I apologize for the delay in posting a response but I just received my book in the mail. Long story -- but I've had the worst luck with the postal service these days! I had to reorder my book and now I'm ready to post :)
In theory I completely agree with Heather Lattimer that "learning by doing" is the best approach to teaching. I grappled with the idea of PBL in my high school literature classroom but had a difficult time fully seeing how it would work in the English classroom. The process clearly works best when working in an interdisciplinary environment in conjunction with other classroom teachers of other disciplines. Now, by looking at it as a collaborative effort with other teachers in the school, it can be overwhelming to figure out how it would work. I'm looking forward to the real-life examples from other disciplines later in the book to see how this approach looks in other disciplines outside the science classroom.
My bigger question is whether or not a school needs to be structured differently. For example, if in biology class the students are working on a project that requires consultation with a math and English teacher, how is the work on the project incorporated into those particular disciplines? What amount of curricular co-planning is involved to keep the engine running, so to speak?
I guess I'm intrigued by what I'm reading so far. I see glimpses of what I already do in my classroom, but reading just this first chapter leaves me wanting to do more. I hope to learn more about how to do that.
I do not know why this post is showing that my post is coming from another blog site of mine rather than from me, but this blog post was posted by Gayle Brooks.
ReplyDeleteHi Gayle, I totally agree with what you're saying. I want to think more about how to connect with other disciplines/subjects in my own teaching, but finding the time and getting the energy to connect with other teachers can be really challenging. Plus, for many teachers, they already have their curriculum planned out - and crammed full to cover all the content they are expected to according to whatever standards, so it can seem like extra time/effort to do something they already know how to do or that will keep them from doing something they need to do. However, in the long run, I think these types of projects that are both PBL-ish and interdisciplinary will really help prepare students for what they need to do and think about in the future. Your question about the structure of school is intriguing. My school does a lot to create dedicated time (shared prep) for each department, which is amazing, but it doesn't necessarily help with interdisciplinary time. And this is probably only possibly because we're relatively small. I can't imagine how this would work at a large high school unless we were to drastically change our entire education system and make it more like some foreign schools where teachers have several hours a day to observe each other and work together in supportive teams. I'll keep thinking. :)
ReplyDeleteI agree completely, Joslyn, with this point you made "I can't imagine how this would work at a large high school unless we were to drastically change our entire education system and make it more like some foreign schools where teachers have several hours a day to observe each other and work together in supportive teams." I'm fortunate to work in a small school where PBL-type instruction could conceivably happen. It's hard enough to get a school to shift paradigm let alone a very large school. I guess anything can happen in small steps with some committed teachers who want to make a difference, but I can see why it probably hasn't been adopted in many schools. Everyone needs to be on board.
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