Lately, I’ve been very disappointed in student work.  Not all student work, but lots of student work.  Not because it isn’t done (that’s a whole other can of worms) but because it just isn’t great.  It’s “good enough.”  It’s “a pass.”  It’s “the bare minimum.”  We at the secondary school level especially (I can’t speak for my intermediate or elementary colleagues) have been running into mediocrity at ever-increasing rate in recent years, and boy, it is a hard hit to the teacher-ego.  We sing, we dance, we give inquiry opportunities.  I find that in my classes I have a sliding scale: 15-20% is AMAZING,  15-20% is done well,15-20% isn’t done,and the remainder falls into the bare-minimum, or “mediocre” category.  The question is…why?

Is it my teaching?  Assignments?  Length of time given to complete work?

It is school culture?  Student apathy?

Is it lack of consequences?  Is my rubric allowing mediocrity to become the status quo?

Galit Zolkower and Debra Munk, in Educational Leadership, wrote an article (http://bit.ly/1oWqTGb) disseminating ways to get beyond mediocrity, with a school out of Maryland. They talk about three major areas that required addressing by their administration team in order to push their school “out of mediocrity.”   They looked at instruction, rigor and school culture, all of which fit my above questions. It is through those three areas that I am currently examining my own classroom and determining how to also move out of mediocrity.

In terms of instruction, I’ve changed my assignments a lot in the last 6 years.  I expand on big ideas, and give students more individualization opportunities.  In visual arts and computer science, this allows for students who aren’t necessarily in my class because they love computers to use topics or visuals that they are interested in to complete the assignment.  I find that even the most interesting projects (I use Sphero robotics in two programming classes) still don’t motivate my most apathetic students.  This has been incredibly frustrating (hello, ROBOTS!?).

I will say that there doesn’t seem to be many ramifications for mediocrity, or even failure in today’s schools.  Incomplete Packages are offered to students who don’t pass, late work is always accepted, and as long as we get something (anything) we are usually okay.  I get that its hard to push students, and I also know that it is hard to find time to push 100 students + to redo work that technically is handed in, and already marked.  One thing that I know will help with finding time is the revised curriculum–it will open up opportunities for me to individualize assignments and projects more (I am already doing this with my Grade 12 classes) but it may also give me time to figure out why students are apathetic about their work in my classes, and meet one-on-one to determine what will motivate them.  I know I am not alone in this, so to those who also struggle with mediocrity in their classrooms—take heart.  It won’t be an easy fix, it will take time but also, it’s not only up to you…students need to confront their own mediocrity in order to overcome it.

Have you heard the news about “coding in the classroom” as a part of British Columbia’s new curriculum?  If you are a parent or a teacher of a student in K-12, this news should have caught your attention.  As a Computer Science teacher, I want to reassure everyone that coding, at any grade-level, is possible (even without years and years of teacher training!).

Coding is different than programming.  Programming is intensive, time-consuming and tedious.  It is infinitely more complex than coding.  Coding is about having an understanding of how certain programming languages function, and then using those languages to create something, be it a game, function or otherwise.  The great news is that there are TONS of awesome resources available for a variety of age groups to help them learn to code.  ALL of these resources require technology, which unfortunately is not readily available to every student, in every classroom.

(Unless, of course, we are all going to be the subjects of some technology windfall!)

This is what you need to know about teaching coding: coding is all about “cause and effect,” and about “variables.”  For example, if A happens, then B happens.  If I press this button, the light goes on.  Variables work the same way, but with more options.  Choices are A and B, and depending on what option is selected, either C or D will occur.  You don’t need to have a computer or iPad to teach these ideas to students.  Coding is also about critical and creative thinking.  Students who know how to code should also know how to be innovative and how to problem solve.

Coding is also cross-curricular.  It can be used to demonstrate mathematic concepts, to teach storytelling, even for physical education purposes (my students and their robots get a lot of exercise!).  In British Columbia’s new curriculum model, there is a place for coding. It is by far one of the most powerful 21st century learning/teaching tools we have available–as intimidating as it might seem–and it is time to learn how to use it for the sake of our students.

Want to hear the good news?  It won’t be nearly as complicated as programming the VCR.

In the next few weeks, I will take the time to post resources and options for teachers interested in learning more about coding in their classrooms, with a variety of platforms, to demonstrate that coding can be accessible to all classrooms, despite whatever technologies are available to utilize.  

Digital Projects are a great way to help learners achieve core 21st century learning competencies. Just what should you consider before planning on utilizing a digital project in your classroom?

To plan digital projects, there are two main things that should be considered:

Class Outcomes: Individual and group “take-aways,” impacts on classroom atmosphere and future benefits of the digital project.

Curricular Outcomes: The new curriculum makes digital projects a perfect way to incorporate key competencies into student learning.

Questions to ask when planning Digital Projects:

1. What benefits should students derive from this project?

2. What types of skills and abilities are most important to achieve?

3. What degree of challenge should the “digital” element of this project impose upon students?

Want more?  Click here: DIGITAL PROJECTS: 21ST CENTURY READY