There's something a little different about Ms. Berg's English classroom this year. It's not just the energy emanating from her space; students absorbed in reading, writing, and discussion. It's more than the infusion of laptops and blogging that has transformed her students' approach to written language into a dynamic medium. There's something just....well, different going on in Ms. Berg's classroom. It appears that Ms. Berg has removed her tables.
Well, not all of them - just the ones student normally sit around. The ones that sub-divided her room. The tables that students leaned on while discussing big ideas and themes from literature. Ms. Berg used to stand in front of those tables and write the good ideas up on the board. They were nice new tables - at least fairly new...and sturdy. Yes, those tables. Why did Ms. Berg remove her tables?
Perhaps another teacher needed those tables and Ms. Berg was kind enough to do without until we could afford to buy some more? Maybe the carpet tiles needed replacing and the tables had to me moved out of the way? It's possible, I suppose, that the senior class is playing a prank on poor Ms. Berg and hid her tables in the woods. Perhaps she is afraid to admit it! Yet, when I asked her what had happened, I did notice a twinkle in her eye and the hint of a smile. Surely this was a deliberate act! But why? I continue to ask myself: why did Ms. Berg remove her tables?
As an experienced educator, I know Ms. Berg has a good reason for this. If not a tool to enhance student learning, then possibly an attempt to enhance her teaching. No doubt a radical idea she picked up on her Masters degree course "New Literacies and Media" that she is currently finishing at NC State. This is the first year that our 10th and 12th grade students have ALL been engaged in online blogging and writing using Weebly sites. Perhaps Ms. Berg also threw out her pens and pencils when she began using laptops with students...
Yet, I have this nagging feeling that Ms. Berg knows exactly what she is doing. I see her creative spark spreading to the young minds in her classroom. It almost looks like fun - a coffee shop atmosphere without the coffee. I wonder if Ms. Berg is onto something here? I think this has something to do with creativity. Creativity in teaching, in learning, and in shifting the environment to produce new results. Time will tell, but I can surely see that something is different in Ms. Berg's classroom this year.
So, why did Ms. Berg remove her tables?
Well, not all of them - just the ones student normally sit around. The ones that sub-divided her room. The tables that students leaned on while discussing big ideas and themes from literature. Ms. Berg used to stand in front of those tables and write the good ideas up on the board. They were nice new tables - at least fairly new...and sturdy. Yes, those tables. Why did Ms. Berg remove her tables?
Perhaps another teacher needed those tables and Ms. Berg was kind enough to do without until we could afford to buy some more? Maybe the carpet tiles needed replacing and the tables had to me moved out of the way? It's possible, I suppose, that the senior class is playing a prank on poor Ms. Berg and hid her tables in the woods. Perhaps she is afraid to admit it! Yet, when I asked her what had happened, I did notice a twinkle in her eye and the hint of a smile. Surely this was a deliberate act! But why? I continue to ask myself: why did Ms. Berg remove her tables?
As an experienced educator, I know Ms. Berg has a good reason for this. If not a tool to enhance student learning, then possibly an attempt to enhance her teaching. No doubt a radical idea she picked up on her Masters degree course "New Literacies and Media" that she is currently finishing at NC State. This is the first year that our 10th and 12th grade students have ALL been engaged in online blogging and writing using Weebly sites. Perhaps Ms. Berg also threw out her pens and pencils when she began using laptops with students...
Yet, I have this nagging feeling that Ms. Berg knows exactly what she is doing. I see her creative spark spreading to the young minds in her classroom. It almost looks like fun - a coffee shop atmosphere without the coffee. I wonder if Ms. Berg is onto something here? I think this has something to do with creativity. Creativity in teaching, in learning, and in shifting the environment to produce new results. Time will tell, but I can surely see that something is different in Ms. Berg's classroom this year.
So, why did Ms. Berg remove her tables?