Education Research (EDU-6920)

I just completed my final graduate class at Johnson State College.  The class was titled Education Research.  The guiding question for the course was: how can research improve my practice?

Throughout the course we read many different scholarly articles.  We looked at these articles to compare, contrast, and learn more about educational research.  We looked at not only the different forms of research but also how these can best be represented in a clear and professional way.  Analyzing these articles was helpful when it came time to design and implement our own educational research.

The research project needed to be connected to our current jobs or placements.  I currently work as a first grade teacher.  I chose to focus my research on the implementation of Reading Workshop within my first grade class.  This was an easy choice because it was a professional practice I was already doing within my classroom.  The focus question I created was: what can I learn about my professional practice through the implementation of the Reading Workshop model?

I first created a proposal for my project.  This was challenging because I had never written a proposal before.  I rewrote the proposal three times before it seemed to accurately and professionally represent my plan in a way that was comprehensible for those who do not teach first grade or literacy.

Once my proposal was complete, I began to implement it within my classroom.  I collected three forms of data on three specific students.  I chose these students because of their end of year kindergarten reading assessments.  I wanted to be able to compare and contrast the findings from students reading above grade level, on grade level, and below grade level.  The three types of data

I collected were time studies of their engagement during independent reading time, their Developmental Reading Assessment scores, and student interviews.  

This project was helpful to me as a first grade teacher of literacy because I was able to better understand the concepts within the Reading Workshop model.  I was also able to see what pieces may be missing, so that I can make changes to better meet my students needs.  I enjoyed doing the literature reviews because it gave me time to research other educator’s experiences with Reading Workshop.  I could see what ideas helped their students become successful.  

Through this research experience as a first grade teacher, I saw the importance of independent reading time, students requiring the freedom to choose books independently, and also the importance of thinking critically about literature in different ways.  It is also a great teaching model because it allows for a lot of differentiation. “The workshop approach is not based on ability groups but provides a venue to focus on the strengths and needs of each student” (Towell, 2000, p. 1).  It allows me to really get to know my students, so that I can help them to become successful, lifelong readers.This experience also helped me to see how I could implement other small research projects within my classroom to better meet my students needs.

As a graduate student, it was helpful to have the hands-on experience of creating, implementing, and reflecting on my own research project.  This will be helpful as I read other scholarly articles so that I can better understand the process of a research project and what each section of writing represents.

Towle, W. (2000). The art of the reading workshop. Educational Leadership, 58(1), 38-41.

Moral Philosophy and Professional Ethics (EDU-6933)

I just completed the graduate course Moral Philosophy and Professional Ethics at Johnson State College.  The guiding question for this course was: how should we treat others?  We used this question to direct our thinking while completing our academic tasks.   

Through this course we examined many different ethical dilemmas most of which were connected to education.  We examined these dilemmas using four different ethical lenses.  Shapiro and Gross (2013) believe that these four lenses are imperative for any educator to use when faced with a moral dilemma.  The four lenses are the ethic of critique, the ethic of care, the ethic of professionalism, and the ethic of justice.  The ethic of care focuses on relationships and how decisions will affect the other people that are involved.  The ethic of justice emphasizes the truth along with current laws, rights, and policies.  The ethic of critique stresses the ideals of democracy and forces people to rethink important concepts.  The final lens, the ethic of professionalism, looks at maintaining stability and putting the student in the center of the decision-making process.

One of the projects that we completed was an inquiry project.  For my inquiry project, I chose to do a case analysis based off an incident that occurred at the school that I teach at.  The case was based on the question: should the topic of homosexuality be taught at elementary schools?  I analyzed this question using the four different ethical lenses. This project helped me to realize that educators have so many points to consider when making any professional decision and sometimes there might not be just one correct answer.  Also, finding the best answer that perfectly combines all four ethical lenses can sometimes be impossible.

When I think back to the guiding question about how should we treat others, I really believe that is my ultimate goal as an elementary school teacher.  I know as a first grade educator I am there to teach the basics of reading, writing, spelling, and math.  However, I believe that I am really there to teach my students how to treat each other.  I am teaching them how to stay calm, be flexible, use kind words, and compromise.  Those are the lessons I teach to my students directly and indirectly everyday.  These ideals that I teach my students seem very similar to the beliefs laid out in our other assigned book, The Path: What Chinese Philosophers Can Teach Us About the Good Life by Puett and Gross-Loh.  While academics are important, as humans the real happiness in life comes from the connection we feel to others.  To me, it seems that it is more important for me to teach my students how to positively get along with others because that is where they will find true happiness.  Their social skills will also be incredibly important in their professional lives.  The most successful people I know are able to work harmoniously with their coworkers. 

It seems that this guiding question would be a good guiding question for our world right now.  I sometimes think that my first grade students have better awareness of others and make better decisions in their relationships than many of the adults in the world.  We as a country have definitely lost sight of what is most important and that is our connections with other human beings.

Puett, M., & Gross-Loh, C. (2016). The path: What Chinese philosophers can teach us

about the good life. Simon & Schuster. ISBN-10: 1476777837. ISBN-13: 978-

1476777832.

Shapiro, J. P., & Gross, S. J. (2013). Ethical educational leadership in turbulent times:

(Re) solving moral dilemmas (2nd ed.). London: Routledge. ISBN-13: 978-0415895118. ISBN-10: 0415895111.

  

Strategies for Promoting Inclusive Practices (EDU-6465)

          I recently completed the graduate class Strategies for Promoting Inclusive Practices.  The guiding question for this class was: How does inclusion happen?  As part of this class, I participated in class discussions and applied my learning to many projects.  These projects included creating and co-teaching a lesson, creating an FBA, designing and delivering a presentation, writing a paper, and conducting two interviews.  I also continued to spend time working within special education in my school.

            One of the requirements of the graduate students within the class was writing a paper on a specific behavioral disorder.  I liked that we were given the freedom to choose our own behavior disorder to focus on.  I chose Obsessive Compulsive Disorder because I did not know that much about it.  I really enjoyed researching the disorder and finding different ways that other people had accommodated students with OCD.  If I ever have a student with OCD within my classroom, I believe that I am more now knowledgeable about how to make my classroom a more successful place for someone with OCD.

            The FBA was helpful because I was able to perform the FBA on a student within my first grade classroom.  When you are in the process of teaching it can be hard to see everything that is happening with every student.  It helped me to take a step back from teaching and observe a student who was struggling with some behaviors.   I was able to use the information to better help the student and meet his needs within my classroom.

            Co-teaching is something that I do frequently within my school.  I spend time co-teaching with our math and reading specialists.  It is a great model because you are able to see other teacher’s techniques and ideas, and apply them to your own teaching.  I fully believe that too often classroom doors are closed and that there is not enough collaboration happening. Co-teaching allows teachers to grow and to also have more fun when teaching.  The more fun teachers are having in their jobs than the more enjoyable it is for students to learn.

            I enjoyed reading the book Lost at School by Dr. Ross Greene.  The book outlines Dr. Greene’s approach to dealing with behaviors.  He believes in making it collaboration between the student and all of the adults in the student’s life.  The book uses detailed examples of students, and how they’re lives were changed by using this technique.  I have started to use pieces of his technique within my classroom, and I hope to use more of it with my class next year.  I really like that the program looks at each student as a whole person, and forces adults to really listen to what their students have to say.  The program helps to look at what is really best for each student.

            I did enjoy many aspects of this class, and feel that the assignments have made me a better first grade teacher and future special educator.  I did at times find it challenging because it was primarily an undergraduate class, and I do wonder how my experiences would have been changed if it had been a classroom of graduate students.