Analysis
Abby Mandel
The lesson plan I chose is designed to teach third, fourth, and fifth graders about Langston Hughes and blues music. It draws on both music and language arts standards, and is meant to be a part of a class’s Black History Month curriculum. In part one, “Defining the Blues,” the plan calls for inductive learning by having students discuss what it means to “have the blues.” Then, they are asked to make a list of things that give them the blues. This is not a perfect example of inductive learning, since the examples aren’t given immediately. If the plan had the students begin with listing examples and then having them arrive at a definition, it would have been a better display of inductive learning. The teacher has tried to create an engaging and active way of teaching the students, but it isn’t structured in a way that is consistent with true inductive learning.
This part of the plan also exemplifies cooperative learning. It follows a constructivist approach to learning by having the students discuss the concept and arrive at a conclusion together. It speaks to the social aspect of learning by having the students talk about the problem amongst a group of peers. This is consistent with Vygotsky’s concept of social learning. By hearing their peers talk through the problem and give their own ideas, students can learn about other ways of thinking. Having a class discussion is a good example of this concept. Having the students talk about the concept and come up with examples of their own is consistent with this idea of learning. Later in the lesson, the teacher has the students come up with blues poems in groups. Again, this exemplifies social learning, by having peers work together to solve a problem, or in this case create a poem.
Throughout the lesson, the teacher provides positive examples for the students to base their work off of. During parts two and three, they provide examples of Hughes’ poems such as “Morning After” to exemplify proper verse structure of the blues. The teacher then calls to attention that the second line must repeat the first, and the third line must make a rhyme with the previous two. Because the students are given the rule, this is also an example of deductive learning. In part three, the teacher shows them an example of a blues poem by a second grader that follows the rules for blues verse that were previously stated. This is an efficient way to present the rules to the students and get them started on composing their own blues poems. This is consistent with the concept of deductive learning because the students are given a rule and then shown positive examples that follow the rule.
The lesson plan also has examples of modeling. In part four, the teacher allows the students to recite some of their poems. This is an example of “good student” modeling; by allowing students with good work to present their ideas, other students can identify appropriate behavior. This is a good example of modeling, because the students watching the recital can identify what a well-constructed poem looks like. Also, allowing students with good poems to present their work reinforces that students will be rewarded for engaging in good work. The plan also includes a poem written by another elementary school student that the current students can draw inspiration from. This is an example of using peers as models, but it does not necessarily fall into the mastery, coping, or incompetent model categories. It garners the same idea of students seeing that someone similar to them can accomplish the task at hand, but the students do not get to actually see that student working on the task. While it may have a similar effect on them, it is not a perfect example of modeling.
This plan also makes use of positive reinforcers. As previously stated, the plan calls for the teacher to allow some students to recite their poems for the whole class. This is an example a public display of good work that rewards the students participating in it. In this case, the poems are the appropriate behavior being rewarded. By show-casing the poems for the whole class, the other students can see what they should be doing with their poems. The students’ whose work is displayed are reinforced for their good work by receiving attention and recognition for it. This is a good example of a positive reinforcer. The positive attention and recognition are practical reinforcers that are intangible and simple enough to work for the students.
Part five of the lesson plan is an activity than can be used to conclude or extend the lesson. Students must read a biography of Langston Hughes and then turn a specific detail about his life into a three-line blues poem. The plan states that the students will be assuming the character of Hughes and writing their poems from his perspective. This activity draws upon Piaget’s stages of thinking. The ability to assume Hughes’ identity is an example of abstract thought that the students should be capable of at this time. Since this plan is for third, fourth, or fifth graders, the author assumes that they should be in either the concrete or formal operational stages. Thus, they should be capable of thinking hypothetically and dealing with these abstract concepts. This is somewhat consistent with Piaget’s theories, but not entirely. While fifth grade students may be capable of the higher thinking that the activity calls for, third and fourth grade students may not be. Even so, fifth graders are only just entering into the formal operational stage, so these skills may not be fully developed. So while the activity is consistent with Piaget’s theories for some of the students targeted in this lesson plan, it may not work for all of them.
Concepts of memory are also explored in this lesson plan. At the beginning of the lesson, the plan has the students define the blues, and then talk about things that give them the blues. The students make personal connections between the content and themselves. This is a way of making the information meaningful in way that the students can easily remember. By attaching personal connections and meaningful associations, the students are more likely to be able to recall what the blues are later on. This part of the lesson is a good representation of this memory strategy. It allows the students to call on their personal experiences and make connections between those experiences and the content of the lesson.
As previously stated, the plan uses class discussion and group work in multiple parts of the lesson. The students were asked to discuss the meaning of the blues and later worked in groups to write their own blues poems. This is consistent with theories of long-term memory. By having students be active and engaged in the learning, their chances of remembering the content are increased. The high level of engagement and involvement in the activity bodes well for the students transferring the information to long-term memory. The teacher seems to have taken this into account when writing this lesson plan.
Overall, this lesson plan is consistent with the course concepts we are dealing with. It addresses the concepts through a variety of teaching strategies and activities. It addresses collaborative learning, long-term memory theories, connections and associations, deductive learning, positive reinforcers, and modeling. There are a few aspects of the lesson plan that don’t perfectly coincide with some of the course concepts, such as inductive learning and Piaget’s stages of thinking. However, those few mishaps are overshadowed by the clear majority of things that work well in the plan.
