Thursday, March 18, 2010
Sunday, March 14, 2010
Using Second Life
Module #4: Using Second Life
Please see the U-tube posting of this video
When I was first introduced to Second Life, I was skeptical. I have two teenage sons, both into gaming, and it has always seemed like an alien world to me. However, the more I learned, the more I saw the potential of virtual world environments, like Second Life, to support teaching and learning. As a teacher and media specialist, I must prepare students to function in the 21st century: a “media-suffused environment” requiring students to possess advanced technology skills, be able to collaborate on a local and global scale, and use higher order thinking skills. Because this environment is constantly changing, learning goes beyond the schoolhouse doors.
However, one of the biggest problems I see is that the majority of students are not invested in their education. They don’t see how it connects to the real-world. They are also frustrated that the typical school is set-up to appeal to students with a narrow range of learning styles, using a narrow range of resources. So it is ironic that a virtual world has the potential to engage students, meet the needs of diverse learners, connect students to the global community and help them become literate in multiple literacies. Virtual worlds, like Second Life offer an alternative to traditional education, one that engages students, provides instruction in multiple literacies, and brings the real world into the classroom.
Expand the Edges of Students’ World
At the rural high school where I work, many students have limited experience outside the area where they live and have limited access to technology at home. Not only do they struggle with traditional literacy, but they are way behind their peers in multiple, technological literacy. Literacy used to be defined as the ability to read and write, a far too limited definition for young people today. According to Nancy Taylor, Scholastic Reading Specialist :
Adolescents today navigate through multiple formats of literacy — films, web sites, television, CD-ROMs, books, magazines, music, videos, and newspapers. Not only do educators recognize Howard Gardner's multiple intelligences; we also address the realm of multiple literacies with today's adolescents.
However, studies show that “approximately 40% of U.S. adolescents cannot comprehend specific factual information.” Second Life can expose students to a variety of environments (naturalistic), multi-sensory experiences (visual, kinesthetic, auditory, musical), simulated interactions (linguistic, interpersonal and intrapersonal) and invite them to engage in problem solving (logical-mathematical).
For many researchers, this potential is:
“…the strongest attraction [of virtual world environments, like Second Life] …the extent to which the environment serves as a legitimate surrogate for the real world, allowing users to inhabit personas and situations that are otherwise unavailable to them. …”
http://net.educause.edu/ir/library/pdf/ELI7038.pdf
Between budget cuts and the small size of our school, we have difficulty offering all of the courses our students would benefit from: foreign language, upper level classes, and specialized subjects all suffer. Second Life offers the opportunity to offer these classes, taught by a certified, reliable instructor. Thus the courses in German, detective fiction and the Civil and Revolutionary Wars could be offered even though we only have 12 students participating (instead of the 18/20 required by the county). These and other classes can be enriched by visits to foreign countries, museums, battlefield sites and experts in the field—all meeting in Second Life, all free.
Foreign language instruction is offered in Second Life through programs like “Avatar English”, founded by Howard Vickers. Every class offers a virtual experience involving language acquisition, immersing language learners in a language rich environment, thus increasing learning.
Our teachers often struggle to give students the global perspective required to thrive in the 21t Century. For example, students complain that they don’t care about the Holocaust, book burning, the violence in the Middle East or endangered species. Second Life has the potential to take students to the site of a concentration camp, speak with a Holocaust survivor, experience daily life in Afghanistan, and see an endangered species in its natural habitat, interviewing the scientist working to save the species and the habitat.
The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum and Involve have created a virtual space on Kristallnacht (the Night of Broken Glass) when the Nazis destroyed
Jewish businesses, burned synagogues and books, and arrested and murdered Jews and put 25,000 to 30,000 people in concentration camps. Reading about these events makes little impression on students—experiencing them in a virtual world may help them appreciate the reality of historic events.
Financial Literacy is a new requirement for CCPS: a course that could be energized by virtual visits to sites established by business schools: shopping malls and how to manage money, the stock exchange, people who have lost everything when their business downsized or the market crashed. Games like Credit Union Island, launched by Ohio University and Members United Corporate Federal Credit Union and the Filene Research Institute allows students to guide their avatars through real-life financial decisions such as taking out a college loan, making car payments and buying a home.
At least half of the families in my school community have not attended college. The fact that many colleges and universities have developed a presence in Second Life introduces these young people to the unfamiliar world of higher education—minimizing fear of the unknown. Schools like Case Western Reserve University allow perspective students to visit the campus, meet professors and students, sit in a classroom, eat in the dining hall and sleep in the dorm. Offering courses in a virtual world may also be a way to make college affordable for more young people.
Our school has a large vo-tech program for students not college bound, including nursing, auto repair, engineering, computers and culinary arts. Second Life has the capacity to allow role playing as an educational tool while students are immersed in a virtual world. One can offer training simulations in Second Life: “practice makes perfect.” Students can practice driving skills through simulations, repeated exposure to difficult driving situations such as merging, what to do when a car pulls out in front of you and how to change a flat tire.
Nursing Skills Support Education, students can practice their interactions with patients and repeat skills, like interviewing patients, drawing blood and recording vital signs.
When it comes to Second Life, I have moved from skeptic, to enthusiastic supporter. In my school system, the challenge will be to get our administration and our technical capabilities to the point where virtual worlds like Second Life can become a reality in our schools.
Please see the U-tube posting of this video
When I was first introduced to Second Life, I was skeptical. I have two teenage sons, both into gaming, and it has always seemed like an alien world to me. However, the more I learned, the more I saw the potential of virtual world environments, like Second Life, to support teaching and learning. As a teacher and media specialist, I must prepare students to function in the 21st century: a “media-suffused environment” requiring students to possess advanced technology skills, be able to collaborate on a local and global scale, and use higher order thinking skills. Because this environment is constantly changing, learning goes beyond the schoolhouse doors.
However, one of the biggest problems I see is that the majority of students are not invested in their education. They don’t see how it connects to the real-world. They are also frustrated that the typical school is set-up to appeal to students with a narrow range of learning styles, using a narrow range of resources. So it is ironic that a virtual world has the potential to engage students, meet the needs of diverse learners, connect students to the global community and help them become literate in multiple literacies. Virtual worlds, like Second Life offer an alternative to traditional education, one that engages students, provides instruction in multiple literacies, and brings the real world into the classroom.
Expand the Edges of Students’ World
At the rural high school where I work, many students have limited experience outside the area where they live and have limited access to technology at home. Not only do they struggle with traditional literacy, but they are way behind their peers in multiple, technological literacy. Literacy used to be defined as the ability to read and write, a far too limited definition for young people today. According to Nancy Taylor, Scholastic Reading Specialist :
Adolescents today navigate through multiple formats of literacy — films, web sites, television, CD-ROMs, books, magazines, music, videos, and newspapers. Not only do educators recognize Howard Gardner's multiple intelligences; we also address the realm of multiple literacies with today's adolescents.
However, studies show that “approximately 40% of U.S. adolescents cannot comprehend specific factual information.” Second Life can expose students to a variety of environments (naturalistic), multi-sensory experiences (visual, kinesthetic, auditory, musical), simulated interactions (linguistic, interpersonal and intrapersonal) and invite them to engage in problem solving (logical-mathematical).
For many researchers, this potential is:
“…the strongest attraction [of virtual world environments, like Second Life] …the extent to which the environment serves as a legitimate surrogate for the real world, allowing users to inhabit personas and situations that are otherwise unavailable to them. …”
http://net.educause.edu/ir/library/pdf/ELI7038.pdf
Between budget cuts and the small size of our school, we have difficulty offering all of the courses our students would benefit from: foreign language, upper level classes, and specialized subjects all suffer. Second Life offers the opportunity to offer these classes, taught by a certified, reliable instructor. Thus the courses in German, detective fiction and the Civil and Revolutionary Wars could be offered even though we only have 12 students participating (instead of the 18/20 required by the county). These and other classes can be enriched by visits to foreign countries, museums, battlefield sites and experts in the field—all meeting in Second Life, all free.
Foreign language instruction is offered in Second Life through programs like “Avatar English”, founded by Howard Vickers. Every class offers a virtual experience involving language acquisition, immersing language learners in a language rich environment, thus increasing learning.
Our teachers often struggle to give students the global perspective required to thrive in the 21t Century. For example, students complain that they don’t care about the Holocaust, book burning, the violence in the Middle East or endangered species. Second Life has the potential to take students to the site of a concentration camp, speak with a Holocaust survivor, experience daily life in Afghanistan, and see an endangered species in its natural habitat, interviewing the scientist working to save the species and the habitat.
The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum and Involve have created a virtual space on Kristallnacht (the Night of Broken Glass) when the Nazis destroyed
Jewish businesses, burned synagogues and books, and arrested and murdered Jews and put 25,000 to 30,000 people in concentration camps. Reading about these events makes little impression on students—experiencing them in a virtual world may help them appreciate the reality of historic events.
Financial Literacy is a new requirement for CCPS: a course that could be energized by virtual visits to sites established by business schools: shopping malls and how to manage money, the stock exchange, people who have lost everything when their business downsized or the market crashed. Games like Credit Union Island, launched by Ohio University and Members United Corporate Federal Credit Union and the Filene Research Institute allows students to guide their avatars through real-life financial decisions such as taking out a college loan, making car payments and buying a home.
At least half of the families in my school community have not attended college. The fact that many colleges and universities have developed a presence in Second Life introduces these young people to the unfamiliar world of higher education—minimizing fear of the unknown. Schools like Case Western Reserve University allow perspective students to visit the campus, meet professors and students, sit in a classroom, eat in the dining hall and sleep in the dorm. Offering courses in a virtual world may also be a way to make college affordable for more young people.
Our school has a large vo-tech program for students not college bound, including nursing, auto repair, engineering, computers and culinary arts. Second Life has the capacity to allow role playing as an educational tool while students are immersed in a virtual world. One can offer training simulations in Second Life: “practice makes perfect.” Students can practice driving skills through simulations, repeated exposure to difficult driving situations such as merging, what to do when a car pulls out in front of you and how to change a flat tire.
Nursing Skills Support Education, students can practice their interactions with patients and repeat skills, like interviewing patients, drawing blood and recording vital signs.
When it comes to Second Life, I have moved from skeptic, to enthusiastic supporter. In my school system, the challenge will be to get our administration and our technical capabilities to the point where virtual worlds like Second Life can become a reality in our schools.
Saturday, March 13, 2010
Friday, March 12, 2010
Case Study: Applied Science Research & Technology
Case Study #2: Applied Science Research Program (ASRP)
Outcome: The Applied Science Research Program is designed to expose students to real-world issues in the field of science. Students will:
· Learn to access, evaluate and analyze scientific data, using print, electronic and Web 2.0 sources.
· Use Web 2.0 tools to collaborate with scientists and experts in their field of research, as working scientist do.
· synthesize research into a coherent presentation
· Using traditional and Web 2.0 forums, share research with the school community.
ALA & ASLA Standards
Standard 1: Use of Information and Ideas
School library media candidates encourage reading and lifelong learning by stimulating interests and fostering competencies in the effective use of ideas and information. They apply a variety of strategies to ensure access to resources and information in a variety of formats to all members of the learning community. Candidates promote efficient and ethical information-seeking behavior as part of the school library media program and its services.
Specifics of the ALA/ASLA Standard:
Linking the standard to the case study:
“…encourage reading and lifelong learning by stimulating interests”:
· Students self-select a topic of high interest; subsequently, their reading/research will be engaging & this research may lead to a life-long passion
“…apply a variety of strategies to ensure access to resources and information in a variety of formats to all members of the learning community”
· Students are presented with a variety of social networking technologies for research & recording of information: Pageflakes, Wikis, Skype
· Students may select the format of their final project (written report posted to wiki, podcast, etc)
“…promote efficient and ethical information-seeking behavior”:
ASRP learning materials include direct instruction in:
Internet safety
Social networking etiquette
Copyright & Fair Use
Plagiarism & ethical use of sources
Standard 2: Teaching and Learning
School library media candidates model and promote collaborative planning with classroom teachers in order to teach concepts and skills of information processes integrated with classroom content. They partner with other education professionals to develop and deliver an integrated information skills curriculum. Candidates design and implement instruction that engages the student’s interests, passions, and needs which drive their learning.
Specifics of the ALA/ASLA Standard
Linking the standard to the case study:
“… model and promote collaborative planning with classroom teachers“
For ASRP, media specialist introduces social networking tools & collaborates with the classroom teachers: from planning through presentation of final projects
“…partner with other education professionals to develop and deliver an integrated information skills curriculum”.
Media specialist works with classroom teachers to develop curriculum, set-up & maintain social networks & provide ongoing support
“…engages the student’s interests, passions, and needs which drive their learning.”
Student’s self-select topics
Student’s collaborate on class social networking sites, working as learning partners (not simply learning vessels)
Standard 3: Collaboration and Leadership
School library media candidates provide leadership and establish connections with the greater library and education community to create school library media programs that focus on students learning and achievement; encourage the personal and professional growth of teachers and other educators, and model the efficient and effective use of information and ideas.
Specifics of the ALA/ASLA Standard
Linking the standard to the case study:
“…provide leadership and establish connections with the greater library and education community”
Through ongoing professional development, the media specialist introduces/integrates new technologies to the school community
“…encourage the personal and professional growth of teachers and other educators”
Media specialist provides professional development for new technologies, ongoing support, and public relations to faculty, administration & parents
”…model the efficient and effective use of information and ideas.”
Media specialist creates high quality social networking products, keeping all materials accurate, accessible & easy-to-understand
The Applied Science Research Project is a 3-year program of study where students:
Select an Environmental Science topic that has real-world application
Set up web based personal and collaborative work spaces to manage their research, collaborate with mentors and share their work with the community
Conduct research using real-time data & other current, reliable data
Prepare research for presentation
Design: Select appropriate tool/s for showcasing research & conclusions
Present: Share ongoing and final work with the school and scientific communities
Social Networking Tools to be Used Throughout ASRP
Pageflakes
Wiki
Flickr
Skype
Voicethread for podcasting
Online Safety:
As part of this research project, students will be educated about online safety and ethics. Please refer to the following sites for additional information:
ALA: Especially for Young People and Their Parents
GetNetWise
Watch the following video: “Think Before You Post”
Wired Safety
Personal Narrative:
I emphasize Web 2.0 safety and etiquette for two reasons: to protect students’ identity, reputation, safety, and future, and to assuage the fears of the community (teachers, administrators & parents) about the wisdom of using technology in the classroom.
First, a media specialist has a responsibility to educate students about the wise use of technology and the difference between social networking for recreation and social networking for education. Students will not be permitted to post anything of a personal nature (pictures, video, text, etc.) Second, because Web 2.0 technology is new to the classroom, there will be a lot of fear and mistrust of its value. The media specialist should be proactive and straightforward with the entire school community, discussing the risks and the steps being taken to eliminate that risk (keeping networks private, screening all new members, not posting full names or personal data, etc.)
In this way, students and the community are learning safe Web 2.0 practices while seeing the exciting educational possibilities—with increased student learning and engagement the result.
