Quarter+Two

=Quarter Two Habits of Mind:=

1. Thinking interdependently
In order to work in a group, every member of the group has to be willing to both give and receive constructive criticism and feedback to both group members and to themselves (when reflecting after the lab/activity has been completed). But in order to learn how to grow, you also have to learn to listen to other group members and make compromises to help the overall effectiveness. This quarter, our class started working on a lot more group activities and labs, and I realized the importance of communication and compromise when I had to deal with it hands-on. Sometimes, your group members may not be your friends - of course, it's always better if they are, but in cases where you're forced to work with strangers, communication is always key, and one must always remember to respect their group members. In previous labs, I tended to only talk to and freely communicate and criticize (constructively, of course) my friends, and distance myself from people I didn't know as well. But as the quarter progressed, I began to start offering my opinions to people I didn't know as well, and in addition to making new friends and establishing more comfortable relationships with people, I realized that we were able to function much better as a group, compromising and openly sharing ideas, rather than uncomfortable cliques within one lab group. While I was still able to joke around with my friends, I was also able to focus better with my group, as demonstrated by Antonio (my lab group member)'s concentrated stance in the picture below:



2. Listening to others with understanding and empathy
In a classroom, every other student's learning process may not be the same as yours: everyone learns at a different rate, and there are some things that some people immediately understand and there are some things that some people need some help on. In the beginning of the year, during a Naming/Bonding quiz, I became extremely confused with the rules and I didn't end up getting a very good score. Thankfully, the quiz was formative, but the experience was followed by a tutoring session, in which I was tutored by other students of my class. At first, I was uncomfortable with the prospect of fellow students teaching me when I had done so poorly, but after that short tutoring session, I was able to raise my Naming/Bonding skill and get 100% on the next quiz (shown below). From this experience, I also learned that I could help other students the same way that I had been helped; I wasn't ridiculed, and my questions were taken seriously and answered to the best of my tutors' abilities. When the time came for me to help one of my classmates, I hoped to exhibit the same patience and care that they gave me when I was confused. After a pop quiz regarding concentration and mole/mass formulas was given, I finally got my chance to help another classmate out. Even though he didn't do very well on the pop quiz, my fellow tutors and I worked through the problem step-by-step, patiently, without judgment, and we were able to help our 'student' ace the next pop quiz!