Cobb Chapter 7 R.R

Classroom discussion takes place on different levels. The following are the Levels of classroom discussions:

1.       Teacher to Teacher-

a.       The teacher continues to get support from fellow teachers and staff around her while implementing the project.  This can be on procedures, daily reflections or any issues that come up during the project. Collaboration can take place face tom face or online in a blog or wiki site.

2.       Student to Student-

a.       Students should be engaging in conversation with each other throughout the project. This allows them to learn from and challenge one another. Especially in group projects.

3.       Teacher to Student-

a.       In a project based classroom the teacher may talk to the students as a whole when giving directions or transitioning from one phase to another in the project, but the majority of the teacher /student interaction is in small groups or individually to give feedback and support when necessary. The teacher works as a guide on the side and not a sage on the stage.

When checking in on students the teacher should know if the student is:

1.        doing the procedure the right way

2.       Working as a team

3.       Understanding the project

4.       Evaluating/assessing themselves.

 To see if the student is following the correct procedure, the teacher may ask if they are keeping track of the deadlines in the checklist or she may monitor the students’ progress. To make sure that the student is working as a team member, the teacher may monitor how the team is getting along through observation and follow the group wiki if used. To make sure that the student has a good understanding of the project the teacher will listen to the students’ conversations and review their work in progress. Project journals and blogs help the student to assess themselves.

When optimizing the use of technology in a project the student benefits by gaining new insights into how to communicate with a culturally diverse audience by communicating with peers as well as online. Technology opens the doors to not just the community but the world.

How a teacher shows the students how to trouble shoots or deal with challenges and how he/she shows the students how to manage the conflicts that arise in group projects will make or break a project. The teacher should prepare herself for problems well before the project starts so that she will be able to address them in the best possible manner.

The majority of the discussions that will take place in our project will be between student and student since the project is research based. I will be only directing the students in the way that they should go, not holding their hand.

I enjoyed reading about “Checking in” on students because it showed me how to assess students through observation more effectively. This will come in handy when monitoring our young weather monitors.