Today, as I read for one of my current classes, I saw the wide range of uses for blogging. While this school year is pretty well in the bag, no truly new things will be happening from this point on, next year looks to be an interesting one to say the least. I've wanted to have some extra form of interaction with my students for a while and exploit what so many students are using anyway.
I see that starting small will be beneficial and ease the transition to this form of activity and help to figure out the pitfalls, and deal with concerned parents. While I'd like to fully integrate this technology, I'm currently without a Language Arts member to my teaching team. It only makes sense to coordinate this style of activity with the LA department. So for next year I'm looking to incorporate blogging in a limited capacity.
I'll use the "club" time to explore the use of blogging. As of this year, each teacher is expected to facilitate some club during the school day. Once each month the middle school runs a slightly altered bell schedule, during which each class period is shortened by six minutes. Through out the 10 period day, that equals an hour of "club" time. This year I participated in running "Science Club" with the other 8th grade science teacher, which was OK, but didn't really seem to be the most thrilling for the kids.
Next year I was thinking about doing something that involve the team newsletter that I send home for my students. I'd like to get kids involved in researching the topics and assembling the final product. I see that the blogs could just be the ticket for simplifying this. Meeting only once in a month makes for little face to face time, but by utilizing blogs, I think I can make it work.
The tech coordinator will be the first road block, but if I can get through that for a small number of students...the following year I could use this experience to incorporate the use of blogs with all of my students. Using this with a small number will also make it easier to supervise and start to show the issues that I'll face with a large number of students.
I've actually considered making a MySpace page for my class. This idea came after I asked all of my online students to take five minutes from MySpace and instead check out some science pages. Since they use it anyway, why not post some good content in their world? It would also help with the additional interaction that I'm interested in. Whether or not I'll use this idea, I don't know yet.
I need to talk to my principal and get his thoughts. He's pretty darn progressive and is open to lots of ideas. He also seems to see more pitfalls and asks questions that need to be addressed to make things run smoothly. Whether it's blogging, MySpace, or just trying to get access to tech, his input has been valuable on so many other things that I'll start talking to him this coming week to get an idea of how much leeway I may have for this venture. I'll see where I end up. I would imagine that the club idea will be good start to pave the way for further excursions into cyber-space.
Sunday, May 27, 2007
Saturday, April 28, 2007
Thank You
A big thanks has to go out to my group members. I learned from each of you and appreciate the feedback, links, and ideas that were exchanged. Many of these I have put to use in some way or shared with colleagues. I feel that I have received great benefit from this interchange of ideas. Thanks for helping to make me better at what I do.
Good luck in future classes and and I look forward to "seeing" you all again sometime.
Good luck in future classes and and I look forward to "seeing" you all again sometime.
Field Testing
This week my students took the new PSSA state field test in science. While proctoring the exam, I saw many students puzzled, confused and some giving up. This was a very difficult test, with items from the 4th grade through 11th curricula...and my kids are only in 8th. I can only hope that the real deal will be a bit different. The field test is done and I'm sure well on its way to becoming the final edition, which is interesting since just this past week I took a short survey on my curriculum, and teaching methods, what references I use, whether I consult any of a number of standards, etc. The test is pretty much in the bag and we get to have input now. What an interesting concept.
The original test, which was canceled several years ago, had things like the weather on the 4th grade exam(according to the standards we were given), so our district jumped right on the ball and moved weather from 8th to 4th grade so the kids would have do better on the test. However, in 4th grade, many students are incapable of grasping some of the higher level ideas that come with the topic. If they can't put their hands on it, it tends to be tough. So with their limited abilities, they are supposed to remember what they really weren't educationally ready to learn and put it to use 4 years after they almost were capable of learning it. Doesn't sound a recipe for success. What I saw didn't really match with the state standards, and now, anchors that I've been using either. It makes me wonder if my school is headed in the right direction.
At any rate, this new test should shake things up a bit. The new test will sheppard schools into line. Maybe the entire idea of these standardized tests is to make it possible for students who move school to school to be able to pick up where they were in their old placements? My entire year was changed this year...it didn't go so well...maybe this new set of changes will be good. Who knows what topics I'll lose and gain. It should be another interesting year.
A school doing poorly out of the gate will make it easier to show improvement. :) I can't wait to see how this plays out.
The original test, which was canceled several years ago, had things like the weather on the 4th grade exam(according to the standards we were given), so our district jumped right on the ball and moved weather from 8th to 4th grade so the kids would have do better on the test. However, in 4th grade, many students are incapable of grasping some of the higher level ideas that come with the topic. If they can't put their hands on it, it tends to be tough. So with their limited abilities, they are supposed to remember what they really weren't educationally ready to learn and put it to use 4 years after they almost were capable of learning it. Doesn't sound a recipe for success. What I saw didn't really match with the state standards, and now, anchors that I've been using either. It makes me wonder if my school is headed in the right direction.
