Science, Education, and Science Education

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Archive for the ‘Collaboration’ Category

February 15th, 2013 by Luann

Creativity and Science, Part 2

Creativity?

I’m starting to form a more clear picture of how I see creativity as a part of science.

I don’t care if it’s considered to be right or wrong by brain scientists or by educators.  It’s my synthesis at this time in my learning. If you’d like to help me with it, please do.

I’m still having issues with those who are of the school that creativity must be done in collaboration.  I have the same issue with those who state that true creativity takes place in total solitude. Maybe this is because I’m a Libra.  Maybe it’s because each learner processes, synthesizes, and constructs knowledge in his own way.

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Posted in Collaboration, Creativity, Inquiry, Investigations, Learning, Uncategorized | 5 Comments »

January 19th, 2013 by Luann

National Board Certification Renewal: Evidence of Impact on Student Learning

In a previous post, I described a scenario in which an administrator clearly did not understand the impact on student learning a teacher must demonstrate to renew National Board Certification. If you’re wondering, too, read on.  And if you’re a renewal candidate, here are the files you’ve been looking for.

I’ve answered more than 100 emails this past week, asking for renewal help. As I write, there are almost 30o hits to this blog from searches for national board renewal help – just in the last month. As a result, I’ve decided to post a few items from the Renewal workshops I facilitate and a rationale for renewing.

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Posted in Collaboration, Mentoring Teachers, National Board Certification, National Board Certification Renewal | 1 Comment »

August 6th, 2012 by Luann

How Not To Do Professional “Development”

Several years ago, I was introduced to a process designed to help students learn. The plan involved my colleagues and I doing some simple things in our classrooms, with our students, and then discussing the results of our work together and planning how to make learning even better. It’s no longer being used, and I’m sad.  I have a few ideas about why it fell by the wayside.

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Posted in Assessing learning, Collaboration, Mentoring Teachers | 1 Comment »

August 2nd, 2012 by Luann

Twenty Teachers, and Arne Duncan

I had the opportunity to view an important movie this week. I’ve seen it once before. Both times, I watched with a group of the finest educators I’ve ever met. The movie was especially hard-hitting for us because we’ve shared their journey, their tears, and their triumphs.

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Posted in Assessing learning, Collaboration, Equity, Mentoring Teachers, National Board Certification, Parents, Policy | 2 Comments »

June 27th, 2012 by Luann

Renewal and Professional Growth

I’ve just spent an exhausting, invigorating day with 36 of Washington State’s finest teachers.

This group of teachers, all National Board Certified, are in their eighth or ninth year following initial certification. In order to remain NBCTs, they are faced with the task of renewing their certificates.  Most look forward to this process with residual fear and trembling from their initial certification experience. As one who completed the renewal process fairly early in its evolution, Washington Education Association asked me to develop a facilitation protocol and workshop to support NBCTs through the renewal process, so I did.  And that’s where I was today. Here’s why it’s the best path to growing accomplished teachers. And here’s why it’s the very best renewal, ever.

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Posted in Collaboration, Mentoring Teachers, National Board Certification, Policy | No Comments »

May 24th, 2012 by Luann

Scavenging For Science

Many years ago, I needed something engaging for AP Chemistry students once their exam was over.  I found a scavenger hunt, hard copy as this was the olden days, handed out by the late Dr. Cliff Schrader at a conference.  I’m forever grateful to Cliff for so many things he gave out freely to anyone who asked.  Among so many other things, he taught me to share.

I reworked the list a little to reflect some things my students knew or in which they had shown interest.  The first few years, the kids worked in groups and competed to see which group could collect the most items the most quickly.

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Posted in Biology, Chemistry, Collaboration, In the Laboratory, Inquiry, Investigations, Technology in Education, Uncategorized | No Comments »

March 19th, 2012 by Luann

Buh-bye, Calendar

This post has little to do with science, or education.  It has everything to do with organizing my work, my students, and my life.

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Posted in Classroom "Management", Collaboration, Mentoring Teachers, National Board Certification, Technology in Education | No Comments »

March 11th, 2012 by Luann

Adoption, 2012 style

I’ve worked in 5 districts in 23 years.  Our current adoption will be my 4th experience. The availability of electronic delivery and open source materials have added interesting options to our decision-making. First, I present lists and links to content, including sources for inquiry and engineering design resources. I’ve saved my thoughts on devices until the end.

Please comment including any other resources you’d consider if you were us.  Also, please comment on individual resources if you have experience or thoughts that might help us make a decision.  This list does not include all of the traditional hard-copy textbooks and support materials we’ve been sent.  I don’t want this post to take a year to read.

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Posted in Collaboration, In Class, Inquiry, Technology in Education | No Comments »

October 10th, 2011 by Luann

Writing and the Lab Report

Oregon requires students to complete an inquiry work sample (here’s the one we will use this year) at some time during high school.  Our classes function on an inquiry basis at some level almost daily.  I’ve played with many strategies to help students write about their work in a manner that facilitates their learning while documenting their work in a manner that survives the scrutiny of a scientific peer review.

Most recently, I’ve incorporated the work began with Linda Christensen (from Lewis and Clark) and the Oregon Writing Project. Freshmen begin keeping all lab and inquiry work in a bound theme book, AKA fondly as “my lab book.” My vision for the appearance of student lab books has morphed over the years.  Some things change very little, though, because good science is good science and good science writing is good science writing. At my current school, I’m blessed with like-minded colleagues who have helped me refine my vision as it is shared in this post. Here’s our current plan…..

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Posted in Assessing learning, Biology, Chemistry, Collaboration, In the Laboratory, Inquiry, Investigations, Technology in Education | No Comments »

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