Blog Reflection

            Blogging seems to be the new method of communication where one records his or her thoughts.  I actually began blogging before this class but it served as a resource for twenty something females.  That experience merely helped me get my thoughts out through an Internet median.  This experience however, has taught me a lot when it comes to the design, layout, and content of a blog.    My other blog is through blogger, which is why I decided to go with it again for my educational blog.  It has been easy to work with and I have begun using it also for another class I am taking. 

            I will definitely use this site as I grow in my educational endeavors, because it has helped me include technology that I find useful as well as videos that give inspiration to the educational field.  As an educator I tend to reflect often and it has and will always serve as a method of further reflection and growth.  I also believe it has been beneficial in helping me organize various resources for education. 

            Technology can have it’s set backs because it is a learning process.  I have found that my only difficulty has been in uploading media.  This process took me several trials and a lot of looking into how to go about it.  Luckily I feel more comfortable in this process now.   

            In viewing my peers’ blogs, I have been able to tweak mine from seeing an idea I hadn’t thought of.  Looking at how others create their sites is a great method of learning new methods not yet used.    I can also see myself having my colleagues view my site for additional resources.

            I have a site I use with my students for assignments, current events in the classroom, and links to newsletters etc.  I will not intertwine the two as this is more personal and I like to use examples from my students and wouldn’t want that to interfere with my relationships with them or their parents.  In addition to the class website, my students are blogging on a class blog site that gives them each a profile and blog space.  It was a neat experience having them learn the blogging world as I learned more about it.  We learned together.

TE 808 Course Reflection

TE 808 Reflection

      I didn’t know what to expect when taking this course.  I knew it was a research class but honestly did not make the connection that I would actually be doing an action research project.  I learned a lot about myself and it gave me insight into what career paths I am interested in for the future.

       The first thing I realized is how much this course has influenced my teaching practice.  I now see various components to my teaching and think about what results it is producing and what findings I can discuss and/change.  I think of my teaching as research into what best practices I can do for my students.

       Another thing this course has done for me is made me realize how interested in research I am.  I love teaching but after conducting this project as a teacher I see myself growing and expanding in other areas as well due to the simple fact of how fascinating it truly is.

       I have also learned from my students from this course.  The technology tools and videos were of interest to me and therefore I used them often in my classroom.  My students showed me how interested in technology they are and I appreciate having that tool for them.  I never would have thought I would have students blogging this year.

       This class has also helped me get an understanding for how busy schedules can get with various deadlines.  I have a vivid picture of how to organize my assignments to produce quality work but not to get bogged down or overwhelmed with having a teaching job as well.  I can organize my schedule in a way that benefits me and I found this course to aid in that organization.

       In reflecting, I would have to say the most challenging part would be the amount of time it took for the literature review.  The articles were lengthy and finding articles that pertained to my research was time consuming.   The beneficial part was seeing my research produce successful data.  I was convinced through this research how beneficial the Rocket math program was to my students and have buy in with it now.

       Lastly, if someone told me they were taking course I would urge them to be organized.  This was so important as not only did being organized effect me but also my peers with partner activities.  I would tell them to make sure they could vest their time in this class full heartedly as it is not one you can simply do bare minimum.  I would also tell them how much they will learn and the interesting research you can do and how wonderful it was to choose my own research!

Action Research Teachers as Researchers in the Classroom

When one has never performed an action research project before, the task at hand can be quite daunting. Questions of design, content, and components of the project arise. Being so, it was very helpful to have such a great resource as our course text book by Craig A. Mertler. This book was able to outline what an action research project should look like as far as design and also what content to include in the various components. One chapter in particular that I found helpful was chapter four. Chapter four gave an in depth look at such entities as the kind of design that best fits the type of action research question posed. After reading chapter four I was able to understand the methods I would use in how to implement my plan of action. It is important to understand what you are reading and the concepts involved with action research are advanced in terminology. I felt the text to be difficult at times to read due to the vernacular used. I was grateful to have the extra resources such as outlines and powerpoints to help me break down the main points needed. I found myself often using the powerpoints which helped me deepen my understanding. Had those not been available, I am not confident in my understanding of the text. I would recommend this text to other classes. It gave me a clear picture of what a literature review should look like and it really helped me with the difficult component of theoretical framework. I think future classes will benefit from the use of extra recourses and the book itself.

