Research and Reflections
RRR (Read 1- Read 2- Reflect)
The RRR is an analysis of two research articles and synthesis of how they can impact our problem of practice and teaching practice.​
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RAR (Read 1- Ask 1- Reflect)
The RAR is an analysis of one research articles and one interview, with a synthesis of how they can impact our problem of practice and inform our teaching.​
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Annotated Bibliography
​The annotated bibliography is a compilation of sources used throughout this course, EDU 575. It includes a short summary of each source and analysis of how they can help inform our problem of practice.
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Literature Synthesis
This text is a synthesis of different subtopics that were studied during the duration of our lesson study. They are synthesized to come to a greater understanding on a larger issue.​
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Reflection on Lesson Study Cycle 2
This lesson study cycle has made me so much more aware of my intentions around reading and writing instruction, while also sparking new questions about how instruction of both plays into the development of the other.
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Our problem of practice was about how deep reading and comprehension practice impacts students' writing skills. With the PDSA cycles and main lesson study lesson, our students have been exposed to a variety of new strategies when it comes to connecting their reading and writing skills. For one PDSA cycle, we asked students to choose a quote from their KBAR (independent reading) book. Then, we analyzed those quotes and the writing strategies the authors used. This allowed students to have variety in learning materials, as they hopefully enjoyed the KBAR book they chose and therefore were more engaged in the lesson.
In addition, we wanted to build students' confidence as readers and writers. Our focal student data, along with observed data in class, showed that many students were not confident in their reading and writing abilities. This was another reason why we wanted to directly teach writing skills in our lesson study lesson, and make sure to focus on it in the future.
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Students have also shown that they identify the connection between analyzing things they read and developing their writing skills. Through the PDSA cycles and lesson implemented, we are just starting to bridge that connection in our students' brains. There are still many questions to be answered and a lot of work to be done.
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This cycle also helped us learn from each other as educators. We collaborated heavily on the main lesson and modified the lesson for the second class. With feedback from each others' observations, the modification was beneficial for the host teacher and for the students. We also gained a lot of insight from our KO (Knowledgeable Other), Dr. Carol Battle. She helped us focus our lesson in on a skill that could be meaningfully taught in one class period. She provided resources and materials that we can all use beyond this lesson study cycle as well.
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Overall our group did a great job collaborating, learning from each other and from the experience, and supporting each others' growth.