Personality Colours in the Classroom

Myers Briggs
The Myers Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI)  measures the preferences in how people perceive the world and make decisions.  It's a comprehensive test and quite involved since there are 16 different personality types defined in this test. You can see these 16 types in the image to the right. 

It's complicated. I took a leadership course in which we determined our Myers Briggs personality type.  We spent two of the four sessions just getting a handle on comparing and contrasting the four aspects:

• Extraversion with Introversion
• Sensing with Intuition
• Thinking with Feeling 
• Judging with Perceiving

By far, the  most rewarding part of the course was working with purposefully diverse teams and experiencing first-hand the interaction styles of all personality types.

Personality Colours
I use Personality Colours test extensively in my classroom. The four colours in the test simplify the sixteen types of the Myers Briggs:

• Blue for the Harmonious
• Orange for the Adventurous temperament
• Green for the Curious
• Gold for the Responsible

Right now I am teaching one very ‘orange’ class. More than 80% of my students in this science class of mine are ‘orange’. This means that they tend to be extroverted, outgoing, active, and kinesthetic learners.  

I am a green/gold personality, so the enthusiasm and natural inclusiveness of my students came as a welcome surprise to me. I am continuously warmed by their sheer willingness to participate in activities and their extremely positive response to our classroom lessons of inclusivity and respect.

Knowing that this class is orange helps me find solutions to their natural busy-ness in science, a subject that works on developing the green/gold personality traits. For example, it helps me to be understanding when an ‘orange’ student asks yet again to be let out for a drink of water (really a walk and a destressor). It also helps me create assessments that involve their kinesthetic tendencies, such as setting up laboratories as stations activities.
 
In addition, knowing their personality colours really helps my students.  It helps students understand why they like to do the things a certain way,  and why sometimes a different choice makes more sense for them than their peers. It helps them understand why some subjects come naturally to them to see that even if another skill or subject does not seem as natural, it is still important and worth the effort to learn. Personality colours also helps me to create a purposeful teamwork in the class. I purposefully pair complementary colours or diverse colours, so that my students can gain a practical understanding of their own strengths in relation to the strengths of their peers.

I feel that I as a teacher have a great role in teaching personality colours. I think the tests of the personality colours are remarkably accurate for me. They reflect how I think about me, my preferences and what I make a priority. Personality colours provides a framework in which my students can reflect on their strengths and develop strategies for their areas of need.

Try them:
Myers Briggs - Test, YouTube video
Personality Colours - Test, YouTube video
A Personality Colours handout for the classroom handout

Anxiety and the Classroom - helping students to move through alarm to courage

Gordon Neufeld, a developmental psychologist from Vancouver, British Columbia, conveys a warmth that is natural, welcoming and supportive when he speaks. I have heard him speak twice, once at the Peel District Board Office during a PD session, the second at the Waldorf Academy in downtown Toronto last year.

Dr. Neufeld speaks on anxiety.  Just saying the word anxiety conjures the feeling of sweaty palms, a dry throat, butterflies and a pounding head. These are natural symptoms of our body`s response to our thoughts of alarm and unease, when we are faced with a perceived danger. In his talk, Dr. Neufeld first points out that anxiety is meant to be beneficial. The feelings of anxiety are our natural, internal activated alarm system.

Gordon Neufeld estimates that today, 1 in 5 children suffer from moderate to severe anxiety. Sometimes a school subject itself may create alarm in a student. I have taught anxious students in my math class.  Math anxiety is “a feeling of tension, apprehension, or fear that interferes with math performance." Every day, when the class time approaches, I may see that student begin to exhibit the symptoms of alarm. If there is no intervention, their feelings can lead to decreased motivation, resulting in math avoidance. Ultimately their confidence in their ability plummets. It's a reinforcing downward spiral. It's a real problem, for the teacher and the student, because an alarmed state prevents learning. Learning requires a tranquil mind.

