2/18/09 & 2/25/09

CONNECT-ED (C-E) Phase II: Collaborative Professional
Learning
Organized Around the Big Ideas in Science and Mathematics
Leadership
Development thru
PLC training
Train the Trainers
Program
Funding-
District
Grants
Guide larger grp in each district to address district priorities
More teachers design BIMs
BIMs
Apply “Big Ideas Thinking” to classroom instruction and districtwide K-12 science/math programs

CONNECT-ED
Professional Development in Science and Mathematics

CONNECT-ED
Professional Development in Science and Mathematics

CONNECT-ED
Professional Development in Science and Mathematics

Dis -Connections…
Individual pieces….
CONNECT-ED
Professional Development in Science and Mathematics
Some not covered…
Teachers “dreaming” of connections….

“Being logically or aesthetically consistent, with all separate parts fitting together to form a harmonious or credible whole."
CONNECT-ED
Professional Development in Science and Mathematics

J. Lemasney
Rider OIT
“Big Idea Modules”
•
Elementary, Middle and High School lessons that build content through the day
• Full day workshops where teachers experience this series of selected lessons from different grade levels
• Designers of BIM present them and provide their different grade level perspective
• Scientist/ mathematician help content learning and consider connections to real world
• In a series of BIMs, discuss horizontal and vertical connections
CONNECT-ED
Professional Development in Science and Mathematics

CONNECTED & “How People Learn”
1. Engage Prior Understandings
Know about prior learning and how their piece fits into the bigger K-12 curriculum
-Consider prior knowledge & misconceptions
2. Essential Role of Factual Knowledge and Conceptual
Understandings
Organizes concepts in the context of Big Ideas
-Show connections between concepts and between Big Ideas
3. Importance of Self-Monitoring
Reflection on learning
-Identify additional information needed
Brandsford et al. (2000)
CONNECT-ED
Professional Development in Science and Mathematics

Result:
Teachers help students consider basic concepts in big picture context.
Evaluation:
“It is unusual to see gains [in content knowledge] as deep and broadly distributed as those from [the summer institute].” (EDC 2004 evaluation)
________________________
Program’s strengths include: focus on engaging numerous partners in very intentional ways, recruiting diverse perspectives (ES, MS, HS, administration, science/math specialists) for design teams and in participant populations, and guiding teams to succeed in producing and presenting
BIMs. (TCC 2006 Evaluation)
CONNECT-ED
Professional Development in Science and Mathematics

“The next generation of standards and curricula at both the national and state levels should be structured to identify a few core ideas in a discipline and elaborate on how those ideas can be grown in a cumulative manner over grades K-8 .”
Taking Science to School: Learning and Teaching Science in K-8 .
(2006). National Research Council (NRC). www.nap.edu
________________________________________
“The Science Anchors initiative is a new NSTA project that seeks to help bolster student achievement in science by identifying a smaller set of
core science concepts, or anchors , that can serve as the new national science framework.”
NSTA Express , March 2007.
CONNECT-ED
Professional Development in Science and Mathematics

“Teachers who understand the Big Ideas of mathematics practices by translate that to their teaching consistently connecting new ideas to
Big Ideas and by reinforcing Big Ideas throughout teaching.
….. effective teachers know how Big Ideas connect topics across grades ; they know the concepts and skills developed at each grade and how those connect to previous and subsequent grades.”
Big ideas & Understandings as the foundation for Elementary &
Middle School Mathematics , Charles, 2005, NCSM journal v. 8, n. 1

“An approach that focuses on a small number of significant mathematical “targets” for each grade level offers a way of thinking about what is important in school mathematics …”
______________________________
“Organizing a curriculum around these described focal points ….
can provide students with a connected, coherent, ever expanding body of mathematical knowledge and ways of thinking .”
Curriculum Focal Points for Prekindergarten through Grade 8 Mathematics: A Quest for
Coherence . (2006). The National Council of Teachers of Mathematics, Inc. Reston, VA. www.nctm.org
.
CONNECT-ED
Professional Development in Science and Mathematics

