You need to watch and pick a video and write Fieldwork Observation
Video Links
A. https://highqualityearlylearning.org/
4 classrooms, shorter videos, **need to look for the math
Patterns,
Fieldwork Observation Protocol
Format for Observations
Your Name: Date of Observation:
Topic of Lesson: School/Grade:
Link:
I. Brief summary of the lesson you observe: In order to understand your responses to the observation assignment, I need to know what took place in the classroom during the math activity or lesson. Your summary should include just the highlights of the lesson and be coherent enough to give someone who was not there with you a clear understanding of what took place.
II. Respond to all Observation Guideline prompts: All responses should be based on classroom evidence. In some cases your answers might be negative. For example, the lesson context might not encourage the asking of questions, etc. You should explain this and also describe, what does get encouraged. Be as descriptive as possible when addressing each part of the assignment even if you would teach the lesson differently.
III. Reflect on the observation experience: What was it like being in a math class/math lesson? Is it what you expected? Did you understand the content? What are your suggestions for improvement?
How to do it!
Observation 1: Nature of the Content
Mathematics is an exciting and dynamic area of study that offers children the chance to use the power of their minds. It is essential that teachers engage children in tasks that exemplify the beauty and usefulness of mathematics. The purpose of this observation is not to judge the lesson/activity you observe. It is designed to sensitize you to the messages children are receiving about what mathematics is and what is of importance to learn.
I. Write a brief summary of the lesson you observe:
In order to understand your responses to the observation assignment, I need to know what took place in the classroom during the math activity or lesson. Your summary should include just the highlights of the lesson and be coherent enough to give someone who was not there with you a clear understanding of what took place.
II. Respond to all Observation Guideline prompts:
A. Observe the mathematical content of the lesson.
a. Explain whether the content was focused on the procedural fluency, conceptual understanding, or problem solving. (Please note that problem solving refers to using mathematical knowledge in a new or unique way, not simply repeating procedures provided by the teacher and persevering when the problem seems difficult.)
b. Describe whether the content as presented required the students to reason abstractly and/or quantitatively. Describe whether students were expected to look for and make use of the structure of the mathematics.
c. In what way did the content exemplify how mathematics is used to model real life problems? Describe whether the real-life context was authentic or contrived.
B. Observe the use of mathematical representations in the lesson.
a. Examine the accuracy of the content. Record and correct any mathematical errors, misconceptions, or misrepresentations you observed.
b. Describe the mathematical language and symbols that were used in the lesson. In what way were the children encouraged to use proper mathematical language?
c. Describe the mathematical tools that were used to represent the mathematical concepts. (e.g., pencil, paper, concrete models, counters, computer). In what ways did these tools help students explore and deepen their understanding of the concepts? Which other tools do you think could have been used more effectively? Explain.
C. Observe how the teacher helped the students appreciate the value of mathematics. One important goal for students is that they learn to value mathematics (National Council of Teachers of Mathematics [NCTM], 1989, 2000). When teachers believe in and understand the value of mathematics, they can teach in a way that reveals some of the following aspects of the mature of mathematics: Mathematics helps us to understand our environment. Mathematics is the language of science. Mathematics is the study of patterns. Mathematics is a system of abstract ideas.
a. Describe each time that the teacher explicitly pointed out the value of the mathematics the students were learning. For example, the teacher said, “The problem shows how patterns can help us to understand the world around us.”)
b. Discuss other opportunities the teacher could have used to get the students to appreciate and understand the value of the mathematics they were studying.
III. Reflect on the observation experience:
Based on this observation, make suggestions for improvement and conjectures …regarding the teacher’s knowledge of mathematics, his or her beliefs about the nature of mathematics and her or his goals for what the students should learn about mathematics.
You need to watch and pick a video and write Fieldwork Observation
Video Links
A. https://highqualityearlylearning.org/
4 classrooms, shorter videos, **need to look for the math
Patterns,
Fieldwork Observation Protocol
Format for Observations
Your Name: Date of Observation:
Topic of Lesson: School/Grade:
Link:
I. Brief summary of the lesson you observe: In order to understand your responses to the observation assignment, I need to know what took place in the classroom during the math activity or lesson. Your summary should include just the highlights of the lesson and be coherent enough to give someone who was not there with you a clear understanding of what took place.
