Formative assessment and better approach to labs....

WHAT AM I DOING TO HELP KIDS ACHIEVE?

HOW DO I KNOW WHEN THEY ARE THERE?

WHAT IS THE EVIDENCE?

     I hate to dwell on this topic but it is a big deal.  How can I best get kids to where they need to be?  Formative assessment helps find out where they are.  As a teacher I do not want to waste time teaching them stuff they already know.  I also cannot assume ANYTHING about prior knowledge with kids today.  Formative assessment is a big word that says, "How can I figure out what they already do or do not know?"  It can be a blessing and a curse....it helps to know where I need to start but it could also mean I need to reinvent the wheel on the fly.

     So here is attempt number 453....I plan on giving a "clicker" quiz at the beginning of the unit with the purpose figuring out where they are.  I told my Accelerated kids to do two short flipped assignments on gas laws.  They will come in and answer 12 questions with open notes on the flipped assignments.  The purpose is not to grade it but to figure out where I am starting and adjust accordingly...

     Mike Geyer had a great inquiry idea from an AP workshop.  He had a teacher "tweak" a lab.  She said that you should ask a bunch of questions, do it on different color paper, use a different font and provide some time to explore.  Here is the crazy part.  I plan on doing inquiry with Academic lab on .....the Bunsen Burner.  I plan to demo a little to go over safety.  Students will be provided with the following lab.

Let’s Burn Stuff  (SAFELY)

Can you light a match?

Can you make the flame BIG?

Can you make the flame SMALL?

Can you make a blue flame?

Can you make an orange flame?

What are the different parts?

What do the different parts do?

What is the hottest part of the flame?  How do you know?

What parts of the burner should you NOT touch?

What parts of the burner are SAFE to touch?

Teams will have to answer 8 of the ten questions. I will first demonstrate strict safety procedures and then let them go. The first day they will have to get data to answer the questions and demonstrate proficiency with the Bunsen burner. The second day they will have to put their information on a poster. I will keep you posted.

Formative Assessment take II....

WHAT AM I DOING TO HELP KIDS ACHIEVE?

HOW DO I KNOW WHEN THEY ARE THERE?

WHAT IS THE EVIDENCE?

     O.K....I know that "formative assessment" is important.  The idea is this..at some point during the unit lesson, preferably at the start or midway through, it is important to collect data to see where the kids are at with their understanding.  Then, based on the data, I as the teacher decide if I need to go ahead or go to "plan B" and maybe reteach some content.  

     In theory, this sounds great and makes sense.  The problem arises when you have minutes, or less than 24 hours, to come up with a reasonably good "plan B".  How much time should I spend on it?  How much is enough?  What if I get behind or ahead of other classes?  What if I am not on the same page as the other teachers in the same subject?  Quickly, things can become difficult for the well intentioned teacher.

     Here is where technology can help.  The other day we were finishing up a unit on the periodic table.  I put together about eleven questions in a google presentation.  The students came in and I told them they would be taking a review quiz that is open note.  Extra points would go on their test which was to be the next day.  They would not lose points for wrong answers and get points for correct answers.  As we were going over each question with a clicker response system, I could immediately see how the class was doing as a whole.  I decided that if about 80% or better responded correctly, I would just say good job and keep going. If, as a class, less than 80% got the correct answer, I would stop and go into detail about the correct response and possible misconceptions.   Students got immediate feedback after each question.  Time was not spent on the items they did know, but more on the items they did not know.  Also, the presentation was "shared" with them so they had a mini review in their google drives waiting for them when it came time to study.  Students seemed to be engaged and responding.  I was able to provide specific feedback without going crazy.  It will be interesting to see how they do on the test.....

Formative assessments and coming up with good reviews....

WHAT AM I DOING TO HELP KIDS ACHIEVE?

HOW DO I KNOW WHEN THEY ARE THERE?

WHAT IS THE EVIDENCE?

     Exit tickets.  They are a nice way to quickly find out where the kids are at.  I gave each student a post it note.  I told them that they could write down one thing that they were "clear" about or one "question".  They did not have to put their name on it but they had to either post it on the "clear" paper or the "question" paper by the door as they leave.

     At the end of the day I had six papers (3 bells) covered with post it notes.  It was very clear what the "questions" were.  The majority of the students were struggling with predicting reactions that involved certain decomposition reactions.

     And here lies the problem...I have the data....I know what the students are struggling with.....and I have less than 24 hours to come up with a meaningful review assignment that adequately addresses their misconceptions.  It is tough but I know that I have to try...so I come some problems as quickly as possible over a difficult concept.  It is not perfect but it is better than nothing.  We do the problems and it is good first bell but better second bell.

     So what could I have done differently?  I have this idea.  Maybe there is a way to efficiently use technology to differentiate instruction.  Here is the idea...maybe I could come up problems that are "hard", "medium" and "easy" in google drive.  Then, I could click "send" to each class based on the questions and problems that they are having.  It would take some planning but I think it is possible.

Vocabulary, Formative Assessment and Front Loading

WHAT AM I DOING TO HELP KIDS ACHIEVE?

HOW DO I KNOW WHEN THEY ARE THERE?

WHAT IS THE EVIDENCE?

     O.K.....I know that I swore to keep away from edubable but here goes.  It took me about a quarter to figure out my academic kids.  I know good teaching is good teaching but every group of kids has their own way of doing thing and I need to be aware of that.

