As a preface to this post, I'd like to announce that I have officially decided to do my EDT 610 Course Project on incorporating Wikis into the middle school Language Arts classroom. I plan on having 4 Wikis total (one per class period), and I have already talked a little bit with Randy and Jim about starting these. There are also two FABULOUS references at my building (Dawn Lanzarotta and Rachel Burns) who have recently incorporated Wikis into their seventh grade classrooms, and they have had an ample amount of success!! Feel free to e-mail them if you have any questions or thoughts!!
According to the NETS Teacher Standards, one important objective to achieve is the following:
Teachers design, develop, and evaluate authentic learning experiences and assessments incorporating contemporary tools and resources to maximize content learning in context and to develop the knowledge, skills, and attitudes identified in the NETS-S.
To investigate this standard in detail, I have chosen to focus on Indicator B:
Develop technology-enriched learning environments that enable all students to pursue their individual curiosities and become active participants in setting their own educational goals, managing their own learning, and assessing their own progress.
I feel that this indicator encompasses several aspects of education- some of which I'm successful at, and some of which I'm not so successful at. I am somewhat of a control freak, which is evident to anyone who spends more than ten minutes in my classroom. :) Thus, I like to be in CONTROL of my students' learning. I feel that as I experience more and more success with teaching, I will be able to relinquish more and more of this control, but I'm just not there yet. However, I know that it's imperative that my students think critically and independently. (In fact, it's one of the major 21st Century Skills we've discussed.) Thus, I am going to need to create more opportunities where they can immerse themselves in information and, subsequently, take control of their own learning.
We are lucky at Mason Middle School to have so many computer labs with the latest technology. However, I have seldom taken advantage of the resources within my own building. This has limited the amount of authentic, technological experiences that my students have had in conjunction with Language Arts. Of course, my students conduct plenty of technological research (and other related activities) in their free time and at home. But, that is not activity that I can monitor, nor am I able to give them assistance should they require it.
This is one reason that I'm excited about starting Wikis in my L.A. classroom. When I get them set up, Randy (and/or Jim) will require me to block out at least one day's worth of classes in the computer lab. This will create a learning environment conducive to technology and digital learning. Then, I can model for my students the type of writing (and work) I want them to complete the Wikis on their own time.
I'm anticipating positive feedback from my students (based on other teachers' results), and if this is the case, then I'm sure it will motivate me to schedule more time in the computer lab. This will create even more learning opportunities for my students in a digital environment.
I now want to turn my attention to the "active participants" piece of the above indicator. Engaging all 20-30 students in your classroom is a challenge that every K-12 educator faces. We want to call an appropriate number of students, we want to call on an equal number of boys and girls, and we want those who feel shy and inhibited to grow comfortable. By engaging our students in digital media forms (such as blogs, Wikis, and discussion forums), we are creating opportunities for students to come out of the woodwork. I realize that participating in class discussion (voluntarily or involuntarily) is a terrifying task to some students... But I'm willing to bet that digital forums are less intimidating to these students. I can't wait to try it myself!! :)
Until next time, enjoy the fabulous Ohio weather! 50 degrees and sunny-- woo hoo!! :)
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So you planning on skipping class again tonight? :)
ReplyDeleteBy the way, "canceled" is the preferred spelling, at least as far as AP style is concerned.
I'm a dork for knowing this.
I hope we can collaborate on our work with wikis! It'll certainly help us to bounce ideas off each other!
Hey again skipper - er, I mean, Katie.
ReplyDeleteI've been brainstorming how I'll introduce wikis to my students, along with what they'll be doing during the trimester. I'm going to post these ideas on my blog. Could you, at some point, provide your feedback (remember: you get one big ole point from our class if you do this, which means you're only 399 points away from a perfect score!)
Absolutely. I'll check it all out sometime this week and give you some feedback. I think the biggest point is to schedule some lab time with your students so that they can register for the Wiki all at once (and you can approve their registration all at once).
ReplyDeleteKatie,
ReplyDeleteGood luck with the wiki project. It is nice to see you and Fred working together. If you have any trouble getting into the computer lab, check with Judi Stewart, the librarian. She sometimes has openings.
Katie,
ReplyDeleteI'm also creating a wikispace to facilitate an environment using technology that will hopefully allow my students to be more creative in the way they communicate in their literature groups and this will hopefully lead to other uses of the wikispace. In Lebanon, we also have a few labs in our building; however, all computers are never working at the same time. I'll definitely be shadowing your efforts!