Guiding Principles Revisited

Below are the guiding principles I developed at the beginning of this course. I feel like these statements are still valid and should be a part of any new tool that is implemented in my classroom. However, after taking this class I also feel that I could allow more creativity through the tools we explored to see what the students can create. So I guess I should allow myself (and my students) a little bit of technology just because it is cool, not only because it improves the scientific experience. I also hope that I will remember the article about using technology for old things in new ways and new things in new ways. It is exciting to think that my students could learn from professionals all over the country and the world if I look for those opportunities. Thanks, Eric, for a great class!

1. I will always ask myself the question, "Does this activity improve the scientific experience for the students?"
2. I will avoid using technology just because the students think it is cool.
3. I will focus on the content of a project, and not how well the student is able to use the technological "bells and whistles."
4. I will maintain a balance between what is old (and works!) in the classroom and what is new and will add a spark to the learning experience.

Discussion Reflection on Web 2.0

Several ideas were mentioned by the participants in our group concerning the Web 2.0 tools and the implementation of these tools in our classrooms. First of all, many participants mentioned that they had not realized how many tools were available, and that the number of tools was overwhelming at first. As we continued to learn new tools, however, we learned to choose the items which fit our students, our schools, and our teaching style at this time. The neat thing about being exposed to so many choices is that we can change to something different if we feel it necessary. Another point that was mentioned frequently was that we must remember to use technology as it improves the learning/teaching atmosphere. This technology should not be used just to look nice in a school or so we can say that we utlilize computers. We must be diligent in our quest to use technology when it enhances the curriculum. One other comment that was mentioned less often, but is a continuing possible roadblock to implementation of Web 2.0 in the classroom is the question of student access to the technology. If the students don't have access at school, do they have access at home? Almost all public libraries now have access to the web, but can the students be expected to get to the library? These are questions that must be answered on an individual basis, but hopefully the access will improve over time. Over all, the comments were positive in that participants learned about new tools and were encouraged by their peers to continue to work toward implementation in their classrooms.

Final Project

My final project is a class wiki, for my advanced placement environmental science class. I concentrated more on the set up of the wiki and figuring out the links than on being very creative with my assignments. After looking at several other projects, I can see that I need to work on some creative assignments! But for now, I do have a wiki that I will use, and have the major assignments for the first week of school already posted. Now that I understand how to organize the wiki better, the next portion should be less time consuming than the set up.

I started out with the goal of making an online space for class discussions of current events, with the hope that the online discussions would increase class participation. However, after exploring the wiki and seeing other examples, I decided to use it for communicating all assignments and information about this class. I hope that it will be used by the students to enable them to review material we covered during class time, in addition to the discussions and the assignments.

As the wiki evolves, I will add videos and links from the web that are either homework or we viewed in class. I also want to incorporate more use of VoiceThread and possibly Glogster for assignments. Here is the link: http://bcaroyalscience.pbworks.com

Any suggestions are welcome!

Tools - Week 6

I am later posting this week because we finally (after 18 years!) replaced the carpet in our home. Moving the furniture is tough, but the worst part is moving all the "stuff." I may never go to a store to buy a nonconsumable again - we have too much junk! Anyway, to save money we also ripped up the carpet, which wasn't bad except the staples. I have spent alot of the week moving everything twice. But ... I am excited - new carpet! YAY! We always said - after the dog dies, and the kids move out. Sounds harsh, but it is reality!

Anyway, back to class! I have worked on my project this week, and also explored Wordle, which is fun. I think the students would enjoy this tool. Here is my wordle-
I really liked the different colors and fonts one could use, and it was not time consuming!

