W08 Journal

• What's the one thing that everyone needs to know about learning?

The one thing we need to know about learning is that every single human is born ready to learn. It is often that we see people (children and adults) frustrated because they are not getting something and simply keep failing - but it is essential to remember - that IS learning. All the stumbling blocks, the failures ...they lead to learning and eventually mastery.

Let's consider Dr. Carol Dweck's career work on Mindsets.

• How do Dr. Dweck's ideas relate to everything that we've investigated so far? What big connection is there to be made?

The biggest thing I take away from Dr Dweck's ideas is that we can encourage our students to believe in themselves and their power to learn. Many of the ideas we have studied so far concentrate on learners reinvigorating their desire to learn through student centered activities, meaningful discussion and an open learning environment. Students can learn at their own pace and can set their own goals becoming both self-regulated learners and life-long learners. We need to take the challenge and retrain our students - if the can grasp the idea that they are  in control of their learning because they can learn from the processes they take and the failures they step back up from, they will be successful.

• How do these ideas relate to the perspectives on STEM learning (e.g., conceptual change, models & modeling, social cognitive, situated learning)?

These ideas relate to the perspectives of STEM, because many STEM activities revolve around students learning from each other more than the teacher This can be acquired through exploration in group activities as well as small group or whole class discussion. Students in a STEM setting keep on searching for the answer even when faced with difficulty or initial failure - and this is exactly what  a growth mindset would teach our students.

• How do the examples in this video illustrate a growth mindset?

The examples in the video feature many individuals who initially failed at something. They may have even been told by others that they could not come back from the failure. The individuals went on to do something great in their lives - some of them are still doing great things. This is all about the growth mindset. If the individuals had had a fixed mindset they would have given up when they did not do well, but instead they increased their efforts and turned their failures into a success. 

• How do we translate this into straight-forward, applicable policies and practices for STEM?

I think the best way to translate this into our schools is to start training our students with the growth-mindset. The ideal situation would be for this to begin the minute students start school, but as Dr. Dweck says, mindsets can change. We an begin incorporating this now, in all our grade levels to help all our students succeed. But, again ideally, we should start this very early - show students how the process of learning, the idea of failing is how they can get stronger in whatever they wish to do. Then, without exaggeration, the possibilities will be endless, especially as we encourage students to explore in a STEM setting.

W07 journal

• What are we trying to accomplish with STEM education and how can we apply the ideas from Daniel Pink's talk on motivation?

STEM education is all about getting students to think and apply their education to the subjects which many tend to shy away from. We want students to feel energized when they understand something and use that information to apply it to new scenarios and problems. Aside from encouraging them to delve into and hopefully become interested in science, technology engineering and math, we want them to become attracted to them to a point in which they are interested in pursuing and expanding their knowledge and even coming up with new, innovative ideas or things. We need to incorporate intrinsic motivation in our students through showing them just how much we value their thinking and ideas - extrinsic rewards are useful and do help, but only for some tasks and should not be used consistently. 

• How might we apply his elements of a new business operating system to STEM education?

Again, the goal here is to move away from extrinsic rewards and towards intrinsic rewards. We want students to genuinely be interested in their education and in taking the things they are learning and applying them to the types of situations they will encounter in their future daily lives.

As an application of what we know about learning, let's consider the Principles and Practices of the Universal Design for Learning (UDL).

• How do these principles and practices relate to what you've learned from reading How People Learn?

What stands out to me the most after viewing the videos and our readings is that there are different types of learners out there - therefore we should not just stick to one method of teaching. Our goal should be to create way of educating that incorporates various aspects and will reach all learners despite of what 'type" of learner they were at one point considered to be. Because all learners are different and unique our methods should mirror that so that we can ensure that all students have an opportunity to grasp the concepts we are teaching them .

• How do these principles and practices resonate with the perspectives on STEM learning (e.g., conceptual change, models & modeling, social cognitive, situated learning)?

When we looked at these models, it was clear that regardless of the root of the principle, all of them incorporated student centered activities in which the students are in control of their learning. The UDL videos also focused on this - having students setting goals for themselves and self-regulating their learning. One of the main goals emphasized in UDL education was to teach students  how to monitor their own learning so that they would become lifelong learners.

• How are the guidelines for UDL related to being a STEM learner? How about to being a STEM teacher?

