Chapter 10-15 Reflection
In McLaughlin’s chapters 10-15 the topics all cover different types of ways to educate students in the content area. These different areas defined are writing, technology, inquiry-based learning, multiple modes of representation, assessing, evaluating, reporting and meeting challenges to continue successful learning in professional development. Each part of these readings will give insight on how to assist and teach our content area successfully outside of reading.
Writing in the Content Areas
Writing in the content area is a route for them to think in print, and it plays a dynamic job in our instructing. Writing in the content area is done by using two points that was examined and discussed in the writing. The two perspectives that are listed are formal and informal writing. Informal writing occurs in the class and is typically a “draft-stage writing.” Formal writing are long-term projects (McLaughlin, 2015).
Informal Writing
McLaughlin describes informal writing, “as a way for a student to share their thoughts on the content area, prior knowledge, the way they respond o learning and the role of writing in the application of reading (2015, p177).” For my students we use a method McLaughlin list to be the write and sketch in math and science method. I have my students listen to the problem. After that, I will give my students time to paraphrase the problem. They then divide the paper in half. On the left side I will have them write the story of what they feel the problem states. On the right side they will illustrate the problem.
Formal Writing
Formal writing, according to McLaughlin, is done in performance-based projects. There are four types of the writing: Narrative Writing, Informational Writing, Argumentative Writing and Inquiry-based Writing. My students rarely have formal writing projects, but the book gives insight that I feel could be a great assist for my students. There is an interesting method of travelogues. It is a way to put students in the shoes of a mathematician. This will assist them in understanding the thinking process of the mathematician.
For math it can be a little different in the writing strategy. I typically use vocabulary writing and the write and sketch method with my students. This allows them to see a bigger picture of what they are learning. I am open to any other methods to join writing into my content area.
Technology in the Content Area
Technology integration in the content area has been a fast-growing practice. The Internet is what has assisted in the change in the 21st century. There are many benefits in the use of technology. McLaughlin list these benefits as:
- “Making topics more real
- Linking disciplines
- Promoting collaboration
- Lending immediacy to inquiry and data sharing
- Promoting higher-level thinking
- Deepening students’ understanding of research
- Helping students learn that content areas involve questions and answers
- Promoting inquiry
- Encouraging learning in a social context
- Promoting discussion at multiple levels. (2015, p. 202)”
Technology can increase the way our students do many things with reading, writing and learning being the main things. It is a natural part of the process of teaching students and while using it there is an improvement in both online and offline reading. In this chapter they discuss the integration of technology and some guidelines that go with it. The design process must use the steps:
- Think broadly
- Use an appropriate form of technology
- Always have a backup plan
- Incorporate technology as seamlessly as possible.
In my classroom we don’t use much technology in math, because the other classes they take are all online. For my child, and his class, they use the math game Prodigy. This game uses the student’s knowledge over the different levels of math to fight an opponent. It is a fun and educational way to enhance the student’s knowledge. Technology integration in a content area have many benefits for readers, writers and all learners.
Inquiry-Based Learning
The learning of the past was a process that was routine and had test and quizzes as activities. There was not much interaction and the questions came from the teacher or the text. McLaughlin states that, “knowledge is assumed to exist or be encoded within texts. The role of the teacher is to manage the delivery of this knowledge, and the role of the learner is to absorb as much as possible (2015, p220).” Today it is necessary for the teachers and students to be critical thinkers that can come up with meaningful questions and figure out many ways to problem solve as well as being able to integrate correct content.
Math students in my classroom use problem-based learning. This method allows them to solve real-world problems. The problem is typically a word problem that suggest limited information that the students must draw from to successfully complete the problem. There are four stages that McLaughlin states characterizes problem-based learning. These stages are:
- Engaging students
- Inquiry and Investigation
- Solution products
By utilizing these steps and this process students can “refine their reasoning abilities, collaborate skills and engage in self-directed searches for solutions (McLaughlin, 2015).”