Web 2.0 Ettiquette
Respect all members—if you wouldn’t say it face-to-face (in front of the principal?), don’t say it
Remember your digital footprint
Email/respond as you would want to be emailed/responded to
Be concise and to the point, edit & spell check your posts
Use descriptive subject lines
I. MANAGE RESEARCH—clarify assignment guidelines & gather information using Web 2.0 tools
Personal Narrative:
In any long-term research project, there are several challenges:
understanding the assignment
finding reliable information
organizing a large volume of information
Managing time efficiently.
Twenty-first century research also asks students to collaborate to learn information and to share information. Pageflakes and a Wiki provide a central location for these functions.
One of the primary functions of the Pageflakes page is as a repository of information about the assignment. Thus, students & parents always have access to this information. Since this is a 3-year project, it is particularly important to have a central posting of this material that cannot be lost. There will be links to important resources, to the Wiki, and updates to the calendar and assignments.
As students begin their research, they will be asked to post bookmarks with brief annotations to a class page and to individual pages (Pageflakes & Wiki-- depending on the length/depth of the assignment: more elaborate posts will be to the Wiki, brief posts to Pageflakes). In this way, students will develop an annotated working bibliography that will remain permanently posted and visible to the instructor and the class. The instructor can assess the depth and quality of the research and whether the student is staying on schedule. The students can work together to find and evaluate information, saving time and fostering collaboration and shared responsibility.
Pageflakes-- Provides storage of and access to information for students and parents
Class Pageflakes Includes:
View sample class page
Assignment guidelines & calendar
Guidelines for student self-management of research project
Links to class resources & Wiki
Links to Pagecasts of student pages
Links to Skype & guidelines
Open to students, teachers, parents & scientists approved by teacher
Students can view and evaluate the work and research of others—creating a scientific research community and a net to weed out misinformation or poor resources
Individual Pageflakes:
gather bookmarks for research—with brief annotations
gather feeds to approved & relevant social networking sites
Brief notes
Include individual planning/time management guidelines
Wiki— a collaborative, social networking tool that collects the work of many authors. Students & teachers can edit, delete or modify content.
includes personal profile pages, chat capabilities, and the ability to connect with other members; the site will remain private except for posts approved by the instructor to be shared with the Wiki community
Wiki’s in the classroom
http://wikisineducation.wetpaint.com/page/Wikis+in+the+Classroom
Learning the Wiki Way
http://learning2shanghai.wetpaint.com/
Wiki class page:
Announcements about homework, labs, deadlines, etc.
links, resources, and materials posted
information about writing lab reports, videos on lab safety, and information about research opportunities for
Collaborative opportunities with classmates, teachers, and experts in the field of research
Drafts of research projects posted; feedback welcomed
Final research projects posted; feedback welcomed
Wiki Individual page:
Social networking
Science & research are ultimately collaborative; scientist learn from research that has gone before, adding a new voice to an ongoing conversation ; everyone in the class has access to one another
Students must be responsible for the work they post; held to the same standards as the larger science community
Multimedia
Students upload video, audio, and still pictures/charts, etc. that may become part of the final presentation
A good storage vehicle for multimedia resources
Global perspective
Research topics will include local and international subjects; Wiki connects students to these scientific communities
Archive of student work
Former student work as a model for new projects; for students using this work for college credit, Wiki creates an online portfolio
Sense of ownership of work
II. COLLABORATE WITH MENTORS
Personal Narrative:
Collaboration with mentors is one of the fundamental differences between social networking and the traditional research model. Social networking allows students to go directly to a source: a geologist in Alaska, a NASA scientist or a park ranger in Utah. This direct contact with sources makes students more like real researchers who immerse themselves in a subject. In addition, a student may feel more pressure to prepare him/herself for an interview with a prestigious person in a field—motivating the student to conduct more thorough research to prepare for a Skype interview. Even inviting a professional to view a Wiki page or joining one will encourage student to post accurate, thoughtful and articulate information. Rather than seeing research as an abstract waste of time, students begin to see the real-world applications of research and why getting it right and taking a stand does matter. They are participating in the science community and learning the role of collaboration in that world.
Wiki
All social networking communities must be approved by the instructor before a student may join
Skype with a Scientist—online video conferencing
Through the Media Center, students will work with a webcam, headset & microphone to conduct online interviews with experts in their field of research: scientist, researchers, museum curators, academics and other professionals
All interviews will be approved by the instructor. Students must conduct research to prepare for the interview and submit interview questions in advance.
III. SHARE WORK WITH COMMUNTIY (COLLEGE PORTFOLIO)
Personal Note:
In the past, students presented their research on poster board at stations in the cafeteria or classroom. Students will still be given the option of creating a poster for their final presentation, but will also be encouraged to create web based presentations. The stations can include computers to showcase podcasts, Pageflakes and Wiki pages where the project is posted. Students can choose the appropriate medium to fit their project, incorporating digital storytelling, podcasts, written reports with multi-media links to charts, maps, and pictures, audio and video clips. Incorporating different mediums appeals to different learning styles. Maintaining a web portfolio means that the presentation will be accessible to friends and family who cannot attend the presentation event at the school.
For students interested in using their research in a college admissions portfolio, web based tools make the most sense since the project can be shared with the college.
Individual Wiki & Pageflakes:
These pages functions as a portfolio, storing research, notes & projects over the 3-year ASRP; students may retain this portfolio after graduation too
Each student maintains:
· An updated record of research
· Contact information for mentors
· A post the final product:
o a picture of the poster
o script
o written report
o multi-media presentation
Final Note:
Incorporating technology into a traditional research project will help students organize their work, but more importantly engages students in real world collaboration and research. Engagement in the research process is amplified by engagement in creating multi-media technologically advanced products. Learning is increased and the pride and passion students have for these projects will carry into other life and learning situations.
Outcome: The Applied Science Research Program is designed to expose students to real-world issues in the field of science. Students will:
· Learn to access, evaluate and analyze scientific data, using print, electronic and Web 2.0 sources.
· Use Web 2.0 tools to collaborate with scientists and experts in their field of research, as working scientist do.
· synthesize research into a coherent presentation
· Using traditional and Web 2.0 forums, share research with the school community.
ALA & ASLA Standards
Standard 1: Use of Information and Ideas
School library media candidates encourage reading and lifelong learning by stimulating interests and fostering competencies in the effective use of ideas and information. They apply a variety of strategies to ensure access to resources and information in a variety of formats to all members of the learning community. Candidates promote efficient and ethical information-seeking behavior as part of the school library media program and its services.
Specifics of the ALA/ASLA Standard:
Linking the standard to the case study:
“…encourage reading and lifelong learning by stimulating interests”:
· Students self-select a topic of high interest; subsequently, their reading/research will be engaging & this research may lead to a life-long passion
“…apply a variety of strategies to ensure access to resources and information in a variety of formats to all members of the learning community”
· Students are presented with a variety of social networking technologies for research & recording of information: Pageflakes, Wikis, Skype
· Students may select the format of their final project (written report posted to wiki, podcast, etc)
“…promote efficient and ethical information-seeking behavior”:
ASRP learning materials include direct instruction in:
Internet safety
Social networking etiquette
Copyright & Fair Use
Plagiarism & ethical use of sources
Standard 2: Teaching and Learning
School library media candidates model and promote collaborative planning with classroom teachers in order to teach concepts and skills of information processes integrated with classroom content. They partner with other education professionals to develop and deliver an integrated information skills curriculum. Candidates design and implement instruction that engages the student’s interests, passions, and needs which drive their learning.
Specifics of the ALA/ASLA Standard
Linking the standard to the case study:
“… model and promote collaborative planning with classroom teachers“
For ASRP, media specialist introduces social networking tools & collaborates with the classroom teachers: from planning through presentation of final projects
“…partner with other education professionals to develop and deliver an integrated information skills curriculum”.
Media specialist works with classroom teachers to develop curriculum, set-up & maintain social networks & provide ongoing support
“…engages the student’s interests, passions, and needs which drive their learning.”
Student’s self-select topics
Student’s collaborate on class social networking sites, working as learning partners (not simply learning vessels)
Standard 3: Collaboration and Leadership
School library media candidates provide leadership and establish connections with the greater library and education community to create school library media programs that focus on students learning and achievement; encourage the personal and professional growth of teachers and other educators, and model the efficient and effective use of information and ideas.
Specifics of the ALA/ASLA Standard
Linking the standard to the case study:
“…provide leadership and establish connections with the greater library and education community”
Through ongoing professional development, the media specialist introduces/integrates new technologies to the school community
“…encourage the personal and professional growth of teachers and other educators”
Media specialist provides professional development for new technologies, ongoing support, and public relations to faculty, administration & parents
”…model the efficient and effective use of information and ideas.”
Media specialist creates high quality social networking products, keeping all materials accurate, accessible & easy-to-understand
The Applied Science Research Project is a 3-year program of study where students:
Select an Environmental Science topic that has real-world application
Set up web based personal and collaborative work spaces to manage their research, collaborate with mentors and share their work with the community
Conduct research using real-time data & other current, reliable data
Prepare research for presentation
Design: Select appropriate tool/s for showcasing research & conclusions
Present: Share ongoing and final work with the school and scientific communities
Social Networking Tools to be Used Throughout ASRP
Pageflakes
Wiki
Flickr
Skype
Voicethread for podcasting
Online Safety:
As part of this research project, students will be educated about online safety and ethics. Please refer to the following sites for additional information:
ALA: Especially for Young People and Their Parents
GetNetWise
Watch the following video: “Think Before You Post”
Wired Safety
Personal Narrative:
I emphasize Web 2.0 safety and etiquette for two reasons: to protect students’ identity, reputation, safety, and future, and to assuage the fears of the community (teachers, administrators & parents) about the wisdom of using technology in the classroom.
First, a media specialist has a responsibility to educate students about the wise use of technology and the difference between social networking for recreation and social networking for education. Students will not be permitted to post anything of a personal nature (pictures, video, text, etc.) Second, because Web 2.0 technology is new to the classroom, there will be a lot of fear and mistrust of its value. The media specialist should be proactive and straightforward with the entire school community, discussing the risks and the steps being taken to eliminate that risk (keeping networks private, screening all new members, not posting full names or personal data, etc.)
In this way, students and the community are learning safe Web 2.0 practices while seeing the exciting educational possibilities—with increased student learning and engagement the result.
Web 2.0 Ettiquette
Respect all members—if you wouldn’t say it face-to-face (in front of the principal?), don’t say it
Remember your digital footprint
Email/respond as you would want to be emailed/responded to
Be concise and to the point, edit & spell check your posts
Use descriptive subject lines
I. MANAGE RESEARCH—clarify assignment guidelines & gather information using Web 2.0 tools
Personal Narrative:
In any long-term research project, there are several challenges:
understanding the assignment
finding reliable information
organizing a large volume of information
Managing time efficiently.
Twenty-first century research also asks students to collaborate to learn information and to share information. Pageflakes and a Wiki provide a central location for these functions.
One of the primary functions of the Pageflakes page is as a repository of information about the assignment. Thus, students & parents always have access to this information. Since this is a 3-year project, it is particularly important to have a central posting of this material that cannot be lost. There will be links to important resources, to the Wiki, and updates to the calendar and assignments.
As students begin their research, they will be asked to post bookmarks with brief annotations to a class page and to individual pages (Pageflakes & Wiki-- depending on the length/depth of the assignment: more elaborate posts will be to the Wiki, brief posts to Pageflakes). In this way, students will develop an annotated working bibliography that will remain permanently posted and visible to the instructor and the class. The instructor can assess the depth and quality of the research and whether the student is staying on schedule. The students can work together to find and evaluate information, saving time and fostering collaboration and shared responsibility.
Pageflakes-- Provides storage of and access to information for students and parents
Class Pageflakes Includes:
View sample class page
Assignment guidelines & calendar
Guidelines for student self-management of research project
Links to class resources & Wiki
Links to Pagecasts of student pages
Links to Skype & guidelines
Open to students, teachers, parents & scientists approved by teacher
Students can view and evaluate the work and research of others—creating a scientific research community and a net to weed out misinformation or poor resources
Individual Pageflakes:
gather bookmarks for research—with brief annotations
gather feeds to approved & relevant social networking sites
Brief notes
Include individual planning/time management guidelines
Wiki— a collaborative, social networking tool that collects the work of many authors. Students & teachers can edit, delete or modify content.
includes personal profile pages, chat capabilities, and the ability to connect with other members; the site will remain private except for posts approved by the instructor to be shared with the Wiki community
Wiki’s in the classroom
http://wikisineducation.wetpaint.com/page/Wikis+in+the+Classroom
Learning the Wiki Way
http://learning2shanghai.wetpaint.com/
Wiki class page:
Announcements about homework, labs, deadlines, etc.
links, resources, and materials posted
information about writing lab reports, videos on lab safety, and information about research opportunities for
Collaborative opportunities with classmates, teachers, and experts in the field of research
Drafts of research projects posted; feedback welcomed
Final research projects posted; feedback welcomed
Wiki Individual page:
Social networking
Science & research are ultimately collaborative; scientist learn from research that has gone before, adding a new voice to an ongoing conversation ; everyone in the class has access to one another
Students must be responsible for the work they post; held to the same standards as the larger science community
Multimedia
Students upload video, audio, and still pictures/charts, etc. that may become part of the final presentation
A good storage vehicle for multimedia resources
Global perspective
Research topics will include local and international subjects; Wiki connects students to these scientific communities
Archive of student work
Former student work as a model for new projects; for students using this work for college credit, Wiki creates an online portfolio
Sense of ownership of work
II. COLLABORATE WITH MENTORS
Personal Narrative:
Collaboration with mentors is one of the fundamental differences between social networking and the traditional research model. Social networking allows students to go directly to a source: a geologist in Alaska, a NASA scientist or a park ranger in Utah. This direct contact with sources makes students more like real researchers who immerse themselves in a subject. In addition, a student may feel more pressure to prepare him/herself for an interview with a prestigious person in a field—motivating the student to conduct more thorough research to prepare for a Skype interview. Even inviting a professional to view a Wiki page or joining one will encourage student to post accurate, thoughtful and articulate information. Rather than seeing research as an abstract waste of time, students begin to see the real-world applications of research and why getting it right and taking a stand does matter. They are participating in the science community and learning the role of collaboration in that world.
Wiki
All social networking communities must be approved by the instructor before a student may join
Skype with a Scientist—online video conferencing
Through the Media Center, students will work with a webcam, headset & microphone to conduct online interviews with experts in their field of research: scientist, researchers, museum curators, academics and other professionals
All interviews will be approved by the instructor. Students must conduct research to prepare for the interview and submit interview questions in advance.
III. SHARE WORK WITH COMMUNTIY (COLLEGE PORTFOLIO)
Personal Note:
In the past, students presented their research on poster board at stations in the cafeteria or classroom. Students will still be given the option of creating a poster for their final presentation, but will also be encouraged to create web based presentations. The stations can include computers to showcase podcasts, Pageflakes and Wiki pages where the project is posted. Students can choose the appropriate medium to fit their project, incorporating digital storytelling, podcasts, written reports with multi-media links to charts, maps, and pictures, audio and video clips. Incorporating different mediums appeals to different learning styles. Maintaining a web portfolio means that the presentation will be accessible to friends and family who cannot attend the presentation event at the school.
For students interested in using their research in a college admissions portfolio, web based tools make the most sense since the project can be shared with the college.
