Hey everyone, welcome back to the blog! A few days ago, we had our fourth class for EDBE 8F83. In this post, I will reflect upon this lesson by using different prompts and supplementing with images and resources.
What struck you during this session?
Something that struck me during the session was how difficult I found the paint problem. When looking at the problem, I thought it would be easier than anticipated. But during the task, my group and I had a lot of back and forth with us erasing things to add back afterward. Upon reflection, I realized that this put me in the position of my future students. High school math always came easy to me growing up and this problem made me feel confused, which is the typical response to a math problem. I think that this was a good problem to help me understand the emotions of my future students. I was struck by how a simple problem could be so challenging to me, which is a common theme in math class. I have attached a photo of the problem for you to try on your own!
What were the dominant emotions evoked (affect)?
One dominant emotion evoked in this lesson was relief as I presented my Leading Learning Activity with my partner and I think it went very well! I received lots of positive feedback from my classmates and felt very good presenting it. I feel like this activity was beneficial as we used a sample task from the grade 9 curriculum. This also provoked confidence in me as I was able to successfully navigate the curriculum document and pick out something that I thought would be beneficial and practical.
What for you were the main points (cognition)?
The following three points summarized what was discussed in our lesson:
As discussed in my previous blog post, as you progress in the grades, your skill level progresses as well. There is a clear progression from grade 9 to 10 as you learn linear relations and move to quadratics. These skills carry further into grades 11 and 12.
As of 2020, the grade 9 mathematics curriculum moved from being grouped by skill level to a destreamed model.
There are six learning skills (responsibility, organization, independent work, collaboration, initiative and self-regulation) which are to be assessed in a math classroom. They may appear differently than in other subjects but are crucial in any classroom.
What actions might you want to pursue further (Awareness)?
An action I would like to pursue further is investigating the reasoning behind destreaming the math curriculum. The San Vicente article on destreaming provides reasoning on why streaming is a bad thing and the consequences that come from it. The subject of this article is Andre, who is put in a Special Education Behavioural Program. His father is now concerned that he will be unable to reach post-secondary education. By being given this label, his chances are now lowered and he will most likely not make it. This story is not unique and the author supplies another case of a similar nature. The article states “Many students experience disadvantages in public education in response to structural and institutionalized racism and classism”. By having a destreamed classroom, these racist and classist agendas in public education are being fought against and are giving these kids the opportunity to shine. When destreamed was announced, I was very against it. I used to say that I would have been so bored in a destreamed math class and did not see the point. But after reading this article, I was introduced to a side that I have never considered. This article sheds light on the positives of destreaming. I think as a future math educator, I should continue to learn more about destreaming and fully understand the pros and cons of it. I have provided the citation to the article (our link was provided to us through our school's library), I recommend you all take a look!
San Vincente, A. G. (2016, April). Marginal at best a narrative on streaming in public education. Our Schools, Our Selves, 25(3), 115.
That's all from me today! I hope you enjoyed reading my post and I hope you will be here for the next one! PS: the solution for the problem is one can of Paint A and two cans of Paint B
Maya
Love that you are thinking about the pros and cons of destreaming. It is important to understand the history behind destreaming and how we might be able to reduce inequities for future students. Like any change in curriculum however, its success comes down to how teachers interpret the curriculum and the strategies they use to engage learners.
ReplyDelete