What do you think the value of collaboration with the community outside your classroom would be? (feel free to scholar google it and refer to any research too....) Are there any draw backs? What considerations and concerns do you need to address when collaborating with the community?
I don't think there is any argument about the usefulness of real world collaboration. It is an amazingly effective tool for getting students interested because it makes the material real to them. Whether it is a French pen pal in french class or a presentation by a world war II veteran in history, these experiences will really have an impact on the students. I believe strongly that a huge amount of learning takes place outside the classroom and that we need to try our best to incorporate that style or type of learning into the schooling process.
I also think that having students interact with their immediate community, not just the distant "world community", is extremely important because it helps them to establish connections to things that they encounter on a regular basis. Creating these connections helps the students to elaborate on the ideas in class and it enables them to see real applications for their newly learned skills or knowledge. I know that some of my favorite science field trips were just to the local graveyard because there was a family of Great Horned Owls that lived there. We got to watch the chicks grow, learn to fly, and leave the nest. We also got to collect owl pellets and dissect them. If you want to see a group of excited 6th graders, have them dissect something that they have gone out and found in the woods nearby. I will never forget how much I enjoyed that!
Anyways, I am getting off topic. There are so many pros to collaboration in all of its forms that it is sometimes easy to forget that there are concerns to be considered as well. Like I said in my comment, there are situations where collaboration is not helpful and there are situations where it may influence the students negatively. Making sure that you consider the impact and consequences is key to success. Speakers need to be positive, pen pals need to be applicable, and field trips need to be well planned. Any event, presentation, trip, or online project should be viewed or tried in advance.
Collaboration needs to be used in all classrooms, but it also is just a simple resource that has its limits. It should not be over used and it should not be something that is used instead of instruction.
Sorry if I rambled a little bit, but that's what I was thinking =D
Good example on the anti-drug you mentioned in response to my post. I was wondering though, when we are very planned out, how to do have spontaneity? I think some of the best lessons can come from this spur of the moment idea. Does this not have a place in education?
ReplyDeleteI think that spontaneous lessons and interaction are great, but perhaps not so much in collaborative situations. At any point where you bring in an outside resource, you need to have a very good understanding of what you're about to expose the children to.
ReplyDeleteAlso, just because you have a grasp on the situation at hand doesn't mean that you are taking away any of the spur of the moment experience. And when things do surprise you, make sure that you analyze the position you're in rapidly. Sometimes things happen that you really can't control, but you, as the teacher, need to remember that you're responsible for everything the children are exposed to at school. Saying it was a spontaneous educational moment won't get you off the hook when an inappropriate image is on the site you load up as a result of a conversation...
It's hard sometimes, but being mindful of the things you expose your class to is an important part of teaching in our current society.
I believe it is very important to keep the downsides of collaboration in mind. Students could be interested and excited about everything they do outside of schools, but always always double check if the activity could negatively effect any of the students in the classroom.
ReplyDeleteYou brought up something interesting - I agree though, collaboration should not be used in placed of instruction. Well, with SOLs in Virginia we probably won't have to worry about being tempted by this, but outside collaboration should provide more connections so students better learn the information. The more connections a student has to new material, the better the chances he/she will remember what he/she has learned.
ReplyDelete