Individual Wiki & Pageflakes:
These pages functions as a portfolio, storing research, notes & projects over the 3-year ASRP; students may retain this portfolio after graduation too
Each student maintains:
· An updated record of research
· Contact information for mentors
· A post the final product:
o a picture of the poster
o script
o written report
o multi-media presentation
Final Note:
Incorporating technology into a traditional research project will help students organize their work, but more importantly engages students in real world collaboration and research. Engagement in the research process is amplified by engagement in creating multi-media technologically advanced products. Learning is increased and the pride and passion students have for these projects will carry into other life and learning situations.
Thursday, March 11, 2010
Saturday, March 6, 2010
Sunday, February 28, 2010
Skype Activity Thread
I have been having a lot of fun with Skype. I have been Skyping my friend, a fellow SLM student and a former academic librarian, to discuss all things SLM. In addition, she has been using my library as a base for the Library Administration course. Between the snow and our busy schedules, we have been forced to use Skype for our interviews and discussions. It actually made the assignments fun. Sarah and I also Skyped as she walked me through a problem I was having with my podcast. I didn't think I would like the seeing/hearing aspect (I do most of my school work in my pajamas, and I thought that would be a bit embarrassing), but it is fun to see the other person. In addition, I am working with one of our foreign language teachers to set up a Skype-pal network with Spanish speaking students--she is really excited to see if we can work this out. We are waiting for permission from our principal to move forward, but I think the kids will really enjoy conversing, or trying to converse, with other teenagers.
Analysis Thread--Module #3
ANALYSIS THREAD: This module had a steep learning curve for me—all new technologies, and they have all mushed together in my head into a social media stew.
#1: For this reason I particularly appreciated Sarah Robbins-Bell’s ability to articulate the value of social media in this podcast: “Social Media and Education: The Conflict Between Technology and Institutional Education, and the Future”
Sarah Robins-Bell, PhD explores the fear many educators feel in the face of technology and our students. “As educators when we feel a conflict with the new technologies that come out… what we really feel is a conflict with a shift in how we view knowledge and how we gain knowledge.” I She explores the shift in how we gain knowledge from an isolated top-down process to a more democratic, cooperative global one. Educators, she claims, are more important than ever in teaching students critical thinking skills, but most be willing to respect student knowledge, and allow students to be co-creators of information, expecting them to contribute a high quality response/product. According to Robbins-Bell, today’s educators are "the last cohort of educators who will remember life before technology." I plan to share this podcast with my faculty. We have a mix of older teachers who shy away from any technology (one Social Studies teacher still uses filmstrips) and younger teachers who are willing to explore technology, but are still following the teacher-centered model, and a few who use technology but are satisfied for students to grab facts and regurgitate them. However, even with our best teachers, I see a serious problem with student engagement—they do not see school as relevant to their lives. Robbins-Bell’s ideas about incorporating social media and giving students more power and responsibility may be the cure for this.
#2: 10 ways school librarians should be teaching social media on SocialLibrarian
This post provides excellent, practical advice for using social media to connect students to the library curriculum, conduct research, publish work and build a sense of community. Since social media already attracts young people, the writer suggests capitalizing on this by removing the irrelevant stuff and tailoring the media to meet the needs of our patrons. She suggests using social media to conduct reference interviews, establish a network of resources, and solicit feedback from the community. She encourages librarians to publish their research through interactive media, like blogs and wikis in order to improve one’s professional profile. Social media can also be used to give students a positive web profile by creating portfolios of good work. I like the emphasis on building critical thinking skills and ethical use of information. Particularly relevant for me were some of the author’s discussion of the misconceptions about social media like Twitter because these misconceptions belonged to me before I began this class. Since I should be at the forefront of new technology as a school librarian, it is important that I educate myself about the real applications of this technology. I will try to remember this lesson in the future when new technologies come out and my initial reaction is skepticism based on ignorance.
#3: Cotelco is a collaborative project of American and Syracuse Universities to encourage collaboration and technology enhanced learning communities with an additional focus on making technology available to diverse groups, globally, and those with disabilities. The article ” Diversity Matters, Even at a Distance: Evaluating the Impact of Computer-Mediated Communication on Civil Society Participation in the World Summit on the Information Society” discusses the difficulties of providing access to technologies for all people’s around the world.
However, there are serious challenges affecting the participation of civil society in global multi-stakeholder governance processes such as WSIS. For example, these organizations vary tremendously in size, strength, experience, organizational capacity, ICT policy issue area, and focus. Perhaps the biggest hurdle is that the members of these organizations are geographically distributed and can have a presence in both developed and developing countries. Finding ways to knit these geographically distributed and diverse organizational strands into a coherent and representative international civil society tapestry that functions as an effective transnational advocacy network drawing on the best epistemic communities from around the world and engaging effectively in the highly complex WSIS institutional processes is a significant challenge.
The article does not specifically address inclined technology in education, but the implication that if one is to have a voice in the future, that voice will rely on one’s access and ability to use technology. These are the skills that we need to be teaching our students (and teachers). While my high school students see themselves as computer literate, their skills are actually quite limited. They are unable to find information unless it pops up quickly in a Google search. They struggle to sift though information to find relevant ideas, and struggle even further to synthesize those ideas into a meaningful product. This does not bode well for their future as global citizens.
#4 “Critical Transformations” –a presentation by Don Tapscott, the author of Growing Up Digital
This brief presentation offers an interesting analysis of the current generation of students. He says that while the world has changed dramatically based on technology, school have changed very little. Tapscott defines this generation as one who spend time on the web rather than watching television:
“…so you have a generation that rather than being the passive recipients of someone else’s broadcast are the actors and initiators and collaborators and researchers and rememberers and so an and this is a huge and powerful force to change the schools because as these kids come into the school system the old model of learning is completely inappropriate for them…information technology is the new model for collaborative working”
This is a message that I have heard repeated throughout my research for this class, and yet it is a message that today’s educators are not hearing. Recently a 2nd grade teacher told me she thought the interest in technology in schools was a passing phase…by the time her students hit high school, they’ll be bored with it. This is an intelligent person and an experienced teacher with three teenage children (all wired) and yet she can not even imagine the revolution that is taking place right under her nose. I put myself, and most other adults, in the same group. Before my school library media studies, I saw technology as a way to enhance traditional classroom lessons, instead of as a way to transform the entire structure of education. If we don’t begin to give some power to our students to create their own learning, we will certainly lose them.
#5 Jay McTighe on Critical Transformation
I could relate to McTighe’s comments about the transformation he experienced as a teacher. He claims: “I began teaching with the assumption that my job was to tell students everything I knew about certain topics…and then I had this aha moment and it dawned on me that my job was to get them to make sense of the content, make meaning for themselves and to use what they were learning in new situations”
After this aha moment, McTighe’s teaching transformed; he began asking more questions and shifted from “show me what you know to show me what you can do” As a new teacher, I modeled my teaching on my teachers: knowledgeable, engaging, confident, and very much the center of the classroom. To give up this place in the center of the class would have meant that I failed as a teacher. However, I am coming to see that the only way I can succeed as a teacher-librarian is to give up this role as queen bee. An additional challenge is to encourage other teachers to transform their teaching style.
#1: For this reason I particularly appreciated Sarah Robbins-Bell’s ability to articulate the value of social media in this podcast: “Social Media and Education: The Conflict Between Technology and Institutional Education, and the Future”
Sarah Robins-Bell, PhD explores the fear many educators feel in the face of technology and our students. “As educators when we feel a conflict with the new technologies that come out… what we really feel is a conflict with a shift in how we view knowledge and how we gain knowledge.” I She explores the shift in how we gain knowledge from an isolated top-down process to a more democratic, cooperative global one. Educators, she claims, are more important than ever in teaching students critical thinking skills, but most be willing to respect student knowledge, and allow students to be co-creators of information, expecting them to contribute a high quality response/product. According to Robbins-Bell, today’s educators are "the last cohort of educators who will remember life before technology." I plan to share this podcast with my faculty. We have a mix of older teachers who shy away from any technology (one Social Studies teacher still uses filmstrips) and younger teachers who are willing to explore technology, but are still following the teacher-centered model, and a few who use technology but are satisfied for students to grab facts and regurgitate them. However, even with our best teachers, I see a serious problem with student engagement—they do not see school as relevant to their lives. Robbins-Bell’s ideas about incorporating social media and giving students more power and responsibility may be the cure for this.
#2: 10 ways school librarians should be teaching social media on SocialLibrarian
This post provides excellent, practical advice for using social media to connect students to the library curriculum, conduct research, publish work and build a sense of community. Since social media already attracts young people, the writer suggests capitalizing on this by removing the irrelevant stuff and tailoring the media to meet the needs of our patrons. She suggests using social media to conduct reference interviews, establish a network of resources, and solicit feedback from the community. She encourages librarians to publish their research through interactive media, like blogs and wikis in order to improve one’s professional profile. Social media can also be used to give students a positive web profile by creating portfolios of good work. I like the emphasis on building critical thinking skills and ethical use of information. Particularly relevant for me were some of the author’s discussion of the misconceptions about social media like Twitter because these misconceptions belonged to me before I began this class. Since I should be at the forefront of new technology as a school librarian, it is important that I educate myself about the real applications of this technology. I will try to remember this lesson in the future when new technologies come out and my initial reaction is skepticism based on ignorance.
#3: Cotelco is a collaborative project of American and Syracuse Universities to encourage collaboration and technology enhanced learning communities with an additional focus on making technology available to diverse groups, globally, and those with disabilities. The article ” Diversity Matters, Even at a Distance: Evaluating the Impact of Computer-Mediated Communication on Civil Society Participation in the World Summit on the Information Society” discusses the difficulties of providing access to technologies for all people’s around the world.
However, there are serious challenges affecting the participation of civil society in global multi-stakeholder governance processes such as WSIS. For example, these organizations vary tremendously in size, strength, experience, organizational capacity, ICT policy issue area, and focus. Perhaps the biggest hurdle is that the members of these organizations are geographically distributed and can have a presence in both developed and developing countries. Finding ways to knit these geographically distributed and diverse organizational strands into a coherent and representative international civil society tapestry that functions as an effective transnational advocacy network drawing on the best epistemic communities from around the world and engaging effectively in the highly complex WSIS institutional processes is a significant challenge.
The article does not specifically address inclined technology in education, but the implication that if one is to have a voice in the future, that voice will rely on one’s access and ability to use technology. These are the skills that we need to be teaching our students (and teachers). While my high school students see themselves as computer literate, their skills are actually quite limited. They are unable to find information unless it pops up quickly in a Google search. They struggle to sift though information to find relevant ideas, and struggle even further to synthesize those ideas into a meaningful product. This does not bode well for their future as global citizens.
#4 “Critical Transformations” –a presentation by Don Tapscott, the author of Growing Up Digital
This brief presentation offers an interesting analysis of the current generation of students. He says that while the world has changed dramatically based on technology, school have changed very little. Tapscott defines this generation as one who spend time on the web rather than watching television:
“…so you have a generation that rather than being the passive recipients of someone else’s broadcast are the actors and initiators and collaborators and researchers and rememberers and so an and this is a huge and powerful force to change the schools because as these kids come into the school system the old model of learning is completely inappropriate for them…information technology is the new model for collaborative working”
This is a message that I have heard repeated throughout my research for this class, and yet it is a message that today’s educators are not hearing. Recently a 2nd grade teacher told me she thought the interest in technology in schools was a passing phase…by the time her students hit high school, they’ll be bored with it. This is an intelligent person and an experienced teacher with three teenage children (all wired) and yet she can not even imagine the revolution that is taking place right under her nose. I put myself, and most other adults, in the same group. Before my school library media studies, I saw technology as a way to enhance traditional classroom lessons, instead of as a way to transform the entire structure of education. If we don’t begin to give some power to our students to create their own learning, we will certainly lose them.
#5 Jay McTighe on Critical Transformation
I could relate to McTighe’s comments about the transformation he experienced as a teacher. He claims: “I began teaching with the assumption that my job was to tell students everything I knew about certain topics…and then I had this aha moment and it dawned on me that my job was to get them to make sense of the content, make meaning for themselves and to use what they were learning in new situations”
After this aha moment, McTighe’s teaching transformed; he began asking more questions and shifted from “show me what you know to show me what you can do” As a new teacher, I modeled my teaching on my teachers: knowledgeable, engaging, confident, and very much the center of the classroom. To give up this place in the center of the class would have meant that I failed as a teacher. However, I am coming to see that the only way I can succeed as a teacher-librarian is to give up this role as queen bee. An additional challenge is to encourage other teachers to transform their teaching style.
Social and Collaborative Media:
Social and Collaborative Media:
Tools and Strategies for the School Library Media Specialist
As a school library media specialist striving to become a “21st Century literate educator”, teaching media literacy and the effective use of technology is a key goal. According to The Code of Best Practices in Fair Use for Media Literacy Education:
Media literacy is the capacity to access, analyze, evaluate, and communicate messages in a wide variety of forms. This expanded conceptualization of literacy responds to the demands of cultural participation in the twenty-first century.
Learning has shifted from the top-down authority driven model I knew to a collaborative one. To become effective collaborators, students transform from consumers of information to evaluators and creators: communication and ethical use of information is critical. We will explore the ways Social and Collaborative Media Tools engage students, encourage media literacy skills and perform academic functions.
A key media literacy task is for students to research on the Internet (access). Under the traditional model, students individually gather facts and compile them into a paper or project, engendering little thought and interaction. Social and collaborative media tools allow for more interaction during this process. The teacher-librarian may still lay the groundwork for the research by establishing guidelines, finding resources and organizing links, using social media to create a home base. Home-base could be a custom I-Google or Pageflakes page, containing customized tabs, a dictionary, assignments, guidelines for finding and evaluating appropriate resources, bookmarks and links to a class blog or wiki.. These pages are free, accessible, can be viewed by parents and easily updated by the teacher-librarian.
A more interactive home-base option is a social bookmarking site such as Ning, Delicious, or Diigo. These pages are more social, community property—the teacher is the overseer, but students are given the power to add their own resources and commentary. Ning offers practical features such “as personal profile pages, chat capabilities, and the ability to connect with other members.” In “Ning and Writing to Learn”, Nathalie Ettzevoglou and Jessica McBride comment on the educational benefits of Ning:
On Ning postings completed outside of class, students wrote in first person, expressed opinions, and critiqued each other rather than analyzing the work of literature or film we were discussing in class at the time. This style of writing calls for cohesive, convincing, succinct expression of ideas in a short paragraph.
This fosters writing and critical thinking skills and collaboration—information is not poured into a student, but created by the student in concert with others, befitting the goal of “cultural participation in the twenty-first century”. In addition, social bookmarking sites are transparent, allowing parents, administrators and colleagues to monitor the assignment.
In my short tenure in a high school media center, I have been horrified to see how many teachers plunk their students on the Internet, ask them to create a PowerPoint, and look the other way while they cut and paste from Wikipedia, finishing with pictures from Google Image. There is a better way. According to Joyce Valenza social and collaborative technologies such as Facebook engage students and increase learning:
Any technology that is able to captivate so many students for so much time not only carries implications for how those students view the world but also offers an opportunity for educators to understand the elements of social networking that students find so compelling and to incorporate those elements into teaching and learning.
