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The Great Thinking Machine Show Learning:
Problems & Solutions
Exoskeleton. Metalinguistic. Photosynthesis. These are million-dollar words that would make Regis Philbin's TVshow contestants balk. But to students at Lucy N. Holman Elementary in Jackson, New Jersey, these difficult words are like money in the bank. These students owe their verbal virtuosity to "The Great Thinking Machine Show," an innovative ap-proach to language arts learning invented by NEA member Judi McLoughlin, a speech pathologist at Holman Elementary. The game requires students to use skills ranging from lateral thinking and long-term memory to public speaking and teamwork. The payoff: In reading series tests, 95 percent of the students who regularly "play" the game pass with average scores in the 93rd percentile. Inventor McLoughlin was using the game successfully with individual students when her colleague, fourth grade teacher Judy Schavio, first learned about it. Schavio was looking for a way to help her students with auditory processing problems. The game idea clicked with her, and that's when the "The Great Thinking Machine Show" took off. The game, which is tied to New Jersey's core curriculum standard, is designed to introduce 10 to 15 key words each week. "The students come up with clues to help understand the words," McLoughlin explains. Then, on Fridays, the "Password"-like game show begins, with teachers or students as emcees. The children set up the classroom like a TV studio, and McLoughlin and other resource teachers are judges. Children pair up in teams to compete and must first discuss the clues and ring a bell to answer. Incorrect responses pass to the other team. "The class uses the key words all week," says Schavio. "They write them in their portfolios, and I distribute the words and clues to take home for practice." Originally focusing on science literacy, the show now incorporates vocabulary from all curriculum areas- language arts, social studies, math, science, and Spanish. It can even be used for sign language. At the midyear mark, the key word list includes approximately 150 words, with 250 to 300 key words as a goal by June. "This is brain-based thinking," says McLoughlin. "It's how children learn, listen, and think. When they take a clue they haven't worked with and are able to use it, that's true learning." "The constant reinforcement makes the words easy to retain," agrees Schavio. "Over Christmas vacation, we didn't play the game or review the words at all. After break, we were curious to see if students retained them, and they did." The game show, now in its second year of implementation, is adaptable and can be used cross-curriculum, from preschool to high school, depending upon vocabulary selected. McLoughlin and Schavio held a mini-workshop explaining the program to other teachers at Holman, and the program now has been adopted for use throughout the school. The model has garnered a number of awards. NEA's state affiliate, the New Jersey Education Association, has featured the model on its Emmy award-winning cable program, "Classroom Close-Up." Coverage about The Great Thinking Machine Show has also been broadcast to the tri-state area on the local UPN TVstation. Schavio and McLoughlin plan to conduct more workshops to help get the word out. "As far as we're concerned, this really works," says Schavio. "The Great Thinking Machine Show really motivates children, and it's very easy to incorporate into your classroom. Adds Schavio: "Keeping the list is the only work involvedthat and making time to play the game." For more information, contact Judi McLoughlin or Judy Schavio at Lucy N. Holman Elementary, 125 Manhattan St., Jackson, NJ 08527, 732/833-4620. On the Web at www.thecore.com/~lhsc/. Dilemma To keep my fifth graders from cheating, I have each student design an office on the first day of school. The office is made by stapling two manila folders together at the top and bottom. Students can then add designs to their office "walls." Designs have included signs such as "Keep Out," "Keep your eye off of my work," "Private," and "No Cheating." Before tests are passed out, the offices are put up. Most students use them for all assignments and really like the privacy. Linda Andrews When I started teaching English 40 years ago, I soon ran into identical homework neatly copied several times over. So I came up with a solution that allowed the students to make their own decisions on how to deal with the problem. I marked the paper, gave it a grade, and divided the points equally among the students involved. No moralizing, no lecture. The result was no arguments, no complaints, and no repeats. Word got around quickly, and the treatment had to be applied only once every couple of years. Leonard Irwin On the top of a test form, I put "Form A," "Form B," or "Form C." They're actually all the same, but students may be deterred from cheating when they assume that there's more than one version of the test out there. And this saves me from having to make two forms, two keys, and split up papers to check. Mark McMahon I teach seventh and eighth grade learning handicapped students, and the topic of cheating has come up frequently. My