage and...
• ...conditions or problems encountered.

In a university setting, the students are only accountable to a small community. Research needs to be conducted

Cocktail Hour as Research Practice
In order for research students to succeed, they need to function in a community of practice. Pallas describes what this looks like when applied and the possible outcomes. The concept of professional conversation stood out because it always benefited me more than some formal education. Being in the trenches of the classroom highlighted my weaknesses and I learned quickly how to ask for professional advice from veteran teachers. I read a lot of advice books on teaching but not even Harry Wong fully prepared me.
Instead, I learned classroom management and discipline from the veteran social studies teacher neighboring my classroom. She was very comfortable letting me know exactly what I was doing wrong and suggesting/telling me how to fix classroom challenges. I was like a stray cat and she made the mistake of feeding me because I continued to bring her questions and theories and brainstorms. It’s worth mentioning that she wasn’t even my assigned mentor teacher during my first year! We didn’t even teach the same subject but she was my community of practice.
Eventually my community grew as I started asking everyone - from other English teachers to the benevolent copy room team -  for teaching advice. part of the College of Education curriculum requirements should include attending and observing the Community of Practice that occurs at The Mont during happy hour each payday in Norman. This is where the hardest working teachers congregate and discuss their month in intimate detail. They freely share accomplishments and failures while supporting each other with critical input, hunches and humor. Besides making me reminisce of swirls and The Mont, the reading made me reflect on this cock tail hour practice as a business model. Allegedly, GOOGLE and ATLASSIAN software practices this with employees while on-the-clock and it results in higher productivity and new products. Am I the only teacher that developed a great lesson plan - my reification - on a flimsy bar napkin?

NOTES: Oh, so that’s how Qual research is done!

Oh, so that’s how Qual research is done!

Finally I have a grasp on the trials of Qual research and a direction to start walking. At this point in college grad life, I’m familiar with the “research something you’re passionate about” advice. I get it. That’s why I’ve stuck around and begged my parents for tuition money. Marshall and Rossman (as I see it) provide a great framework to fill-in with research goodness. But it’s not an outline. It’s actually a lot like playing with LEGOs.

Instructions are provided in the box of overpriced plastic cubees but along the way you notice room for improvements and start tweaking the base model to fulfill your own needs and interests. So, instead of following directions and getting a replica of a commercial airliner, the outcome is a galaxy hopping space shuttle with fully functioning defense systems! Maybe that’s just how I play with LEGOS.

In any case, the outline as I see it, asked me to first become inspired to conduct research by stepping into a funnel of:

1. Reflecting on an Observation - usually about a personal experience or phenomenon
2. Rationale for the phenomenon - my best reasoning as to why the phenomenon happened
3. Study publications about the phenomenon - also helps foster the significance of your research
4. Deconstruct observed events - show my understanding as to why the phenomenon occurs after studying publications
5. Identify replaceable elements - what can be done to change the phenomenon in order to improve the conditions of my topic (i.e. education)?

This will help me reach my topic and research question(s), but there are also three important filters consider: “do-ability”, “should-do-ability” and “want-to-do-ability”. These are rationale and harsh filters to traverse. Each is another stepping stone toward filling in the first draft or starting from scratch at the top of the funnel.

I read most about the use of technology in education. My focus, ideally,  should concern writing skills and how technology can be used to facilitate a writer’s growth. I can see how to make my interest align with the outlines and filters and critical questions for considerations in Marshall and Rossman’s text but I’ll be the first to admit my biases. I should be more concern that my peers and colleagues also see my research as beneficial as I do otherwise it’s back to the drawing board/funnel.

My first research question - where can I find a free copy of Bloomberg and Volpe’s “road map” from Completing Your Qualitative Dissertation?

NOTES:
Chapter 1: Introduction
5 features of Qualitative research:

Qualitative research typically

• is enacted in naturalistic settings,

• draws on multiple methods that respect the humanity of the participants in the study,

• focuses on context,

• is emergent and evolving, and

• is fundamentally interpretive.

from Catherine Marshall;Gretchen B. Rossman. Designing Qualitative Research (Kindle Locations 173-174). Kindle Edition.

So, 5 features of Qual research (as I see it) includes:

• research done in the field (i.e. classroom, jungle, et cetera - same place really)
• doesn’t insult the participants
• accounts for all circumstances
• is new
• explains... something

Considerations
When writing a research proposal, consider the following:

• “do-ability”
• “should-do-ability”
• “want-to-do-ability”

“Do-Ability”
Consider whether you are feasibly able to conduct your research. Realistically, do you have access to the funds and resources to be studied?

Where can one do this study? With whom? How can I actually gather data? How shall I plan for data analysis and reporting?

Catherine Marshall;Gretchen B. Rossman. Designing Qualitative Research (Kindle Location 919). Kindle Edition.