     So here is what I have tried and it seems to work well.  First...vocabulary.  I know that I am not the best at it in the past and I know that it is important.  During my summer work in a lab at Miami I knew that if I did not learn a whole new set of vocabulary, I never would have been able to get past day one.  So first, I made a list, put it in google docs and shared it with the students  (check out this link).

     Students are given a vocabulary list and assignment.   The rule is that they have to define the term and they must have an example, picture or analogy.  They can (and often do) cut copy and paste the definition but the example, picture or analogy forces students to do a bit more thinking.

    Next, there is a quizlet link.  Finally, there is a google survey  .  I tell students to take this survey as fast as possible.  They see each word and simply put down a 1 or 5 based on how well they think they know the word.  Finally, I can see the results and go over the "top 5" that confuse students.  I tried it with the "Classification of Matter".  I quickly discovered that the two top words the students struggled with were "intensive properties" and "extensive properties".   I can do a quick assessment with the clickers.  I will see how this goes on the next chapter (the periodic table) and report back.

Slow but sure...

WHAT AM I DOING TO HELP KIDS ACHIEVE?

HOW DO I KNOW WHEN THEY ARE THERE?

WHAT IS THE EVIDENCE?

     Students came in set for lab.  I controlled the balances.  They received a known hydrate and test tube.  They had to predict the exact mass of the anhydrous salt and test tube before they weighed it and I controlled the scales.  Most teams came within 5 %.  They then had to find the ratio of salt to water in an unknown hydrate and they could only ask one question (what is the molar mass of the unknown).  Again, most students did well but struggled in the lab write up to explain the story of the experiment.  

     In Academic we did the classification of matter activity from Flinn ( an excellent activity).  First, they saw models of mixtures, elements and compounds on the board.  Next, they made a variety of models with paper clips and had to I.D. them (nice formative assessment).  Third, they identified and classified the models on paper and then were able to begin to classify reactions going from model to model.

    Overall, I was happy with academic.  I had the chance to go to table to table, ask about their models and if they could classify them.  The Flinn elearning series is some of the best chemical education around.  It is the best of the best.  Still working on the lab format with the tri folds.  I feel as if kids are going through the motions in most cases.

    Next week we are doing reactions in Accelerated.  I have a reactivity of metals lab but I found a great simulation from Greenbowe on reactivity of metals.  Research says that simulations do not replace labs, but they do enhance labs.  I plan on doing the simulation first and then the lab.  I will keep you posted....

Moles, Moles and more Moles.....

WHAT AM I DOING TO HELP KIDS ACHIEVE?

HOW DO I KNOW WHEN THEY ARE THERE?

WHAT IS THE EVIDENCE?

    Here is the deal...with both Academic and Accelerated...no matter what I do I feel like when we hit real math applications in chemistry, either the kids get it or they do not.  Both classes were tested on moles...there were either A's or D's and F's but little in between.  So now what?  Keep going and try to not do the same thing twice if it does not work.

     On another note, I hope to do  bit of an inquiry lab.  On day one students are going to be given copper(II)sulfate.  They can have the mass of the test tube and hydrate.  They will have to show me the calculations and predict what the mass of the anhydrous salt is.  On day two they will be given an unknown.  They are allowed to ask me one question that will allow them to calculate the mole to mole ratio of the salt to water (what is the formula does not count).

     So what do I do when some kids don't get it????  Go to twitter, ask for help on teaching moles and keep trying.

Cool Mole Lab

WHAT AM I DOING TO HELP KIDS ACHIEVE?

HOW DO I KNOW WHEN THEY ARE THERE?

WHAT IS THE EVIDENCE?

     Did a cool mole lab from Flinn Scientific.  I found it through their free elearning series.  It was one by Bob Becker.  Students had to solve conversion problems with moles, find the amounts in the room, measure out the correct amount and then bring it to me and I would check for accuracy.  The closer they got to the correct answer, the better the grade.  They also had to show their work.  It went well and I plan on doing this with Academic with a slight modification as part of their test.  I would encourage anyone to check out the Flinn E-learing series.  It has been a gold mine of teacher tested activities.  The best part is that it is free.  There was a high level of engagement and excitement when the students met their goal and curiosity when they did not.  Here is some evidence below.

  I would give both of these a big thumbs up.  Hope to try it with Academic this week.  I will let you know how it goes....

Searching for skills and understanding....

WHAT AM I DOING TO HELP KIDS ACHIEVE?

HOW DO I KNOW WHEN THEY ARE THERE?

WHAT IS THE EVIDENCE?

     Found a really cool activity from the Flinn elearning series.  Bob Becker does a great activity in dimensional analysis and moles.  He has several mole problems in which not only do students have to do the correct dimensional analysis, but then they have to get the material and bring it to him.  He measures it and gets instant feedback.  

     Here would be a sample question.  "Find 1.80 moles of water and bring it to the instructor."  Think about this..the other way of doing this might state the problem, "How many grams is 1.80 moles of water?"  Students would simply do the conversion and be done.  The new way students would have to ask, "What unit would the answer be in?  How would I go from grams to milliliters?"  Also, they would have to have a skill of carefully measuring out the milliliters.  Students bring the volume of water up to the instructor in a cup.  The instructor pours it into a graduated cylinder and checks.  There is a spreadsheet the he or she can check which has the group number and then volumes that are exact, within 2%, 5% and 10% (fewer points are given to the least accurate).  This new method incorporates the actual process of dimensional analysis, the skills of measuring and immediate feedback.  It is a "power punch"  of good teaching.  I hope to give it a shot tomorrow...I will let you know how it goes....

Quick diagnostic tools and inquiry...