To work on my project, I explored the different wikis in more detail. I tried pbworks, wetpaint, and wikispaces. I liked the colors and set-up on wetpaint, but as someone already mentioned, it is too commercial. I couldn't find out how to get rid of the ads, but maybe I missed something? Then I worked with wikispaces. I liked the layout of this wiki better, and the colors were nice. One of the first things I wanted to do was create a table which showed assignments for the classroom and homework for one unit. I worked on this table for a long time (too long!) and it looked great in the edit mode, but each time I published it the table disappeared and I got the text and a bunch of lines (not in table form!) Anyway, I finally gave up to try pbworks. I really didn't want to use pbworks because the layout seems a little confusing to me. During this course I have sometimes had trouble locating the page I needed. I always figured it out, but I knew that my students would likely use this as an excuse unless I could make it more user friendly. Actually, they probably would have no trouble, but it bothered me!! My problem is that in the navigator box shown below I couldn't always find the week I needed. Later I realized I had to click on the correct folder, but I didn't want my students to spend time figuring it out.


After I played with pbworks a little more, I realized that I could edit the order of the folders in the navigator by placing numbers beside them. If there were no numbers, the folders appear in ABC order.


Shown above is a picture of the navigator for my wiki. I aso found I could star the main folders, which I think will help the students. Then I worked on editing the sidebar, which also gave me a little more organization.

Using the sidebar gives the opportunity to show the outline of the wiki so that any page can be accessed at any time (I think!)

I was very slow with these ideas, so there may be an easier way, but I was excited to have worked out the issues I had with pbworks.

I also downloaded Jing and explored it. I really like this tool! I don't know how much I will use it in my classroom right now, but it is great to know that I am able to use it and have it set up to embed images.

My project is underway, but I would like to addsome more information and a few more pages before anyone else previews it. I have emailed my principal to tell him of my plans, and he replied that he is excited to see what I'd like to do . A good week's work!

Prezi Inspiration!

I was intrigued by the work of several classmates who tried out prezi, so I wanted to see how it worked! Kelly mentioned that the rotation of this tool made her a little dizzy, and I have to agree - me too! I wonder if it would have that same effect if I were standing in front of a classroom instead of sitting and looking at a laptop. I'll have to try it before my students return! This is a fun tool. My first thought was that I could use it as a little different type of concept map. I usually draw the concept maps on the board, but this enables me to move the terms around and gives the ability to use images too- pretty cool. I also thought it might be helpful when teaching sequences like cellular respiration and photosynthesis, to get the big picture. As usual, I spent way too much time getting it "right," but I think the product could be used in class with just a little tweaking. Thanks to everyone for the inspiration!

Carbohydrates on Prezi

Blogs

When we first started using the blog for this course, I didn’t really see what use it could be for my classes at school. I had heard of using wikis, and was excited about learning to use them, but had not heard of using blogs for the classroom. After blogging for a couple of weeks about this course and after reading “Create a Classroom Blog” by Brunsell and Horejsi, I have seen firsthand how a blog may be useful to my students. Since I have no computer access in my room, and no computer time is available for high school students except the yearbook staff, any blogging my students will do will have to be as homework assignments. We are fortunate in our school in that most, if not all, of the students do have high speed access at home. The biggest hurdle seems to be convincing parents that the online space is safe.

The article about blogs had quite a few great ideas for their use in the classroom. One comment that jumped out at me was “Science education blogs can serve as powerful digital lab notebooks that contain text, images, and videos.” That sounds pretty cool. I thought that to give lab a new twist, I could put a team of two or three students in charge of posting each lab report online. They could use video they took during lab, pictures, and post their data and conclusions. After this team posts their report, other students in the class could make comments and suggestions for making the report better. I seem to always have a hard time getting the freshman biology students to understand what a conclusion is, so maybe critiquing others’ work would give some positive reinforcement. This project would be “in process” throughout the semester, hopefully training each student to write an excellent lab report. Another plus for this method is that I would have a record of the labs we did and the progress that was made. I would need to remove these posts before the next class started – is that possible?

According to the article, the blog could also be used for online assignments and comments. That is what I would like to develop for my final project, so I guess a blog would work. I am still puzzled as to whether a wiki or blog would be best- so, back to explore some more to hopefully find the answer!

