ECDC Observations (10/5 ~ 10/6)
The very first thing I noticed about ECDC is that it is a very well designed and nice looking school, I must admit. It had a very modern and stylish feel, also very warm and inviting rather than the industrial and impersonal feel of most public school environments. I was quick to notice the lowly lit classrooms that used soft lamp shaded filament bulbs rather than the stark cold light of florescent bulbs. It gave the classroom a very cozy and welcoming feel (this was aided by the "home furnishings" of the classroom, carved wooden tables, colorful cushioned couches and rugs, and warmly painted earth-toned and wooden paneled walls) helped add to this effect
What also caught my attention however was the school's appearance outside of the classrooms. The hallways were shelved with school supplies in vivid multi-colored storage units, which not only kept clutter out of the classrooms, but also gave the school an exciting vibrant feel.
What also caught my attention was the "methods" applied in the school. I noticed that students did not (need to) raise their hands in order to address the teacher, they simply asked their questions unprompted or acted without asking permission (but not in an unruly way, but in an independent self-reliant way). At any other school these actions (it is my assumption) that this course of action would result in utter disaster (students chattering out of turn and acting upon their every impulse, unrestrained and chaotic), however the students at ECDC were very respective of each others voice, did not speak or interrupt when another student or teacher was speaking, and when they did speak it was to ask a very specific question, rather than blurt out a random time wasting fact that many students this age tend to utter "At home I have a...", "Yesterday at the store I...", "When I was four my brother...", etc., etc.).
On top of all of this the students at ECDC were very well mannered (keeping their hands to themselves, spoke quietly, were not rude or disrespectful, nor acted on impulse), unlike many children in that age group (4-5 year olds). Perhaps it is due to the environment and methods practiced at ECDC which allow the children to explore learning at their own pace and set their own standards for their learning so that their desire to act out on impulse is dulled to the fact they are given to freedom to act upon their desire to learn and are not restrained in any fashion from learning.
Tuesday, November 10, 2009
Case Study #7, Question #3
Dalia involves families in the class project by first getting her own students involved and excited with the project subject matter of "construction". This was done by assessing a common interest amongst her students as a whole. When Dalia found out that the class was excited about "construction" (due in part to a brand new library construction site that had begun in a nearby location to the school), she would also channel this excitement towards a class project about construction and in turn the children would carry this excitement with them share it in their homes, thus involving the students' home life with school.
Excitement for the classroom project of "construction" was further encouraged with Dalia's letter to her students' homes discussing the class project and requesting that parents aide and foster their child's and excitement for learning about construction, and for the parents to simply talk to their children about the subject matter and to continue to cultivate a rich discussion in the homes to keep the children (and their families) interested with the subject matter.
Dalia spoke one on one with parents and families about what they can do to continue their child's interest in the subject matter and for parents to share with their children any of their own general or background knowledge of construction. When tasked with this, some parents were even able to provide the classroom with books based on the subject matter (which further aided in bridging a connection between the students' home and school lives).
Dalia invited the parents on field trips to the construction site which added another link between the students' school and home lives and gave the parents a hands on experience with their own children of how learning is done outside of the home (and the classroom for that matter) and allowed both parents and children to share in the excitement of learning. By also inviting the parents (and community) to the "finale" of the construction project (when the construction was completed) it proved as a transition between the old subject matter (construction) to a new subject matter, meanwhile Dalia encouraged students and parents to continue their interest and learning about construction to continue to spread and gather new information and continue their excitement with learning.
Sharing knowledge and enthusiasm with children's parents and their home life is a valuable approach to learning because it allows a child's education to not simply stop once they leave the classroom, rather it allows it to take root in all aspects of the child's life and not be "pruned" every day when the child returns home. At home, children are then learning more about the subject matter they are excited about and in turn, when they return to school share this knowledge with each other generating an immeasurable wealth of information, excitement, and learning and in return they will eventually spread these seeds of knowledge to their families and community creating an ever blossoming cycle of education.
Dalia involves families in the class project by first getting her own students involved and excited with the project subject matter of "construction". This was done by assessing a common interest amongst her students as a whole. When Dalia found out that the class was excited about "construction" (due in part to a brand new library construction site that had begun in a nearby location to the school), she would also channel this excitement towards a class project about construction and in turn the children would carry this excitement with them share it in their homes, thus involving the students' home life with school.
Excitement for the classroom project of "construction" was further encouraged with Dalia's letter to her students' homes discussing the class project and requesting that parents aide and foster their child's and excitement for learning about construction, and for the parents to simply talk to their children about the subject matter and to continue to cultivate a rich discussion in the homes to keep the children (and their families) interested with the subject matter.
Dalia spoke one on one with parents and families about what they can do to continue their child's interest in the subject matter and for parents to share with their children any of their own general or background knowledge of construction. When tasked with this, some parents were even able to provide the classroom with books based on the subject matter (which further aided in bridging a connection between the students' home and school lives).
Dalia invited the parents on field trips to the construction site which added another link between the students' school and home lives and gave the parents a hands on experience with their own children of how learning is done outside of the home (and the classroom for that matter) and allowed both parents and children to share in the excitement of learning. By also inviting the parents (and community) to the "finale" of the construction project (when the construction was completed) it proved as a transition between the old subject matter (construction) to a new subject matter, meanwhile Dalia encouraged students and parents to continue their interest and learning about construction to continue to spread and gather new information and continue their excitement with learning.
Sharing knowledge and enthusiasm with children's parents and their home life is a valuable approach to learning because it allows a child's education to not simply stop once they leave the classroom, rather it allows it to take root in all aspects of the child's life and not be "pruned" every day when the child returns home. At home, children are then learning more about the subject matter they are excited about and in turn, when they return to school share this knowledge with each other generating an immeasurable wealth of information, excitement, and learning and in return they will eventually spread these seeds of knowledge to their families and community creating an ever blossoming cycle of education.
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