At any rate, this new test should shake things up a bit. The new test will sheppard schools into line. Maybe the entire idea of these standardized tests is to make it possible for students who move school to school to be able to pick up where they were in their old placements? My entire year was changed this year...it didn't go so well...maybe this new set of changes will be good. Who knows what topics I'll lose and gain. It should be another interesting year.
A school doing poorly out of the gate will make it easier to show improvement. :) I can't wait to see how this plays out.
Tuesday, April 24, 2007
Two Pages for International Education
While searching for this week's assigned area, I found these two pages that had good statistical data. This first page, National Clearing House for US-Japan Studies includes "A Day in the Life" type information and also has the statistics that are interesting. Looking at what their students experience is interesting. I found the Day in the Life of a Japanese Student particularly informative.
The second page was from the MEXT Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science, and Technology. This had really nice graphs and charts showing everything from the percentages of students that are enrolled in various majors at college, how many kindergarten students go on and percentage of compulsory age students that are not enrolled and the reasons for not being enrolled. It's really a quite complete list. If you have the time, there are some numbers here that are surprising.
The second page was from the MEXT Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science, and Technology. This had really nice graphs and charts showing everything from the percentages of students that are enrolled in various majors at college, how many kindergarten students go on and percentage of compulsory age students that are not enrolled and the reasons for not being enrolled. It's really a quite complete list. If you have the time, there are some numbers here that are surprising.
Sunday, April 22, 2007
Data Driven Decisions
After I posted a comment today, I thought about some of the things my district is up to. We're really looking at the idea of data driving decisions. This makes sense, but when someone makes up their mind, the data can be misleading. Currently the high school is looking at crating a 9th grade academy to help students transition from the middle school. One of the main purposes is to decrease the number of tardies. Tardies are a big problem. Data has been linked to make the statement that tardies equal low grades. The validity of the statement is unscientific. The results are not accurate for several reasons. It's sort of like trying to find out what percentage of citizens in a given city have aids. If you stand in front of an aids clinic and ask how many people have the disease, your results will definitely be skewed and inaccurate. The idea that creating a 9th grade wing to decrease tardies goes against our findings in the middle school.
At each faculty meeting, our principal provides each teacher with the data on referrals to the office and the consequences doled out. Inevitably tardies to class tops the list. Even though we have each grade in their own wings, with each student required to walk an average of less than 70 feet in the three minutes between classes. It's not a problem with time, it's a problem with decisions. Some students are late to classes each day even though they walk only 10 feet from one room to another. They choose to go out of their way to visit friends. Yet someone in our administration deems it necessary to create this academy, failing to see that the data implies that this will not be the answer. Even though teachers were asked for input, the decision was made long before. Any comment or advice against the decision fell on deaf ears. The most remarkable thing to me was the answer to a question. One teacher asked if the academy would removed if it failed to make the desired improvements...the answer..."It's here to stay." Sooooo, in other words someone wants it and it really doesn't matter if improvements are made or if the data shows it's a poor choice.
As far as a correlation between tardies and grades...it only makes sense that the kids making the better decisions would have better grades. Those who don't care enough to get where they're going when they should get there are more likely to not care about their grades.
We've had our top two, long term top brass retire in the last couple of years. The direction of our new heads is a bit scary. It seems that dictation will be the method of interaction with the lowly peons doing the grunt work of educating while under the guise that the peon's ideas would even be considered. While this mess doesn't directly effect me at the middle school level, it does demonstrate that the open, available lines of communication may not be what they used to be. It's almost like someone is trying to create something that they'll be remembered for, or leaving a mark. We've lost a few people recently and several others are looking to get out. I may be losing the reasons why I fought so hard to get in...maybe I'll have to change my profile to reflect the new establishment. It's not as cooperative and pleasant as it was just a short time ago.
At each faculty meeting, our principal provides each teacher with the data on referrals to the office and the consequences doled out. Inevitably tardies to class tops the list. Even though we have each grade in their own wings, with each student required to walk an average of less than 70 feet in the three minutes between classes. It's not a problem with time, it's a problem with decisions. Some students are late to classes each day even though they walk only 10 feet from one room to another. They choose to go out of their way to visit friends. Yet someone in our administration deems it necessary to create this academy, failing to see that the data implies that this will not be the answer. Even though teachers were asked for input, the decision was made long before. Any comment or advice against the decision fell on deaf ears. The most remarkable thing to me was the answer to a question. One teacher asked if the academy would removed if it failed to make the desired improvements...the answer..."It's here to stay." Sooooo, in other words someone wants it and it really doesn't matter if improvements are made or if the data shows it's a poor choice.
As far as a correlation between tardies and grades...it only makes sense that the kids making the better decisions would have better grades. Those who don't care enough to get where they're going when they should get there are more likely to not care about their grades.
