Want to know more? Read all about it at What is Quills and Thrills?
Ready to start the first writing prompt? Check it out at Quills and Thrills: Writing Prompt Week One!
Download a printable version of the Ten Commandments of Digital Citizenship Pledge and Permission Form today!
Guess what, dear reader? I created a flipped video using EDpuzzle! It only took me an hour (and let’s face it, an hour is a bit too much time to spend on one, four-minute video), but I’m optimistic that I will become much more efficient at creating EDpuzzle videos, especially if I add questions, audio, and text to videos I create myself instead of the videos in the EDpuzzle library. Half the challenge was figuring out if I was using the right video, what to cut out of the video, what to include in my audio notes, and what questions to ask.
I couldn’t figure out how to embed my EDpuzzle video into this post, but if you click here you’ll be able to see my EDpuzzle video in a new tab.
If you’re wondering what I mean by “flipped,” you should check out this informative EDpuzzle video that compares and contrasts flipped classrooms and traditional classrooms.
First of all, it is FREE! EduCanon is a similar program, but it’ll constantly pester you to upgrade to receive certain services. EDpuzzle will never panhandle its users.
So Many Options!
As I mentioned earlier, EDpuzzle makes it easy for teachers to add questions, comments, and audio notes to a video. You can create your own video and upload it to EDpuzzle, or you can select a video from their extensive library.
Crop Videos
Have you ever found a YouTube video with useful information in the middle of the video, but irrelevant information at the beginning or end of the video? With EDpuzzle, you can crop a video down so you only use what you need.
Use Audio Track to Record Over the Entire Video
If you want your students to watch a slow-motion video of a bullet hitting an apple so you can discuss the transfer of energy or something, you can record your explanation over the video. This is a neat feature, but I wish it would let you record over only a portion of the video instead of making you record over the entire thing.
Keep it Personal with Audio Notes
Some videos use academic language that is just out of students’ reach, and some students need to hear you explain things multiple times before they finally get it (or tune-in). With EDpuzzle, you can interrupt the video with audio notes to re-explain concepts from the video using kid-friendly language. This could also simply act as a cue letting the students know what is or isn’t important. Audio notes are different from audio tracks because they stop the video to play the track instead of playing over the video. Even though they pause the video, audio notes do not tally into the total length of the EDpuzzle video.
Assessment and Accountability with Quizzes
This name of this feature is a little misleading because it allows you to do more than just quiz students. While you can make them answer multiple choice questions (I love the “no skipping” option!), you can also ask short-answer questions or leave comments to the right of the video.
Multiple-Choice: This is exactly what it sounds like. Ask quick, level one questions to make sure your students are paying attention, or ask level two questions that make the students apply the information covered in the video. You could also ask a series of questions before the video as a pre-assessment, then ask the similar questions again at the end of the video to track student learning. But be aware, EDpuzzle gives immediate feedback on multiple-choice questions. Students will know if they answered correctly or incorrectly as soon as they click continue.
Short-Answer Option: This is also exactly what it sounds like, but when I flip my lessons I’ll use this feature to ask students what questions they have about the content. This will allow me to tailor the next class period to meet student needs. Hello, data-driven instruction! I know this is somewhere in the NM Teach Domains…As for me, I’m planning on pairing EDpuzzle with PollEverywhere or TodaysMeet so students can ask questions about content in real-time.
Comment Option: This is a neat tool that allows you to simply add a comment to the right of the video. Like the audio notes, this can be used to restate information in kid-friendly language but it targets visual learners more than auditory learners.
Multiple Ways to Share with Students
Once you’ve finished creating your video, you can assign it to a class. This is important if you want to see your students’ results after watching the video. To set this up, students will have to create their own account (FREE!) and join your class using a unique code. Then, you just assign your video to a class!
If you aren’t worried about student data but you still want to share your video with a large group of people, you can simply share a link or embed the video into certain platforms like Schoology. The data won’t be saved, but anyone with the link can see your comments and answer your questions.
When students are logged in, they’ll see their assigned videos and completed videos side by side, along with their scores on completed videos.
If students try to work in another tab while the video plays in the background, the video will automatically pause. However, clever students will quickly figure out that the video will keep playing if it is open in a different window.
Students may also realize that they need to rewatch a portion of the video again before they’re ready to answer a question.
If that’s the case, they can simply click the “rewatch” button and the video will start over from the last stopping point (question, comment, or audio note).
On the teacher side of things, you’ll be able to see some helpful data and quickly grade short answer questions:
Just make sure you always double-check your questions before assigning a video to the class. Once it’s been assigned, you will not be able to edit it.
