In my humble opinion, the discussion this week needs to be more about how we can get our students involved in using video for authentic assessments. Students are used to video cameras and don’t tend to shy away from them the way many adults do. Most students have cell phones that can take short video clips. For the most part, they own the technology to perform the task.
Hall Davidson said, “Learning means assimilating information in a way that matches our wiring: responding to the terabits of information in motion and sound. Technology brings education access to the transformative visual tools of an image-based society--- a move closer to the way we truly learn.”
We need to encourage project-based learning and meaningful student work that incorporates movie making. Our students can become journalists and interviewers. They can create documentaries. Our students are capable of high-level work using video. Video and multimedia should be integrated into the regular subject-area curriculum.
Start considering the possibilities of how to engage students in creatively demonstrating their knowledge.
Friday, August 8, 2008
Thursday, August 7, 2008
Acquiring Knowledge
The goal for our students is to learn the county-selected curriculum. Kids today are accustomed to multimedia (transmissions that combine media like text, graphics, full-motion video, sound etc.) because it makes their toys, games and computer activities more engaging. Television launched a change in how students like to learn. Sesame Street created a generation of kids who liked color, songs, puppets, and lots of action. It also created kids who learn in fifteen-minute increments and then pause for commercial breaks.
The legacy of shows like Sesame Street and electronic games is that teachers need to enlist multimedia aids to hold students’ attention. Videotapes are great, but they come in set lengths with no easy way of knowing about or finding the specific information available on the tapes. Laserdiscs honed in on the idea that it may just take a video segment to convey an idea. The discs were split into chapters and the teacher could scan directly to a desired starting point. However, the discs were large, the information was cataloged in such a way that a lot of reading was required to find the desired segment of information, and the equipment was expensive. As a result, teachers did not have time or the money to invest to use the tool effectively. Laserdiscs went the way of the 8-track tape.
With the ability to digitize and compress video and send it over cable lines came the answer to how video can be used efficiently in our schools. Some very smart people acquired the rights to a lot of educational footage, which they digitized and indexed so that topics can be found WITHIN each video. Each video is segmented by topic and aligned with state standards. The content of the video database is searchable by grade, objective, and/or subject. Only the pertinent segment of video needs to be used to convey the information that will lead to student understanding. No excess information needs to be shown, so students can focus precisely on the lesson’s objectives.
My school system subscribes to Discovery Education Streaming, which claims to be used in more than half the schools in the United States. Discovery Education Streaming provides video on demand. Enhancing lessons with video has been shown to promote retention because information is being delivered to multiple senses. Students who are aural learners and students who need visuals will benefit from video use. The information delivery format used by the teachers, aids in varying instruction, zeroes in on the objectives for learning, and is popular with students. Video streaming allows for a confluence of solid educational practices to be implemented and promotes student understanding.
The legacy of shows like Sesame Street and electronic games is that teachers need to enlist multimedia aids to hold students’ attention. Videotapes are great, but they come in set lengths with no easy way of knowing about or finding the specific information available on the tapes. Laserdiscs honed in on the idea that it may just take a video segment to convey an idea. The discs were split into chapters and the teacher could scan directly to a desired starting point. However, the discs were large, the information was cataloged in such a way that a lot of reading was required to find the desired segment of information, and the equipment was expensive. As a result, teachers did not have time or the money to invest to use the tool effectively. Laserdiscs went the way of the 8-track tape.
With the ability to digitize and compress video and send it over cable lines came the answer to how video can be used efficiently in our schools. Some very smart people acquired the rights to a lot of educational footage, which they digitized and indexed so that topics can be found WITHIN each video. Each video is segmented by topic and aligned with state standards. The content of the video database is searchable by grade, objective, and/or subject. Only the pertinent segment of video needs to be used to convey the information that will lead to student understanding. No excess information needs to be shown, so students can focus precisely on the lesson’s objectives.
My school system subscribes to Discovery Education Streaming, which claims to be used in more than half the schools in the United States. Discovery Education Streaming provides video on demand. Enhancing lessons with video has been shown to promote retention because information is being delivered to multiple senses. Students who are aural learners and students who need visuals will benefit from video use. The information delivery format used by the teachers, aids in varying instruction, zeroes in on the objectives for learning, and is popular with students. Video streaming allows for a confluence of solid educational practices to be implemented and promotes student understanding.
Monday, August 4, 2008
Web 2.0 Get On Board!
What would you like your students to do? Chances are there is a Web 2.0 tool that will allow them to do it!
Web 2.0 applications help us to connect, create, and collaborate. Blogs, wikis, podcasts, and Google docs are but a few of the tools available on the web that allow for interaction. Even the social bookmarking tool, del.icio.us, permits each user to tag his bookmarks with search terms that are personally meaningful, and then, to share the bookmarks with others. Web 2.0 is a dynamic world with new resources being created for all either to use freely, or, as paid subscriptions. For educators, reading blogs and websites of people who stay abreast of technology for a living is the best way to hear of new tools that may be of value to your students. Kathy Schrock and Will Richardson are two educators who inform teachers about cool new web applications. Kathy has compiled information about Web 2.0 applications at http://kathyschrock.net/web20/ Will Richardson maintains a blog where he discusses technology and frequently mentions Web 2.0 applications at http://weblogg-ed.com/
See what these experts have to say about Web 2.0. Give some of the applications they recommend a try. It will open a whole new world of teaching and learning for you and your students. These tools will motivate your students as you vary instruction. Check out the possibilities to enhance your instruction for your 21st century learners. Your students are primed and ready to use technology. Consider the possibilities for providing inspiring instruction by using Web 2.0 tools today!