The 21st Century research alternative means the teacher librarian will be involved in the information gathering process: collecting information in a social bookmarking site or a social networking site (a blog, wiki, Twitter or Facebook account), commenting, evaluating, prodding students to look harder, think more: modeling these skills for the class. Social bookmarking and networking tools allow students to post links to research, including a summary and evaluation, inviting classmates to also evaluate those sources and commentary. This gives the class (with guidance from the teacher-librarian) an active role in deciding what information is appropriate, reliable and relevant. It also forces students to move away from cutting and pasting toward reading and thinking.
However, according to “How did a couple of veteran classroom teachers end up in a space like this?”, the danger is that many teachers use social networking tools to complete traditional teacher-centered assignments:
Ignoring the transformative capabilities of connectivity, some teachers using blogs merely reproduce offline practices online. Limiting classroom blogging to one-way transactions of information and directives from teachers to learners may add convenience and efficiency to the classroom, but does nothing for learning itself.
For learners to benefit from social networking, they need a more interactive role in creating knowledge. Another plus is that Blogs and other social networking tools can be kept private to protect students, and the super-conservative CCPS actually allows blogging so I can begin implementing blogging now.
Another excellent social media research tool is Skype. This online creation of a face-to-face meeting allows students anywhere to connect with authors, scientists, experts in a field or foreign language speakers. The technology requirements are minimal: an inexpensive microphone and web cam. As Sarah Chauncey points out in “Skype an Author Interview”, Skyping allows for no-cost or low-cost meetings with experts in a given field . Rather than passively watching a video clip, student and presenter interact. Because the online meeting is pre-arranged, students prepare research and questions in advance. According to Chauncey, skyping is “so close to having the author here in the room with us, and in some ways it’s a little more exciting because it is a little more mysterious to children…engaging… allow[ing] students to move outside the walls of the school.” We forget that some of our students have limited contact with the world beyond their school or home; a Skype visit can bring that world into the classroom, bringing valuable information in an engaging format .
After students use social networking to gather information, then we ask them to synthesize what they have learned and share it. This phase can also be transformed by 21st century technologies. Students can post their ideas, questions, drafts and final product to a class blog using Blogger, WordPress or a Wiki. The final product might be a traditional report; however, students can also create audio/video podcasts. Digital storytelling works even with limited technology. For sound, students need a microphone and access to a product like audacity, Voice Thread , etc. Students write a script, requiring strong writing skills (skills over-looked in the typical PowerPoint). Students may feel more invested in and take more pride in the production of a script which will be shared with the class than in a traditional research paper. Visuals and photographs can be organized, editied and uploaded simply through Picasa, Photostory, or Flickr. With a Webcam, students can create a news show, debate, or panel discussion. These podcasts can be uploaded to a Blog, Wiki or teacher tube and shared with the class, parents, administrators and colleagues, fostering pride, ownership and community. Teachers/librarians can create a portfolio of current and past work.
The challenges to implementing social and collaborative media tools in my rural high school mirror many schools. We have a large percentage of low income students with limited access to technology— no home computer or one so slow that advanced Internet operations are impossible. With budget cuts we struggle to have enough computers and up-to-date equipment. Another problem is the resistance to technology by teachers, administrators and parents. Many see it as unsafe and ineffective. Online safety is a concern, but one that can be prevented by a sound Internet safety policy. Students also need to be aware of the public nature of the Internet: “ Facebook presents students with choices about how to use technology in creative and useful ways while avoiding the pitfalls. Even as a purely social activity, Facebook has the potential to teach students about appropriate citizenship in the online world. (http://net.educause.edu/ir/library/pdf/ELI7025.pdf)
Academically, the challenge is the mind-set of teachers and students. The one-stop shopping mentality ( a search in a popular database) points to the lack of critical thinking skills in traditional research. However, “[l]ike many emerging Internet applications, Facebook [and other social media] also emphasizes the importance of creating content over simply consuming it” (http://net.educause.edu/ir/library/pdf/ELI7025.pdf)..
The transparency of social and collaborative technology means that teachers/librarians can monitor the research process, alerting students to potential plagiarism and/or copyright issues, building an ethical community of researchers. Most importantly, incorporating social media into education hits students where they live—engaging them in education and effectively preparing them for the world they live in.
Tools and Strategies for the School Library Media Specialist
As a school library media specialist striving to become a “21st Century literate educator”, teaching media literacy and the effective use of technology is a key goal. According to The Code of Best Practices in Fair Use for Media Literacy Education:
Media literacy is the capacity to access, analyze, evaluate, and communicate messages in a wide variety of forms. This expanded conceptualization of literacy responds to the demands of cultural participation in the twenty-first century.
Learning has shifted from the top-down authority driven model I knew to a collaborative one. To become effective collaborators, students transform from consumers of information to evaluators and creators: communication and ethical use of information is critical. We will explore the ways Social and Collaborative Media Tools engage students, encourage media literacy skills and perform academic functions.
A key media literacy task is for students to research on the Internet (access). Under the traditional model, students individually gather facts and compile them into a paper or project, engendering little thought and interaction. Social and collaborative media tools allow for more interaction during this process. The teacher-librarian may still lay the groundwork for the research by establishing guidelines, finding resources and organizing links, using social media to create a home base. Home-base could be a custom I-Google or Pageflakes page, containing customized tabs, a dictionary, assignments, guidelines for finding and evaluating appropriate resources, bookmarks and links to a class blog or wiki.. These pages are free, accessible, can be viewed by parents and easily updated by the teacher-librarian.
A more interactive home-base option is a social bookmarking site such as Ning, Delicious, or Diigo. These pages are more social, community property—the teacher is the overseer, but students are given the power to add their own resources and commentary. Ning offers practical features such “as personal profile pages, chat capabilities, and the ability to connect with other members.” In “Ning and Writing to Learn”, Nathalie Ettzevoglou and Jessica McBride comment on the educational benefits of Ning:
On Ning postings completed outside of class, students wrote in first person, expressed opinions, and critiqued each other rather than analyzing the work of literature or film we were discussing in class at the time. This style of writing calls for cohesive, convincing, succinct expression of ideas in a short paragraph.
This fosters writing and critical thinking skills and collaboration—information is not poured into a student, but created by the student in concert with others, befitting the goal of “cultural participation in the twenty-first century”. In addition, social bookmarking sites are transparent, allowing parents, administrators and colleagues to monitor the assignment.
In my short tenure in a high school media center, I have been horrified to see how many teachers plunk their students on the Internet, ask them to create a PowerPoint, and look the other way while they cut and paste from Wikipedia, finishing with pictures from Google Image. There is a better way. According to Joyce Valenza social and collaborative technologies such as Facebook engage students and increase learning:
Any technology that is able to captivate so many students for so much time not only carries implications for how those students view the world but also offers an opportunity for educators to understand the elements of social networking that students find so compelling and to incorporate those elements into teaching and learning.
The 21st Century research alternative means the teacher librarian will be involved in the information gathering process: collecting information in a social bookmarking site or a social networking site (a blog, wiki, Twitter or Facebook account), commenting, evaluating, prodding students to look harder, think more: modeling these skills for the class. Social bookmarking and networking tools allow students to post links to research, including a summary and evaluation, inviting classmates to also evaluate those sources and commentary. This gives the class (with guidance from the teacher-librarian) an active role in deciding what information is appropriate, reliable and relevant. It also forces students to move away from cutting and pasting toward reading and thinking.
However, according to “How did a couple of veteran classroom teachers end up in a space like this?”, the danger is that many teachers use social networking tools to complete traditional teacher-centered assignments:
Ignoring the transformative capabilities of connectivity, some teachers using blogs merely reproduce offline practices online. Limiting classroom blogging to one-way transactions of information and directives from teachers to learners may add convenience and efficiency to the classroom, but does nothing for learning itself.
For learners to benefit from social networking, they need a more interactive role in creating knowledge. Another plus is that Blogs and other social networking tools can be kept private to protect students, and the super-conservative CCPS actually allows blogging so I can begin implementing blogging now.
Another excellent social media research tool is Skype. This online creation of a face-to-face meeting allows students anywhere to connect with authors, scientists, experts in a field or foreign language speakers. The technology requirements are minimal: an inexpensive microphone and web cam. As Sarah Chauncey points out in “Skype an Author Interview”, Skyping allows for no-cost or low-cost meetings with experts in a given field . Rather than passively watching a video clip, student and presenter interact. Because the online meeting is pre-arranged, students prepare research and questions in advance. According to Chauncey, skyping is “so close to having the author here in the room with us, and in some ways it’s a little more exciting because it is a little more mysterious to children…engaging… allow[ing] students to move outside the walls of the school.” We forget that some of our students have limited contact with the world beyond their school or home; a Skype visit can bring that world into the classroom, bringing valuable information in an engaging format .
After students use social networking to gather information, then we ask them to synthesize what they have learned and share it. This phase can also be transformed by 21st century technologies. Students can post their ideas, questions, drafts and final product to a class blog using Blogger, WordPress or a Wiki. The final product might be a traditional report; however, students can also create audio/video podcasts. Digital storytelling works even with limited technology. For sound, students need a microphone and access to a product like audacity, Voice Thread , etc. Students write a script, requiring strong writing skills (skills over-looked in the typical PowerPoint). Students may feel more invested in and take more pride in the production of a script which will be shared with the class than in a traditional research paper. Visuals and photographs can be organized, editied and uploaded simply through Picasa, Photostory, or Flickr. With a Webcam, students can create a news show, debate, or panel discussion. These podcasts can be uploaded to a Blog, Wiki or teacher tube and shared with the class, parents, administrators and colleagues, fostering pride, ownership and community. Teachers/librarians can create a portfolio of current and past work.
The challenges to implementing social and collaborative media tools in my rural high school mirror many schools. We have a large percentage of low income students with limited access to technology— no home computer or one so slow that advanced Internet operations are impossible. With budget cuts we struggle to have enough computers and up-to-date equipment. Another problem is the resistance to technology by teachers, administrators and parents. Many see it as unsafe and ineffective. Online safety is a concern, but one that can be prevented by a sound Internet safety policy. Students also need to be aware of the public nature of the Internet: “ Facebook presents students with choices about how to use technology in creative and useful ways while avoiding the pitfalls. Even as a purely social activity, Facebook has the potential to teach students about appropriate citizenship in the online world. (http://net.educause.edu/ir/library/pdf/ELI7025.pdf)
Academically, the challenge is the mind-set of teachers and students. The one-stop shopping mentality ( a search in a popular database) points to the lack of critical thinking skills in traditional research. However, “[l]ike many emerging Internet applications, Facebook [and other social media] also emphasizes the importance of creating content over simply consuming it” (http://net.educause.edu/ir/library/pdf/ELI7025.pdf)..
The transparency of social and collaborative technology means that teachers/librarians can monitor the research process, alerting students to potential plagiarism and/or copyright issues, building an ethical community of researchers. Most importantly, incorporating social media into education hits students where they live—engaging them in education and effectively preparing them for the world they live in.
Saturday, February 27, 2010
Diigo Application Thread
Diigo has been one of my best and worst tools. To start with the downside: my computer really disliked Diigo. For multiple times every session, I would receive an error message abut add-ons and away would go the Internet (along with the 12 screens I was in the middle of for my Blog article research). I changed my add-on settings to allow the Diigo toolbar, but the Internet still freezes and shuts down occasionally. On the positive, I love this tool. With the Diigo toolbar, you can push a button and add your notes which appear in the sidebar. What a great research tool—I have gathered my sources, can access them easily, add sticky notes to remind myself of where I want to put this information in my paper, include brief analysis in the description and use the tags to categorize the content. I called our Tech Service department to find out how I can add Diigo to our school computers (it was blocked when I tried).
Thursday, February 25, 2010
Twitter Activity Thread
My Twitter Name: mlynnert (yes I know it’s bad, but all the combinations I tried were blocked).
After studying the Visual Guide to Twitter, I do see potential for developing my professional life as a librarian. I searched the lists for “young adult literature”, “librarians”, “library” and “reading”. While I found that I had to sift through some fluff, I was able to access some excellent resources. For example, the information below came from a post entitled “How Your Library May Not be Using Twitter but Should” by David Allen Kelley, a Palm Beach County Library system web developer.
Libraries have always been about books, but what is it about books that you’re there for? Essentially information and/or entertainment. The library does this while functioning as something of a community center. Twitter enables the library to reach people on all those levels and do so much easier, cheaper and more regularly than ever before.
I think it is important to remember the “community center” role and rather than fighting against teenager’s interest in technology, capitalize on that interest to make information more accessible, fun and immediate.
There were also posts concerning what people hate about libraries: from being given a map to find a book, censorship, limiting the use of library meeting space to ‘approved’ groups, and generally grumpy, unhelpful library staff. It is helpful to see how library patrons interpret librarian behavior and library atmosphere so that I can avoid those mistakes in my library.
I also found this excellent site: Storytelling with Children: http://storytellingwithchildren.ning.com/video
Twitter Etiquette: Most of the Twitter etiquette is common sense rules that protect the user: no impersonation, the respect of privacy and confidential information, no threats, no copyright infringement, no unlawful use of the site and no unverified accounts. In addition there are limits to how many accounts one can set up as a precaution against spam, squatters, and abuse. Avoidance of spam seems to be a serious concern, mainly users who deliberately gunk up the works with lots of junk posts, links or seem to be harassing other tweeters by repeated replies or inappropriate replies.
After studying the Visual Guide to Twitter, I do see potential for developing my professional life as a librarian. I searched the lists for “young adult literature”, “librarians”, “library” and “reading”. While I found that I had to sift through some fluff, I was able to access some excellent resources. For example, the information below came from a post entitled “How Your Library May Not be Using Twitter but Should” by David Allen Kelley, a Palm Beach County Library system web developer.
Libraries have always been about books, but what is it about books that you’re there for? Essentially information and/or entertainment. The library does this while functioning as something of a community center. Twitter enables the library to reach people on all those levels and do so much easier, cheaper and more regularly than ever before.
I think it is important to remember the “community center” role and rather than fighting against teenager’s interest in technology, capitalize on that interest to make information more accessible, fun and immediate.
There were also posts concerning what people hate about libraries: from being given a map to find a book, censorship, limiting the use of library meeting space to ‘approved’ groups, and generally grumpy, unhelpful library staff. It is helpful to see how library patrons interpret librarian behavior and library atmosphere so that I can avoid those mistakes in my library.
I also found this excellent site: Storytelling with Children: http://storytellingwithchildren.ning.com/video
Twitter Etiquette: Most of the Twitter etiquette is common sense rules that protect the user: no impersonation, the respect of privacy and confidential information, no threats, no copyright infringement, no unlawful use of the site and no unverified accounts. In addition there are limits to how many accounts one can set up as a precaution against spam, squatters, and abuse. Avoidance of spam seems to be a serious concern, mainly users who deliberately gunk up the works with lots of junk posts, links or seem to be harassing other tweeters by repeated replies or inappropriate replies.
