(What is Scratch? What is Prodigy? What is Sumdog, and why does it look like my child is playing video games?
Game theory and learning are well researched areas in education. Young minds are engaged through the "suspension of disbelief". This is the idea that games provide a believable container or context for learning, On a cognitive level, this engages the affective network; therefore increasing time on task and increased fluency in math facts, phonics, high frequency words, and vocabulary. Active construction & realtime feedback, assessment on the fly, and backwards design principles help growing minds co-create their own learning.
*Sources:
MIT Media Lab
Kurzweil Education
UDL and Inclusion
*Mr. D is working on proper citations
Game theory and learning are well researched areas in education. Young minds are engaged through the "suspension of disbelief". This is the idea that games provide a believable container or context for learning, On a cognitive level, this engages the affective network; therefore increasing time on task and increased fluency in math facts, phonics, high frequency words, and vocabulary. Active construction & realtime feedback, assessment on the fly, and backwards design principles help growing minds co-create their own learning.
*Sources:
MIT Media Lab
Kurzweil Education
UDL and Inclusion
*Mr. D is working on proper citations
Where are all the worksheets?
The nature of teaching continues to evolve. The shift from the "sage on the stage" to that of curator and facilitator of the student's own learning process represents a paradigm shift for many educators: from information to inquiry. New questions arise from this new lens of what constitutes the educative experience: How might teachers, parents and learning communities provide a relevant education for a diverse, global, and challenging future? How are teachers using cognitive and social science to inform their teaching? How do we prepare students for jobs that don't even exist yet?
Much of the learning your student will experience in a progressive classroom centers around the 6Cs, which are based on decades of research in science (Golinkoff & Hirsh-Pasek 2016). It is my firm belief that the skills of collaboration, communication, content, critical thinking, creative innovation, and confidence are not gained merely through worksheets and quizzes on facts. Rather, they are developed through carefully designed learning experiences.
The nature of teaching continues to evolve. The shift from the "sage on the stage" to that of curator and facilitator of the student's own learning process represents a paradigm shift for many educators: from information to inquiry. New questions arise from this new lens of what constitutes the educative experience: How might teachers, parents and learning communities provide a relevant education for a diverse, global, and challenging future? How are teachers using cognitive and social science to inform their teaching? How do we prepare students for jobs that don't even exist yet?
Much of the learning your student will experience in a progressive classroom centers around the 6Cs, which are based on decades of research in science (Golinkoff & Hirsh-Pasek 2016). It is my firm belief that the skills of collaboration, communication, content, critical thinking, creative innovation, and confidence are not gained merely through worksheets and quizzes on facts. Rather, they are developed through carefully designed learning experiences.
How will a combo class affect my child's learning?
We are fortunate to live in a time when educational research is at the forefront of providing a progressive education for 21st century learners. The following summary of findings is cited from information provided by Superintendent of Portola Valley School District, Dr. Lisa Gonzales.
Will my child in the older grade be challenged?
All children can be challenged in a combination class, and combo teachers are responsible for providing a challenging, stimulating environment for all students. The topics covered in a combination class may be different than in a regular, single-grade class, but will enable students in each grade level to access the learning and standards of their particular grade. Recent studies note that students in the older grade of the combo benefit from a placement with younger students. When older students teach information and skills to their younger classmates, the academic performance and IQ scores of the older students improve dramatically (Veenman 1995). Naylor notes that older-grade children benefit from actively asserting their responsibility for younger students, as well as develop an increasingly sophisticated understanding of that responsibility (2000). Furthermore, older-grade students work well with younger students in a combination setting, and are able to develop leadership skills that are not always possible in single-grade classes.
Will my child in the lower grade be overwhelmed?
Teachers and administrators are very careful to select children who can be successful and compatible in a combination class. In any class, there are a variety of students who are at different social, emotional, and academic levels. Lower-grade students have an opportunity to observe, emulate, and imitate a wide range of behaviors modeled by the older students that they might not have been exposed to in a single-grade classroom. Lower-grade children are also intellectually stimulated by older children. Mattern and Yates report that lower-grade students have a “broader social experience and increased opportunities to lead and follow, and to form stable peer relationships” (1995). Younger-grade students can rely on the teacher to answer their instructional questions, but can also receive assistance from older students in the class. Students in the lower grade can also benefit from enriched learning by their exposure to curricular material designed for a higher grade (Society for Developmental Education 1993).
Will a child learn less in a combination class?
The University of Louisville’s Center for Gifted Students conducted a study to compare the achievement of students in single-grade settings and in combination settings. Their study found that 20% of the students in combination classes significantly outscored the single-grade classes on standardized tests in four key areas: word identification, reading comprehension, mathematical computations, and mathematical problem solving (Viadero 1996). Veenman’s research of multi-age classes spanned 56 classrooms in 12 countries. He argues that there is no empirical evidence for the assumption that student learning may suffer in classes with students of different grades and ages (1995). What he did find in his 1996 study were significant differences in the affective areas of learning. Student attitudes toward learning, school, self-concept, and personal and social adjustment were higher in the students who had participated in combination and multi-age classes. Students in the combination classes were able to form relationships with a wider variety of students than are possible in the traditional same-age classroom.
How do children benefit from a combination class?
Differences within a class of students from different grades can be a source of rich intellectual and social benefits. The lower-grade students perceive the older students as being able to contribute something, and students in the older grade see the younger ones as in need of their contributions. These mutually reinforcing perceptions create a climate of expected cooperation that is beneficial to all the children in the class, and to the teacher who often feels he is doing all the giving. Research indicates that combining students of different grades is desirable and beneficial to all students. Gaustad argues that students benefit from the range and diversity of a combination class because it “promotes cognitive and social growth, reduces anti-social behavior, and facilitates the use of research-based developmentally appropriate instructional practices, such as active learning and integrated curriculum” (1997). An important conceptual foundation exists in a combination class: combos reflect an emphasis on students’ individual needs and progression, rather than the whole class progression through a prescribed curriculum at the same time and pace. Students in combination classes are provided with a classroom environment that has significantly more positive outcomes. Combination arrangements can lend themselves to integrated curriculum, cooperative learning, differentiated instruction, cross-age tutoring, and learning in a more naturalistic setting. As Pratt notes, “in a class with more than one grade level, the evidence confirms that diversity enriches and uniformity impoverishes” (1986).
Do combination classes cause behavior problems?
Older children spontaneously facilitate the behavior of younger children in a combination class. A study by Chase and Doan notes that when students in combination classes were asked to make decisions, they went through the process of reaching a consensus with far more organizing statements and more leadership behaviors than children in same-age groups (1994). Other pro-social behaviors, such as giving help and sharing, were also more frequent in the combination classes. Katz et al report that combination classes can also provide a therapeutic environment for children who are socially immature (1990). Younger children will allow an older child to be unsophisticated longer than his or her grade- level peers. Pavan further points out that students who experience one or more combination classes while in elementary school have significantly fewer discipline problems in junior high school (1992).