PART A - Brainstorm Session for Group Leadership Project

  Overall, our first group meeting was a success! Before the meeting, each of us previewed the online tool Vyew and thought that it would be good to tool to try. We set a time and date, and a group member set-up a “room” for us to use. Using the link to the Vyew room was very easy.  While in the room, we utilized the video conferencing tool, although some of us (cough, me, cough cough) had issues and resorted to using the chat function. My issues with the chat function are noted in my previous post. One of the great benefits is that you can download the chat. I also turned the chat into a google doc so that it would be accessible that way as well. I would also note here that the video display for the web conferencing was very small. In some ways this is good because it keeps the focus on the project in front of you, but I can see it coming in handy where you could opt to enlarge one person’s feed to see something in particular.

   We also used the sticky note functions, drawing tools, and uploaded a document. There was no embedded tool to record the session. Two group members volunteered to record the session using Jing, but were only able to record in “chunks” , which they later had issues turning into one continuous clip. That being said, and to summarize my thoughts from earlier: This tool would be great for group document mock-up, but I am not sure that it the best brainstorming tool, and if it’s documentation you’re looking for, I would use another tool with something already included in the program. The difficulties of piecing the Jing together is an issue that I would like to discuss further, since it was our initial thought to use Jing to record the individual ‘chapters’ of our tutorial and then piece them together.
   So that you don't have to suffer through watching the sections or reading the chat here is the summary. We decided to teach the Google "office-cloud" applications through a series of tutorials recorded in Jing and then pieced together. We then set a date and time for our next meeting to collaborate for the storyboard portion.
I am looking forward to the further developments of this project. 

***UPDATE****6/4 We have been able to get chunks of our video is a transferable mode! YAY! Please find the link below, although be aware that given our difficulities there is not much audio after the beginning part. 
Part 1
Part 2 
Part 3 
Part 4 
Part 5 
 

Wicked Project Part B-TPACK

   While my initial solution to my problem involved getting e-readers for everyone, wise comments from others have helped me to refine my vision. While it is cost effective to give e-readers to those students who are identified as having difficulties with reading, I feel that these students would have to deal with being “labeled” by their peers because they would be one of the few in their classes who would have one, and it would obviously bear some school identifier. A few other morsels of food-for-thought brought up through comments and more research on my part, are that expensive tools may have a tendency to disappear and that students taking them home may result in unwanted content on the readers.

   Given that, I have refined my scope to having a set of e-readers in my classroom. I see this as similar to math teachers who have a class set of more expensive calculators. If each student is working off a reader than no student is singled out, and those students who may have reading difficulties but have not been identified as such by the school, still have access to the aids. Having a set in my room means that I am better able to deal with “loss-prevention” issues, damage done to the readers, and I am also better able to deal with content issues. And besides, no one can claim that they couldn’t do their homework because their reader didn’t work.

TP: How does the technology you have chosen support the teaching strategies and methods you have chosen?

                I believe that in order to understand History, each of us needs to build our own understanding of the subject matter, especially, how history narratives (i.e. textbooks) are created. Both of these forms of understanding come from examining source material, questioning, and drawing conclusions. In this way, students make their own mental webs of information that they can use to learn and to interpret new information as it is presented, and to understand ideas about the society that they live in. The foundation for building these understandings comes heavily from being able to read source materials.

The ideal of digital media is a relative blip on the historic timeline, meaning that until recently everything was done on paper in some manner. This meant that if students were to use these texts, teachers not only had to have access to these artifacts but then make copies of them (if possible) so that they were classroom ready. Many groups have been working to digitize these artifacts so that they are accessible and downloadable through the web. Using e-readers in my classroom means that students would have 1:1 access to the documents and texts for the various activities and lessons that I have planned with a device that aids and encourages them with their class reading. I try to make sure that students work together to build knowledge and answer questions based on the things they have read and looked at. If the student does not read the text, my teaching methods are useless. E-readers help to bridge that gap. Basically if a student can ‘read’ the material, then their chances of participating in the class and chances of doing well in the class greatly increase.

 The outside sources that I use in order to present information about the time period we are studying can now be collected in an organized manner that students can easily read-access and ‘flip’ between in order to make comparisons or highlight/clip portions to use in their writing. I can now, for instance, provide students with two opposing newspaper editorials, images from the event, artwork (possibly in color), poetry (And I can still be eco-friendly.), and I can have an activity go from these sources, rather than going with a paragraph summary of the event from the textbook. Also, e-readers which are able to access the web do not support the range of programs that laptops do, which means that my students will be better able to stay focused on the task at hand.

TC: How specifically does this technology make the content in your problem more intellectually accessible?  Be sure to think about representation.

