Video+Critique

Nicole Jacobs TCH 501 Dr. Han Liu 2/29/12 **Instruction Video Critique **  Chris Opitz’s video on how to teach math as a social activity was an example of an effective strategy on how to strengthen social skills that, in turn, are used to cooperatively learn math. This method goes against what one normally observes, or at least what I’ve experienced, in a math classroom where there is more independent rather than group work. In Chris’ classroom, there was a strong foundation built upon the social skills necessary to allow students to own classroom agreements and learn in an effective manner. They worked independently or in pairs to solve math problems, actively participated and observed one-another, and reflected on their math activity in order to accomplish the lesson objective. This was an outstanding example of a well-structured, respectful, and socially skilled class!  Yet, with the obvious benefits of focusing on social and emotional skills, there comes drawbacks, the major one being time. The majority of teachers’ primary frustration is the lack of time during the school day. Teachers need more time to cover necessary curriculum, to teach essential knowledge for state testing, and all the other obstacles that come their way throughout the day. It took Chris a considerable amount of time to set up a social and emotional learning environment, time that could have been spent teaching content instead. In order for this method to work, the teacher must be whole-heartedly dedicated and committed to putting the time and effort into fostering social well-being throughout the entire school year. The benefits are possible, but the teacher is the ultimate deciding factor in the success of this model.  From what was shown in the video clip, Chris’ method of teaching math as a social activity was a refreshing example of how cooperative learning can take place in the math classroom. Social and emotional skills were strengthened in order for the fishbowl activity to successfully take place. The fishbowl format was a great way to allow for an environment where social skills were being used and the students were motivated to engage in the mathematical problem solving. Those students inside the group, or fishbowl, explained their solution and those gathered outside actively listened and gave feedback when appropriate. Questions were resolved for those that may have been confused by those inside the group who explained their process to solving the math problem. Here, the cognitive domains of application and analysis were taking place. They were applying their knowledge of math and analyzing the results. Before they were able to properly do this fishbowl activity, the students were trained in the Social Emotional Learning standards, or SEL, which the teacher strongly believed was the foundation to an effective learning environment. The students were both socially and emotionally sensitive to one another throughout the activity.  Chris’ classroom was effectively guided through the stages of group development at the beginning of the video. He went through eight specific steps that accomplished the forming, storming, norming, and performing stages. There was a good amount of class discussion concerning the establishment of a class working agreement as well as explanation of what is expected of them by the teacher. Forming, storming, and norming were in action here. Students in Chris’ classroom then either worked individually or in pairs to work on math problems, the latter fostering the social skills of leaders and the ability to accept help when needed. The performance stage of development was exhibited through this activity and the fishbowl activity at closing.