Upgrading the Curriculum: 21st Century Assessment Types and Skills

The last paragraph of this chapter kept me from completely unloading on assessment topic. I was all gung-ho about totally revamping our concept of what education even looks like, but talking about assessment falls right into that "just like we've always done it" category......I HATE talking about assessment. But, like I said, the author saved me in the end by writing, "changing our assessments and skills is a different type of upgrade than altering content." She isn't addressing assessment simply for assessment's sake- I think she alternatively looks at assessment as the ends to the means of the whole model she has in mind. We should know where we're going, where we'll end up; so from a whole mountain of education to attack, starting with one molehill isn't such a bad idea.

We do still need to be realistic about change, too. Teachers who are part of a "changing curriculum" aren't necessarily going to share the same vision, or even basic skills, for that matter, that are required for these changes to take place. So instead of just leaving them in the dust, which we obviously can't do, changes (like in assessment) need to start in terms they can understand. So although I think swapping an assignment from writing a short story to writing a screen play is not too ground-breaking- that's about where we are now- we've gotta start somewhere.

Curriculum 21: Essential Education for a Changing World

I may have found a book that FINALLY puts the whole "curriculum for a digital world through the real-world technology skills and cultural literacy collaboration blah blah blah" mindset into a perspective that's more than just fluff. Today I started reading this book by Heidi Hayes Jacobs with the first chapter, called "A New Essential Curriculum for a New Time." It introduced a lot of sporadic thoughts, but those thoughts present some serious defense for the author's developing educational paradigm.

I particularly identify with the historical traditions establishing the contemporary educational methods......we go with what we know. What we know has been rows of desks, with a blackboard at the front of the room for the students to copy from, and then homework to finish and turn in the next day. That isn't our design because it's necessarily the best anymore....just because that's how it's been! Our standards (another point the author addresses) fit with that design, not because they are the best method of achieving that level of learning, but because that's the only way to quantify the learning that takes place in the rows with the blackboards. So we shouldn't really be looking at the standards for our educational revamp, we should be looking at our revamp of education to revamp education.........the structure probably isn't even the right fit in the first place!

I'm sticking with this book until the end of GEM, so I'm actually excited to find out how this author has developed the ideas I've wrestled with myself.

Digital Mapping

I won't say that I'm any more inspired to use Google Earth now than what I was this summer when we explored the program, but I have learned a few more features from Choosing Web 2.0 Tools for Learning and Teaching in a Digital World than what I was familiar with. For example, I don't think I knew about the LAYERS feature that adds an historical map over the imagery of the current terrain in order to compare and contrast the features. This feature also provides 3D viewing capabilities- something that surprised me upon this reading.

As for the Google non-Earth additions, I had no idea there was that much to explore in either Google Oceans or Google Sky. I'm pretty sure I knew they were there, but this text certainly provides much more substantial instruction on using the programs. Even though it does with the basic Google Earth program too, I still don't feel like I know what I'm doing with it. Like I said, I think it's cool to be there for people who are comfortable with it, but I'm still not quite inspired to learn what I need to.

Collaborating and Sharing Information

So, I did know that Web 2.0 is all about collaboration online. But I didn't know that there is as much out there than what this chapter talks about in Making the Web Work for You. Especially the government and business sides of online tools- I never thought about governmental agencies having their own social networks or virtual worlds; or how business almost have to stay on the cutting-edge of Internet technology just to stay in business. A lot of this stuff goes on without the general public even knowing about it!

For the corporate world, and I assume for education too, there are always ways to schedule and organize meetings, brainstorm topics and solutions without ever needing someone to write something down. Or ways to get information from the public without needing to talk to individual people- like with online polls and discussion boards, etc. And even with presenting material, I had no idea there was a 2.0 tool to share your desktop with people in a class.

As sick as I am of talking about technology, and the "new things on the Web," I recognize that it really is impossible to ever be "caught up" with new things..........I'm just not sure how I feel about that.

Research 2.0

Research 2.0, I've discovered, is not so much different from research 1.0. I guess the 2.0 comes into play because of all the additional material available to look through on the Internet. Those sources need to be criticized and cited like any other material, so I suppose this chapter in Web 2.0: Making the Web Work for You might give someone new information. It is certainly good to keep as a quick reference for a newbie to Internet research- but search engines are pushing it for most of us. I did think the mind-mapping tool featured in the chapter was interesting. I am familiar with some mind-mapping software, but hadn't seen anything on the Web. That's good to keep in mind when I won't want to pay for the Inspiration license one day.

Adam Hotchkiss

I really appreciate how realistically Adam approaches the relationship between the technology coordinator and the school's teachers. He touched particularly on the importance of prompt conflict resolution in response to technology maintenance, because he recognizes the reality of teachers eventually giving up their use of technology if they have no reason to trust its dependability. I am just such a teacher, and work with plenty of other teachers like that too. It's impossible to implement technology, or even forsee its implementation, into your planning if you can't predict whether or not the Promethean board will be fixed by then, or if the projector lens has even been cleaned. Teachers can do their part, but that only goes so far. I'm sure CAK operates differently than the schools from my experiences, based on size alone, but still......the tech coordinator needs to realize the reality of their particular situation.