                E-readers allow the information in the texts being used in the classroom to become more accessible in many ways. Perhaps most notably, most e-readers have a text-to-speech function that allows students who are struggling readers or who are more aural learners a gateway in the material that will be used in class. E-readers include dictionaries and translators to help all students understand what they are reading without having to take the time to find such aids or interrupt the rest of the class, nor do they have to call attention to their specific difficulties. Some dictionary functions display “in-page” allowing students even greater ease. E-readers allow students to change the font size, and many devices use e-ink, reducing eye strain. These benefits combined with how lightweight an e-reader is allow the reader to focus and place their effort on the content rather than on the effort of reading itself.

 Beyond that, there is a “cool factor” that is involved with using an e-reader. When students are excited about the way they are learning, they become more excited about the learning itself. This excitement in turn leads to a greater willingness to engage in the reading material and approach it with an open mind, especially if they feel that there is a cool tool to help them formulate their ideas.    

 

                PC: How specifically do your pedagogical choices make the content in your problem more intellectually accessible?) Be sure to think about how the student will experience the content given these instructional strategies.

As a history teacher I am a big believer of having students examine documents/artifacts from the unit we are studying as a means of helping them to construct their own understanding of the time/place/people/issue/etc., rather than relying solely on the textbook to feed them a single storyline.

 Often times the text (for a number of reasons both understandable and un-understandable) leaves out persons and stories of the time period that might connect with the people who are reading that text and the place and situation they are coming from. A textbook overview of people’s reactions is not enough. Incorporating art, music, speech (yes, e-readers support .mp3 files), and other mediums help students to connect to the content. Allowing students to bring and access their own information and history to the documents while they are examining and making connections means that the discussions that they will engage in will be that much more REAL. And that means that the knowledge and understanding that they build will be real and lasting as well.

Web-Conferencing or: trial, error, more error

   Had our first group meeting this morning. The people were lovely, the subject of discussion engaging, the technology, well, the technology was doing something....

We decided to use Vyew, which I had suggested to use. I had gone to their website and went through their full tutorial and it seemed to be a dandy thing, but after really working with it this morning I have more mixed feelings.

   It started with things on my end (I think) when the internet connection that I had anticipated having was not what I was told it was going to be. I had echo issues with my mic, and issues syncing and in the end the program crashed on me twice. This I chalk up to the connection because I have never had video chat problems before this and I have the latest edition of Flash. After that, I decided to stick with the chat end of the meeting and just listen to the audio and comment along.

   Given that the chat was my main line of communication, having just a little tiny box was less than great and their was no way to hide the user box to expand the chat area. I found that scrolling up and down to read what was being posted was very 'clunky' and that it was difficult to find exactly what you were looking for. Also, I did not see a way to put in a hyperlink which was disappointing.I did upload a document which automatically created a new page which was nice.

   It was not a bad program, but I see it as more of a document collaboration program, for instance if you were going through a contract etc., but I am not sure if this is the best for what we are going to be doing, although it would be hard to say, given that our situation would different. For instance I will be back home so the chat feature would not be as necessary, but we will be story-boarding so I wonder if that will transfer well. Perhaps next time we will need to find a different program that will allow for more graphics manipulation.

    Overall I can see how web-conferencing would be great to incorporate in the classroom. I know that some teachers use it to hold meetings with the authors of the books that kids are reading, and I can see numerous similar applications such as chatting with elected officials or other special speakers that may not be currently in the area. I can also see teachers using this tool to create collaboration projects between their school/students and students and schools elsewhere (anywhere!) And while it wouldn't have to be this particular tool, I can see web conferencing as a means to the end of the "our project isn't finished because we couldn't meet after school/johnny can't get a ride/etc" issue. This technology means that students can stay up working together until 2 am if they need to. I'm not saying they should, but it could help alleviate some of the typical due-date headaches.

Wicked Project Part A- Description of Need or Opportunity

            For my year of student teaching I was placed at Everett High School in Lansing, MI teaching history. This school serves a student population that comes from primarily minority and lower socio-economic backgrounds, as well as a large portion that are learning English as a second or third language. Not surprisingly, many of these students had difficulty with reading and other related literacy issues. As a social studies teacher, I encouraged my students interact with their textbooks, and I worked hard to bring in outside source material and primary documents. The knowledge from all these sources, as well as the insight gained from the lesson plans that I had developed was lost when students weren’t utilizing the text. Often times, students would simply let others, especially in group work, read the text and then fake or copy the answers. If we read aloud, often times I would find students ‘zoning out’, doing other things, or sleeping. These actions often time were used by students to mask a literacy issue of some sort.

            Asking students to read text outside the classroom was not a feasible option due solely to the fact that we were only allowed a classroom set, with a handful of CD-ROMs to give students to take home, or we were to print sections of the text from the CD if a student did not have access to the computer-which was common. Had we been able to assign each student a text, the weight of the book alone would have deterred some from taking it home, along with the fact that many did not have access to resources as simple as a dictionary to help them understand the text. Had I opted not to use the text, any outside reading I would have wanted my students to do would have meant making 130+ copies which is a lot of trees, ink, and time. Plus, it’s amazing how quickly a packet of papers gets misplaced or lost in the sheaf of all the other papers from school. I believe that had I been able to assign more reading outside of class that the time spent as a group in class would have been more productive and we would have been able to ‘cover’ more content and work on developing those skills necessary for the 21^st century.

