As our course comes to a close, I was able to reflect on my passion, curiosity, and questioning. Berger’s questioning method has allowed me to reflect on my own questioning within my professional and personal context. Friedman’s (PQ+CQ)>IQ, also really resonated with me and how individual creativity should always be in beta (Friedman, 2016). For example, as an educator and student I am always questioning how to improve instruction or curious about new strategies to implement. Therefore, I never consider myself as a finished product, but I continue to have a strong desire to learn and relearn. Check out my personal creation that reflects on my passions and curiosity as a learner and teacher!
Berger mentions that the process is key. Individuals don't just find answers to complex life problems, we must work our way toward figuring it out by relying on questions along the way (Berger, 2014). My creation takes you on a journey of how questioning led me to my passion.
If I never asked the What If? questions like “What if I left this job?” or “What if I moved away from home?” I would not be where I am today. I can honestly say I would not have the passion and curiosity to make change in my profession that I do now. Asking those questions allowed me to gradually figure it out for myself and what made me happy in life. Reflecting on my own questioning which led me to Chicago and confirmed my passion as an educator taught me the importance of being a lifelong questioner.
References:
Berger W. (2014). A More Beautiful Question: The Power of Inquiry to Spark Breakthrough Ideas. New York, NY: Bloomsbury DeVoursney J. (2020). Personal Creation. [video]. Youtube. https://youtu.be/dovm_MKhyTc Freidman T. (2016). Tom Friedman's Advice to Millenials. [video]. Youtube. https://youtu.be/x6RHrtobfZk
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If you read my last blog post, Survey Design, you are familiar with the exploration of my wicked problem, “How can I build technology skills for Emergent Bilingual Students?” Over the course of a week, I have been collecting data from colleagues within the MAET program as well as teachers in Chicago Public Schools on their input and experiences with technology and Emergent Bilingual Students (EBS). The goal of the survey is to inform discussion on building technology skills. Check out my multimodal presentation below which reflects my data analysis and research relating to my wicked problem!
Wicked problems are extremely complex and like most wicked problems, the possible solutions are difficult or often impossible to solve. Oftentimes, one wicked problem may lead to another wicked problem. During this process, I realized another wicked problem relates to educating families in navigating technology as well.
Data from my survey also provided me with direction in educating ALL families who may need extra support not just EB families. As mentioned in my presentation, Holstrom (2013) states new technology knowledge trickles down to peers and family and we can attempt to make change by educating families.
Therefore, I believe my custom Family Technology Workshop Survey is a starting point in tackling my wicked problem by addressing the need to educate families as well. This creation will allow me to evaluate what families need as well as building upon what they already know. I hope my wicked problem has inspired you to consider different ways to build upon technology skills not only among Emergent Bilingual families and students, but anyone who may need support in your school community.
References:
DeVoursney J. (2020). My WWP. [video]. Youtube. https://youtu.be/N7yPHMg8GYY DeVoursney J. (2020). WWP Intro. [video]. DeVoursney J. (2020). WWP Closing. [video]. Holstrom L. (2003). Eliminating Barriers for All E-Learners. Educational Technology, 43(6), 61-62. www.jstor.org/stable/44428866 Milton J & Garbi A. (2000). VIRLAN: Collaborative Foreign Language Learning on the Internet for Primary Age Children: Problems and a Solution. Journal of Educational Technology & Society. www.jstor.org/stable/jeductechsoci.3.3.286 Sungyoon Lee, Li-Jen Kuo, Zhihong Xu & Xueyan Hu. (2020). The effects of technology-integrated classroom instruction on K-12 English language learners’ literacy development: a meta-analysis.Computer Assisted Language Learning. https://www-tandfonline-com.proxy2.cl.msu.edu/toc/ncal20/current All images used in presentation are licensed under Creative Commons with a CC BY-SA 2.0 license. If you have been following my recent blog posts, you are familiar with Berger's (2014) questioning as well as my individual questioning within my professional practice. After reflecting on the questions in my last post, Stop & Reflect, I created a question that relates to a wicked problem. “How can I build technology skills for my EBS?” I chose this question because it relates to my professional practice and my students. For example, at my school our student body speaks over 40 languages and interacting with Emergent Bilingual students is a part of my everyday life. While integrating technology into my practice is very common, I see many EBS lacking basic technology skills and knowledge. Therefore, I created a survey to collect data to inform discussion on building technology skills for EBS. After indulging in Berger's questioning and my own questions, I developed questions to include in my survey. At first this seemed easy, however, as I dived deeper into survey design, I made MANY changes. To name a few, some of the changes include multiple choice questions, being more specific, omitting unnecessary questions, and emphasizing words for visual impaired learners. I also added questions in the beginning to gather information about the participants' experience with EBS. While the design is appealing and user friendly, I did make a few design changes to keep it looking and feeling clean. Looking at the survey from a visual lens, I emphasized important words such as FIRST or MOST to assist any participants who may struggle with visuals in decoding the question. I'm looking forward to collecting data to inform discussion on building technology skills for Emergent Bilingual students. Stay tuned for my next post!
