Sounds Like an Orchestra

Maestro Seiji Ozawa

The stunning sound of piano concerto, Rhapsody in Blue, is coming from the FM station.  I wonder how music, without words, conveys an astonishing amount of emotion into human (animals and plants, in some cases) lives.  It finally clicked.  A story that my music theory teacher told me before my high school graduation was this. 

"Teaching is like conducting an orchestra. There are so many different types of students' needs and personalities in addition to colleagues and families.  Teachers are the ones who enable to maximize their potentials and accomplishments on every student.  So your classroom will be vibrant and harmonious in learning.  Your music background will help tremendously on your teaching career."

All instrumental groups join in the grand finale after the piano solo.  I was visualizing different faces in my classroom.  Mr. Nakata was right.  A puppy trainer cannot train 25 puppies as rescue dogs all at once.  But a conductor inquires an individual unique sound from each and every instrument.  When all instruments take responsibility with dignity, in which they feel joy for being in a team, together, conductor and instrument players create a master piece that move the audience. 

All students know their goals and routine so they will initiate and engage on their learning.  A teacher is a conductor. She doesn't seem so important, but she knows where her learning team goes.  When she needs a specific talent, her baton points a specific student to assist.    Teaching is an orchestra.  Learning is an art.  It is eternal.  It is infinite. 

My Teacher's Evaluation

Ms Takahashi's face squishes in pain.  In addition to chronicle pain she was born with, she had a car accident a few years before I was in her class.  After a couple bouts of deep breathing, her smile is back, "Man, isn't it a pain or what?"  We all laugh.  

.........The classroom culture is a cognitively vibrant place,characterized by a shared belief in the importance of learning.   

........Classroom interactions among the teacher and individual students are highly respectful, reflecting genuine warmth and caring and sensitivity to students as individuals.


 No one interrupts except, "Are you ok?"  All thirty five fifth graders go back to their desk work immediately after that.  

........The teacher conveys high expectations for learning by all students and insists on hard work.

 "Discussion facilitators, please begin,"  A teacher announces.   All students move their desks into a shape like a horse shoe.  Two facilitators moves their desks to the other end of the horse shoe. 

........Students contribute to the use or adaptation of the physical environment to advance learning.

.........Routines are well understood and may be initiated by students.

One of the facilitator students calls, "Let's begin our discussion.  What do you think about actions orange farmers and Co-ops collaboration?  Tommy?"  Tommy reports, "it seems like co-ops workers are in the middle, who helps a smooth transition from the harvest to marketing oranges in the local stores and all around the country."  Liz continues, "I agree with Tommy.  I will ask my parents tonight about the collaboration piece because my parents are the orange farmers."  Discussion continues.  Ms. Takahashi is totally quiet.  We suspect she might be sleeping.

.........Students take an active role in monitoring their own behavior and that of other students against standards of conduct.

"Did you get to talk to your partner?  Is there anything else you would like to add?"  All students shake their heads.  "Then, we will adjourn our meeting today.  Ms. Takahashi?"
 
........Students themselves ensure that all voices are heard in the discussion.

Kids love social studies, as you notice.  But they love P.E. even better although Ms. Takahashi cannot model any of cool tricks such as balance beams, high bars, high jumps, dodge balls, jump ropes, and soft balls, because her physical motion is limited due to her disability.  She calls out, "Yasu, run on that curve, jump with curved body, and go over the bar.  You will land on the soft mat.  Kids!  Look at Yasu carefully."  Yasu's body is like a feather.  His motion reminds me of the Olympic athlete.  Now we all know what our teacher expects.

........Teacher actively seeks knowledge of students’ levels of development and their backgrounds, cultures, skills, language proficiency, interests, and special needs from a variety of sources. This information is acquired for individual students.

........The teacher’s explanation of content is thorough and clear, developing conceptual understanding through artful scaffolding and connecting with students’ interests.

Yuki knocks down a bar.  "Are you all right?"  "You can do it next time."  "Nice try."  She wipes her tears with a smile.  She is escorted by a health helper student to the nurse to clean her scrapes.  

.........Students exhibit respect for the teacher and contribute to high levels of civil interaction between all members of the class. The net result of interactions is that of connections with students as individuals.

Yes, I was in a dream class where I felt safe and encouraged.  Dream teachers exist regardless of the countries.  These teachers, who consistently inspire children and help them for the readiness of their future,  will be called "Distinguished" teacher in the new system in our state.

Reference:
Charlotte Danielson's Framework for Teaching

Don't Miss!

While visiting independently working students, I found one student who was in the tremendous agony over 4 times 9.  His equation appeared to be 4x9=40.  This student has been placed in the higher group in the pretest and the worksheet was a review.  "How did you come up with this answer," I asked.  Disorganized circled fours are scattered in his notebook.  Evidently, it is impossible to count these circles.  Messy!