That’s all I’ve got for you today! If you want to read more about strategies using technology and the SAMR Model, check out my post on using PollEverything in the classroom or my post on Animoto. You can also read the first post in this series here.
Check out the next post in this series: Professional Development 2.0!
If you’ve poked around this website a bit, you may have stumbled across a couple of videos I created using a nifty web-based program called Animoto. You can find the videos here and here.
If you scroll down you’ll also find an Animoto Tutorial video I created for my students showing how I made the above video.
Animoto is great because it is super simple to create a short video using text, pictures, and video files that are already on your computer, iPad, or SmartPhone. You just log in, click “create,” select a style, then drag and drop! It is so simple and intuitive, even young elementary students can create a video with Animoto.
At this point, you may be wondering why use Animoto when there are plenty of other tools out there that students can use to create a glorified slide show. For me, it’s the platform. Most other video-editing programs I’ve used require a full-blown lesson on how to actually use the program. Aside from getting the kids logged in, I won’t have to teach an entire lesson on how to use Animoto. I can just give them the computers, tell them where to go, how to log in, and what I expect them to create with the program. After that, I can focus on teaching content again. If they need a little extra help maneuvering the program, I’ll just direct them to my nine-minute Animoto Tutorial below.
Now that you’ve become acquainted with Animoto, you need to create meaningful lessons. In an earlier post, I discussed the importance of using technology as a way to enhance student learning. The SAMR Model is a great tool because it serves as a reminder to use technology to create new learning experiences that otherwise wouldn’t be possible. If you want to know more about how to apply the SAMR Model to your own lessons, check out the first post in this series: Doug, SAMR, and Me: Reflecting after a week of PD.
Ever since I started teaching, I’ve always had students create an artsy-fartsy representation of themselves to present to the rest of the class. Some years I’ll have them create shields, others they’ll create self-portraits, and last year my American Lit classes made personal flags. It’s a great way to learn names and get to know the students. Plus, I have a ton of student artwork to hang on the walls, which helps the students feel more comfortable and proud to be there.
Last year, however, after presenting his flag, I had an English language learner (ELL) write about how anxious presentations made him because he didn’t speak English very well. I realized that by requiring presentations the first or second week of school, I was already setting some of my students up for an anxiety-ridden year in a classroom where they don’t feel socially safe; the exact opposite of what I intended for this particular project.
Animoto will help me change that. This year, my students will create Mandalas for their artsy-fartsy Ms.Hayes-needs-art-on-her-walls project. Since Animoto is so quick and easy to use, I’ll give students the option to use Animoto to present their Mandala to the class instead of a traditional presentation. Since Animoto has apps for smartphones and tablets, shy or tech-savvy students can use their own technology and their own time to create the video, and ELLs can recruit help from friends or teachers so they feel confident about their English usage in the video.
My students will also have Greek and Latin root-based vocabulary quizzes every Friday this year. When I taught juniors and seniors, I didn’t provide any vocabulary instruction during class (unless students asked for help, that is). I told them that in order to prepare for college they needed to get used to studying on their own outside of class, and if they needed help or explicit instruction I would be happy to give them one on one tutoring. That worked for juniors and seniors. That won’t work for freshmen.
Since I’ve designed my vocabulary units to give students repeated exposure to the same nine Greek and Latin roots over a five-week period, I can use Animoto as an assessment tool or as a review activity before unit tests or the summative vocabulary exam during finals week. Here’s a basic idea of what that’ll look like:
Many teachers have had their students use Animoto to create a book trailer for something that they’ve read in class. While I think that’s a great idea, I don’t want to watch 150 Animoto trailers on the same book.
Instead, I might modify their idea a bit, and have students create a book trailer on something they’ve read for fun outside of class. If a student is reading Harry Potter outside of class for example, they can make a book trailer on Animoto and use that to sell the rest of the class on the series that their crazy English teacher is obsessed with. I might set aside time for students to present their Reader Chair Share videos, or – perhaps when we have a little extra time at the end of class, or when the students’ brains are zonked from endless standardized testing in the spring – I can play a few student-created book trailers to encourage them to read for pleasure outside of class and over summer break.
If you’re interested in using Animoto in your classroom, you’ll want to set up a teacher account so you can have free access. Since we live in a society where teachers make plenty of money to spend on their students and their classrooms (note my sarcasm), Animoto has made it a bit difficult for teachers to get free access for twelve months. If you’re going to set up an account, make sure you follow the directions below:
Unfortunately, Animoto thinks that most teachers only have fifty students. Ha! That’s why I’ll either have students work in groups, or students in different classes will have shared accounts. Digital citizenship lessons are imperative to any modern curriculum!