NING Reflection Thread
The first Ning community I joined is the one Sarah recommended: ISTE Community http://www.iste-community.org/?xg_source=ningcom
I found the following page: ISTE in Second Life http://www.iste.org/Content/NavigationMenu/Membership/Member_Networking/ISTE_Second_Life.htm
Since my own failure to use Second Life (computer froze/freaked out every visit), I found it interesting (and disappointing) to see the extensive presence ISTE has in Second Life. One can visit the Second Life Headquarters and volunteer to be a docent, presenter or panelist in a presentation. There is an archive of ISTE Eduverse Talks: I was excited to see topics such as podcasting, copyright issues, “high-yield technology practices” and clouds. The Rochester Institute of Technology even offers online classes through Second Life. However, all of these great talks took place in Second Life and my computer froze again. I had better luck with SIGMS (a special interest group for media specialists)
http://www.iste.org/Content/NavigationMenu/Membership/SIGs/SIGMS_Media_Specialists_/SIGMS_Media_Specialists_.htm . This link: http://www.iste.org/AM/Template.cfm?Section=Templates_and_Starter_Kits&Template=/TaggedPage/TaggedPageDisplay.cfm&TPLID=34&ContentID=2863 to templates and starter kits for advocating for technology within your school and community. These resources would work well for grant applications, faculty development, and BOE presentations.
I also joined the English Companion Ning
http://englishcompanion.ning.com/?xg_source=ningcom , winner of a 2009 Edublog award. This group was a little less high tech so I was able to access most of the information. The posts include a wide range of topics from AP classes, testing,
classroom management advice, Young Adult Book Club, and Free Tools for English Teachers. The posts include: when students say “that’s so gay”, using blogs and wikis in the classroom and using Ning for the purpose of having students role-play characters &/or historical figures. There are posts that include lesson plans, including technology, on a range of subjects from Shakespeare and Animal Farm to slam poetry
I found the following page: ISTE in Second Life http://www.iste.org/Content/NavigationMenu/Membership/Member_Networking/ISTE_Second_Life.htm
Since my own failure to use Second Life (computer froze/freaked out every visit), I found it interesting (and disappointing) to see the extensive presence ISTE has in Second Life. One can visit the Second Life Headquarters and volunteer to be a docent, presenter or panelist in a presentation. There is an archive of ISTE Eduverse Talks: I was excited to see topics such as podcasting, copyright issues, “high-yield technology practices” and clouds. The Rochester Institute of Technology even offers online classes through Second Life. However, all of these great talks took place in Second Life and my computer froze again. I had better luck with SIGMS (a special interest group for media specialists)
http://www.iste.org/Content/NavigationMenu/Membership/SIGs/SIGMS_Media_Specialists_/SIGMS_Media_Specialists_.htm . This link: http://www.iste.org/AM/Template.cfm?Section=Templates_and_Starter_Kits&Template=/TaggedPage/TaggedPageDisplay.cfm&TPLID=34&ContentID=2863 to templates and starter kits for advocating for technology within your school and community. These resources would work well for grant applications, faculty development, and BOE presentations.
I also joined the English Companion Ning
http://englishcompanion.ning.com/?xg_source=ningcom , winner of a 2009 Edublog award. This group was a little less high tech so I was able to access most of the information. The posts include a wide range of topics from AP classes, testing,
classroom management advice, Young Adult Book Club, and Free Tools for English Teachers. The posts include: when students say “that’s so gay”, using blogs and wikis in the classroom and using Ning for the purpose of having students role-play characters &/or historical figures. There are posts that include lesson plans, including technology, on a range of subjects from Shakespeare and Animal Farm to slam poetry
Saturday, February 20, 2010
Twitter Discussion Board Post
My Twitter Name: mlynnert (yes I know it’s bad, but all the combinations I tried were blocked).
After studying the Visual Guide to Twitter, I do see potential for developing my professional life as a librarian. I searched the lists for “young adult literature”, “librarians”, “library” and “reading”. While I found that I had to sift through some fluff, I was able to access some excellent resources. For example, the information below came from a post entitled “How Your Library May Not be Using Twitter but Should” by David Allen Kelley, a Palm Beach County Library system web developer.
Libraries have always been about books, but what is it about books that you’re there for? Essentially information and/or entertainment. The library does this while functioning as something of a community center. Twitter enables the library to reach people on all those levels and do so much easier, cheaper and more regularly than ever before.
I think it is important to remember the “community center” role and rather than fighting against teenager’s interest in technology, capitalize on that interest to make information more accessible, fun and immediate.
There were also posts concerning what people hate about libraries: from being given a map to find a book, censorship, limiting the use of library meeting space to ‘approved’ groups, and generally grumpy, unhelpful library staff. It is helpful to see how library patrons interpret librarian behavior and library atmosphere so that I can avoid those mistakes in my library.
I also found this excellent site: Storytelling with Children: http://storytellingwithchildren.ning.com/video
Twitter Etiquette: Most of the Twitter etiquette is common sense rules that protect the user: no impersonation, the respect of privacy and confidential information, no threats, no copyright infringement, no unlawful use of the site and no unverified accounts. In addition there are limits to how many accounts one can set up as a precaution against spam, squatters, and abuse. Avoidance of spam seems to be a serious concern, mainly users who deliberately gunk up the works with lots of junk posts, links or seem to be harassing other tweeters by repeated replies or inappropriate replies.
After studying the Visual Guide to Twitter, I do see potential for developing my professional life as a librarian. I searched the lists for “young adult literature”, “librarians”, “library” and “reading”. While I found that I had to sift through some fluff, I was able to access some excellent resources. For example, the information below came from a post entitled “How Your Library May Not be Using Twitter but Should” by David Allen Kelley, a Palm Beach County Library system web developer.
Libraries have always been about books, but what is it about books that you’re there for? Essentially information and/or entertainment. The library does this while functioning as something of a community center. Twitter enables the library to reach people on all those levels and do so much easier, cheaper and more regularly than ever before.
I think it is important to remember the “community center” role and rather than fighting against teenager’s interest in technology, capitalize on that interest to make information more accessible, fun and immediate.
There were also posts concerning what people hate about libraries: from being given a map to find a book, censorship, limiting the use of library meeting space to ‘approved’ groups, and generally grumpy, unhelpful library staff. It is helpful to see how library patrons interpret librarian behavior and library atmosphere so that I can avoid those mistakes in my library.
I also found this excellent site: Storytelling with Children: http://storytellingwithchildren.ning.com/video
Twitter Etiquette: Most of the Twitter etiquette is common sense rules that protect the user: no impersonation, the respect of privacy and confidential information, no threats, no copyright infringement, no unlawful use of the site and no unverified accounts. In addition there are limits to how many accounts one can set up as a precaution against spam, squatters, and abuse. Avoidance of spam seems to be a serious concern, mainly users who deliberately gunk up the works with lots of junk posts, links or seem to be harassing other tweeters by repeated replies or inappropriate replies.
Sunday, February 14, 2010
Digital Storytelling Video
Here is the script for my video on digital storytelling tools, but I am having trouble saving and uploading it...as soon as I figure out the problem, I'll post it.
Lynn Myers
Script: Review of Digital Storytelling Tools:
Imbedded Link
Efficient Use of Resources and Technology to meet diverse user needs:
I keep returning to the notion that our students live in a digital world (and I come from the era of the typewriter and the phone attached to the wall.) Hence, I had many frustrations with creating my own podcast—most of them self-created, but this makes me more sympathetic toward students who struggle with school assignments.
Digital Storytelling has great potential in the classroom because it gives students a chanced to share what they’ve learned, but they’re still forced to think about what information is most important to present and the best way to present it.
In creating my podcast, I explored many tools: Flickr, Photostory, PowerPoint, Voicethread, Audacity and Jing, and they all had their advantages and disadvantages. These tools were free and already on my computer or easily downloaded.
With Flickr, I could upload my pictures and turn them into a set or a photostream (video), but then had little control over the final product and the special effects are limited. With Photostory and PowerPoint, one can add more special effects, alter the timing, and fine tune the final show.
For sound, Jing is very simple: simply capture the screen (the final PP or Photostory), press the Capture Video button and begin speaking when prompted. There is a pause button, but one must make the recording in one fell swope. With Audacity, there is more freedom and flexibility: sound effects and music can be added, tracks can be easily edited, and there is more potential for a richer final product. However, it did have a steeper learning curve. I think students enjoy adding the fun extra touches, so this potential is important when selecting digital storytelling tools.
For my final product, I used PowerPoint and Jing—capturing the PowerPoint and creating a video, then turning it into a Screencast. I created an alternate version using PP and Audacity, but I didn’t like the final product as well, so I ditched it.
I found Jing easy to use to create the video, but we have Audacity in our media center and every school is supposed to be supplied with microphones (although our seems to be missing so I will need to replace it).
Based on how much time I spent figuring everything out, I would simplify the process. To use this with students and teachers, I would settle on a clear template/outline with specific technologies selected in advance for each section. For example:
· Select topic—class discussion, preliminary research using encyclopedias, etc
· Read/research—select appropriate databases, print resources, etc.
· Develop script—identify specific features required; with instructor approval
· Gather visuals—sources, nature of visuals
· Create podcast—length, specific tools
· Edit—peer review, instructor approval, etc.
· Share—post, class presentation,etc.
With each step, I would work with the classroom teacher to identify specific tools and outcomes, providing tutorials (like Sarah did with our class). It would be fun to have students share their process—so as they master various pieces of the process, they can teach the class how they did it. This gives students a sense of community and a sense of ownership that improves engagement and self-esteem.
Incorporating Digital storytelling in the curriculum:
Digital storytelling would enhance any project that required reading/research, and then the analysis, synthesis, and sharing of the learning, working equally well for individual or group projects.
Obviously digital storytelling works well for book talks and book reports in the English classroom.
Students could also present reviews of art or music in a similar format—inserting video or audio clips of the work being reviewed, inserting analysis and research.
Research of controversial issues is a common science or social studies assignment and this would work well for digital storytelling. There are also many opportunities to use Primary Source documents: historic photographs, newspaper articles, research reports and lab reports. Students could work in pairs or teams to present opposing viewpoints on a topic in a mock talk show or panel discussion. They would conduct research, synthesize their ideas and create a coherent final product, but making the product similar to what they see on TV or u-tube would make it more engaging to them. They could feel like they were creating a product with real-world applications.
My high school is the oldest in the county and has the most antiquated computer/internet service, so one always has to have a Plan B for days when computers don’t work or the Internet is super-slow.
In addition, because we are a rural school, we have some students with very limited computer skills so I would have tutorials available (like Sarah’s) in print and online for the use of all technologies. I would also encourage students to help each other. Rather than the traditional model where students work silently and independently, I would encourage students to present mini-demonstrations of technologies they have mastered and stages of the project they have successfully and creatively completed. These could be saved to the website, a blog or a Wiki for future classes.
In the early attempts of teaching digital storytelling, I would probably have students begin with visual formats they are already familiar with: PowerPoint, Photostory, etc. In that way, they can focus on learning the new audio technology (and on the content to be shared)
Based on my frustration of trying to tape with the phone ringing, the dog barking, and teenagers stomping through the room, I would provide a small studio space where students could record without distractions.
The biggest obstacle I see is time. This would have to be a collaborative project with teachers who would have to be willing to invest a lot time and be flexible with scheduling because of computer glitches and those unforeseen things that crop up whenever one tries something new.
I’m sure I could target a few of the younger teachers who would be willing to try Digital Storytelling and work with them to develop a unit.
Lynn Myers
Script: Review of Digital Storytelling Tools:
Imbedded Link
Efficient Use of Resources and Technology to meet diverse user needs:
I keep returning to the notion that our students live in a digital world (and I come from the era of the typewriter and the phone attached to the wall.) Hence, I had many frustrations with creating my own podcast—most of them self-created, but this makes me more sympathetic toward students who struggle with school assignments.
Digital Storytelling has great potential in the classroom because it gives students a chanced to share what they’ve learned, but they’re still forced to think about what information is most important to present and the best way to present it.
In creating my podcast, I explored many tools: Flickr, Photostory, PowerPoint, Voicethread, Audacity and Jing, and they all had their advantages and disadvantages. These tools were free and already on my computer or easily downloaded.
With Flickr, I could upload my pictures and turn them into a set or a photostream (video), but then had little control over the final product and the special effects are limited. With Photostory and PowerPoint, one can add more special effects, alter the timing, and fine tune the final show.
For sound, Jing is very simple: simply capture the screen (the final PP or Photostory), press the Capture Video button and begin speaking when prompted. There is a pause button, but one must make the recording in one fell swope. With Audacity, there is more freedom and flexibility: sound effects and music can be added, tracks can be easily edited, and there is more potential for a richer final product. However, it did have a steeper learning curve. I think students enjoy adding the fun extra touches, so this potential is important when selecting digital storytelling tools.
For my final product, I used PowerPoint and Jing—capturing the PowerPoint and creating a video, then turning it into a Screencast. I created an alternate version using PP and Audacity, but I didn’t like the final product as well, so I ditched it.
I found Jing easy to use to create the video, but we have Audacity in our media center and every school is supposed to be supplied with microphones (although our seems to be missing so I will need to replace it).
Based on how much time I spent figuring everything out, I would simplify the process. To use this with students and teachers, I would settle on a clear template/outline with specific technologies selected in advance for each section. For example:
· Select topic—class discussion, preliminary research using encyclopedias, etc
· Read/research—select appropriate databases, print resources, etc.
· Develop script—identify specific features required; with instructor approval
· Gather visuals—sources, nature of visuals
· Create podcast—length, specific tools
· Edit—peer review, instructor approval, etc.
· Share—post, class presentation,etc.
With each step, I would work with the classroom teacher to identify specific tools and outcomes, providing tutorials (like Sarah did with our class). It would be fun to have students share their process—so as they master various pieces of the process, they can teach the class how they did it. This gives students a sense of community and a sense of ownership that improves engagement and self-esteem.
Incorporating Digital storytelling in the curriculum:
Digital storytelling would enhance any project that required reading/research, and then the analysis, synthesis, and sharing of the learning, working equally well for individual or group projects.
Obviously digital storytelling works well for book talks and book reports in the English classroom.
Students could also present reviews of art or music in a similar format—inserting video or audio clips of the work being reviewed, inserting analysis and research.
Research of controversial issues is a common science or social studies assignment and this would work well for digital storytelling. There are also many opportunities to use Primary Source documents: historic photographs, newspaper articles, research reports and lab reports. Students could work in pairs or teams to present opposing viewpoints on a topic in a mock talk show or panel discussion. They would conduct research, synthesize their ideas and create a coherent final product, but making the product similar to what they see on TV or u-tube would make it more engaging to them. They could feel like they were creating a product with real-world applications.
My high school is the oldest in the county and has the most antiquated computer/internet service, so one always has to have a Plan B for days when computers don’t work or the Internet is super-slow.
In addition, because we are a rural school, we have some students with very limited computer skills so I would have tutorials available (like Sarah’s) in print and online for the use of all technologies. I would also encourage students to help each other. Rather than the traditional model where students work silently and independently, I would encourage students to present mini-demonstrations of technologies they have mastered and stages of the project they have successfully and creatively completed. These could be saved to the website, a blog or a Wiki for future classes.
In the early attempts of teaching digital storytelling, I would probably have students begin with visual formats they are already familiar with: PowerPoint, Photostory, etc. In that way, they can focus on learning the new audio technology (and on the content to be shared)
Based on my frustration of trying to tape with the phone ringing, the dog barking, and teenagers stomping through the room, I would provide a small studio space where students could record without distractions.