Edmodo

I have also been exploring Edmodo his week, just to see if it would make a suitable site to begin classroom discussions / post assignments. It has been helpful that one of our classmates, David, is also figuring out this site, so I could see what he has posted and how he has used Edmodo. I don't really like the set-up as well as the wiki we are using for this class, but I guess one of the benefits of Edmodo would be the security. With our school's internet policy, Edmodo may be a good choice. I guess after I figure out the best way to use the assignment pages, files, etc., and how to organize it, it would work fine. I just need a site for the students to post their responses and reply to one another. I have posted an assignment and two links, and to access the Edmodo group - APES 1- here is the code: ezwidd. Let me know what you see!

New Tool - Photopeach

I was inspired to try Photopeach after seeing some of the slideshows that were created by class members. It was fun and easy. My husband and I visited Arizona, Utah, and Nevada for our 25th wedding anniversary over spring break, and I have been meaning to do something with the pictures! This shows our visit to Sunset Crater Volcano National Monument. I definitely think Photopeach could be a useful tool in class if we wanted to focus on text instead of audio. Voicethread would still be my choice for any report type slide shows, as it is more versatile in the comments and allows audio.
Sunset Crater Volcano National Monument Flagstaff, AZ on PhotoPeach

Reflections on Using Online Data

I am continually reminded as I read the articles and posts in this course that being a good teacher who constantly challenges the students is a difficult job! There is so much to learn, and so many new methods and activities to use. I can get overwhelmed easily, so I just need to remember to treat all of these ideas like groceries in a supermarket - I don't need to try every type of cereal, but to eat the same type every day gets boring, and it may not meet my needs. So... all that to say that I love the ideas presented in both the acquiring online data chapter and the article about generating arguments. Using online data is a great idea for many reasons. It should not take the place of student generated data, but the online data can be used in situations when students cannot generate data or there is a time constraint. As emphasized in the text, online data allows students to explore real world problems as is done in the workforce, which gives the students a little better idea of what scientists do everyday. I explored a couple of the websites listed in chapter 6 - Envirofacts http://www.epa.gov/enviro / and World Atlas of Biodiversity http://http://stort.unep-wcmc.org/imaps/gb2002/book/viewer.htm . Both of these sites looked really neat, but I will need a good bit more time to explore them and determine how they could be used. Time, once again, is a major struggle. First to figure out what can be used on these sites, then determine the best activities, questions, and measurement tools. The World Atlas of Biodiversity looked really useful for the environmental science classes, and I am excited about returning to explore it. I have also used the census bureau site in the past and the US Geological Survey water data.

The article explaining the instructional model for generating and argument was excellent. Again, so much to learn, but such a great tool! I found myself agreeing with the ideas about focusing on inquiry and how we know science, but also asking myself - do I really know how to lead students to ask the best questions and critique the inquiry process? That is where this article is so helpful. Not only does it explain what we, as teachers, should be encouraging in our classrooms, but it gives us concrete ideas about how to make it happen. And, as others have suggested, most people like to argue! One of the methods of keeping excitement in a classroom is to create tension, which is exactly what an argument does. The tension causes each person to examine why they agree with a certain point of view, which leads to increased critical thinking. I am excited about implementing this idea in my classroom.

I also wanted my voicethread attempt to be on the blog, not just a link, so hopefully here it is:

City challenges environmental group's assertions on sewage sludge | burlington, state, rules - Top News - Burlington Times News

I'm testing his embed feature to see how it works on a blog page. I'd like for the article to be seen here, but it looks like it will be a link, which may have to do!

City challenges environmental group's assertions on sewage sludge | burlington, state, rules - Top News - Burlington Times News

Embedding Video

Okay, so some of the participants in my Web 2.0 class are way ahead of me. I'm a little slow figuring out these tools. I was reading one blog that talked about embedding video, so I read the info our instructor posted and uploaded on flickr. I think it worked, so I'm posting it here (I hope!) When I first went back to teaching a couple of years ago I read an article that explained how to use a small lens digital camera to take video and pictures through the microscope eyepiece. I thought that was pretty neat, both for me and the students. I didn't have that type of digital camera, but I purchased one for less than $100. If a student had a good view of some item we were trying to see, they could video it and then I could use it in a powerpoint to show what they were really looking for. They were excited when I used their video. Some students were really good at making sure the camera was in the right position, and others struggled, but I think it worked out well. Here is one of the videos:


Here is another video that I uploaded to youtube, then embedded. The youtube upload was faster.

