My twitter self was hatched back in 2008 when I learned of this new phenomenon called microblogging at an American Library Association conference. The keynote speaker encouraged the audience members to sign up for Twitter and tweet during her speech, so I signed up. I think I tweeted once or twice during her speech and thought to myself: I don’t get it – what’s the big deal? Well, a social media visionary I am not! It took me four years to finally break out of my shell, and by that I mean change my profile pic from the generic egg new users given to an actual picture of myself. Flash forward to 2012 when I first attended a summer institute sponsored by Discovery Education. It was there I was encouraged to harness the power of Twitter to keep in touch with my fellow attendees from across the US and Canada as well as instantly share our ideas with our huge group. Since then I have used Twitter regularly to learn, share, and explore ideas, concepts, and thoughts on education. Twitter is critical to student learning in the 21st century. In order for students to discover the most up-to-date resources and research on any given topic all they have to do is search on Twitter. Teachers should be teaching students to search with hashtags to find information they seek. Because so many people use Twitter to share information and research, it offers the most recent information on myriad subjects giving students the best information possible instantly. Twitter and microblogging are not the only social media tools available to teachers and students. There are oodles of social media sites for people with special interests. For example, I joined a site called Bookcrossing. I am a reader, a lover of books, and a hugely annoying book-pusher. Nothing gives me greater pleasure than recommending a great book to someone then hearing back from them that they liked the book. It makes me feel like a matchmaker who has united two soulmates: book to reader. Okay, even I can hear the saccharin sickness of my book obsession! However, when I’m on Bookcrossing my annoying book-pushing becomes a game and a social activity.
Pottermore is a virtual world largely controlled by the programmers of the website. There is very little autonomy and creativity the user can harness. While this can be both good and bad, it has its limits as far as being highly effective in an educational setting. Playing in Pottermore is fun and exciting, but it is also limiting for the user. This is why I love Minecraft: Education Edition. Minecraft allows the user to build his or her own world from scratch or enter a pre-made world but customize it to their needs and wants. The educational applications of Minecraft are incredible. For example, a student who loves Harry Potter, or any other book, place, or land, can build it in their image. They can even invite others into their world to help build it and maintain it. Teachers interested in the educational use of Minecraft can start on the resource page to find lessons that link to standards for a variety of contents. Social networks and virtual worlds hold a lot of potential for all students. Higher order thinking skills are a must for a virtual world like Minecraft in which students have to figure out how to make the world do what he or she wants. This often takes grit because one learns in these worlds through trial and error. Critical thinking skills are essential if a user is going to make progress in their goals of taking part of the virtual world. English Language Learners (ELLs) and students with special needs can often learn the language and rules for virtual worlds easily since these worlds are highly visual. Students who typically eschew traditional learning situations may find this type of demonstration of learning more engaging because it is game-based. However, the most valuable part of using virtual worlds to support all student learning is that there is no one right answer or one perfect world or one set of right answers or actions.
Teachers must learn to structure learning so that the goal of the final product is not simply a check list of required items. Virtual worlds are one way to do this. But, as I write this post I can hear teachers put up the most common roadblock to utilizing web-based tools in their classes: not all students have computers or internet access. The Digital Divide has been a major concern in education for more than a decade. Paul Gorski states: “The “divide” refers to the difference in access rates among one or more groups” (p. 5). One way to think of the Digital Divide is to think of the Haves and the Have-nots. Teachers are reluctant to require web-based curriculum or assignments because students with computers and online access have an unfair advantage over the students who don’t have these resources. This view of equality of resources is not the most crucial view of the Digital Divide. As Gorski points out, access is only one part of the digital divide; the other part of the digital divide is the expectations that all students regardless of race, sex, disability, or socio-economic status be given the same opportunity to use these digital tools in their education and become proficient at using technology (p. 8). This point is also echoed in the National Educational Technology Plan and is referred to as the “New Digital Divide.” In the schools I work with, Fulton County Schools, the true digital divide comes down to the technology proficiency of a student’s teacher. Students have internet-ready devices in Fulton County. Middle and high schools are 1:1 and elementary schools are 3:1. In this instance, the Haves are the students with teachers who use technology frequently and integrate it into the curriculum. The Have-nots are the students who have teachers who do not integrate technology in their curriculum but rather view technology as project time or use it in a manner that makes students passive users rather than active users. For example, a teacher who plays videos they select and download for students to view are not giving students an opportunity to interact with the information, only receive it. A teacher who has students make their own videos and provides a platform for students to upload and view others’ videos is providing a rich context for learning. One way to nip this problem in the bud is to provide high quality, engaging professional development – such as coaching- to teachers. Another way to help teachers bridge the digital divide is to give them access to tools, websites, and apps that are easily to use and high quality so they can integrate them into the curriculum. Ongoing support with technology is also a must. Social media and virtual world provide an authentic audience for all types of users. Teachers hold the keys to the kingdom. References: Gorski, P. (2005). Education equity and the digital divide. AACE Journal, 13(1), 3-45. National Education Technology Plan. (2016, January ). Retrieved from Office of Educational Technology, https://tech.ed.gov/files/2017/01/NETP17.pdf Solomon, G., & Schrum, L. (2014). Web 2.0: How-to for educators (2nd ed.). United States: International Society for Technology in Education.
