Sunday, February 07, 2010
Saturday, October 24, 2009
Monday, October 12, 2009
Sunday, October 04, 2009
Digital Storytelling example
You will find an example of a digital story below...Wally the Water Molecule. This digital story was created using a digital camera and Windows MovieMaker.
Thursday, July 16, 2009
EDIM 508 u07a2 Environmental Chemistry Virtual Field Trip Reflection
Click here for the link for my Google Earth virtual field trip that was imported to Google Maps. I have also submitted the Google Earth file as an assignment in the Wilkes Moodle site.The image files did not transfer when I imported the file to Google Maps, but they are available in the kmz file submitted online through the Wilkes Moodle site.
This was the first time that I have ever used Google Earth as I had not even used it to search for my house. This was a great learning experience and I can see how useful and meaningful it would be for my students to engage in a virtual field trip making use of Google Earth. I have developed my virtual field trip for my International Baccalaureate (IB) chemistry students to complete during their environmental chemistry unit. As this is an international program I see great benefits in using an application like Google Earth which allows students to gain an international perspective on many topics. In addition to the places that I have created for my students to visit there are two built in global awareness layers that would be useful for my students – Unicef: Water and Sanitation and WaterAid.
There are several different types of instructional goals that I wish to achieve through the completion of this visit. They are divided between knowledge outcomes/assessment statements and general aims of an IB science course. They include:
Knowledge Outcomes/Assessment Statements that are being met in this trip:
E.6.1 List the primary pollutants found in waste water and identify their sources.
E.6.2 Outline the primary, secondary and tertiary stages of waste water treatment, and state the substance that is removed during each stage.
Aims of IB science course that are being met in this trip:
5. Engender an awareness of the need for, and the value of, effective collaboration and communication during scientific activities.
7. Develop and apply the students’ information and communication technology skills in the study of science.
8. Raise awareness of the moral, ethical, social, economic and environmental implications of using science and technology.
I wanted to make it as global as possible and to choose as wide a variety of places to visit as possible. Believe it or not, it is quite hard to find user friendly information on waste water treatment. I guess it is not a priority for many people! I think that it is important for students to understand how their waste is treated, how involved the process is and what might be considered standard protocol in one country may not necessarily be the same in a different country. With their final writing prompt I wanted students to think about the complications affecting two very different border nations as they face the important issue of waste water treatment and providing a source of clean water for their citizens. I believe that this activity really allows students to reflect on what it means to have a global collaborative perspective.
On this global circumnavigational field trip, there is ample opportunity for students to work on developing their ethical and respectful minds. They start by investigating waste water treatment in their local area. They then move to South Africa were a state of the art waste treatment facility has been created but down the road other poorer South Africans are fighting just to have access to clean water. Can this development be justified? In California they examine the consequences of the rapid growth of a city and the effect of this on the local environment. Should environmental concerns be considered when making city planning decisions? In Bear River, NS they learn about an environmentally friendly way of dealing with waste. Should all waste treatment plants use this type of technology?
This was the first time that I have ever used Google Earth as I had not even used it to search for my house. This was a great learning experience and I can see how useful and meaningful it would be for my students to engage in a virtual field trip making use of Google Earth. I have developed my virtual field trip for my International Baccalaureate (IB) chemistry students to complete during their environmental chemistry unit. As this is an international program I see great benefits in using an application like Google Earth which allows students to gain an international perspective on many topics. In addition to the places that I have created for my students to visit there are two built in global awareness layers that would be useful for my students – Unicef: Water and Sanitation and WaterAid.
There are several different types of instructional goals that I wish to achieve through the completion of this visit. They are divided between knowledge outcomes/assessment statements and general aims of an IB science course. They include:
Knowledge Outcomes/Assessment Statements that are being met in this trip:
E.6.1 List the primary pollutants found in waste water and identify their sources.
E.6.2 Outline the primary, secondary and tertiary stages of waste water treatment, and state the substance that is removed during each stage.
Aims of IB science course that are being met in this trip:
5. Engender an awareness of the need for, and the value of, effective collaboration and communication during scientific activities.
7. Develop and apply the students’ information and communication technology skills in the study of science.
8. Raise awareness of the moral, ethical, social, economic and environmental implications of using science and technology.
I wanted to make it as global as possible and to choose as wide a variety of places to visit as possible. Believe it or not, it is quite hard to find user friendly information on waste water treatment. I guess it is not a priority for many people! I think that it is important for students to understand how their waste is treated, how involved the process is and what might be considered standard protocol in one country may not necessarily be the same in a different country. With their final writing prompt I wanted students to think about the complications affecting two very different border nations as they face the important issue of waste water treatment and providing a source of clean water for their citizens. I believe that this activity really allows students to reflect on what it means to have a global collaborative perspective.
On this global circumnavigational field trip, there is ample opportunity for students to work on developing their ethical and respectful minds. They start by investigating waste water treatment in their local area. They then move to South Africa were a state of the art waste treatment facility has been created but down the road other poorer South Africans are fighting just to have access to clean water. Can this development be justified? In California they examine the consequences of the rapid growth of a city and the effect of this on the local environment. Should environmental concerns be considered when making city planning decisions? In Bear River, NS they learn about an environmentally friendly way of dealing with waste. Should all waste treatment plants use this type of technology?