Action Research Proposal

Using Rocket Math Program to Increase Rate of Multiplication Fact Accuracy: A Research Study

Jessica Dennings

TE 808

Michigan State University

Introduction: As I teach a math lesson on multiple digit multiplication, I grow alarmed at the site before me.  When multiplying individual digits, students are using their fingers to count up by the numbers verses remembering the fact.  Multiplication facts that should take seconds are taking longer.  I begin to realize what dilemma I am dealing with.  My students lack the skills of quick recall when it comes to their multiplication facts from numbers 0 – 12.  This basic skill is a must when it comes to mathematics as it works as a building block for other concepts.  For example, when performing three by two digit multiplication problems, it is important to know the single digit facts in order to solve the bigger problem.  Another example is in long division.  The students must know their facts in order to determine the quotient.  The problem my students have is recalling their basic multiplication facts at a fast rate.  To test my theory that this problem existed for my students, I decided to give them a multiplication-timed test.  There were 100 problems of variable facts.  Instead if writing down their answers quickly, I had students counting up with their fingers to solve the problems.  What should have taken 5 minutes to complete ended up being a situation where 75% of my students did not finish.  I must solve this issue in order for them to be successful in more complex problems.  A math specialist at my school told me about Rocket Math which is a program that helps students recall basic multiplication facts at a quick rate.  My question for research is: Will using Rocket Math increase my students’ speed and accuracy for recalling multiplication facts?

Theoretical Framework:  The theoretical viewpoint of behaviorism is, “An approach that focuses entirely upon learners understanding the “what” through methods like rote memorization, identification, and association. This theory is concerned with illuminat- ing only what learners need to know” (Mcleod, 2003). The way my students were taught multiplication in third grade was through songs that taught them to memorize the multiples of each number from two through nine.  They sung songs that had a different tune for each number family.  My theory is that the students are using these songs in their heads when counting up on their fingers.  This is important for my research. I can see that my students do not have their facts memorized and are using a different method that has not benefited them in this subject.  This is a problem because I can see the evidence of them counting up when using their fingers and I have seen them do this while taking a test they knew was timed.  I have also seen them not finish a test they should be able to finish in the time allotted.  Furthermore this problem has affected their other math concepts because it takes them that much longer to finish complex problems that involve these basic facts and in return creates fatigue and disinterest in solving the problems.  Since I have seen all of this occur, I know it is a problem that exists and needs to be resolved. 

Research Design and Data Collection Methods:  The research will be conducted in a classroom setting.  27 fourth graders will be participating in the research.  The ages are 9-10 years old with 70% white, 20% black, and 10% other in ethnicity.  In order to protect the identities of the students, I will be using numbers when referring to the students verses using their names.  The study will be a quantitative study using the descriptive design method of observational research.  The reason for using this method is because my data involves quantitative results in which scheduled observations will be made and will involve the tallying of scores. The data collection methods will include daily assessments and a tally sheet that tracks rate of student progress.  The tally sheet will have each student’s names and the levels of the multiplication assessments.  Each time a student passes a level, I will place a tally in that square.  This will give me a visual to see the progress my students are making.  To ensure trustworthiness, 27 students will be observed and the data will only relate to the research question posed.

Data Analysis: When analyzing the data, a descriptive statistics method will be used.  This is a result of there being  a large number of data and scores recorded to analyze.  The limitations foreseen are the possible outliers of very high or very low scores.  This could change the way in which the data can be interpreted.

Timeline:

Data Collection

Week 1: 3/5- 3/9

Week 2-:3/12- 3/16

Week 3: 3/19-3/23

Week 4: 3/26- 3/30

Data Analysis

Week 5: 4/2-4/6

References

Mcleod, Gregory (2003).  Learning Theory and Instructional Design   Retrieved from

            http://courses.durhamtech.edu/tlc/www/html/Resources/learningmatters/learningt

            heory.pdf.

Action Research and Literature Review Reflection

Action Research Reflection

Topic: The topic I chose was the effectiveness of the program Rocket Math on the accuracy and speed of multiplication facts for fourth graders.

Why I chose this topic:  I chose this topic because I was using a method where I would give students 100 math fact problems three times a week and saw progress for 3 students and the rest moved at a slow pace or remained stagnant.  I would quiz the students on one fact per test.  They began with zeros and worked their way up.  At first each student moved at consistent speeds, but then I noticed as the facts for more difficult, the students lost their stamina. 