students and I discuss that feeling you experience when you study, concentrate, struggle, give your best effort, and then receive your grade--the grade you earned. Then we discuss how you feel when you cheat, when you earn someone else's grade. And I have students who are good role models share how they feel. These discussions can be powerful and effective, but they're not enough. During tests, I also whisper support and pat shoulders, and use nonverbal facial expressions. Rich Ruppert I teach high school math, so it's relatively easy to change the numbers in problems and keep the two versions very similar. For essay questions or proofs, I simply change the order. I also require work to be shown. The answer is worth one or two points, but the work is worth three to four points for each problem. Karen Daniels One of the most effective methods for reducing even the temptation to cheat has been to monitor test time from the back of the room. When students know you're watching from the back, it's harder for them to turn heads, since they don't know where you're looking. Mark Wyn Got an Answer? Published respondents will receive a new NEAToday mug! Learning: Problems & Solutions
How can teachers encourage students to be problem solvers instead of mere textbook readers? For science teacher Clint Kennedy, the answer was practically in his own back yard. Born and raised in the pristine Idaho mountains, Kennedy looked forward to teaching at Cascade High School, located near the sparkling waters of the Cascade Reservoir. But, by the time he realized his teaching dream, the reservoir had turned green. Kennedy's students all had reservoir horror stories about dead fish and cattle, and local headlines cautioned residents about the risks of swimming in reservoir waters. The community, in other words, saw the reservoir as a health hazard. Kennedy, on the other hand, saw an outdoor laboratory. "I knew the reservoir presented a wonderful opportunity to teach kids," says Kennedy, who teaches integrated science, advanced biology, applied chemistry, and other subjects in his rural high school of only 135 students. To seize that opportunity, Kennedy developed the Cascade Reservoir Restoration Project, an advanced biology course that has juniors and seniors design and conduct specific projects to help improve the reservoir. In the first phase of the course, which runs about four months, students are introduced to basic facts about the reservoir through lectures, visits for hands-on demonstrations, and field trips to agencies like the Department of Environmental Quality. Class periods are 95 minutes long, and that allows complex labs to run during class time. Field trips are taken for half days, full days, and weekends. In the second phase, students divide themselves into groups of three or four. They're asked to propose a practical, feasible project. As part of these projects, students do everything from attend water quality meetings and give public testimony to set up cooperative experiments with experts in the field and use the Internet for research. "The idea is to allow kids to take neat ideas and try them--to do real science," says Kennedy, who also serves as president of the Cascade Education Association. "They learn why you have to do math, why art's important, why English is important. There's a connection with all these classes." In the final phase of the class, students present their projects as a 20-page report that includes graphs, drawings, and a bibliography. They also use high-tech equipment and software to prepare a half-hour video. Since 1991, student projects have produced some remarkable outcomes. Kennedy's students, for instance, successfully convinced ranchers and the Bureau of Reclamation to construct wetlands around the reservoir. Another student was awarded a $6,500 grant to try a creative approach to save trout. Still another group of students, self-dubbed "The Sewage Sisters," spent almost two years researching and promoting cutting-edge technology developed in England to reduce nutrients in wastewater. The girls received nearly $22,000 in grants from organizations and private citizens. After two years of hard, grimy work, the project itself didn't generate the end result students sought, but they found other rewards. As one wrote in her project report: "Working on the Biocoil taught me science, but I learned much more: the joys of working in a small group, the challenges of time management, the evils of procrastination, the tensions of public speaking, the art of the public bicker ... we covered it all." A key to the project's success, says Kennedy, is putting responsibility for education on the kids. "My job is to put you into a position of opportunity," he tells each new class. "What you do with the opportunity is up to you. You need to know why you're learning." Kennedy's students have had an article published in National Geographic. They've been covered extensively by local media, won scholarships and grants, and been recognized by the Eisenhower National Clearing-house of Math and Science Education. "Students can get things done that other people can't," he says. "Respect the power that students have when you give them a chance. Turn them loose, and they can do