Beyond Show and Tell

Martin Krovetz

David Casterson

Charlene McKowen

Tim Willis

Developing their own criteria for authentic learning prompted several teachers of a three-hour interdisciplinary block period to critique old, favorite assignments and develop new, more powerful ones for their 10th graders.

Instructional Strategies Instructional Strategies

Teacher: “I always use this activity.”Student: “Why are we doing this?”“You get to work together in groups.”“Can we pick who we work with?”“You'll enjoy listening to one another's presentations.”“I'm sick of all these presentations.”“Even I enjoy these presentations.”“Why can't we just answer chapter questions?”“It'll be like Show and Tell. It'll be fun.”“Like Show and Tell! Does he think we're in 2nd grade?”

Acknowledging shortcomings of our favorite assignments is painful. In the fall of 1991, the four of us (three teachers and our former principal) shared our favorite projects with the intent of making them more meaningful. We had met several times previously to develop criteria to guide us in defining authentic learning activities.

Sharing assignments was scary. We believed and had been told that we were excellent teachers, yet every task presented fell short of our criteria. It took confidence and trust to expose ourselves to one another. Our “confessions” were facilitated by a unique circumstance. Because we teach in a three-hour interdisciplinary block—combining biology, U.S. history, and American literature for 90 10th graders—we share a common prep period and plan together regularly.

articulate purpose of activity;
analyze and practice what they do know;
acknowledge what they do not know;
formulate questions that lead to further knowledge;
synthesize connections between knowledge and life experience now and in the future;
evaluate what was learned, how it was learned, and how it could be more effectively learned as a formal part of the assignment.

We would like to share two assignments that were favorites prior to this process and three that we now use with pride. We will explain how each assignment meets or does not meet the six criteria.

Former Favorites

One of our tried-and-true assignments was the Book Report. The form we gave students asked them several detailed questions about the book read: (1) describe one character or incident (100 words minimum), (2) depict the book's setting; (3) identify and discuss the main characters (don't summarize the story); (4) suggest briefly what problem or conflict involves the characters and how it is resolved; (5) discuss the theme (feel free to mention minor themes as well); and (6) suggest what you enjoyed most about the book. Finally, using our “Reading Log” format, students were to write their opinion of the book.

Why was the Book Report a favorite assignment? As one of us reflected, It skirts what I hate most about book reports; that is, sheer plot recapitulation. The students are asked to think in this assignment, and I approve of the chance for personal buy-in, as well.While I was always happy with the results of this assignment, upon closer scrutiny, it does not hold up to our six criteria of authentic learning. Criteria 1–3 are strong, but the report does not lend itself to formulating questions that lead to further knowledge (4) or to Criterion 6, the evaluative step. Criterion 5 could be a part of this book report, but it is really up to the student to decide whether or not to make it so.

A second former favorite was a U.S. history assignment that asked students, in groups of three, to choose and research a Civil War Battle. Then, using butcher paper, they were to construct a chart illustrating various aspects of the battle: geographical setting, the facts (who, what, where, when, and why?), and an enlargement of the battleground. Finally, using the charts and their new knowledge, students would actually teach the class about the battle they researched.

Here's a reflection about this former favorite: The students did amazingly creative posters. They worked well together and did adequate summary presentations in front of their classmates. I valued the students' effort in researching and in preparing posters.Only when this assignment was held up to our six criteria did my elation turn to deflation. The students can articulate the purpose if asked (Criterion 1), and if they also analyze and practice what they do know (Criterion 2). However, they were not required to respond to 3, 4, 5, or 6. Two out of six may be acceptable for a batting average, but it is unacceptable in determining truly authentic learning activities. This assignment is currently undergoing revision.

Current Creations

Our three new assignments encourage authentic learning. All were developed for our interdisciplinary course.

The first, “I-Search,” asks students to select a topic using five guidelines: The topic is of genuine interest to you, one to which you have access to available sources within the time limit, is one about which you lack knowledge, one that will interest readers, and one that demonstrates your awareness of the I-Search format.

To prepare their reports, we give students thorough directions about the different sections to include: why I chose this topic, what I already knew, searching, interview and questions, what I learned, bibliography, and evaluation. “You do not have to tell everything you discovered during the research,” we instruct, “just the high points. Make this your paper. If you know what you're talking about, your paper will sound like you, not like the sources you used.”

We stress the importance of using firsthand and secondhand sources. All reports require at least one interview. Students receive guidelines about how to prepare interview questions, find their interviewee, and follow interview protocol. Students evaluate their own performance and the I-Search process upon completion of the paper.

“Immigration and Genealogy” (see box shows our second example of a favorite authentic assignment, one that links all three content areas.

Authentic Task: Immigration and Genealogy

Purpose

To learn about the inheritance of specific genetic traits in your family,
To learn more about your family's immigration experience,
To increase your awareness of and tolerance for unrelated present-day immigrants.

