Blog Post 3 STEMS2 2-24-16

Blog Post Reflection: How is your personal STEMSS research going?

It has been a challenge making time to make progress with my STEMSS research the past couple of weeks.  

Every year, as a Place-Based Inquiry Project (PBI), we take our students on a huaka'i that we feel will expand our students' learning experience.  Aunty U'i, my co-teacher and I usually bring our PBI Papa Hana No'eau to Camp Mokule'ia on the North Shore of O'ahu for our end of the year huaka'i during the week of March 7-12.  This year we decided we wanted to take our haumāna to Moku o Keawe (Hawai'i Island).  The planning for this huaka'i started from the beginning of the year and included a lot of fundraising since each project did not get any funding from the school.  Our huaka'i would only be funded by the fundraising done within the project.  As a result, Aunty U'i and I planned hana o'eau workshops, sold the products that we made in our project, etc. in order to pay for the lodging, transportation, food, and makana that we needed for our huaka'i to Hawai'i Island.

Now that we got most of the funding for the huaka'i, we are in the process of finalizing our agenda for each day we are on Hawai'i Island.  We are planning to arrive in Hilo Monday morning and drive to Kilauea for protocol.  We will stay in Kilauea Military Camp for the night.  Tuesday morning we plan to visit 'Imiloa in Hilo then drive to Kohala where we will spend the night.  We plan to take out students to different wahi pana, including Mauna a Wakea, and to gather lauhala that they will prepare and bring back to O'ahu.  

The process of fundraising, planning, communicating with makua, making our lesson with learning objectives for the huaka'i, etc. has been a challenge for me, but the process is all STEMSS and I feel I am following the mission and vision of a STEMSS education.  I definitely could not have done all this without Aunty U'i since she is the project lead and has allowed me to learn how to plan a huaka'i such as this one.  

In addition to preparing to leave for our huaka'i on Monday, March 7th, I have been co-planning an Ethnomathematics and STEM Institute PD workshop for the kumu that are a part of cohort 8 this year that will be all day on Saturday, February 27th.  It will be at Ke Kula Kaiapuni 'O Ānuenue in Palolo Valley.  Kaipo is my co-kumu that will be doing a PD workshop on Patters with Ulana Lauhala and I will be doing a PD workshop on Transformation in 'Ohe Kapala Design and Printing. 

With all of this going on on top of teaching, it has been a struggle to make time to sit down and just read articles for my literature review and progress in my Plan B report.  I feel that I have been able to focus my research question so that allows me to know what kind of articles and literature that I should be seeking.  My goal is to make time just to sit down for a few hours and read literature on place-, community-, and culture- based education and student engagement. 

As our semester is coming to a close, I feel the pressure and am determined to "GET ON IT."

Hope everyone is progressing.  Sending aloha to everyone :-)

Blog Post 2 STEMS2 Spring 2016

Blog post 2:

Utilizing your research question conduct a google scholar search to vet your research question. Is there research in this field that can drawn upon and/or has this research question already been answered?
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I was able to conduct a scholar search for some literature that I can draw upon for my research.  I would like to look at place-based instruction and assessment though different content areas and to compare/contrast my 10th grade place-based project with what is being discussed in the literature.  

Share your research/project question and explain how you have arrived at this specific question

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When I did my spotlight, I was able to get the following feedback from the following kumu:

Felicia: How does the project transform the students’ relationship with the ‘aina?

Joe: What did they get out of process.  Pre post of outlook and perspective of land and products/materials. Perspective on these and see how it changed. And maybe 5 years later?

Michelle: Linda Tutuvi Smith Indigenous Kowledge.  Na Mea Hawai’i. Focus on traditional knowledge to support HAWAIIAN traditional knowledge.  Borrow? Manu Myers

Ramsey: Success rate of classes/graduation? Anuenue/Immersion...look at success rate of HKM haumana and compare with other schools? Do they value this? A’o. What would they think is important to teach the next class? What is most important part of what they done>

Hayden: Measure student engagement.  How does exploring hana noeau affect student engagement? DOE seeing how engaged they are is awesome so maybe research their engagement.

