TACTics Journal

A Publication for and by TOC for Education Practitioners

September 28, 2001

 

Connections

  (1)   Big Happenings in Texas, Paula Sommer/Charles Blanton

Elementary/Secondary TACTics

   (2)     Teaching Grammar with TOC, Danilo Sirias

Quote

  (3)  Buckminster Fuller

Editors’ Notes    

  (4)   Kay Buckner-Seal, Cheryl A. Edwards

 

CONNECTIONS
(1)        Big Happenings in Texas, Part 2 of 3

Paula Sommer and Dr. Charles Blanton, Texas, USA

 

Paula shared the scope of the work that she and her team were working on in Texas at our June Conference.  After recently visiting the schools Paula has submitted this updated report.  In last week’s TACTics we featured Part 1:  Weatherford ISD-Turning the Campus Improvement Plan into the Teachers’ Plan for Campus Improvement.  To read Part 1 of this series, visit our website at: www.tocforeducation.com

 

What is Excellence? —Van Alstyne ISD

In the Van Alstyne Independent School District the team we trained consisted of the superintendent, principals and vice-principals.  We began with “What is excellence?” and we used the Baldridge Model as the world-class model for managing the organizational systems.  Then we moved to TACT to answer: How to cause change?  With an understanding of the Ambitious Target they were able to begin aligning the entire curriculum from kindergarten to grade 12.  They now have the TOC thinking tools, the Ambitious Target, the Cloud, and the Negative and Positive Branches.  The result was for us to be asked to train the elected school board members with the expectation that through the Ambitious Target they could determine what “excellence” means and we could begin to craft a strategic plan for the district.  They have added key players so the next step is to get them up to speed, train the counselors, and refresh the other members of the executive team.  Their high school student council is planning a retreat to develop their initiatives for the year.  We are discussing doing the Ambitious Target during the fall retreat day and the Cause /Effect for peer mediation in the spring. 

 

So, when we get these key points into place, we will have touched everyone from the executives to the board to the students.  The remaining task will be to knit everything together to help them with deployment that has continuity from year to year and makes a lasting change to their processes.

 

ELEMENTARY/SECONDARY TACTICS

(2)        Teaching Grammar with TOC

Danilo Sirias, Michigan, USA

 

I am assuming here that in most languages, there are a series of "rules" governing the proper way to write and transform words and sentences.  At least, I know this is the case in English and Spanish.  In chemistry and physics, there are rules governing cause and effect relationships explained by natural laws.  The same situation occurs with grammatical rules, which is the logical explanation why some word transformations are the way they are. Establishing logical connections facilitates learning and retention.  One of the strengths of the thinking tools is that they provide the important elements and show how these elements are connected.  So, I think cause and effect can be used to teach grammar.  The whole purpose is to use cause-and-effect trees to help students find the grammatical rules by themselves. 

 

My idea is as follows:

Put three different and separate cause-and-effect trees all of them showing the base word (cause) and the transformed word (effect) explained by a grammatical rule we are trying to teach.  The box corresponding to the rule must be blank, so students can find patterns and determine the grammatical rule.

 

For example:

IF the base word is "cook," THEN the past tense is "cooked" BECAUSE

___________

 

IF the base word is "appear," THEN the past tense is appeared BECAUSE

___________

 

IF the base word is "stamp," THEN the past tense is "stamped" BECAUSE

___________

 

Then, guide students until they find the rule.  After the students find the rule.  In this case, the rule is you add “ed” to form the past tense of the verb.

 

As we all know, there are exceptions, so how can we teach them Socratically?  One idea is to give students a list that includes verbs that do not follow the rule.  I can imagine a smart student's face when "correcting" the teacher, “Hey, this does not work with the word eat.”  Another way is to ask the students to come up with examples when the rule does not work.  If you are teaching other subjects with cause and effect, using this approach should reinforce not only grammar but also the use of the thinking tools.

 

This procedure is a suggestion but I am sure you can improve/modify it.  Please use this approach in your class with your modifications and let us know how it goes.

 

QUOTE

(3)     "When I am working on a problem I never think about beauty.  I only think about how to solve the problem.  But when I have finished, if the solution is not beautiful, I know it is wrong."

—Buckminster Fuller (1895-1983)

 

EDITORS’ NOTES

(4)        Kay Buckner-Seal, Cheryl A. Edwards

 

Thanks to all who contributed to TACTics this week.  The use of tools in teaching grammar is an idea worth trying in the language arts classroom.  Whenever we give students the opportunity to use the tools, we promote the importance of inquiry and critical thinking in the development of reflective learners.

 

Feel free to share 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.”