Week 10 Blog

1. What did you do in lab?

This week in lab we talked about what a rock could be and why we thought it was a rock. We also talked about the idea of assessments in the classroom. We talked about what assessments mean when assessing students, what does it mean, how do we know what to teach, etc. With this idea we also discussed the idea of what makes a student a "better student" in the classroom especially when looking at assessment scores. After this discussion we moved into what are the layers of the Earth and how the tectonic plates move. This is where we all had the chance to watch each other's videos about convection cells and tectonic plates. We then got to apply our knowledge in the experiment we got to do using starbursts, heat sources, foil, and any other materials we wanted to use. My group used cold water for our extra material. 

2. What was the big question?

What creates the different types of rocks? How can one create the other?

3. What did you learn in Thursday's discussion?

In our lecture on Thursday we learned about earthquakes, volcanoes, earth layers, plate tectonics, as well as rock cycles. Although this was a lot of information to learn about, we had the chance to discuss why each of them occur and how different circumstances can change the type of event or outcome. Along with these ideas we talked about how the rock cycles change into the next type of rock, how it can change back, and how the cycle continues. This included talking about erosion, weathering, and deposition. 

4. Read "Teaching for the Conceptual Change: Confronting Children’s Experience". What did you learn? What was most helpful? What do you need more information on?

In Teaching for Conceptual Change: Confronting Children’s Experience by Bruce Watson and Richard Konicek, one of the most impactful lessons is the importance of engaging students’ preconceptions to promote meaningful understanding. I learned that students often enter the classroom with deeply held beliefs about the world that may not align with scientific concepts, and challenging these misconceptions through hands-on inquiry can be pivotal for genuine learning. Encouraging students to confront their ideas, such as the belief that "warm clothes" produce heat, allows them to actively test and reshape their understanding based on evidence, which is far more effective than passive instruction.

What I found most helpful was the emphasis on inquiry as a process that students must lead themselves. The teacher’s role is to facilitate, guide, and create conditions where students can explore, question, and ultimately internalize new concepts on their own terms. This insight reshapes how I think about classroom management during investigations and how essential it is to allow space for students to grapple with their ideas, even if it means stepping back as a teacher.

I’d like more information on specific strategies for helping students identify their own misconceptions and guiding them through moments of cognitive conflict without leading them too directly. While I understand the general approach, additional examples or techniques for encouraging students to reach conclusions independently would be valuable.

5. What questions, concerns, and/or comments do you have?

A concern I have is that I am not going to be ready for this test next week on Thursday.