A Media-Infused Presentation

                A media-infused presentation allows for the development of a disciplined as well as synthesizing mind by presenting a specific topic in depth, from a variety of different angles.  It is the diversity of the content that allows the student to gain the required depth to create a disciplined mind.  As Gardner (2008) states in 5 Minds for the Future, “In this day of search engines … nearly all required or desired information can be retrieved almost instantaneously.” (p.  37)  As educators it is now imperative that we shift from the old ways of teaching, memorization and repeating back facts, to a focus on synthesizing information.  By providing students with video, music, graphics and facts, they are able to focus on the connections and the “big ideas” more than just on who did what on this day.  To truly target and foster a synthesizing mind, an educator has ask the harder more difficult questions once the information has been presented to the students.  However, Gardner (2008) states that in education teachers often “Fail to invoke explicit standards in judging which connections, which integrations, which syntheses are valid, and in which ways they are (or are not) meritorious.” (p. 68) 

                In the new digital world that students are growing up in, and we are expected to teach in, an emphasis on creating disciplined minds cannot supersede synthesis.  Yet, as our schools have been fashioned these two areas are not the focus.   Schools are still holding the old strategies of memorization and formalistic responses as the standard for assessing achievement.  This is not what is valued in this new modern world.  By having students create a disciplined mind through media-infused presentation on broad topics; the students can then synthesize the information.  This synthesizing is what schools need to focus on to prepare their students for the future work place.  By using media-infused presentations students are able to escape from learning in only one way, and not receiving enough information to make informed decisions.  This purposeful approach to education provides students with the foundation necessary to take the next, and most difficult step, synthesis.  To this end, I encourage you to view my example of a media-infused presentation, created using a web based program called Prezi.

Gardner, H. (2008). Five minds for the future. Boston, Mass: Harvard Business School Press.

A Little Motivation

This week I came across a website called Big Huge Labs, which allows the users to create a variety of free resources that can be used in the classroom.  After examining the website I decided to create a motivator, one of those still image posters that have a saying written on them.  Below is my example, which I entitled confidence.  What I find truly great about this website is the ability to use this simple concept for educational purposes.  For instance, by having your students take a picture from their phones or other digital camera, they could easily create an academic motivator that would fit with your current unit of study.  Think of the possibilities that students would have if you gave them the assignment to create a motivator around the topic of civil rights.  While, being serious with a topic like civil rights is a must, these creations do not need to be.  You could just as easily assign your students a topic like study habits and have them create funny saying on how not to prepare for a test.  In both instances the project would serve a very real academic purpose and allow students the ability to express themselves in a new way.  If you have the chance definitely take the time to explore this website and some of the other great free features it offers.

 

Who am I?

In today's society that strives to have everything done as quickly as possible, I have decided to introduce myself to you all using the rules of twitter.  In under 140 characters I will attempt to let you all know something about me.  I used a program called Let Me Tweet That For You, that mimics twitter allowing you to fake tweet things without creating an actual account.  Enjoy this attempt to answer four simple questions.

 

Digital Portfolio

                As I thought about creating a digital portfolio I was filled with quite a bit of trepidation and anxiety.  I have purposefully not wanted a large footprint online because of being a male high school teacher.  Yet, as I examined different hosting sites I began to become truly excited about the possibilities that this type resource could provide.  I have carefully thought about each type of document and resource that I have included on this portfolio to show the best of what I as a teacher have to offer.  I choose to use the website About.Me to host my digital portfolio, because I found it to be very easy to use and provided the information I wanted to include in a clean and simple format.  My page showcases a number of lessons, units and projects that I have created throughout my teaching career.  This page, I hope, will become a digital resume for me as I look towards my future. 

                The first choice I made on my page was to not change the background image.  I experimented with different images of myself, but none of them conveyed the message that I wanted or distracted from my true purpose of the page.  Each of the links that I included was very purposefully chosen to highlight some aspect of my teaching.  Each unit I included, United Nations PBL and World War 1, provide anyone access to all the resources necessary to teach the unit.  These units show the emphasis I place on higher level thinking and the scaffolding that I provide throughout units to allow all my students to achieve to the best of their ability.  I did not provide editing privileges to these documents as I really just wanted people to view what I could bring to an educational team, not change the materials to fit their own classroom. 

                I next included two projects that I differentiated for students in my class.  The first is based on the abilities of the given student, and is the more traditional way to change an assignment for students.  The second project is one that I changed based on the students interests, and where based off of students responses to an interest survey that they took.  I found that with both assignments, the differentiation that I provided allowed for me to more accurately assess the student’s level of understanding and receive a higher level of participation.  The project based on interest provide amazing feedback as students were working around areas that they were really passionate about and put forth more effort than is typical on other types of assessments. 

                Finally, I included two assessments that show the type of work that I expect and how they allow for a genuine overview of students understanding.  The leveled assessment clearly demonstrates how students achieve and demonstrate their knowledge on a traditional test.  The video project was the culminating activity in which the students presented information in an interactive and creative video that was then sent to their parents.  This allowed for what was occurring in the classroom to be shared with others, and contribute to a community of learning.

