*Header image from the video for “The Horror,” a song by RJD2.
Interstitial Discussion, Take Two
A week ago, I gave you this post:
Over the week, the comment counter never moved from zero, which led me to rethink my approach. You need a space to ask questions about grade abatement, and it makes sense to make that space open to everyone — i.e., to give tenth graders the ability to hear the questions asked by AP students (and vice versa).
You should still use the comment section of the original post to ask questions about its contents. This post, however, is devoted solely to the GAP tiers you were given in class:
GAP Tiers
This document is the same for all levels and all students. Its application changes — obviously, AP students face higher standards than tenth graders — but the logic never does. Your job is to understand that logic.
How to Use This Post
We will talk in class this week about grade abatement, even as we move on to new units and assignments. In tenth grade, we’ll turn to descriptive writing; in eleventh grade, you’ll focus to varying extents on reading, empathy, and politics. You’ll have time to talk to me in class about GAP scoring and evidence during those studies. I’ll draw your attention to these tiers repeatedly. But you really need to start asking questions in an interstitial forum, where the questions are frozen next to my responses.
So your assignment is this: Ask questions about the tiers of grade abatement below. You should be able to sign in with Google+, which means you can link your questions to your school account. Regardless, make sure I know who you are. You will want this evidence for the end of the quarter.
This will force us to make this website work for us, which may take some tinkering on my end. Report any bugs as soon as you find them.
“As I was looking at the fourth tier for the GAP profiles, I couldn’t help but be a little confused on the distinct differentiations between an 8 and a 9. It had stated that people who are an 8 “lack only the exceptional maturity and depth of students earning a 9”. I’m a little confused on what it means by that and what distincts an average level of maturity and depth between an “exceptional” level of maturity and depth. I’m also a little confused on how I could demonstrate curiosity. Would delving further into topics and things we learn about in class and throughout the course be considered as curiosity? Or researching about a topic another student brings up??”
I had commented this on the previous “Time Enough To Last” article, but I think it accidentally just posted to Google+ somehow instead. I had received multiple responses from my peers that clarified it basically, but I just want to make sure.
There are several GAP skills and traits in grade abatement. Each person has strengths and weaknesses, whether they are conscious of them or not. A full set of the GAP traits and skills are crucial, especially in the class environment where individual learning is a main focus. Part of being metacognitive is acknowledging your specific skill set in order to learn in a way that works for you. However, even if a person can identify their weaknesses, how should they go about strengthening them? Asking a student to learn without a proper skill set is like asking a child to study when they don’t know how. It makes learning virtually impossible. Being introduced to ways to evolve skill set helps a student not only in the classrooom, but in the outside world, giving them tools to develop their character and adapt to a task at hand. So what tools can a student use to strengthen the weak aspects of their profiles? How should they approach this goal? And how do they maintain a balance in each aspect of traits and skills in order to develop their character?
Although the grade abatement has many great skills such as metacognition, self-awareness, and empathy, on which we all should learn, not only as high school students, but as humans of the human race, I am confused on the aspect of between tier eight and nine for the maturity aspect. I am confused on how the maturity level of writing can bring you down a tier. What level of maturity does my writing have to match to go from an eight to a nine? Is the maturity level dictated on the level of challenging words I use, or how deep my writing can go in meaning? Also another concern I have is that, as a part of this curriculum, we must identify our weaknesses. Although we may know our weaknesses, how should we plan to approve on them? It is important to recognize our weaknesses, in any subject or craft, but it is more significant to figure out how to improve our weakness.
Your last sentence answers your own question: Your maturity is more a function of your ability to grow, which is often independent of your objective skill. I am hopeful that you leave this room a better version of yourself.
I know that in order to become of a higher tiered profile, you need to be autodidactic and learn to improve yourself, like you said with maturity. Is there a place and time where other people and the teacher should/need to step in to help improve a student, or are you just watching from afar and seeing where they take themselves? With a course like this, some people may need some specific guidance, but there is nothing wrong with asking questions.