That’s all I’ve got for you today! If you want to read more about strategies using technology and the SAMR Model, check out my post on using PollEverything in the classroom. You can also read the first post in this series here.
Check out my next post on making Flipped Videos with EDpuzzle!
Summer is officially here for most teachers across America (woohoo!) and unlike most summers, I decided not to take on the burden of a summer job this year. Doing so cleared up my schedule so much, that this has become one of the busiest summers of my career.
May twenty-second was the last day of school, and I’ve spent twelve of the following thirteen weekdays being professionally developed by organizations such as ABC Community School Partnership, College Board, Apple, Discovery Education, Promethean, and APS’s Vanguard Team. And I still have eleven non-consecutive days of scheduled PD to go.
The best and worst thing about back to back PD is the overwhelming amount of new approaches to include in next year’s curriculum. I’m only half way through my jam-packed summer, and I already feel bogged down with ideas for the next school year. The past few weeks have been a whirlwind. So many new ideas! And strategies! And texts! And tools! And they’re coming at me so quickly that I’m afraid I’ll forget about something really cool before I’m able to include it in my plan for the new school year.
I’ve spent the past week learning all about new strategies to use with the technology available in my classroom. Now, before I continue, you should know that I describe myself a tech savvy, born-again, Apple purist, meaning I now own an iPhone, iPad, and MacBook Pro (well, it’s a school-issued computer but you get the idea). I try to integrate technology into my lessons as often as possible, and I rarely get excited about other people’s tech-strategies because I often feel like I have a better, techier (pronounced tech-E-er) way to do it.
But not this week. This week, I’ve felt a lot like Russell in Up when he and Carl Fredricksen meet Doug for the first time.
When it comes to new tech tools to use in the classroom, I’m sure many of you feel more like Carl Fredricksen than like Russell. I can think of a few Carl Fredricksens myself (Mr. Lee, anyone?).
Today, however, I started to feel a bit overwhelmed. There are just so many Dougs out there, all competing for my immediate attention!
Consequently, I’m not doing what I’m supposed to be doing right now. They told us to focus on just one tech tool and design just one digitally infused lesson for the next two hours, but in order to sustain my sanity I’m going to use this time to start a series of posts on the awesome tech and my ideas from the past week so I can refer back to them later.
But first, the basic concepts of using technology in the classroom: The SAMR Model!
When using technology in the classroom, it’s important to not just use it for the sake of using technology. I don’t kno
w about other states, but New Mexico teachers will get a score of Highly Effective for Domain 2B on their evaluative observations if technology “is used skillfully by teachers as appropriate to the lesson.” If you’re anything like me though, Highly Effective isn’t good enough. You’re aiming for a score of Exemplary, in which case technology needs to be “used skillfully by teachers and students as appropriate to the lesson.”
At first glance, many of us (myself included) may think that our students are already using technology skillfully within our classrooms. I mean, they’re using Padlet to turn in their exit tickets! It’s like they’re slapping sticky notes onto a piece of chart paper, but they’re using technology! That qualifies as Exemplary for Domain 2B, right?
Wrong. This is where the SAMR Model comes into play:
The SAMR Model is like Bloom’s Taxonomy for technology. Check out the SAMR image above. There are four levels of technology integration in the SAMR Model, just as there are six levels of thinking in Bloom’s Taxonomy, and like Bloom’s Taxonomy, all levels have a time and a place in the classroom.
The Padlet exit ticket I mentioned earlier would be an example of simple substitution – if you don’t take advantage of Padlet’s accessibility. But what if, as homework, we make the students refer back to the Padlet exit ticket and summarize all of the different responses into one concise paragraph? We’ve just moved on to augmentation! Padlet is still being used as a substitute for traditional strategies, but we have improved functionality through easy access for anyone with an internet connection. But don’t get too excited. It’s a step towards Exemplary, but it isn’t enough.
At first, the SAMR Model was a bit inconvenient. It reminded me that I wasn’t using technology skillfully enough to be considered Exemplary because I was hanging out in the substitution and augmentation range. Effective? Yes. Highly Effective? Maybe, depending on my evaluator. But Exemplary? No. Rude. After attending a whole bunch of mini-lessons on how to meaningfully incorporate technology into my lessons, however, I no longer feel like giving the SAMR Model the cold shoulder.