The biggest obstacle I see is time. This would have to be a collaborative project with teachers who would have to be willing to invest a lot time and be flexible with scheduling because of computer glitches and those unforeseen things that crop up whenever one tries something new.
I’m sure I could target a few of the younger teachers who would be willing to try Digital Storytelling and work with them to develop a unit.
Saturday, February 13, 2010
Podcasting Thread
Here is a link to my book talk:
If you're over the age of 13 and not too prim and proper, I highly recommend this book. However, expect to see it on the banned books list in upcoming years...
Monday, February 8, 2010
Sunday, February 7, 2010
Flickr Pic with Notes
This photograph, from the Library of Congress American Memory Collection, provides historical background for the young adult novel The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian. The protagonist, Arnold leaves the Spokane Indian Reservation School for the local white high school, believing that he could not possibly receive a good education on the reservation. Students could gain an historical perspective on the novel by contrasting these old photographs with newer photographs of Indian reservations. Arnold does not seem to fit in the white world or the reservation world, a conflict that my students might not fully understand without examining the reservation system as it has evolved.
Tell a Story in 5 Frames with Flickr: Winter Walk
Here is a link to my photo story: http://www.flickr.com/photos/47277159@N05/sets/72157623247558845/
The plot of the story will make more sense when I add the narration, but this is the view of Big Pipe Creek from my house. This area is slated to become part of the new Carroll County Reservoir which will dramatically change the landscape here. This activity could be used to support literacy in that I had to think in terms of a story before I took the pictures. So I had to think: beginning, middle, end, and I thought about my audience; how can I make the story interesting to them? While some of the photo stories make sense without any text, mine requires explanation...that will follow when I add the narration. Just as a side note, the snow was really deep and the walk back up the hill was quite something...I can feel it in my legs as I sit here typing.
The plot of the story will make more sense when I add the narration, but this is the view of Big Pipe Creek from my house. This area is slated to become part of the new Carroll County Reservoir which will dramatically change the landscape here. This activity could be used to support literacy in that I had to think in terms of a story before I took the pictures. So I had to think: beginning, middle, end, and I thought about my audience; how can I make the story interesting to them? While some of the photo stories make sense without any text, mine requires explanation...that will follow when I add the narration. Just as a side note, the snow was really deep and the walk back up the hill was quite something...I can feel it in my legs as I sit here typing.
Thursday, February 4, 2010
#2
Ed Tech Talk: Digital Storytelling
http://edtechtalk.com/taxonomy/term/618
This webcast reviews the use of hypertext storytelling software that makes it possible to read and write stories for the Internet in order to enhance student writing. There is a discussion between Marc Bernstein, the project manager for Storyspace, and Jeremy Ashkenas, the creator of Hypertextopia. The discussion is long, over an hour, and explores the highly technical, academic and abstract possibilities of hypertext. I got a little lost.
According to Bernstein, hypertext, begins with annotated text, and he describes hypertext as “…an important new kind of punctuation…” that “changes the way we write. Jeremy has studied the potential for writing on the web, and describes the link as a “fundamental difference that the web has ”. In developing Hypertextopia, his goal was to create his “ideal writing tool”.
As the discussion continues, Bernstein and Ashkenas discuss the way that Hypertextopia “inhabits the web,” and is “Imitative of books” in the way that it adds things to it like footnotes/annotations as pieces that arent’ essential. However, narrative coherence is preserved. They discuss examples of hypertext storytelling, such as “hickory garden”, “I have said nothing”, and “Patchwork Girl” , the girl sews herself together from scraps and bits…(like the form). They describe hypertext as an “atmospheric creation, less interested in plot, more interested in feeling, more poetic. He describes classical hypertext as more narrative, suitable for essays, conveying thoughts, etc.
When the discussion shifted to teaching writing, I could follow the discussion better since I taught writing for 20 years. According to Bernstein, teaching writing is first of all getting people to write; getting students to write blogs has been positive. He says that Blogs depend on links and high school students are already familiar with links. They begin discussing the “rhetoric of links…lyrical use of linking” and that the average high school students can not use this potential effectively. They discuss the link as punctuation, the link as rhetorical tool. Someone in the chat room commented that ” links are connections, not punctuation”…And this is where they really lost me. I couldn’t grasp the link as rhetorical tool business. A very technical discussion; I need more practical tips, sort of a hypertext storytelling for dummies.
The moderator shares his concerns about the use of digital storytelling in schools—“I worry that too much of digital storytelling ends up looking like info-mercials…the medium doesn’t grab me”…
They answer his concerns by stating that Digital stories should be authentic, true, personal, and biographical, however; “craft is viewed with skepticism” and becomes secondary, editing is limited. The notion that craft and editing are unimportant disturbs me because I think writing skills are important to life and job success. However, one caller, a 3rd grade teacher, “sees possibilities beyond pencil and paper storytelling.” The authors respond that hypertext storytelling could help writers learn about the revision process. This technology could help younger/developmental writers see they can pick things up and move them around—and that is a difficult skill to teach using traditional methods.
Overall, I was intrigued by the possibilities of using hypertext storytelling with students, but I’m still a little confused about the products discussed and how they work.
Ed Tech Talk: Digital Storytelling
http://edtechtalk.com/taxonomy/term/618
This webcast reviews the use of hypertext storytelling software that makes it possible to read and write stories for the Internet in order to enhance student writing. There is a discussion between Marc Bernstein, the project manager for Storyspace, and Jeremy Ashkenas, the creator of Hypertextopia. The discussion is long, over an hour, and explores the highly technical, academic and abstract possibilities of hypertext. I got a little lost.
According to Bernstein, hypertext, begins with annotated text, and he describes hypertext as “…an important new kind of punctuation…” that “changes the way we write. Jeremy has studied the potential for writing on the web, and describes the link as a “fundamental difference that the web has ”. In developing Hypertextopia, his goal was to create his “ideal writing tool”.
As the discussion continues, Bernstein and Ashkenas discuss the way that Hypertextopia “inhabits the web,” and is “Imitative of books” in the way that it adds things to it like footnotes/annotations as pieces that arent’ essential. However, narrative coherence is preserved. They discuss examples of hypertext storytelling, such as “hickory garden”, “I have said nothing”, and “Patchwork Girl” , the girl sews herself together from scraps and bits…(like the form). They describe hypertext as an “atmospheric creation, less interested in plot, more interested in feeling, more poetic. He describes classical hypertext as more narrative, suitable for essays, conveying thoughts, etc.
When the discussion shifted to teaching writing, I could follow the discussion better since I taught writing for 20 years. According to Bernstein, teaching writing is first of all getting people to write; getting students to write blogs has been positive. He says that Blogs depend on links and high school students are already familiar with links. They begin discussing the “rhetoric of links…lyrical use of linking” and that the average high school students can not use this potential effectively. They discuss the link as punctuation, the link as rhetorical tool. Someone in the chat room commented that ” links are connections, not punctuation”…And this is where they really lost me. I couldn’t grasp the link as rhetorical tool business. A very technical discussion; I need more practical tips, sort of a hypertext storytelling for dummies.
The moderator shares his concerns about the use of digital storytelling in schools—“I worry that too much of digital storytelling ends up looking like info-mercials…the medium doesn’t grab me”…
They answer his concerns by stating that Digital stories should be authentic, true, personal, and biographical, however; “craft is viewed with skepticism” and becomes secondary, editing is limited. The notion that craft and editing are unimportant disturbs me because I think writing skills are important to life and job success. However, one caller, a 3rd grade teacher, “sees possibilities beyond pencil and paper storytelling.” The authors respond that hypertext storytelling could help writers learn about the revision process. This technology could help younger/developmental writers see they can pick things up and move them around—and that is a difficult skill to teach using traditional methods.
Overall, I was intrigued by the possibilities of using hypertext storytelling with students, but I’m still a little confused about the products discussed and how they work.
* B O O K W I N K * Video Booktalks for Kids, Teachers and Librarians
#1
10 Technology Enhanced Alternatives to Book Reports
http://theapple.monster.com/benefits/articles/8529-10-technology-enhanced-alternatives-to-book-reports
I have made it my mission as a media specialist to encourage teachers to eliminate boring assignments that require no critical thinking skills. The author, Kelly Tenkely, a technology teacher, provides 10 practical alternatives to traditional book reports. Her conclusion captures the essence of the article and her philosophy:
"Technology brings interest back into reading and helps students continue to find reading that they enjoy while providing the teacher with feedback about student reading comprehension. These are great alternatives to book reports that will keep your students from ‘readicide’. Most of the above tools have the added benefit of being able to be embedded into a classroom blog, website, or wiki. All student projects can be collected, organized, and viewed in one place. It doesn’t get better than this!"
I like that Tenkey embraces technology to engage students rather than fighting against it. Her 10 alternatives include having students create online posters, comics, book shelves, podcasts, and interactive sites where students can respond to each others book reviews. I enjoyed the BookWinks site with examples of video booktalks. I plan to work on a similar project with one of our English teachers. In addition, Tenkey’s example of podcasting book reviews reminds me of a project I observed with another media specialist. Students researched controversial issues and then created audio podcasts of radio interviews where pairs of students debated the pros and cons of their issue. The students did solid research and presented persuasive arguments—and they were excited about doing it. That they got to add music and sound clips was an extra bonus to them. The assignments had real life value to the students because they selected topics meaningful to them and presented the information in a format they found valid, and fun
* B O O K W I N K * Video Booktalks for Kids, Teachers and Librarians
10 Technology Enhanced Alternatives to Book Reports
http://theapple.monster.com/benefits/articles/8529-10-technology-enhanced-alternatives-to-book-reports
I have made it my mission as a media specialist to encourage teachers to eliminate boring assignments that require no critical thinking skills. The author, Kelly Tenkely, a technology teacher, provides 10 practical alternatives to traditional book reports. Her conclusion captures the essence of the article and her philosophy:
"Technology brings interest back into reading and helps students continue to find reading that they enjoy while providing the teacher with feedback about student reading comprehension. These are great alternatives to book reports that will keep your students from ‘readicide’. Most of the above tools have the added benefit of being able to be embedded into a classroom blog, website, or wiki. All student projects can be collected, organized, and viewed in one place. It doesn’t get better than this!"
I like that Tenkey embraces technology to engage students rather than fighting against it. Her 10 alternatives include having students create online posters, comics, book shelves, podcasts, and interactive sites where students can respond to each others book reviews. I enjoyed the BookWinks site with examples of video booktalks. I plan to work on a similar project with one of our English teachers. In addition, Tenkey’s example of podcasting book reviews reminds me of a project I observed with another media specialist. Students researched controversial issues and then created audio podcasts of radio interviews where pairs of students debated the pros and cons of their issue. The students did solid research and presented persuasive arguments—and they were excited about doing it. That they got to add music and sound clips was an extra bonus to them. The assignments had real life value to the students because they selected topics meaningful to them and presented the information in a format they found valid, and fun
* B O O K W I N K * Video Booktalks for Kids, Teachers and Librarians
Power Point 20th Anniversary Cinderella
#3 Story Ideas
http://cogdogroo.wikispaces.com/StoryIdeas
Rowan Manahan’s retelling of Cinderella layered with modern analysis is quite funny in a dry way. The slides are mainly text with a few graphs and charts; for example on page 6 is this chart showing that as Cinderella’s attractiveness increases, her quality of life decreases, and the author attributes this phenomenon to vanity and envy on the part of her wicked stepmother and sisters. Students could use this slideshow as a model to create their own slideshows analyzing a narrative (fiction or non-fiction). It could even be used as a rough draft for a paper on the topic. The slide show could be created as a group project, with small groups or pairs of students creating a slide or two as part of a larger class show.
The article also included practical tips for creating slideshows: story idea prompts, a question, a visual, and using the imagination. The page includes 50 examples of slideshows, from dog stories, to music videos, and more. The author includes a chart showing the specific tools he used to make the same story (about his dog Dominoe) in 50 versions, incorporating different technologies in each story. I appreciated the practical nature of this site, particularly since much of the technology is blocked in our school. The alternatives presented showed me ways that I could use this technology in the school setting.
Check out this SlideShare Presentation:
http://cogdogroo.wikispaces.com/StoryIdeas
Rowan Manahan’s retelling of Cinderella layered with modern analysis is quite funny in a dry way. The slides are mainly text with a few graphs and charts; for example on page 6 is this chart showing that as Cinderella’s attractiveness increases, her quality of life decreases, and the author attributes this phenomenon to vanity and envy on the part of her wicked stepmother and sisters. Students could use this slideshow as a model to create their own slideshows analyzing a narrative (fiction or non-fiction). It could even be used as a rough draft for a paper on the topic. The slide show could be created as a group project, with small groups or pairs of students creating a slide or two as part of a larger class show.
The article also included practical tips for creating slideshows: story idea prompts, a question, a visual, and using the imagination. The page includes 50 examples of slideshows, from dog stories, to music videos, and more. The author includes a chart showing the specific tools he used to make the same story (about his dog Dominoe) in 50 versions, incorporating different technologies in each story. I appreciated the practical nature of this site, particularly since much of the technology is blocked in our school. The alternatives presented showed me ways that I could use this technology in the school setting.
Check out this SlideShare Presentation:
Power Point 20th Anniversary Cinderella
View more presentations from Rowan Manahan.
Sunday, January 31, 2010
Library/Librarian Blogs
YALSA
http://yalsa.ala.org/blog/
The Young Adult Library Services Association, a branch of ALA, maintains this blog to keep library professionals updated on both organizations and the library profession. It also provides up-to-date information on book awards, authors, legal and funding issues and education. Because the blog covers such a wide range of topics, I didn’t find it as user-friendly or efficient as I expected. The blog archives are organized by author and date, but since I didn’t recognize any of the authors or know what topics were covered on a particular date, I fumbled a little trying to find information. However, as a new librarian, posts like the one below help me deal with how overwhelmed I feel at times.
mk, I know whereof you speak: I spent eight (8) years as a one-person library at MFPOW. And yes, it can be exhilarating and frustrating in the same moment (eg, research papers with classes booked 8 of 8 periods at the same moment a shipment of books arrives).
What I got from the whole experience was that you get done what you can get done, people tend to be understanding if things slide a little, and they’re always grateful for your professionalism and the time you spend with them on their needs. And at some point, difficult as it is to believe right now, you’ll get caught up. Then the fun really begins!
The blogs on Intellectual Freedom were thought-provoking, covering topics such as protecting “icky speech” and the trend toward self-censorship by librarians. The daily challenges of censorship are put against the backdrop of Intellectual freedom and the first amendment. YALSA and ALA are professional organizations that I turn to continually for information so this blog will help me keep up with the profession.
iLibrarian
http://oedb.org/blogs/ilibrarian/
Ellyssa Kroski works in technical services at Barnard College and as an adjunct professor of emerging technologies at Long Island University, Pratt Institute, and San Jose State University. She wrote Web 2.0 for Librarians and Information Professionals and a column for Library Journal’s Academic Newswire. The Blog is attractively designed with appealing visuals and I was attracted to the range of practical topics covered in the posts, topics that would help me improve my technological resources and student products. The topics range from Information Literacy, to privacy, copyright, saving money on technology and screen casting. This blog will help librarians and educators keep up with the newest technology, how to apply it in a school setting and its assets and drawbacks. However, some of the posts were over my head, such as “A Librarian’s Guide to Creating 2.0 Subject Guides” which I expected to be very helpful, but only confused me. For example, the explanation of Koonji:
Hindi for “key”, a koonji is a how-to or resource guide for a particular subject which is broken down into steps. Each step describes a process and can include narrative, recommended links lists, tips, videos, and images. Users can add and recommend links, vote for and add tips, discuss guides in forums, and rate koonji guides.