I cannot imagine what it is like to be an English teacher.

Therefore, the problem I would like to solve is finding ways to help students access the text and print based materials that they utilize in/during class and give them the tool(s) needed to aid them in assigned reading outside of class. 

I believe that technology can help address these issues. A one-to-one solution seems optimal here, but I’m not sure that it needs to be laptops. Laptops are expensive not only in terms of hardware and software, but “help desk” personal as well. They provide opportunities for students to place programs, content, and viruses on the computer that is undesirable (no matter how many contracts they sign), and it is hard to monitor how ‘on-task’ a classroom of students is when they are on their laptops. Also, they are heavy.

Instead, I would implement the use of e-readers, such as the nook. These portable devices may prove to be the ‘just-right’ solution. Here’s how:  

•    I’m not saying that laptops for every student are a bad idea, but in terms of addressing this specific problem it provides too much opportunity for students to be doing something other than the task at hand. E-readers provide students with the text(s) they need, necessary tools (like dictionaries), and internet. The user interface of most readers combined with the relatively slower speed its processor means that gaming is not really a feasible option.

•  Cost.  E-readers are not cheap, but compared to the cost of outfitting every student with a laptop, software, etc., it can be less expensive. Beyond that, most textbooks are cheaper to purchase in an electronic form, not to mention exploring options of open/free content. Often times a text or book purchased online can be shared across multiple readers. E-readers can handle pdf files encouraging the use of outside materials and reducing the need for physical copies.

•  Students have options to aid them in understanding the text. Most models allow you to modify the text size, have text-to-speech options, include dictionaries, allow you to “clip” and/or highlight sections of text, keep your place, and allow you to take notes “in the margins”.

•     Students are able to more readily access their texts. Realizing at 9 p.m. that you left your novel in your locker is horrible, but if you have your Kindle, everything is in one place. Granted there is a problem if you leave the Kindle at school, but there are other accessibility options such as syncing to online accounts through computers or mobile devices. And while reading on a mobile device screen would not be my choice over an extended period of time, it would do in a pinch or if I found myself bored with only my phone.

•   It is much easier to carry around one e-reader than 5 huge textbooks. Granted there would be some investment cost in cases, but many students in a high school setting don’t want to be seen as the ‘nerd’ who lugs all their books home every day (especially in a rolling suitcase)-to the point that they don’t carry a bag or backpack. E-readers are easy to slip into purses etc. Beyond that, because these are personal reading devices, it is much harder for students to know whether another student is using an assistive tool or reading at slower pace. Essentially, e-readers help to minimize “ego damage”.

Given these benefits, I believe that assigning e-readers with their texts pre-loaded and allowing time for teachers and students to learn how to use them, will in the end prove to be more than worth the cost and teachers will be able to better utilize their class time. My initial research shows if nothing else, the “cool factor” of e-readers encourages more students to read and for longer periods of time, although much of this comes from English teachers and librarians utilizing stories and novels as opposed to a traditional “text” readings.  There are mixed results about students with literacy disorders and whether e-readers actually improve literacy or simply (again) encourage students to read. There was a 2,100 student high school in Clearwater, FL that was supposed to implement e-readers across the board in 2010, but I have not yet found a “follow-up” article that states the results of their project.

Reading the blogs of what others have done, I would probably look to first distribute the e-readers among those students who are officially labeled with reading difficulties and/or are receiving assistance with their schoolwork due to reading difficulties. I would choose this population for two reasons. The first is that this population is a smaller group within the school meaning that the initial investment would be smaller and if it was found that this program was not working, the bite would not hurt so much.

This small ‘set’ of readers could be transferred to the library where many schools have found success having them there. Secondly, these students are more likely to have someone specifically monitoring, tracking, and recording their academic progress. This means that we would have a more detailed understanding of if and how students are utilizing these devices and whether moving to a whole school system is best. I would monitor this first group of students for at least an entire academic school year. I would also distribute short periodic surveys to teachers utilizing the readers to find of the degree of use and any observations or issues that they might have.  Universities that have been “guinea pigging” the use of the large screen Kindle DX have found less than astounding results with Graduate students, but I must wonder how their experience compares to that of a special needs student. And also, given the rapid development of technology, I believe that this small investment is a worthy one to aid those students who most need help until an economic and student-friendly model of an e-reader is developed.

Although I have no classroom (or money, ha) to implement this idea there are several things that I would like to do during this course to ‘fill out’ my knowledge of this project. First, I would like to survey the high school students that I do have ‘access’ to regarding their thoughts and knowledge about e-readers. Using this knowledge, I hope to gain a better understanding of the issues (positive and negative) that I might encounter if I were to implement the project. I would also like to investigate further into tablet computers, and if they may be modified to isolate or “turn off” certain functions easily to provide an effective hybrid between the laptops and e-readers.

CEP 812 Intro Video