II. Respond to all Observation Guideline prompts: All responses should be based on classroom evidence. In some cases your answers might be negative. For example, the lesson context might not encourage the asking of questions, etc. You should explain this and also describe, what does get encouraged. Be as descriptive as possible when addressing each part of the assignment even if you would teach the lesson differently.
III. Reflect on the observation experience: What was it like being in a math class/math lesson? Is it what you expected? Did you understand the content? What are your suggestions for improvement?
Observation 1: Nature of the Content
Mathematics is an exciting and dynamic area of study that offers children the chance to use the power of their minds. It is essential that teachers engage children in tasks that exemplify the beauty and usefulness of mathematics. The purpose of this observation is not to judge the lesson/activity you observe. It is designed to sensitize you to the messages children are receiving about what mathematics is and what is of importance to learn.
- Write a brief summary of the lesson you observe:
In order to understand your responses to the observation assignment, I need to know what took place in the classroom during the math activity or lesson. Your summary should include just the highlights of the lesson and be coherent enough to give someone who was not there with you a clear understanding of what took place.
II. Respond to all Observation Guideline prompts:
A. Observe the mathematical content of the lesson.
a. Explain whether the content was focused on the procedural fluency, conceptual understanding, or problem solving. (Please note that problem solving refers to using mathematical knowledge in a new or unique way, not simply repeating procedures provided by the teacher and persevering when the problem seems difficult.)
b. Describe whether the content as presented required the students to reason abstractly and/or quantitatively. Describe whether students were expected to look for and make use of the structure of the mathematics.
c. In what way did the content exemplify how mathematics is used to model real life problems? Describe whether the real-life context was authentic or contrived.
B. Observe the use of mathematical representations in the lesson.
- Examine the accuracy of the content. Record and correct any mathematical errors, misconceptions, or misrepresentations you observed.
- Describe the mathematical language and symbols that were used in the lesson. In what way were the children encouraged to use proper mathematical language?
- Describe the mathematical tools that were used to represent the mathematical concepts. (e.g., pencil, paper, concrete models, counters, computer). In what ways did these tools help students explore and deepen their understanding of the concepts? Which other tools do you think could have been used more effectively? Explain.
C. Observe how the teacher helped the students appreciate the value of mathematics. One important goal for students is that they learn to value mathematics (National Council of Teachers of Mathematics [NCTM], 1989, 2000). When teachers believe in and understand the value of mathematics, they can teach in a way that reveals some of the following aspects of the mature of mathematics: Mathematics helps us to understand our environment. Mathematics is the language of science. Mathematics is the study of patterns. Mathematics is a system of abstract ideas.
- Describe each time that the teacher explicitly pointed out the value of the mathematics the students were learning. For example, the teacher said, “The problem shows how patterns can help us to understand the world around us.”)
- Discuss other opportunities the teacher could have used to get the students to appreciate and understand the value of the mathematics they were studying.
III. Reflect on the observation experience:
Based on this observation, make suggestions for improvement and conjectures …regarding the teacher’s knowledge of mathematics, his or her beliefs about the nature of mathematics and her or his goals for what the students should learn about mathematics.
Observation 2: Discourse/Communication
Discourse is a vital part of the mathematics classroom and is central to the current vision of desirable mathematics teaching. The teacher’s role is to create a classroom community where children have the opportunity to test their mathematical ideas to see whether they can be understood and if they are sufficiently convincing (NCTM 2000, CCSSM 2010). According to the Professional Teaching Standards (NCTM, 1991) the teacher should:
- Pose questions that elicit, engage, and challenge each student's thinking.
- Listen carefully to students' ideas and ask them to clarify and justify their ideas.
- Encourage students to listen to, respond to, and question the teacher and one another.
Questioning and orchestrating the discourse during a class is partly planned and also largely involves instantaneous decision-making. The purpose of this observation is not to judge the lesson you observe. It is designed to sensitize you to discourse taking place in the mathematics classroom.
- Write a brief summary of the lesson you observe:
In order to understand your responses to the observation assignment, I need to know what took place in the classroom during the math activity or lesson. Your summary should include just the highlights of the lesson and be coherent enough to give someone who was not there with you a clear understanding of what took place.
