NABT Day 2

Today's workshops were quite interesting. I shall share a little of what I have learnt and some thoughts about my own classroom teaching.

Topic Sense: Guiding students to science fair success

The speaker shared some ideas on how to help students come up with good topics to start their projects.

1) find things they like to do
2) go and read something about the new idea
3) go and talk to parents, friends about it, teacher - group students together of similar interests
4) narrow down the themes and project
5) now they have an idea - ask good questions
6) encourage kids to keep a logbook and use their smartphones to take pictures

I think science fairs are big things in some schools and it provides a platform for students to engage themselves in scientific inquiry. I was reminded of the SRP we have at Anderson Secondary School, which all our Secondary 2 (or 8th grade) students take part in. One of the teachers' frustration was looking for topics. Although there is no silver bullet to this problem, the speaker shared a science fair project by a 15 year old that made waves in the scientific community and I wanted to share the TED talk here.

Perhaps an idea to change the way our groupings work for SRP is to group students of similar interests, rather than group them based on friendship or other concerns. Have some time to ask the sec 1 students what their interests are before the year ends and group them based on that. Hash out a topic and send them out to read during the December holidays before coming back in January to give a literature review.

Measuring Student Proficiency

So it seems the US education system is very interested in standards these days. Everything is about getting students to a certain standard. There is the Common Core Standards addressing the minimum standards for language and mathematics, and then there is the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) for science. And yes they love acronyms just as much as we do. 

How do you measure standards, it seems the popular way is to make rubrics and use it to track students' performance. Making a good rubric is not easy and it takes a lot of thought. It shouldn't be ambiguous - having terms like some of the time, most of the time. Or having language that is too difficult for the students - unless it is sufficiently unpacked. But what I really liked is the idea of each student having some sort of growth chart that tracks their development in these skills and proficiencies. I think in Singapore we lament the idea that students' academic results are properly tracked - with marks and grades for everything, except for skills and proficiencies. Well at least I lament. So what if we design some form of developmental tracking. I think the easiest to implement is to look at our SPA (School-based Practical Assessment). The SPA accesses students on several science practical skills such as conducting the experiment, planning, collecting data, processing data and analysis. What if we can design a tracking form for each student so that they can indicate after each lab or each session how they have performed and what they did well (or didn't) and the form follows them from secondary 3 to 4? Students will perhaps feel more confident when SPA comes and they can review these skills. I shall have to talk to my teachers about it.

Alternative Assessments - creativity and critical thinking

These 2 biology professors shared 2 ideas on how they engaged their students to think critically and creatively on biology topics

1) Biology in the news - turning in journal articles that illustrate the applications of biology to real life situations

Specific directions
- include the article: so that we can use it in the future if it's good
- highlight: makes information easier to read and review (eg. highlight a section that you felt was the most important thing that you learned from reading the article. Explain why you chose the highlighted passage. Highlight a section that you felt was the best part of the article. Explain why you chose that section. How could you, your family members, or the local community apply the information gained from the chosen article?)
- select 2 key ideas that are most closely related to the chosen article. Explain why you chose each of the ideas. Use specific passages from the article to support your selection. We could use the biology syllabus and ask the students what is the connection with what they are learning.
- Find a connection between the chosen article and your own life, your community, popular culture, or media. Explain how the chosen article relates to the world beyond the classroom.
- What are 2 questions you have about what you read?

2) Cells are Us
Task: Design an ad for an Organelle
- priced competitively (compared to other organelles)
- be presented in such a way that potential customers must want to purchase
- accurately describe the organelles
- show an analogy to something that customers are already familiar with in their life
- visually and colorfully appeal to the eye
- contain neat, well-written and easy to read texts
- give a reflection of the process

I thought these ideas are interesting to explore. We could probably scale it down to match the abilities of our students - but hey they can always surprise us at how much they can do.

One other side idea they shared was to give the students a form in the beginning of the year to have the students share their interest, personality and skills. I thought this will make a great database on the kids so that we know how to manage them better.

NABT (National Association of Biology Teachers) Professional Development Conference. Day 1

Exhibition

Paul Andersen www.bozemanscience.com

This year, the conference is held at Atlanta in the Hyatt Regency. The hotel is relatively new and located in the city itself. It reminds me of the Oriental hotel back in Singapore. I missed the opening session because I only arrived at 10am, but I did manage to catch a "celebrity" teacher by the name of Paul Andersen. He was featured on TED and has been posting biology lesson videos on the website: www.bozemanscience.com. No prizes for guessing where he's teaching. He shared mostly from his life and how he evolved as a biology teacher. He has been working on using the blended learning approach with his students (using a blend of online videos he made, face to face lessons and classroom assignments) - the latest trend in classroom pedagogy. However, something he said resonates with what I believe about blended learning. His experience showed that teachers cannot just give students a video and expect them to learn automatically. He has been trying what he termed the blended learning cycle (catch his video here) in which he scaffolds the entire learning journey for the students telling them which links to go to and what to look out for so that students know what to do and how to learn. He also mentioned that it would be very challenging to use these methods with unmotivated students

I attended many other breakout sessions - some more useful than others - and I learnt quite a few interesting ideas. 

