Blog #5
Students need to be challenged by compelling questions
I feel this concept sinking in, as it has been the backbone of our course. Without the compelling question, that is both academically rich and relative to students, social studies remains dull. Countless times I have reviewed my own social studies background, searching for the compelling questions that were in my grade school classes. I can barely find memories of any! Seeing the evidence of how compelling questions shape social studies has easily won me over. I do not want my social studies lessons to be solely answering questions at the back of the book.
Inquiry is challenging, but worth it
Writing the IDM and project based unit plan was truthfully exhausting. It was fun and creative, but it took a LOT of work. I am so thankful to have completed these assignments with my team, because doing them alone would have been very tough for me. However, through the time and effort, I see the amazing amount of opportunities projects open for students. They are definitely worth the work.
One of the biggest pieces of information that stuck with me this quarter regards to Gus' tangent during one of our Zoom days. He explained his personal experience with students below the poverty line and their ability to raise funds and tackle money issues regardless. I was so impressed by this, because it does come across as nearly impossible to do anything with money if your students already lack resources. This truly robs them of the opportunity to engage the same way other students may be able to at a different school. Gus' personal story inspired me to resist looking at students who live in poverty as incapable.
This course has been a great learning experience for me!
Emily,
ReplyDeleteI couldn’t agree more, this quarter has been so crazy and it looks like we are going to be doing it again in the fall, thank goodness for summer vacation. That is so great that you are grasping the concept of writing a compelling question, this is something I still have trouble with. I think that having us do our first project-based unit with a group is a great way to get the exposure, I would have struggled too if I had to do all of it alone. I would have loved to have had this class in person hopefully one day.
Breanna,
DeleteYes, this class would be awesome in person! As tough as the quarter was, I am still glad we were all able to share some experiences together via zoom. I am stoked for summer and think we will all survive again in the fall if we made it through this spring.
Emily,
ReplyDeleteThis has definitely been a crazy quarter, and one that I really hope doesn't repeat itself (although that seems unlikely). Rigorous and relevant compelling questions really are the key to a successful IDM. What are some of your strategies for creating a strong compelling question? As you talk about later in your blog, I agree that creating IDMs and project based units can be quite the challenge. I hope that I can build these IDMs and units with my grade-level team in the future, for creating one completely alone seems really stressful. I was also very inspired by Gus' story. I think it is something I wish more individuals were aware of, because it does seem to be the case that many people view low income students as less capable. Do you wish to be in one of these low income schools? Thanks for sharing! It has been great reading your blogs and having class with you this quarter :)
Julia,
DeleteI am still progressing and learning about the compelling questions. Creating them is very tricky for me, still! However, I think that trying to put yourself in the students' shoes is likely the best thing that I can do. For example, if I am writing a compelling question for 4th graders, I either try to picture myself as a fourth grader (not always easy to recall) or think of someone I know who is around that age! This is helpful in deciding if something is relevant.
Emily, I too found this quarter to be the weirdest experience of my life. I agree with how important it is for our compelling questions to actually be compelling. These questions need to be engaging and spark interest from our students, otherwise, all of our work we put into creating the IDM and the lessons will be useless. I also agree that inquiry is a lot of work but it is so rewarding. These lessons we create benefit our students in so many ways. Not only do they educate our students in social studies but they create more informed citizens, with problem-solving skills and good collaboration techniques. Emily the experience that will stick with me the most was also Gus's tangents during one of the last zoom meetings. This was so important for me to hear!
ReplyDeleteIt's so interesting that often times the life advice from professors sticks so much better than the class content. As much as there is so much important content in 340, I love hearing stories that can influence me as a teacher across the board.
DeleteEmily, I also found compelling questions and supporting questions interesting to have for discussions in the classrooms. When I look back when I took social studies I cannot recall a time where I was challenged with the compelling questions that made me think in a different way or talked to my classmates to answer the questions. The type of questions that were supposedly for discussions where all questions found in the book. And I feel like that made me miss out on learning from my peers and have deeper conversation. Great post!
ReplyDeleteEmily,
Delete"Missing out" was exactly what I was thinking when I was reflecting on grade school and social studies. I really didn't feel like I was ever pushed to think very critically about different social studies matters. I can think of a few, but definitely not any that was routine. The lack of compelling questions definitely had a consequence of lack of interest for me. Hopefully we can adjust this in our later years as teachers!
Hi Emily, I am so glad to be almost done with this crazy quarter and the unsettling things going on outside. I hope the chaos clears up soon and we find peace with each other. I agree that all students need to be educated in Social Studies using the IDM, the integration of real-world problems with all subjects, and the part about having students learn how to be actively involved in their community is so important for them and for our future. I'm glad that you recognize that not all students are the same and they need our help at school. Just because a student's parent doesn't show up or homework doesn't get turned in, doesn't mean they don't care. Parents who work usually don't have the time for school related things. What ideas would you have for raising money?
DeleteThanks for your thoughts Suzie! I know a teacher who had a great community of people around him who actually funded school sports activities for a lot of his students. The best part is, he was a coach and a teacher, and he never told the students they owed money for sports. For example, he would tell the kids that the wrestling tournament was free for them. He had good friends, family, and community partners that funded on top of what students couldn't fundraise themselves. The team would do fundraisers, his partners would cover the rest. While this isn't always possible, I think it is realistic to sometimes lean on community members. Obviously I would love for my future students to fundraise enough, but that isn't always the case.
Delete