History and Biology Section. Collect as much of the following information as possible:

Names and relationships to you for as many family members as possible;
Birth dates and places;
Dates and locations of mating relationships (married or unmarried);
Dates, causes, and locations of deaths;
Nationalities (indicate fractions, if possible);
Genetic family traits—select two from the list that you can trace through three generations. Select only traits that exist in both dominant and recessive form within your family tree.

Dominant Traits

Dark eyes
Curl tongue
Curly or wavy hair
Right-handed
Type A-B-AB blood
Near- or farsighted
Free earlobes
Normal hearing
Normal color vision
Migraine headaches

Recessive Traits

Light eyes
Can't curl tongue
Straight hair
Left-handed
Type O blood
Normal vision
Attached earlobes
Deafness from birth
Color blind
No migraines

History and English Section.Overall directions: Interview a member of your family who is the most knowledgeable and/or charming regarding your family's arrival in the United States. Write your questions ahead of time to elicit the required information. In addition, compose at least five of your own questions, based on the peculiar specifics of your personal situation. Remember, as you interview, to ask good follow-up questions based on the answers given to you. If you submit a taped interview along with your writeup, you will receive extra credit (in both history and English). The evaluation form is due with the assignment.

Required Information from Interview.

WHEN: when the first member of your family arrived in the United States (circa OK);
WHO: name(s), age(s), relationship to one another, name changes upon/after arrival;
WHERE: from where they came, where they settled initially and later;
WHY: motivation for leaving native country (for example, hunger, unemployment, persecution. Explore the Push/Pull theory: What forced them to leave, and once they were established here, did they pull other family members here as well?);
HOW: method of arrival in United States, how easy/hard the journey was;
EXPECTATIONS vs. REALITY: what differences did they find between their preconceived notions of the United States and reality.

To complete this assignment, you must first finish the interview. You have two options.

Option #1: Based on your interview, create a fictionalized account of the original immigrant experience of your family. This account must include some of the emotions felt by the family member(s) during the immigration experience. If these emotions don't come out in the interview, speculate what they must have been. Make sure you include any challenges or adventures that actually or might have occurred.

Option #2: Make your interview an observational experience. This means you must record the interview because your note-taking will largely focus on observational strategies. These include: complete character description focusing on physical traits, body language, tone of voice, language used, personality quirks; complete description of surrounding environment (show, don't tell); your own feelings (apprehension, excitement, curiosity) before, during, and after the interview.

Based on everything you have learned and read in history, biology, and English this year, what would genuine world peace be like? How would people have to change if truly committed to world peace? Include economics and societal attitudes toward one another. Consider population, pollution, natural resources, and sustainability.
How has the American Dream changed in this century? Consider dwindling natural resources; population increases; degradation of environment; changes in jobs, immigration trends, and society's priorities; and wars. Think about the needs/feelings of the characters in literature that we've read.
Present an era or an incident from this century that showed the American people at their best and their worst. Include responsibility toward and treatment of other humans, living things, the physical environment, and future and past generations.
Create a question of your choice, to be OK'd by all four teachers.

After answering one question, students must present it to class and a panel of their four teachers, some parents, and other educators. The “answer” will be a presentation of the student's choice, but it must include at least two different modes, one of which must be some form of writing. In class, we brainstorm these modes: observational, narrative, and creative writing; poetry; newspapers; interviews, graphs, video, photography, artwork, laser discs, and so on.

We give students two class days to plan their presentations: previewing the form the evaluation panel will use, deciding on topics/questions, determining information they need to think about and materials to use, and receiving suggestions from five valued peers. The rest of the work students do out of class. They must also let us know what kind of presentation they will do: oral, half-written, half-oral, all written, and so on.

Our three new assignments match up with the six authentic learning criteria. We have also been inspired to develop and revise activities for our other classes. The criteria have proven to be adaptable in various subject areas.

Students Speak for Themselves

Does all this extra effort to make assignments more authentic really make a difference? Here is what two students have to say: The final project is a good idea because it lets everyone pick what we are interested in and how we want to go about exploring it. It is nice to have one project instead of three. It encourages me to put more time into it and make a better project.The reports and projects are meaningful because they are interconnected. I learned more and enjoyed them. They were challenging and engaging, yet not impossible.

At our end-of-the-year “Portfolio Evening,” when students present work that best demonstrates their reflective thought and personal style, the response from parents was overwhelmingly supportive. As one parent said: Last June I wanted to send my son to a private school, but I couldn't afford to. This course has been beyond my wildest expectations of this financially drained public school system. I keep telling him how much the final year-end project is empowering him to do something meaningful. This is education that really makes sense.

Student and parent responsiveness inspire us not to compromise our dedication to create powerful and authentic learning activities. This commitment to curriculum, instruction, evaluation, and to our students and profession requires more work, more risk-taking, and more trust in students and our peers. However, this is learning that really makes sense!

End Notes

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1 The I-Search format is the brainchild of Ken Macrorie, wherein the emphasis of the research paper is on the process of searching and the synthesis of learned information, as opposed to the straight regurgitative quality of a basic research paper.