UQAM 2013 STUDENTING BEHIND THE FAADE Peter Liljedahl

UQAM 2013 STUDENTING: BEHIND THE FAÇADE - Peter Liljedahl

• Doing their Science homework. • Pretending to be using a cell phone as a calculator. • Copying homework from someone else. • Mimicking the teacher’s example. • Sharpening their pencil. • Passive note taking. • Pretending to have done homework. • Pretending to be collaborating. • Pretending to be doing in-class assignments. • Pretending to be studying. • Pretending to be reading. • Forgot something in the locker. • Going to the bathroom. THE PHENOMENON UQAM 2013 • Pretending to try to solve a problem.

SO WHAT TO CALL IT? THE PHENOMENON UQAM 2013 Common Traits • there is a façade (seems to be directional) • it subverts the teacher’s intentions (not always deliberately) • it isn’t learning!

(Fenstermacher, 1986, p. 39) STUDENTING UQAM 2013 The concept of studenting or pupiling is far and away the more parallel concept to that of teaching. [. . ] there is much more to studenting than learning how to learn. In the school setting, studenting includes getting along with one’s teachers, coping with one’s peers, dealing with one’s parents about begin a student, and handling the non-academic aspects of school life.

(Fenstermacher, 1994, p. 1) STUDENTING UQAM 2013 [T]hings that students do such as ‘psyching out’ teachers, figuring out how to get certain grades, ‘beating the system’, dealing with boredom so that it is not obvious to teachers, negotiating the best deals on reading and writing assignments, threading the right line between curricular and extra-curricular activities, and determining what is likely to be on the test and what is not.

(Fenstermacher, 1994, p. 1) STUDENTING AS GAMING UQAM 2013 [T]hings that students do such as ‘psyching out’ teachers, figuring out how to get certain grades, ‘beating the system’, dealing with boredom so that it is not obvious to teachers, negotiating the best deals on reading and writing assignments, threading the right line between curricular and extra-curricular activities, and determining what is likely to be on the test and what is not.

• conducive to learning (or not) • conforms with the teacher’s wishes (or not) STUDENTING UQAM 2013 Studenting is what students do while in a learning situation.

UQAM 2013 STUDENTING AS GAMING

UQAM 2013 Observation Phase • lots of observation in many classrooms • short interviews (audio), field notes, video Typology/Code Building • continuous analysis (grounded theoryish) • looking for contexts and saturation in contexts Typology/Code Testing • focused observation, field notes, interviews • analytic induction METHODOLOGY

UQAM 2013 now you try one (PME 2013*) § grade 10 homework (PME-NA 2013*) § grade 10 -12 note taking (TBD) § grade 12 … * with INITIAL CONTEXTS Darien Allan

UQAM 2013 NOW YOU TRY ONE

Well, I use them to give the students a chance to check their understanding of what we had just learned. This way, if they don't understand something we can catch it right away. Researcher And what do the students do with these problems? Ms. Duo For the most part they do the problems. You'll see when we are in there that there a couple of boys in the back that don't do them but they don't really do anything. Everyone else, though, does them. TEACHER’S INTENTIONS UQAM 2013 Ms. Duo

Frank Andrew Jason I don’t get it. [shrugging his shoulders and looking back down at his cell phone] My tutor will help me with this tonight. I'm just tired today. AMOTIVATION (n=3) UQAM 2013 • disengaged for the full class.

Barry I was waiting until there was a break in the lesson. STALLING (n=4) UQAM 2013 • went to the bathroom (n=2) • sharpened their pencil • looking for calculator

Keesha Jennifer I don't want to mess up my notes. Not only will she give us the answer, she will give us the best answer. This is the one I want in my notes. FAKING (n=2) UQAM 2013 • pretended to try

• John This is how we do things in this class. The teacher gives us an example and we write it down. Then she gives us one to try and we copy what we did in the example. MIMICKING (n=17) UQAM 2013 • constant referencing to the previously solved problem [ntask (n-1)example]

Kenneth I don't know. Maybe. … I mean it all makes sense. If anything maybe the examples just showed me what kinds of questions are possible. REASONING (n=6) UQAM 2013 • tried it on their own • reasoned their way through it • anticipated next example

n=32 0% Y [CATEGOR R O EG [CAT ] (n=2) Y NAME] E AM N[CATEGOR (n=3) Checking Y NAME] Understanding (n=4) (n=6) catching up on notes (n=0) NOW YOU TRY ONE UQAM 2013 [CATEGOR Y NAME] (n=17)

gaming [PERCENTAGE] 0% NOW YOU TRY ONE UQAM 2013 n=32

UQAM 2013 HOMEWORK

Mr. Bennet No. Its supposed to be formative. TEACHERS’ INTENTIONS UQAM 2013 Researcher Why do you assign homework? Ms. Calie Mathematics is something you can just watch. You need to practice it. I assign homework is so they can practice it. Researcher Do you mark it. Ms. Calie Of course … otherwise they don’t do it.

