Research and Information Fluency for Teachers

Research and information fluency for me is staying current on curriculum, math context and how they relate to the content you are teaching. Staying up to date on  current trends and new technology in any field is important to stay fluent in your subject. Math changes and it is nothing like what I did when I was in middle school. With the introduction of computers and all the technology, useful math has taken on a more meaningful context for me. Seeing how it is used in video games, computer modeling and design makes it easier for me to point to real examples to my students. Also connecting math through the other disciplines is important. Science lends its self well to integrate math using data, graphing and other elements but successfully integrating it into ELA is more challenging. If you can find ways to do this, not only do you make better connections but you also bring in elements to ELA that more mathematically minded students would identify with.

There are a myriad of resources out there to help you identify knowledge that a teacher would need to be fluent in their subject. Mathematics Curriculum Topic Study, by Page Keeley and Cheryl M. Rose (2006) is a great guide for finding resources for connecting state standards and practices that best suit them. It has over 200 pages that break out each standard and give resources for which you can find lessons and learning material to go along with it. On page 43 there is a "Cycle of Learning" diagram that illustrates different facets of learning. "Topic Application, Topic Engagement, Topic Elicitation, Topic Exploration, Topic Development, Topic Synthesis and Reflection" are all parts of inquiry based instruction that I think help teachers keep understand how to approach and adapt to learning. Connecting the material to the "adult content knowledge" we wish them to know is how we as educators need to approach the material we are teaching. The first component is using staying current with the standards and understanding why they were developed. Then making the connections to our lessons is most important part.