McCully,+Erin+L

Cool Tools Summary & Lesson Plan *Closing Reflection is at the bottom* Erin McCully July 2012

__Cool Tools Carousel Summary__

In the first session, we were given information on how to find new Web 2.0 tools quickly and easily. The site similarsites.com looks to be particularly helpful for me. In the second session, the facilitator gave us information on Developing a Compelling Question and Analyzing Information, and I really got a lot out of the Tricider tool as well as the community websites. For the third session, we examined different options for multimedia storytelling, which I know will come in handy this year as I explore different ways for students to express their opinions or publish their research on various topics in my class. I really like Blabberize and Sock Puppets. ToonDo looks intriguing and I am interested in researching that more.

__Cool Tools Hot Topics Summary__

I attended the Google Tools for Schools session in order to learn more about Google Forms and other Google applications. I was already familiar with Google Docs in general, especially sharing Word-type files and I have used Google Forms, but this was a refresher for me.

__Ning / Diigo Summary (from Language Arts session)__

I really enjoyed the presentation by Richard Beach on using online roleplaying to teach argumentative writing and create a situation that mirrors a real-world problem to solve. We used Ning to create avatars, and Dr. Beach assigned us to be FOR or AGAINST an issue (banning unhealthy food in supermarkets), regardless of our personal opinion. We were encouraged to use the Diigo site (linked from our workshop page) to research. In a situation with more time, we would have posted our own online research with “stickies” and comments. As it was, we chose a persona and posted opinions and argued based on our avatar’s beliefs.

I liked the process and I felt that it was one of the best ways I’ve seen of getting students involved in real-world problem-solving. Some of our discussions were not research-based but were more focused on humor, but it was a thought-provoking activity. Students who had a required component of research and a rubric to follow would have the opportunity to be more focused and even more successful than we were. I really feel like this is one of the few times when a Web 2.0 tool really creates a whole new and effective learning experience, not just replacing something that already exists and merely being “cooler” than the older options.

__My Ning / Diigo Lesson Idea__


 * Student Audience**: 7th Grade Music Students
 * Essential Standards:** 7.CR.1 Understand global, interdisciplinary, and 21st Century connections with music.
 * Time Frame**: Perhaps two or three 45-minute class periods
 * Resources Needed**: Computer access for all students (laptops or computer lab)
 * Prior Knowledge**: Basic computer skills, understanding of how to use Diigo, Internet searching skills


 * Procedure:**


 * 1) Explain to students that they will be participating in an online community in assumed roles as they address the question, “Should people who download music for free be punished?”
 * 2) Show students a brief presentation that outlines the activity and includes where to find resources and ends with the rubric they must follow to get full credit. The rubric will remain up for the duration of the class so that the students may check on their progress.
 * 3) Students log on to computers and go to a Diigo site with two articles (one for and one against); the address will be shortened with tinyurl.com and projected on the board for students to visit.
 * 4) I will assign all students with first names A-E to be FOR punishing those who download music for free illegally, and all students with first names F-Z to be AGAINST it.
 * 5) Students will then research websites that will support the position they must argue on the Ning discussion site. They will post their articles with “stickies,” and those articles will become ones that they use on the Ning site to support their arguments.
 * 6) Students will go to the Ning site that I have created that has the following Forum created: “Music is an art form, and art should be free.” They will create their own avatar from a list of the following personas (or their own idea): music producer, musician/band, music store owner/worker, music lover, Amazon.com or iTunes executive, person who makes minimum wage in a 40-hour-a-week job, Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) executive, Rolling Stone column-writer, high school student, someone being sued by RIAA for downloading music illegally, or another relevant role.
 * 7) My personal avatar will be “Middle School Student” who downloads music for free from websites. I will also engage with the students in the conversations.
 * 8) Students will then interact and argue on the topic, using the research they have done to support their arguments.
 * 9) When they have completed the requirements in the rubric on the board, they will open the link to the online rubric to download and complete using a word document. That rubric will then be saved and emailed to me.

Rubric for Students’ Participation in Ning & Diigo Online Roleplaying Activity (adapted from Dr. Beach’s presentation and handouts at NCI2012)


 * //Self-Evaluation of Posts//**

Give yourself a score from 1 to 4 in the appropriate box. Next: You must find at least one example of your writing for each of the five grading criteria. (Use the second table to determine what score you should receive.)

1 = lowest 4 = highest || **Copy and paste and example of your work into the box below. Please hyperlink to it here.** ||
 * **Requirement** || **Score**
 * __1. Creation of a role__ - Type your score in the box to the right. ||  ||   ||
 * __2. Statement of position__ - Type your score in the box to the right. ||  ||   ||
 * __3. Support for position__ - Type your score in the box to the right. ||  ||   ||
 * __4. Recognition of counter-arguments__ - Type your score in the box to the right. ||  ||   ||
 * __5. Seeks audience identification__ - Type your score in the box to the right. ||  ||   ||