The 5 practices (actually 7)

This is a framework to help teachers plan lessons so that students can benefit from discussions in the classroom.

A: Setting Goals (process and content goals)

B: Selecting or designing tasks
- should have multiple approaches
- should allow students to collaborate
- should require critical thinking

1: Anticipating students' thinking
- possible misconceptions
- possible student approaches to the problem

2: monitoring students work
- watch and listen
- document student artifacts - a form to capture some details

3: selecting examples of student work
4: sequencing the examples
5: connecting the ideas across examples 

I think this is a good framework - not that we don't do it but it is just a way of describing what we do and putting words in a certain order that makes sense. But I am a bit curious as to why we need to select examples of student work to share - maybe it is due to a lack of time but I thought we should give every student opportunity to share and learn from one another. 

Know what they know, engaging hands-on formative assessment

Another interesting session was about using games to engage students. A majority of it are simple to play - using homemade cards to play matching games, or "Quiz, Quiz, Trade" having cards with a question and an answer and students pair up and quiz each other before switching cards and finding other partners. I think the main idea is that the students must take the time to discuss the reasons before their answers and ideas. Another one I liked was this "I have, who has" cards. Imagine a card with 2 columns, a "I have" box which gives a term and a "Who has" box that has a description. The idea is students have to find a corresponding "I have" to their own "Who has" box. And eventually the whole class will be "linked" in this way. Teachers can have competitions between classes to see which class or group can link up the fastest. There was another find a corner game as well. Students are given cards with certain descriptions on it and are tasked to find the "corner" of the class that fits that description or word. After that they then share with the other students in the corner justifying why they belong there. Fun things to do.

Exhibition

The exhibition was fun too. I just visited a few booths today and some of them were very interesting. There was a product that is a handheld photospectrometer - costs only US$50 - and it is calibrated to read the concentration of certain concentration of ions in water. It needs to reagent to bring out the color of the ions in the first place but I thought it will give students a nice way to collect data in the field. Unfortunately it is not connected to any mobile device so students will have to manually transcribe the data. But still interesting.

There was another product that allowed students to transform bacteria and they can design the gene sequences in the plasmid. Of course the gene sequence are harmless sequences that expresses colored proteins in the E.Coli. Students can determine which genes are attached and in what sequence so that when they grow out the bacteria, different results can be seen. I was thrilled at seeing such technology being used in class. Of course it was not cheap - US$400 a kit which will allow 15 groups of students to work on something but I think it's an interesting idea. Most of the stages of transformation are chemically mediated so there is no need for expensive equipment - only the incubator to grow the bacteria. Well, maybe we can find some money to do this...

NABT Professional Development Conference

The Hyatt Regency

New York New York

Times Square in the day

Times Square at Night

New York - the first thing that hits me when we arrived at Penn station by way of an Amtrak train  from New Carrolton, is the sheer amount of people on her streets. The atmosphere is so different compared to Washington. D.C. feels more aloof, proper, and well slightly depressing. New York on the other hand is so full of people, bustling energy, so full of life. Skyscrapers tower over us on both sides of the street and their enormity accentuated by her narrow streets. People march at a fast pace here in New York, their averted gazes and shoulder bumps seem to suggest a lack of hospitality or warmth but that could be deceiving. Beneath the thin veneer of hurried self centeredness, there actually lies a deeper New York brand of hospitality. I had a first hand experience of this when we got lost while trying to walk to Times Square from our rented apartment. A New Yorker who happened to be standing on the pavement while we were lamenting our predicament, offered (without asking mind you) to point us in the right direction. Such random acts of kindness certainly puts a smile on my face and definitely changed my initial opinion of New Yorkers. 

Tickets to visit the Empire
State Building

The view up there is breathtaking

New York is certainly filled with breathtaking sights and sounds (not to mention tastes as well). We made the best of our short stay here visiting many historical and famous landmarks like the Empire State Building (which we did on our last day here, almost made us miss our train back to College Park). The 86th floor was certainly worth it, the clear weather gave us great visibility 360 degrees around the building and the cool crisp air seems to heighten my senses as I take in all the sights. My kiasu-ness did not serve me well this time as I bought tickets to the 102nd storey thinking the sights on the 102nd floor would definitely be better than the 86th one. However, the experience paled in comparison to the one downstairs. But well, some lessons you learn for free, some cost you more.

