Winooski High School: Second Visit

This weeks placement proved to be much more of a challenge than last week's WHS visit. The students were working with comparing fractions and determining whether one fraction is greater than, less than, or equal to another fraction. The students seemed to really struggle with this. Some students understood the concept of fractions, while others had trouble determining the difference between one fourth and one half. I was placed in a group of three students and I was presented with the task of asking leading questions to guide the students’ learning and understanding. However, I was not able to break through with my group. Aside from the fact that two of my group members claimed to be too tired for school, the concept of comparing fractions did not click with them. I instructed them to draw pictures and grids, but they were still struggling. Ms. Boon was also having difficulties getting the students to understand the material, with just a handful of students being capable of genuinely understanding fraction comparisons.

It was my plan to incorporate different types of learning, using a combination written work and pictures, to aid in the understanding, but the students did not seem to understand. This raised a question that I have not really been able to ask because I have not witnessed this situation in person. This is, what does the teacher do if the majority of the class does not understand a topic? No matter how many times I explained something, the students could not understand. I have a plan for the future. I remember being taught fractions using materials (blocks, paper clips, etc.), so this gave me the idea of not only having a visual picture of fractions, but also a tangible one, incorporating many different parts of the brain. Although time was limited to work on every problem, I am curious to see the effects of using a tangible representation of fractions to explain the concepts, along with pictures and written work/explanations. Although I did not give up helping these students, it was difficult for me to develop alternative ways to explain the topic.

I learned through this that sometimes teaching becomes extremely frustrating. What seems to be such a simple topic for me and some of the students in the class that have grasped the concepts, becomes such a challenge for other students. I learned I need to work on some problem solving skills, and also come to terms with the fact that I was not always be immediately successful in teaching certain topics. Through dedication and different teaching methods, however, a breakthrough can and will occur! It may just take a lot of time and patience. I have a rhetorical question to end with. In my experience teachers rush through many topics to ensure they have enough time to get through all of the material required for the year. But I pose the question, is it better to rush through the material so that some kids do not understand a lot of the topics, but the material required to cover in the year has been covered, or is it more beneficial to ensure the topics have been grasped, but not to get through all of the material required in the school year? I choose the latter.