Adam also really emphasizes the training behind the inclusion of technology, but I particularly noted his approach to this perspective from the prevention of wasted resources- technology that a teacher doesn't know how to use will not get used, whether it's in the classroom or not. If it's not used, the funding for that technology goes to waste. Taking this position probably encourages the school's administration and the holders of whatever funds they use to more seriously consider backing appropriate technology training.

Polly Brake

Mrs. Brake's story seems pretty interesting- how she ended up in technology, and especially educational technology for that matter. She certainly demonstrates the passion she has for getting technology into the classroom; I think that's so important, and I think it helps her influence the teachers at Grace in the same way.

Thinking of myself as a teacher at her school, I think I would definitely feel encouraged by her to try new things, and supported by her if I had my own ideas or wanted to go out on a limb. She's a technology coordinator who all teachers should have on their team and take advantage of the opportunity if they do. Thinking of myself actually in her position......I definitely don't think I could do that job very well. She's got a vision and a way of pursuing that vision that I just recognize in myself. Again, her passion begins at the level of technology alone- where she and I will never see eye to eye. However, her natural leadership in that position does lend some wisdom for any other type of leadership. So even if I'm not leading technology coordination in my school one day, I'll consider that necessary drive and conviction, not to mention patience for helping peers push themselves professionally.

The Digital Citizen

In The Digital Diet, the authors certainly give plenty of sensible advice that every Internet user should hear, understand and practice. Since I have grown up using the Internet, this first chapter didn't really shatter the earth for me, personally. But children growing up with the Internet at its now evolved state, need to understand these lessons we have had to learn through its evolution. And there are always those people who are only just venturing into the realm of technology- some of them as teachers in schools- so this chapter would be great to use in a discuss of "technology's essentials" (just as important as simple hardware knowledge).

I appreciate the approach to this subject by these authors, because their list of "tenets" for the the digital citizen can be understood easily enough by anyone of any age along that Internet use spectrum/timeline.
-Respect yourself.
-Protect yourself.
-Respect others.
-Protect others.
-Respect intellectual property.
-Protect intellectual property.
Again, thorough, simply stated, and easy to understand and remember by children as well as adults.

Digital Video in Mathematics

So I covered the Language Arts chapter of Teaching with Digital Video, but continued on with the Math chapter mainly out of curiosity. I've always considered math the content area of most challenge with things like technology integration or cross-curricular connections, so I found the idea of digital video most intriguing.

This chapter came from the same 3-fold stance of video: watching, analyzing, and creating; and contained several lesson plans utilizing each of those techniques. I must admit, however, I think most of the lesson plans may be stretching things a bit. I bought into more easily the "watching" lessons, because video can always be used as a way to demonstrate or visualize a concept; but that can only go so far before the videos become superfluous. With the analyzing and creating videos in math, the "Marching Band Choreography" lesson plan won me over (I'm sure it helps that I was a band kid myself, but not exclusively.), and I think it totally falls into today's discussion of teaching, learning and the curriculum. A teacher using this lesson presents a problem in video form, which the students identify, analyze and eventually apply to their own creations recorded on video. In all my years of marching band, I never thought about how geometrically-based it really is, so I can certainly see the technology working with the curriculum all the way through the problem-based learning to be something the students could really enjoy and benefit from.

Digital Video in English Language Arts

Obviously I went right for this chapter of the book Teaching with Digital Video, edited by G. Bull and L. Bell. I appreciate the idea the authors present of three different activities to do with digital video: watching, analyzing, and creating. Analyzing and creating are particular easy and seamless in a Language Arts classroom- and videos are usually just used for watching after the class has finished reading its corresponding work of text- but I never really applied that thinking to videos....a communication genre that truly is a part of the language world.

Like I mentioned, watching videos is the easiest to do, but should not be taken for granted. Part of our discussion on Monday mentioned how all teachers hold differing levels of ability with technology. One of the seventh grade teachers at my base placement asked me if I could help her make a video full screen.......I just dragged the corner of the window until it was the right size. So, even people more comfortable with technology still need to be conscious of other teachers wanting to start into the realm of digital media- literally from the ground, up.

I love the lesson shared in this chapter for Analyzing digital video, because it involves the students interacting directly with the technology as well as presenting something of themselves that they created. This "Performance Poetry" lesson includes teacher and student collaborative feedback, creative writing, poetry, self-expression, student presentation, with a great list of suggested resources....all wins...So I will definitely keep note of this lesson plan.

You can't get any more student involvement than you get from students creating their own product. I love the book trailer idea shared in this chapter (another one I plan to use one day), because the students have to completely absorb the text and present its parts that held most meaning for them. This is also a great opportunity for a middle school teacher to scaffold student understanding of copyright and appropriate media use, while the students sift through potentially mass amounts of helpful content online. I think the students would love it, but still display an endless amount of standards mastery!