WHAT AM I DOING TO HELP KIDS ACHIEVE?

HOW DO I KNOW WHEN THEY ARE THERE?

WHAT IS THE EVIDENCE?

     Tried a couple of things this week.  First, I started using the "clicker" response system.  In one case I gave students a fast intro to scientific notation (pretty sure most of them have had it).  I then gave them a 7 question "quiz" over scientific notation.  If they got 100% then they did not have homework.  If they did not get 100%...then they had homework over scientific notation.  I would like to think it worked well...I think they go the idea.  I stole this idea from Mike Geyer.  I like the idea of getting quick data and adjusting instruction accordingly.

     I also used the clickers for a  homework check.  I pulled 5 questions from their homework.  I checked it by how they responded with the "clickers".  It was a quick fast way to check.

     The "salt sense" lab turned out O.K.  Again...some got it and some did not.  Here is some samples below.  You be the judge....

My goal for next week...dimensional analysis of fudge making and a Mole "POGIL"...I will keep you posted.

Tough Week...for other reasons

WHAT AM I DOING TO HELP KIDS ACHIEVE?

HOW DO I KNOW WHEN THEY ARE THERE?

WHAT IS THE EVIDENCE?

     I spent most of this week in the hospital with a sick kid...good news is she is getting better but it makes for a mentally and physically exhausting week.

     I think this week I am going to steal an idea from my friend Mike Geyer.  In Academic Chemistry he would give quick little diagnostic assessments as the students were working on scientific notation and other forms of dimensional analysis.  If they scored well and knew what they were doing they could move on, if not it meant more homework.  I kind of like this idea and am going to attempt it in Academic.  Sorry for such a short blog..but the well is running a bit dry.....

Good News...Sometimes Stuff works...

WHAT AM I DOING TO HELP KIDS ACHIEVE?

HOW DO I KNOW WHEN THEY ARE THERE?

WHAT IS THE EVIDENCE?

     Good news...sometimes stuff works.  I feel like I can chalk one up for inquiry science.

     First, I had parent teacher conferences....30 to be exact.  It was kind of like speed dating without the dating part.  One of the best parts is that at the last minute I brought the "scientific method" I am trying to use which we examined this summer at Miami.

  I showed this to parents and discussed that my experience in the lab tends to support this method.  I also wanted to let them know that although many students are struggling with labs, I was just trying to introduce at least one portion of each lab in which they would have to "think".  In other words, what happens if they cannot find the answer on Google?  To me...that is science.  The overwhelming majority of the parents were very supportive and faced this type of problem solving in their own jobs.

     Second, I tried a new lab with Academic.  They had to take as many measurements as possible with a graduated cylinder and a "mystery" liquid.  Then they had to predict the mass of their empty cylinder, a mass of a volume assigned at random and a volume of a mass assigned at random.  Each time they would bring up their prediction and graduated cylinder and we would immediately check their answers (this is a Flinn Activity).  They did well.  I asked them to write in words what was going on inside their head.  I was hoping for graphs but for many I could see that they were solving proportional reasoning problems without me having to tell them how.

     Finally, in Accelerated they had to find the density of a material without using a centigram balance (it is called on Archimedes Balance).  We frontloaded the problem (as we did in Academic with the "mystery" liquid problem) and it went rather well.  At one point only one or two groups had an idea.  I explained it was O.K. to share ideas and if their method worked so well, then they should easily be able to get someone elses answer for their object.  Each group had different objects.  The level of discussion and debate was well worth the time it took to pull this lab off.  Check out below.

     My goal next week is to introduce a "flipped" assignment.  It is not exactly inquiry but it might save me some time to do more labs and inquiry.  I will keep you posted......

Formative Instructional Practices....

WHAT AM I DOING TO HELP KIDS ACHIEVE?

HOW DO I KNOW WHEN THEY ARE THERE?

WHAT IS THE EVIDENCE?

     I never thought I would hear myself say this...I did the "Formative Instructional Practice" training required by the State of Ohio ODE.  It was actually pretty good.  If I can better learn how to do this I can be a better teacher.  Last week was a bit crazy..this week is brand new.  Here is what I am going to try.

      In accelerated we are working on a hard lab.  I am going to tell students, "We need to find the relationships between these variables" and then have them put post it notes on where they think they are...Good, Average, or kind of lost.  We will work in class and then review the post it notes.

     In Academic I am going to try a new activity where they will have to predict some masses and volumes.  We will work as a class and say, "What do you need to know to solve this problem?".  We will see how it goes....

     Sorry I do not have more to say..this week has been a blur and I am fighting to get back on track.

What to do when school gets crazy.....

WHAT AM I DOING TO HELP KIDS ACHIEVE?

HOW DO I KNOW WHEN THEY ARE THERE?

WHAT IS THE EVIDENCE?

     Next week we are doing "MAP" testing and an early release day.  The schedule is going to be crazy every day and every bell.  Even after view it in a spreadsheet, it is still confusing.  Never wanting to throw in the towel, I decided something crazy...

     We are going to be doing a lab every day.  I have to believe that any student who sits for a few hours taking a test probably does not want to sit for a minute longer and listen to me (shocking...I know...).  We are going to be doing a week long inquiry type activity in both classes.  First, in Academic, we are going to work on density and then see if we can tell the difference between regular "Salt" and "Salt Sense".  The difference is actually pretty cool...I would tell you but I do not want to give it away.

     Second, we will be looking at copper, aluminum and steel BB's in Accelerated and then trying to figure out if the "mystery metal" is one of them.  I told the kids, if you are in class for 20 minutes or 2 hours, get er done....just like in real life.  I hope to have copies for you to see next week.

