Lydia Harpe
03/15/2013
Reading Reflection #7
There are several
different levels of discourse that can occur between the participants
in a classroom including: teacher to teacher, student to student, and
teacher to student. In a traditional classroom the primary level of
conversation is teacher to student, or, more specifically, the
teacher to the entire group of students as a whole. However, in
classrooms focused on project-based learning there is also an
increasing need for student to student collaboration and teacher to
teacher peer review and support.
Part of the
importance of teacher to student conversation is checking in on the
students as they move through their project and making sure they are
on the right track; this can involve asking questions about their
procedure, teamwork, understanding, and self-assessment. For example,
asking students if they have considered a related topic may lead them
to a deeper understanding of the project than they might have reached
if they had just worked independently. Teachers should also
continually monitor that their students are appropriately using
technology to help their research and discovery instead of distract
them from it.
This chapter
related to my two lessons I have created on taskstream because of the
importance of continual teacher monitoring, support, and feedback.
Though it is important to encourage student to student conversations
and collaboration, teacher guidance should never be neglected or
underestimated. When students use technology to aid their research,
they are always going to need teacher monitoring to help them keep on
track. As Teacher Anne Davis put it, “You have to build your
community of learners, and you have to talk about what's happening
while it unfolds” (123).
I never thought to ask a student to think about a related topic in order to further and deepen understanding. It makes a lot of sense because the student will begin to think of another aspect of the topic and become an expert at that as well.
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