Kroski is obviously knowledgeable, but whether a fledgling techno-person such as me can make good use of all the information is unclear.
The Unquiet Library
http://theunquietlibrary.wordpress.com/2010/01/30/google-social-search-feature/
The Unquiet Librarian, Not Your Mother’s Library, is run by Buffy Hamilton, media specialist, and Tammy Beasley, media clerk. The Home Page includes tags on Blog Etiquette, iGoogle, Pathfinders, and information about the authors. I was immediately attracted to the look of this blog. The opening page features a sidebar of book covers linked a preview of the book, including the first several pages. I recognized the covers as books I had recently ordered for my library; this feature will help me decide whether to purchase a book. There was also an article, with graphics about incorporating Google social and search tools in the classroom—since students are going to use them anyway, why not figure out how to take advantage of this educationally? There is a list of posts by topic, rather than just dates—making it easier to find information. The topics cover young adult writers, electronic note cards, collaboration, book awards and learning 2.0.
This site is visually appealing and contains information that will directly help me in developing my library program.
http://yalsa.ala.org/blog/
The Young Adult Library Services Association, a branch of ALA, maintains this blog to keep library professionals updated on both organizations and the library profession. It also provides up-to-date information on book awards, authors, legal and funding issues and education. Because the blog covers such a wide range of topics, I didn’t find it as user-friendly or efficient as I expected. The blog archives are organized by author and date, but since I didn’t recognize any of the authors or know what topics were covered on a particular date, I fumbled a little trying to find information. However, as a new librarian, posts like the one below help me deal with how overwhelmed I feel at times.
mk, I know whereof you speak: I spent eight (8) years as a one-person library at MFPOW. And yes, it can be exhilarating and frustrating in the same moment (eg, research papers with classes booked 8 of 8 periods at the same moment a shipment of books arrives).
What I got from the whole experience was that you get done what you can get done, people tend to be understanding if things slide a little, and they’re always grateful for your professionalism and the time you spend with them on their needs. And at some point, difficult as it is to believe right now, you’ll get caught up. Then the fun really begins!
The blogs on Intellectual Freedom were thought-provoking, covering topics such as protecting “icky speech” and the trend toward self-censorship by librarians. The daily challenges of censorship are put against the backdrop of Intellectual freedom and the first amendment. YALSA and ALA are professional organizations that I turn to continually for information so this blog will help me keep up with the profession.
iLibrarian
http://oedb.org/blogs/ilibrarian/
Ellyssa Kroski works in technical services at Barnard College and as an adjunct professor of emerging technologies at Long Island University, Pratt Institute, and San Jose State University. She wrote Web 2.0 for Librarians and Information Professionals and a column for Library Journal’s Academic Newswire. The Blog is attractively designed with appealing visuals and I was attracted to the range of practical topics covered in the posts, topics that would help me improve my technological resources and student products. The topics range from Information Literacy, to privacy, copyright, saving money on technology and screen casting. This blog will help librarians and educators keep up with the newest technology, how to apply it in a school setting and its assets and drawbacks. However, some of the posts were over my head, such as “A Librarian’s Guide to Creating 2.0 Subject Guides” which I expected to be very helpful, but only confused me. For example, the explanation of Koonji:
Hindi for “key”, a koonji is a how-to or resource guide for a particular subject which is broken down into steps. Each step describes a process and can include narrative, recommended links lists, tips, videos, and images. Users can add and recommend links, vote for and add tips, discuss guides in forums, and rate koonji guides.
Kroski is obviously knowledgeable, but whether a fledgling techno-person such as me can make good use of all the information is unclear.
The Unquiet Library
http://theunquietlibrary.wordpress.com/2010/01/30/google-social-search-feature/
The Unquiet Librarian, Not Your Mother’s Library, is run by Buffy Hamilton, media specialist, and Tammy Beasley, media clerk. The Home Page includes tags on Blog Etiquette, iGoogle, Pathfinders, and information about the authors. I was immediately attracted to the look of this blog. The opening page features a sidebar of book covers linked a preview of the book, including the first several pages. I recognized the covers as books I had recently ordered for my library; this feature will help me decide whether to purchase a book. There was also an article, with graphics about incorporating Google social and search tools in the classroom—since students are going to use them anyway, why not figure out how to take advantage of this educationally? There is a list of posts by topic, rather than just dates—making it easier to find information. The topics cover young adult writers, electronic note cards, collaboration, book awards and learning 2.0.
This site is visually appealing and contains information that will directly help me in developing my library program.
Pageflakes of Interest
Debi's Art Pageflake
http://www.pageflakes.com/DebiLynn/23879026/
BBC Home
http://www.pageflakes.com/bbcpage
Jenny Zuko's Pagecast
http://www.pageflakes.com/jennyzuko/20575918
fmiracola's Pagecast
http://www.pageflakes.com/fmiracola
http://www.pageflakes.com/DebiLynn/23879026/
BBC Home
http://www.pageflakes.com/bbcpage
Jenny Zuko's Pagecast
http://www.pageflakes.com/jennyzuko/20575918
fmiracola's Pagecast
http://www.pageflakes.com/fmiracola
Wiki's Visited
Uni Reads
http://unihighlib.pbworks.com/
This wiki invites subscribers to explore young adult literature by genre. The genres range from multicultural lists to horror, banned books, coming of age, graphic novels, humor, mystery, LGBTQ, love, mysteries, science fiction and poetry. Within each genre, lists are further subdivided by sub-categories that make sense for that genre: biography, fiction, graphic novel, non-fiction and poetry; similar books; Dewey numbers and links to sites like Novelist. There are clear guidelines for students to add their own reviews or comment on existing reviews. This is an excellent tool for students and educators to encourage reading and help students and librarians find reads similar to other popular books. I am forever being asked for books like Twilight or mysteries with werewolves, etc. This wiki would help me find books for students and give them a chance to preview the book according to the words of other teenagers.
21st Century Learning
http://21stcenturylearning.wetpaint.com/
The Wiki describes itself as: “… a community of educators embarking on a collaborative journey into the future of education, educational technologies and new curriculums in order to prepare our students to function in a competitive and rapidly changing global world.” The posts include key documents and videos dedicated to technology and 21st century learning with responses analyzing the materials. This wiki is valuable simply for the collection of resources relevant to running the media center. There is a lot of good information here about improving the way we teach students to use electronic resources for research and projects. The information could be shared with teachers and administrators, to educate the school community about the changes in education, the importance of changing our approach to education, and suggesting specific resources the media center can use to help students become 21st century learners, thinkers, employees.
Environmental NGO Project Sites
http://env-ngo.wikispaces.com/
I selected this Wiki because we have a popular Science Research course at FSK and I thought this would be a good resource to share with the teacher who is very open to including technology in her curriculum. A group of 8th grade science students at the Shanghai American School, Pudong Campus created this site to explore Environmental NGO’s and record their analysis of the issues and organizations facing the world community. The sections are clearly subdivided by topics, for example: Pollution, Deforestation, Endangered Species, Global Warming and alternative energy. This Wiki could be used as a source of information and links to reliable resources on environmental issues. It could also be a model for teachers to consider adapting to their curriculum. The student’s projects exhibit strong Informational Literacy Skills: selecting reliable sources, analyzing and synthesizing information, and creating a thoughtful final product.
http://unihighlib.pbworks.com/
This wiki invites subscribers to explore young adult literature by genre. The genres range from multicultural lists to horror, banned books, coming of age, graphic novels, humor, mystery, LGBTQ, love, mysteries, science fiction and poetry. Within each genre, lists are further subdivided by sub-categories that make sense for that genre: biography, fiction, graphic novel, non-fiction and poetry; similar books; Dewey numbers and links to sites like Novelist. There are clear guidelines for students to add their own reviews or comment on existing reviews. This is an excellent tool for students and educators to encourage reading and help students and librarians find reads similar to other popular books. I am forever being asked for books like Twilight or mysteries with werewolves, etc. This wiki would help me find books for students and give them a chance to preview the book according to the words of other teenagers.
21st Century Learning
http://21stcenturylearning.wetpaint.com/
The Wiki describes itself as: “… a community of educators embarking on a collaborative journey into the future of education, educational technologies and new curriculums in order to prepare our students to function in a competitive and rapidly changing global world.” The posts include key documents and videos dedicated to technology and 21st century learning with responses analyzing the materials. This wiki is valuable simply for the collection of resources relevant to running the media center. There is a lot of good information here about improving the way we teach students to use electronic resources for research and projects. The information could be shared with teachers and administrators, to educate the school community about the changes in education, the importance of changing our approach to education, and suggesting specific resources the media center can use to help students become 21st century learners, thinkers, employees.
Environmental NGO Project Sites
http://env-ngo.wikispaces.com/
I selected this Wiki because we have a popular Science Research course at FSK and I thought this would be a good resource to share with the teacher who is very open to including technology in her curriculum. A group of 8th grade science students at the Shanghai American School, Pudong Campus created this site to explore Environmental NGO’s and record their analysis of the issues and organizations facing the world community. The sections are clearly subdivided by topics, for example: Pollution, Deforestation, Endangered Species, Global Warming and alternative energy. This Wiki could be used as a source of information and links to reliable resources on environmental issues. It could also be a model for teachers to consider adapting to their curriculum. The student’s projects exhibit strong Informational Literacy Skills: selecting reliable sources, analyzing and synthesizing information, and creating a thoughtful final product.
Saturday, January 30, 2010
Educator Blogs
Bridging Differences
http://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/Bridging-Differences/
Purpose of the Blog:
Deborah Meier, liberal, and Diane Ravitch, conservative, are profesors at the Steinhardt School of Education at New York University. Their paths crossed for years: both history majors, former teachers, journalists, and educational activist. Although they often disagree, they respect the other’s expertise. The blog presents a point counter-point on current issues in education, presenting careful analysis of press coverage and government actions.
Type of Posts:
The posts cover a range of subjects from charter schools, unions, merit pay, curriculum, parental involvement, reading, testing, to accoutability and civil rights. Given their background as historians, the posts are well-researched, providing an historical perspective on a current issue. Both Meier and Ravitch construct thoughtful arguments, for example, in a series of posts on achievement and No Child Left Behind, Deborah writes:
Claiming that higher test scores and more diplomas will lead to prosperity is a sleight of hand for which well-educated reporters should not fall. The assumption that if twice as many people get a B.A. an M.A. or a Ph.D., twice as many higher-paying jobs will appear is a colossal fraud. But even more shameful is the assumption that knowing "right answers" on a standardized test is a way to judge even future employees, much less future citizens.
In a post describing Obama’s educational programs as NCLB 2.0 and examining the vaule of closing schools that are not working, Diane writes:
I wonder, too, about who will work in the 5,000 brand-new schools? Are there 5,000 super principals waiting in the wings to lead them? Where will they find the tens of thousands of "great" teachers who will staff them? Or will they play musical chairs with the principals and teachers from the schools that were closed?
What we are witnessing now is the culmination of the plans of the education entrepreneurs who are driving national education policy at the highest levels. They are not educators. They do not understand how to help or support a school, so their first instinct is to close it down and start over. I think that is called creative destruction. Just watch: It will be coming soon to a school near you.
Other Thoughts:
The writing is excellent and I enjoyed the research and thoughtful perspective provided in each post. Meier and Ravitch are clearly well-informaed and thoughtful. Some bloggers might be put off by the lengthy, somewhat scholarly writing, but I like it. This blog gives me the opportunity to consider today’s issues from two well-researched, independent writers.
Never Ending Search Blog
http://feeds2.feedburner.com/SLJNeverEndingSearch
Purpose: Joyce Valenza’s name is well known. As a longtime librarian and technology expert, and winner of the best librarian/library blog for 2009, I have heard people discuss her limitless energy and valuable information for years. I wondering why I didn’t subscribe to her blog sooner, but I had to be forced into the blogging world.
Type of Posts:
While the 1st blog I looked at was more academic and philosophical, Valenza’s blog covers practical matters: for example, what to do when Utube is blocked, reforming PowerPoint, cataloging information and Dewey. Each post is written clearly, gets right to the point, and includes links to additional information (and all the links seem to work).
Other Thoughts:
I just discovered this blog, but I am definitely going to be sharing it with my faculty—For example, if I could get teachers to adapt just one of Valenza’s tips for better Powerpoints, student presentations would improve dramatically. For example:
We told the students to aim for no bullets. Aim for just one word or phrase on a slide.
We told them to aim for one powerful image on a slide. That image could be accompanied by minimal text or no text at all.
Clipart was banned. (Well, we tried.) Why should anyone use canned art in a landscape where the people of the world are generously sharing original media?
We pointed students to our Copyright Friendly Images pathfinder, our Image Generator Pathfinder, and to Flickr's Creative Commons Pool. We told them to search for images conceptually rather than literally. For interest, what images would photographers tag to represent "lonely"or "cold"? We also told them to create their own images.
If they needed to include a quote, students were to look for the nugget within the quote. To shorten it as much as possible. To discover its essence.
Free Technology for Teachers
http://www.freetech4teachers.com/
Purpose:
Obviously, the purpose is in the title: free technology for teachers. This is a practical blog with timely information. For example, today’s post is about how to use resources to present and analyze last night’s State of the Union Address. The Blog is colorful, well-written, and the entries are mercifully short so you can get the information you need and move on to the other things you need to do. Other blogs cover subjects such as a free online outlining tool, webconferencing, organization, and using sounds and games. Many of the ideas are very simple—yet have great potential for engaging students. For example, a lesson where students reading the Great Gatsby created fake facebook accounts for various characters. The posts are daily, short, and varied. They also offer links and practical how-to’s for implementing the technology.
Type of Posts:
Other Thoughts: This is a very practical site—with a very small time investment, I feel that I can stay up-to-date on creative, practical, and yes, free, technology applications that really have a positive educational impact.
http://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/Bridging-Differences/
Purpose of the Blog:
Deborah Meier, liberal, and Diane Ravitch, conservative, are profesors at the Steinhardt School of Education at New York University. Their paths crossed for years: both history majors, former teachers, journalists, and educational activist. Although they often disagree, they respect the other’s expertise. The blog presents a point counter-point on current issues in education, presenting careful analysis of press coverage and government actions.
Type of Posts:
The posts cover a range of subjects from charter schools, unions, merit pay, curriculum, parental involvement, reading, testing, to accoutability and civil rights. Given their background as historians, the posts are well-researched, providing an historical perspective on a current issue. Both Meier and Ravitch construct thoughtful arguments, for example, in a series of posts on achievement and No Child Left Behind, Deborah writes:
Claiming that higher test scores and more diplomas will lead to prosperity is a sleight of hand for which well-educated reporters should not fall. The assumption that if twice as many people get a B.A. an M.A. or a Ph.D., twice as many higher-paying jobs will appear is a colossal fraud. But even more shameful is the assumption that knowing "right answers" on a standardized test is a way to judge even future employees, much less future citizens.
