Educational screen & audio-visual guide (c1956-1971])

Keeping The Bright Ones Busy Via Taped Assignments by Eugene J. O'Donnell W HAT to do with the student who is superior to the rest of the class in achievement has always been a problem to the teacher. This is the student who gets his work done correctly in a short period of time and who then becomes bored. He either loses interest in the subject or tries to find something else to occupy his time. With the class sizes that confront teachers today, it is difficult for the teacher to find enough time to spend with this student in order to keep his interest. Often the student will be assigned a job for the teacher, or he will be given extra work to keep him busy until the next concept is introduced to the class. Soon after, the problem arises again. When materials furnished by the government under the National Defense Education Act arrived at the Hale school, the idea of putting the tape recorder to use as a possible solution to the problem was hit upon. In addition to the tape recorder, we received a set of eighteen headphones, two outlet boxes for the headphones and a utility cart on which the equipment could be transported. Since our school is participating in a program which offers algebra to eighth grade students, we found that some of the children were missing out on some of their regular class work in arithmetic. For that reason, airthmetic was chosen as the subject area for an experiment in tape recorded teaching. If gifted students in arithmetic could finish the eighth grade course of study by the end of seventh grade, they would be ready to begin the study of algebra on a full-time basis. In addition to that, they would already have mastered the necessary concepts on which beginning algebra is based. A group of twelve 6A students were selected for the experiment. It was to be a group composed of the twelve highest students in the class, chosen on the basis of both IQ and arithmetic achievement. When a list was compiled, it was found that there were nine girls and only three boys. To balance the group ratio it was decided to drop two of the girls and add two more boys. This was also desirable in that the achievement of slightly lower children might serve as an indication as to which type of child would adjust more easily to this new idea. This story is reprinted from the November, 1961, issue of the Chicago Schools Journal, published at Chicago Teachers College. Mr. O'Donnell teaches at the Hale School in Chicago. The students had been tested one year earlier and had an average arithmetic achievement level of 6.9. When this test was taken, they were in 5A. The experiment was initiated by explaining to the students that they were to be part of a new method of study. It was hoped that they would be able to work twice as fast as the rest of the class. They would be on their own except for unusual questions which they could bring to the attention of the teacher at the end of a lesson. All showed great enthusiasm. At the time, the class as a whole was finishing the study of addition and subtraction of decimals. The next concept to be introduced was multiplication of decimals. Since I had a tape recorder at home, and more time there than in school, I decided that more effective tapes coidd be prepared at home. Equipped with a recorder, the regular arithmetic text and scratch paper, I began the first lesson by outlining the expectations of the experiment. The regular text was chosen because if the children were to go ahead on the same material we could more easily compare their achievement. I then went into the text. By referring to a certain page in the text, the students could follow along on problems, charts, examples or pictures. After the first concept was presented; I explained in detail a problem that was shown as an example in the book. After that problem was finished, I made reference to a similar problem and told the children to write that problem on their papers and wait. After allowing time for them to vwite the problem ( I gauged the ti;ne by writing it on my scratch paper), the problem was explained step by step. Several problems were done in this manner to help insure understanding. After sufficient time, the answer was given, along with a step-by-step explanation of how the answer was arrived at. Several problems of the same type were done in this manner before going on to another idea. Each lesson was concluded by assigning homework from the pages covered. Only enough problems were assigned in each concept area to give the student a little more experience in that concept. By this method the student did a reasonable amount of homework, because several new concepts were learned during each lesson. The next lesson always began with the answers to the previous lesson's homework. At the time of this first recording, lessons were also made which would be played during the rest of the week. This meant that four lessons were made at a time, leaving the fifth day for testing. It was found that the average lesson took about 20 minutes. The rest of the 40-minute arithmetic period could be used by the student to begin the assigned homework. On the first day the taped lessons were to be used, the twelve students were arranged at the back of the 264 Educational Screen and Audiovisual Guide — May, 1962