I forgot to tell you! I learned a new phrase this week: blended learning. ooOoh! Some of you may be shaking your heads at me, wondering how the heck I’ve made it this far in my career without knowing the term blended learning. Have you ever skipped over an unfamiliar term while reading a text of some sort instead of stopping and trying to figure out what it means like a good little reader? I know I’ve heard the term blended learning before, but I’ve never used it myself or stopped to figure out what it means. Here’s a list of terms you may have heard or read without attempting to process the definition.
Fun fact: Web 2.0 was the one-millionth word added to the English language!
Now that we understand the basic concepts of digitally infused classrooms, we need to put them into practice with concrete lessons. Originally I was going to include a list of ideas describing how I plan on using these new tech tools with my students next year. Seeing as how I am already over 1200 words, however, I think I’ll save the actual ideas for another post (or series of posts) in order to keep from overwhelming you with a bunch of Dougs all at once.
Put theory into practice and read more from this series!
4) Professional Development 2.0
5) Flippin’ Flipped Learning, Yo!
6) My First Flippin’ Video…In the Classroom
7) Support Learning with Aurasma
8) Final Thoughts
Check out my running list of awesome teacher tech tools.
Only the cool kids are invited…
Like many people, I didn’t really feel the need to jump on the Pinterest bandwagon, but then I had to do a presentation on how to use social networking in the classroom. Pinterest is the third most popular social networking site behind Facebook and Twitter, and so, for the sake of research, I joined Pinterest. But here’s the thing: you can’t just join Pinterest because you want to join Pinterest. You have to be invited. I was slightly annoyed that I had to wait to start pinning stuff, especially because I had to wait only two weeks after requesting an invite. Good grief.
While setting up my Pinterest account I was pleased to see that I could link the account to either my Facebook or Twitter account. One less username and password combination to remember sounded great to me (although I usually use the same ones over and over again. Shh, don’t tell). I decided to go with my Facebook account since I am still getting used to Twitter, but Facebook and Pinterest must be in cahoots with one another because that dang Pinterest tricked me into getting Facebook’s timeline profile. Grumble grumble.
Regardless of the initial inconveniences, Pinterest is my new addiction. Before joining Pinterest I had seen an eCard that mentioned drinking wine while looking at Pinterest all day, so for the sake of research, I decided to pour myself a glass of Pinot Noir before diving into the world of Pinterest. Two hours and three glasses of wine later, I realized I had to stop wasting time on Pinterest and take care of my big girl responsibilities like doing the dishes and feeding the cat.
How it works
Basically, Pinterest gives people the ability to “pin” things they find on the internet to different boards. Think of these Pinterest boards as being digital bulletin boards, and you can have multiple boards to help you to organize your pins. Initially, I didn’t know what the topics of my boards should be, but Pinterest is nice enough to give you some ideas as soon as you sign up.
I now have a board for classroom stuff, a board for workout ideas, a board for literary references (this is currently my largest board, full of entertaining images referring to Harry Potter, The Hunger Games Trilogy, and The Outlander Series. I also have a few random book covers in there for good measure), and a board that I call “Bumper Stickers”. You may or may not remember when Facebook had a bumper sticker application about three years ago; this is basically the same idea. The great thing about boards is that you can do whatever you want with them. Get creative!
Stalk me on Pinterest!
Like Twitter you “follow” people on Pinterest instead of “friend” them. I had no clue as to whom l should follow when I signed up, but Pinterest was nice enough to suggest people to follow based on what I marked as my interests. This made my initial pinning experience a bit worldlier since I could see the pins of people I had never met. Soon after, I learned that since my Pinterest account was linked with my Facebook account, I could automatically follow all of my Facebook friends who also had a Pinterest account.
If you follow someone on Pinterest, their pins automatically pop up on your home screen, much like posts on a wall on Facebook. You can “like” someone’s pin, or you can leave a comment on someone’s pin, however I’ve noticed that simply repinning a pin is the most common method of recognition.
So…what’s the point?
The purpose of Pinterest is not to share witty thoughts about everyday occurrences, nor is its purpose to share photos and news articles to document the events of an individual’s life. Instead, Pinterest aims to share various types of media such as photos, videos, websites, infographics, and more, with people who have similar interests. And I wonder sometimes if Pinterest aims to take over the world by distracting its users from their personal responsibilities in life…kind of like this Hulu commercial.
Teachers Can Use Pinterest for the Classroom
While I just sold Pinterest as an entertaining way to spend uneventful evenings, it does hold some potential for education. Teachers are using it to find ideas for their classrooms, but students are also using it as an instructional scaffold or as a form of assessment. As a language arts teacher, I am particularly interested in using Pinterest while teaching a novel. I imagine my students creating boards for the protagonist and the antagonist(s) of a novel and a board for the setting. Perhaps we could have a class board for the different books my students are reading independently, or a board for atrocious grammar mistakes the students see around town. The possibilities are only as limited as your creativity. To help inspire some new ideas, I have included this great infographic about how other teachers are using Pinterest.
