Partner up, Legal Brief!

I think the legal briefs were very tailored to how I learn. Therefore, when I was asked to find something that would make it better, it was a challenge. I realized there was one thing that was extremely helpful in my experience in discussing the case; another person also had the same case. This was helpful because when I went to discuss it, not only my comments were heard. Consequently, the one thing I would change about this assignment is that two people should have been assigned to each case which would have given everyone a partner to discuss their cases with. This way, each student would better understand their case (in the event that they did not understand the legal terms used or the documents they were researching).

Love the writers of Framework for 21st Century Learning

The thing I like most about the 21st Century Framework Definitions (http://www.p21.org/documents/P21_Framework_Definitions.pdf) is that they really are what it says they are. Honestly, this document is a fantastic review of what students need to know in the modern age. I know, I'm still a student- a recent high school grad even (2009). I have realized lately that my education has been lacking (something I'm not stoked about) in the areas that really matter in this globalized world. This article places things such as knowing current events and being able to collaborate with others as well as with modern technology. Unfortunately, my schooling has focused on solely the school subjects and basic skills such as working in groups and learning to get along with others. I do not think I have been pushed to integrate my assignments with the challenges that technology or the meshing of the world's society present. Now I am trying to catch up in these parts in my spare time (something that I do not have a lot of, despite it being summer vacation) and it has proved difficult. I am even more motivated now to incorporate current information into the curriculum in order that students better understand the past and how it relates to our world today.

IUnderestimating the Lower Books

A poster of Bloom's Taxonomy hangs in every single classroom in my high school. It is one of the things that I would stare at and wonder about on those days when all I could manage was to keep my eyes open and to occasionally scratch down a sentence I absent-mindedly heard come out of the teacher's mouth. It depicts a stack of books with the stages of Bloom's each written on a book - LOTS at the bottom, HOTS at the top. All the teachers in my school spoke of striving to reach the lantern at the top of the pyramid of books which culminate in the word 'Evaluation'. On those days when my mind was somewhere out in space, Bloom's Taxonomy never quite made sense to me. I understood the challenge of applying the information you had already processed and then the further obstacle of creating something new out of what had already been repeated and applied; however, I couldn't help wondering about the necessity of every level in the pyramid. The memorization of facts, processes, dates, conjugations and the like are the most important building blocks to any real knowledge of a subject. Sometimes, unfortunately, teachers skip over these details and go straight to the HOTS, losing students along the way. I do not necessarily agree with the statement in the article that you can start at any point in the pyramid because I believe you need to master the basics in order that the more difficult processes follow easily. This is just a warning to those teachers that want their students to reach the top of the pyramid; never underestimate the power of starting with the basics.

New-Trend-Schools

After reading- Global Achievement Gap (Chapter 6), I feel.... inadequate. Who am I to create superb ideas and inspire kids to learn and have them complete projects I would have gawked at as a student (and may or may not be gawking at now)? Clearly, this is coming from a person who has never had to create a lesson plan in her life and, obviously this is a challenge for me. However, I have decided lately that I like challenges and these teachers only serve as an inspiration for me to find ways to think outside the box. Every child learns in different ways; some find traditional schooling stimulating (otherwise, where would all these creative teachers come from?) and some thrive in these new-trend schools like the HTH. The ultimate goal would be to have these different types of schools available to every child so they can find what is right for them.

Happy Medium

I won't lie; I hate technology. Admittedly, my life would not be half as awesome as it is without some of the advancements I have been privy to my entire time on this earth. I have noticed that I am the youngest person in the class which will give some the false impression that I know more about these things than most others in the class but this is a lie. As a result of my strong dislike of computers and everything that goes wrong with them, my friends are constantly showing me basic resources that I had no idea existed which are, in fact, quite helpful. That is the main thing I think I will get out of this class; even if I don't use all of the things we learn in this class in my classroom (whenever I finally do get into one), I will have at least been exposed to them and know that they are available to me. Honestly, I do realize that technology can help students learn their material. My only fear is that I forget this information as a result of my stubborn mindset that students' lives should not revolve around their computers. Finding a happy medium between using technology in the classroom and learning in traditional ways is one of my goals for the semester.