We've had our top two, long term top brass retire in the last couple of years. The direction of our new heads is a bit scary. It seems that dictation will be the method of interaction with the lowly peons doing the grunt work of educating while under the guise that the peon's ideas would even be considered. While this mess doesn't directly effect me at the middle school level, it does demonstrate that the open, available lines of communication may not be what they used to be. It's almost like someone is trying to create something that they'll be remembered for, or leaving a mark. We've lost a few people recently and several others are looking to get out. I may be losing the reasons why I fought so hard to get in...maybe I'll have to change my profile to reflect the new establishment. It's not as cooperative and pleasant as it was just a short time ago.
Saturday, April 21, 2007
An Attempt
This past Thursday and Friday I tried my first mini-WebQuest with my students. I chose a short, well defined quest to experiment with the abilities and willingness of my students. After reserving the computer labs (during 3 classes one lab was available, for the other 2 I had to use another). I had a few problems with students not knowing their passwords(even after over 140 days of school) and some with students not being willing to read the recommended materials. The other little issue was getting students to type in the desired web page correctly. Many students wanted the answers to be blatant, not ones they had to read and think about.
Even with these few minor glitches, things seemed to go very well. The majority of the questions that were asked related directly to the topic and showed that students were interested in what they were learning. I talked with our librarian who is willing to add links to the library home page so students can simply click instead of typing, passwords are now written down and the necessary pages open to student access.
Of course, there are those students that really don't read much and get done way too fast, those that read and work at a steady pace and those that read very deliberately, taking much more time than anticipated. Bringing these three groups of student together was taken care of by having a large bank of pictures of the topic, which was eclipses. Not only did these available pictures help to keep some of the faster students on topic and busy, seeing the pictures spawned many discussions and questions.
Students talked to each other about what they were finding and were excited for the most part. My answering of the questions was limited, as each picture had a caption and some explanation. Most of the other questions were in the material that students were to have already read, so students were generally sent back to the reading for the answers. The questions that weren't in the reading, I took care of while referencing their worksheets to expand on a topic. All went pretty smoothly. Monday morning I intend to get student reactions/suggestions and see what they thought.
Thanks to this class, I've really officially tried my first quest. Next year I'll start early in the year and build the students' skills to more complex quests with fewer bounds...which will again change my year. At least I'm not stagnating at this point!
Even with these few minor glitches, things seemed to go very well. The majority of the questions that were asked related directly to the topic and showed that students were interested in what they were learning. I talked with our librarian who is willing to add links to the library home page so students can simply click instead of typing, passwords are now written down and the necessary pages open to student access.
Of course, there are those students that really don't read much and get done way too fast, those that read and work at a steady pace and those that read very deliberately, taking much more time than anticipated. Bringing these three groups of student together was taken care of by having a large bank of pictures of the topic, which was eclipses. Not only did these available pictures help to keep some of the faster students on topic and busy, seeing the pictures spawned many discussions and questions.
Students talked to each other about what they were finding and were excited for the most part. My answering of the questions was limited, as each picture had a caption and some explanation. Most of the other questions were in the material that students were to have already read, so students were generally sent back to the reading for the answers. The questions that weren't in the reading, I took care of while referencing their worksheets to expand on a topic. All went pretty smoothly. Monday morning I intend to get student reactions/suggestions and see what they thought.
Thanks to this class, I've really officially tried my first quest. Next year I'll start early in the year and build the students' skills to more complex quests with fewer bounds...which will again change my year. At least I'm not stagnating at this point!
Thursday, April 19, 2007
A Change Already?
Thanks to Mr. Harris, I have a new online bookmark program. While I'm still learning its use, it appears to be much more simple than OnlineBookmarkManager. I've been using OBM with success this week. It is a little time consuming to save pages, but the organization of these bookmarks was simple. I opted not to use the the "import" feature that works with Firefox so I could build a neat set of bookmarks. The ones on my computers lack that right now. The only real issue that I've run into is that my user name and email address show up on screen. One of the reasons I'd like to have this program is so that I can show my students things online, sometimes to answer a question that they may have. With me using the projector I'd certainly prefer that my email address not be visible. Other than that, I'm happy with the program.
Delicious is different. For starters it is an add-on for Firefox. After installing, there is a button on each page and tab that allows an easy addition to be made to the bookmarks, much like saving them to the computer. NICE! Even more importantly, my email address shows up no where. The kids will be able to see my user name, but I can live with that. I'll just have to make it something appropriate and something that I don't use anywhere else, in case they search it.
Thanks for the help Jimmy!
Delicious is different. For starters it is an add-on for Firefox. After installing, there is a button on each page and tab that allows an easy addition to be made to the bookmarks, much like saving them to the computer. NICE! Even more importantly, my email address shows up no where. The kids will be able to see my user name, but I can live with that. I'll just have to make it something appropriate and something that I don't use anywhere else, in case they search it.
Thanks for the help Jimmy!
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