References: Berger W. (2014). A More Beautiful Question: The Power of Inquiry to Spark Breakthrough Ideas. Bloomsbury Publishing. https://www.google.com/books/edition/The_Book_of_Beautiful_Questions/ DeVoursney J. (2020). Wicked Question. [image]. Screenshot DeVoursney J. (2020). Revised Questions. [image]. Screenshot. DeVoursney J. (2020). Survey Example. [image]. Screenshot.
In a world of constant hustle and bustle, we often do not find time to stop and reflect. If you read my blog post from last week,Asking for a Friend, you are familiar with my 5 minute question quickfire. This week I was able to stop and reflect on the variety of questions I asked and how the varied questions can be sorted based on three different perspectives. Watch my sketchnote style video below to see my brainstorming process!
At first I was overwhelmed when sorting the questions relating to Berger’s What If? How? and Why? questions because I only had one Why question. The What If is about imagining , the How is about doing, and the Why stage has to do with seeing and understanding (Berger, 2014). As I reflect, it is clear that many of my questions were How related because they relate to doing...How can I do better? Or What can I do better?
However, seeing one Why question made me reflect on the fact that I need to be active in asking questions even without seeing or understanding. Berger (2014), states that being comfortable with not knowing is the first part of being able to question. Due to this experience and Berger’s book, A More Beautiful Question, I now realize that I need to be more comfortable asking why questions in contexts of not knowing or understanding such as my professional workplace or in life. Although it can seem overwhelming and there are endless possibilities of sorting the questions, I gained a better understanding of analyzing questions. I was also able to reflect on the context of questions and understand that not all questions fall under one topic, but they can relate to multiple perspectives within my professional practice.
References:
Berger W. (2014). A More Beautiful Question: The Power of Inquiry to Spark Breakthrough Ideas. Bloomsbury Publishing. https://www.google.com/books/edition/The_Book_of_Beautiful_Questions/ DeVoursney J. (2020). Sketch Video.[Video]. Youtube. https://youtu.be/9gDZI_xfp1o DeVoursney J. (2020). Bitmoji Question. [image].
This week I explored Warren Berger's (2014) book, A More Beautiful Question, and a questioning quickfire. Berger (2014) states that a “beautiful question is an ambitious yet actionable question that can begin to shift the way we perceive or think about something-and that might serve as a catalyst to bring about change.” From a young age, children constantly question, but yet as students begin grade school, the questioning seems to disappear. Berger questions whether children have lost interest in school or they lose interest because their natural curiosity is tamped down (Berger, 2014). In today’s society, we hear phrases such as "asking for a friend" which implies that the individual is embarrassed of asking a question. Berger (2014) suggests that questioning risks being seen as uninformed, insubordinate, or both. Therefore, because our society and schools have moved away from teaching a critical skill that enables people to innovate, solve problems, and move ahead in life, we don’t ask questions.
In Chapter 2, Berger mentions a notable former teacher, Deborah Meier, for her amazing work of founding the modern small school movement. Meier was trying to teach that students must develop the “habit” of learning and questioning, and that knowledge cannot be force-fed to them (Berger, 2014). As an educator in today’s society, it seems that teachers, parents, and even students are more concerned with the answers to the questions instead of the question itself. Students are forced to memorize and recall facts and information which takes away from innovative learning. Berger (2014), notes the pressure teachers face from standardized testing and pressure from parents, but how can we shift our practices to allow students more opportunities for questioning? This is a question I asked in my five minute quickfire activity. After resonating with Berger’s (2014) insight on education and questioning, I participated in a five minute quickfire that involved asking questions relating to my school and practice. See below for the end result of the questions I composed within five minutes.
