New Perspective

My definition of equity has changed greatly from the beginning of this course until now. My initial thought was that equity in a classroom meant treating students fairly and providing everyone with an equal opportunity to learn. Making sure I call on the boys as much as I call on the girls, for example, is a big part of that. I thought that by pulling popsicle sticks with the student’s names on them I was fulfilling my duty of creating an equitable classroom. Equity also meant differentiating instruction so that all students are able to access the curriculum at a level manageable to them. While all of that still applies, my current definition of equity has expanded to include much more. My original thoughts were focused around the students; I was not factoring myself and other staff into the equation. Equity encompasses students, parents/guardians, teachers, as well as other support staff. Aside from the classroom core teachers, other teachers and staff may include special educators, ELL instructors, guidance counselors, speech and language pathologists, school psychologist, social worker, reading specialist, etc. It is each student’s job to set challenging, yet obtainable, goals that they’ll strive to either reach or beat on a daily basis. It is the parents/guardians job to keep up-to-date with what’s going on in the classroom and provide a supportive environment for student learning at home. Teachers need to continue to better themselves as educators by seeking out professional development, as well as any other opportunities that may come their way. Teachers and other support staff need to meet frequently so that everyone is “in tune” with what’s going on (or what’s not going on) with their students. All parties involved serve as a piece to the equity puzzle. When one or more pieces are missing, equity cannot be achieved. Everyone needs to be an active participant and fulfill their duties in order to create equity.

Science Talks

At the beginning of the equity course we were each asked to come up with our own equity question to investigate. Examples of some of our questions are:
- Do students participate more if the science lesson caters to their learning style?
- Which gender, boys or girls, are earning the higher report card grades in my seventh grade science classes?
- Who takes the leadership role during small group work, boys or girls?
- How do lower level students compare to the other students when it comes to participating in class and doing labs?
- Do girls or boys have the scientific knowledge and attitude needed when they enter a departmentalized 4th grade science classroom?

In addition to collecting classroom data, we’ve also been on the search for related articles to help support our findings. Information we find pertaining to our question often leads to pondering more questions. Cindy Ballenger mentions something similar in her article titled One View of “Does a Plant Grow Every Day?” The focus of the article is on “science talks,” which are whole class discussions based around questions that arise from the children. They are not questions that have a definite answer; rather they are speculative and lead children to “trying to imagine phenomena, to connect a variety of events or experiences, to theorize about why and how.” Throughout a science talk, students use their prior knowledge as they draw upon their ideas and engage in a meaningful conversation with their peers. As mentioned above, “any questions they answer usually lead to more questions.”

One of the features of a science talk that makes it such a success is that the teacher’s main role is to facilitate student turns. Some teachers are more involved than others, but generally the teacher is not the main participant. Other teachers may feel that by being more involved they can guide the students in the direction they want and can interject with questions as they please. Another important feature of a science talk is that “students talk to each other and in a manner that is more associated with social situations outside of school.” In their discussion about whether or not plants grow everyday, a student in Ballenger’s article (3rd or 4th grader) commented that “I think I can kinda’ see myself grow because one day I putted on my socks and they was too small for me so I can fit in my mom’s socks now.” She made a connection between a plant’s growth and her own growth. Personally, I would like to incorporate more science talks into my lessons next year. Students who are less likely to raise their hand may contribute something to the conversation they would otherwise be more hesitant to say. Ballenger mentioned that these children “often add significant depth to the learning taking place.”

What Happens Inside The Classroom Is Just As Important As What Happens Outside The Classroom

This past week in Sharon J. Lynch’s book, Equity and Science Education reform, we read about how a student’s family, peers and surrounding community all influence student learning. We arrived at the understanding that science equity goes beyond the day-to-day happenings within a classroom. Who students interact with outside of school is just as important as who students interact with inside of school. As educators, it is important for us to be as aware as possible of the life our students live outside of school. We are sometimes quick to judge a situation, but we need to remember to take a step back to understand where the child is coming from. Children are products of their environment. A child with a tougher home life may not be as “put together” as other children. Understanding each child is a big part of the foundation of creating a classroom environment that supports equity. The most important thing for us to do is show the students we care. My principal's motto is "kids don't care how much you know until they know how much you care." If our students know that we care about them, then they should look forward to coming to our class each day. Some students spend more time with their teacher(s), peers and other staff more than they do with their own families. The classroom may be where they receive the most guidance, support and structure. Whether or not a child in need decides to seek out his/her teacher for help in a time of need is unpredictable, which is why showing the students we care is so important.

On another note, here are some common questions (and my answers) asked by those interested in the Science in Education online experience…

Do you feel as though you could have done the work you have had in your classes without being a classroom teacher or would it have been difficult?

Certainly, it does help to have your own classroom while completing the online courses, but it is definitely doable without one. Do you know of any elementary or middle school aged children to work with if you don’t have your own classroom? A relative? Family friend? The work done in the classroom setting can easily be done with students around the same age in a different setting. Working with students does not take place each week. It ususally happens toward the end of the course. You use what you've learned and then apply it to working with children.

Have you found that you have fostered relationships with people in your classes, without having met them, easily?

YES! During the first course I took (Try Science) I exchanged numbers with a few of the girls in my group to talk about an assignment. As it turns out, we all don't live that far away from each other so over the Christmas break we all met for lunch. It was so nice to put a face with a name! It's been great... we call each other often when we have questions, comments, concerns... I love it! We all began at the same time and have signed up for the same courses since.