Open discussion forum (Feb-Mar) by Teach For All

Where can I go to learn more about the PADA framework of student outcomes?

globallearninglab — 2018-02-06 18:04:04 UTC

Bringing the local into the classroom

jamie_smith6 — 2018-02-23 21:31:39 UTC

I was impressed by Mike and Jacobo's attention to "the local" - Mike researched local career opportunities and made explicit connections between academic content, tests, & extracurricular activities and those professional opportunities. Jacobo and his students created a dictionary to preserve students' local language. I know we have a lot of other teachers participating in this course. In the interest of learning from each other, can other share examples from your own classrooms (or your fellows' classrooms that you've seen) that bring "the local" into classrooms?

Mike rules

eduardo_pereida2017 — 2018-02-26 19:36:15 UTC

I think It´s awesome like Mike connect physics topics with Mario´s game. Mike have a very high expectations about their students

High expectations

ivanna_levy — 2018-02-26 20:38:29 UTC

Watching the video of Mike and Jacobo make me think about the importance of having high expectations and encouraging peer work.

Challenges

ilse_tellez2017 — 2018-02-27 23:34:47 UTC

I was impressed by the level of challenge they bring to the students, It's inspiring for me, I think that when you have high expectations about students they can surprise you in many ways. The students start to think in the possibility of change the world

Research + no expert

rose_goodhart — 2018-03-01 08:55:31 UTC

I really liked Mike's investigative teaching approach - he notices a problem, breaks it down through research and then comes up with ways to solve it.
Realising that it's not just about whether you can/cannot do algebra but how much more complex than that it is.
The fact that Mike not only acknowledges but actively takes on this complexity is honourable and not easy.
I also love how Mike, in recognising that his students are in need of a higher level of physics, commits himself to learning physics which is not a specialty of his. I think this is an important message - that teachers continue to learn and push themselves, they are not these robotic 'experts' but rather are open minded, ambitious and brave.
To me he embodies what we stand for at Teach for Ghana/All.

Inspiring Teachers

z_mohamed2 — 2018-03-02 14:13:23 UTC

Mike and Jacob really inspired me.

It’s incredible how they dealt with challenges as opportunities. I’m still thinking of how Mike collaborated with his school principal and others to eliminate financial issues and ensure students take the exam. He proved that having good relations with others and collaborate with them is important to create collective impact.

Also what Jacob has done is beyond than any traditional teaching. It is really important to involve students in finding solutions to existing challenges in their context which makes them understand what role they can play in their society and thus they feel more responsible.

Future of School

tlpacker — 2018-03-02 16:39:36 UTC

When I think about what I want the future of education to look like in the United States, Jacob's classroom gives me hope. Students are learning in service of solving real-world issues that they and their teachers have identified. Why learn vectors (or anything, for that matter) unless you're going to get a chance to use it?

Great goals!

samantha_martinez2017 — 2018-03-02 17:37:49 UTC

Sin dudarlo el trabajo que han realizado Mike y Jacobo dentro de sus aulas merecen todo un análisis y replicación de la metodología que ellos están usando. La idea de que mantengan altas expectativas sobre el futuro y oportunidades que tienen sus estudiantes creo que son pieza fundamental para que ellos cumplan grandes metas. El aprendizaje significativo se ve reflejado en las clases de ambos y sobre todo en las respuesta de sus estudiantes.

IMPACTS!

daniel_orievweruvwe — 2018-03-03 15:52:16 UTC

Twas awesome visiting and learning from Mike and Jacobo's classrooms. I was challenged. The growth in the number of students who took the test because of Mike's intervention was indeed great.I was greatly impressed by his vision beyond the classroom.

Jacobi's practical sessions and application of lessons to real life is quite remarkable.

Mini-achievable goals

bareerah_omar — 2018-03-03 22:22:28 UTC

I absolutely loved the videos! However what I loved the most was that both, Jacob and Mike, not only had these ambitious goals for their students, but they almost made these goals look easy to achieve. This I feel is a classic recipe for any classroom success!

Therefore as a teacher it is not only important to set ambitious goals, but to also break these goals into mini-achievable milestones. This is because once students achieve these smaller milestones, it does not only boost their confidence, but also makes these end goals more believable!!!