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Who taught you grit, the character trait that propels a person keep trying until a goal is achieved? When did you learn determination? Can you remember the first time tenacity paid off for you? These intangible skills, as Solomon and Shrum (2014) call them, are critical for students to learn as they mature into college and the workforce. Many of us learned these skills in school. Collaboration and interactions with students help to build these skills. While there is no doubt that these skills are necessary for students to learn, the question is can these skills be taught as classrooms move towards technology-based instruction such as personalized learning and blended learning? Honestly, if you want to see if technology can teach determination, perseverance, and tenacity all you have to do is watch a student play a video game obsessively until he or she have rescued the princess or defeated their deadly foe in battle. As a child of the 80s, I learned these traits quarter by quarter on the Pac Man machine in the arcade. Solomon and Shurm call for research to prove the transference of technology based lessons in the classroom. This is where I disagree with Solomon and Shrum; technology tools in the classroom are great ways to teach perseverance in the classroom. Kate Wilson’s blog Creating a Community of Learners with Coding states that coding, learning to program, creates perseverance because students are challenged to think collaboratively and critically. Likewise, Dr. Brian Davidson’s blog talks about the ability to teach non-cognitive skills; he points out that until recently these skills were learned implicitly. Davidson cleverly says that non-cognitive skills have been “caught but not taught” until recently in K-12 education. Personally, I would love to see if Minecraft an improve a student’s non-cognitive skills while building knowledge and meeting, or exceeding, content standards. Additionally, investigating coding tools, such as Scratch or other coding websites, as a way to build cognition and non-cognitive skills would be very informative. It’s tools like these that will engage today’s digital learners. Additionally, providing students tools and authentic experiences such as blogging, competitions, and challenge-learning opportunities can provide high levels of engagement that students thirst for in their classrooms. I’ve been in education for over 16 years, and when I started it was considered progressive for the teacher to have a desktop computer in the classroom; now students are expected to be on a device every day. Therefore, using technology to help students develop the critical skills they need in real life is a must. I see students in the future learning Python rather than French. Students creating a virtual world in Minecraft that explores the complexities of the real world as proof they understand the myriad issues that go along with a sensitive topic like immigration provides a safe place to learn about events that may never directly impact them. Back in the day when I stacked up quarters in the corner of the Pac Man screen to hone my mad ghost and dot eating abilities, I never imagined computers would drive educational experiences for students. When I became a teacher, I saw computers as a way for students to type their essays efficiently, but I did not see them as a personal learning tool. Now, I know that if educators don’t embrace technology students will suffer in the long run. 21st century learners must be highly proficient in 21st century skills in addition to content knowledge outlined in standards. The plethora of web tools provides access to learners with a variety of needs. Tools like Discovery Education and Newsela provide students with media in multiple languages, so English Language Learners (ELLs) can access assignments in their native language. Universal design provides students with all types of disabilities access to learning assets they would not be able to use in analog form. Regardless of a reading processing disorder such as dyslexia, all students can read an online text thanks to text-to-speech software. Barriers that used to cause students to have to attend special schools are broken down by 21st century technology. All students can learn 21st century skills while engaging in active lessons that connect them to an authentic audience. Blogging is one way to do this. Hanna Shekhter states in her blog post Why Teachers and Students Should Blog: “Students have an authentic audience for their writing and that has an impact on the quality of their posts and comments.” Having students to blog offers a rich learning experience. It is also an opportunity for students to learn intangible skills such as grit and resilience. Psychology Today says: "Teaching kids how to receive and give constructive criticism may allow them to reap the benefits of such comments...." When writing for peers and an authentic audience on a platform that invites comments will most likely generate some feedback that will not be completely postive. Students need explict instruction on how to handle these types of comments in order to learn how to take/use such comments in the most positive and constructive way possible. Sylvia Duckworth’s sketchnote on student blogging is a great source for making the argument for blogging in the classroom. There are many reasons to have students blog including many that reach beyond the classroom. Britt Watwood has posted a great resource for teachers looking to get their students blogging. He has created a list of blog posts supporting blogging in the classroom. I use the resources and experts he lists to find solid support to have student blog. Additionally, Richard Bryne provides teachers with resources and lesson ideas in his blog Free Tech for Teachers. Anytime I want to investigate a new tool or get a suggestion on how to implement a tool, I check him out. Both of these guys have great rationale for getting students blogging: authentic audience, writing for a purpose, authentic feedback. Their resources are thorough and range from entry level to advanced. Having a good rubric to evaluate student writing is valuable. This rubric by Karen Franker is thorough and easy for students to understand. Student blogs must be monitored as do the comments from their peers. Kathy Schrock has posted a rubric to evaluate peer Comments on students’ post. Additionally, doing some proactive digital citizenship work will help head off some issues. Below is a rubric I use to evaluate students blogs. With my students, I am mostly concerned about students developing their ideas and having engaging, logical content; therefore, my rubric focuses on these two elements. Since it is a writing assignment, I do also look at quality of writing. Blogging Rubric References