Abby Mandel
The lesson plan I chose is designed to teach third, fourth, and fifth graders about Langston Hughes and blues music. It draws on both music and language arts standards, and is meant to be a part of a class’s Black History Month curriculum. In part one, “Defining the Blues,” the plan calls for inductive learning by having students discuss what it means to “have the blues.” Then, they are asked to make a list of things that give them the blues. This is not a perfect example of inductive learning, since the examples aren’t given immediately. If the plan had the students begin with listing examples and then having them arrive at a definition, it would have been a better display of inductive learning. The teacher has tried to create an engaging and active way of teaching the students, but it isn’t structured in a way that is consistent with true inductive learning.
This part of the plan also exemplifies cooperative learning. It follows a constructivist approach to learning by having the students discuss the concept and arrive at a conclusion together. It speaks to the social aspect of learning by having the students talk about the problem amongst a group of peers. This is consistent with Vygotsky’s concept of social learning. By hearing their peers talk through the problem and give their own ideas, students can learn about other ways of thinking. Having a class discussion is a good example of this concept. Having the students talk about the concept and come up with examples of their own is consistent with this idea of learning. Later in the lesson, the teacher has the students come up with blues poems in groups. Again, this exemplifies social learning, by having peers work together to solve a problem, or in this case create a poem.
Throughout the lesson, the teacher provides positive examples for the students to base their work off of. During parts two and three, they provide examples of Hughes’ poems such as “Morning After” to exemplify proper verse structure of the blues. The teacher then calls to attention that the second line must repeat the first, and the third line must make a rhyme with the previous two. Because the students are given the rule, this is also an example of deductive learning. In part three, the teacher shows them an example of a blues poem by a second grader that follows the rules for blues verse that were previously stated. This is an efficient way to present the rules to the students and get them started on composing their own blues poems. This is consistent with the concept of deductive learning because the students are given a rule and then shown positive examples that follow the rule.
The lesson plan also has examples of modeling. In part four, the teacher allows the students to recite some of their poems. This is an example of “good student” modeling; by allowing students with good work to present their ideas, other students can identify appropriate behavior. This is a good example of modeling, because the students watching the recital can identify what a well-constructed poem looks like. Also, allowing students with good poems to present their work reinforces that students will be rewarded for engaging in good work. The plan also includes a poem written by another elementary school student that the current students can draw inspiration from. This is an example of using peers as models, but it does not necessarily fall into the mastery, coping, or incompetent model categories. It garners the same idea of students seeing that someone similar to them can accomplish the task at hand, but the students do not get to actually see that student working on the task. While it may have a similar effect on them, it is not a perfect example of modeling.
This plan also makes use of positive reinforcers. As previously stated, the plan calls for the teacher to allow some students to recite their poems for the whole class. This is an example a public display of good work that rewards the students participating in it. In this case, the poems are the appropriate behavior being rewarded. By show-casing the poems for the whole class, the other students can see what they should be doing with their poems. The students’ whose work is displayed are reinforced for their good work by receiving attention and recognition for it. This is a good example of a positive reinforcer. The positive attention and recognition are practical reinforcers that are intangible and simple enough to work for the students.
Part five of the lesson plan is an activity than can be used to conclude or extend the lesson. Students must read a biography of Langston Hughes and then turn a specific detail about his life into a three-line blues poem. The plan states that the students will be assuming the character of Hughes and writing their poems from his perspective. This activity draws upon Piaget’s stages of thinking. The ability to assume Hughes’ identity is an example of abstract thought that the students should be capable of at this time. Since this plan is for third, fourth, or fifth graders, the author assumes that they should be in either the concrete or formal operational stages. Thus, they should be capable of thinking hypothetically and dealing with these abstract concepts. This is somewhat consistent with Piaget’s theories, but not entirely. While fifth grade students may be capable of the higher thinking that the activity calls for, third and fourth grade students may not be. Even so, fifth graders are only just entering into the formal operational stage, so these skills may not be fully developed. So while the activity is consistent with Piaget’s theories for some of the students targeted in this lesson plan, it may not work for all of them.
Concepts of memory are also explored in this lesson plan. At the beginning of the lesson, the plan has the students define the blues, and then talk about things that give them the blues. The students make personal connections between the content and themselves. This is a way of making the information meaningful in way that the students can easily remember. By attaching personal connections and meaningful associations, the students are more likely to be able to recall what the blues are later on. This part of the lesson is a good representation of this memory strategy. It allows the students to call on their personal experiences and make connections between those experiences and the content of the lesson.
As previously stated, the plan uses class discussion and group work in multiple parts of the lesson. The students were asked to discuss the meaning of the blues and later worked in groups to write their own blues poems. This is consistent with theories of long-term memory. By having students be active and engaged in the learning, their chances of remembering the content are increased. The high level of engagement and involvement in the activity bodes well for the students transferring the information to long-term memory. The teacher seems to have taken this into account when writing this lesson plan.
Overall, this lesson plan is consistent with the course concepts we are dealing with. It addresses the concepts through a variety of teaching strategies and activities. It addresses collaborative learning, long-term memory theories, connections and associations, deductive learning, positive reinforcers, and modeling. There are a few aspects of the lesson plan that don’t perfectly coincide with some of the course concepts, such as inductive learning and Piaget’s stages of thinking. However, those few mishaps are overshadowed by the clear majority of things that work well in the plan.