wonderful things." Adds Kennedy: "I learned with the students. To me, that's fun. It's what keeps me teaching." For more information, E-mail Clint Kennedy at ckennedy@uidaho.edu or visit www.cascadehs.csd.k12.id.us/advbio/home.html. Dilemma We work to improve staff morale by having a Wellness Committee. Each month, the committee puts a piece of fruit in each staff member's mailbox. And we host exercise nights, where the staff and their families can walk, use the weight room, or play games in the gym. Then we conclude with a soup supper. So far, these seem to help make our staff from four buildings more cohesive. David Larsen Almost half of my faculty is new to the teaching profession. I found the best way to raise morale is to affirm what people are doing. When I see them on target, I let them know. The smile I get in return is worth a million bucks to them and me. To the rest of the veteran teachers out there--find a newbie and catch 'em doing good. Cynthia Wilson We have a monthly birthday celebration. At the start of each school year, staff members write down their birthday month. And each staff member signs up to help prepare the birthday breakfast for another month. The party makers make a sign announcing the birthday people for the month and bring in breakfast one morning. Staff members have made pancakes and sausage in the school cafeteria and brought in bagels, doughnuts, and coffee cake. It's a nice way to start our day! Susan Fiorentino Our staff morale is always high because our district seems to focus on what is good rather than on what is bad. They--and we--don't ignore whatever needs improvement. But the tone is one of "let's make it better" rather than "you messed up--ha ha!" This attitude can work anywhere, and it really makes me want to come to work every day. Rob Polley Our student council sponsors a staff appreciation day each spring, right before spring break. A staff breakfast is set up, at which each teacher is given a certificate of appreciation and a small gift by the student council members. The staff really appreciates it, and the students remember to stop for an instant and thank their teachers. Barbara Walton-Faria We have a big sheet of butcher paper laminated on our staff lunchroom table. People can write things on there that are important--or things they just want others to know. It's a fun way to communicate with people that you may not see in a day. Rita Kim Wiebe Got an Answer? Send your answer by regular mail, by fax to 202/822-7206, or by E-mail to dilemma2@neatoday.nea.org. Please include your name, city, state, job title, and grade level, if applicable. Published respondents will receive a new NEA Today mug!
I developed "Roll-book Renovation," a grading system that gives students a strong incentive to work hard until the end of the semester. With Roll-book Renovation, all students begin the marking period with 100 percent. With each assignment or test, the student either maintains the 100 percent or loses a corresponding number of points, depending on the grade. For example, if a quiz is worth five points and Annie earns three, then her grade for the marking period drops from 100 percent to 98. This is still a respectable grade. Annie feels successful and is encouraged to maintain her good grade. With the traditional grading method, she would have received a 60 percent, demoralizing her and setting her up for future failures. At the middle of the marking period, Annie has lost 15 points, so her average is 85 percent. This is a B in most districts, an above-average grade. But with Roll-book Renovation, this is as good as it gets for her. Unless Annie raises her standards to get better grades than she has demonstrated, her marking period grade will probably go even lower. Presented with this dilemma, Annie is more likely to comply with my requests to complete projects for the balance of the marking period, since she wants to keep her B average. I offer extra credit projects for students who want to make up points for mistakes earlier in the marking period. Once my students become accustomed to my grading system, I usually find them motivated to work until the end of the marking period, constantly striving to perfect their grades. Snacks for Subs Marcia Chambers Parents' Tea A carnation is given to each mother and grandmother, and tea and cookies are enjoyed by all. Now in its 15th year, the tea provides a time for children to hear how deeply their parents feel about them, and for parents to hear how special they are to their children. Helene Shalotsky Better Bulletin Boards Then I found a solution: poster board. I bought four sheets in every color and laminated them. The four matching panels overlap to fit different boards throughout the room. I have a full palette of colors and can make a quick change. I'm still using the sheets I purchased four years ago. Susan Dalton Homework Pass Staci Kasse |
Judy Schavio (left) has kids excited
over words like "interrogative," thanks to a game she developed
with Judi McLoughlin (right).
High school students--with teacher
Clint Kennedy--are eagerly getting their hands dirty developing
award-winning ways to save the Cascade Reservoir.
E. Renée Heiss
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