1. I am so glad that I bought this book (How People Learn), I would have struggled reading it on that web page. This week's reading was very interesting. Being that I teach PE, I am technically in what they call a non-traditional class setting.(Some people don't even consider me as a teacher) It was very interesting to learn about different environments in which learning can take place. I go and watch the traditional classroom teachers and watch the different approaches they take toward their students. Assessment is huge, I believe it is necessary, but I do believe you must have multiple ways of assessments. Just like we learned in the cognition book, everyone has different ways of storing, processing, and applying retained stimuli. It only makes sense that some will need different ways to be measured on how and what they learned. This chapter did a good job of linking processes to application.
2.I did not understand the first part of chapter 7. I know it was lead in to the rest of the chapter, but for some reason it just seemed over my head.
3. The application of chapter 6. Chapter 7 really did not do anything for me. I would love to incorporate the different learning environments into PE. Knowledge based learning and community based learning would be huge when it comes to physical education. In the suburbs around Chicago many of the school districts already are doing things like this. They have taken their curriculum and expanded it to reach not only students, but also staff and family members. Here at Alton, we participate in community based learning by having outside people (YMCA, YWCA, Conditioning Coaches) come in and give lessons to our students and explain the importance of living healthy. Where we fall short is in our assessments. We basically only have one,how long can you stay in your target heart rate. Another problem I am working on fixing is including the community as more than just a sponsor, but also as an active participant. I am going to do a little trial and error with the different environments and assessments and see how it goes. I will report back.
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Hey William! I agree with your comments regarding community centered environments and PE/Health education. This is exactly what we did through our YWCA Kids and Communities in Motion program when I was in STL. We offered schools opportunities for us to and provide additional fitness and nutrition education to students...free of charge. Once the schools agreed to be a part of our grant funded program, all teachers had to do was let us know a day and time that would work for their classroom. It seems like such an obvious solution to what is happening in education today, yet we still had teachers who did not take us up on the opportunity which never failed to amaze me! I do believe that education needs to evolve and partner with community organizations for several reasons...student needs, time and money to name a few big ones. I am a big advocate for this new approach when it comes to after school enrichment opportunities for students. Instead of parents having to pay for after school care, schools could partner with other community organizations and offer a variety of services and activities getting the kids involved and fostering a sense of community.
ReplyDeleteI am surprised that you only have one assessment in P.E. I remember doing a few days worth of assessments when I was in grade school. I enjoyed those days because I was so competitive. I could see how some kids would feel threatened by these assessments. Would it be a bad idea to choose a variety of assessments that maybe other not so athletic kids could feel good about? By having a positive attitude to exercise makes a huge difference in what the kids might do later on in life.
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