So how do children cope. These students try to deal with their feelings of alarm through avoidance and distraction. Common coping mechanisms can include:

• Refusing tasks
• Making frequent trips to the washroom 
• Developing attendance problems
• Engaging in intensive procrastination such as using technology
• Creating distractions by performing a 'show' for their peers
• Developing physical complaints such as stomachaches, headaches, fatigue. 
• Becoming aggressive or defiant

The good news is that a teacher can step in to support the student in resolving their alarm and help return them to a state of calm, so they can learn.

Gordon Neufelds key message is that by understanding the natural process of alarm in our bodies, we can help children to overcome their feelings of alarm and move forward, beyond the fear and tears and into courage.

Neufeld describes that the three possible outcomes of our internal alarm system are caution, which if not resolved, moves into a state of adaptation (to the situation, creating a new steady state) and, if not resolved, finally moving through into courage. This is described by the image below (taken I believe, from a Neufeld talk):

1. Alarm - At the top of the diagram you can see the child becoming alarmed in response to perceiving a danger. This activates the internal 'alarm system'.
2. Caution is the first response after a child feels alarmed. Caution is a natural and good response to an alarm, it allows the child to focus and pay attention. Caution can be resolved once a child realizes the situation they are in is not dangerous after all, and they can relax from their hyper-attentive state.
3. If however the situation causing alarm is persistent unavoidable, the child moves from caution into the stage of futility. Tears are usually released and this leads to adaptation and the child experiences release and becomes restful at this point. At the stage of adaptation, the alarm system is internally recalibrated and the child experiences a calm state.  This is a good outcome of the alarm process, the child has successfully resolved their alarm by adapting to the new situation.
4. If adaptation stage is not reached, the child will need courage to continue to face the alarm-filled situation that confronts them. Courage isn’t possible without mixed feelings and children are not capable of experiencing mixed feelings until the age of 7 or 8. If a child reaches courage, the child becomes brave. They are able to  persevere in the face of difficulty, work toward their goals.  Reaching this stage frequently requires an adult's help.

Teachers are an important support in helping students develop productive strategies to cope with alarm in classroom situations. Neufeld suggests specific strategies based on the natural alarm process.

First, Neufeld suggest anxiety reduction behaviors that  relieve anxiety and turns off the alarm. These can include:

• Physical activity 
• Eating
• Focusing on a sensory input like a squeeze ball
• Doing relaxation exercises

 These behaviors temporarily relieve anxiety and turn off the alarm.

Second, Gordon Neufeld’s suggests anxiety can be addressed by reducing the separation the child is facing. Strategies include creating a a classroom that is a place of rest and safety. For a child safety means that as teachers we can first accept our role as an alpha figure in a child's life so the child can relax. This is a state of being that influences our approach to classroom management in a fundamental way. It means that teachers:

• Work on our relationship with the student so the child knows we care 
• Take responsibility to bridge any separation that cannot be avoided by focusing on the next connection 
• Accept and allow the symptoms of anxiety as a natural process
• Bringing alarmed children to rest and build resilience by helping to find the tears of futility when appropriate
• Cultivate courage by fanning their desires so the child can develop their ability to work through frustration by means of their own loves, passions and interests

Until we meet again.

Sources:
The Neufeld Institute
http://sensationalchildren.blogspot.ca/
Gordon Neufeld: Making Sense of Anxiety in Children and Youth - an hour-long presentation

Classroom climate and intercultural understanding

I have had the question, on occasion from one or two people who ask me how I compare creation stories to scientific evidence. I've been asked because I am a science teacher and I also am interested in multiculturalism. Last week I helped to organize and host and Educator's Tour of the Mississaugas of the New Credit First Nation.

Well, to be honest I think this question arises from a misunderstanding. Comparing creation stories to scientific inquiry is like comparing apples to oranges.

