First plans for a self-paced unit
I am going to try a self-paced unit for the first time after spring break in my junior physics classes. Students will begin with a document outlining all the learning goals for the unit, suggested options for resources to help them reach each learning goal, and a suggested date for completion of each learning goal. Then the plan is to just ... let them go!
I kid: the plan is to have a bunch of routines, classroom structures, and resources for them while I monitor their progress and act as a coach each day. But yeah, other than that, hopefully they will just go for it. I am excited to see what learning options they chose and what kind of engagement this garners. And, of course, to see how it impacts their overall learning in terms of both mastery and self-direction.
Our school this year switched to proficiency based grading, so part of the unit outline document pictured above includes a similar map of all the assessments for the unit with the related learning objectives and suggested completion dates. I have a hard deadline for the end of the unit and a selection of extension projects for students to demonstrate that they have exceeded mastery in one or more of our KPIs (standards).
As a science teacher, I typically expect collaborative investigations to take up a lot of the class time. So one thing I have been thinking a lot about is how to still foster such inquiries even if not everyone is doing the same investigation at the same time. Another teacher in the building who did something similar previously suggested having class zones based on the type of activity they are doing. I envision these sections to be: independent work, collaborative practice, investigations, and assessments. In addition, I will need to facilitate some non-real-time type collaboration opportunities - for instance, during labs something like an ongoing idea board. I am also creating peer feedback forms students can use to give each other quick thoughts about each other's work as they get to it.
Finally, one of the learning resource ideas I am most excited to introduce is a menu of "creative practice" options for students. Here's what's on my list:
1 Role Play – write or draw a comic to explain the concept/phenomenon from the point of view of a photon or a light wave.
2 Build Your Own Problem – write a scenario or draw a picture that includes givens and a question that can be answered mathematically. Include a *hidden* answer key that shows all of GUESS.
3 Poetry/Art – create a piece of art that demonstrates your mastery of one learning objective. Hide the answer (which objective) and leave a note requesting others to guess it!
4 Spot the Error – write “spot the error” on a piece of your work. The error may be intentional or not (ie. something you just need help with)! Review the feedback left by your peers.
5 Real World Examples – collect examples of “light in the wild” and describe them or snap a pic and include a caption. Add it to the wall.
6 Physics Twitter – come up with a tweet and hashtag to describe your current learning. Add it to the paper tweet and post on the wall.
7 Free Write – set a 10 min timer and challenge yourself to fill at least one full page (but as much as possible) with what you know so far about light.
8 Your Choice – this is called “creative practice” after all. How else can you practice and demonstrate your learning? If you come up with something cool, share it!
If you have a self-paced classroom - particularly in high school science - I would love to hear about your structures and methods! Many thanks to the teachers who generously share their ideas online. Here is a list of some of the further reading and resources that inspired and informed my plans:
I kid: the plan is to have a bunch of routines, classroom structures, and resources for them while I monitor their progress and act as a coach each day. But yeah, other than that, hopefully they will just go for it. I am excited to see what learning options they chose and what kind of engagement this garners. And, of course, to see how it impacts their overall learning in terms of both mastery and self-direction.
Our school this year switched to proficiency based grading, so part of the unit outline document pictured above includes a similar map of all the assessments for the unit with the related learning objectives and suggested completion dates. I have a hard deadline for the end of the unit and a selection of extension projects for students to demonstrate that they have exceeded mastery in one or more of our KPIs (standards).
As a science teacher, I typically expect collaborative investigations to take up a lot of the class time. So one thing I have been thinking a lot about is how to still foster such inquiries even if not everyone is doing the same investigation at the same time. Another teacher in the building who did something similar previously suggested having class zones based on the type of activity they are doing. I envision these sections to be: independent work, collaborative practice, investigations, and assessments. In addition, I will need to facilitate some non-real-time type collaboration opportunities - for instance, during labs something like an ongoing idea board. I am also creating peer feedback forms students can use to give each other quick thoughts about each other's work as they get to it.
Finally, one of the learning resource ideas I am most excited to introduce is a menu of "creative practice" options for students. Here's what's on my list:
1 Role Play – write or draw a comic to explain the concept/phenomenon from the point of view of a photon or a light wave.
2 Build Your Own Problem – write a scenario or draw a picture that includes givens and a question that can be answered mathematically. Include a *hidden* answer key that shows all of GUESS.
3 Poetry/Art – create a piece of art that demonstrates your mastery of one learning objective. Hide the answer (which objective) and leave a note requesting others to guess it!
4 Spot the Error – write “spot the error” on a piece of your work. The error may be intentional or not (ie. something you just need help with)! Review the feedback left by your peers.
5 Real World Examples – collect examples of “light in the wild” and describe them or snap a pic and include a caption. Add it to the wall.
6 Physics Twitter – come up with a tweet and hashtag to describe your current learning. Add it to the paper tweet and post on the wall.
7 Free Write – set a 10 min timer and challenge yourself to fill at least one full page (but as much as possible) with what you know so far about light.
8 Your Choice – this is called “creative practice” after all. How else can you practice and demonstrate your learning? If you come up with something cool, share it!
- https://www.cultofpedagogy.com/self-paced-learning/
- http://www.ascd.org/publications/educational_leadership/dec13/vol71/num04/A_Day_in_a_Mastery-Centered_Classroom.aspx
- https://medium.com/synapse/lessons-from-a-year-of-self-paced-learning-309627c4ea32
- http://www.theclassroomblender.com/self-paced-science
- https://www.iste.org/explore/In-the-classroom/5-surprising-results-of-a-self-paced-classroom
- Starr Sackstein's Hacking Assessment (Side note: I also would LOVE to be done with grades! Rethink school!)
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