Breathing and Being Overwhelmed....

WHAT AM I DOING TO HELP KIDS ACHIEVE?

HOW DO I KNOW WHEN THEY ARE THERE?

WHAT IS THE EVIDENCE?

     You would think after 20 years this might get a bit easier.  It seems that the "anxiety" closet opens up and as I think about all of the stuff I have to do on the "list" I get so overwhelmed that I can't do anything.  The goal is to stop, take a deep breath, and try and do the small things well...and to be O.K. with that..   So what are the small things?  It is all about the students.  It tried three things this week that I think worked well.

     First, safety is not the most fun thing in the world.  Flinn Scientific has a fun video for teachers and students.  The goal is to find all of the "wrong" stuff in the video that is unsafe.  Check it out HERE.  It is pretty good.

     Second, my experience from Miami has taught me the importance of vocabulary.  You need to learn the language to talk to the scientists.  I went to the online book, copied vocab terms and uploaded them into "Quizlet" (go to "quizlet.com").  Then, I stole an idea from Bob Marzano.  Instead of having students define every term, I had them go through the terms and definitions on quizlet.  They then took a quick survey on "google forms" that I made (check it out HERE).  The ideas is to rank the words in order of "Yes I know this..duh.." or " I have no clue on this term".  My job is to go and teach about the ones they said that they did not know well (it was mainly lab equipment which is not surprising).

     This week I hope to try to new ideas.  I am going to have Academic do a version of the "White Powder" activity along with a rubric as there final assessment in observation and conclusion.  Second, Accelerated will look at "Classification of Matter" by doing a Flinn activity that shows them models of elements and atoms on a macroscale.  I will report back next week....hopefully a bit calmer...

First Day and Getting Feedback

WHAT AM I DOING TO HELP KIDS ACHIEVE?

HOW DO I KNOW WHEN THEY ARE THERE?

WHAT IS THE EVIDENCE?

     I survived the first day.  I did the Flinn "Rainbow" demo from their e-learning series.  I would highly recommend this series to any chemistry teacher.  I had 6 solutions change color, talked about the parts of an experiment and how it can help us learn chemistry.  I wanted "evidence" of learning so each student got a post it note and were told they had to come up with a "question" about the class or write down something they were "clear" about and then post it on either side of the door.  I had a fare number of post its on both sides.  Most questions were about the amount of math or homework in the class....relatively honest first day questions.

    I did the "White Powder" activity with Accelerated Chemistry.  It was interesting.  They had a day to take a white powder that I provided and gather as much data as possible.  The next day I told them that they had one of three powders...A, B, or C (I had them around the room, calcium carbonate, corn starch and flour).  I told them that they could use there data from the previous day to repeat their experiments and observations and identify which powder they had the day before.  Only about 5 percent of the students wrote down the number on the cup that I gave them.  The quote of the day was, "You need to write down everything...you just don't know what is going to be important."  This was more like a formative assessment.  During the next labs I am going to try to focus heavily on data gathering and analysis.

     This week we are doing the Miami survey.  I hope to use this as a valid pre test.  The other idea I might investigate is the book "Mindset".  It talks about how people sometimes get in a certain mindset and what must happen to get out of that mindset if we want them to learn.  There is even a survey people can take (Bob Seiple and others turned me onto this).  I am going to tuck this away for future use.

Student quotes from the white powder experiment.

"Everything that seems unimportant becomes important when drawing a conclusion." L.R.

"Be thorough."  K.K 

Motivation on Day one

WHAT AM I DOING TO HELP KIDS ACHIEVE?

HOW DO I KNOW WHEN THEY ARE THERE?

WHAT IS THE EVIDENCE?

     I have been teaching for over 20 years.  I still get butterflies and nervous before the first day.  It is still a bit scary...I still feel like I just do not have it "right".

     We had a whole day of meetings last Friday.  I was tired at the end.  Julie Haverkos, our department chair, presented a little session on "Motivation".  It is base on the work by Kathleen Cushman ( check out https://nextgenpress.creatavist.com/story/524#/    and http://www.whatkidscando.org/featurestories/2013/01_how_youth_learn/ ).  Kathleen talked to a ton of kids about what motivates them and she came up with 8 basic ideas.  The interesting thing is that if I apply these to my own life, stuff that motivates me, it makes perfect sense.  Then Julie had us go through something in which we felt kids were a bit bored and we would want to motivate them.  Here are the eight ideas from Cushman's work.

1.  Feel O.K.  (Am I tired, distracted, upset?)
2.  It matters.  (When will I use this?)
3.  It is ACTIVE (Can I DO something with it?)

4.  Challenge (Is it hard but not too hard for me to succeed?)
5.  Coach (Is there someone there to help?)
6.  Use it or lose it.  (Can I practice it?)

7.  I think back on it. (Review)
8.  Plan next steps.

     I got to thinking.  The " problem of the days" (questions I start the class with) are great but sometimes kids do not take them as seriously as I want them to.  What could I do to motivate kids to do these?  I am going to start with the "burning water" demo and light something on fire that is hard to put out.  This will tie into the definition of chemistry.  They will have to get up and work in groups to solve the problem and we will constantly refer to the principles of combustion.  I hope that it will be a challenge.  You cannot put out burning water by adding more water...and we will use this demo in the future.  Hopefully if they are motivated I can try the same recipe each day.

