The Internet

I have been thinking a lot about the internet as I am taking a course on technology integration.  Recently, I was asked to read about the history of the internet and was certainly surprised at what I learned. 

It is important to understand the history of the internet because we are all “digital citizens.”  It is important to have a basic understanding of internet milestones because of the impact those milestones have had on communication as well as on the world as a whole.

I was surprised to learn through my study of the internet that the first computers were linked in 1969.  I now think maybe I am a digital native and not an immigrant!  From the year after my birth to the current day, technology has been transforming.  Yes, I was surprised learn that I may in fact be a native as well as surprised at the fact that I don’t think Al Gore was mentioned any where!

One of the most powerful learning tools available to students is the internet.  Within seconds students can have a country thousands of miles away on their desktop.  Questions that used to take hours to answer are answered with great detail in a short amount of time.  The internet is an exciting educational tool.

In order to use the internet responsibly students need to learn how to navigate it as well as “manage” the large amounts of information they find.  There’s lots of good information on the internet but there are also many misconceptions, inaccuracies and well as opinions.  Students must learn to judge the quality of internet resources in order to use it responsibly.

As an educator, I believe I play a vital role in not only helping my students to navigate the internet but also to understand its dangers.  I also believe those lessons on internet safety must begin with young children and built upon each year.  I have taken my students through an activity mentioned in one of the articles I read--  “Spotting a Fake”.   The activity was completed at the end of our unit on explorers.  Students had some knowledge of the subject I was asking them to research and became alarmed as they completed their project because they knew that the information was false.  The activity was meaningful and memorable because the students figured out the site was inaccurate all their own, based on the knowledge they had acquired from me.

I love to learn how others have taught students about the internet in a meaningful way.

Beyond Cool: Meaningful Technology Integration

“Technology” has always impacted education.  Take the printing press of the 1400s--  it allowed for the development of textbooks!  Technology has quietly changed the way we work, play, and think.  Today’s technology is transforming curriculum globally.  The “research” shows that technology integration in schools positively affects the learning process--  both achievement and academic performance.  Consequently, it is incumbent upon educators to embrace technology.

The learning styles of digital natives are different than those of immigrants.  Traditional instructional methods do not meet the needs of the 21st Century learner.  The 21st Century learner thrives on and craves technology.  Thus, technology must be integrated into the classroom because digital natives pervade our classrooms!   But can technology be used to support higher level learning?

Certainly technology can be used to support higher level learning!!!   It can be used to support all of Gardner’s intelligences.   For example, a musically “intelligent” person can be supported technologically through CDs, DVDs, interactive books that have audio elements, digitized singing and instruments, music composition software, etc.  The “naturalist” benefits from online dissections as well as virtual field trips to national parks and landmarks.   Technology supports Gardner’s intelligences as well as allows learners to use higher level thinking skills (think Bloom’s Taxonomy).  The higher-level thinking skills require students to “synthesize,” “evaluate,” and “create.”  Technology most definitely allows for such higher level skills through blogging, publishing, video casting, podcasting, moderating a blog, etc.

Over the last several weeks I have been reading all I can about technology so as to best integrate technology into my classroom.  I have been scouring the internet for ideas.  This week I taught myself how to use two Web 2 services-  Voki and Blabberize.  I enjoyed learning about them as well as creating "avatars" to motivate my students and improve their comprehension.  Both services can be used to do a quick review or introduce a topic.  I see how they grab the students' attention.  I also believe both can be used for higher level thinking skills.  For example, students could create their own avators to present an analysis or evaluation of a text.

If you're looking for something new try Voki and Blabberize (see the links below)

http://www.voki.com/
http://blabberize.com/

APPR vs. Technology

Technology is pervading education.  SMARTBoards, projectors, elmos, flip video cameras, iPods and iPads are commonplace in many classrooms! I am being asked to integrate technology and often feel like I'm being thrown to the wolves!  What exactly does it mean to integrate technology?  Does the fact that my students are using pencils every day count as integrating technology?  I feel tremendous pressure to not only integrate technology but also make sure students "use" technology and even learn technology in my Social Studies classroom.  But what does that mean?  If a I ask students to put a document under the Elmo, is that student "using" technology and learning how to use the Elmo? 

I use technology everyday, but getting my students to use it daily seems to be difficult for me. I wish I could allow my students to communicate using technology, whether it be on facebook or through their smartphones.  However, students can't use phones or access facebook during the school day.  I assign an assignment here or there requiring students the internet for information.  I teach the students how to search appropriately.   However, I haven't a clue what the difference between web 1 and web 2.0.   I also learned a while ago that devoting class time to work on a "technology" project  is not the best use time.  It seems as though too many problems are encountered and students squander the time. 

