Week 3: Chapters 6-7, Question #5 How could teaching students to be responsible for each other’s learning help them while learning math?

How could teaching students to be responsible for each other’s learning help them while
learning math? How could this help them outside the classroom?

Challenge: Think of a teacher who is interested in teaching students to be responsible for each
other’s learning, but not sure how to begin. Based on what you read and your own experience,
design a few simple classroom routines or activities to get this teacher started. Share your
suggestions in the discussion forum.

Comments

Grouping really helps a lot of students.  Setting up the right groups is key to success or failure.  From experience I like to pick out the groups because I want a mixture of students in the group.  I want some of the really kids in a group average students and one lower level.  Once the groups are established and working correctly amazing things occur.  The higher level students will usually help out the whole group in learning the process.  All students will develop more confidence and take on all roles of grouping.  They will also work a lot harder with the lower students to help them succeed.  So for the group to be success it's the cohesion of the group as a whole.  This also takes time.  The end results are amazing.  I have witnesses kids become really good friends from grouping.  Some of the really popular kids taking a special education student under their wings and helping with developing friends or talking to the opposite sex more.  This is where the process of grouping really works well for the whole group.  It makes the job of a teacher so much more fulfilling when you see examples like this occur.

An activity that I do with students when they are ready to Hiset math test is have the whole group of students analyze a free practice test together.  From the teacher perspective, I just sit back and listen to the conversation and seeing how they help each other out on the problems.  The only time I really say anything is if they keep going down the wrong path or analyze a question incorrectly.  I let them work together and through the whole test.  I make sure that all students give their input on all questions.  The students have told me this is what helped them so much on their actual Hiset test.