Want to read more about how teachers can use Pinterest professionally? Check out this awesome post by Donna Miller Fry.
As you may already know, my school district has recently adopted a web-based program called My Big Campus, which is essentially a social networking site for the classroom. You can read more about in my earlier post, Teacher, Meet Technology. Since incorporating the program into my classroom, I’ve began to realize the value of social networking to education. Below are eleven quotes about social networking that I would like to share with fellow educators.
Why teachers need to embrace social networking in the classroom and why administrators should embrace social networking as a professional development tool
1) “More companies are discovering that an über-connected workplace is not just about implementing a new set of tools – it is also about embracing a cultural shift to create an open environment where employees are encouraged to share, innovate, and collaborate virtually.” – Karie Willyerd & Jeanne C. Meister, Harvardbusiness.org
2) “It’s natural online to go to the place where people are already consuming media. It’s less effort than to ask people to leave an environment they’re already in.” – Cheryl Calverley, U.K.’s Senior Global Manager for Axe Skin
3) “Social media is about sociology and psychology more than technology.” – Brian Solis, Principal of FutureWorks
4) “Innovation needs to be part of your culture. Consumers are transforming faster than we are, and if we don’t catch up, we’re in trouble.” – Ian Schafer, CEO of Deep Focus
5) “To ignore social networking would be like early man ignoring fire.” – Barry Ross
Social networking and professionalism
6) “You can be professional while also ‘keeping it real’ with your customers. By interacting with customers in a less formal way, you’ll build a strong human connection that helps build brand loyalty.” – David Hauser
7) “How can you squander even one more day not taking advantage of the greatest shifts of our generation? How dare you settle for less when the world has made it so easy for you to be remarkable?” – Seth Godin, Seth’s Blog
How social networking can help you (and your students) succeed
8) “In the long history of humankind, those who learned to collaborate and improvise most effectively have prevailed.” – Charles Darwin
9) “Twitter represents a collective collaboration that manifests our ability to unconsciously connect kindred voices though the experiences that move us. As such, Twitter is a human seismograph.” – Brian Solis, Principal of FutureWorks
Why social networking isn’t a “quick fix” – you need to know how to use it
10) “Social Media can be an enabler and an accelerator of existing core capabilities, values, attributes, and plans. It can even be a catalyst for change. But it can’t magically create what doesn’t exist.” – Denise Zimmerman, President of NetPlus Marketing
11) “Social media is just a buzzword until you come up with a plan.” – Zach Dunn
I love YouTube. I am not the type of person who uses it every day or spends hours watching different videos, but I love how easy it is to find great videos and share them with my friends. Usually, I will get to YouTube videos through Facebook or Google, but once I am there I will watch a few of the recommended videos and post them to my Facebook page. However, I do try to be selective with what I share.
According to Zwiers and Crawford in Academic Conversations, “popular modes of communication, such as video, podcasts, written texts, music, and images are mostly ‘one-way.’” (2011) They argue that these types of videos have a static message that cannot be adjusted after conversations, so to speak, with their viewers. I originally expressed my disagreement with this statement in my blog, which you can read here.
Needless to say, I was thrilled when I read Prensky’s article, which states “Perhaps the thing about You Tube that is least understood by people who do not use it regularly is that it is not just one way, or one-to-many, communication; it is designed to be, and very much is, two-way…Many users post ideas and opinions, looking for feedback, and many get large numbers of responses to their clips.”
Well, well, well! Take that Zwiers and Crawford!
One trendy video topic is Sh*t (Social Groups) Say. I first saw one of these videos, “Sh*t Girls Say”, when visiting a couple of my friends. They could not stop laughing and joking about it, so they showed me the video. I thought it was funny, but I wasn’t as amused by it as they were. I didn’t think about it again until earlier this week when a friend from college posted “Sh*t Burqueños Say” on her Facebook wall. As a “Burqueña” I decided to watch the video.
I watched the video on Tuesday, and I loved it – not only because my students say this stuff all the time, but because I say it too. I linked the video to my Facebook wall, and by the next day the video had over 150,000 hits and forty-eight pages of comments. When I had first watched the video, it had less than one hundred hits. Now, according to my super-secret source, part two is in the works.
I think that one of the fallacies in Zwiers and Crawford’s argument is that they are looking at communication as being between two or more people, with one of the communicators being the original creator of the content. Their argument, simply put, is that the person who created the video, podcast, or blog must be engaged in the subsequent conversations – but this isn’t actually what happens.
