I am failing forward. I have failed. But forward. Face first. Let me explain.
Back in May, at a faculty meeting, I heard a presentation from one of our assistant principals on our participation in the PARCC assessment program. We all listened carefully, making notes on our printed PowerPoint slides about how PARCC was different from our existing high-stakes assessments and what we would have to do to implement this improved system. He showed us sample items and explained that the new assessments placed a value on process and students’ reasoning. In the new assessment, students would be able to receive partial credit, and if they made a mistake in one area, they would not be doomed for the entire item. If they failed on one part, they could recover a few points by failing forward. Like in real life, where our little mistakes are rarely fatal to the larger effort, students were able to fail forward by learning from and correcting mistakes.
And so as I reflected on this concept, I realized that maybe I’ve been failing forward in my attempts to align my teaching with the C3 Framework and the Common Core.
I wanted to improve my students’ abilities to use evidence from sources in their writing, so with my PLC, I designed a few lessons focused on this important skill.
From the C3, we emphasized on, D3.4.9-12 Identify evidence that draws information directly and substantively from multiple sources to detect inconsistencies in evidence in order to revise or strengthen claims
From the Common Core our attention was on, RH.11-12.1 Cite specific textual evidence to support analysis of primary and secondary sources, connecting insights gained from specific details to an understanding of the text as a whole.
Our first lesson focused on the development of new constitution democracies. For this lesson, students examined the constitutions of Egypt and Afghanistan, as well as the U.S. Articles of Confederation, Declaration of Independence, and Mayflower Compact. Students used these documents to craft a message about what they thought would make a good democratic government in Egypt and Afghanistan. A tall order, especially for the first unitIt was my hope that students would synthesize across multiple sources to put forward evidence-based arguments for specific democratic principles, but it was hard to get students to go beyond just using quotes from the sources. I had my work cut out for me. While I was disappointed, I did not give up. I developed a new lesson again requiring the analysis of multiple sources. This was the lesson I described in my last entry where students read multiple sources on changing the start time of school and wrote a persuasive letter to the school board.
Two interesting things happened. First, all of the students did incredible well on the second lesson. Everyone was successful using evidence, and after brief revisions the letters were mailed to local politicians. Every student got a response back. The next few months were filled with announcements of replies from local politicians. It didn’t matter that they were similar if not identical form letters; students’ voices were being heard. These students used information from sources and crafted arguments to support their point of view. The C3 was alive and well in this lesson.
Why the difference between the two lessons? I attribute our success on the second lesson to the “taking informed action” aspect of the task. Taking that next step to actually reach out and communicate enabled my students to perform like the well-informed eager young citizens they were capable of being. Was there room for improvement in their writing? Yes. Could some students have cited sources more effectively? Yes. And, believe me I value the craft of writing, but I value civic dispositions even more.
The transformative power I see in the C3 (and to a certain extent in the Common Core) is the idea of taking informed action. This is what social studies is all about and through activities that emphasize informed action we can elevate our students’ academic abilities. When students care, and when they know that others in the world care about their ideas, academic achievement will follow.
So, where was my failing forward? After the first lesson, I realized that there was something missing. I thought I had it all, good sources, a current context, and an emphasis on disciplinary literacy. How could it get better than that? Well, I found out real quick. Students saw through the activity. On paper it was a model lesson. But in the hands of the teacher and students, without the authentic taking informed action, students found it hard to engage in the difficult skill of using evidence to make an argument.
Don’t get me wrong. I’m not saying all lessons need to result in a letter to an elected official. But shouldn’t every lesson in social studies lead to some kind of authentic informed action? Talking to parents about the news. Informing their peers about an issue they have learned about. Re-forming their ideas about justice, rule of law, and equality and living those ideals as young citizens? Our Founders, Like Thomas Jefferson asserted that all education is civic education.
I will most likely keep this lesson and rework it for next year. It had good bones. But what I will really improve upon is the bridge for students to then take informed action. As I continue to embrace C3 in my way of teaching, I seek to develop a deeper sense of what Dimension 4 can mean for my students. The content in my first lesson sort of got in the way. Lesson learned. Adjustments made. I failed forward.