     Another idea I have is the "question" of "clear" exit ticket.  I will provide each student with a post it note.  They must put down one thing in class that they are "clear" about or ask one "question" and turn in the post it note to get out of the class.  We will see what happens.....I hope it will be a fun and exciting year.

Ready or Not....

WHAT AM I DOING TO HELP KIDS ACHIEVE?

HOW DO I KNOW WHEN THEY ARE THERE?

WHAT IS THE EVIDENCE?

Ready or not...here they come.  As I face a new school year it also comes with a new closet full of anxieties...new teacher evaluations, bring your own device...working on inquiry..

     The bottom line is this...every day I have to try and create an educational moment for the students.  In trying to be an "inquiry" teacher. The idea is that students should learn science in kind of the same way in which it is done.  In the middle of the storm...focus on the students.

     So here is the plan...make the first day the most important day of the year.  The last thing that I want to do is to give the students tons of paperwork to fill out.  I also want to be able to set their mind at ease about the class and myself.  Here is my plan for the first day for academic and accelerated chemistry.
     First, I want to make sure they are in the right place and have instructions on the board about where they will sit and the information they are going to fill out on a card they will give me about themselves.  I want them to know that every day they come in that they need to start the "Problem of the Day".  The expectation is that each day we come in and start work.  Second, I am going to do the Flinn experiment with the 5 glasses of clear fluid that I turn into a rainbow.  I will be able to ask them about predictions and hypothesis and questions.  It will be a mini formative assessment.

     After this I plan on having the homework as a online assignment where they will get to know the procedures of the class.  Academic will start in on observations and conclusions and measuring.  We will probably do the candle lab and start with that in Accelerated as well.  In accelerated I will go into classification of matter, chemical reactions and then do the lab with copper(II) chloride and aluminum.  I certainly will use the flinn activity with this...and above all...probably have to stay flexible.  I will keep you posted.

Inquiring minds want to know.....

WHAT AM I DOING TO HELP KIDS ACHIEVE?

HOW DO I KNOW WHEN THEY ARE THERE?

WHAT IS THE EVIDENCE?

     Still at Miami University in Oxford.  Just now getting used to the lab and working on high end scientific problems.  Also just had an "Ah Ha" moment.  It boils down to this...if you are doing science research, everything is working, there are no problems and you understand what is going on...then it is really not science research.  There is no such thing as "good" or "bad" data..it is just data.

     And if this were not enough to blow my mind we are taking an educational seminar.  Part of the seminar is reading a book about inquiry, science and methods of teaching.  We are getting to the conclusion perhaps we might want to teach the topic of science in the same manner as it is done.  That would involve some changes.  Some of the book is the same ideas that have been repeated for some time ( Bloom's taxonomy, state standards and Piaget).  There was something that struck me though...what type of teacher do I really want to be?  I guess the reason it hit me is that about every 3-5 years there seems to be a renewed focus/problem in education.  It almost feels as if people are throwing spaghetti at the wall...let's try something and hope it sticks.  Given the continual cycles, what would happen if I come up with my own plan?  Here is what the author suggests (Teaching High School Science through Inquiry and Argumentation, Llewellyn).

     1. Build an understanding of inquiry.

     2. Develop on understanding of the change process.

     3.  Construct a mind-set for the emerging practices.

     4.  Translate new knowledge into practice.

     5.  Create a culture of inquiry.

     So if I bite, the question is, why?  I am not sure if this is going to work but at least there seems to be mounds of data and evidence that kids will do better if I am an inquiry teacher.  So let's look at question 1....

     Here is what I am going to run with (Flick and Lederman, 2006).

     "Inquiry stands for a fundamental principle of how modern science is conducted.  Inquiry refers to a variety of processes and ways of thinking that support the development of new knowledge about the processes scientists use to develop knowledge that is the nature of science itself.  Thus, inquiry is viewed as two different students outcomes, ability to do scientific processes and the knowledge about those processes."  Llewellyn suggests the third part is how the teacher helps.

     So it boils down to this...inquiry is what students know, what they can do, and how I can help them learn science by doing science.  Now I just have to figure out the "change" part.....

Adventures in Learning...as a Teacher

WHAT AM I DOING TO HELP KIDS ACHIEVE?

HOW DO I KNOW WHEN THEY ARE THERE?

WHAT IS THE EVIDENCE?

     I know this might not have much to do with the three questions.  O.K. ...maybe it does..  I am currently working at Miami University for six weeks in a lab trying to use Raman spectroscopy to ultimately look at important molecules in nature.  You are probably correct in thinking that this is a bit above the head and curriculum of the current high school student.  You are correct.  So why do it and how can it help kids in the classroom?

     If I look at "What am I doing to help kids achieve?" one item might be a simple word...empathy.  First, this is a highly technical field.  I am definitely a fish out of water.  I spent three months trying to familiarize myself with terms and vocabulary, forgot some of it as I was finishing up the year and then showed up on the first day of work.  About a third of the time on the first day the fog barely lifted and I was able to string along a few coherent statements and questions that were barely intelligent.  You can imagine what the other two-thirds were like.

      Here is the good news...I now am getting a much better understanding of what kids go through in chemistry.  So what can I do to help them?  First, insist that they help themselves.  They have to bring something to the table.  They should be able to define a few vocabulary terms to help them conceptualize some of the terms we will use over and over.  It is called front loading.

     Second, it helps to be nice and to understand I can learn from anyone.  Dr. Scaffidi is very patient.  He cares about learning and helping people see what happens inside the "black box".  One of the nicest and most intelligent people in the group is a Junior (soon to be Senior) who has been doing research here for three years.  He is about 20 years my junior but that does not matter.  He, along with all the people in the group, are extremely kind and helpful with all of my questions...even the two-thirds that are not too good.

