Unit III - GBS/Anchored/STAR/other

As an overview of the items:

CBR begins with a goal and then backtracks into the methodology of the lesson.  Essentially a map principle.  If one knows where one is going, one can set the appropriate steps in reaching said goal.  This with a twist though.  For the student, other paths must be laid out that through trial and error, the students can devise the best path to completion.  It reminds me a lot of the "Choose your own Adventure" series of books.  You could take many different paths, but only a few work out to the logical and fruitful end.

                  Learning goals
                  The Mission
                  The Cover Story
                  The Role
                  The scenario operations  
                  The Resources
                  The Feedback
                  (Hsu)

Week 9 brought us Anchored Instruction and the iconic model of the Jasper Series.  The essence of this contends that individualized skills are totally meaningless unless learned in "context."  Anchored instruction allows for this authentic learning in context, macro to micro contexts allowing for right size chunking of the material.  The greatest this is the ability of the instruction to lend itself to higher level functioning.  The students learn in part, then allowed to expand their learning through variations of different scenarios...all based on the original problems.  Depth, not breadth.  And all of this guided by storytellers, not teachers.

The problems taken from the readings exhaust the kids.  As much as they like this new thought process, it is very mentally taxing and the duration seems a bit limited of nature. 

The good...the more the kids become involved in anchored instruction, the better the quality (give and take) of learning takes place.

Seems similar to MOST from week 11.  Immediate immersion into the problem, but with much more team play.

Week 10
 STAR legacy...glorious.  It says it right in the name..."R" - Reflections.  This in depth spiral of the material, not just in one glance, but rather, a systematic uncovering of more and more material, much like an archeological dig.  This allows for deeper understanding of the material.  In this way, like Anchored Instruction...deeper, not wider.  Seems to take longer in its approach of uncovering the truths that lie just beneath the surface. 

I loved the idea of allowing the kids to Leave a legacy.  They take with them (on CD or whatever) their own work and then are allowed to help future others in the solving/exploration of the same.  What Schwartz et al. stated was to go public with the knowledge thus allowing the thinking visible.  The kids see their work, not just on a sheet of paper, but standing the test of time for future students to use.

Week 11 MOST
Targets At Risk Learners.  Again, like Jasper/Anchored Instruction, STAR Legacy, GBS, pre-learning still isn't basis, rather, given a scenario in context (really the key to all of them) and allows for students decode along the way.  Like STAR, the idea of reflection (though MOST interprets this as retelling of the story) remains strong.  I do like the research as it stated from the camtasia intro, retelling works if only to a puppet.  The expression (much like STAR again) out there, not only internally, allows for the students to embrace the knowledge and through speaking, clarify what they know.

The verdict
All of these revolve around the lack of push for the pre-learning.  There almost seems a transition from the GBS to MOST as to the amount of pre-learning allowed for...at least in my mind.  I think these strategies to be full of promise.  As it explicitly states, MOST is for those students who are truly at risk.  If this is your class, this would be a great strategy to research and implement...though I feel for a younger crowd.  As written though through Bransford, seems s bit hard to build one out.

I love the idea of STAR Legacy crossed with GBS sprinkled with Anchored Instruction.  Though by accident, I have implemented a version of this in my Sports and entertainment class when it comes to event planning.  With almost everyone having experienced an event one time in their lives, given this as a starting point (GBS), one can begin the journey backwards as to the beginnings of what is required to put one on.  This is a long process through the event prep minutia (STAR/Anchored Instruction).  I can see this on a larger scale, but it will take proper planning and guides to implement this fully. 

My Sports and Entertainment class is more of a hands on, and in being so, allows for this unit's usage.  As for my Marketing, Marketing Management and Honors Strategic, these methods could be used, but I need more time to decide how and to what extent.  Branding, being a major component of each of these classes may be a hard sell in an anchored instruction form.

I remember seeing a storybook program through one of the social studies grades the boys were in...mystorybook.  Though I only saw one example, it sounds like the retelling aspect of MOST.  Xtranormal (as given by another colleague in this class in previous weeks projects) would allow for storyboarding and retelling as well, and maybe even the initial challenge (STAR) or GBS goal.  Easy to use and not a lecture teacher.

Murphy