Beyond the Class

ajulo_oluwadamilola — 2018-03-03 22:53:22 UTC

Mike clearly had a vision for his students that went beyond the four walls of his class

Each of his lessons had implications for the students in the outside world, the ACT Test, the preCalculus class and the physics class

It brings me to the realization that our big picture/goals shouldn't be a disconnect from the real society, students should be able to take lessons from the class to the outside world.

Also with Jacobi, his kids were able to identify a problem in the society and using knowledge from the class to solve the problem! ☺

Taking Students' Leadership to Another Level!

ola_alsamhoury — 2018-03-04 14:55:04 UTC

I was impressed and enlightened by the great impact that both Mike and Jacobo had on their students and communities. They brought the world into their classrooms and set high aspirations for their students. In Mike's class, not only hands on activities took place, but also brains on activities. He challenged his students who were motivated to use their higher order thinking skills. Also, in Jacobo's class, students were "learning by doing", and the projects they came up with were related to the community they live in, so they were self-motivated to give back to the community.

Projects in clasrrom (Florencia Etchegoyen-Enseña Uruguay)

florencia_etchegoyen — 2018-03-04 15:45:10 UTC

I really belive that project based learning is a really good way to motivate students and giving them more autonomy. With this teaching method students gain knowledge and skills by working for an extended period of time to investigate and respond to an authentic, engaging and complex question, problem, or challenge. The example of Jacob is really good to shhow that this method is value and have good results.
I feel admiration and motivation by the way that MIke compromise with the students and learn more to be able to help their students.
Both of them shows hight expectatives on the students and compromise themselves.

Claudia Segura, Enseña por México

claudia_segura2016 — 2018-03-04 18:41:32 UTC

I was very impressed to see how these two teachers managed to make their students responsible for their education and future and think about others.
And make my want to start doing something like these for my students

rominip — 2018-03-04 21:34:10 UTC

I loved to see how students worked all together in both Mike and Jacobo's classes. It showed the commitment these teachers have to empower and help students to develop skills for today's world. I believe the Project Based Learning is a really important and useful methodology to have significant learning in classes around he world. Jacobo's student projects showed how important it is to take a path in our classes that is relevant to our students so they became aware of the importance of these learnings.

jose_sandoval2014 — 2018-03-06 07:21:42 UTC

I think these two teachers are very hardworking people who are with their students not only in the classroom but also in their homes, when they plan their classes and projects. These projects are good examples of awareness, one thing that should be known about the community of Jacobo's classroom is the high temperatures, so it is an additional challenge for his students and for Jacobo to do this excellent work in the classroom.

MIKE's STRONG BELIEVE IN HIS STUDENTS

koluwaseun30 — 2018-03-06 20:32:08 UTC

What enabled Mike take his students from zero to hero was simply his strong believe that his students can excel, coupled with his hard work in making the students and the entire district realize same.

He did everything possible to ensuring that his students grabbed every concept in their subjects.

He encouraged them from time to time by the comments he makes after they solve a problem. For example, "She has just solved the hardest SAT problem in 2005."

His ability to research and identify the root cause of issues also came in handy. He was able to identify the problem, the causes, and how to solve them.

Mike is simply phenomenal.

Eduardo Rodriguez, Teach for Mexico

eduardo_rodriguez2016 — 2018-03-08 14:51:16 UTC

Seeing both Mike and Jocobo teaching is really inspiring and motivating, having high expectations of your students helps build their confidence and self-belief, that is something that I had clear since day one. But I have a couple of questions, and hopefully someone can help me.

1) How can you generate this type of motivation in students when you spend 4 hours max. a week with them and the rest of their days are spent in a negative counterproductive environment? (other teachers don´t believe in them, say they are dumb, etc).
2) In the case of having such a diverse community (urban-industrial context); how can you create a sence of identity in your students when they come from such diverse backrounds, neighborhoods (even gangs) and have different interersts?

This two questions have challenged me throughout my 2 years as a fellow and I have yet to find a good enough strategy to create a positive impact in my students and my teaching community.