II. Teacher’s Questions
1. Keep a tally of the types of questions the teacher asks throughout the lesson.
| Questioning Skills Chart | Number | Percentage of Total |
| Memory: Factual Questions (e.g., What is 1 + 1?) | ||
| Convergent: Narrow Question (e.g., yes/no response | ||
| Divergent: Broad, Open-ended (e.g., How do you know? as suggested in the professional standards.) |
2. Keep a tally of whether the question encourages a chorus response, a volunteered response, or a teacher selected response.
| Type of Responses | Number | Percentage of Total |
| Chorus Response | ||
| Volunteered Response (student with raised hand) | ||
| Teacher-Selected Response (from non-volunteer) |
3. Based on the data you have recorded, write an overall description of the teacher’s questioning style and how it affected the verbal communication that took place in the classroom. Specifically, describe how it affected the verbal participation of each of the students.
4. Give suggestions for how you feel the questioning could have been improved to maximize student understanding of, and participation in, the lesson.
Part 2: Classroom Discourse
1. The speaking roles taken by teacher and children are also important in classroom discourse.
Keep a tally of the instances in which the teacher and children take turns in different discourses.
| Turns | Teacher | Children |
| Request an answer? | ||
| Request an explanation? | ||
| State an answer? | ||
| Give an explanation? | ||
| Restate an answer (i.e. repeats verbatim)? | ||
| Expand on an answer (i.e. repeats, adds some additional information)? | ||
| Rephrase an answer (i.e. modifies the answer, but the meaning is preserved)? | ||
| Evaluate an answer (i.e. makes a statement about the accuracy, relevance, etc. of the answer)? |
Keep in mind for pre-k/kindergarten that some of this discourse may not occur in the verbal sense but with drawings, acting out, pointing, etc.
2. Based on the data you have gathered, write an overall description of the classroom discourse. How often are students and teacher initiating different discourses? What does this tell you about the nature of discourse in this classroom?
3. What suggestions do you have for changing the pattern of discourse to increase student learning?
Observation 3: Motivation and Teaching Strategies
Motivation is a crucial aspect of teaching. Without some sort of motivation, significant student learning may not occur. Teachers can design lessons that maximize the chances that students' interest and curiosity will be aroused and thus be motivated to learn a particular concept. The purpose of this reflection/observation is not to judge the lesson you observe/teach. It is designed to sensitize you to some of the ways children are being motivated to learn and do mathematics.
- Write a brief summary of the lesson you observe:
In order to understand your responses to the observation assignment, I need to know what took place in the classroom during the math activity or lesson. Your summary should include just the highlights of the lesson and be coherent enough to give someone who was not there with you a clear understanding of what took place.
- Describe how the teacher tried to motivate students to want to learn?
- What motivational techniques did the teacher use?
- How did the teacher adjust the motivational strategies for students with different interests, needs, and/or abilities?
- What student behaviors gave you the impression that the students were indeed motivated to learn? If students did not seem motivated, what student behaviors gave you this impression?
- How could the motivation for this lesson have been improved?
- What changes, if any, would you make to the motivational technique used by the teacher? If there were no motivational techniques, what questions would you ask or techniques would you use?
- What types of student behaviors would you look for to be sure that the students were motivated to learn?
- What are your conjectures about the teacher’s beliefs about motivation?
- How do you think this teacher would define motivation? Do you agree with this definition? Why or why not?
- What do you think this teacher believes her or his role is in motivating the students to learn? Why?
- What do you think this teacher believes the student’s role is in being motivated to learn? Why?
- What are your conjectures about the teacher’s knowledge of her or his students?
- What did the motivational and teaching strategies reflect about the teacher’s knowledge of the students’ abilities?
- How would you assess this teacher’s knowledge of the students in terms of how they learn, their abilities, and their interests?
Observation 4: Teacher Expectations
How teachers express their expectations can substantially influence how their students engage mathematics. The purpose of this reflection/observation is not to judge what you observe/assign. It is designed to sensitize you to subtle evidences of bias that might exist in the classroom and to heighten your awareness of how beliefs about students can directly impact the nature of the discourse within the classroom.
- Write a brief summary of the lesson you observe:
In order to understand your responses to the observation assignment, I need to know what took place in the classroom during the math activity or lesson. Your summary should include just the highlights of the lesson and be coherent enough to give someone who was not there with you a clear understanding of what took place.
- One way teachers communicate their expectations is in their response when a student/s are having trouble with a task. For example, teachers who believe their students are capable of doing mathematics may suggest how a problem could be approached, enabling their students to succeed on their own. On the other hand, teachers who believe their students are not capable may perform the task for them, or provide answers and solutions. During a mathematics lesson you are observing or teaching estimate:
- The number of times the teacher solves a problem for a student or carries out a task or procedure for a student.
