Transformation in Learning
The litmus test that I have always used for the learning that takes place in my classroom has always been Bloom's taxonomy. In 1956, Benjamin Bloom headed a group of educational psychologists who developed a classification of levels of intellectual behavior important in learning. During the 1990's a new group of cognitive psychologists, lead by Lorin Anderson (a former student of Bloom's), updated the taxonomy reflecting relevance to 21st century work. The graphic below is a representation of the new verbage associated with Bloom's Taxonomy (Overbaugh and Schultz).
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Common Core State Standards
Standards for Mathematical Practice
Six Facets of Understanding
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The transformation that I desire to see in students can best be described by the Revised Bloom's Taxonomy. In the past, I realize that while I model and have increased the sophistication of the types of questions that I ask when teaching, I have succumbed to the pressure from resistant students and the pressure to cover a significant amount of material. While my teaching and questioning during class was more reflective of higher order thinking, my assignments and assessments were more reflective of the lower level thinking skills in the taxonomy.
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Introducing the Common Core State Standards
On June 15, 2010, the Michigan Board of Education unanimously adopted the Common Core State Standards which is a set of rigorous career and college-ready K-12 curriculum standards that has, as of July 2011, been adopted by 44 states and the District of Columbia according to the Common Core State Standards website.
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The adoption of Common Core State Standards comes at a pivotal point in my teaching career and at the perfect time for this transformation in learning. The Standards for Mathematics contain the elements that stress the development of higher order thinking skills through thoughtful content focus and the inclusion of Standards of Mathematical Practice.