In this week’s issue:
(1) Malaysian Examples of Teaching and Learning
Using TOC, Kamariah
Abd. Malek
Editor’s
Notes
(4) Kay Buckner-Seal
(1) Malaysian
Examples of Teaching and Learning Using TOC
By Kamariah
Abd. Malek, Perak Malaysia
In last
week’s TACTics, Kathy Suerken shared some exciting activities that came about
as a result of Khaw Choon Ean’s presentation at our Conference in Michigan last
June. We thought you might like to see
examples of the teaching and learning that are going on in classrooms in
Malaysia as a result of Ean’s module: Guide
Student’s to Become Responsible Decision-makers and to Better Understand
Academic Content using the Tools of TOC.
USING CLOUDS
IN THE CLASSROOM:
GETTING
STUDENTS TO STAY IN THEIR SEATS
Jeram
Mengkuang Primary School, Perak Malaysia
Hidatul, a
Year-One child, doesn’t like to sit at her place. She likes to run all over the place. Her friends sit properly at their own places in the class. They complain that Hidatul disturbs them
when she moves over to their places.
The teacher
would like Hidatul to think through her actions and communicate her need to her
friends. She can also compare herself
to what her friends do. The teacher
tries to let Hidatul make a responsible decision and in the process, her
friends will understand her too.
Together
with her class, Mrs. Kamariah compares the behaviour of Maria and Hidatul. The children now understand why each person
acts differently.
This Cloud
shows how they are different:
Maria’s
Side:
A Happy Day in School
B Feel Comfortable
D Stay Put at Own Place.
Hidatul’s
Side:
A Happy Day in School
C Likes to Talk to Friends
D’ Run Around the Class
Assumptions:
B/D Sitting in my own place means I can do my
work.
C/D’ Can talk to friends only if I run to their
places during lessons.
COMMUNICATING
THEIR NEEDS AND WANTS:
In order to
have a happy day in school, Maria has to feel comfortable, therefore she wants
to stay put at her own place.
In order to
have a happy day in school, Hidatul likes to talk to her friends, therefore she
runs around the class.
USING THE
NEGATIVE BRANCH IN THE CLASSROOM:
GETTING
STUDENTS TO THINK THROUGH THEIR BEHAVIOR
Does Hidatul
want to find another way to have a happy day by talking to her friends but
without running around the class?
Mrs.
Kamariah decides they need to look at a Negative Branch.
She would
like Hidatul to think about the cause and effect of her actions.
Hidatul
likes to run to her friend’s desks and disturb them. Using the Negative Branch, Mrs. Kamariah and the children of the
class are able to help Hidatul think through her behaviour.
First
Branch:
(If) Hidatul likes to run all over the class.
(Then) She disturbs friends. (If she disturbs her friends.)
(Then) Her friends think Hidatul has no manners. (If this…)
(Then) Her Friends are angry with Hidatul. (If this…)
(Then) Everyone doesn’t want to be her
friend.
Second
Branch:
(If) Hidatul likes to run all over the class.
(Then) She does not finish her work. (If she does not
finish her work…)
(Then) The Teacher is angry. (If this…)
(Then) The teacher scolds. (If this…)
(Then) Hidatul will get punished.
Mrs.
Kamariah was pleased to find that another student in Hidatul’s class was able
to apply what she learned in using the Cloud in a situation with two other
students.
Conference dates: July 8 to July 11, 2002
Conference Venue: University of Nottingham
in Nottingham, United Kingdom
Location: Nottingham is
approximately 100 miles north of London.
A Nottingham City bus runs at frequent intervals from the conference
venue to the center of town and costs around
$1.50.
Airports:
East
Midlands Airport (closest): The international hub for East Midlands
Airport is Amsterdam. Commuter flights
are also available via London. A one-way
shuttle taxi to the university campus from East Midlands Airport takes
approximately 20 minutes and costs around $25.
Birmingham
Airport: Approximately
one-hour drive to University of Nottingham.
London
Airports: London
is served by three major airports: Gatwick, Heathrow and Lutton. If flying directly into London, you have
several options to get to Nottingham.
In addition to a commuter flight to East Midlands, there is also a good
rail link to Nottingham, which takes 2 hours.
By car, the University Campus is in easy access of the M1.
Accommodations:
If you want
to stay on site at the University, TOCFE will have a private quadrangle of
residence halls that includes a private dining hall with elegant long wooden
tables for family-style breakfast and evening meals. Attached to this dining hall is our own private pub! Lunches will be served at workshop
locations.
We are proud to share responses from our
readers. Thanks for your comments; they
are always welcomed.
“Good lesson
on civics and governance.” —Joyce,
Detroit, Michigan, USA
[TOC in Curriculum
Content: Social Studies, Galina Dolya / David, TACTics, 10/26/01]
“I continue to read every Saturday the TACTics Journal, and I hope you
are OK and well, so you can continue with it.”
—Zzippi Margalit, Israel
“Hello
Cheryl,
Just
received the new TACTics journal.
Great! Just remembered some
quotes concerning learning; I wrote down these last months. I don't think I've seen any of them in
TACTics but who knows. Anyway, they're
yours now. :-)
Have Fun,
Philip
Bakker, Netherlands
“You cannot
learn if you are convinced that you already know.” —Harry Morgan Moses
"If you understand what you're doing, you're not learning
anything." —Abraham Lincoln, US President
“Learning without
thought is labor lost; thought without learning is perilous.” — Confucius
“Learning
doesn't happen until behavior has changed.”
—Bob Pike
(4) Kay Buckner-Seal
A common goal for
educators is to create self-directed, life-long learners who are well equipped
to take up a productive role in society, which is driven by information. Our students must be able to know how to
collect information and how to evaluate the information once they have gotten
it. They must be able to ask themselves
two key questions:
1. Is this information
relevant to my needs?
2. How do I determine the credibility of
the source?
In other
words, students must use evaluative thinking in order to attain “critical
literacy.” Many of our students have
not had the opportunity to develop critical literacy. The TOC tools can be a way of providing them the opportunity to
use the evaluative thinking needed to attain it. Do you agree? Do you have
instances or lessons that apply to this idea?
Share your thinking on this topic with us.
Send your responses,
applications of the thinking processes, lessons, announcements, and etc. by
mail to: Cheryl A. Edwards, 2253 S. Hill Island Rd., Cedarville, Michigan 49719,
USA. Or send hyperlink to: redwards@sault.com, or bucknek@earthlink.net.
To
view TACTics in its intended formatting, visit our website at
www.tocforeducation.com
and click on “What’s New.”