Be Vulnerable! Who Can Fix My Code?

Modeling can be everything as an educator in today's classroom. During this week's "Hour of Code," I tried to put that idea to the test...

Be the thing you want to see.

I signed out as many ipads as I could get my hands on for a 1.5 hour block of time. I started the lesson using the projector and screen at the front of my room and plugged in an ipad to show them the "Kodable" app as our first activity. I had already created a class "Kodable" account - so now I can track the progress of my students on skills such as; variables, strings, loops, sequences and functions. I showed them my solutions to the first 2 easy levels (first telling them to put all the ipads face down on the table and hands-off) and then turned the time over to them to explore and learn. 

About half-way through the time, I asked them to exit "Kodable" and try "Tynker." There was no explicit teaching this time. Except, I also picked up an ipad and started the "Tynker" app. I worked away at the first couple of puzzles and then hit a brick wall. After trying a number of solutions - without any being successful - I realized that this was a moment for learning.

"Who can fix my code?" I asked out loud - while my ipad and current incorrect code was being projected at the front of the room. I immediately saw 4 hands go up. I chose someone - a student who does not often raise his hand during lessons or class discussions - and invited him to come up to the front and change the code that I had used to try and solve the level. He changed a couple of things and ran the code - but it still wasn't successful. The next thing that happened is what I was waiting for...

Two other students instinctively got up and walked to the front to help the first student "fix the code." For the next couple of minutes, I had a group of three students (representing both grades 7 and 8) working together to solve a problem and modeling their strategies for the rest of the class to see. They did end up fixing my code. They were successful. And all the while, I watched as a common problem became the source of inspiration to collaborate and problem solve.

We often ask our students to try new things and take risks in their own learning. How often, though, do we sit back and observe? If coding matters - and as the teacher in the room - I have never modeled coding (and the problem-solving; trial-and-error; failure and success; risk-taking that it demands) - then I have not validated it to my students as being important enough for me to learn. 

Some of our students will want to code. Some will excel at the independent learning style that many of the coding applications require. Some, though, will put up walls and struggle when the code they write doesn't work. It is those students that, not only, want to hear us say that it is a valuable skill to learn; but also, watch as we (their teacher) struggle with a new area of learning. How we approach learning and risk-taking is evident everyday in the classroom. Be flexible. Be vulnerable. Be a human being. 

We no longer hold all the answers and information. Tell them that. It is now a journey of learning together and the things you choose to model should reflect your own next steps and challenges as well. 

Creating the Goals for Learning

Setting the stage for learning is crucial if students are to buy in. Regardless of the grade or age you teach, purposely choosing those things that you want your students to get out of a lesson is the first of many steps on the path to effective instruction. Whether you write the "learning goals" on the board or brainstorm the "success criteria" with your class or even verbally discuss where you want them to be in one hour's time; all of these things frame the lesson into a meaningful use of time with explicit steps and stages.

Students benefit from purposeful planning and carefully considered lesson objectives. There are so many individual tasks that we assign on any given day that it can be a daunting task for students to mentally assimilate this new information in a way that promotes a lasting understanding. If we outline our goals with them (especially in collaboration with them) - they can focus and follow the boundaries of the teaching.

There is no requirement or points given for staying perfectly within these learning intentions, though, feel free to stray a bit and make concessions along the way. In fact, real teaching does this. Using tangents and forging connections between prior knowledge and current instruction is one of the most effective ways to consolidate an understanding. Students appreciate entertainment and they should know that they are experiencing a dynamic lesson; not witnessing a well-rehearsed lecture.

Make students a part of your teaching. Share with them the goals for learning and they will ensure the learning lasts. A journey without a destination in mind can be overwhelming. Let them know where they're going and they can enjoy the ride that much more.