Multiple Modes of Representation
As teachers we have many goals and among these are to make sure our students have understanding. There are multiple ways of expressing responses ensuring that we, and our students, have understanding. McLaughlin list these modes as, “poetry, drama, music and art (2015, p238).” These are all ways of a student expressing their thoughts. These multiple forms revel our unique natures and encourage us to share our ideas in the most meaningful way. Writing in the content area is a route for them to think in print, and it plays a dynamic job in our instructing. Writing in the content area is done by using two points that was examined and discussed in the writing. The two perspectives that are listed are formal and informal writing. This allows our students to expand their communication and support their understanding.
My students use acrostic poems to understand more meaning in terms of what the properties of math represent. They use drawings to connect to the problem. Sometimes pictures allow them to see the problems differently. There is another mode I have seen but not used in my class. My son, however has shown me what his teacher does. She used the popular song “In my feelings” by Drake. She changed the words to show a connection with math. The song is:
“Kiki do you love math, are you trying. Say you never ever stop multiplying, cause you love math and you need math and I’m always down to teach you always.”
This and the other methods used by the students broaden the understanding of the content and assist us in making it memorable and fun.
Assessment, Evaluation and Reporting
Assessment is apart of teaching no matter what content area. Assessment then leads to Evaluation or grading and that leads to reporting. The term assessment, according to McLaughlin, “is the gathering and synthesizing of information concerning students learning. The term evaluation is making judgements about students’ learning (2015, p 259).” These three practices off us insight to how the student learns. They are supportive in the student’s engagement in inquiry-based learning, different methods of expressing understanding and their critical and creative thinking. This is a time-consuming process, but it allows us a way to understand how we should design curriculum, instruction and ultimate goals.
I teach at the Alpine Christian School. There we do not follow the typical assessment of state standardized testing. They do a form of standard testing, but it is a bit different. This is my first-year teaching there, and I have yet to see how we conduct this type of testing. Though the testing may be different they are evaluated, to understand where the students stand, and they are put in the student’s records. There is a form of formative assessments that my students do in class. This is the performance assessment that use inspiration, content knowledge, thinking process and reliable task. This assessment offers us as teachers to understand where our students stand and allow us to revise how we teach the content area.
Challenges and continuing to Learn through Professional Development
The final chapter discusses three main topics. Feeling success in our teaching, participating in a mentoring program, and engaging in professional development. We may experience difficulties amid our educating careers. Our success includes foundation information, how well we know our students, how we give motivation to them, how we instruct them and urge them to apply what they have learned. In order to be successful, we must be able to learn from others.
Mentoring is a part of teaching and it is a way to assist new and unexperienced teachers. Mentoring also can assist students. We can put together a student that is more knowledgeable with a student who is not understanding the topic. Together they can help the student with less knowledge gain more understanding. This is a process that works great for students and teachers alike. Another way to have success as an educator is to gain professional development.
Professional development is an essential part of content area teaching. It assists in allowing us, as educators the ability to learn. Learning is apart of everything we do and is essential for us as educators because we must be professional learners.
McLaughlin says it best when she states, “education is a social process, it is a unique journey for each of us-one fortified by ever-growing knowledge in an ever-changing world (2015, p297).” Even after we gain degrees and advance our knowledge we must keep learning and go through different methods to do so. I am currently apart of the post-bacc certification process. After I complete the courses I must work on a year of mentoring or internship teaching. Once I finish that I will be able to teach, but the schools will also provide me with other means of gaining new knowledge that will be brought to the table. The education world is ever changing and because of this we must be able and willing to learn it, even after our degrees. To be the best teachers, we must always learn the new methods for our students, we must get mentored by those with more experience in these methods and we must be able to find ways to be successful as teachers.
Resources
- McLaughlin, M. (2015). Content area reading: Teaching and learning for college and career readiness(2nd ed.). Boston: Pearson.