A view from the High Line -
A park built on an old railway line

The city lights of Manhattan and the
Brooklyn Bridge

Apparently couples put their names on
locks to symbolize a promise of love

We also took a walk across the Brooklyn Bridge from Manhattan to Brooklyn on a sub 10 degree night. It was an amazing sight as we looked back at the famous Manhattan city lights. I saw some padlocks being chained to some of the bridge's cables and names written on it. William shared that these were written by couples who wanted to make a promise to each other, that their hearts were "locked" to each other and they will never separate. We also visited a park at Chelsea called the High Line. An old disused railway line transformed into a park. There were many works of art in the park as well. And houses that were found in the vicinity seem to also have a more artistic flair in their design and colors.

A bicycle with square wheels?

The Museum of Math was fun. There were many puzzles and applications of patterns in everyday life like tile making, feedback fractals (when you use 2 video cameras to shoot the image they produce on a screen, kind of like having 2 mirrors facing each other and seeing an infinite number of images). There was also a square wheeled bicycle! I took a ride on one of those. It was actually easier than it looks. But what do you think is the math behind it?

Tickets to Spiderman the most
expensive Broadway production 

We decided to watch Spiderman the broadway on an impulse and it cost us $80 a piece but it was worth it. The show was littered with high flying trapeze stunts as acrobats dressed as Spiderman fly around the stage and even the theater on wire harnesses. The music was good as it was written by U2. Of course, who can forget my first visit to the Apple store at the Grand Central Station. It was such an open concept, like having a night market just selling Apple products. There was their signature wooden tables, and the Genius Bar (which was thoroughly packed) and I got to try the new iPhone with the thumbprint sensor. There were not any checkout counters found and every iPhone staff carries a modified iPhone that is able to act as a POS machine. They scanned the barcode, slide your credit card on the iPhone and queue up a receipt to be printed. Of course I took the option of having my receipt sent to me on my email instead.

Apple store at the Grand Central Station

A truck filled with stuffed animals - a work
of art or something more...

A visit to the 9/11 memorial

A tribute to the 343 fire-fighters who lost
their lives in 9/11

The most memorable experience for me on this New York trip, was the visit to the 9/11 memorial - something that I always wanted to do. I know I lost a German business associate there when I hosted him in Singapore. That was when I was still working for EDB Singapore - before I became a teacher. But what struck me was not so much the incomprehensible needless slaughter of innocent civilians, rather it was the determination of individuals, the will of the city of New York and the resilience of the nation of America to weather through the storm. Indeed may we never forget, not the terrorists or the fear they were trying to incite, not the fallen concrete or the shattered glass, but the men and women who sacrificed their lives so that others may live, the support and generosity from the national and international community in the face of such a divisive and violet act. This visit has taught me that indeed the brightest stars do shine in the darkest nights.

The void at the South Tower

I did not have the chance to see the Statue of Liberty, or eat the best pizza in town (I did try a New York New York cheese cake). But my experience here have been most fruitful and enriching (by the way, the subway wasn't that bad). I had good traveling companions and learnt a great many things. But most important of all, I understood that every city has it's own character and nature. It could seem cold and distant, but once you get to know her, you will start to see her own beauty and charm.

NYC - a city of old and new

First day at Blair High School

Wow. It was quite an adventure. The first thing that hits me was just how huge the compound was, well at least when compared to my school in Singapore. Classrooms are all enclosed and when the doors are closed during lesson time, the hallways are very quiet. Lessons are range from 1 and a half hours to 45 minutes and then the students have 6 minutes to get to their next class. The students don't really have a home class and they may have different classmates for different subjects, kinda like college.

They are a magnet school for math, science and computer studies. It is like my school's center of excellence for science. I guess they have advanced curriculum in these subject areas and I look forward to taking a look what they do in these classes.

The most shocking thing for me, is the fact that students don't wear uniforms. That's fine most of the time, but some of girls' dressing leaves a lot to be desired. Plus some of them are constantly touching up their makeup so much so they have little time for anything else. On the other hand, I have entered classes where the students are engaged, actively contributing to the discussion and learning.

So it caused me to think, what makes or breaks a class. Of course the subject matter makes a difference. Some subjects or topics may seem more interesting to the teenagers and so it's less effort for the teachers. But good teachers can turn boring subjects interesting and bad teachers can well ...