AAAS Project 2061
Atlas of Science Literacy
Pg. 43
Use resources available to guide:
NJ CCCS’s
AAAS Atlases of Science Literacy
NCTM’s Curriculum Focal Points
District scope/sequence
CONNECT-ED
Professional Development in Science and Mathematics

STC & STC/MS FERA Learning Cycle
Focus
Getting started
Apply
Readers & extensions
Inquiry
Explore
Reflect on what you’ve learned
Reflect
FOCUS: Investigate & clarify ideas learners already have
© NSRC
EXPLORE: Engage in the phenomena to be investigated
REFLECT: Discuss observations & reconcile new ideas w/ prior knowledge
APPLY: Discuss and apply new ideas in new situations

Common Language
Big Idea Module -
Strand -
Big Idea -
Benchmark/Standard -
BIM Focus -
FERA -

 Reasons for the need for adjustment:

When they become teachers, they will be teaching grades K – 5

Did not have the time for to prepare or share a six hour BIM

Pre-service teachers have limited experience

Minimal familiarity with curriculum

 Focus was presented as a problem that is appropriate for middle school
 Grade levels were



Early Elementary: K – 2
Middle Elementary: 3 – 4
Upper Elementary: 5 – 6
 Model BIM – limited to one 2 hr 40 min period
 Work done in 2 periods + outside time
 BIMs presented simultaneously

 Experience a Training BIM that we have adapted from a pre-service BIM

This BIM will be an example of the flexibility that is possible when using a BIM

This Training BIM was designed to meet the goals of today’s meeting
 Create a BIM based on adaptations you will decide upon
 Monitor your own process of designing

Focus for 2/18/09:
Focus of 2/25/09:

Reminder:
Build Pagoda as the Model BIM unfolds; switch to Word document

Debriefing questions:
What kinds of learning happens in a BIM?
What does this new model show about the versatility in how BIMs can be created and used?
What are the potential applications in teacher practice &/or district initiatives?

Comparison of 2 different BIM models:
-Content study
-Explore content connections
-Awareness about other grades
-Opportunity to align curricula
-Variety of inquiry approaches
-Time involved
-Audiences

2 Models of BIM Design
Regular BIMs
Team of 3 teachers and 1 admin/BIM
2-day training to begin design process
~6 month design effort
Access to scientist/ mathematician assigned to team
Extended exploration of the content, connections, big idea, student misconceptions, teaching strategies, vertical articulation
Product: polished 6 hr workshop used in summer institutes and as stand alone workshops; small # of teachers with deeper understandings
Mini-BIMs
Class of ~30 students
1 class mtg: intro
~2 class design effort
Instructor serves as content expert
Short exploration of the content, connections, big idea, student misconceptions, teaching strategies, vertical articulation
Product: completed worksheets; larger # of students/teachers with improved understandings

Reminder to Kathy..
Let them EAT!
Please be ready to start again at 12:45

Make your own adapted BIM:
-Identify your audience and their needs
-What is the intent in guiding this audience to create BIMs?
-What adaptations do you think will be necessary to accomplish these goals?
Consider:
• grade levels to cover
• time
• content knowledge of audience
• familiarity with BIMs
• intent for the BIM “products”

-Choose either math or science; use appropriate resources
-Use Concept Strand Selection decide on Big Idea worksheet to
-Complete Key Concepts & Connections you work (pagoda!) sheet as
-Track your steps by completing blank Design
Steps Matrix (paper or electronic)
“name” the steps (Col. 1) and describe what happened in each(Col. 2)
[3 rd and 4 th col. are for homework!]

GO!

Steps taken to create a BIM:
(We will continue this discussion next week!)

Homework
Complete all 4 columns of designed BIM.
Matrix for your newly
Complete the Pagoda for this BIM.
Find out what your district’s plans are for the use of your new skills!
Send your completed Matrix to all of us by Monday
9a.m. next week.
(This implies that your grp comes to agreement on a final matrix.)
One member of each grp “Reply all” to email sent to you this morning.
If you have time, take a look at the other grps’ matrices before you come to 2 nd day of training.