     Finally, be persistent.  Do not give up.  Life is hard.  Sometimes there is no app for that.  Keep going.  That being said, I need to sign off and get to work.....

Humble Pie, New Beginnings and Is Knowledge Obsolete?

WHAT AM I DOING TO HELP KIDS ACHIEVE?

HOW DO I KNOW WHEN THEY ARE THERE?

WHAT IS THE EVIDENCE?

      Well, the data is in....I spoke to a grad student at Miami University who number crunched my data of pre and post test.  Essentially, there is good and bad news.  The good news is students improved.  The bad news is not by very much.  There could be many reasons for this.  First and foremost I have to figure that I, as their teacher, have a huge amount of control about the learning that goes on in the classroom.  That is what I can control so that is what I need to worry about.  I could yell, complain or rationalize away the results but honestly...I hate when students do just that. So what do I do now?????

     First, I need to incorporate more questions that involve, "What is the answer?" and "WHY is it the right answer?"  Coming up with the correct answer can be done in seconds on Google.  But WHY is it the right answer develops a new level of understanding.  There is not much out there that involves scientific reason specifically for chemistry.

     Second, keep up with labs but less cook book labs.  I really believe that the tri fold presentation approach (which I have shown and discussed in previous blog entries) is the way to go.  It forces kids at all levels to try and decide and ask "What is a good hypothesis?",  "What do I need to do to be safe?", "How should my data table look?  What data is important?", "Is there a connection between my hypothesis and results?",  "What is a reasonable conclusion based on the data?"

     Vocabulary...I have gotten away from it but I am going back..In the Miami program we were forced to work through extremely technical scientific articles.  It started out as if I was reading Greek.  Slowly I began to learn what some of the words and terms meant (thank you "google scholar").  A few key terms were used over and over and things started making sense.  The experience provided understanding and empathy for what students go through.  

     So...three things I can do....two part questions that involve reasoning....less cook book labs... and incorporating vocabulary.

     My next idea (really more of a question).  Is knowledge obsolete?  Here is the idea...I had students do problems on an online homework service (University of Texas homework service).  It is used by many schools, provides instant feedback and allows me to see how students are doing on certain topics.  One minor problem...just for fun I pulled up some college level problems and just for the heck of it pasted them into google.  I got 100% correct without ever reading the question.  So, is knowing how to use Google more important than knowledge????

Rounding Third and Heading for Home....Hopefully...

WHAT AM I DOING TO HELP KIDS ACHIEVE?

HOW DO I KNOW WHEN THEY ARE THERE?

WHAT IS THE EVIDENCE?

     Sorry if I have been away for awhile.  Fourth quarter is a bit crazy.  Having to deal with all of the crazy schedules, seniors, "summer-itis" and my own kids....at this point I am glad to keep my head above water.  The tank is running pretty dry..

     So here is the question..how to keep going and providing meaningful content when it is tough to grab their attention?  How can you teach kids when the schedule is so crazy that many of them are not their (sophomore debates...AP testing....State sports matches...).  Here is one idea.  One of my goals is to "flip" the classroom 4th quarter.  Bottom line, information and lectures will be for homework, problems and labs will be done in class.   If you know that you cannot be there, at least you can get the basics.  Another strategy I am going to try is to come up with a new book.  Our books are falling apart and we have been told that we are not getting new ones.  The good news is that the state of California created free online text books that anyone can use, alter or make their own as long as they are not going to use them to make money and as long as they will be used for educational purposes.  In some ways they are better than the online books that are purchased.  They provide good content and no frills.  Also, you have permission to edit them to make them your own.  Seeing as how they are free...the price is right.  Check out this link....CK-12.org.  Finally, I am still sold on the "tri-folds" when doing labs.  Even during fourth quarter when it is almost impossible to grab their attention, I have had more kids argue about what the hypothesis should be for the lab.

     Now the big question...how do I know kids are learning?  What is the evidence?  Thanks to the target inquiry program from Miami University (project TIMU), I gave the students three "pre tests" in September and the same three "post tests" in May.  One test was on chemistry, one on scientific reasoning (they had to provide a correct answer and the correct reason) and one on attitude.  Preliminary results show that they increased on their chemistry and reasoning but went south on their attitude (both academic and accelerated classes).  The results are still preliminary and I am going to run them through more statistical analysis.  It is encouraging that they are learning but discouraging that their attitude about science is worse.  This will be the topic of my summer research.  It also gives me a place to start to work on for improvement.

Inquiry, SOLE and the future of learning....

WHAT AM I DOING TO HELP KIDS ACHIEVE?

HOW DO I KNOW WHEN THEY ARE THERE?

WHAT IS THE EVIDENCE?

     We decided to sneak in a little bit of "heat" activities.  I thought I would try an inquiry activity with Academic Class.  I posed this challenge...."Can you find the amount of food calories in a food item that I bring in without looking at the lable?"  We talked about any questions they had and what they thought they knew about heat.  It was pretty impressive.  Most kids asked good questions such as "What is heat?  How are calories measured?" and not "How do we do this?".  I then showed them the video chemistry book at VESPR.org (check out this link).  It was perfect.  There was a great video on calorimetry that answered most of their questions.  They had to create a "tri fold" and design the experiment.  Most students did well.....even without this being in the lab manual.  They were fighting over the "hypothesis" and figured out how many chips to burn or water to use.  So why do they need a teacher???.....