Teacher: "Do you remember the strategy for times 4?" 
Student: "Double double." 
Teacher:"What is 9 plus 9?
Student:"18."
Teacher:"What is 18+18?"
Student:"36."
Student:"But 4x9 is 40.  I am right!"

Teacher: "What is the strategy for times 9?"
Student: "Times 10 minus one set."
Teacher: "4 times 10?"
Student: "40."
Teacher: "40 minus 9?"
Student: "36."
Student : "But 4x 9 is 40!!!!"

Is it a kind of misconception or misunderstanding?   This student's personality could have contributed a big role in his agonized maze.  Here is what I have done.  Going back to the beginning. 

• Legible hand writing!
• Use repeated addition.  
• Re draw circles in one line with number 4 inside.  
• Make an array of 4x9.  
• Draw a number lines that indicates skips of 4

Each time,  he compared products between x9 and x10.  He was no longer so upset.  There are so much evidence that proved the fact.  Finally, "I think 4 times 9 is 36."

A individual progress monitoring is imperative all times for every student.  It is a warning and caution when your use differentiated groups.  Create the system that you can monitor all students periodically.  Otherwise, some kiddos fall like sand through your fingers.

Taking Risks

Before the well polished grand piano, the 16 year old girl with piggy tails knew her crouched back looked terrible, but that was the only way she could convey her expressions in Beethoven Sonata.  The tiny muscles of her fingers were so tight through her arms to her shoulders.  When Beethoven composed this piece, he had felt so miserable over the event that had just happened in his life.  Her job was to translate his music and emotion through her playing of this beautifully curved instrument.  Her fingers cautiously touched some white and black keys... 

"Stop!"  my teacher scolded from another grand piano of his.  "You have never practiced what I asked.  You must express Beethoven's agony right there!"  I put my head down and agonized myself.  "Why?  I am trying to do what you have told me," I screamed in my head.  Japanese students are too obedient to talk back to their teachers.  Instead of talking back, my mind was swirling with billions of question marks while he was complaining about the terrible rehearsal of my piano.  "Why is it so difficult to convey my true feelings?  I am doing my best.  I cannot do any better than that!"

Without finding explainable answers, years have passed.  Perhaps I have withdrawn my effort of convincing people about my opinions or expressing my feelings.  When people around you are happy about something that you don't care for, let go of what you care about.  If you notice your teacher is not happy, change your face like a chameleon.  Don't try something hard because you will fail.  Don't try something new because you will be teased.  These types of attitudes have haunted my life for a long time.  I didn't quite comprehend that I am the one who payed the price.  Although it was so easy to make excuses not to do things, which, at the time, seemed to be okay, they totally limited my possibilities and future choices.  

I wish someone could have told me about it.  Instead, I decide that now I can be the one for the youngsters.  I would like to promote my students to take risks so that they become resilient in their own lives.  I want them to have an attitude, "I will do it even if it's hard,"  then, raise questions,  "Why does it happen?"  Take risks and experience failure in the learning process!  That is when they begin to think about what to do with it.  Convince them with reasons of why they want to achieve their goals.  And ask, "What drives you so hard instead of giving up?"  Meaningful conversations strengthen the critical thinking part of their brains.  Common Core ELA's career preparation intends to help children build life skills at their developmentally appropriate level.  

I daydream about myself being on the piano bench turning my head to my piano teacher.  "Teacher, will you help me improve on this piece?"  I don't have to agonize as much as Beethoven did.  I play piano just because I love it.  I want to be good at it.  There are enough reasons to take risks.

Common Core and Differentiation

Yo Yo Yo! During my experiences and research, differentiation is limited in Japanese education.  Let's say three classes are divided into 4 groups based on math per-assessment ability levels.  Students are reasonably distributed into each group.  The best example highlights the small number of students in the most struggling group.  Clearly, the student-teacher ratio impacts the students' concrete understanding.  Unfortunately, as the levels go higher, the difference appears at a faster pace or more work. 

Not many variety of activities to apply to real life situation or problem solving skills although most students in Japan exhibit strong foundation in math.  Even in the complex multi step story problems, equations and labeled answers could be on the worksheet.  Why?  Because young children are trained in the same way over and over.  In addition to the day time school, many students attend Juku (private cram school).  Juku teachers give their students more drills endlessly.  Kids are all beautifully cookie cuttered but no one can accuse their way of learning because their scores are at the top level in the world. 

Drilling practice has been used in Japan because of their National Standards.  Drilling makes most students meet their standards or above.  Adversity of drill based practice was lack of creativity.  Lack of critical thinking.  At a certain point of recent history, this problem was blamed on too much work days and too much academic requirements.  So the school days was shortened and schools adopted "affluence" time once a week.  30 years later, no results.  Blame was now pin pointed to extra time that they thought they could make students more creative, just like America. 