I want to first highlight the intention of Ontario's curriculum documents. What I teach in science class is scientific literacy. Scientific literacy is "the scientific knowledge, skills and habits of mind required to thrive in the science-based world of the twenty-first century." (Ontario Ministry of Education. (2008), The Ontario Curriculum Grades 9 and 10: Science).

Science is responsible for much of the prosperity and technological advances we have achieved in the past 100 years. For instance, the scientific method of analysing data is used extensively in business, marketing, science and engineering and is responsible for:

• discovering life-saving pharmaceuticals
• developing vaccines to prevent global pandemics
• determining from the evidence that the climate is changing
• creating sustainable and renewable energy sources
• improving the productivity of our agricultural sector to provide sustainable sources of food
• protecting the environmental health and economic vitality of the oceans, among others.

I teach scientific literacy every day in the classroom, I teach students how to observe the world around them and to distill conclusions from data.

Our curriculum document also says that  "the overall intention is that all graduates of Ontario secondary schools will achieve excellence and a high degree of scientific literacy while maintaining a sense of wonder about the world around them."  (Ontario Ministry of Education. (2008), The Ontario Curriculum Grades 9 and 10: Science).

I communicate the wonder of our world  every day in my classroom. I enjoy the wonder of creation stories, and I leave it to various religions to explain how their version of the creation story fits with the scientific evidence that we all equally share.

It is my goal to create a classroom environment that is safe, positive and equitable. I include creation stories in my teaching to provide context for my lessons and to broaden intercultural understanding of my students . It is my goal to celebrate individual differences and to teach students to enjoy the diversity of cultures in our world.

Educator's Tour - Mississaugas of the New Credit First Nation

Last weekend, 45 educators from the Peel and Dufferin-Catholic school boards boarded buses bound for Hagersville, Ontario. Our goal was to learn about the culture, history and issues facing the Mississaugas of the New Credit First Nation (MNCRN). The tour was offered by our group Beyond Our Classroom and was made possible by the financial suppport offered by the:

• Peel District School Board
• OSSTF District 19, and the
• Native Education Association of Ontario  

Many, many grateful thanks to the sponsors and to the people of the Mississaugas of the New Credit First Nation for their hospitality.

The Reserve is directly adjacent to the Six Nations Reserve in southern Ontario.  The MNCFN Reserve is about about 2500 acres in size. This is a bit more than two country blocks (a country block contains 10 farms of 100 acres each, in a rectangular pattern).

It is also a picturesque, fulgant green spot. On the map above, you can see it outlined in green because a significant portion resembles beautiful park land. The Reserve Urban Planning Committee has designated one third of the Reserve as virgin forest, and an additional one third as cultivated green space. The Elders also encourage reserve residents to plant native species. The day's events unfolded at Lloyd S. King  Elementary School:

• A traditional drum ceremony by the students
• A traditional greeting and guided tour of the school given by Max King
• A comprehensive overview of the beautiful mural which depicts the history of the Mississaugas of the New Credit First Nation by Kim Sault, a teaching elder
• Margaret Sault and Carolyn King providing an overview of treaty information regarding the  MNCRN, and  the historical timelines of Mississaugas of the New Credit First Nation
• A bus tour visiting the Old United Church, the Grove, a gift shop and commercial ventures such as the Reserve commercial complex

For me, a highlight of the tour was the beautiful mural in the library of the LSK Elementary School.

The mural is a visual depiction of the First Nation's history. Kim Sault, a teaching elder, spent an hour with us, explaining the concepts and symbolism of the mural in detail. The mural has five main parts that describe the:

1. Anishinabe (Ojibway) Creation Story and teachings
2. Transition from woodland life to village life at Credit River in the Mississauga/Toronto area
3. Relocation from traditional land to the present location and the residential schools that forced assimilation
4. Participation in World Wars I and II, acknowledging the many members that enlisted
5. and a vision for the future, youth seeking guidance of elders for journey into future

The mural starts with the Anishinabe (Ojibway) Creation Story, which you can see below.