Since we have discovered that there are multiple types of learners and we are gearing our teaching methods to reach these different types of learners. As educators we are striving to teach our students to not jsut learn and reciprocate a skill but to explore how to apply it in real world situations. We are encouraging them to expand their knowledge through exploration, so that they may learn in a way that means the most to them. In order to do this we want to  create an environment in which the students feel comfortable in discussing their thoughts and ideas regardless of how different or unique they may be. As a STEM teacher we should strive to reach all our students in an environment where they feel comfortable doing so so that they can become lifelong learners and active thinkers, just as the UDL guidelines show as well.

W06 journal

• In your opinion, what defines thinking and the culture of thinking in your area of STEM?

In mathematics thinking and the culture of thinking have to be closely related. Many times students come into our classrooms without the ability to think in different perspectives because they have been trained to view mathematics as a subject in which they write notes, memorize information and complete tons of practice problems, solely for the purpose of recreating these steps an a quiz or test and then  promptly forget it. It is a difficult situation to be in because in this subject area we are expected to cover so much and move so quickly that many teachers often fell they have no choice. I think it is important for teachers to take the time to establish a culture of thinking in their classrooms - a place where students are encouraged to look at situations, real world problems, even the vocabulary and rules in a way in which they are being analytical and discussing their thoughts about it. They need to be able to be open to other ways of viewing things and accepting the views of others - this way they can grow in their own thinking.

From the content of these videos, what can you infer about the following?

• What constitutes the essential elements of mathematical and scientific thinking?

These essential elements should include openness to discussion and logical thinking. SKills are taught in a progression throughout the school years and students are able to take the knowledge they have gained and build on it year after year. The students need to be able to think of situations and pull in skills that they have understand ( not just memorize!)  so that they can explain their thought process and ideas as the try to arrive to a conclusion.

• How are external representations related to the elements of mathematical and scientific thinking?

External representations are related to these elements because students can take the information that they have learned and apply them to other situations that they usually do not consider "oh! math is useful here!" In one of the videos we viewed, the speaker mentioned that even id students were able to solve problems, they were not understanding how the mathematics worked and the subject itself did not make sense, it was just something they had to remember how to do so they could do well in school.

• What defines the role for external representations in the knowing and learning of STEM?

External representations allow students to connect information, skills, formulas and vocabulary that they have learned in school and apply it to real world situations so that they may see how mathematics can be used in everyday life.

W05 journal

ENGAGE: 

• Could it really be as simple as applying this visual approach?

I think this visual approach can be extremely helpful to all students. The value in making math seem less complicated through the use of visuals and the software program presented is valuable and clearly has great results. I do think that language has to be incorporated at some point. The speaker discusses that students get so excited about the concepts they are learning that they begin to talk about math more, which is a great starting point. However, students will eventually encounter written things and will continue to do so all their life. We need to have a balance and make sure that students do not reach a block when they are presented with such a scenario. 

EXPLORE:

·        How does this perspective (e.g., con

ceptual change, situated learning, etc.) recognize, view and describe this element of a STEM learning environment (i.e. learner-centered, knowledge-centered, assessment-centered, community)?

·        For each of these elements, what inferences can you make about the kinds of classroom activities that would be deemed appropriate?

·        For each of these elements, what inferences can you make about the nature of the classroom discourse that would be deemed appropriate?

·        For each of these elements, what inferences can you make about the classroom use of technology that would be deemed appropriate?