“Should-Do-Ability”
Consider whether the research is worth conducting in the first place. Is it ethical and going to make an impact?

The researcher should argue that the study will likely contribute to scholarship, policy, and/or practice and address the familiar question "So what?"

Catherine Marshall;Gretchen B. Rossman. Designing Qualitative Research (Kindle Location 206). Kindle Edition.

“Want-to-Do-Ability”
Is the research interesting enough that you will actually want to see it through to completion?

The Challenges
2 parts of research proposals:

1. Conceptual framework - what topic/issue is going to be explored?
1. requires a rationale
2. design and research methods - what strategies will adequately explore the topic/issue?

Demonstrate Competence (explicitly and  implicitly) - this ties back into feasibility and “Want-to-do-ability”; expect scrutiny if you’re not an “established” researcher

demonstrate competence, then, proposal writers should refer to their previous work and discuss the strengths and weaknesses of the pilot study as well as their coursework and other relevant education.

Catherine Marshall;Gretchen B. Rossman. Designing Qualitative Research (Kindle Locations 248-249). Kindle Edition.

Developing an Argument

developing a proposal is a process of building an argument that supports the proposal.

Catherine Marshall;Gretchen B. Rossman. Designing Qualitative Research (Kindle Locations 250-251). Kindle Edition.

Your argument needs logic and lots of it to convince readers it is significant for your field.

In conclusion:

the finished proposal should demonstrate that (a) the research is worth doing, (b) the researcher is competent to conduct the study, and (c) the study is carefully planned and can be executed successfully.

Catherine Marshall;Gretchen B. Rossman. Designing Qualitative Research (Kindle Locations 795-796). Kindle Edition.
Chapter 4: The What of the Study: Building the Conceptual Framework

Step 1: give one's project a name...

Catherine Marshall;Gretchen B. Rossman. Designing Qualitative Research (Kindle Location 804). Kindle Edition.

Successful Projects Address:

• Personal Interests
• Professional Commitments
• Recurring Social Problems

The Proposal

1. Introduction - overview with research question(s) and potential significance to the community
2. Related Literature - what lit/new is also discussing your research topic
3. Framework - description of how the research will be accomplished

Each section builds upon the other.

I read most about the use of technology in education. My focus should concern writing skills and how technology can be used to facilitate a writer’s growth. My first research question - where can I find a free copy of Bloomberg and Volpe’s “road map” from Completing Your Qualitative Dissertation?

Shiva, the god of dance and death is a good metaphor for the research process?

How can my biography help inspire my research?
Well, how I was inspired to teach and the epic struggle with grammar in the seventh grade might be a good start.

How do life experiences foster social activism?

Steps down the funnel (as I see it):

6. Observation
7. Rationale for the phenomenon
8. Find publications about the phenomenon - also helps foster the signifigance of your research
9. Deconstruct observed events
10. Identify replaceable elements

PURPOSE
Explore, Explain, Describe phenomenon.

Magnum Opus of Rants, part one: Then the Seventh grade happened and I was a terrible student

Magnum Opus of Rants, part one: Then the Seventh grade happened and I was a terrible student

I was a terrible student. Particularly in high school I was a terrible student. Maybe that's a lie. I was actually a decent student up until a certain point and that point was the seventh grade. Before the seventh grade I was a straight-A student and even considered "gifted and talented" which I guess is the equivalent of honors classes for elementary and middle school. I even took summer courses for "gifted and talented" at Texas Tech University. Then seventh grade happened.

By the way, isn't most everyone "gifted and talented" by elementary and middle school standards? Really all we had to do was progress from coloring between the lines to memorizing multiplication tables. I'll admit, those tables did give me some trouble. Then seventh grade happened.

My universe crumbled in the seventh grade when my English teacher passed back our first graded writing assignment. It was turned in on typed black and white paper and returned bloody and crippled. Until this point, I was always praised for my creative writing but this was seventh grade and suddenly grammar was important.

I had to start getting help from a special teacher after school. She was not a "gifted and talented" teacher. She was helping me with my lack of grammar knowledge. She did her best but I continued to struggle with grammar into the eighth, ninth, tenth, eleventh and twelfth grade. It didn't help that Algebra was causing me equal problems during the same timeline but that's a totally separate devastating story. The only thing Algebra ever inspired me to do was cancel architect as a job prospect. On the other hand, grammar aside, I still enjoyed my English classes and upon deep reflection, made the decision to become an English teacher upon surviving the seventh grade.

Surely, I could have a mastery of grammar by the time I graduated college! They wouldn't allow me to become an English teacher without knowing how to diagram Direct and Indirect Objects.

Ten years later...

I graduated with my B.A. in English and was horrified at the prospect of teaching grammar! They didn't even ask about it in my job interview! After four years of learning grammar on the job in order to teach it, I still wouldn't claim to have mastery. I've met people who do and I bask in their brilliance hoping to absorb their grammatical knowledge by osmosis.