N n Marking 10 32 20 random check for completion 10 30 20 random check for completion 11 31 20 random selection of questions marked 11 33 20 not marked 12 28 20 not marked HOMEWORK UQAM 2013 Grade

• “I had basketball practice after school and when I got home I had to finish my English essay. ” • I tried but I couldn’t do it • It wasn’t worth marks • I took at chance DIDN’T DO IT (n=31) UQAM 2013 • I forgot • I was busy

UQAM 2013 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 Not Marked 0 I forgot I was busy I took a chance 4 I tried, but I couldn't do it 3 3 It wasn't worth marks 0 Marked 5 Not Marked 3 2 3 0 8 DIDN’T DO IT (n=31) Marked

• • from a friend from a different year • Showed a different day • rewrote numbers • Did half CHEATED (n=15) UQAM 2013 • Copied

UQAM 2013 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0 Marked Not Marked Copied 7 Faked 5 Half homework risk 2 1 0 0 CHEATED (n=15) Marked

GOT HELP (n=30) UQAM 2013 “If you had to do a quiz on this material today, how do you think you would do? ” • would fail quiz • would pass quiz • would excel at quiz

UQAM 2013 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 Not Marked 1 0 Marked Not Marked Felt they would fail quiz 6 Felt they would pass quiz 3 1 3 GOT HELP (n=30) Felt they would excel at at quiz 9 quiz 8 Marked

UQAM 2013 • mimicked from notes • did not mimic from notes • mimicked but completed DID IT ON THEIR OWN (n=24)

UQAM 2013 6 5 4 3 2 1 0 Marked Not Marked Mimicked from notes 4 Did not mimic from notes 6 Mimicked but completed 3 5 6 0 Marked DID IT ON THEIR OWN (n=24)

Didn't Do It 15 16 I forgot 5 3 I was busy 4 I tried, but I couldn't do it Not Marked (n=60) (n=40) 18 12 Felt they would fail quiz 6 1 2 Felt they would pass quiz 3 3 Felt they would excel 9 8 I took a chance 3 0 Did it On Their Own 13 11 It wasn't worth marks 0 8 Mimicked from notes 4 5 Cheated 14 1 Did not mimic from notes 6 6 Copied 7 1 Mimicked but completed 3 0 Faked 5 0 Half homework risk 2 0 HOMEWORK Got Help UQAM 2013 Not Marked (n=60) (n=40)

gaming [PERCENTAGE] HOMEWORK Not Marked (n=40) gaming [PERCENTAGE] UQAM 2013 Marked (n=60)

UQAM 2013 TAKING NOTES

TEACHER’S INTENTIONS UQAM 2013 Researcher Why do you make your students copy notes? Mr. Clark I want them to see me demonstrating how to do the math. And I want them to write them down so that they have it in their notes for studying for tests.

UQAM 2013 TAKE NOTES keep up n=11 yes n=3 don’t keep up n=16 don’t use notes n=27 USE NOTES TO STUDY TAKING NOTES (n=30) don’t n=3

gaming 63% gaming 90% USE NOTES TO STUDY TAKING NOTES (n=30) UQAM 2013 TAKE NOTES

UQAM 2013 THEORIZING ABOUT STUDENTS

doing being … a student (Sacks) practical rationality (Aaron) law of least effort (Kahnemann) motivation and avoidance (Hannula) didactic tension (Mason) goal regulation (Hannula) self-determination theory (Deci & Ryan) institutional norms (Liu & Liljedahl) avoidance (Hannula) learning style (Gardner) THEORIZING ABOUT STUDENTS UQAM 2013 • • •

ALTERNATE IDEAS teacher is wrong GAMING institutional norms WITH FAÇADE (intentional) avoidance economy of action BEATING THE SYSTEM NO FAÇADE (unintentional) wrong objective doing being practical rationality wrong rules FRAMEWORK OF GAMING … UQAM 2013 preferred learning style

UQAM 2013 THEORIZING ABOUT TEACHERS

• are seen as social engineering → teaching methods are seen as solutions in need of a problem • are far removed from individual teachers’ classrooms • are seen as abstract or theoretical • represent an ideal • do not easily bridge to the practical • are often seen as systemic THEORIZING ABOUT TEACHERS UQAM 2013 PROBLEMS PRESENTED IN OTHER RESEARCH:

• • are recognizably problematic are a recognizable reality have verisimilitude are familiar provide a reality check YET … are seen as important to change are within the realm of things that can be changed THEORIZING ABOUT TEACHERS UQAM 2013 THESE RESULTS, ON THE OTHER HAND …