		Perspectives on STEM Learning
		Conceptual Change	Situated Learning	Social Constructivist	Models & Modeling
Essential Components of a STEM Learning Environment	Learner-Centered Environment	I gather that activities revolve around the learner, the learners explore though activities to further understand information. Students are describing their knowledge and how they arrived at this knowledge. The teachers take what they hear from the students and base the course of their lessons on that information.	The teacher is modeling, assists, coaches and scaffolds. While the teacher is involved, the students, or apprentice is working side by side, first observing but then slowly taking over the doing. Their learning grows in the process. Students rely on each other more than the teacher, especially after the school year has “set” into place.	Teachers create a social system in which students assist one another and the teacher assists the students. Groups of students plan stages of an activity and bring back information to the whole group so all learners are involved. Discussions involve an exchange of ideas, even when students disagree. These disagreements are addressed by the teacher in the sense that they are rerouting these disagreements into a question than gets the students to think further.	Students would engage in activities in which they are creating some sort of model. They are either making sense of a concept using a model or starting with a model and then arriving at knowledge through their exploration of the model. Students learn about a concept through asking each other questions and keeping each other accountable for their knowledge.
	Knowledge-Centered Environment	Students are asked why they say or represent certain things, where the knowledge comes from. Finding out where the knowledge comes from is important. Technology can be used in order t verify information. Students are discussing ideas based on their previous knowledge of concepts. Students are representing ideas in their heads in either a 2d or 3d model. Students need to find ideas believable and why one idea makes more sense than another and can expand their knowledge with new ideas.	Students working in groups have discussion about their knowledge. Students are bouncing ideas off their own groups. The jigsaw exampled there was shared ownership among the students – they all work together to form the entire “piece” that they are trying to gain. Activities are centered on the students’ knowledge and the sharing of that knowledge. Because the students produce knowledge in a way they feel they “own” it and really makes them feel invested in their knowledge.	Students talk about things that they know, but they also discuss what they want to know. The teacher focuses the activity or project based on the questions the students have about a topic.	Students participate in activities in which they are constantly bouncing ideas of each other. The models that they are creating and interacting with are allowing them to expand their knowledge. The students talk about what they have learned and what they would like to learn as a group and keep  each other engaged and on track.
	Assessment-Centered Environment	It is not quite so assessment centered, it is more based on the discussion students have. The teacher listens to students’ conversation and how they are relating their ideas to accepted knowledge and using it to expand on a problem.	This seems to focus on moving students toward a point in which they went from needing teacher support to being able to complete tasks, explorations and assignments on their own. Assessment probably involves an open ended problem after students have gotten to the point where they are thinking and expanding on ideas on their own.	It seems as if this approach is based on community cooperations and discussions in order to allow ideas to flow. The students progress through an activity or round table discussion. Assessments can take place through teacher observation in these projects and the final outcome of these types of activites.
	Community	Students work in groups, both whole class and small groups to discuss their knowledge on an idea. The students address each other’s ideas and build off each other’s ideas.	Activities involved include jigsaw learning in which each student or group of students study one section or problem and then present it to their peers. The students are learning from each other.	Again, the community is formed though a “circle of assistance”. Students assist each other and the teacher assists the students when needed. Students work as a community because they help each other through their learning. When one group discovers something they share it with the community	The community aspect is involved in how the students are asking questions. The students begin to gain a sense of what is and isn’t a good question. They talk about questions that have come up as they explore and other students give them feedback or remind them they are getting of track. The students are working as a community to learn

EXTEND:

• What is your reaction to Conrad Wolfram's ideas?

I understand Mr. Wolfram's ideas- I think that his points are very good. I like his ideas of showing how calculus can really be taught to younger children if it were not for the difficult calculations involved. I am not one hundred percent sure how I feel about it, having always been taught how to perform calculations. I can't help but feel that they are important, even though Mr. Wolfram explains that may not necessarily be so. I do think that we could move toward that type of education, but it is currently being in a sense thwarted by what is expected in our school systems. If we do not teach calculations we will be viewed as not following curriculum and our students will nto show proficiency in what is expected. We need to convince the right people that this change is worth it so that everyone can be on the same ship  and then hopefully get our students to understand and interact with math without feeling the burden of calculations

W04 journal

·        How does this perspective (e.g., conceptual change, situated learning, etc.) recognize, view and describe this element of a STEM learning environment (i.e. learner-centered, knowledge-centered, assessment-centered, community)?

·        For each of these elements, what inferences can you make about the kinds of classroom activities that would be deemed appropriate?

·        For each of these elements, what inferences can you make about the nature of the classroom discourse that would be deemed appropriate?

·        For each of these elements, what inferences can you make about the classroom use of technology that would be deemed appropriate?

