Journal 110

Journal 110

Motivation for Project

Jan. 10th

Why do I want to do this study?

I enjoy designing curriculum and I find it very enjoyable. It is like a puzzle and a maze at the same time. We have all the pieces that go together (pedagogy) but at the same time it is a process which allows the puzzle itself to change shape. We have all the pieces that fit together, but they also lead somewhere.

I guess part of me has an altruistic goal to help others but what keeps me in the profession is the growth that I experience myself as I try to put the pieces together and participate in the process to help someone learn something new or become better at something they already know how to do.

I have found that I learned alot by trying to design soemthing and then seeing what worked and what didn't. I've always been interested in involving students in that process.

For me (at this point) participatory design resembles inquiry method. We have the researcher inquiring from one direction and the student from the other.

Researcher >>>>>>>>>>>Learning <<<<<<<<<<<<<<Student

What results is learning. Both learn and the participation of one contributes to the growth of the other.

So all my theorizing and plannning as a teacher/designer is of no use without the student showing me where the design is successful and where it isn't. We use formative and final assessments using criteria which we establish to see if our design worked. Although many times, we don't really know if it is our design that is working or if it is something else which is "causing/helping" students learn.

For many lessons, the design is successful only because students are willing to participate (go along) with what we have planned for them. If they jump our hoops, they will get by and pass the class. But the real question is "A Re? they really learning anything?"

We can see the interest in this question by how big assessment is becoming not only in secondary ed. but also as it gathers more momentum in higher ed.

The passive participation of the student is like the lamb to the slaughter. We praise students for doing it our way and ultimately punish them for it because they followed the teacher's process rather than figuring out what works for them and internalizing that.

My research thus far has basically lead me to this point --Inquiry leads to learning --Inquiry is problem solving --Learning outcomes are the problem (in education)

and the student should be able to help design how they solve the problem.

One of the biggest problems for me has been in accepting that students know--that they actually have tacit knowledge about what we are trying to teach them.

But inquiry and problem solving are about figuring out what we don't know

tacit knowledge---------> Inquiry Learning ------------ Outcome

                                1
                                1
                                1
                             fill gap of what not know

So the student doesn't have to know everything. The point is that he doesn't know but he does know what he does know and can see the gap. We know what the outcome is and know how to fill the gap (the content, at least, if not the "best" way)

The student/teacher participation can help to fill the gap. The student can let the teacher know what he doesn't know (don't we do this already with diagnostics) and then they can figure out together the best way to get to the learning so that the outcome can be performed successfully (the product produced--in my case, an essay)

The criteria to determine if the outcome has been achieved can also be designed together.

--I want to track how the criteria which the students create changes from first unit ot he last unit

--do they basically "get it" at the beginning OR --do the criteria become more sophisticated as each unit progresses

So the problem will be the outcome; we have to solve the problem, achieve the outcome; the class will be about finding the solution to achieve the outcome; the outcome is what will help to guide us

Just like teachers use the objectives to design the lessons but in this project I will asking the students to help design the lessons

My job will be 1. document their performance 2. lead them to reflect 3. focus on outcome 4. provide support where/when needed

The composition participatory design project was conceived to explore bringing together the world of

composition pedagogy/ course objectives/ content expert/ learner

Ideally, criteria should be set up by audience

                         Quality
                          1
                          1
                          1

organization -------->x product/quantity---- both quanitity and quality = success

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