Instead, the subsequent conversations occur between completely different people. The content creator (or facilitator) may chime in occasionally by responding to comments or posting a follow-up video, but most of the communication happens between the viewers. In the world of YouTube, the viewer’s respond through published means such as comments, similar videos, Facebook and Twitter shares, blog mentions, and more, but they also respond through unpublished means such as face-to-face conversations with friends, family, and co-workers.
Isn’t this what we want to happen both in and out of the classroom? The students, sparked by the teacher, drive the conversations while the teacher sits back and listens and silently assesses, only intervening when beneficial to the students. The important thing is that the students are talking about and responding to information that is read, heard, and viewed (and yes, that is a direct quote from the New Mexico ELA Content Standards).
Perhaps now I need to make a video titled “Sh*t Teachers Say.”Oh, never-mind, it already exists.
*Disclaimer*
I am not suggesting that we show these particular videos in schools. I am merely thinking about the sociological and educational implications of these videos. That said, it would be interesting to have students create a video of this nature about what characters say in a novel or story as a lesson on characterization.
You can watch some of these videos below (but keep in mind, some of them are stereotypical and offensive).
Sh*t Brides Say: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ut8kwaKvZc0
Sh*t New Yorkers Say: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yRvJylbSg7o
Sh*t People Say on Facebook: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cVQeB_LlmRI
Sh*t Burqueños Say: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IucBp1yrr7A&feature=share
Sh*t New Mexicans Don’t Say: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ndbjEvN8AtM&feature=related
Sh*t Teachers Say: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yLXfwvaBXLc
One week has passed since the first My Big Campus Workshop, and the response from the staff has been encouraging – especially since it opened up new lines of communication. Several staff members have since raised valid questions, misconceptions, and concerns – some of which I was able to address right away, and others required more time.
One of the leading concerns was the absence of computers in other classrooms. My class is only one of two with the Building Blocks Grant. The other teachers only have between three and six computers for the students to use in class. Because of this, many teachers could not see the value of MBC (My Big Campus) to their instruction with limited computer access.
At first I was slightly annoyed by these concerns. I wanted to tell the teachers to be resourceful and get creative, but that probably wouldn’t have been a good sales pitch. Instead, I gave them a couple of ideas, but realized that I needed to find some teachers who were willing to experiment.
I decided to ask the other teachers on my team if they would be willing to help me. Both Ms. Newton and Ms. Galilei (the math teacher and science teacher on my team, respectively) were thrilled to help. The only person who would be difficult to convince was Mr. Lee, the social studies teacher.
Remember Mr. Lee? He was one of the leading characters in my first Teacher, Meet Technology post.
You may be wondering why I am so determined to get Mr. Lee to use My Big Campus. Perhaps it is because I am stubborn and he ticked me off, but I like to think that my determination comes from my passion for teaching and doing what’s best for the kids. Truthfully, I think it is a combination of both. But, before I jump into my story about Mr. Lee, I think you should know that I am naturally a very optimistic, albeit bossy, person. When combined, these two qualities can lead to bouts of passive aggressive manipulation – but this works for me. Sometimes.
The Plan
Mr. Lee’s attitude about My Big Campus was very negative. So, obviously I spent the rest of the week and the following weekend plotting my next move. Since I knew that the other two teachers on my team were sold on MBC, I decided to recruit them in my mission to get Mr. Lee to log on. They readily agreed.
Our plan was to meet as a team on Tuesday to discuss different ways to increase students’ agenda use. After throwing out a couple of ideas not related to technology, I would bring up MBC as a tool for posting our agendas all in one place. In order for this to be effective, we would need to have consistency across the team. Mr. Lee would have to agree…right?
The Meeting
We met informally on Tuesday in Ms. Newton’s room, and Mr. Lee was adamant that the plan to post our weekly agendas on MBC would not work. Our debate lasted for forty-five minutes, and tempers were hot. Mr. Lee just could not see the point in posting his weekly agenda online when it was already posted in his class.
He was also concerned that he would have to spend hours learning how to use MBC, just to have it taken away by the district in a year or two. Apparently this happens often, and, as a new teacher, it was an issue that had never crossed my mind. While he has a valid point, I doubt the district would take away the program if many teachers use it; especially since MBC doesn’t cost anything.
In the end, Mr. Lee agreed to post his agenda on MBC, but he made it clear that he did not see the point in doing so. I invited him to the second MBC workshop after school the next day, but he couldn’t attend that one. I agreed to work with him individually after school.
