Get In Loser; We're Going Teaching!

A Ribbon For Authentic Enthusiasm

Looking back at this past week, we learned about Gardner's Multiple Intelligence Theory, Domains of Learning, and Modalities of Learning. We also had a guest speaker, Amy Foster, join us to share her experience helping educators comply with Federal special education regulations. We are starting to trudge deeper into the world of teaching, so it was only fitting that Dr. Foster's shirt be featured in this blog. As the fifth week of the semester approaches, #psuaged22 is diving into techniques for group teaching and writing objectives. From these readings I have identified three relevant connections to my Student Teaching Internship, two connections to other courses in my #TeachAg! journey, and a Triangulated Connection.

For Student Teaching

After learning about Gardner's Multiple Intelligence theory, I have been thinking a lot about how I can incorporate variation into my lessons to ensure each type of intelligence is able to show off their strengths in my classroom. After reading from Methods of Teaching Agriculture, I made a few connections about how Group Teaching Techniques can help me to incorporate variation during my Student Teaching Internship.

• The Group Teaching Techniques highlighted in our reading include lecture, demonstrations, field trips, role playing, resource people, and cooperative learning. This reading highlights that not every topic can be taught in a lecture format effectively. Utilizing each of these techniques as they best fit the material I am teaching will automatically give me variation in my lessons. 
• Questions play an important role in the classroom. Not only do questions posed by the teacher serve to check student understanding, questions from the student can also enhance learning for the entire classroom. When reading about discussions, I learned that the masterful agriculture educator does not give specific answers to student questions, but opens the questions up to the whole group to think about. Using this strategy as a Student Teacher will help me to hand the reins of education over to my students so that they can exercise some control over their learning experience.
• In AEE 413 this past week, we talked about Community Based Units of Instruction as an opportunity available for us to utilize during the Spring Semester. After reading about when to use a resource person in Group Teaching Techniques, I feel even more equipped to utilize this technique in one of my units during my Student Teaching Internship. Agriculture teachers are often considered to be jacks of all trades and masters of none. In cases where more expertise is needed in the classroom, it is important to utilize members of the community.

From My #TeachAg! Journey

Our second reading for this week focuses on writing objectives that challenge students to think. As a student, knowing the objectives of a lesson not only help me to focus my attention on what I should be absorbing from a lesson, but it is often frustrating to sit in a lesson with no clue what information is most important for me to learn. This reading has me thinking of two connections in particular about objectives, or a lack thereof, in other courses in my #TeachAg! journey.

• One of the most challenging courses in my college career was taught by a professor that did not use objectives. Thinking back, this professor probably did not use objectives because they wanted us to know literally every piece of information thrown at us in an hour lecture, but it made my learning experience stressful, unfocused, and overwhelming. 
• On the other hand in almost all of my agriculture education courses, objectives are used. The use of objectives in these courses make studying infinitely easier because I have an idea of what I need to know for exams.

Pulling It All Together

A Plethora of Bloom's Verbs

After reading about the importance of measurable objectives, I realized I do not know many verbs that represent Bloom's Taxonomy to use in my objectives. Thanks to the handy-dandy internet however, I found this resource to use to spice up my objectives!

Grantham, N. (2021, August 17). Bloom's taxonomy verbs - free chart and handout. Fractus Learning. Retrieved September 18, 2021, from https://www.fractuslearning.com/blooms-taxonomy-verbs-free-chart/. 

"Taylor"ed with love,