                At the bottom of the page is the more traditional resume type information that employers or others would already have.  While obviously an important part of this digital portfolio, the main purpose of this site is to showcase my units, lessons and projects that actively engage students in diverse learning situations.  I really appreciated this opportunity to focus on building a dynamic site to showcase more of who I am as an educator.  As districts and companies shift more to Web 2.0, sites like this will perhaps become more common place and expected as people try to distinguish themselves and their abilities.

Hosting a Webinar

                Taking the idea of using the internet to help in education, I took the biggest step and created a live show of myself.  This was not done lightly, as I struggled with the legal and logistical issues of broadcasting myself.  I undertook this action for two reasons, the first being that with the proliferation of this technology it was fairly easy to accomplish and it could prove to be a real benefit to students who are absent or unable to attend class.  The second reason being the true driving force of this activity as students who miss a day are usually lost when they return.  However, by being able to go back and view the actual lesson/lecture that was delivered in class they would be able to catch up with no problems.

                With this in mind I used a website called LiveStream which makes the process of broadcasting yourself incredibly easy.  Now I have to admit that I did not actually broadcast myself live, I actually recorded the video and then uploaded the video to the website.  The reason being, that I wanted to have an authentic lesson that I was teaching and I also wanted to respect the privacy of my students, to achieve this I did a video recording of my PowerPoint with my voice over the top.  This is what the Khan academy does with their lessons, which I have found informative and interesting to watch.   By also focusing on just the PowerPoint and my voice I did not have to worry about accidentally including a student’s face.  I was also able to capture the dynamic of teaching in front of a class and the questions that are raised in the actual recording. 

                The biggest challenge that I faced in the creating of this was trying to get the volume correct on the recording.  My first few tries I was either so soft you could not hear what I was saying or the other extreme of so loud my words were distorted.  I also had the microphone battery die during the recording, which I did not notice until I went back afterwards and listened to the recording.  Basically, it all came down to just using the technology and being comfortable with what I was doing.  The actual process of uploading the video on the website was easy and did not require any new learning.  In fact everything about the website LiveStream is simple and easy to use.   From the ability to upload a video, which I did, to the ability to stream directly off of a connected device, everything is basically a simple click with the mouse to get you what you want.  This website also offers this all for free, you can pay to have more options, but for my purposes the free account worked just fine.

                Honestly, I do not think that I will live stream my classroom anytime soon.  The recording aspect that I did for this assignment is definitely something that I am considering on doing on a regular basis but not the actual live stream.  With the CIPA and COPA and all of the privacy issues that involve students I just do not feel comfortable having a camera recording the happenings of the classroom.  For me personally I just do not believe that I have enough to say that would warrant a live stream.  While I love the technology and the possibilities that it provides, I just do not see myself using this in the future.

Attending a Webinar

     As I move deeper into my understanding of the benefits of Web 2.0 resources I decided to attend a Webinar.  There were two difficulties I faced in finding the best one to attend.  First I really wanted to attend one that was interesting and worthwhile to something that I was currently struggling with.  Second, as I live on the West Coast finding one that was not while I was teaching or driving home to pick up my kid actually proved to be a bit of a challenge.  When all was said done I attended a Webinar from simplek12 on launching an iPad program at your school.

      This Webinar was a 30 minute discussion between two people about the six steps that you need to go through to successfully launch an iPad program.  These two people did a great job clearly explaining the required steps and providing helpful advice and suggestions to avoid some common mistakes.  The true weakness of the show was that it was just 30 minutes and the presenters did not have time to respond to questions or interact much with the audience.  It was just at the end of their time that they discussed questions or even acknowledged there was an audience listening to them. 

      Despite this, there was a great deal of useful information that could be learned and this is something that I will definitely look more into.  I would recommend anyone who is looking for creative ideas or teaching strategies to look into a Webinar as people from all over can collaborate and create truly amazing things.  I actually found it really helpful to be seeing exactly what they were talking about on the screen and it provided me with an idea of how I might use this with my students.  I have found that often times students who are absent during a PowerPoint lesson who review the material on their own really do not get the main idea.  If I could record myself teaching and then post that it could be beneficial to students.  This seemed a very successful strategy for this Webinar and one I want to look further into. 

      For students, a Webinar could be a way for them to teach a mini lesson on a topic and then post to the class website.  This would allow them the freedom to do whatever they would like for their lesson, without the pressure of the class staring back at them.  Also, by giving them the flexibility to incorporate other mediums into their lessons they will be able to really show their level of understanding. 

      Regardless of your level of comfort with this technology and learning style, Webinars are something that can offer a huge benefit to anyone.  By having students attend, participate or create you are encouraging them to be global learners who can contribute to world with their views and ideas.  As the world shifts more towards one that is constantly connected, the ability to navigate this new way of doing things is one that our students should participate in or even lead.