One on one with Mr. Lee
We met in his room after school, and I walked him through the program. Initially I planned to only show him how to log on, create groups, and post his weekly schedule, but he kept asking questions about the other features of MBC. Our meeting turned into a crash course on all things My Big Campus.
Working with Mr. Lee was an interesting experience. He argued with me every step of the way, but he also asked new questions. It was almost as if there are two different sides to Mr. Lee: the side that wants to learn more about how to use technology in his classroom, and the fearful side that is afraid to experiment with something new. While I appreciate his efforts, the two hours I spent trying to introduce him to MBC was exhausting.
I was right about Mr. Lee being a digital immigrant – but unlike most digital immigrants, Mr. Lee is fresh off the boat. He constantly second guessed whether or not he should click on something, as if the computer would explode if he clicked on the wrong button.
We played the “what if” game with every new thing that I showed him. Some of his “what ifs” were valid, but others were a bit far-fetched. You can see a few snippets of his what-ifs below:
Snippet Number One:
Me: So you just log in by using the same log in and password as your email.
Mr. Lee: But is that safe?
Me: What do you mean?
Mr. Lee: Once I put in that information, anybody from My Big Campus can see my information.
Me: No they can’t…
Mr. Lee: But they will have my password. I can get in trouble with the district for giving them this information.
Me: Well, the district set up the account for you. I don’t think you will get in trouble for using the account they set up for you.
Mr. Lee: Ok, but if I get in trouble I am telling them that you told me to do it this way.
Me: Of course, just send them my way.
Snippet Number Two:
Mr. Lee: What if I post my schedule on My Big Campus on Monday, but then I have to change it by Wednesday?
Me: Then you can easily log in and change it, like this.
Mr. Lee: But what if a parent sees it on Monday, and then questions why I had to change it on Wednesday?
Me: …Then you can explain to that parent why you had to change it.
Mr. Lee: But what if that parent gets angry because I changed it?
Me: Then we will cross that bridge when we come to it.
Snippet Number Three:
Mr. Lee: What if a student posts something inappropriate to My Big Campus?
Me: Oh, let me show you the reports button…
Mr. Lee: But what if a student posts something not nice about a teacher?
Me: Well, if it is inappropriate we can see it through the reports, and take action from there.
Mr. Lee: But then other students will see it, and think poorly of that teacher.
Me: Well…they do that anyway by talking to each other, so…
Needless to say, Mr. Lee depleted my patience jar for the week.
It was clear to me after our meeting just how much I take for granted. I have an inherent trust in many of these online programs (don’t worry, I am also cautious). Mr. Lee on the other hand is very nervous around something that he doesn’t understand, especially if his students understand it better than he does.
Regardless, I was very excited by the end of the meeting. Despite his hesitance, Mr. Lee actually posted a video for his students to watch on their own time, and he liked the fact that he could make his videos available to the students outside of class.
I don’t know how much Mr. Lee will actually use MBC, but I do know that he is now familiar with what it can offer – and that is a step in the right direction.
As an English Language Arts teacher one of the tools I rely on is my students’ ability to discuss writing and literature in an appropriate manner. I teach seventh grade. My students are professionals at inappropriate behavior.
When I try to facilitate class discussions, they usually do one of two things:
1) They clam up and suddenly become fascinated with whatever is under their grubby fingernails, or…
2) They all shout out ideas at once, competing with each other instead of bouncing ideas off of each other.
The first scenario is not as common as the second, which is a good thing. With the second, at least my students are excited and thinking about the topic. The thing is, I often feel like the basket in a game of basketball – but instead of the players working together, every player is trying to grab the ball (my attention and approval) and make a basket by sharing their ideas without any help from their teammates. In basketball this is catastrophic. It has similar results in the classroom.
My solution was to use My Big Campus’ discussion feature as a way to force the students to talk to each other instead of to me. Unfortunately, this did not work out as I had hoped. When planning the lesson I blissfully envisioned a discussion similar to those I have on Facebook with fellow teachers, or those that take place in a college environment. It wasn’t until after implementing the lesson that I realized how naïve my expectations were.
The students had no problems posting their ideas to the discussion. The hitch came when they started commenting on each other’s posts. Instead of questioning each other or adding to each other’s ideas, the students became very complimentary of one another. They also became grammar Nazis.
At first, I found it sweet when a student would post, “good idea” or “you did a good job.” I was ecstatic when I read, “make sure you capitalize your I’s” and “you used the wrong there – it is their not there.” However I soon realized that they weren’t thinking deeply about what the other students were saying. Instead, they were using the compliments as a cop-out to thinking critically about their responses.