Our school hired a math specialist who proposed the idea of Rocket Math.  Rocket Math is a daily 20-minute program where students practice 2 times tables a day with partner practice and then a 1-minute assessment.  The math specialist swore by this program and disclosed results from other schools she used it in.  I had to give it a try in order to help my students.

When first taking this class and realizing what an action research project was, I thought it would be beneficial to collect data for my students as well as to show what effectiveness the program provides.  In researching the website for Rocket Math, I came across a statement that informed me they would pay for half of their program for a school if someone did   a study that showed results.  If my action research proves successful, I plan to do such that.

Writing My Proposal:  When first reading about action research projects, they seemed to be overwhelming.  I wasn’t confident I would be able to handle it with teaching during the day and having homework in this class and another class at night.  What I learned was that given the fact the project was broken down into manageable pieces, I could in fact handle  it.  The action research proposal reminds me of a scientific method layout.  I am an integrated science major for under grad and feel comfortable with this set up.  I am also performing research on something that affects my daily life.  Having that buy in makes this whole process fascinating verses overwhelming.  I am very interested to see where it goes from here.

Writing My Literature Review:  The literature review was the most intimidating to perform.  I found the wording of the articles I researched confusing at times.  I also found many case studies and dissertations that were hundreds of pages long.  The information was valuable, but it consumed a lot of time.  Once I organized my sources into themes, this helped me get a view of the bigger picture of my review and what I was trying to accomplish.  What helped me was the fact that the review, similarly to the action research proposal, was broken down into smaller pieces.  I found the introduction and body to be the most convenient as they made the most sense to me.  I struggled with the summary at first and then read the summary of the sample given to us  and what helped  a lot.  I think the Literature Review is an important component to the Action Research because it provides background information to the topics you are researching.

Peer Writing Feedback:  Giving someone feedback on a task that has taken much of their time can be tricky.  I also believe each of us is proud of our creation and insecure of its faults.  With that said, I wanted to make sure I provided feedback to my peers that let them know I was impressed by their work and what they could to do make it better.  I am one who takes criticism well depending on the delivery.  I found my peers extremely generous in their comments.  The details provided were very helpful and pushed me to go beyond what I had done.  This has proven to me how important peer feedback is.  One will not see errors in their writing.  It takes a non-biased eye to look at it and analyze it. 

Reflection

     Time really does "fly by".  I can't believe we are into our 5th week of class.    This is my first graduate class and I have to admit I was nervous at first.  I have learned a lot about the organization it takes to be successful in an online graduate course, begun to dive into an exciting research progress, and lowered my anxiety of graduate school.
     Organization is a key component to success in online courses.  I learned to write down due dates of everything each week they are posted so as not to miss on important deadlines.  I also set aside days to work on certain things.  This is a graduate course which means it involves in depth thinking and assignments which isn't something you can do in one night.  Keeping track of responses, assignments, and double checking that the weekly assignments have been completed is a must.
     The fact that this class is an action research class means research is involved.  I love that I can research something involved with my classroom.  I am a data lover and have always been interested in researching what works and doesn't work in classrooms.  It is exciting to be able to come up with an official research project.  I have learned a lot about the many parts involved and the importance of breaking it down.  The timing couldn't be better because my school is just now being introduced to a math program that I am researching.  I will not only be able to see if this program is more beneficial than our previous program, but also save our school money by submitting my research to the Rocket Math Company.  all of this is what I am interested in and see myself doing once not in the classroom.
     Graduate school can be intimidating.  I teach during the day and have "teacher duties" at home with grading and planning, so adding to that plate is a scary thought.  I didn't know what it would be like or how I would balance two graduate courses.  Luckily, I am good at organizing my time and have found that it is possible to do all of this.  Each day I set aside time for myself, work, school, and always end the night with a good book.  I think a balance of personal time is important for sanity and have been able to do so as well as be successful with my coursework.
     I still can;t believe we are almost midway into the course but am happy to be part of it.  I have enjoyed my work with peers, the articles I have read, and the useful videos and technology tools offered to us.  Everything we do here can benefit our classroom and I have seen that each week.  So I can honestly say..so far, so good!

Question:  I work at a very data driven school and am thinking of basing my action research project around which quartile group to focus on during workshop time in order to produce high test scores at the end of the year.  My working question is.....  Does focusing 3 out of 5 days on the 25-50% group (right below grade level) during workshop help increase test scores at the end of the year for the whole class.