Action Research
During this unit, I was
able to collect all the data that related to my action research project. This
included all the test scores from 6 different teachers and the surveys from the
students. I was disappointed to see that a few 5th grade students
received zeros on their vocabulary assessment.
The two teachers that had these students told me the students made no
effort on the Open Court assessment. One student had been absent and would have
been taking the assessment as a make-up assignment. For the other students, I have no idea why
they did not make an effort toward their assessment; I realize that there many
things which are out of the teachers’ control when it comes to the students
taking assessment. However, fifth grade students are generally dealing with
more “drama” than the younger students. Another distraction is an assembly or
school event which can sidetrack students and they might turn in incomplete
assignments. There is a term – “you can lead a horse to water but you cannot
make him drink” which could be applied in education. A teacher can provide a
student with the lessons and activities to learn the required standards;
however, you cannot make a student pick up a pencil an answer question on a
test. I feel this is very different when
I was a student. I always did my work
and could not imagine turning in a test with no answers completed. I feel that students know that they can get
away with a lack of effort and have lost their motivation – there is nothing at
stake. A student can fail all their
assignments and still move on to the next grade – there are no consequences for
their lack of participation. I do not have an answer to this dilemma that is
facing schools today other than students need to be held accountable. It is their education and they need to be
responsible for their actions or lack of action. I had seen this cartoon a few
months ago and it illustrates the current lack of student motivation when it
comes to one’s education. Teachers seem to be accountable for a student’s
failure now as opposed to a half-century ago.
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| [Photo from: www.jokeroo.com] |
Furthermore, during
this unit, I was able to complete several additional parts of my action
research paper which included the table of contents, introduction, background,
and study design. The paper continues to grow and is currently at 49
pages. It has been encouraging to see
the smaller goals completed and my final paper developing. In addition to the
progress of my action research project, I am making further progress with my
DSIL. I was also able to review all my courses from my internship year and
identified lessons, assignments, and pictures which will meet my program
essentials for the DSIL.
Skills for the Future
This past week, I watched
a video by Dr. Tony Wagner about The Seven Skills Students Need for their
Future. The seven skills are: 1)
critical thinking and problem solving, 2) collaboration across networks and
leading by influence, 3) agility and adaptability, 4) initiative and
entrepreneurism, 5) effective oral and written communication, 6) accessing and
analyzing information, 7) curiosity and imagination. He discussed the global
achievement gap and global learning gap and he stressed several times that
teachers are directed to teach to the test which is not promoting the skills
students need for success today – not in the job market, as continuous
learners, or as active informed citizens. He addressed cornerstones directed at
schools. First school needs to be held accountable for what matters most – students
graduating. Also, schools need to know what is happening after the students
leave, such as going on to post-secondary schools. One method to gain insight
into developing effective curriculum is to bring students back for focus groups
and video tape the discussion. This discussion should center on what the former
students feel was missing from their education that they needed and share this
with the staff. Secondly, schools need
to do the new work in new ways. Collaboration is needed to help students and
provide peer-based accountability. He stated that isolation is the enemy of
improvement which makes collaboration all the more important.
I did not disagree
with the discussion of Dr. Wagner. I did not see that he provided solutions to
the problems faced in education today. Schools and districts are being directed
by the state and federal government to meet specific scores. He addressed that these tests do not show
that students are missing the necessary skills to be successful in today’s
economy. Therefore, a student could get straight As in school yet be unprepared
for the job market because they lack the necessary skills.
By looking at the
skills addressed by Dr. Wagner, I observed that many of the skills (while
needed in the work place) do not equate to current ideal student. In a large
public setting, a child that is curious and imaginative is seen as unruly or
unmanageable. A student that is accessing and analyzing their environment or
using critical thinking or problem solving skills could be seen as “questioning
authority”. A student who is uses agility or adaptability which could be seen
as not following the expected norms. A
student who uses initiative or entrepreneurism did not get permission for his
or her actions.
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