In the tiered profiles it explains that people who are 9 students “evince the best kind of collegiality, the most authentic curiosity, and the most mature amenability.” Does this mean 9 students don’t procrastinate at all? Does this mean that these students at perfect, on task and do work 100% of the time?
Well, I remember that around two weeks ago, we had a conversation with Mr. Eure on this concept of procrastination and I remember him saying that being off-task, to an extent was driven by curiosity. Personally, I agree with this fundamental ideal because if you are caught up in ramiform reading and learning and you happen to encounter a certain concept that is really interesting and you derive it from the assignment you originate from, you expand your learning. You are exposed to a new set of ideas. In terms of procrastination, I personally think that it’s difficult for a person to constantly be “on task” 100% of the time. Some people are capable of doing so and others might struggle with it. We are constantly surrounded by things that capture our attention. I think that every once in a while we need a break to replenish our energies, but it still relates back to amenability and persevering even when the task isn’t as captivating. Since, I feel inclined to study the subject of procrastination and improving one’s perception of time management through various outlets and platforms, I plan to engage in an independent study in order to do so. When I manage to gain insight in a meticulous manner, I plan to share my findings with my peers!
I think you can procrastinate but still be productive. If you’re not doing an assignment but you’re reading and informing opinions you have and learning, than I think you would still fit the profile of a 9. Curiosity and risk-taking is a category in the GAP profiles, I think procrastinating would sort of fall under curiosity as Noelle was saying. I’m personally a big procrastinator, but I always get my work done to a level that I’m satisfied with. I think as long as nothing has to give, you’re okay. I didn’t hurry up and do the assignment that is due tomorrow, in less than 12 hours haha I’m just getting to it now, but I did read a lot this weekend and I read some poems and articles by authors that my friends and Mr. Eure were talking about during class. So I wouldn’t necessarily say that I wasn’t productive this weekend. I think as long as you realize when things have to get done, you’re okay. And Mr. Eure once said in a post that deadlines in this class are fluid, so I’m not sure where procrastination falls into that.
Yes just like Tsubomi, I am also just getting to finishing this assignment. One of my greatest weaknesses is procrastination, but since this course offers such fluid deadlines and focuses more on the aspect that we are getting work done and staying intellectually working. Although it may take me a long time to physically sit down and really focus, on working on the ‘assigned’ assignment, throughout the week I had begun reading through comments and doing little by little. I guess being productive has its own meaning, what do you consider being productive? Although schoolwork is important, extracurricular activities also serve as an important part of our lifestyles. Being dedicated to an activity is important, just as being dedicated to schoolwork is. So although I didn’t get to this assignment until now, I’ve been busy from the early morning until late night. How does that tie into procrastination? How does that fit into the GAP Tier profiles, if for example we really are busy and that means we get work done late? It shouldn’t mean that we are lazy students, because we are actually busy, but with several other activities. Productivity and procrastination don’t go ‘hand in hand’ because we could very well be productive while procrastinating on some assignments. It’s important to realize what and when needs to get done, that is how we are most productive, doing things on our own time, when it best suits us, when we are most focused.
While reading over the fourth tier profiles I tried my best to decipher the difference between all of them. I noticed that in tier 8 it states, “an 8 reflects a systemic investment in the course and a desire to do more than just what is required,” but it “lacks only the exceptional maturity and depth of students earning a 9.” To me it seems like when earning an 8, you’re doing everything you can and more (going above and beyond.) So I guess my question is, what more can you really do in order to reach that 9?
The key is the last sentence in the profile for a 9. You must be consistently and insightfully reflective and metacognitive, and as the provisional application explains, that requires you to reflect and metacogitate (yes, that’s the right verb) in person and/or in writing. You have to be a capable psychonaut, as this video describes it.
Thank you, I think that this helps me understand a little bit more of the difference between the two. Although an 8 does everything that it’s supposed to and more, a 9 completes everything with the reflections. You have to take the time and be able to look back at things and deeply reflect on everything. As a 9, you have to be able to write authentic and thoughtful metacognitions in order to improve your weaknesses.