    Good question.  What happened was a SOLE or self organizing learning environment.  There is essentially mounting evidence that suggests that kids learn non stop despite our best efforts.  There has been some amazing experiments done on learning with the poorest of the poor kids in India.  They learned with very little help from anyone but themselves and a computer in a foreign language...no kidding.  It was incredibly advanced learning.  It was found that after awhile, they hit a snag.  The key was not having a teacher but instead an adult who did nothing more but continued to encourage them....makes you wonder if sometimes it is all about relationships......  If you want to know more about SOLE or this incredible study...check out this link.  Be prepared to have you mind blown...looking back, I think it is what my kids did when they tried to figure out the calories in some food.  Check out the pics below.

Some times...you need to just keep going...

WHAT AM I DOING TO HELP KIDS ACHIEVE?

HOW DO I KNOW WHEN THEY ARE THERE?

WHAT IS THE EVIDENCE?

     I was going to compare this year to running the last few miles of a marathon.  However considering what has happened in Boston, I am sure anyone who experienced that truly horrific event would have much rather been in a class teaching kids.  My heart and prayers go out to them.  Having run a marathon, all I could do is cry when I heard the news.

     So how do we put one foot in front of another when we just feel like tossing in the towel.  I am not sure I have wisdom in this area.  The only thing that works for me is to try and take risks and have fun.  Sometimes it works and sometimes you get burned.

     We were doing Lewis dot structures.  It was a  beautiful day outside.  I was going to have the kids go to stations and put answers on dry erase boards.  I stole an idea from Mike Geyer who in turn stole this from twitter.  I bought some sidewalk chalk and we went outside and put the  answers on the sidewalk.  The kids liked it and I made sure to go around and check the answers.  Some got more out if it than others...kind of like throwing spaghetti on a fridge...some sticks and some does not.  I had some great questions and one or two goof balls.  At least it was worth a try.  Some days we just need to remind ourselves to keep moving forward when we get overwhelmed with everything else.  Here is the key.  Lewis Dot Structure Key.

     Remember to pray for Boston....

The Role of Misconceptions in science...especially when it happens to a teacher...

WHAT AM I DOING TO HELP KIDS ACHIEVE?

HOW DO I KNOW WHEN THEY ARE THERE?

WHAT IS THE EVIDENCE?

     I am in the Target Inquiry Program at Miami University.   It is one of the most comprehensive RET experiences that exists.  We ( a cohort of 12 teachers) are taking a class on modern research methods.  We will then spend the summer working with a scientist.  Our goal is to do research this summer, write an abstract and present at a conference.  Next, we will then spend next year doing the same thing but with educational research and finally do an action research project in our classrooms.

     We are now learning to take complicated technical articles from science journal and word for word translate them in a way that an undergraduate can understand.  It is hard but fascinating.  I will be doing Raman spectroscopy this summer.  I have spent the last two weeks reading reams of papers on Raman spectroscopy.  I was so proud of myself because I felt like I was working the research process (thanks "google scholar") and getting the basic ideas. You can imagine how I felt when I got to class and found out that one of my basic ideas that I felt I was sure about was....completely wrong.  I couldn't believe how I was able to think that I understood so much and could explain so much with a wrong idea.  It was kind of scary.  It was like the phrase, "believing is seeing".  I believed something so much I was seeing what I wanted to see.

     Here is the question...how often do our students do that and how important is it for us to uncover misconceptions?  Page Keeley has books about beginning formative assessment and uncovering misconceptions.  I have used them with great success and I think I will try to get back to using them.  Essentially, you provide examples of some science and answers that contain the truth and also contain common misconceptions.  It is interesting to take 5 minutes and find out what kids know or do not know from the start.

     In case you would like to know about Raman spectroscopy and hopefully take care of misconceptions, then check out my presentation.

Technology can be great when it work......

WHAT AM I DOING TO HELP KIDS ACHIEVE?

HOW DO I KNOW WHEN THEY ARE THERE?

WHAT IS THE EVIDENCE?

     So what is the evidence that students are learning????  I was doing the "mini posters" in both academic and in accelerated chemistry.  It is hard to describe the results because it was mostly anecdotal.  The discussions about hypothesis, data tables and conclusions seemed to me to be so much richer than in the past.  I wanted to continue this.  One problem I was having is that I was flying through file folders.  I decided to create a lab "template" on google docs.  I then "shared" a copy with the class that they could only "view".  They had to make a copy of it, rename it and "share" it with their partner.  This way they could both work on it anytime they wanted.

     The lab was about acid base properties.  It was a typical lab in which students go around checking household chemicals with litmus, pH paper and an indicator and they then have to tell if products are acidic, basic and the advantages and disadvantages of the methods.  I had them do the lab and record the data on paper.  We did not have the pH probes or goldenrod paper so I had them use pH paper.  On day two, I sent them the following link:  Further Information about this Lab

     I explained to them that even the best scientist in the world are often submit a paper to be published and are told, "Sorry...you have to prove your point 5 different ways."  The extra resources are the 5 different way.  Students then turned in a hard copy of the data and some questions and then submitted the electronic copy online.

     The cool part about this is that one of the best labs is from a kid who struggled last quarter.  For some reason he really "connected" with the online portion (or maybe it was connecting with his partner...) but he did an awesome job.  If I could only figure out a way to keep it going....check out his lab below

Student Lab

Maybe it is working.....

WHAT AM I DOING TO HELP KIDS ACHIEVE?

