Comments for The Paper Graders

Comment on David Coleman, Common Core, and Storytelling by Mr. S

Mr. S — Thu, 09 May 2013 21:19:35 +0000

Thanks for reading Garrett, and thanks for the thoughtful comments.
-JS

Comment on David Coleman, Common Core, and Storytelling by Garrett A. Hughes

Garrett A. Hughes — Tue, 07 May 2013 14:18:22 +0000

Actually quants tend to be pretty poor at narrative. Have you read any technical reports lately? Or just pick up a book on how to learn a programming language. The only one on a popular programming language that comes close to a narrative format is “Head First Java” by Kathy Sierra and Bert Bates. It is written with a lot of humor. But, it is not going into a second edition. Too bad. It is very readable, but probably too “wordy” for most programming types.

We don’t all make personal decisions based on our personal narratives . More often than not, many of us rely on spreadsheets. And when you state that “All learning is most powerful when couched in terms of narrative. It is why our most profound texts are in the form of stories…,” you would have a hard time justifying this statement to both poets and mathematicians (as well as scientists, engineers) – the practitioners of which do pretty much the same thing: condense narrative into its essence using symbols that can be quite abstract.

But, as you can see on my website – garrettahughes.com – you will find my use of narrative quite extensive, especially in arguments about education reform. I am as opposed to the CCC as vehemently as I am opposed to the KKK.

I think most people relate better to narratives – I know my students enjoyed it when I would branch off the subject of physics or computer science and tell a story about my exploits in far-away places (Antarctica, for example). Narrative has a very important role to play in making a point or a decision – but it’s not the only tool in your kit. I think C. P. Snow would agree.

Keep up the great writing,

Garrett

Comment on David Coleman, Common Core, and Storytelling by Mr. S

Mr. S — Mon, 06 May 2013 23:17:28 +0000

Thanks Brian,
Our experience is similar. Not only do colleges want to know what students have to say, I think it’s important to help students cultivate the idea that they SHOULD have something to say. Their thoughts and ideas matter- they are the raw material of our future.
-JS

Comment on David Coleman, Common Core, and Storytelling by Brian

Brian — Mon, 06 May 2013 22:33:11 +0000

I teach Senior English and inevitably, my students come to me with their college essays. They would like me to proofread them and give them feedback. In my 15 YEARS of experience, I have read hundreds of college essays. Though the questions themselves differ, there is still one common theme amongst all of them: That theme is: “What do you have to say?” Now that colleges are ignoring SAT and ACT scores again, they are looking to what coursework and grades within those courses students are getting. Their college essays most likely hold more weight than many believe. But the interesting thing is that all of these colleges and universities want to know what our kids have to say.

Comment on Of MOOCs and Kooks by MOOCs and Kooks Part Deux | The Paper Graders

MOOCs and Kooks Part Deux | The Paper Graders — Mon, 29 Apr 2013 23:12:53 +0000

[...] promised, here is follow up to the post I did a while back on the two MOOCs I took over the past month and [...]

Comment on Testing Backlash: Zombies, Spoken Word, Opting Out by DocZ

DocZ — Sun, 28 Apr 2013 20:31:16 +0000

I just saw this as well via Penny Kittle on Twitter: http://www.theatlantic.com/national/archive/2013/04/the-coming-revolution-in-public-education/275163/

Comment on Simmering Frustration about State-Mandated Testing by Testing Backlash: Zombies, Spoken Word, Opting Out | The Paper Graders

Testing Backlash: Zombies, Spoken Word, Opting Out | The Paper Graders — Sun, 28 Apr 2013 20:07:25 +0000

[...] And our students are not alone in this struggle. I included an example of teacher resistance up there on purpose. As long as the high stakes tests are in play, we need to do them well or face the very real consequences of not doing well. This is why I show up every year to proctor the mandated tests even though I’m beyond grumpy about it for reasons I’ve articulated here before. [...]

Comment on Reading, reading, reading… by Mr. S

Mr. S — Sat, 20 Apr 2013 18:04:47 +0000

Very cool idea. I’m going to do that!
Thanks Joy!
-mr. S

Comment on Reading, reading, reading… by Joy Kirr (@JoyKirr)

Joy Kirr (@JoyKirr) — Sat, 20 Apr 2013 17:24:42 +0000

Hello!
I, too, share with students what I’m reading… whether it be blogs, tweets, YA books, picture books, professional books… One way we share that’s fairly easy for anyone to do: put a shelf on your blog. Here’s our class shelf: http://kirrscholars.blogspot.com/ (on the right side, a bit down), and I have my own on this site: http://geniushour.blogspot.com/ . I also tag what I’m currently reading in my email signature, and on the sign on the classroom door. (“Mrs. Kirr is currently reading _______. Her next book is _______.) Enjoy sharing with your kids, and make sure they can share just as much!
Sincerely,
Joy Kirr

Comment on Of MOOCs and Kooks by Robert LaRue

Robert LaRue — Wed, 13 Mar 2013 04:24:37 +0000

I just finished a Coursa class on film. They discussed mainly films I hadn’t yet seen, so did it for fun… and it mostly was fun. The quizes and final were silly. Too much focus on trivial aspects of the material, though that may have been because of a first-time instructor. The student discussion aspect was hit and miss. Mostly miss. 500+ were in the class so there was a full range of topics and depth of discussion. It was a challenge to slog through most of the dreck to find insightful comments, so I gave that up early on. Fortunately we were not required to interact for the ‘assignments’. I’ve done online courses before and disliked them immensely. This one wasn’t too offensive, so I’ll try another one that will be more out of my field.