It Speaks Volumes: Collaboration is Noisy

A Clamor of Collusion

It is a joyous moment for me, when I witness a cacophony, of collision and teamwork, with my students. Fraternization can be boisterous. In fact in my classroom, if it is quiet, students are taking an assessment. Babel and bedlam are expected, in the confines, of room 1161. In fact on my door it says "Excuse the noise, there is learning happening in here."  When visitors pop in, they are often surprised at the synchronicity, of volume and motion. There is a semblance, a flow, that lures students into, a sense of community and partnership.

When organized and structured pandemonium, is the norm, creativity and independence become a touchstone. The more I can engage my students- not with a teacher led hook, but with immersion and movement, the more they will take ownership, of how they learn and grow. When students are faced with choices, challenges and the freedom to network- they embrace their role as learner, leader and partner.

A Frontier of Fraternization

This week for review, rather than a test review packet or Kahoot!, students had several opportunities to truly work together, to solve a problem. Plants and Photosynthesis is not a difficult concept for my students, in general. They understand the structures and functions of plants, germination and tropisms, but every year they never seem, to see the 'big picture.' The connections between them. How all the vocabulary they are learning, ties together into a framework of survival, for the plant.

So I designed an activity I call the Vocabulary Scramble, in which they do just that. It is an exercise in listening, understanding and association. In not only a collaborative sense, but a conceptual one, as well. The first step as a teacher in this enterprise, acceptance of a bit of coordinated chaos. It will look a little bit like traffic, on a highway, each car changing lanes and shifting positions, in order for the best continuity to occur. You have to embrace the momentum. You have to be alright, with the din of honking.

The lesson starts with me, explaining that, there are connections between every vocabulary word they learned this unit. Even if they seem very isolated, they do relate. I tell them that each of them are going to get one word and they will have to work together, to get all of the words, in a line that makes sense. The order definitely matters, but it is also flexible. It is their job to make a configuration, where each student (holding their individualized vocabulary card), will have a clear place, in which they fit. This organization of vocabulary should be able to be read aloud, demonstrating their cohesion.

For instance, if the head of the line is holding cell wall and the second person in line, is holding turgor pressure and the 3rd in line, a card with the word vacuole- student one will say "I am the cell wall and I protect the cell, I connect to turgor pressure because the force of the water inside pushes against me and this causes turgor pressure." Student two will say, "I am turgor pressure, the force of water inside the cell, maintaining equilibrium, inside the cells of a plant and I connect to the vacuole because that is the location, in the cell, that stores the water." The third student will connect vacuole to the next vocabulary word and so on....

Words Become Art

After the last connection is in place and the line of vocabulary has been rearranged and reviewed, students reflect on the 'big picture.' They have to take the word they were given and the direct connection they made, in the activity, and create a cartoon if it. A piece of visual phraseology and glossary. Thus an interactive word wall, that can be modified and added to, throughout the day. This graffiti wall is not a science wall, but a personal expression of understanding. At the end of class there is a colorful, characterization, both visual and humorous, of all of the words and how they all fit together. A huge mural. A network of thoughts, associations and relationships. A combination of interaction, imagination and independence. Student-driven and student-created.

This enterprise was not calm, nor was it regulated. I simply observed. There was a quarterback, self proclaimed, that stepped up to guide the process. There were MVP's and those that sat, on the side line and watched, for a bit. But, eventually every student entered the field and all of them found their place on it. Spectators became players. Defensive lines, became blurred, with offensive lines.Yet, the 50 yard line, the center of it all, remained the focus. That line, the final semblance of words and connection, formulated, with noise and frustration. It started with a bit of confusion and ultimately ended with collaboration.

In this case, higher order thinking was a joint effort. It was full of hullabaloo and fuss. Stridency and outcry. Students argued and debated. Yet, they figured it out. They worked together to solve a problem. Collaboration is noisy and I am not sure how it can't be. Ruckus and clatter is apart of the process. When we as teachers, step back and let the beauty of commotion and discord, unfold, growth occurs and like plants, we all need the light, motion and energy we acquire, from others. This is the foundation of learning. It speaks volumes.