Synthesis - what does it mean? Keene and Zimmerman (2007) state, "Synthesis involved ordering, combining, and recreating into a coherent whole the mass of information that bombards our minds every day. It is the uniquely human trait that permits us to sift through a myriad of details and focus on those pieces we need to know and remember, to collect a disparate array of facts and opinions and connect them to central themes or a few key ideas. Synthesizing is about organizing the different pieces to create a mosaic, a meaning greater than the sum of each shiny piece. It is a complex process but one that children, even the youngest, perform very naturally every day."
When I examine the idea of putting it all together, I am often mindful of the fact that all of my experiences, thoughts, beliefs, AND research must come to an apex of reflection. This apex is my view of synthesis. How do I take what I've learned and then apply it to practice?
As a teacher leader within my school district and at the university level, I find that there are no substitutes for experience. The reading and research I've conducted throughout my seventeen years in the education profession has not nearly reached it's apex - as I will continue to grow within my practice. However, when it comes to recent readings, I feel confident in my understanding of the text because many of the practices have been embedded into my daily routines as an educator. In Strategies the Work (Harvey & Goudvis, 2007), there is a section in Chapter 15 dedicated to "Building Good Readers and Test Takers All Year Long". This is something that I have always taken pride in within my classroom because "taking (these) tests require stamina." I find that the more I have ingrained this theory into my students, the more prepared they are for all of their assignments, not just standardized testing. Furthermore, I take great pride in the fact that, regardless of ability (and this ties into my practice with diverse learners), all of my students were given the opportunity to build their own personal stamina - through differentiated instruction - as a part of my classroom expectations.
Interestingly enough, as I previously explained, there are parts of my practice which are evolutionary. Much like a housing development expands with attractions and interest, my work as an educator has transformed each and every day. The more I read and experience, the more I can apply in conveying effective practice to my college students. My students forced me to look at what they knew about literacy, to find their strengths, and to use instructional strategies that were appropriate for them (Dennis, 2009). Dennis synthesizes the overarching concept of "knowing your students" (something I have mentioned in previous blog posts) as an apex of elementary literacy education. I find that not only is she spot on in her thoughts, but can be applied cross-curricularly and across all students.
Ultimately, isn't knowing our students the driving force in diversity educational practices. Not just acknowledging that differentiate instruction is an important piece of our role as educators, but is the apex - the true goal of effective practice! If anything, synthesis is more than just putting it all together. It is about putting it all together and doing something with what we learned. Without application, knowledge is simply summarization.
When I examine the idea of putting it all together, I am often mindful of the fact that all of my experiences, thoughts, beliefs, AND research must come to an apex of reflection. This apex is my view of synthesis. How do I take what I've learned and then apply it to practice?
As a teacher leader within my school district and at the university level, I find that there are no substitutes for experience. The reading and research I've conducted throughout my seventeen years in the education profession has not nearly reached it's apex - as I will continue to grow within my practice. However, when it comes to recent readings, I feel confident in my understanding of the text because many of the practices have been embedded into my daily routines as an educator. In Strategies the Work (Harvey & Goudvis, 2007), there is a section in Chapter 15 dedicated to "Building Good Readers and Test Takers All Year Long". This is something that I have always taken pride in within my classroom because "taking (these) tests require stamina." I find that the more I have ingrained this theory into my students, the more prepared they are for all of their assignments, not just standardized testing. Furthermore, I take great pride in the fact that, regardless of ability (and this ties into my practice with diverse learners), all of my students were given the opportunity to build their own personal stamina - through differentiated instruction - as a part of my classroom expectations.
Interestingly enough, as I previously explained, there are parts of my practice which are evolutionary. Much like a housing development expands with attractions and interest, my work as an educator has transformed each and every day. The more I read and experience, the more I can apply in conveying effective practice to my college students. My students forced me to look at what they knew about literacy, to find their strengths, and to use instructional strategies that were appropriate for them (Dennis, 2009). Dennis synthesizes the overarching concept of "knowing your students" (something I have mentioned in previous blog posts) as an apex of elementary literacy education. I find that not only is she spot on in her thoughts, but can be applied cross-curricularly and across all students.
Ultimately, isn't knowing our students the driving force in diversity educational practices. Not just acknowledging that differentiate instruction is an important piece of our role as educators, but is the apex - the true goal of effective practice! If anything, synthesis is more than just putting it all together. It is about putting it all together and doing something with what we learned. Without application, knowledge is simply summarization.