Now here's the ironic climax of my humble reflection/confession:

The most popular lesson I've developed concentrates on proper grammar! Really. A professor of mine (that has too much blind faith in my ability) even suggested I draft a first chapter to be passed along to a book agent. I'm actually working on that and can't think of a better example of personal irony, although there are many runner-ups.

Did you know I never took an AP or Honors course in high school? Yet, I taught pre-AP through honors classes as a teacher. I'm proud and frightened by these experiences. During my first year of teaching, i did a lot of developing with a fellow first year teacher. He described our shared fear best when he said "I'm scared most of all that one day someone is going to call me on my bullshit."

I struggle to shield myself from this fear coming true through lots of preparation and anxiety attacks. So far it seems to be working out in the end.

By the way, my high school counselor told my parents I probably wouldn't graduate high school or college due to my low test scores. Add that to the list of personal ironies.

I would love to incorporate a witty transition at this point but can't think of anything right now so I'm just going to wildly and gracelessly jump to my point.

Regardless...I suppose this reflection came to me when I was considering the learning process as a broad leg of my impending thesis research. Just to backtrack slightly, I've been brainstorming topics that included the writing process, documentaries, authentic teaching and learning, the X-men and blogging. I had no idea how to link everything together until my recent honeymoon.

One of the many nights I was up and unable to sleep due to the constant rocking of the Atlantic Ocean, it occurred to me that each element has contributed to my successes and failures as a student and teacher. Failure, because I struggle to learn without them but succeed when I can incorporate each into my learning.

Grammar, for example, is a painful struggle to me and I've tried learning from a variety of teaching aids and instructors. Nothing ever stuck! However, - and here's the part I failed to mention before - when I started to teach myself grammar by incorporating zombie survival tips, the topic was more interesting to me. Yeah, zombie survival. I think you'll understand why I didn't mention this before because if I had, then you would most definitely would stop reading and report me as unfit to be teaching even something as simplistic as coloring in-between the lines. Zombie survival is fun! Grammar is not. Basically I had to make it interesting to me. So I started a notebook with stick figure drawings of zombies and rewrote grammar rules in my own words. Then - here's the really scary part - I took that notebook and started sharing it with students! I had classes of students creating their own zombie survival guides!

The concept snowballed into full lesson plans, unfinished short YouTube videos and - as suggested by my wife - a copyrighted website in the works (www.zombiegrammarsurvival.com).

Just to get back on track again, this is not a new thing for me. It is how I learn but didn't realize it until my senior year of high school! How absurd to be struggling for so long and enduring traditional studying techniques that did not bear fruit when exams were returned! Before I ever started studying, I should have been trying to understand myself as a learner. It is a cliché ideal but I learn best by teaching. Now this is called Bloom's taxonomy or authentic teaching and learning, but apparently neither was created until after I graduated high school in 2001. I assume this to be true because the majority of my class time was spent engaged in rote memorization and regurgitation.

The writing process, documentaries, authentic teaching and learning, the X-men and blogging are all tools educators and students should utilize. Each plays an important role in climbing Bloom's taxonomy.

Again, it would be great to add another witty transition here but this is a first draft anyway. I like to abide by the rule of stopping while you still have more to say so you have something to write about tomorrow. Supposedly it was a rule from Hemingway. Or was it Faulkner?

Internet Safety Tips for the Gnosiophobics

Internet Safety Tips for the Gnosiophobics

Let's face it, the internet can be a scary place! There's a lot of offense material out here on the digital wilderness and sometimes it can't be avoided! Some of it is grotesque and will cause you to lose your appetite. Some of it can even contradict or challenge your political and/or religious beliefs! That would be a shame, especially if you were unfortunate enough to have not developed a sense of humor. After all, no one wants to read opinions that are different than their own.

Luckily, some of it can be avoided by using two simple features on your browser!

Much like a car radio or television remote, your web browser is equipped with buttons to magically make those awful things disappear! Have you ever been flipping through channels on the radio dial and accidentally stop on Howard Stern? You poor thing. I bet your ears were assaulted with all sorts of offensive language and sound FX.

Did you know you can change the channel? It's easy! Instead of being subjected to Howard or the Presidential address or whatever might be offending you, just turn the dial or click the "channel" button on your radio/television.

This internet is like this too! If you accidentally begin to read something and get offended, don't be scared! Just click the "back" button and you'll return to your previous safe web page. I've included a helpful picture of what the "back" button looks like for your benefit.

In extreme circumstances, you may also want to try the "close window" button. This is a great button to use as it makes the entire internet disappear! No more dirty jokes and pictures. Included is another picture so you know what it looks like.

I hope these basics will help. Be careful. The internet is frighteningly unregulated and riddled with opinions and filthy jokes.