HOW DO I KNOW WHEN THEY ARE THERE?

WHAT IS THE EVIDENCE?

    So we did the mini posters on intermolecular forces.  To quickly summarize...here was the lab.  The class broke up into groups.  Each group did several trials on the evaporation of one chemical.  The six chemicals were four alcohols and two alkanes.  Essentially, the fewer intermolecular forces and less hydrogen bonding lead to faster evaporation and a huge quick drop in temperature (big difference between the maximum temp and minimum temperature).  More intermolecular forces (more weight and more hydrogen bonding) found that it took a long time for evaporation to occur and small change in temperature.

     So I gave a short answer question on a test.  They were presented with lab data for the change in temperature when methanol, ethanol and propanol evaporates and had to identify which data fit with the respective chemical.  Most students got it right.  Then I asked them where methane would be on the graph and they also got that right.  There is an interesting feature...I forgot to tell first bell the structure of methane yet they were mostly able to correctly deduce it and get the correct answer.  Is it due to the flipped assignment on naming and IMF?  Was it due more to the student centered lab???  Not sure..but something appears to be working on a small level....

If learning were a crime...would there be evidence?

WHAT AM I DOING TO HELP KIDS ACHIEVE?

HOW DO I KNOW WHEN THEY ARE THERE?

WHAT IS THE EVIDENCE?

     Just got done with a weird state testing week.  The schedule was messed up every day and it usually is not a good idea to lecture or test kids after they have a 2.5 hour standardize test.  I decided to do labs in every class.  We did the "mini" poster presentation in Accelerated on a inter molecular force lab with data about evaporation of different solvents.  It is tough to put into words qualitative evidence.  The discussion and engagement was very good and their discussions were better than ones that I could have started.  Below is a sample lab...

     Another idea I stumbled upon with the help of Learn 21 and Chris Gutermuth is the idea of "google forms".  We have tried to have "pre lab" quizzes in the past.  Blackboard has not always worked well with examview.  It has been a struggle to do it effectively.  I think I found a nice way for "quick and dirty" simple quizzes or formative assessment type quizzes.

     In "Google Forms" it is easy to make a simple quiz that is multiple choice, matching or true false.  You can then send the link to a site or students.  A required question is "What is your name and student number?"  After students take it can click on the form and all the questions and answers pop up in a spreadsheet.  You can then "insert script" and search for one called "flubaroo".  It will automatically grade the quiz and provide a complete breakdown.  This might be helpful for pre lab quizzes.  It will not grade short answers but those might be ones that I do not grade but ask, "What is confusing about this lab....???" so I can quickly get an idea of what kids are not sure about.  This might also be nice for a quick "homework" quiz.  I will try it and let you know...here is a link for a quiz.  Sample Quiz HERE!  (Don't worry...I won't hold your grade against you...).

Baby steps and Inquiry....

WHAT AM I DOING TO HELP KIDS ACHIEVE?

HOW DO I KNOW WHEN THEY ARE THERE?

WHAT IS THE EVIDENCE?

     Had a great class the other night at Miami University Target Inquiry program the other night.  How do we help kids achieve through inquiry?  Dr. Yerzierski quoted a person who wrote a NSTA book (I'll get the name latter)...take baby steps.  Take a typical lab that we do and take off the data table.  Take another lab and have kids develop their own hypothesis.  On the next lab, give them only part of the data and have them get the rest from another group.

     I am now coming up on one of the toughest times of the year.  We are hitting OGT week, one more week and then spring break.  Kids are struggling and starting to shut down.  We are doing a evaporation lab next week.  I am having the students do mini posters, collect a small portion of data repeatedly and then get other sample data from other groups.  They have to also develop their own hypothesis.  Is it baby steps or jumping off a cliff?  I will let you know next week...

Snow Days, the Internet, and the Zombi Apocaplyse

WHAT AM I DOING TO HELP KIDS ACHIEVE?

HOW DO I KNOW WHEN THEY ARE THERE?

WHAT IS THE EVIDENCE?

     Funny thing about snow days...they actually give you time to think.  Question number 1...why bother learning facts when we have the internet or an app for that?  A student who struggles a bit in math showed me this cool app.  He writes the math problem with his finger, it is converted to text and the answer appears.  So if this exists and my son is learning his math facts, why should he bother when there is an app for that?  One reason comes to mind, his life (hopefully) will outlast the life of the device so therefore he may not always be able to depend on it.

     Here is another point that Rob Mancabelli asked.  Why bother with a traditional school when the internet, in some regards, has so much more to offer 24 7?  MIT has open course ware in science.  I can take it whenever I want.  Students can access information that I could never provide.  So why bother with traditional school?  What if traditional school could offer something that the internet cannot...like higher order thinking skills.  Sure, anyone can find the facts.  But does the internet help us to apply those facts in a unique and creative way to solve problems in our world and local community?

     There is a professor at Miami University in Oxford Ohio who is working on attaching a laser to a telescope in hopes of turning it into a device that saves lives.  A person would be able to use this device to point the laser from a distance at a possible roadside bomb.  The telescope is hooked up to another instrument that would use the laser and its reflection to detect chemicals that make up bombs and warn the user.  The internet cannot come up with the creativity to think up and build those devices.  It cannot provide the courage to use them. 

     It sound crazy, but maybe we should teach kids what they need to know to survive the ultimate bad day.  They come to work and the copier is down, the network is not working, they lost their smart phone, there is no coffee, and they are being attacked by flesh eating zombies (hence the zombi apocalypse).  Could they survive or would they just buy time until the network is back up?