As you can see, I ask a variety of questions: How? I wonder? Do I? Who? Are? What? Which all relate to my own practice or my students. During this activity, I felt pressure to ask reflection questions about my own practices like “How can I be better?” I also reflected on my colleagues and if they encourage questioning and how they incorporate questioning into their own practice.
One thing that really resonated with me is when Aronson mentions how "fear is the enemy of curiosity" and how one may feel pressure to look a certain way to others. Therefore, one is inclined to play it safe, rather than risk the possibility of confirming the stereotype (Berger, 2014). I immediately thought of my Emergent Bilingual Students (EBS), because I observe the lack of confidence behind their eyes when I know they have questions or they don't understand. In my quickfire, I asked a question relating to the support and confidence within my EBS. As I reflect on EBS and my own teaching, I realized I need to do more because questioning goes beyond encouraging students to “Ask for help” or “any questions?”
I want to leave you with the quote above and let it resonate with you no matter what field you work in, education or business...it is applicable to all work fields. Questioning is critical to problem solving and innovating in our global society and we need to encourage learners to do so. Just like Van Phillips asked Why? What If? and How? questions the world of prosthetics would not be what it is today, and I want all of my students to be inspired to ask the same questions to change the world.
References:
Asking for a friend.(2016).[Giphy]. https://giphy.com/gifs/l2JhNkxsr2EtjfXwY Berger W. (2014). A More Beautiful Question: The Power of Inquiry to Spark Breakthrough Ideas. Bloomsbury Publishing. https://www.google.com/books/edition/The_Book_of_Beautiful_Questions/ DeVoursney J. (2016). Boat Day. [image]. DeVoursney J. (2019). Wake Surfing. [image]. DeVoursney J. (2020). Question Quickfire. [image]. Kuhlman N. (2013). Living in Questions. [image]. https://trinityandhumanity.com/2013/12/12/living-in-the-questions/
As an educator with a high population of Emergent Bilingual Students (EBS), I am constantly brainstorming different strategies to advance speaking and listening skills. These students can speak English, but they don’t speak English outside of school. Therefore, I want my students talking more and with the confidence to share their learning. According to Miller (2018), children learn primarily through interacting in social settings, and language is an important tool in this collaborative process. I have incorporated accountable talking stems and accountable talk paddles to increase discussion, but I still observed a lack of engagement among EB students. This week gave me the opportunity to explore a technology that is applicable to my practice to advance speaking and listening skills.
After exploring Flipgrid, there are many benefits Flipgrid can provide to EBS to enhance discussions and promote confidence. Some learning conditions and technology that support content and language learning include online discussion groups and chats (Egbert, 2002). Therefore, Flipgrid can help EBS interact with native English speakers and promoting a variety of feedback and prompting by responding and listening to peers. Chapelle (2009), states that technology can provide multiple forms of meaningful input and engagement by focusing language instruction on the individual needs of students. Flipgrid will support EBS needs because it supports learner independence by reflecting on their individual learning and recording themselves. Students are able to advance their listening skills by listening to other responses as well as advancing their speaking skills by recording their learning. Woodson (2018), argues that technology tools in EB classrooms promotes student engagement, and encourage learner independence. Flipgrid accommodates varied learning styles, which can lead to increased engagement. Looking ahead, I am determined to incorporate Flipgrid learning opportunities to advance speaking and listening skills. Interested in more? Check out Getting Started with Flipgrid!
References:
Chapelle C. A. (2009). The Relationship Between Second Language Acquisition Theory and Computer-Assisted Language Learning. The Modern Language Journal. https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/j.1540-4781.2009.00970.x DeVoursney J. (2020). Problem of Practice. [video]. Youtube. https://youtu.be/OlRw2epFoZU Egbert J. (2002). A Project for Everyone: English Language Learners and Technology in Content-Area Classrooms. https://link-gale-com.proxy2.cl.msu.edu/apps/doc/A85592202/AONE u=msu_main Miller G. (2018). Technologies in the Classroom: Advancing English Language Acquisition. Kappa Delta Pi Record. doi-org.proxy1.cl.msu.edu/10.1080/00228958.2018.1515546 Woodson K. (2018). How To Use Technology Effectively To Transform Your ESL Classroom. https://www.fluentu.com/blog/educator-english/esl-technology-2/ |