I had a lot of fun attending my first biology class where the teacher started the topic of ecology by playing a snippet from the Disney's production of Pocahontas and asking the students to categorize things they see in the film as biotic or abiotic factors. I had the chance to walk around the classroom when the teacher had the students do some work in groups and it was fun to work with them and helped them understand the concepts.

First lessons at the University

It has been almost a month since I have been in Maryland. After numerous outings, gatherings, and tons of good food (the crab cakes at Annapolis were heavenly), I finally attended the two courses I applied at UMD. One was a course for preservice teachers on Teaching and Learning Science, the other is a graduate level course on Applied Measurement.

The courses were interesting to say the least. I never had much love for math, much less statistics. But when it comes to measurement and testing as mentioned by my professor in my Applied Measurement course, the results of the test should relate to the behavior we want to measure through some mathematical equation. And statistics will help us describe and compare this data across different students. I realised in order for us to design suitable tests, we need to be very clear what we want to measure, and how the data collected in the test relate to the construct or behavior we want to measure. I hope after this course, I will be better equipped and have more understanding about assessment in the classroom. I also found that testing agencies are a big thing in the US. Teachers that got tired of being in classrooms can opt to work in these testing agencies.

The other course was a class for seniors who are about to graduate as science teachers. It was fun for me to see them learning and getting ready to go into the classrooms. It reminded me of my own journey as a student-teacher, learning the theory of different pedagogies at the National Institute of Education in Singapore and my 8-week practicum at a Singapore secondary school. I felt honored that my professor thought I could assist her in the class and that I have things I can contribute to the class. I guess I will learn more about US teacher training and professional development as I spend more time here.

Overall, I think the conversations here at UMD will continue and my teaching and learning will be enriched through the experience.

Visit to the Capital - reflection on governance

The Capitol building of the US

E Pluribus Unum - Out of many, One

God of Freedom - behind me of course

Martin Luther King Jr

It has taken me awhile to write this as I wanted to spend some time to reflect on what I have learnt here about governance and leadership. America is a great country. Not perfect but great. She has a great history, she gave birth to great people, but most importantly I think she is founded on great principles. E Pluribus Unum - out of many, one. This country is made up of many peoples, many ideas, many beliefs but all of them have one common principle, that each individual no matter rich or poor, regardless of color or ethnicity have rights - they are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness (as seen in the Declaration of Independence). Every individual has a voice. The issue with that of course is that making decisions take time. Time to listen, time to deliberate. The strength of such a policy however is that every decision made tries to take in account multiple perspectives and hopefully that decision will be the best at that point in time.

At the feet of Einstein 

"As long as I have any choice in the matter, I shall live only in a country where civil liberty, tolerance, and equality of all citizens before the law prevail" - Albert Einstein

There are conditions and prerequisites of course to this voice. The owner of such a voice must be responsible and well informed. It should be made in view of the common good and for the advancement of the nation.

I think these are wonderful ideals. Ideals that value every individual, every voice. A management style based on this ideal will take time, but i think it is worth it. Einstein certainly thought so...

Orientation @ UMD

Look at Analia from Argentina

Cruising with Dr G and the 2 Indian girls

Checking in at The Varsity

Another week has passed and we came to the University of Maryland (UMD) after a week of orientation in Washington. Of course we were brought straight to our dorms at the Varsity and all the guys get to share an apartment together. Well there were only 4 of us so I guess no surprises there. In the midst of adjustment, I must say I miss my family and friends back home. But strangely, a bond is starting to form between the 16 of us ragtag bunch of teachers from different corners of the world. Indeed they have become my friends, my home away from home. We spent much of the weekend shopping for daily necessities like pillows, water, linen, and cooking utensils at Target and Giant. I must say I am glad the guys are easy when it comes to food and groceries. As long as there is good coffee and a steady supply of beer, it seems we will do fine. The UMD staff have been more than helpful, always ferrying us to places and supplying all of our meals. They really feed us very well. I fear I will gain a few kilos when I am here - must run more.

We got most of our paper work done as well - opening a bank account, getting a UMD staff card, and even a social security card from the State Department. I think administratively we are all set.

We learnt a lot during our orientation here at UMD. The program was designed for us to ease into the American culture and learn to adapt and adjust. We learnt about how UMD functions (which is very similar to UW-Madison where I did my undergrad) and of course a little more about the school system here in the US - which I believe I will see more of and share more of later.

However, I think learning has a mind of its own. Especially when you let it. I felt that the conversations we had with each other were just as enriching if not more. I hope I will be able to digest all the different threads of thought and make it meaningful.