REFLECTION ZONE:Six Hats

The Black and Yellow Hats

There was a recent situation where I feel I wore the black and yellow hats.  I wore these hats as I processed the situation with family members.  I did not have an opportunity to wear these hats with the direct people involved. Here is the situation.

A co-teacher planned to take her 13 advisory students on a trip to Madison, WI this spring.  She received support from our principal and presented her proposal to the school board which voted to approve her trip.   I had first heard of the trip the evening before she presented to the board.  The trip was not communicated with our team members as the teacher felt it didn't affect the group of six teachers.  

Yellow Hat- Positive and Optimistic

What an incredible experience for those 13 kids!  Some of these kids would not have the funds or the means to take a trip like this.  The teacher who planned the trip in an incredible travel planner and very knowledgeable when in comes to the Madison area.  She has a good heart and cares about these kids and wants what is best for them.  A great deal of time was spent planning the itinerary which includes multiple museums, Camp Randall, the university, and the capitol.   It will no doubt, be an incredible experience for those thirteen kids.

Black Hat- Potential dangers, Areas to be careful and to use caution

Isn't middle school philosophy including everyone and giving all the chance to try and experience new things?  As a middle school coach, we have sign ups for athletics and clubs and everyone gets to participate who chooses to.  Middle school students have specific needs at this time in their life, and one of them is to have things fair.  They can handle a situation when they perceive that it was done fairly.  They are the first to tell you if something is not fair.  My advisory would fall into this category as they would like to go to Madison and don't perceive the situation as fair. While I understand fair is not equal and life is not always fair, I don't think this is the appropriate way for us to teach this important life lesson.  

A great deal of time is spent planning advisory for each team.  We have two representatives who meet every Monday to plan our advisory.  Then, every Thursday all the sixth grade advisors meet to communicate the plans for the upcoming week.  This way every advisory gets to do the same cool things- same daily news, same greeting, and same activity.  Kids don't leave bragging that their advisory is better because they did something better than the next group.  

I also have some black hat thinking when it comes to the liabilities of taking kids on a road trip, staying overnight in a hotel, and exploring a major city.  Another area for black hat thinking is the work I will need to do to help these thirteen kids make up their math work either before or after their trip since it is during three school days.

In this situation my black hat wins.  I don't like to think I am a critical person, but I think there could have been ways that my yellow hat would have been victorious.  There could have been an open invitation to any sixth grader to make this trip.  Yes, it might mean more chaperons, but it would meet the criteria for meeting our middle school philosophy and the entire class would see it as fair.  The trip could have been taken during Christmas break or another time slot where school is not in session.  If these things could have happened I believe my yellow hat would have won out.  

If we discus this situation I feel more prepared to comment after I spent a great deal of time reflecting.  Using these hats makes me consider possibilities I might have missed.  The hats somewhat structure my thinking.  Another area I would like to use the six hats thinking would be on the topic of finishing our basement. My husband and I can wear these different hats as we make this big decision.  He is open minded and I think he would be up to try thinking from these different perspectives.  Once I have finished reading about the green and blue hats we might give it a try!

REFLECTION ZONE: The Power of Questions

After reading chapters 1-3 in The Power of Questions and keeping a journal of the happenings in my classroom I found things that excited, bothered, and interested me.  I chose one from each category to post on my blogspot.
Excited Me - I truly enjoy grading math tests and quizzes because I like to see students' thinking and I get excited to see their results and what each student learned.
Bothered Me- I was a bit bothered by the 8th grade quiz scores.  Looking closer, 20 out of my 35 students got the first question marked wrong.  "Write each fraction as a decimal." (-1/8)  9 students did the work correctly, but just forgot the negative sign in their answer.  11 students did the problem wrong. Some did not know how to set the problem up to solve.  Some had an idea how to set it up, but flipped which number was being divided. Some set it up perfectly, but struggled with the division. 
Interests Me - How do I get my students to construct their learning in math so they truly learn the math material?
I will show them this skill could be useful in their lives when they figure out their percentage and what letter grade they earned on any assignment in any class.  If you got 12 correct out of 15, how can you write 12/15 as a decimal and therefore determine what letter grade you earned?

Other Questions
How can I improve my teaching?
How can I improve my students' learning?
How can I create more constructivist lessons in math?
How can I motivate students to care more about their grades and futures?
How can I lessen the gap of understanding between my team taught class and my other math classes?

REFLECTION ZONE:Six Hats

 The White and Red Hats

Today I read the readings from Six Thinking Hats by Edward DeBono while I got my hair cut and highlighted.  I was proud that I could multitask a bit.  I like the idea of being able to think from different perspectives at different times.  The white hat was compared to as paper or a computer that just provides facts and figures without an argument or tone.  It is white, absent of color, because it is neutral.  An example of white hat thinking could be found on the tv show Law and Order when a witness is questioned on the stand.  The witness is to answer questions and state exactly what he/she saw without adding a personal opinion or judgement. The witness must stick to the facts, or the opposing lawyer will object.  White hat facts are either proven facts or unchecked facts, but each are included. The white hat thinkers lay out all the information, like a schoolboy empties his pockets.  Once all the information is put on the table, the next step will be more clear. There should be no conflict during white hat thinking because it is stating the information in a neutral manner.

Red hat thinking was compared to as fire and warmth as it includes expressing feelings and emotions. I-statements would be helpful during this thinking as each member will take ownership for their feelings.  Members will do this without justifying or explaining their reasons for feeling a certain way.  Emotions are embedded in our thinking and decision making whether we admit they are or not. The red hat addresses a time and a need to share and express them.  Wearing the red hat eliminates members guessing what others feel and helps the problem solving process.  The red hat acknowledges the need to share emotions, feelings, hunches, and intuitions freely.

I liked putting the use of these two hats to practice as I explained my conflict to my diversity group.  I think it is an effective way to communicate.  Once we finish reading about all the colored hats, I might find this method valuable in my personal life and professional life.  If there is an opportunity to share this with my sixth grade team I might choose to.

REFLECTION ZONE

"Reflection is at the Heart of Practice"

How will reflection help you to become a master teacher?  

What gets in your way of reflecting?  

What will you do to clear the barriers or get around them?

There is always room for improvement, and reflection plays a vital role in helping teachers to improve. Reflection consists of noting what worked well, what didn't, and then being able to analyze why those things happened.  The next step is to discover the meaning or possible meanings behind the event, and how our choices and actions played a part in the outcome. Lastly, we consider the implications for our practice and how our teaching might or could change. Taking part in this process offers teachers a chance to learn from the experience they just lived and grow so they will be better prepared for similar situations to occur in the future. Reflecting will sharpen our decision making skills and help us make better choices the next time.  I think once we become good at reflecting and using the knowledge generated from the process is when we might become master teachers.

The biggest obstacle for reflecting might be providing yourself with ample time to conduct reflection.  The bell rings and we move on to the next class, and then the next class, and then handle a discipline issue, and then go to coach practice, and then back to the classroom to make sure we are prepared to teach the next day.  We then take papers home to grade and arrive at school the next morning for our scheduled meeting. There is not time in the day devoted for teachers to reflect, so this must be done on our own time. With high demands on teachers, this is something that quickly and easily gets put off.

In order to improve we need to take time to reflect.  While reflection sometimes happens naturally as we socialize with our coworkers and they ask us how things went, we need to set aside time to reflect.  We need to prioritize our day, so we don't forget what is important to our profession.  The more we reflect the more natural a process it will become for us. Reflection should be at the heart of our practice because it is a central piece of teaching and learning.