 * **Requirement** || **4** || **3** || **2** || **1** ||
 * __1. Creation of a role__ || Creates and portrays a highly believable, realistic, and relevant role using detailed, descriptive language, images, and links || Creates and portrays a somewhat believable, realistic, and relevant role through use of descriptive language, images, and links || Creates a role with only limited believability, reality, and relevancy through limited use of descriptive language, images, and links || Creates and portrays a role that is not believable, realistic, or relevant with little or no use of descriptive language, images, and links ||
 * __2. Statement of position__ || Makes a clear position statement showing a strong understanding of topic || Makes some position statement showing some understanding of topic || Makes an unclear position statement showing limited understanding of topic || Makes only a vague position statement ||
 * __3. Support for position__ || Provides a lot of clear reasons for position based on clearly-defined description of the context || Provides some reasons for position based on a description of the context || Provides limited reasons for position with hardly any description of the context || Provides no reasons ||
 * __4. Recognition of counter-arguments__ || Clearly identifies stated counter-arguments in own words or clearly restates other role’s positions in own words and formulates a strong argument with a lot of supporting evidence/reasons || Identifies stated counter-arguments or restates other role’s positions and forms an argument in own words with some supporting evidence/reasons || Identifies stated counter-arguments or other role’s positions by simply quoting or restating with a weak argument || Identifies stated or potential counter-arguments or other role’s positions by simply quoting or restating with no argument ||
 * __5. Seeks audience identification__ || Seeks audience identification through specific references to the audience, references to stances that would appeal to audiences, or use of persona that would appeal to audiences in terms of advantages || Seeks audience identification through some references to the audience, references to stances that would have some appeal to audiences, or use of persona that would appeal to audiences || Seeks limited audience identification, but uses primarily “I” examples that do not reference the audience’s potential advantages || Makes no attempt to seek audience identification. ||

10. They will then reflect on the experience by stepping back outside of their assumed avatar roles and discuss in small groups or one large group.

11. After discussion, students should go home and reflect on their own personal activity on the Ning site. They will respond to the following questions for homework (via Word) and email it to me.


 * Self-Reflection** (from Dr. Beach’s presentation and handouts at NCI2012)

1. Describe your role’s beliefs or stance on the issue(s).

2. What kind of language or arguments did you use to convey these beliefs or stances?

3. What evidence or reasons did you use to support your positions? Do you think that this evidence or reasons were effective in convincing others to adopt your positions?

4. When you received a reply that challenged or disagreed with your position, how did you typically respond to these challenges or disagreements?

5. Do you think that your arguments had any influence on your audiences’ beliefs on this issue? If so, in what ways?

6. Consulting the map you created, which roles had the most versus least power in this role-play? What are some reasons that these roles did or did not have power? What were some strategies that the roles with power employed?

Closing Reflection

 * 1. Now that you’ve had this professional development experience, how are you defining “new literacies?” How do you think your definition has changed or evolved this week?**

To me, a new literacy is defined as an ability to understand a new medium. New media include the Web 2.0 tools we’ve learned about and used this week as well as new ways of using older tools.


 * 2. Describe some new literacies that you learned about this week? What did you know about these topics before the week began and how has your experience this week contributed to your understanding of these new literacies?**

The new literacy I connected with most was the questioning/inquiring. That concept is truly cross-curricular. I had not thought about the depth to which questioning could be achieved so easily; the matrix that was introduced really helped me see how easy it can be to incorporate deep questions into lessons!


 * 3. In what ways are the new literacies prompted by technology? How do they affect one another?**

New tools do require different ways of thinking; as we incorporate new tools into our curriculum, they inspire us to use our brains in new – and challenging – ways. As people use new tools, they think, “Wait, it would be cool if it could do such-and-such,” and then, I suppose, new tools are born!


 * 4. How do new literacies affect the way we think about academic content? Describe an example of how some specific academic content is affected by changes in the ways we read, write, and think (i.e. new literacies).**

I can see from my colleagues that social studies, language arts, and math are all being greatly affected by new literacies. All three of my colleagues on the IMPACT team are incorporating new literacies and the emerging thread is that those tools that build new literacies are also building more interdisciplinary concepts in lesson plans. In math in particular, my colleague is now inspiring her students to use higher-order thinking skills to examine why certain procedures are used in a math concept instead of others. The students not only learn the content, but they start questioning and delving deeper into it due to this new approach.


 * 5. How do new literacies affect the way we think about our teaching practices? How do they affect the development of new teaching practices or approaches to teaching?**

Using inquiry-based learning in our lessons requires a change from teacher-focused instruction to student-focused instruction, which makes many teachers uncomfortable! We must be forward-thinking and remember that real world problem-solving skills are what will make kids most successful later in life.


 * 6. During the week, you learning about several conceptual / theoretical frameworks for understanding the new literacies including, project-based inquiry, TPACK, Bloom’s revised cognitive theory, online identity, and global literacies (i.e. cultural competence, cultural awareness, cosmopolitanism). Describe your personal perspective on new literacies as it is informed by these conceptual and theoretical ideas.**

I feel that in order for our students to become competitive with the students we saw in the Lego Project video, we must broaden our ideas of what education looks like. We also need to give students an opportunity to be more responsible for their own learning. Bloom’s Revised Taxonomy is an excellent guide for checking oneself as a teacher: “Are all my lesson plans revolving around the bottom of the pyramid?” Project-based learning is what will help kids become the most successful later in life.


 * 7. How does the design process you learned about in your design studio work and the video digging deeper session support your understanding of the creative process?**

I appreciate the focus of the process being an Essential Question. Learning is about finding answers, and it’s not all that interesting unless you have a question you want to know the answer to!


 * 8. You learned this week about how to manage, and in some cases create, your online identity. What action steps will you take (are you taking) to manage and further extend your online identity?**

I have become active on Twitter in order to follow teacher-leaders in music education. It’s a great way, too, for me to find out about new technology that I can use in my classes. I have tried to block most sites from gleaning information about me, but it is difficult. I have made my facebook site “unsearchable” so that even if someone knows my name, he or she can’t locate me. This is to protect me from getting numerous friend requests from students.


 * 9. If you had one more day in the Institute, what would you like to learn more about and why?**

I would be most interested in learning more about inquiry-based learning and delving into that more deeply with respect to my subject area (chorus and music).