Michelle: Teach younger kids as assessment for class. Peer mentors

Tara: How does something transform? Be mindful of my biases.  Find out instead of something I already know.  Humble approach...this is something i want to know...i dont know the answer...i want to see all the perspectives.

I looked at these suggestions and formulated the following research questions that I feel I want to learn from my 'ōpio:

How do haumana perceive STESMS2 content when experienced through a place-based project in the context of traditional knowledge in hana no’eaua?

Blog 1 STEMS2 Spring 2016

As a kumu at Hālau Kū Māna Public Charter School,  I am a co-teacher of Papa Hana No'eau (10th grade Hawaiian Arts Project) where we teach our 'ōpio the following:

• Malama 'aina

• 'Ohe kapala

• I'e kuku/hohoa

• Ka hana kapa

• Protocol

• Ulana lauhala

• Natural dyes

I have had a difficult time trying to decide what my research should be.  I initially wanted to research how students develop kuelana and find empowerment through a class project that they develop as a result of some of the concepts of extinction due to human activity that were explored in The Sixth Extinction by Elizabeth Kolbert.  Every Wednesday I am with my students all day in our Place-Based Inquiry (PBI) project.  The more we have our PBI project, the more I became interested in how our papa hana no'eau project affects my haumāna.  I want to know if "ma ka hana ka 'ike," Hawaiian proverb that says one only knows through doing and experience.  Do my haumāna value the 'ike that they are learning?  Are they developing a sense of kuleana to themselves, their 'ohana, and to the lāhui?  Are their attitudes toward their science and math education changing through the context of a place- and Hawaiian culture-based education?

As a result, I want to change the focus of my Plan B action research project.  The Selection of a Research Design discussed three types of designs; qualitative, quantitative, and mixed methods. I would like my project to be a qualitative action research study that analyzes how a place-based education, in the context of hana no'eau, affect how my 10th grade students view their role as a kanaka and the changes in perception and attitude toward STEM content.  I will incorporate open-ended questions (qualitative interview questions) that "...honors an inductive style, a focus on individual meaning, and the importance of rendering the complexity of a situation" (p. 4). 

I will incorporate Ethnography in my research, which according to The Selection of a Research Design, is a "...strategy of inquiry in which the researcher studies an intact cultural group in a natural setting over a prolonged period of time by collecting, primarily, observational and interview data" (p. 13). 

I may want to include a quantitative strategy of a survey research that "...provides a quantitative or numeric description of trends, attitudes, or opinions of a population by studying a sample of that population."  The population sample would be my seventeen tenth grade students where I will utilize "...questionnaires or structured intervenes for data collection, with the intent of generalizing from a sample to a population" (p. 11).  The population that my students are being a sample of is a Native Hawaiian population in a Hawaiian-focused and place-based learning environment. 

According to Review of the Literature, the literature review will share with reader "...the results of other studies that are closely related to the one being undertaken" and it "...relates a study to the larger, ongoing dialogue in the literature, filling in gaps and extending prior studies" (p. 25).  Since my focus of my research has changed, I will need to find more resources that I can use to be part of my literature review.  I will need to find resources on place- and culture-based education and hana no'eau.  Some potential resources will be the following:

• Lā'au Hawai'i: Traditional Hawaiian Uses of Plants by Isabella Aiona Abbbott.
• Kahuna La'au Lapa'au: The Practice of Hawaiian Herbal Medicine by June Gutmanis
• Ka Hana Kapa: The Making of Bark-Cloth in Hawai'i by William T. Brigham
• Ethnomathematics: Link Between Traditions and Modernity by Ubiratan D'Ambrosio
• "Ethnomathematics is imbedded in ethics, focused on the recovery of the cultural dignity of the human being." (D'Ambrosio, p. 1). 