- The number of times the teacher provides scaffolding to support solving a problem.
- The number of times the teacher encourages students to share ideas for carrying out a task or procedure.
- A second way teachers may communicate their expectations is in the time they wait for a student to give an appropriate answer. Research shows that a long wait time appears to signal to students that a teacher has the confidence in their ability to answer. During a mathematics lesson you are observing or teaching:
- How often is the wait time less than 5 seconds?
- How often is the wait time greater than 5 seconds?
- A third way teachers communicate their expectations is in the feedback they give students. If students receive little response to their answers, they have less reason to work hard. Additionally, they have to determine whether the limited feedback is an affirmation or a condemnation. This leaves the students with little understanding of what is expected of them. As a result, these students have been found to learn less and are more likely to drop math as soon as they have the opportunity. During a mathematics lesson you are observing or teaching estimate:
- The number of times the teacher accepted or praised a student’s answer.
- The number of times the teacher corrected or criticized a student answer.
- The number of times the teacher rejected or ignored a student answer.
- Identify any patterns of discourse that may have occurred with specific groups of students. Were there differences when considering gender, race/ethnicity, handicapping condition, or language? Then make a conjecture about the teacher’s beliefs about the abilities of certain groups of students. Justify your ideas and whether you want to take the same or different approach. Make suggestions for improvements.
Observation 5: Culmination – Assessing Instructional Practice
In the previous 4 observations you were asked to note different aspects of teachers’ instructional practice and to make conjectures for the underlying teacher cognitions that may have accounted for what you observed. Specifically, you were asked to critique the tasks, learning environment, and discourse. Based on this information, you were asked to consider what the teachers’ knowledge, beliefs, and goals were. In this observation, you put all that you have learned together by observing and critiquing several aspects of instruction in one lesson and making conjectures regarding specific aspects of the teacher’s instructional practice.
- Write a brief summary of the lesson you observe:
In order to understand your responses to the observation assignment, I need to know what took place in the classroom during the math activity or lesson. Your summary should include just the highlights of the lesson and be coherent enough to give someone who was not there with you a clear understanding of what took place.
- Tasks
- Modes of representation. Give a description of the symbols, materials, technology, and so on, the teacher used, and evaluate their effectiveness in facilitating content clarity, and enabling student to connect their prior knowledge and skills to the new mathematical situation so they could develop procedural fluency, conceptual understanding, mathematical reasoning, and problem solving.
- Motivational strategies. Describe the strategies used to capture and maintain students’ curiosity and assess whether or not they inspired students to speculate and pursue conjectures about the mathematical concepts. Discuss whether the diversity of student interest and abilities were taken into account and whether the substance of the motivation was aligned with the goals and purposes of instruction.
- Learning Environment
- Social and intellectual climate. Assess to what degree the teacher established and maintained a positive rapport with and among students by showing respect for and valuing students’ ideas and ways of thinking. Also, discuss whether the teacher enforced classroom rules so that children behaved appropriately.
- Modes of instruction and pacing. Describe the instructional strategies used. Assess how they encouraged and supported student involvement and critiquing of one another’s ideas and at the same time supported the attainment of the goals for the lesson. Also, discuss whether the teacher provided and structured the time necessary for the students to express themselves and explore mathematical ideas and problems.
- Discourse
- Teacher-student interaction. Assess whether the teacher communicated with students in a nonjudgmental manner and encouraged the participation of each student. Describe whether the teacher required students to give full explanations and justifications or demonstrations orally and/or in writing. Also determine whether the teacher listened carefully to students’ ideas and made appropriate decisions regarding when to offer information, provide clarification, model, lead, and let students grapple with difficulties.
- Student-student interaction. Describe whether and how the teacher encouraged students to listen to, respond to, and question each other so that they could evaluate and, if necessary, discard or revise ideas and take full responsibility for arriving at mathematical conjectures and/or conclusions.
- Questioning. Assess the questioning style of the teacher and determine whether she or he posed a variety of levels and types of questions using appropriate wait times that elicited, engaged, and challenged students’ thinking. Describe how the teacher selected particular students to respond, sequenced the order of their responses, and then connected the ideas expressed.
- Make suggestions for improvements