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Children of the River
At the start of her career, Julia Fischer taught as a guest teacher in schools all around the greater Phoenix area. Nine years ago, when she sought a classroom and school of her own, Julia chose Akimel A-al Middle School (which means "children of the river" in the Pima Indian dialect). "I told the principal he had to hire me!" Julia says, "I really gave him no choice. I saw a lot of schools and this was among the best." She's been teaching sixth grade there happily ever since.
Julia teaches general science at Akimel A-al, and she's and she's a bona fide technology expert, too At Akimel A-al, Julia integrates technology into most aspects of her daily teaching, she teaches science at an after school academy, and she provides technology training and support to her colleagues as a master teacher in the Intel® Teach Program. Julia may be busy, but she still manages to be a reflective, responsive teacher.
Children of the Rocks
Julia teaches about rocks and minerals in the greater context of geologic cycles. As geologic processes are relatively slow and not hard to observe, the concept of a dynamic Earth is hard to grasp. It takes some careful investigation to understand that the Earth in constant flux on both a macro (volcanoes) and micro (erosion) level. How to tackle such big ideas? Julia asks a good question, Where does this rock in my hand fit in the larger geologic cycle?, and her students are on their way.
Using traditional and electronic resources, Julia's students start digging into the earth sciences by studying the metamorphic, sedimentary and igneous rock phases. Next, they study one favorite rock's transformation from phase to phase. A special pebble from a memorable beach trip might be the subject of study, or one quickly chosen from the class collection will do, but either way, it gains special meaning when students identify their personal rock and determine its place in the greater context of geologic time and processes. In the end, the learning all comes together in a terrific Virtual Rock Museum.
Technology Supports Project Learning
When Julia decided to develop her geology unit into a broader, student-centered project, she saw how technology could help. "Kids are really given a lot of choice in this project," she says, "which causes them to be more invested in their own learning. Technology helps because they have almost unlimited access to the world's knowledge, and they have a lot of creative tools they can use to express their learning." She sees her students as active seekers of new ideas, rather than passive receptacles of hers. "Technology truly facilitates student learning—they're not limited to what I can teach. In fact, most students exceed my expectations. That's the beauty of open-ended projects."
Structured Investigations
Julia knows clear direction is needed for project work to be effective, and she works hard to set definite parameters. From framing the work with strong guiding questions to setting clear deadlines, she helps students channel their efforts for rich and meaningful learning.
Technology can be nothing more than an attractive nuisance when efforts aren't purposeful, Julia notes. She impresses on her students that the science learning is the goal of their projects, not the technology that was one means to that end. "They have to nail the content first," she says, "Otherwise they tend to spend too much time working on unimportant design features." Habits of mind are changing, she says, as more experienced students come up through the grades. "The kids coming into sixth grade these days are pretty skilled in technology," she says, "And they're ready apply it to their learning. I really thank the teachers in the earlier grades for getting them ready."
Collaboration for Fun and Mutual Benefit
Project—based instruction is a lot of work, especially in the planning and preparation phases, and Julia's efforts are supported in a variety of ways. "Sharing the load with other teachers counts for a lot!" she says. She and Shelley Shott, a fellow 6th grade teacher, work closely together to develop their lessons. "It's nice to grow with her," Julia says, "It's not competitive, but we push each other, and our excitement rubs off on each other. We're definitely greater than the sum of our parts." These two not only develop more effective projects together, but also serve as a model for the collaborative work they'd like their students to try.
Julia gets support from school administration, too. Principal Patty Weigar inspires her staff, and supports technology integration. "Patty's leadership is really helpful," Julia notes, "It's not just a matter of getting permission to work the way we do, but we get her enthusiastic support." Julia credits the Intel® Teach Program training for supporting her project-centered efforts as well. "The Intel training was awesome. There are few places you go that encourage collaboration so much. Our school has really benefited."
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