Reflection #4 Effective Lessons

This post was originally written during the week 5 timeframe. However, when I was attempting to print it out for my auto-ethnography I accidentally deleted it. Thankfully, I had a copy saved in Word. EDAT 6115 Reflection Blog #4 Chapter 7 - Effective Lessons Description In Chapter 7, Slavin (2018) basically gives an overview of a typical lesson plan that is organized in a way that the teacher is able to effectively teach the class of students in a way that will help them master the skill or information. Analysis Slavin describes the features of a basic, direct lesson plan that are effective in teaching students. The seven key parts of an effective lesson are: 1) State learning objectives and a “hook” to gain the students’ interest. 2) Review prerequisite skills or information. - This can be as simple as reviewing the lesson from the day before. 3) Teach the new material 4) Learning probes – basically check for understanding by asking questions, doing a show of hands, having a discussion, etc. 5) Provide independent practice 6) Assessment and feedback – go over the independent practice or quiz with the students in order to gauge mastery and whether re-teaching is needed. 7) Provide distributed practice (homework) and review. (Slavin, 2018, p.161) Throughout this chapter, Slavin expands on each of these points and gives examples that are relevant to both elementary and upper grade teachers as well as skill lessons (grammar and math) as opposed to informational lessons (science and social studies). Reflection Just like students have many preferred learning styles, teachers also have preferred teaching styles. I do not teach like many of my co-workers. As a new teacher, I struggled with feeling like I needed to teach like more of my peers. Now, as an experienced teacher, I can see that although my personality and style are different, I am still effectively teaching my students as I cover the aspects of an effective lesson plan. I was encouraged and challenged as I read through this chapter. As an experienced teacher, it is encouraging to read through these steps and realize that I go through these every day, with every lesson, with my students. Slavin writes that during a typical school year a teacher will teach 800-1000 lessons! Wow! (Slavin, 2018, p 160). No wonder, after a few years, the flow becomes more natural and less forced. We get lots of practice. The descriptions of the “why” we do each of these elements was encouraging to me because it reminds me that what I am doing is effective. The organized lecture notes and the presentation that I give my students are effective because “a clearly laid out structure and transitional statements about the structure of the lesson increase student understanding.” (Slavin, 2018, p 166). Again, linking to the students’ background knowledge through explanations, examples, and embedded multimedia are ways to effectively help them visualize the complex ideas. (Slavin, 2018, p. 167). In the section about maintaining attention, Slavin talked about the use of humor. I love to laugh with my students. I don’t try to be ‘funny”, but I will quickly grab onto anything in the lesson, example, embedded video, or personal anecdote that is funny and fits in the lesson. It grabs the students’ attention and I love to see them smile. In the same section, Slavin mentions how teachers share many of the same qualities as a performer. I feel this in my soul. Whatever my personal life has thrown at me, when I step into the classroom my smile comes on and I am suddenly “on stage” as a teacher – actively moving, engaging, and keeping their attention. When the school day ends, I step off stage and I am exhausted! (Slavin, 2018, p. 168). I was challenged by some of the ideas, specifically, to do more small group discussion. Currently, I do A LOT of whole-class discussions. As you can imagine, the subject of government lends itself to many topics that are either controversial, have more than one right answer, and to issues that concern attitudes and values. (Slavin, 2018, p 180). The whole-group discussions are great, but it would be good for me to learn to release some control and help the students learn how to conduct their own small group discussions. Along these lines, Slavin cited Cohen and Lotan (2014), “Research on small-group discussions indicates that these activities can increase student achievement more than traditional lessons if the students are well prepared to work in small groups and if the group task is well organized.” This is especially effective if what they are discussing is controversial (Slavin, 2018, p. 182) Last year, one of my favorite lessons was that of the Supreme Court. With the guidance from iCivic resources, the students learned about a specific case that went before the court, Jardines v. Florida. As a whole class we read the background information about the case, the lower court decisions, and precedents. The following day, when the students came to class, their seats were arranged in small groups. Each group would be a panel of Supreme Court Justices, the student who happened to sit in the seat facing forward would become the Chief Justice and would lead the discussions. Each group proceeded to go through all the steps, discussions, and arguments of the case. Finally, they voted. The majority opinion would be the decision of the court (for that group). Then we went around the room. Each group had to present the opinion of the court and a dissenting opinion. Not all groups had the same decision. After everyone had shared, we read through the actual Supreme Court decision which had been decided 5-4. The students were able to see that regardless of the side of the decision they took, it was not a “stupid” decision. There were at least 4 real justices who had agreed with them. This was a wonderful role-playing experience for all 6 class periods. Now, as I compare this lesson with the pieces of an effective lesson, I can see how this was a very effective way for the students to learn (hopefully - in their long-term memories). I would love to be able to do more of these well-organized small group discussions with my students. Reference Slavin, R.E. (2018). Educational Psychology: Theory and Practice (12th ed.). Boston, MA: Pearson Education You Be the Judge. (n.d.). Retrieved June 09, 2020, from https://www.icivics.org/viewpdf?path=%2Fsites%2Fdefault%2Ffiles%2Flesson_plan%2FYou+Be+The+Judge_FULL.pdf