In a post describing Obama’s educational programs as NCLB 2.0 and examining the vaule of closing schools that are not working, Diane writes:
I wonder, too, about who will work in the 5,000 brand-new schools? Are there 5,000 super principals waiting in the wings to lead them? Where will they find the tens of thousands of "great" teachers who will staff them? Or will they play musical chairs with the principals and teachers from the schools that were closed?
What we are witnessing now is the culmination of the plans of the education entrepreneurs who are driving national education policy at the highest levels. They are not educators. They do not understand how to help or support a school, so their first instinct is to close it down and start over. I think that is called creative destruction. Just watch: It will be coming soon to a school near you.
Other Thoughts:
The writing is excellent and I enjoyed the research and thoughtful perspective provided in each post. Meier and Ravitch are clearly well-informaed and thoughtful. Some bloggers might be put off by the lengthy, somewhat scholarly writing, but I like it. This blog gives me the opportunity to consider today’s issues from two well-researched, independent writers.
Never Ending Search Blog
http://feeds2.feedburner.com/SLJNeverEndingSearch
Purpose: Joyce Valenza’s name is well known. As a longtime librarian and technology expert, and winner of the best librarian/library blog for 2009, I have heard people discuss her limitless energy and valuable information for years. I wondering why I didn’t subscribe to her blog sooner, but I had to be forced into the blogging world.
Type of Posts:
While the 1st blog I looked at was more academic and philosophical, Valenza’s blog covers practical matters: for example, what to do when Utube is blocked, reforming PowerPoint, cataloging information and Dewey. Each post is written clearly, gets right to the point, and includes links to additional information (and all the links seem to work).
Other Thoughts:
I just discovered this blog, but I am definitely going to be sharing it with my faculty—For example, if I could get teachers to adapt just one of Valenza’s tips for better Powerpoints, student presentations would improve dramatically. For example:
We told the students to aim for no bullets. Aim for just one word or phrase on a slide.
We told them to aim for one powerful image on a slide. That image could be accompanied by minimal text or no text at all.
Clipart was banned. (Well, we tried.) Why should anyone use canned art in a landscape where the people of the world are generously sharing original media?
We pointed students to our Copyright Friendly Images pathfinder, our Image Generator Pathfinder, and to Flickr's Creative Commons Pool. We told them to search for images conceptually rather than literally. For interest, what images would photographers tag to represent "lonely"or "cold"? We also told them to create their own images.
If they needed to include a quote, students were to look for the nugget within the quote. To shorten it as much as possible. To discover its essence.
Free Technology for Teachers
http://www.freetech4teachers.com/
Purpose:
Obviously, the purpose is in the title: free technology for teachers. This is a practical blog with timely information. For example, today’s post is about how to use resources to present and analyze last night’s State of the Union Address. The Blog is colorful, well-written, and the entries are mercifully short so you can get the information you need and move on to the other things you need to do. Other blogs cover subjects such as a free online outlining tool, webconferencing, organization, and using sounds and games. Many of the ideas are very simple—yet have great potential for engaging students. For example, a lesson where students reading the Great Gatsby created fake facebook accounts for various characters. The posts are daily, short, and varied. They also offer links and practical how-to’s for implementing the technology.
Type of Posts:
Other Thoughts: This is a very practical site—with a very small time investment, I feel that I can stay up-to-date on creative, practical, and yes, free, technology applications that really have a positive educational impact.
Wednesday, January 27, 2010
Reading/Video Reflection
Lynn Myers
January 23, 2010
Module #1—Reading/Video Reflection for a summary of the article or video
#1 Summary: Digital Learning Environments: Student Research Projects: By Jon Orech
This brief article opens with a description of the typical high school research project: research both sides of a controversial issue and develop an argument supported by that research. Orech seems critical of this type of project and provides a practical list of alternative, technology tools that every student should be taught to facilitate the electronic research process, with a brief description of the features of each. These tools include: a Delicious account, Google Reader; custom RSS search; Technorati search, a search engine for Blogs; link RSS feeds to Google Reader; and search the invisible web. Orech’s suggestions focus on using the tools of technology to engage students and teach them how to use the technology more effectively. Since they’re going to Google anyway, why not help them learn to use Google in more effective ways? Technorati’s Authority rating help students understand why it is critical to select reliable sources and show them a real world situation where the authority of the source is examined. Orech did not discuss what he expected for a final product from students after using these technology tools.
#2 Summary:
The Future of Learning Institutions in a Digital Age by Cathy N. Davidson
and David Theo Goldberg with the assistance of Zoë Marie Jones
The John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation Reports on Digital Media and Learning
This extensive report examines the relationship between technology and education. One of the fundamental questions is why technology has advanced so rapidly and changed our lives so dramatically, but has had so little meaningful impact on schools.
Modes of learning have changed dramatically over the past two decades—our sources of information, the ways we exchange and interact with information, how information informs and shapes us. But our schools—how we teach, where we teach, who we teach, who teaches, who administers, and who services—have changed mostly around the edges. The fundamental aspects of learning institutions remain remarkably familiar and have done so for something like two hundred years or more. Ichabod Crane, that parody of bad teaching in Washington Irving’s classic short story “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow” (1820), could walk into most college classrooms today and know exactly where to stand and how to address his class.
The report details specific ways technology has changed our lives and what effect it has and should have on individuals and schools. The authors contend that it is not the technology in itself that is revolutionary, but the “potential for shared and interactive learning,” Collaboration, shared authorship and shared learning are keys to this new learning. Rather than the traditional education model of top down learning (an expert lectures his/her students, filling them with information, presumably unchanging truths), knowledge is no longer static: changing as rapidly as technology. Instead, we should develop participatory learning which is “about a process and not a final product.” The report also explores the “mismatch between the excitement generated by informal learning and the routinization of learning so common to many of our institutions of formal education.” Another problem integral to technology is “distinguishing good …sources from those that are questionable.” The digital divide will need to be addressed as well:
In the United States, incarceration correlates with poverty and digital access correlates with educational opportunity and wealth. Despite government pronouncements to the contrary, “digital divide” is not just an old concept but a current reality.
The report ends with a list of examples of the few schools and programs that are radically restructuring the learning environment relying on technology.
Summary #3: Future of Learning: How Technology is Transforming Public Schools
The Committee on Education and Labor’s 2009 panel discussion focuses on the potential of technology to improve student engagement and achievement and reduce drop-out rates. The discussion opens with committee Chairman George Miller’s comments on the future of learning. He claims that future employers will be looking for students who can work in a variety of environments, are comfortable with diversity and can effectively solve problems. He contends that “today’s kindergarten students are not prepared for this” future. The panel consists of educators, business people and technological experts. The panelists share several key conclusions. First, they agree that we need to revamp our education system, that more students will require college degrees, and that all students will need to use technology to research, analyze and create. Several presenters discussed the positive transformative effect when their school systems provided laptops for all students. The presenters also agreed that technology alone will not transform learning and teaching, that high quality, ongoing professional development is the key to success. Presenters shared the conclusion that the digital divide is very real and hits the poor and rural students hardest and agree that technology is an equalizer for disadvantaged students. Technology also allows teachers to reach students with various rates of learning and learning styles. Technology allows for more active learning and collaboration which also requires a shift in paradigm amongst teachers, from the traditional teacher in the front lecturing to a collaborative classroom. In an interesting note, when asked what the government can do to facilitate this transformation, one teacher answered: funding (and everyone laughed).
Common Threads:
The common thread between the three works is the potential of technology to revolutionize teaching and learning. All three allude to the fact that while technology has revolutionized our students’ world, the classroom has remained virtually unchanged. In many cases, technology is used simply to facilitate doing things the way they have always be done. For example, writing research papers and structuring classrooms with teachers in charge and students passively acquiring knowledge. There needs to be systemic change in education if we are to engage students, reach students with various backgrounds and learning styles, curb the drop-out rate, and prepare students for the future.
My thoughts:
Orech’s criticism of the typical high school research paper is well-founded. I taught college Freshman English for almost 20 years; teaching students to write research papers was a continual lesson in frustration—they hate writing them, many write them poorly, and they promptly forget everything they learn because they don’t use those skills again for a year or two. So I agree that the change in teaching needs to go deeper than using electronic sources to complete the same old tired assignments. However, I am concerned that students do not know how to write. Good writing requires critical thinking skills and is a powerful tool, one employers relish. I often see technology used to replace writing, for example a PowerPoint instead of a paper. While I think varying the final product is often helpful, at the risk of sounding like the dinosaur I am, students still need to learn to write. In a different vein, the digital divide is very real at FSK High School. One of our hardest working seniors spends every afternoon in the media center, trying to complete his AP projects on our computers because he does not have computer access at home. I have stayed until 5:00 or 6:00 to allow him to finish a project because I know how badly he wants to do well and that without a computer his work will not be at the same level as the other students who have computer access. On the other end of the spectrum, some of our students are completely wired: IPods, cell phones, computers, and even parents who are computer specialists of various stripes. However, not to minimize the dark reality of the digital divide, I also see the wired students as limited in their ability to use technology effectively, particularly when it comes to evaluating information and using information critically to solve problems. This relates to a common thread in the articles/videos, that ongoing professional development is essential if we are to use technology effectively in the classroom to prepare students for the critical thinking skills they will need in the future. Access to technology is critical; restructuring education to include technology and collaboration is also critical, but critical thinking skills are equally critical.
January 23, 2010
Module #1—Reading/Video Reflection for a summary of the article or video
#1 Summary: Digital Learning Environments: Student Research Projects: By Jon Orech
This brief article opens with a description of the typical high school research project: research both sides of a controversial issue and develop an argument supported by that research. Orech seems critical of this type of project and provides a practical list of alternative, technology tools that every student should be taught to facilitate the electronic research process, with a brief description of the features of each. These tools include: a Delicious account, Google Reader; custom RSS search; Technorati search, a search engine for Blogs; link RSS feeds to Google Reader; and search the invisible web. Orech’s suggestions focus on using the tools of technology to engage students and teach them how to use the technology more effectively. Since they’re going to Google anyway, why not help them learn to use Google in more effective ways? Technorati’s Authority rating help students understand why it is critical to select reliable sources and show them a real world situation where the authority of the source is examined. Orech did not discuss what he expected for a final product from students after using these technology tools.
#2 Summary:
The Future of Learning Institutions in a Digital Age by Cathy N. Davidson
and David Theo Goldberg with the assistance of Zoë Marie Jones
The John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation Reports on Digital Media and Learning
This extensive report examines the relationship between technology and education. One of the fundamental questions is why technology has advanced so rapidly and changed our lives so dramatically, but has had so little meaningful impact on schools.
Modes of learning have changed dramatically over the past two decades—our sources of information, the ways we exchange and interact with information, how information informs and shapes us. But our schools—how we teach, where we teach, who we teach, who teaches, who administers, and who services—have changed mostly around the edges. The fundamental aspects of learning institutions remain remarkably familiar and have done so for something like two hundred years or more. Ichabod Crane, that parody of bad teaching in Washington Irving’s classic short story “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow” (1820), could walk into most college classrooms today and know exactly where to stand and how to address his class.
The report details specific ways technology has changed our lives and what effect it has and should have on individuals and schools. The authors contend that it is not the technology in itself that is revolutionary, but the “potential for shared and interactive learning,” Collaboration, shared authorship and shared learning are keys to this new learning. Rather than the traditional education model of top down learning (an expert lectures his/her students, filling them with information, presumably unchanging truths), knowledge is no longer static: changing as rapidly as technology. Instead, we should develop participatory learning which is “about a process and not a final product.” The report also explores the “mismatch between the excitement generated by informal learning and the routinization of learning so common to many of our institutions of formal education.” Another problem integral to technology is “distinguishing good …sources from those that are questionable.” The digital divide will need to be addressed as well:
In the United States, incarceration correlates with poverty and digital access correlates with educational opportunity and wealth. Despite government pronouncements to the contrary, “digital divide” is not just an old concept but a current reality.
The report ends with a list of examples of the few schools and programs that are radically restructuring the learning environment relying on technology.
Summary #3: Future of Learning: How Technology is Transforming Public Schools
The Committee on Education and Labor’s 2009 panel discussion focuses on the potential of technology to improve student engagement and achievement and reduce drop-out rates. The discussion opens with committee Chairman George Miller’s comments on the future of learning. He claims that future employers will be looking for students who can work in a variety of environments, are comfortable with diversity and can effectively solve problems. He contends that “today’s kindergarten students are not prepared for this” future. The panel consists of educators, business people and technological experts. The panelists share several key conclusions. First, they agree that we need to revamp our education system, that more students will require college degrees, and that all students will need to use technology to research, analyze and create. Several presenters discussed the positive transformative effect when their school systems provided laptops for all students. The presenters also agreed that technology alone will not transform learning and teaching, that high quality, ongoing professional development is the key to success. Presenters shared the conclusion that the digital divide is very real and hits the poor and rural students hardest and agree that technology is an equalizer for disadvantaged students. Technology also allows teachers to reach students with various rates of learning and learning styles. Technology allows for more active learning and collaboration which also requires a shift in paradigm amongst teachers, from the traditional teacher in the front lecturing to a collaborative classroom. In an interesting note, when asked what the government can do to facilitate this transformation, one teacher answered: funding (and everyone laughed).
Common Threads:
The common thread between the three works is the potential of technology to revolutionize teaching and learning. All three allude to the fact that while technology has revolutionized our students’ world, the classroom has remained virtually unchanged. In many cases, technology is used simply to facilitate doing things the way they have always be done. For example, writing research papers and structuring classrooms with teachers in charge and students passively acquiring knowledge. There needs to be systemic change in education if we are to engage students, reach students with various backgrounds and learning styles, curb the drop-out rate, and prepare students for the future.
My thoughts:
Orech’s criticism of the typical high school research paper is well-founded. I taught college Freshman English for almost 20 years; teaching students to write research papers was a continual lesson in frustration—they hate writing them, many write them poorly, and they promptly forget everything they learn because they don’t use those skills again for a year or two. So I agree that the change in teaching needs to go deeper than using electronic sources to complete the same old tired assignments. However, I am concerned that students do not know how to write. Good writing requires critical thinking skills and is a powerful tool, one employers relish. I often see technology used to replace writing, for example a PowerPoint instead of a paper. While I think varying the final product is often helpful, at the risk of sounding like the dinosaur I am, students still need to learn to write. In a different vein, the digital divide is very real at FSK High School. One of our hardest working seniors spends every afternoon in the media center, trying to complete his AP projects on our computers because he does not have computer access at home. I have stayed until 5:00 or 6:00 to allow him to finish a project because I know how badly he wants to do well and that without a computer his work will not be at the same level as the other students who have computer access. On the other end of the spectrum, some of our students are completely wired: IPods, cell phones, computers, and even parents who are computer specialists of various stripes. However, not to minimize the dark reality of the digital divide, I also see the wired students as limited in their ability to use technology effectively, particularly when it comes to evaluating information and using information critically to solve problems. This relates to a common thread in the articles/videos, that ongoing professional development is essential if we are to use technology effectively in the classroom to prepare students for the critical thinking skills they will need in the future. Access to technology is critical; restructuring education to include technology and collaboration is also critical, but critical thinking skills are equally critical.
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