Two hundred notifications later, I realized that I am still the basketball hoop, my students are still competing, but now they all have their own basketballs to shoot. Duck for cover!
This led me to the realization that I can’t expect my students to lead productive discussions in class or on the computer without first teaching them the appropriate skills. Whether typing or speaking, the students need to know how to bounce ideas off of each other without dominating and how to ask clarifying questions such as “can you elaborate on that” or “can you give me an example?” The skills are the same no matter what medium we use.
Time to hit the books (so to speak).
Expert Advice
I have a book called Academic Conversations by Jeff Zwiers and Marie Crawford (2011) which identifies five core conversation skills that students must have to be successful conversationalists in an academic setting:
1) Elaborate and clarify
2) Support ideas with examples
3) Build on and/or challenge a partner’s ideas
4) Paraphrase
5) Synthesize conversation points
It hadn’t occurred to me just how much academic conversations rely on the higher order thinking skills from Bloom’s Taxonomy until I read that chapter.
I continued to read, but was disturbed when the Zwiers and Crawford argued that technology was not a good tool for developing academic conversational skills. They argue that because of the lack of face-to-face communication with digital discussions, “exploration of a topic, the building of ideas, and emotional connections are often missing.” They also argue that “popular modes of communication…are mostly ‘one-way’ [and] do not adjust their messages or negotiate meanings with their viewers” (2011).
I stopped reading Academic Conversations. I disagree with their claims that the lack of face-to-face communication does more harm than good and that digital modes of communication have static meanings. Instead of fighting technology integration, the authors should be asking how students can use technology to explore topics and build ideas.
The toxic statements ate away at my brain for a few days until today, when I stumbled upon an article called “The Must Have Guide to Helping Technophobic Teachers” by Dr. Abir Qasem and Tanya Gupta. They argue that “using technology in education is about redesigning pedagogy by taking advantage of available technology, and not just substituting faculty time with technology.”
Qasem and Gupta go on to argue that technology actually facilitates productive conversations instead of hindering it. The reasoning behind this is two-fold:
1) Studies have found that face to face conversations lead people to instinctively mimic the opinions of others instead of fighting for their own
2) People tend to think more creatively and are more productive when working in solitude (read more about this in “The Rise of the New Groupthink”)
*Read these statements with caution*
Do not assume that all group work is bad. Group work is extremely effective when each member has time to individually develop his or her own ideas before coming together as a group.
UNM taught me that group work is a valuable strategy for encouraging all students to participate. Group work can also be a great tool for teaching students to think outside the box and value different perspectives.
But here is the thing: according to the “The Rise of the New Groupthink” by Susan Cain, brainstorming sessions stifle creativity instead of stimulating it. Woah.
Apparently, “when we take a stance [that is] different from the group’s, we activate the amygdala, a small organ in the brain associated with the fear of rejection.” (Cain, 2012)
This makes sense, considering what most of our students want most is to be accepted by their peers (want proof? Click here).
But how does all of this information apply to both spoken and typed class discussions? I am getting there, but first I will condense the information into a list of facts for your sanity and for mine:
So here is the whammy: Digital discussions enable students to think independently while also being socially rewarded by their peers.
But first, in order for them to be effective, I have to teach my students how to pick each other’s brains effectively…and because they use similar conversational skills as speaking when typing, I will once again pick up Academic Conversations (and ignore the technology bashing sections). Perhaps in doing so, my students will start to discuss as a team, bouncing ideas off of each other before shooting for the basketball hoop. Swoosh!
Wish me luck!
Works Cited
Cain, Susan. “The Rise of the New Groupthink.” The Sunday Review. The New York Times, 13 Jan. 2012. Web. 3 Feb. 2012. <http://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/15/opinion/sunday/the-rise-of-the-new-groupthink.html?_r=1&pagewanted=all>.
Gopnik, Alison. “What’s Wrong With the Teenage Mind? – WSJ.com.” The Wall Street Journal. The Wall Street Journal, 28 Jan. 2012. Web. 04 Feb. 2012. <http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970203806504577181351486558984.html?fb_ref=wsj_share_FB>.
Quasem, Abir, and Tanya Gupta. “The Must-Have Guide To Helping Technophobic Teachers | Edudemic.” Edudemic. Edudemic, 3 Feb. 2012. Web. 04 Feb. 2012..
Zwiers, Jeff, and Marie Crawford. Academic Conversations: Classroom Talk That Fosters Critical Thinking and Content Understandings. Portland, Me.: Stenhouse, 2011. Print.
Ms. Hayes' English Class 
