EDCI 5825 Week 4 Reading Reflection Qs

What is the right balance between giving students freedom to explore the Web for research and providing them with structure and guidance?

There definitely seems to be a certain balance - like most work in the classroom setting when it comes to students and their use of the web. I am afraid I am going to have to agree with Ms. Lee Ann Potter when she notes that students should be provided with guided and focused search scaffolding: "...Nor should we be sending our students to the Web and then simply saying, "Go." (November 2010. 72). Students need to understand that searching for material, sources and other information on the Web is a skill in itself- a skill in fact that I may not have ever learned quite as successfully as my future students will b/c I grew up when the Internet was not being widely used for projects in high school. By the time it was used I was already in college where there was a sort of 'fend for yourself' result. The chapter touches on this during the section regarding Database Search Skills. For example, exploring different search results by using the key word aircraft OR airplane. (November 2010) In this section of the chapter the discussion lends itself to the fact that sometimes it is OK for the teacher to take a step back and let searches fail to demonstrate the power of the aforementioned skill: "Feeling the frustration of continued failed searches and then finding success can be very empowering for students" (November 2010. 73). I think I could definitely use this skill in the English Literature classroom - perhaps to even take it to another level by creating search games all with the goal of studying the power of words. Even with all of the technology access at our fingertips - words & language and the ability to manipulate them are an ever important discovery for students and teachers alike.

What is the role of the teacher in helping students to make meaning of primary source material?

In addition to what I spoke to above I think that the teacher is sort of an 'empty vessel' in which whatever changing technology tools out there must float into and then the teacher can manipulate them for class purposes. The teacher can take sites like the Digital Classroom of the National Archives to develop lesson plans that truly incorporate primary sources. Then students can create their work based off of these amazing sources that would never have been available to students years ago. It is simply amazing. Not only do students understand the research & discovery elements of using primary sources but they also discover amazing new perspectives they might not have had access to before, for example: "students value the skills of the historian - asking important questions, seeking clues, constructing hypothesis, and presenting to authentic audiences" (November 2010. 66). My favorite example though was discussed in the book when the teacher used material from the digital classroom with the book Little House on the Prairie and found the actual census records of her family. Fantastic. Totally interactive, engaging and a worthwhile endeavor for any student -> Little House in the Census: Almanzo and Laura Ingalls Wilder.

How can teachers use Podcasting and/or multimedia tools to promote collaborative learning?

Teachers can incorporate the projects above with Podcasting which would be very cool but the book also discusses some other ideas. In the classroom setting students and teachers alike can view many Podcasts for resources or learning/lesson activities but perhaps the coolest thing about them is that students and teachers alike can create their own. Some sites that may already come to mind are Youtube.com and Google Video but there are a vast number of other technology examples to use with Podcasts in the classroom as well like: itunes and Garageband to name a few. Projects utilizing these tools can for the most part be creative group projects but I think I would like to provide the opportunity to do individual projects as well and the good news is I can with all of these tools. Another way teachers can promote collaborative learning is by visiting the website Education Podcast Network to view directories of podcasts for the classroom. I checked out the English Language Arts link and found a ton of really cool examples using Shakespeare that I would love to incorporate into my Internet Workshop somehow. Students are so attuned to using video, watching video and playing video games in the present age that I think there is something truly special about adapting our lessons to the technology interests of our students and Podcasting is a great way to do that while they collaborate together to make amazing things!
See you all in class ~ aa