With the pressures of APPR, where does technology integration fit into the equation?  How is technology integration going to be measured?  Is it even an issue anymore in light of APPR?  I feel as if APPR and technology integration are in conflict. 

I am interesting in your thoughts......do you have any?????

Written Comments

Written Comments on Student Work 

I recently read an article about written comments versus grades on student work.  Written comments refer to those annotated notes that we teachers make on work that a student has turned in.  The article discussed the importance of these written comments to growth and basically argued that ALONE they are powerful.  It also suggested that when paired with a letter grade or score serve virtually no purpose.  If done properly written comments can give good feedback on what a student is doing well and where growth needs to occur.   Of course, the problem with written feedback is it is time consuming to provide and it is also highly subjective.  Written feedback can also be taken out of context or be misinterpreted.  The article suggested to try writing comments on a students work and not actually providing students with the letter grade.  If students are provided with both written comments and a grade, they tend to only look at the grade and not thoughtfully read the comments. 

I decided to try as the article suggested and only write comments on the most recent DBQs students completed as well as give them an opportunity to re-write the DBQ based on those comments.  When I handed back the DBQs I told students to read all the comments over carefully and that their grade would become clear as they read the comments.  This seemed to motivate the students to carefully read over all the comments.  I then handed out a rubric with student's grade.  As I handed out the rubric with a grade I asked them to predict what grade will be on the rubric based on the comments they read. 

The written feedback separated out from the grade served as a great tool.  The rewritten DBQs were the best I have ever received.  In the past, when students have rewritten DBQs it seems very few changes are ever made or the DBQ doesn't change at all. 

Certainly, key to written comments being successful is making sure they are straight forward and honest without being judgmental.

Grades

I've spent a lot of time thinking about "grades" as I "graded" 130 personal Declarations of Independence.  I thought I would take a moment to reflect upon grades and what I've learned about them.  For me, grades are simply one of a number of tools used to provide feedback.

As a teacher, I am familiar with grades as a form of feedback.  Grades give students an indication of where they stand.  Grades are a concrete placeholder based on predetermined grading scale.  However, whether grades motivate students to do better or learn more is something with which I struggle.   I know some students are motivated by "grades" but is it for the right reasons?  I wonder sometimes if grades are more an indication of behavior than learning.  It seems the most well-behaved kids are getting the higher grades.  When grades are given it is often the end of learning.  I am realistic to know that my students need grades to prove their learning to parents, colleges, etc. Getting rid of grades isn't possible, but looking at how, what, and when I grade would be a good idea.

Rest in Peace

     Last week I was told that a former student was killed in Iraq.  Alex was a student who entered my classroom some 16 years ago with a monstrous chip on his shoulder.  However, by the time he left my class he had started to turn things around and over the years that followed was able to recover and graduate high school. He gave me part of the credit for helping him in a letter he wrote to me some years later. He told me it was that I didn’t give up on him, didn’t just throw him out class when he said something ridiculous, and that I made US History fun.  Ultimately it was a single assignment that affected him, a poem I asked him to write from the perspective of a soldier in the Vietnam War.  
    When Alex graduated high school, he joined the Army.  He visited me whenever he was home on leave.  One of his Iraq tours was cut short when he nearly was killed when his unit came under enemy fire. He told me on the day his unit was ambushed he thought of that poem he wrote in 11th grade: But in the end I shall fall like the rest.
   I went back and read Alex's poem when I heard of his passing.  I was struck by these lines--  Looking at pictures of my wife and kids.  Leaving them will be the hardest thing I ever did.  Alex left behind a wife and two children.  He was one of those students who helped me grow as a young teacher.  While I have seen students turn their lives around, he was my first.  I am honored to have been part of his life and am deeply saddened by his loss.

WordFoto

In the past, I have used Wordle in class but recently have been playing at home with a "WordFoto" app on an I-pad I borrowed from a friend.  WordFoto isn't meant to reconfigure an entire speech or paragraph like Wordle.  Bascially, WordFoto allows you to add words to a photo....hence, "WordFoto." 


At home, I have enjoyed taking photos of my kids and turning them into cards and posters.  One night when I was working on one I got to thinking that the program had some potential to make images of historical figures and places more interesting. Below is a WordFoto made of a Mount Vernon photo.  The original photo is beneath to allow you to compare the two.  

I used a "WordFoto" I created to grab students attention when we started our unit on the Revolutionary War and they seemed to respond well to it.  I will certainly consider using it again.