First #scichat

I participated in my first #scichat last night, and I can see how Twitter can be useful. It did move quickly, however, and I am an "early to bed" person, so I was a little slow! I read a lot and didn't really contribute, though I did pick up a couple of good websites to search, and I added a couple of people to follow on Twitter. It was definitely interesting! Eric's video on how to get the most out of #scichat was excellent - very helpful. I was able to keep up fairly easily, and even check and bookmark (thanks to Diigo!) the links as people mentioned them. All in all, it was worth the 45 minutes I spent watching and reading! Next time I hope I can contribute to the conversation!

Digital Storytelling

I had seen a couple of the "In Plain English" videos prior to this week, and I love them! They are so creative, short but informative, and understandable. What a great idea to use this style as a project for students. The science videos were really great, and I'm sure that it helped the student's comprehension to be asked to create pictures and then audio for an explanation. Kudos to the teacher and the students! Again, time is my nemesis when working with any tool like this. If the students spend a lot of time on their art and less time on the audio content, then I'm not sure it would be worth it. However, I do think it would be worth a shot, especially for concepts like protein synthesis or photosynthesis that, for me, must be taught with many visuals.
Creative Commons is a neat site. There have been several comments about how it is not always convenient to ask for permission to use certain media, so Creative Commons gives an alternative to that. As teachers, we must make our best effort to be legal and to teach our students the citation processes that are required. It only makes sense that when someone gives time, energy, and ideas to create media that they have ownership of it.
I really enjoyed reading about the research done in 1951 concerning films and learning. I began showing a series of videos this year in my lower level environmental science class. I also found a great video on garbage collection and I used it also. I previewed each video, took notes, developed some questions, and then showed them in sections. After each section of the video we would have a class discussion, write down important points, then go on to the next section. The interest level in this group of students improved dramatically when we were watching video clips about different topics. In interviews these students shared that they felt that they learned better when we watched the videos. I felt kind of guilty, but then again, no one would see trash the same way after watching that video - it was awesome! Reading this chapter also made me feel a lot better about using video for instructional purposes. The guidelines for best practice were very helpful.

VoiceThread -WOW!

I spent a good part of yesterday's time playing with the voicethread tool. I am really excited about using this in my class. My first try at a voicethread leaves some room for improvement, but I was very impressed with the ease of use and the quick downloads of images. In addition, the tools for comments are very neat. I really like the way a viewer can comment using a microphone or keyboard. The interactivity of the tool will fit my class needs very well.
I think the first project I will try in the classroom will be an add on to the river water quality project. One of the challenges we encountered both years with testing was the ability of the students to follow written directions consistently among groups. It might be beneficial to assign one type of test to each of 8 groups and then require them to make a voicethread instructional piece on their test. This would accomplish three objectives: 1) each group would understand at least one test completely 2) the whole class would be able to view instructions online of any test they are required to complete and 3) since the instructions are interactive, anyone can ask a question online if the content is not clear. This last point should help the creators of the voicethread to hone their communication skills, as I learned while I experimented!

Glogster Thoughts - No. Maybe? Yes. . .

I've been reading for several days about the "glogs," and have viewed the ones that have been done by the participants in this course. I'm really love the idea that we are able to document classroom activities, etc. with pictures so easily due to digital cameras, so as a rule I am really into any tool that makes the documentation easier. The glogs are cool, but I am having a hard time seeing the benefit of using them for high school students. I had to reduce all the pictures I wanted to use to a lower resolution, then it took awhile to upload to the site. For me, the time wasn't worth the effort, as opposed to, say, working in powerpoint. But, I see that the benefit of glogging would be the interaction between the students online at home, maybe? For each of these tools I keep thinking -" This is cool, but how would I use it in the classroom to promote learning, understanding, and critical thinking skills?"
To answer my own question, here is how I would use this tool as a classroom assignment. In environmental science we usually do posters about environmental history, focusing on people who have made a difference. Each student chooses a person and finds information about how that viewed the environment, what role he/she played in the development of any environmental legislation, and how that person's actions made a difference for our present day environmental situation. If the students were assigned the same project, but completed it using glogster, there would be several advantages. One, we would not be using poster board! YAY! Two, it would save class time. Now I let the students bring in the posters, then they move around the room taking notes on them. If we used glogster, they could view the posters at home and take notes. Three, there would be an inteactive component that is possible in the class, but not usually seen. I could add to the assignment that the students must make comments about 3 of the classmates glogs. Sometimes students will make useful comments in class, but unless it is a requirement, it does not happen. In addition to these three advantages, they would also be learning a tool on the web.
Okay, I guess I talked myself into trying Glogster!

