I've been behind on blogging the last few weeks, so I owe you a few stories.
Brown University Spirit:
During Spring Break, one of my favorite Brown professors (Ken Miller) was speaking at my boyfriend's medical school, so I got to see him. He is an incredible speaker, and is known for making the 300-student introductory biology class at Brown a must-do for science and non-science folk alike. This lecture was no different. He engaged the crowd with his speak about science education in America.
Of course I enjoy hearing about science education in America. It's kind of my thing. He talked at length about the weaknesses of scientific thought in this country. The Intelligent Design movement has been developed specifically to get people to question the rationality of scientific theory, without ever evaluating either side of the issue. Instead, we need to get people thinking critically about everything, but also understand that standards there are for something to be declared a "theory" or otherwise.
This has inspired me to get the kids thinking more critically. I have continued my efforts to trick them, confuse them, and have them question me. On last night's homework, only one student was able to say "None of these choices is correct!" I WANT them to question me. I want them to question what they're told, and make valued judgments for themselves.
Good News:
I signed my contract for next year. In addition, I have brought up the idea of teaching a health class next year. It's still in the works, and depends on scheduling, but I have a lot of support from the staff. The general consensus is that I'm just weird enough to make it work, and I have the science background. This is really exciting to me, and in that self-affirming, save-the-world sort of way. I might actually get to help middle school students learn to make smart life decisions, avoid pregnancy, and learn how to form healthy relationships.
Test Scores:
My NSA results from last week (2 weeks ago? Geeze.) were a little disappointing. The multiple choice section was actually great, with an average of 80%. This is what we had been working on, so it was nice to see the hard work pay off. Besides, you can't "cheat" multiple choice with easy grading. The short answers and open-ended questions mere much weaker, with an average in the 60s. Part of that had to do with students not having enough practice explaining some of the things we had studied (for example, how Newton's 1st Law explains various scenarios), and part of it had to do with the fact that I never really drilled the kids on definitions (which I don't think is the most important thing, but I'm working on it now). I've already done some review/reteach lessons, though, with much success.
Highest Praise:
The day following the NSA was the practical part of the test. Students had to complete an experiment and analyze the data, with no assistance from me. Not only did they do great, but I received this feedback later in the day:
It was great being in your class today! The students were extremely
focused and engaged while taking their Practical! You gave concise “what
to do” directions and you received 100% compliance. The students were
very mature and they were
tasked with doing many different things at once. ( Practical,
Corrections and a head start on homework) you scanned and circulated
with great urgency! Well done! I’m sure the students will do well :)
And this from someone who does not use exclamation points recklessly.
That's all I have for today. Stay tuned for more stories:
Oral Drill Challenge
Monotheism
Highest Praise
Getting in Trouble
Being a Bitch
The Accident
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