Web 2.0 applications help us to connect, create, and collaborate. Blogs, wikis, podcasts, and Google docs are but a few of the tools available on the web that allow for interaction. Even the social bookmarking tool, del.icio.us, permits each user to tag his bookmarks with search terms that are personally meaningful, and then, to share the bookmarks with others. Web 2.0 is a dynamic world with new resources being created for all either to use freely, or, as paid subscriptions. For educators, reading blogs and websites of people who stay abreast of technology for a living is the best way to hear of new tools that may be of value to your students. Kathy Schrock and Will Richardson are two educators who inform teachers about cool new web applications. Kathy has compiled information about Web 2.0 applications at http://kathyschrock.net/web20/ Will Richardson maintains a blog where he discusses technology and frequently mentions Web 2.0 applications at http://weblogg-ed.com/
See what these experts have to say about Web 2.0. Give some of the applications they recommend a try. It will open a whole new world of teaching and learning for you and your students. These tools will motivate your students as you vary instruction. Check out the possibilities to enhance your instruction for your 21st century learners. Your students are primed and ready to use technology. Consider the possibilities for providing inspiring instruction by using Web 2.0 tools today!
Blogs: A Versatile, Powerful Tool for Teachers
When used effectively as key tasks, blogs are amazing tools for teachers to use with their students. Blogs are versatile like Swiss army knives. They allow students to practice a variety of skills while learning about and questioning course content. Blogs are also like power tools because they amp up what students are exposed to in the course of the discussion. Good teachers, who want to allow students the opportunity for personal expression while interacting with others, will find that blogs can be used to assess content knowledge, in addition to providing additional educational benefits. Blogs are a powerful, multipurpose tool for educators to use with their students.
Theodore Bernstein once said, “If writing must be a precise form of communication, it should be treated like a precision instrument. It should be sharpened, and it should not be used carelessly.” What place will require one to write precisely? The Internet, where anyone in the world can read what has been written. Words need to be chosen carefully in order to convey the intended meaning. The act of blogging will give students the opportunity to sharpen their writing skills. If their thoughts are not conveyed accurately, then a reader is likely to question them in order to gain understanding. Students' writing will require more precision in order to get their points across. Blogs give students the opportunity to practice becoming good writers.
Blogs also allow students to read the opinions of others and to learn about a variety of perspectives. Students will think about and question what has been said, sharpening their critical thinking skills.
Students can connect with people anywhere in the world through their blogs. The teachers are no longer the sole purveyors of information on a topic. Experts may join in a discussion to give insights about their work. The experience from such interactions will motivate many students to want to learn more because the topics take on relevance that may not be apparent within the classroom walls.
All students have the chance to participate and collaborate in the discussion when teachers include blogs in their assignments. The inherently shy students will have equal opportunities to share their ideas ensuring that there is total participation in the activity.
So blogs are a tool that allow students to practice and hone their writing skills, to think critically about the opinions of others, to interact with people with a range of expertise, to gain understanding of the relevance of the subject matter and to participate equally in the discussion.
Contrast the benefits of blogs to assessing students with ScanTron multiple-choice tests or even writing short responses to questions that only you will read. Which tool will you use benefit your students? What's in your teaching toolbox?
Theodore Bernstein once said, “If writing must be a precise form of communication, it should be treated like a precision instrument. It should be sharpened, and it should not be used carelessly.” What place will require one to write precisely? The Internet, where anyone in the world can read what has been written. Words need to be chosen carefully in order to convey the intended meaning. The act of blogging will give students the opportunity to sharpen their writing skills. If their thoughts are not conveyed accurately, then a reader is likely to question them in order to gain understanding. Students' writing will require more precision in order to get their points across. Blogs give students the opportunity to practice becoming good writers.
Blogs also allow students to read the opinions of others and to learn about a variety of perspectives. Students will think about and question what has been said, sharpening their critical thinking skills.
Students can connect with people anywhere in the world through their blogs. The teachers are no longer the sole purveyors of information on a topic. Experts may join in a discussion to give insights about their work. The experience from such interactions will motivate many students to want to learn more because the topics take on relevance that may not be apparent within the classroom walls.
All students have the chance to participate and collaborate in the discussion when teachers include blogs in their assignments. The inherently shy students will have equal opportunities to share their ideas ensuring that there is total participation in the activity.
So blogs are a tool that allow students to practice and hone their writing skills, to think critically about the opinions of others, to interact with people with a range of expertise, to gain understanding of the relevance of the subject matter and to participate equally in the discussion.
Contrast the benefits of blogs to assessing students with ScanTron multiple-choice tests or even writing short responses to questions that only you will read. Which tool will you use benefit your students? What's in your teaching toolbox?
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