Reflections on Science and Literacy

Literacy is an active phenomenon. Its power lies not in a received
ability to read and write, but rather in an individual’s capacity to put
those skills to work in shaping the course of his or her own life.
—Paulo Freire, Pedagogy of the Oppressed

Wow! I really can relate to this quote from the Science and Literacy article by Marlene Thier. I feel strongly that as a teacher, I am not only charged with teaching content from my area- science, but I am also accountable for showing students how they are responsible for their own education. They should leave my classes as better thinkers and better learners of all content, not just science. Freire said it better in this quote - "to put those skills to work in shaping the course of his or her own life. "

That being my philosophy, I must determine the best path for aiding my students. In the literacy article, Their gives several concrete ideas of how to accomplish these goals. Performance expectations are familiar to me - we worked on developing some of these goals in my previous class- Foundations of Action Research- focused on science expectations. In this article, the focus is on literacy. For me, these performance expectations give the students a clear idea of what they need to accomplish, but it does the same for me as the teacher. I also liked Their's list of guidelines for writing as you read. Implementing just a few of these ideas each semester would improve student's ability to retain what they read, no matter what the content. The third part of this article focuses on metacognition, which is the awareness of the student of their own methods of learning. I really liked the quote from the student that remarked that

“When you read, it should be a little voice in
your head like a storyteller is saying it. If that’s not
there, then you’re just looking at the words.”

I know that too many times my students just look at words. I catch myself doing that too, so these ideas can help me as well.

New Tools - Diigo

After reading multudes of posts, I was ready to dive in to a new tool, so I tried Diigo. Wow - I was excited about this tool. I had heard about it before, but during the school year I really don't feel I have the time to really work on new technology, so I had never tried it. That's is a great thing about this course - I am getting credit for exploring tools I would like to check out anyway. I have only tried a few of Diigo's uses, but I am thrilled that I can put all my bookmarks in one place with tags. I have always had a hard time with the bookmarks in my favorites tab. In fact, I can't even use it anymore because I can't find anything there. My favorites tag is like an attic that hasn't been cleaned out in 10 years. What is the use of all those sites if you can't find anything? Anyway, I think diigo will be different because it is searchable by tag or by title. Also exciting is that I am able to highlight a portion of the text AND save it, then send it to someone via email, embed on a blog, etc. I can see potential for working with students reading current events in environmental science. They would be able to mark passages that are of interest and make sticky notes (another feature) about what they have found. These could be presented in the classroom, or sent to classmates without using any paper. I like it!

New Insights Every Day

I still have not figured out the Google Reader deal, even though I had clicked and clicked! However, I have had a breakthrough which is just as exciting! When I opened my blog this morning to post, I realized that all of the blogs I clicked to "follow" show up on the dashboard of this blog site. I feel like I am way behind on understanding all the web lingo and places to click, even though I have always been a "computer" person. Being a "web" person is different, I guess.

The "viral video" idea is great! I show video clips to my classes frequently, as it seems this culture is drawn to that media. I have one son who loves to read and watches very little TV (22 years old) then I have another (19 years old) who has always been drawn to video. I have kidded him since he was 15 or so that one day he should write a book -everything I need to know I learned on video. I am kidding, of course, because I lament the loss of the importance of the printed page to this generation. I see it in my classes at school, as well as in my son. But, I could rant about it all day, so I must ask myself - what is most important? My job is to teach students to think and improve their critical thinking skills- hopefully that will include reading, but if they can be "hooked" by video, then I decided it is worth using.

