Today the kids worked on figuring out all the glitches. I'm figuring out how to teach this way. For me, the class is both frustrating and exciting. It's exciting because I see kids doing amazing things. It's frustrating because I've got nine kids asking me questions and I don't know all the answers. But, not knowing the answers is also part of the excitement.
I am writing this blog with the knowledge that people who have control over my ability to teach this class again are reading it. That means David, Su, Katy, and the kids' parents. It has occurred to me to filter my thoughts, but if this experiment is going to work, I have to be completely transparent. That kind of transparency means writing about the things that go well and the things that don't go well. I can do so because I believe in the overall process of discovery learning.
I don't know how this class will turn out and I don't know how long it will take or how far we will get. Because of that uncertainty, I can't write a traditional lesson plan. But, I do have a plan. I know what the end goal is. The end goal is to write an app for the Android OS. I also have a plan that includes following the steps on the Android developer kit instruction page. I also know that middle school age kids have the ability to complete these tasks. I know that we have the equipment available and I know that I understand enough about programming that I can guide the students when they get stuck.
So, today I had two groups working on Macs, one group on Linux, and one group on Windows. The groups on the Macs got the farthest. The groups on Linux and Windows had trouble getting the SDK to load properly. If I can't get it figured out before next Monday then I'll just get them all on Macs and do it that way. They have all learned enough about installing the components that switching them to Macs won't limit their learning experience at all.
Then, I created this blog and added them as authors as a way to record this experience. An important part of this way of learning is to let the students discuss what they think they are learning. I can't know what they are learning unless I ask them. When I used to teach in the traditional way, I could deliver lessons full of content, but I never really knew what they were learning. Even if I gave them a test, I only knew that the students learned how to repeat the correct answers. I didn't know if they were actually internalizing anything. But now, I can read their blog entries and find out what they think they are learning and how they feel about it. These students know that there aren't any tests or quizzes or points of any kind. And they are all focused and motivated for two hours. It's actually important that we have a two hour block of time. This class would not work as well if I had to fit it into 48 minutes. The kids need time to struggle with the material and then more time to figure it out. It's when they figure it out on their own that the meaningful learning happens. I could give them detailed step-by-step instructions that would lead them to the end result, but they wouldn't really have learned anything. It would be no different than if I just gave them the answers.
I'm excited by the first two days. But, I realize it could all change next week. I don't think it will, but I'm looking forward to finding out.
No comments:
Post a Comment