Calo Corner

 “Not too Hard, Not too Boring" Educators are keenly aware of the impact of stress and trauma on a student’s ability to learn. When stressed, students are unable to attend to and therefore, retain new learning. We can blame the amygdala. This little walnut-shaped organ essentially controls learning. If information from the environment is stressful, the amygdala will send signals to the instinctual center of our brain, releasing cortisol which impedes our ability to think for at least 20 minutes. The process is called downshifting. Unbelievably, studies have shown that cortisol remains in the body for several hours.  I was surprised to learn that boring experiences are as stressful for the brain as feeling overwhelmed or anxious . Teachers can combat the “Goldilocks principle” by using stories, humor, choice, movement, and novelty in their lessons (Hattie). It’s not hard (or boring) to design learning experiences using the "Goldilocks principle."  The following activity...

When I was teaching high school students, I often heard, “Why do we have to learn this?” This question was easy to handle compared to what teachers are facing today: apathy. We have gone from “Why do I have to learn this?” to “I don’t care if I learn.”   During meetings on our benchmark assessment data, I hear the same comments from teachers about students who are not making progress. “He refuses to do any work.” “I’ve tried everything, but she doesn’t care.” Motivation is tough, particularly for the screen-addicted teen. For years I relied on Pink’s findings in Drive to help teachers engage students.  According to Pink, intrinsic motivation comes from three sources: autonomy, competence, and purpose.  Autonomy means that you have some control over the task. Teachers can create autonomy through choice. UDL, specifically representation and expression, provide many ways to allow for choice in materials and end products.  Competence is the belief that you have the a...

I have been reflecting on our students' use of AI. I bet the appeal is that AI thinks for them.  Why is this so attractive?  Daniel Willingham's newest edition of Why Don't Students Like School  provides insights that might help us understand our students' resistance. Our minds are designed to avoid thinking.  Thinking requires you to retrieve information from long-term memory and the environment and then use your working memory to combine that information in new ways. As a result, thinking is slow, effortful, and uncertain.  "Most of the time what we do is what we do most of the time" (6).   So instead of thinking, we often rely on memory. This is because our memories do not require much attention and work very quickly.  This is true of every one of us, not just our students. But here's the catch. We are naturally curious, so we will think under the right conditions.  Those conditions are shaped by our perceptions.  When solving a problem o...

Understandably, every teacher is wondering what to do about AI programs like ChatGPT.  I suggest we use this quote as a guide:  “ Change is constant. You can't stop change, control change, or perfectly plan for change. But you can ride the waves of change, partner with change, and shape change ” ( adrienne maree brown ) . We have two options: We can fight AI by blocking access, or we can work with it to supplement te aching and learning. Option #2 might be a better use of our time. Let's start with how ChatGPT can save teachers time and effort. ChaptGPT thinks in a linear, impersonal fashion. The program sifts through several terabytes of data to answer a question. If you are wondering, 1 terabyte holds the same amount of data as 1 million floppy disks. Like many of you, I can remember floppy disks. A million floppy disks is a whole lot of information. Why not use it our advantage? According to Andrew Herft, teachers can use ChatGPT to achieve the following outcomes: Prior K...

Yes! Let me explain. Universal Design for Learning (UDL) is an approach to teaching that offers flexibility in the way students access, process, and demonstrate their understanding of content and skills. The flexibility is built into the curriculum to remove barriers to learning for all students. Some students may need an additional level of support to remove a barrier to learning . Some students may have skill gaps. Some students have extended absences. Others may be ill. Regardless of the reason, if a student is demonstrating a barrier to learning, teachers should differentiate instruction.   The following chart depicts the main differences between the two instructional approaches: Universal Design for Learning Differentiation Flexible instructional design intended to remove barriers to learning Targeted instructional design intended to a remove specific students’ learning barriers Proactive or Curriculum Design- considers variability of all learners Reactive or Pos...

Over winter break I read two books that I purchased at the Learning and the Brain conference. I started with Jean Twenge’s book, IGen: Why Today’s Super-Connected Kids Are Growing Up Less Rebellious, More Tolerant and Less Happy- And Completely Unprepared for Adulthood. My first blog post, Teens Aren't All Right, and They Know It! , is about her research. I was so enthralled- and disturbed- by Tim Elmore's research  that I bought his book, too:  Generation Z Unfiltered .  I am glad that I read both, as I gleaned a few insights into the GenZ’ers we teach, and may live with.  The researchers discover some trends that may explain some of the behaviors we see in our students and children. According to Elmore, the world has shaped teens' beliefs, which will in turn, impact their behavior. A Teen's World is Defined By...                 Teens Now Believe...      Speed          ...

Sitting in front of you is a paradox. Students portray an optimism and self-confidence online that may cover vulnerability, depression, and anxiety. The results can be seen in every classroom. 1. Students are less likely to participate in class discussions or ask questions because they can't run the risk of doing something wrong and having it end up online. As a result, at the start of year, teachers need to build a safe community , one that is characterized by your trust and reassurance. Consider these SEL strategies . 2. Expect a short attention span. Elmore writes that GenZ's attention span is about "8 seconds" (147). Vary instructional approaches, particularly in regard to multiple means of representation . Teens engage best with sensory stimulation, particularly visual stimuli . Toggle between video, discussion, lecture, and demonstration. Create prior knowledge activities and learning experiences that require students to move around the room. 3. Go for depth ov...

  Course Correction: Tips for Parenting GenZ Hopefully, my last post helped you better understand your GenZ child.  My goal in this blog is to share tips for setting boundaries on your teens' technology use so they live healthier lives.  This is by no means a handbook. It's a list of ideas. Some will work; others won't; and chances are good that you will get this reaction.     → 1. Limit use of the smartphone to one hour a day. 2. Put off giving your child a smartphone; instead give them a phone with limited functions, like a flip phone. 3. Allow teens to be on social media, but on your computer. Choose media that allows brief and individual posts only. 4. Install an app on your child's smartphone that will limit the time on apps and shut down the phone after a period of time. 5. Create phone-free times during which no one has a phone with them. Many people make the dinner table a phone-free zone. 6. Engage children in experiences that build their independence a...

  Tips for Maximizing Student Learning From Video I am so impressed by the number of teachers who have begun incorporating educational videos in their instruction as part of our professional development on Multiple Means of Representation .  Some of you have expressed frustration that students are not engaging with the videos as you would like. Some students are ignoring parts of the video and as a result, missing the educational content. For these reasons, I am sharing tips that will increase student learning from videos.  To start, I need to go back to my post on cognitive load , particularly extraneous load. If you recall, extraneous load is determined by how content is presented. The goal is to reduce extraneous load so that students' working memories are focused only on the content to be learned. This applies to educational videos. To reduce extraneous load and increase attention, consider the following recommendations: Signaling: Signaling, or cueing, directs s...