DeLoatch, P. (2015, May 2). The Four negative sides of technology. Retrieved January 26, 2017, from http://www.edudemic.com/the-4-negative-side-effects-of-technology/ Franker, K. (2010). A rubric for evaluating student Blogs. Retrieved January 26, 2017, from https://www2.uwstout.edu/content/profdev/rubrics/blogrubric.html OET draft grit report 2 17 13. (2013). . Retrieved from http://pgbovine.net/OET-Draft-Grit-Report-2-17-13.pdf Taylor, J. (2012, December 12). How technology is changing the way children think and focus. Retrieved January 26, 2017, from Psychology Today, https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/the-power prime/201212/how-technology-is-changing-the-way-children-think-and-focus Retrieved January 26, 2017, from http://www.schrockguide.net/assessment-and-rubrics.html Watwood, B. (2016, January 25). Should students Blog? Retrieved January 26, 2017, from http://bwatwood.edublogs.org/2016/01/25/should-students-blog/comment-page-1/ Like many of the tech savvy teachers I know, I am mostly self-taught when it comes to my tech skills (a.k.a ninja skills). Several years ago when I was still a newbie teacher, I watched the "cool teachers" and they had one thing in common: technology. Back in those days interactive whiteboards were modern miracles of technology, we were still conviscating beepers, and everyone had at least 10 AOL cd-rom set up discs sitting on their desktop computer towers. I went to the cool teacher club before and after school and carried their water while I learned tech at their shared drives.
Because I LOVED 21st Century Teaching and Learning ITEC 7400! If that makes me a nerd, well so be it. This was a great class and a great way to start my Ed.S. experience.
My favorite part of this class was getting to spend time dedicated to planning out the Engaged Learning project. The National Novel Writing Month Project (NaNoWriMo) is all about challenging students to complete a real-life project. To write an entire novel is a huge accomplishment, even if it never makes it to a traditional publisher. With the NaNoWriMo website, class wikis, and other web-based tools, all students can publish their work. Rooted in the community are tools to help writers do what all writers have to do: write. Writing a 50,000 word book is daunting, but the online worldwide community helps students stay motivated throughout the month and to achieve their goal. ISTE-C 2.1 states: “Candidates model and facilitate the use of digital tools and resources to engage students in authentic learning experiences.” I feel like a I did a good job on this project to make the learning authentic and engaging. Part of the ISTE-C standards is to continue to develop yourself as a coach and technology expert (ISTE-C 6.1). Even before starting my Ed.S, I read a lot of technology blogs, followed many techies on Twitter, and combed through the internet for new and exciting tools to use in the classroom. However, I wasn’t necessarily able to communicate about technology well. This course helped me develop the language for effective discourse in instructional technology. I knew most of the tools and applications we studied, but I didn’t always have the language to describe them effectively. For example, Word, Excel, and PowerPoint were always just “the Microsoft Stuff” or “the writing program, the column program, and the presentation program.” Reading the chapter in the Roblyer text about Productivity Tools gave me the context in which to talk about and describe these tools intelligently. While at first glance that may not sound important, it is incredibly important when one thinks about how critical it is to communicate these new and challenging concepts to classroom teachers and other stakeholders. One way I like to challenge students in authentic learning is by getting them involved in competitions. I don’t mean classroom versions or Jeopardy or a game I create for a test review; I mean I like for students to compete in local area, statewide, nationwide, and international competitions. I’ve had student enter everything from the Roswell Water Department’s water conservation poster contest to Google’s Doodle4Google contest. Many times I would have to justify to administrators or others why we were doing such an activity. I’d explain the relationship to the standards I was teaching, and I would explain, patiently, competitions inherently require close reading of informational texts (the submission requirements), time management (due dates), and innovative thinking (if you want to win you can’t do the same thing as everyone else). So, I was thrilled when Dr. Jo posted a list of competitions for students to enter. It really is an under-utilized project-based learning opportunity. With the help from the Roblyer text and Dr. Jo’s resources, it is much easier to justify competitions and get buy-in from administration and parents. |
Ana HaleHula Hoop Champion, 1980 Crestwood Middle School (I can't believe I peaked in the '80s) Archives
November 2017
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