The article by Eric Brunsell, "Teaching Kids to Think 2" was very helpful to me in laying out a plan for developing critical thinking using the popcorn video. I like the ABC plan - activity before content - that he discussed, and the McCain 4D problem solving approach. I know that I have seen ideas similar to these before, but for some reason these struck me as as very useful for my classroom. Sometimes I just need a fresh idea!!

Guiding Principles

I guess it hit me today as I read some other posts that technology is really not available to students in my classroom. I do have a projector, which I use for powerpoints, video clips, videos, and other visuals. I have access to some websites on that computer, so I am able to pull up information if necessary. However, we have no computers and other than very basic lab equipment (electronic balances) nothing electronic. Since all of my students have a computer with web access at home, that is where I see this course influencing the student's education.

The article, "Evaluating Technology Use in the Classroom," caused me to think about how I use technology now in the classroom. The four ways that technology is being used in the classroom was very thought provoking. It vaguely reminded me of Bloom's Taxonomy in that our level of technology use can be spread among the four areas. The last area, creating new and different learning experiences for the students, will take the most preparation from the teacher, but should enhance the student's learning more, just as asking the higher level questions like analysis or synthesis questions.

Here is my first try at the guiding principles for using technology in the classroom:

1. I will always ask myself the question, "Does this activity improve the scientific experience for the students?"
2. I will avoid using technology just because the students think it is cool.
3. I will focus on the content of a project, and not how well the student is able to use the technological "bells and whistles."
4. I will maintain a balance between what is old (and works!) in the classroom and what is new and will add a spark to the learning experience.

Setting the Stage Reflection

WOW! I agree with someone who posted the other night-EBrunsell commented that something was burning, and one of our classmates said "That's my brain frying!" Mine too!

So much to learn - I also appreciate the comments of a previous student who reflected on balance. There is no way that my old brain (or my brain when it was younger!) can take in all that the web has to offer. Since that is true, I found a particular comment in the reading very interesting. In the assignment "Web 2.0 is the Future of Education," when asked about how to combat content overload, the author's answer was "to produce more content." Hopefully my understanding of this comment will increase as time goes by!

I am also intrigued by the fact that the "read/write web" is very participative. In my experience teaching, more participation by the students frequently leads to higher levels of critical thinking, as evidenced in the questions that ae asked. Also by experience I see that if students are interactive they are much more likely to retain concepts and content than by listening to a lecture or taking notes. If the web can encourage more student interaction, then sign me up! I want to learn all I can about how to make this technology work in the classroom. Physical study groups accomplish this same purpose, and have traditionally met in the halls of schools, at lunch, and at friend's homes the night before the test. If electronic study groups can achieve this goal, then the "study group" can meet at any time just by posting a comment. Hopefully the ability to ask and answer questions at any time would allow for more continuous learning, not just at crunch time.

As with all changes, the input of time from the instructor will be significant, but I think it will be worth the effort.

The Beginning of Web 2010

I never thought I would have a blog, but as my 19 year old son says, "Mom, you're in the 21st century, but now you need to get into 2010." Okay, so I just started texting about 3 weeks ago. I'll be honest, to me it is just something else to keep up with, BUT it does open more communication lines with my children, some students, and to younger co-workers that I wouldn't have otherwise. I don't want to become one of those people who doesn't want to change, because I know I will be left behind! So, if I can text, I guess I can blog!

Taking a course that forces me to become more web knowledgeable will be a great experience. There is so much to learn! My goal for the summer is to develop a plan to use this technology to draw students into the learning process, to use the tools they love for educational purposes, and to help them see that education, even science education, is not just in school - it is everywhere in life. My hope is that the web tools I learn this summer will encourage my students to be more interactive in the classroom and more aware of the science of the world around them. How can I encourage students to think critically about scientific issues confronting the world, and not just be concerned about what grade they made on the last test?