Concentration Varies
We have classrooms filled with students, some have IEP's, 504's, RTI's. Some are serviced under the special education heading, others gifted, twice exceptional (2e). Some are not diagnosed but have learning disabilities. Some have SEL, behavioral disabilities. Most however, will not have a diagnosis of any learning or behavioral disability. They will be what educators refer to as, 'mainstream'.
So we have paperwork with accommodations to follow. We have parental concerns, discussions with their other teachers: about their progress and/or difficulties. We sometimes have so much data on certain students, that the 'mainstream,' students get placed into an automatic pilot plan. We check in, we talk to them, we rely on them to make things go smoothly, when our attention is focused on one of our students who needs extra help.
What is going through the minds of students? Through the minds of students we believe are following directions, and completing tasks without any difficulty. They might be able to focus a little better, but trust me they are mentally distracted, hungry, desperate for attention. They just cover it up better. They just have coping mechanisms other students might not possess.
As one student told me-" They have the ability to close off their peripheral vision, they can tunnel, so they don't see another student misbehave or stare at the clock. They can focus because they have the ability to tune things out." As opposed to students who suffer from attention disorders or learning disabilities- every hum, hiccup and hubbub is amplified, it redirects their concentration.
I have Dyslexia and ADD. I have learned over my lifetime to compensate for the distractions. I have taught myself to slow down and read words in a certain way in order to make sense the first time. I have eased into a rhythm of see, do. But even I get distracted and side wind myself all over the place in a 50 minute (average class period).
So I wanted to do experiment. Reflect frequently on what I was thinking about every minute as I attended an on-line PD course. The instructor lectured, had us do mini lessons and then finished with a review and collaborative chat. Much like a typical class period for most of us. Chunking, I thought would keep me more focused. Nope.
Professional Development Dissected
Minutes 1-5- I listened, comprehended what she said. She talked kind of fast. I jotted down some words/notes. I found it hard to really focus. She was on screen. If it had been in person, probably wouldn't have been much better. The cadence of her voice was distracting for me.
I wonder if my voice distracts some students. If I talk too fast?
Minutes 6-10- We were asked to draw on a piece of paper a diagram of the topic. We could use colored pencils or highlighters. We were not given specific directions. Just a draw an example of... She said we had 4 minutes to complete. I spent the first deciding what to draw. Then drew it, colored it. Didn't like it. Drew another one. She kept interrupting asking if anyone had questions. This distracted me. I finished but I spent more time figuring out how to draw it, then on what I was expected to draw. The purpose and reason for the activity.
I think the talking was distracting. For a Dyslexic brain we need quiet to process. My ADD brain needed more concise directions and alas...purpose. I felt pulled away from the activity. Distracted. It lost its meaning. I am sure students feel the same sometimes. I have to learn to pause for the silence.
Minutes 11-30- We were given an article to read. We were asked to highlight certain portions and make comments in the margins about what we learned. Basically annotating. She assumed we knew how to do this, we were teachers. The article was long and very dry. I read two pages, annotated, then tried to move on, but I got distracted. I got bored because the article wasn't meaningful to me. It felt like busy work. But, eventually I got through it by skimming. Made some notes. Then started doodling for the last 5 minutes.
This really got me thinking of articles in class and the importance of length, purpose and reading level. The article she had us read was not challenging, it was long and it went into way too much detail. It was heavy. I like to read, but this was not my jam. I couldn't tell you anything I read in the article because it wasn't relevant to my teaching, my way of thinking, or interesting to me. So basically it was not purposeful, so why read it?
Minutes 31-45- We came back as a group and started sharing our ideas. In a large group at first. I didn't pay attention really. Too many voices coming at me. I shut them out, because my Dyslexic brain got overloaded. I already tuned out the article. When she asked me to share- I read one thing I wrote in the margin. The only thing that stuck with me.
She said that's interesting, made a quick comment then moved on. I felt like- why did I read this when it feels like my opinion doesn't really matter? In her defense 30 people on Zoom, does lead to a certain pace. But with distance learning this is something to keep in mind.
This activity made me reflect on how we have class discussions. My students do breakout and talk in smaller groups but- as we know they get distracted here too. Is it worth giving them a long article? or is an abridged version better. Maybe just highlights would spark more meaningful conversations- and less time doodling and not really reading the article.
Minutes 46-50- The last four minutes she summed up what we had read. I was thinking to myself couldn't you have just done that? Then she gave us resources of where we could find more articles- no thank you. I would have preferred a quick tutorial rather than an article and discussion where I felt a disconnect.
Do students feel this way? Is there a better way? They do need to read articles but do they need to read the whole thing- can they just read passages? Can we do better than just annotating? That is tedious. It is hard for a Dyslexic or ADD brain to keep focused. There has to be better ways to teach on-line. Let's find them.
Now What
So after I finished the course. I spent a good ten minutes looking over my notes I took throughout. This is what I used to write this post. Distance/Virtual Learning in some capacity is coming. We have to make sure we don't just cookie cutter in an article/discussion format. We have to think beyond card sorts and drawing organizers. We have to go big or literally- kids at home will go home. They will not stay with us in our virtual spaces.
I am working this though in my head. My Dyslexic and ADD head. What do I need from an online course? How can I make sure my students are getting what they need in a virtual classroom. I am creating new lessons and as they flesh themselves out and become tangible on paper- I will start sharing them. But, with my distracted, overwhelmed, overtaxed mind- be patient. I'll get there, I promise.
No comments:
Post a Comment