		Perspectives on STEM Learning
		Conceptual Change	Situated Learning	Social Constructivist	Models & Modeling
Essential Components of a STEM Learning Environment	Learner-Centered Environment	I gather that activities revolve around the learner, the learners explore though activities to further understand information. Students are describing their knowledge and how they arrived at this knowledge. The teachers take what they hear from the students and base the course of their lessons on that information.	The teacher is modeling, assists, coaches and scaffolds. While the teacher is involved, the students, or apprentice is working side by side, first observing but then slowly taking over the doing. Their learning grows in the process. Students rely on each other more than the teacher, especially after the school year has “set” into place.	Teachers create a social system in which students assist one another and the teacher assists the students. Groups of students plan stages of an activity and bring back information to the whole group so all learners are involved. Discussions involve an exchange of ideas, even when students disagree. These disagreements are addressed by the teacher in the sense that they are rerouting these disagreements into a question than gets the students to think further.
	Knowledge-Centered Environment	Students are asked why they say or represent certain things, where the knowledge comes from. Finding out where the knowledge comes from is important. Technology can be used in order t verify information. Students are discussing ideas based on their previous knowledge of concepts. Students are representing ideas in their heads in either a 2d or 3d model. Students need to find ideas believable and why one idea makes more sense than another and can expand their knowledge with new ideas.	Students working in groups have discussion about their knowledge. Students are bouncing ideas off their own groups. The jigsaw exampled there was shared ownership among the students – they all work together to form the entire “piece” that they are trying to gain. Activities are centered on the students’ knowledge and the sharing of that knowledge. Because the students produce knowledge in a way they feel they “own” it and really makes them feel invested in their knowledge.	Students talk about things that they know, but they also discuss what they want to know. The teacher focuses the activity or project based on the questions the students have about a topic.
	Assessment-Centered Environment	It is not quite so assessment centered, it is more based on the discussion students have. The teacher listens to students’ conversation and how they are relating their ideas to accepted knowledge and using it to expand on a problem.	This seems to focus on moving students toward a point in which they went from needing teacher support to being able to complete tasks, explorations and assignments on their own. Assessment probably involves an open ended problem after students have gotten to the point where they are thinking and expanding on ideas on their own.	It seems as if this approach is based on community cooperations and discussions in order to allow ideas to flow. The students progress through an activity or round table discussion. Assessments can take place through teacher observation in these projects and the final outcome of these types of activites.
	Community	Students work in groups, both whole class and small groups to discuss their knowledge on an idea. The students address each other’s ideas and build off each other’s ideas.	Activities involved include jigsaw learning in which each student or group of students study one section or problem and then present it to their peers. The students are learning from each other.	Again, the community is formed though a “circle of assistance”. Students assist each other and the teacher assists the students when needed. Students work as a community because they help each other through their learning. When one group discovers something they share it with the community

W03 journal

• From your history and personal experiences, what does it mean to think mathematically/scientifically?

Thinking scientifically and mathematically means to use one's logic to come to a resolution of ideas. Given information and facts, one works through the information given and previously known information, makes connections and test hypotheses to come up with a conclusion.

• What lessons might we draw from the Fish is Fish story in relation to human learning?

After viewing the Fish is Fish the lesson I draw is that our prior knowledge really doe influence our learning. It is our exposure to things that shape how we assimilate new information. In the story Fish envision all the creatures Frog is telling him about as fish, but with the "appendages" that Frog describes. Humans will also connect things this way. One simple example I can think of is once order an "arroz con pollo" dish at a restaurant which's name I don't recall. I was shocked when I got two pieces of chicken and a pile of white rice on the side. I am Colombian and Arroz con Pollo to us is yellow rice with vegetables and shredded chicken mixed in, with a good dollop of ketchup on top! I was conection my previous knowledge and did not even consider I would get something else. I think one of the main ways humans learn is by association.

Your Ideas about the Seasons - Without Googling or looking up the correct answer, think about how you would respond to the following two questions:

• What causes the seasons?

Seasons are caused by the position of the Earth in orbit. The Earth's Tilt in relation to the sun and the position in its orbit around the sun determine which areas of the planet are experiencing certain seasons.

• What causes the phases of the moon?

The phases of the moon are caused by the position of the moon, sun an earth. The moon is always its same spherical shape but depending on where it is in relation to the Earth and Sun, sunlight reflects over some, all or none of the surface of the moon.

• Explain and justify your responses.

I have recently started teaching Earth & Space science one period a day. I am slowly re-remembering and sometimes even re-learning some of the information and the explanations I stated above.

Now, view the responses of these students, including Harvard Graduates.

Consider the following:

• In the responses of these students, what struck you as interesting or important?

I think it is most interesting that pretty much all of the interviewees thought that summer and winter are caused by Earth being really close or far fro the sun. The grain of truth in their thoughts is that the sun affects the seasons, but at no point do they realize it is the Earth's tilt toward/away from the sun that causes the change in season and not being at one end of the orbit fro another.

• In each of the cases, how might what the students say make (at least) some sense?

Again, the students do relate the sun with the hotter temperatures of summer, so they have some knowledge but are missing the whole picture. I can also understand why they connect the moon to Earth's shadow as in general shadows are created when light is blocked.

• Why, for example, would they say that seasons are caused by the closeness to the sun?

The students believe that Earth's orbit is a very obvious ellipse, they do not realize how close it is  to circular.

• Where might the students have acquired the idea about the clouds and the phases of the moon?

This may be possible because clouds do sometimes block our view of objects in the sky, but this is unrelated to the phases themselves.

EXPLAIN:

Some Questions to Ponder:

• What does it mean to know and/or learn?

To know something is to understand it and know how to use that information. When you truly know something you should be able to explain it to someone else. Learning is taking in new information, making connection with the old and understanding the new information and ideas.

• What does it mean to be a competent mathematics or science student?