Over these few decades, my question kept coming back, "Are all Americans creative as Japanese envy?"  Indeed Steve Jobs, Michael Jackson, Steven King, and Lady Gaga had contributed our century with their extra ordinary talent.  Unfortunately true, though, these celebrities can be famous because they are a tip of iceberg.  Unlike Japan, diversity consist within our country.  Thus, a differentiation approach has been natural in the U.S.A.  Here is another problem.  Differentiation without academic foundation resulted more academic gap among youngsters.  To close this gap, Common Core sounds like a best solution for now.

I really want American and Japanese teachers to think.  Look at the big picture.  What about standards and differentiation.  Study more differentiated options for Japan.  Compacting curriculum or acceleration for faster paced students who mastered contents after pre assessment?  Give them some choices in the interest based, problem, or project based learning model.  The meaningful independent (or cooperative) project enhances their contents knowledge in depth.  Project assignments requires to emerge not only math skills but other content knowledge harmoniously.  That becomes creativity.

As for Americans, take advantage of Common Core.  Help build strong foundation among our students while differentiation is happening.  Tiered Instruction has been used as one of RIT (Responses to Intervention).  Several Tiered assignments are available beyond RIT purposes.  While closing the gap by teaching standards explicitly in variety activities at an appropriate tier level, make anchor assignments, interest based, and project based assignments available for gifted students.  Responding each student's best interest in the most effective way is the key for our nation's future.  Early childhood education is essential to ensure all student's basic knowledge through Common Core. Then, plan and provide real life opportunities that students can explore their learning skills. We are raising children who will be absolutely ready for their career and our global society.

Fellow teachers, our future is in our hands.  Let's juggle with it!

You Are Smart

A College Music Professor asked his class of 54 girls, "What is the difference between '歌唱'　(pronounced,  kah-show) and '唱歌' (show-ka)?"  The classroom was a frozen ice statue.  My head and eyeballs turned from left and right admiring several ice sculptures.  I could no longer wait after 5 seconds of silence.  My hands shot up really high.  "Kah-Show means songs and Show-kah means to sing."  The bald headed teacher exclaimed, "Correct!"  As soon as the hot iron bar was thrown into the ice sculptures, they started melting.  Every girl in the room turned around with envious look  and exclaimed, "Claire, you are so smart."

Does being smart mean you know something other people don't know?  If that's true, I was not so smart.  The answers I gave were nothing new.  I didn't have to solve anything.  My mind just naturally analyzed the order of Chinese characters.  It made sense in my brain.  That was all.  One of the girls responded with  great awe, "I had never thought of the way you read those words!  Now I see it."  I thought, "C'mon, how else can you interpret them, guys?  It's common sense."  I knew I had somehow impressed fellow music students, but I wasn't certain what smart really meant.

Thinking back to grade schools in Japan, I seldom remember someone mentioning "smart" or "clever" for certain people or actions.  Unlike American School, Japanese teachers don't praise their students for every little thing.  (In fact, I almost fainted when I saw a "100 Ways to Praise Your Students" poster during my internship year in Idaho.  No wonder American people look like they have so much confidence in them!)  Everybody knows who is the smartest in class but it's just an elephant in the room.  Another phrase that you would know but would not hear is "If you are smart, then you will become a doctor."  What I have heard most in my life is, "If you don't belong in the smart category, you will become something else other than doctor. (Don't even think about it)"  At least that's how I was raised.  (What an ordeal I have suffered...sigh...)  So, I have never been in the "smart" category.  What you often hear, though, is "よくがんばったね。(Yokoo-gum-batta-nay.) What a great effort you have made."  I was a student who was recognized as a hard worker but my effort was not good enough to be recognized as smart.

Jim Fay talks about the appropriate use of "smart."  If you say, "You are smart," too often, kids will not become resilient.  When a youngster gets stuck one one problem, he/she instantly become, "I am not smart."  Loss of confidence.  Withdrawal.  Instead, mentioning and giving positive questions would be more effective.  For instance, "How did you control yourself so well?"  "I notice you have the answer to this question."  Love and Logic works in both classroom and home situations.

Then I realized that I can use a word, "smart" in a meaningful way.  Being smart is excelling the personal ability that applies what's important into the real life. 

You are smart to use the Pythagorean theorem in this geometry question.  You are smart to allow yourself to make reasonable mistakes.  You are smart to learn lessons from your mistakes.  You are smart to make better choices.  

As you see in the examples above, smartness doesn't happen instantly.  Smartness is built upon experiences, willingness, and desire to improve.  That is the parents' and all educators' job: To help make kids as smart as they want to define what it is.  But the true smartness is the determination to make things happen.  Effort they make on their goals.  Exploring options that would solve their questions.  All in all, I would like to save the word "smart" on my own kids for special occasions.  They are smart enough to know their mother's intention.