The story begins with seven circles representing the seven fires of creation. Starting from the left, the black circle represents the void and the white circle represents the first thought that appeared. The next two circles describes first the appearance of the sun and then the moon. The sun and the moon are in close proximity, representing the unfolding of twinness. Mixed together, these became the spiral circle, which became the first movement, causing universe to move and to be balanced by the four directions. The first thoughts of the Creator and shaped them into kernels of seeds containing the essence of life, and the birds then spread the seeds of thought on the Creation of Earth. The final fire was creating man in the Creator's own image.

It is a very beautiful and powerful story that shapes the Mississaugas of New Credit First Nation, linking the past with the present and the future. It clearly provides an sound moral compass to the First Nation and shapes their progress as a people, together, as they make decisions for the future. Part of my vision as a teacher is creating global citizens. I found this trip very helpful in broadening my worldview and discovering more about Canada and our heritage.

As Tony Pontes reiterated in a personal message to all Peel Board employees, the Peel Region is on the traditional territory of the Mississaugas of the New Credit First Nation.  This trip was an opportunity for all of us to recognize the value of diversity.  Living in Peel is a gift.  It was also a reminder that all Canadians are “treaty people” and that Canada would not be the culturally diverse, compassionate and prosperous country we know today without the First Nations peoples.

I will definitely share with my students.

Cycling - Bike to City Hall and Niagara River Trip

My favorite school event of the year was this past Monday: our school-wide Bike to City Hall event, to support Mississauga's Annual Bike to Work Day.  Hundreds of students from schools around Mississauga participated. This yearly event is a great opportunity to promote bike safety, road safety, the sport of cycling and sustainability. Bike to Work Day is part of Bike Month. Bike Month is a community celebration of cycling that happens across the Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area. Bike Month 2013 begins on Monday, May 27 and continues until the end of June with hundreds of events in the community.

Students arrived early at school last Monday in the cool and pleasant May Morning, with their bicycles and helmets in tow, for the Bike to City Hall event. I, with the other teacher advisors, were the tour guide sweeps, fixing chains, adjusting seats, pumping tires and checking helmets. Nothing that I'm not used to, I help out as a tour guide for Toronto Bicycle Tours. (that's me in the orange, at 57 seconds). That company is owned by my good friend, Terrence Eta.

In teams of 10, we cycled the 10 kilometers from the school to City Hall, where students enjoyed a free breakfast, bike safety check-ups, fun prizes, cycling vendors and a BMX demonstration. The students especially enjoy hanging out with students from other schools, running through the fountains in Celebration Square, thoroughly soaking themselves.

Cycling is a passion of mine, I also helped out guiding a special Educator's Bike Ride to Niagara Falls last weekend.

The Niagara River Recreation Trail meanders through some of the most beautiful countryside in the world. This area is Ontario's only Carolinian forest,  ash, birch, chestnut, hickory, oak and walnut trees abound, a wonderful complement to the pine trees, lakes and rocks of Northern Ontario, which I also dearly love.

The Niagara Recreation Trail, a wide paved trail, runs parallel to the Niagara River from Historic Fort Erie in the south to Fort George in the north.

We made our way through:

• Niagara on the Lake
• Fort George
• Lewiston (stopping by Laura Secord's house)
• the Botanical Gardens
• past the hydroelectric dam, before
• Sampling ice-cream from the famous Reg's Candy Kitchen under the Rainbow Bridge

Not only beautiful, I managed to snap some pictures which I will use in the electricity unit in Grade 9 science. Electricity, and especially electric generation is a focus of this Grade 9 Science unit. These photos will complement the other pictures of solar panel projects I near Peterborough that I took a few weeks ago. It is also entertaining and educational by stopping to read the markers and memorials along the way commemorating events from the war of 1812.

