Clip 11: Moment 3c
Catherine:
So, Jack, I've got a suggestion around how to involve the students a little bit more around your writing samples. And as I’m explaining it to you, I want to check in to see how you, whether you are understanding it first of all, but also how you feel about giving it a go. And if you think it’s not going to work, that’s when I want to know, cause I want you to guide the conversation basically.
Jack:
Okay.
Catherine:
Okay?
Jack:
Yep.
Catherine:
You had some fantastic writing samples. You put them all up, and then you talked about them in great depth. And what I’m going to suggest to you is switching that around a little bit so that the kids can look at the samples, they can come up with what’s quality about it, and then maybe come up with some success criteria around that. And I'm just wondering what you think of that whole little process? Or whether you even understand what I'm talking about?
Jack:
Yep, so you're saying that I do all that work for the kids?
Catherine:
Yeah.
Jack:
And that I could get them to do that … more of that themselves?
Catherine:
Yeah.
Jack:
And why would I want to do that?
Catherine:
Well, the reasoning behind that is that whole notion of having kids being partners in the learning, which eventually leads to them having more ownership of the learning, leading to more independence in the learning. Have you heard of that notion of self-regulated learners? Yeah, and so it’s about shifting the focus from you being the expert all the time to the kids having some input into that. So it’s not just …
Jack:
Would you see it as a problem that the kids, it would take longer? And it would be longer before they got to the writing stage?
Catherine:
And that would be something that you would have to just live with for a little while. But what I suggest you do is give it a go, and see if it’s worth spending the extra time to have the kids actually involved. Because that will be what will make the difference, I suspect, into changing some of your teaching. If you can see a difference in kids’ interactions, or in kids’ quality of writing, or even the research would say that ...
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Allan:
Stop talking and check in with me. Because that’s what I want, I’m wanting you to check in with me there. “So does it sound reasonable?” would be something that would, that gives me ...
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Catherine:
Does that sound reasonable?
Jack:
Yeah, it does. It does actually.
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Allan:
So going out of role here, that was the most engaged I've been in that whole conversation.