As a result of changing my research focus, there will be a few adjustments to my unit plan.  The unit plan will have my students learning science and mathematics content in the context of hana no'eau.  Their authentic performance task will be their completed hana (i'e kuku, 'ohe kapala, kapa, dyes, lauhala).  They will also need to them plan and implement a hana no'eau workshop where they will visit Lunalilo Home and teach kupuna how to ulana lauhala apolima and/or ka hana kapa.  I will have my haumāna create a reference book/binder that will have a narrative on their experience of their various hana in their perspective, words, and pictures.  I feel that these authentic assessments will show if they have learned their hana and if they can teach others the hana that they learned in order to pass on this 'ike.

I feel it is important to gather data on the effects that PBI instruction has on students in Hawai'i, specifically Native Hawaiian students, because many of these students have not been successful in their previous public school, socially and/or academically.  I would like to research when 'ōpio come to Hālau Kū Māna and come to papa hana no'eau, does their experiences in their PBI projects develop a sense of empowerment and kuleana and does this change their perspectives of their math and/or science contents.

Blog 6 - STEMS^2 Free Write

My students were able to design and print on their kihei during their place-based inquiry project days.  They were able to use the 'ohe kapala that they designed and carved out of the 'ohe and make their own design on the border of their kihei, which this class will be wearing during Makhakihi protocol.  This project day is STEMS^2 because the students were able to design their 'ohe kapala from the 'ohe that they gathered in the Maunalaha valley, create geometric patterns and angles that are based on traditional Kanaka Maoli designs,  learn about the mo'olelo of the Maunalaha valley, and to develop a sense of place at the school by understanding they are preparing their garments and ho'okupu for Makahiki protocol.

I had my students research the 5 mass extinctions of the earth.  It is a coincidence that you made us read The Sixth Extinction by Elizabeth Kolbert as a required reading for our class because I had my students start reading this novel from the beginning of the semester.  We have not finished the book yet, but I am incorporating this novel and research of the 5 mass extinctions as part of my science integration curriculum. 

One of the groups decided to create a video as their presentation to show their understanding of the 5 mass extinctions.  I feel this project was STEMS^2  because they were able to use one of the iPad minis that I got funded for my class and integrated several content areas.  They worked on their presentations over a course of about 3 weeks.  I was very impressed by this one particular group that made the video meaningful to them, entertaining, and engaging for the audience.  The following video that my students in one group created is shown below:

My goal is to finish The 6th Extinction with my class by the end of the semester so that we can start planning and developing our Environmental/Sustainability Solution project for my integration project by the start of next semester.  My goal is to have my students identify an issue/problem in the community that Hālau Kū Māna is located (or any community they want to service), implement the solution, assess it at a class, reflect to make improvements in the future, and to create a presentation that they will show their makua and community leaders during our end-of-the-year Lā 'Ohana hōike.

Papa Hana No'eau is taking an end-of-the-year (actually in March) huaka'i to Moku O Keawe (Hawai'i Island).  We usually take our papa to Camp Mokuleia during this time, but Aunty U'i (my co-kumu) and I decided that we wanted to take them to Hawai'i Island with the purpose exposing the haumāna, and of course the kumu, to different hana no'eau and various methods of doing the hana that they are used to that will emphasize the importance of makawalu (multiple perspectives of learning and doing).   As part of our fundraising efforts to go to Hawai'i Island, our haumāna are fundraising by selling the arts/crafts that they make during their project days (kapa, ulana lauhala, lauhala earrings, 'ohe kapala printed bags, 'eke lauhala, etc.)  By learning about the economic and entrapreanurship that can be involved with hana no'eau, we hope some of our students decide to further their study of hana no'eau after they leave Hālau Kū Māna.

