Common Hard Core

Hello-

I just want to thank everyone for reading my posts and for the comments left.  I'll continue to do my best to make my blog as entertaining as possible.

I just watched the YouTube videos from the Teaching Channel on the Common Core Standards.  I started with the middle school level video (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SC4OG11zOC8&feature=youtu.be), but I was curious about the other ones because of the nature of the video itself.  I had the time, so I watched all of them.  They did a great job obscuring the intent of the video; I couldn't quite tell if they were marketing videos or informational videos.  I've settled on marketing videos, because it seems like there may be some resistance to the implementation of the Common Core Standards, and these videos show teachers coming to grips with them and giving the new standards a shot in their classroom.  I also noticed that the classes were fairly small and the teachers were telegenic and attractive (Too bad the principles weren't).
It's easy to forget that teachers are public employees.  I've been a public employee before.  I worked for the County of Los Angeles in the Probate Division.  It's a strange environment when there isn't really a owner or a real boss and decisions are handed down "from on high".  This is akin to the situation these videos are trying to address.  I imagine, in general teachers look at what they have to teach and what they want to teach, what book they have to teach out of, what material they have to cover, and it probably takes a few years to get that down.  Some teachers figure out what they have to do and go into cruise mode.  Some teachers figure out what they have to do, which allows them to improvise and make it fun.  Both allow for somewhat of a life outside of teaching.
Suddenly everything is shaken up.  A veteran teacher is faced with the work and adjustments of a first year teacher again.  That can't be a good feeling.  I think these videos are made with these teachers in mind.  They are basically saying "it's 90% the same thing, you just get to slow down and go deeper in some areas of your choice".  They are trying to offer assurances in a time when teachers are expected to work more with less a la the weak economy.
That being said, I think I agree with the Common Core Standards.  They seem to emphasize more rational thinking and writing as well as more practical problem solving.  This is what America needs if we want to be competitive in the global village into the twenty first century.

Enjoy the rest of the weekend!

Andy       
     

Computational Thinking: A Stone Age Skill For Everyone

Hello Class!

I just read the the ISTE article called "Computational Thinking: A Digital Skill for Everyone" by David Barr, John Harrison and Leslie Conery.  Honestly, I felt like it didn't make it clear what computational thinking is.  I even read it to my girlfriend, who is much smarter than me, and she didn't know either.  Her comment actually was: "it just sounds like scientific thinking to me."  Since both of us have studied science, it doesn't sound like anything new to us.  It just sounds like the way humans should learn how to think about subjects.  It's pretty much what gave us everything that makes life possible.  Maybe not what makes life worth living, but definitely possible.  Her next comment was: "it's like asking students to think outside the box."  I think it's the exact opposite.  It's asking students to look and see clearly exactly what's in the box.  Is it possible that the coddling of our young has lead to a couple of generations of Americans that are only concerned with how they feel about a given subject?  Our highly individualistic society inherently promotes "out of the box" thinking, as in: "how does this subject relate to me and my friends?"  It's no wonder Americans have a hard time grasping what's happening in the Middle East.  It has no bearing on their immediate consumerist existence.  No wonder America has a shortage of engineers and computer programmers.  Analyzing raw data doesn't "feel" very good.  This, to me, is essentially the scientific community at large striking back.  They did some research and analyzed the data.  It's like when they re-branded Creationism "Intelligent Design".  This is Logical or Critical Thinking re-branded Computational Thinking.  I think.  Either that or I don't get it at all.  Why do they put the words modeling and simulation in quotes?  Are they being ironic?  Scientists don't put those words in quotes.  And how does modeling and simulation relate to the lifestyle of an ancient roman child?  It's all a bit too vague; the exact opposite of what computational thinking should yield.  It's as if they didn't apply computational thinking to the writing of the article itself.

Cheers!
Andy