I highly recommend this Niagara Recreation Trail Tour for educators of history, law, geography and science. And here's our team:

This coming weekend, I'll participate in Ride for Heart, cycling the Don Valley Parkway, raising money for the Heart and Stroke Foundation.  Around 13,000 cyclists take part in the event yearly, which raises millions of dollars for the Heart and Stroke Foundation.

TEDTalks - the importance of relationships

There has been some discussion in my department surrounding  TEDTalks. As I mentioned in a previous post, last month I attended the Ignite Mississauga, a yearly youth TedTalks event.

The first TEDTalk I want to share will make you all warm and fuzzy, the speaker is Rita Pierson and she says that every student needs a champion. Her best line is "Kids don't learn from people they don't like." This is especially true for kids with low achievement records. The way to build relationships starts with simple things:

• Trying to understand first before judging
• Apologizing when things are done wrong and,
• A persistent belief in the capability of the students. Yes, even to the point of nagging our students to be the best they can possibly be.

 The second TEDTalk is a bit long with good points at the end. Geoffrey Canada talks about the slowness of our school system to adapt to the needs of their customers. We all know the modern school model:

• Five days a week
• 8 to 3 pm
• Five periods a day
• September to June

Geoffrey's point of view is shaped by the poverty-stricken neighborhoods he serves in Harlem, NYC. Geoffrey offers a customized school model offering services that his community's specific needs:

• Extended-hours charter schools
• A chef who prepares healthy meals
• Health and parenting clinics
• Community centers for children and adults during after-school, weekend and summer hours

He makes good points, especially regarding meeting our students where they are at.

The greatest influence on student learning - John Hattie

What has the greatest influence on student learning?

Yesterday at a professional learning day we looked at the work by John Hattie. Hattie, a Professor of Education at Auckland University in New Zealand has published impressive papers involving meta analysis on student learning. Meta-analysis is commonly found in medicine and epidemiology, where for example, it is used to synthesize the effects of drugs in clinical trials. Hattie uses meta-analysis to provide a birds-eye view of effective education across the world. Hattie’s meta-analysis is fascinating in its sheer breadth. His work draws on "a total of about 800 meta-analyses, which encompassed 52,637 studies, and provided 146,142 effect sizes [...] these studies are based on many millions of students" (Hattie, 2009; 15).

Hattie's bottom line is the "effect size". An effect size of "1" indicates that a particular approach to teaching or technique advanced the learning of the students in the study by one standard deviation above the mean. So an effect size of "1" is very good indeed.

• Reverse effects in red are self-explanatory, and below 0.0
• Developmental effects are 0.0 to 0.15, and the improvement a child may be expected to show in a year simply through growing up, without any schooling. (These levels are determined with reference to countries with little or no schooling.)
• Teacher effects "Teachers typically can attain d=0.20 to d=0.40 growth per year—and this can be considered average"  ...but subject to a lot of variation.
• Desired effects are those above d=0.40 which are attributable to the specific interventions or methods being researched.

You can see in the normal distribution below, that the mean effect size is 0.4 and the desired effect size is therefore greater than 0.4. Very few effects are above 1.0, called the 'very good' category.

I included a detail of the top 20 or so areas with the most pronounced effect on students learning below. Formative assessment (assessment 'for learning' and 'as learning') matters as much as I thought it would, with an effect of 0.9. I know that effective feedback, delivered at the right time and in the right way enables me as a teacher to change I am doing AND helps the student understand their achievement of the learning goals.




What surprised me in the list above, was that student self-expectations rank the highest in effect, with an impact of 1.44, and that study skills appear more than 20 lines down the list with an effect size of 0.59. 


References
Hattie's two research papers, Influences on Student Learning and Teachers make a Difference, explore what it is that really makes a difference to learning in our classrooms, and the difference between experienced teachers and expert teachers. His book Visible Learning synthesised these results. Hattie's webpage brings together the freely available online resources related to John Hattie’s Visible Learning research  http://visible-learning.org/.