Engaging students in the struggle of struggling

Jennifer Ochoa, MS 324: New York, New YorkPriscilla Thomas, Kingsbridge International HS:

Bronx, New York

WLU, July 18, 2013

This is

hard.

CHALLENGE #1: Why are these pieces art?

CHALLENGE #2: Solve this word problem.

A pet shop has 15 animals, all cats and birds. If the animals have a total of 32 legs, how many of them are birds?

WRITING RELAYS#1: How did you choose your challenge? Did you choose something you knew you’d accomplish successfully? Why or why not? (3 minutes)

#2: Describe your success in 5 sentences.

#3: What tasks/activities/jobs come easily to you? What do you struggle with? (7 lines)

WHERE ARE THE THINKERS?Helping students

create & share thoughtJennifer Ochoa, MS 324

Anti-thinking PhenomenaAnti-thinking Phenomena

# 1It’s someone else’s job to be the answerer in class.

If I wait long enough, another kid will talk.

# 2I can always find the answer right in the text. All I need are text details, then I’m done thinking.

8th Grade English

It’s ALL about thinking!

Leave space for other stories, stances, questions, words and ways.

BE FLEXIBLEBE FLEXIBLE

STANCESSTANCES

What’s your stancestance?

How will your stancestance change?

QUESTIONSQUESTIONS

What questionsquestions are you asking?

What are you questioningquestioning?

Get ‘em thinking!Get ‘em thinking!

Get ‘em talking!Get ‘em talking!

Who has a good

thought?

I see three people with a good

thought…does anyone else have a

thought?

What smart thing have you heard

someone else say?

Say some more about

that.

Pick the next thinker

to share.

where there is no darknesswhere there is no darknessTorturing Students with 1984

Priscilla Thomas, 10th Grade English Teacher, Millennium Art Academy (Bronx, NY)Torturing Students with 1984

Priscilla Thomas, 10th Grade English Teacher, Millennium Art Academy (Bronx, NY)

the struggle to struggle

I love George Orwell’s 1984 (in itself, considered a problem by many)

I firmly believed my 10th graders could love 1984

Outside doubt: administrative pressure to adhere to CCSS, impress Quality Review, maintain “A” grade on Progress Report/Report Card

Self-doubt: Am I a good teacher if my students struggle? What are my responsibilities as a teacher, regarding student struggle?

Student feedback: This is too hard and too boring!

Admin feedback: This is too hard and too boring! What are YOU doing to make sure THEY get it?

what i know about learning

Golden Rule of Teaching: In your classroom, whoever does the most work, does the most learning. (Jennifer Ochoa)

If “they have to get it,” then THEY HAVE TO GET IT.

As a student, the knowledge I value and my best skills are the products of struggle

As a teacher, the most memorable units/activities, for me and my students, have been those that allowed space for my students to question, flail, fall and get back up and fall AGAIN, grapple, and triumph

“Only those who struggle can know victory.” - Tavon P. (10th grade)

what i did

Selected the most scintillating, thrilling, exciting parts of the novel

Created double-entry journal packets, containing original text, summary, and no more than 5 guiding questions, for the 10 sections of the novel we would study

Monitored progress through packet checks, conferences, and eavesdropping

Used progress-monitoring to design mini-lessons that would best help students with their struggle

what they did

Created reading groups

Read independently and in groups

Left reading groups that were not conducive to success

Led whole class discussions based on their questions, connections, and predictions

Created and managed group vocabulary lists

Illustrated key scenes and images

Created “Anticipation Statements” and engaged in conversations on paper around those statements and their probability

Wrote from their questions and predictions

STRUGGLED. And produced more work than they had in any preceding unit.

Assessment

Packets (individual and group grades)

Anticipation Statements

Discussions

Illustrations

Essays based on student-generated questions and observations

All CCSS-aligned (minimized administrative backlash)

Moments of glory

Jose M’s drawing from the cover slide was my phone wallpaper for months

10th graders SCREAMING in response to the contents of Julia’s note, drawing 2 teachers, 1 AP, & a handful of support staff to the door. It took several minutes to convince the adults that my students were screaming about a book, and that it was ok.

One IEP student with serious behavior and emotional challenges, who refused to do anything else before this unit, completed 8 out of the 10 DEJ packets, participated actively and appropriately in class discussions, and completed an essay on a question he raised (Could this government control Winston if he had the self-confidence to know he cannot be controlled?)

Hearing about the following intercepted note from a paraprofessional in a science class: Do you think Winston and Julia will make it? y/n (6 y’s vs. 14 n’s)

takeaways

Struggle is the key to “College and Career Readiness”

The satisfaction and triumph that comes from struggle (“sweet victory,” Emmanuel P. would say) is something all students should have a chance to experience

Whoever does the work, does the learning!

THIS IS HARD!

Why do students struggle with struggle?

Why do WE struggle with struggle?

Why is struggle worth it?

Let’s talk!