Protocol and oli are important areas of study of our haumāna, especially when we are asking permission to enter to gather and to always mahalo ke akua for the materials that we were able to gather safely.  By learning about gathering rights and sustainability, they learn about the connection that we have with the 'aina and that we have the capability of taking care of the 'aina so that it can take care of us...aloha kekahi i kekahi!

Community partnerships are a vital part of each place-based project.  Our community partnership for Papa Hana No'eau is with 'Anakala Wes, who is a hana no'eau practitioner, who speaks 'olelo Hawai'i, knows protocol, and studies hana no'eau not only in Hawai'i but all over the Polynesia.  The following video shows the close connections that our students have with our community partner and the impact these partnerships can have with our students.  His mana'o does not only stay with the haumāna, but he has influenced my life and my love for hana no'eau.

Blog Post 5 - What Should a Strong STEMS2 Unit Look Like?

Based on our reading, discuss the following:

1. What should a strong STEMS unit look like?
2. What experiences should students and teachers engaged in?
3. What qualities and characteristics should be present in all STEMS2 units?
4. How long is a unit and how does it allow space and time for experiential learning (field trips, etc.)?

According to Glatthorn (p. 18), a unit is a subset of a course of study and is organized as a set of related learning experiences offered as part of a course of study, usually lasting from one to 3 weeks.  It is also organized around a single overarching concepts.  As I reflect on how my STEMS2 unit should look like, I feel I should narrow my concept to something like "Sustainability Through Wauke Propagation" instead of a broader concept like "Sustainability Through Papa Hana No'eau."

http://kumuphilfallbreakhaawina.blogspot.com/2015/10/fall-break-physical-science-haawina.html

The planning phases of unit development should include practicing, reviewing, and applying knowledge (Glatthorn, p. 18).  In order for students to be able to incorporate these strategies, there needs to be time for students to be introduced to the new concepts, but should also have time to apply them through experiential learning.  These learning experiences may include field trips, labs, place-based activities, and project-based assignments.  In the Thinking About Curriculum reading, constructivism is a theory of learning based on the principle that learners construct meaning from what they experience; thus, learning is an active, mearning-making process (p. 5). As a result, I feel my STEMS2 unit should be about 3 weeks in order for my students to be able to learn, revisit, and apply the knowledge they are learning through a huaka'i or our place-based project.  

According to the Thinking About Curriculum reading, units should be problem-focused, requiring the student to solve open-ended contextualized problems and to enable the students to have access to research and other knowledge in solving problems (generative knowledge) (p. 5).  All STEMS2 units should pose a question or problem that allows students to conduct research through multiple sources (books, magazines, primary resources, experiences) that allow them to make reason for their solutions.

An important part of a unit should include opportunities for students to spend at least part of their time in group formats, such as cooperative learning and to have students demonstrate learning in an authentic manner (Thinking About Curriculum, p. 5).  All students should be able to work together in small groups in a STEMS2 unit where they are able to collaborate and bounce ideas off of each other and build on the knowledge they build together as a group.  I feel that a STEMS2 unit should have students demonstrate learning an an authentic manner through a deliverable like a final group presentation and/or a finished product that was created by the students that applied the new concepts that they learned in the unit such as a political letter, a blog, a website, a mele (song), an oli (chant), etc. that allows them multiple media to showcase what they learned instead of just a paper test.  According to the Thinking About Curriculum reading, technology should be seen as a way of supporting curriculum objectives rather than as an add-on (p. 7).

A STEMS2 unit should have integrated curriculum, which combiners content from two or more disciplines as a means of increasing student interest and student knowledge (Thinking About Curriculum, p. 6).  Since STEMS2 encompasses, science, technology, engineering, mathematics, social sciences, and sense of place, integration of multiple disciplines in a STEMS2 unit should be required.  The context of what the STEMS2 unit will look like will be developed from the creativity of the teacher, which should be meaningful and responsive to the culture of the students as an individual, as a class, and/or as a school. 
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