Being a competent mathematics or science student means being able to recall previous information and use it to work out new information. It is also important to have the ability to logically work through something, learning from mistakes and getting to a final solution, and understanding the how and why not just providing a number or statement with no basis.

• What does learning mean? How is learning different from or similar to understanding?

I think learning and understanding are closely linked....but I suppose there are some differences. As children we learn language just by hearing others speak - while it is true we learn about grammar and such in school, learning language almost seems innate. I think in order to truly learn most things that are not innate, it is essential to understand them.

• How can you get at what students are thinking? How can you assess knowing and learning?

I think to asses knowing and learning I have to concentrate on observation and listening. To really see what students are thinking, I have to be able to look at their day to day processes, what they do with new information and how they work through new information and knowledge.

EXTEND:

Think about it.....what does it mean to be an expert?

I think being an expert is all about having a deep knowledge of a specific area. This is a combination of knowing the facts related to that topic as well as understanding any processes involved. In order to truly be an expert at something, the person usually is very interested in one topic or even a small section within a topic and learns all he/she can about that area.

W02 journal

What can babies teach us about human learning?

Babies can teach us  a lot about learning through exploring. Although babies cannot talk, they are constantly taking in the world around them and learning  through their experiences. As adults we can take a step back from our more "systematized" learning and enjoy learning through exploration by taking a leaf out of babies' books!

• Having viewed the video with Dr. Alison Gopnik, what ideas do you have about how her work with babies and play relates to your interests in teaching and learning STEM?

I think the main idea that I can take from the video is that I can really incorporate these sort of open ended experiments and infuse them into my lessons. The best example would be to give students a question that they need to explore. I can give them pencil and paper and physical objects and possibly even digital programs and allow them to explore to come up with their solution. That exploration that they had when they were babies will shine through and allow them to become stronger thinkers and go back to their learning through exploration.

Comparing Psychological Perspectives

	Behavioral	Cognitive	Constructivism
Narrative describing the perspective and its components (200-300 words): Provide a concise description of the perspective and its components.	This perspective focuses on learning and behavior being described on viewable actions. Things that occurs inside people’s minds are not included because they are not observable. These actions are influenced my environment and their interactions with the environment based on responses received from the environment. Some of these responses are feedback, praise and rewards. Learning is measured by an observable change (behavior is different before and after learning	This theory is based on how people perceive, remember, think, speak and problem solve. This perspective acknowledges of internal mental states which are not observable. The focus is not on behavior, but on learning and change of knowledge over time. Most theories involve scaffolding and “zones” or stages of cognitive development. Memory, language, problem solving and creativity are the changes that are looked at in the cognitive approach.	Knowledge is determined by what is inside the head of the learner We essentially construct our own knowledge. Learner mixes new information with old information and the knowledge builds on itself. Student centered learning is essential in the constructivism perspective. Teacher should nto be in control of the entire lesson, students are actively engaged.
Beliefs What is the general belief system guiding this perspective? What are the beliefs about the nature of knowledge and knowing?	Beliefs include that all behavior is learned and can be unlearned. Since people react to things that make them feel good or bad, we can use this to shape changes in behavior until we reach the desired effect.	The general belief is that our thought processes affect the way that we behave. It does not disregard the behavioral approach but focuses on the fact that there has to be some internal processes that lead to that change in behavior.	The belief here is that learning is mainly focused one each persons individual learning. Each learners mind is different so they way information is processed and constructed is different even if the source of information is the same.
Principles What ideas are used to explain why events or objects exhibit what is observed.	Behavior is affected by being rewarded by a pleasant of unpleasant event – these change our behavior. The changes we see are linked directly to negative and positive reinforces.	Human behavior is explained as our responses to stimuli, but these behaviors are controlled by our thought processes.	Humans have a natural desire to learn and we have to trust that they will construct knowledge when allowed to explore. Knowledge should not be based on rewards and punishments, but it is acknowledged that it isn’t entirely “black and white” and external stimuli can help
Limitations What are known or accepted limitations to the depth or scope of what can be explained by this perspective?	Limitations include responses not being visible when there is no stimulus. Since learning occurs when the stimulus and response occur together, this can be a handicap. Another is that there will be no learning if there is no stimulus, which we sometimes want. There shouldn’t and won’t always be a reward	Limitations that are addressed is that on its own, this theory does not make entire sense and is often combined with other approaches. The Cognitive-behavioral perspective is common.	Limitations is that there is flexibility within the approach. Sometimes there is choice, sometimes there is not. The approach, especially in schools is largely limited by the choices of the teacher in that classroom.