Friday, July 10, 2009
EDIM 508 u07a1 GoodWork Project, blogs and podcasts
I feel that as a professional, I have already been doing lots of different things to ensure that I am continuously developing each of my five minds. I think one of the reasons for being enrolled in the EDIM program is so that my disciplined mind expands to include not only the realm of chemistry teacher but that it grows to encompass a digitalized chemistry teacher. On a personal front I have begum to explore painting and have enjoyed my foray into this area of my creative mind.
Although not a blog, I have contacted the GoodWork Project organizers and will be asking for funding to purchase the kit for the use in our school. This project was mentioned in Gardner’s book and centers on promoting excellence and ethics in our professions. I have received the introductory package and I know that many of the scenarios would easily be adaptable for my science classes. The kit will also be very useful for our Theory of Knowledge teachers who cover ethics as a part of their course syllabus. I definitely will be sharing this with my staff when school resumes in September…they will be sick and tired of hearing from me!!
I have two professional goals in regards to areas where I want to improve and keep up-to-date – technology use in the classroom and keeping up with current science. There are several different sites that I can use to help me achieve these goals, one blog and three different podcasts. I have been referring to Kathy Schrock’s Kaffeeklatsch blog on educational technology over the years and it is the reason that I heard about this program through Discovery Education. This blog is very teacher friendly and keeps jargon to a minimum, all the while enlightening teachers with up-to-date uses of educational technology. Although a very busy professional she still finds the time to update the blog regularly with posts about a variety of educational technology uses. Her accompanying webpage is also very useful.
I try to bring current science stories into my classroom whenever I can; it is surprising how few students read the paper or news online. They may read the gossip news or entertainment news but rarely do they spend time doing much educational reading online. I have wanted to incorporate a science news summary into my class either as a journaling activity or a class presentation on a weekly basis but have been worried about the time that these activities would need. As well not all of my students have access to a computer at home and with a mound of content knowledge that has to delivered; I am not sure how to set aside enough time for students to successfully engage in this project during class time. I do subscribe to several RSS feeds on my Blog and my Moodle site that students have access to and I start my lessons with a brief discussion on some of the recent science highlights. To help keep up-to-date with the science there are several podcasts that do a great job at delivering fast paced and interesting stories – Science podcast, Scientific American podcast and Quirks and Quarks podcast. The Scientific American podcast is particularly useful for classroom use as it has daily 60 second podcasts which cover a wide variety of science topics. Quirks and Quarks is a Canadian produced radio show that takes a Canadian perspective on many scientific topics as well as having a focus on the international endeavors of scientists. The weekly Science podcast covers topics across the scientific disciplines and provides transcripts of the podcasts. Using Voicethread or creating forums may be one way to incorporate a science journaling activity that would not require much additional class time.
Through the course of the class I have learned many new skills and hope to implement some of them in my classroom. Exposing my students to different forms of digital media will better prepare them for the technology rich future that will exist when they leave high school. It will also give them more meaning and enjoyment while they are in my classes at high school. I will start by incorporating a few ideas and then work on gaining access to the additional technology so all students can gain access.
Although not a blog, I have contacted the GoodWork Project organizers and will be asking for funding to purchase the kit for the use in our school. This project was mentioned in Gardner’s book and centers on promoting excellence and ethics in our professions. I have received the introductory package and I know that many of the scenarios would easily be adaptable for my science classes. The kit will also be very useful for our Theory of Knowledge teachers who cover ethics as a part of their course syllabus. I definitely will be sharing this with my staff when school resumes in September…they will be sick and tired of hearing from me!!
I have two professional goals in regards to areas where I want to improve and keep up-to-date – technology use in the classroom and keeping up with current science. There are several different sites that I can use to help me achieve these goals, one blog and three different podcasts. I have been referring to Kathy Schrock’s Kaffeeklatsch blog on educational technology over the years and it is the reason that I heard about this program through Discovery Education. This blog is very teacher friendly and keeps jargon to a minimum, all the while enlightening teachers with up-to-date uses of educational technology. Although a very busy professional she still finds the time to update the blog regularly with posts about a variety of educational technology uses. Her accompanying webpage is also very useful.
I try to bring current science stories into my classroom whenever I can; it is surprising how few students read the paper or news online. They may read the gossip news or entertainment news but rarely do they spend time doing much educational reading online. I have wanted to incorporate a science news summary into my class either as a journaling activity or a class presentation on a weekly basis but have been worried about the time that these activities would need. As well not all of my students have access to a computer at home and with a mound of content knowledge that has to delivered; I am not sure how to set aside enough time for students to successfully engage in this project during class time. I do subscribe to several RSS feeds on my Blog and my Moodle site that students have access to and I start my lessons with a brief discussion on some of the recent science highlights. To help keep up-to-date with the science there are several podcasts that do a great job at delivering fast paced and interesting stories – Science podcast, Scientific American podcast and Quirks and Quarks podcast. The Scientific American podcast is particularly useful for classroom use as it has daily 60 second podcasts which cover a wide variety of science topics. Quirks and Quarks is a Canadian produced radio show that takes a Canadian perspective on many scientific topics as well as having a focus on the international endeavors of scientists. The weekly Science podcast covers topics across the scientific disciplines and provides transcripts of the podcasts. Using Voicethread or creating forums may be one way to incorporate a science journaling activity that would not require much additional class time.
Through the course of the class I have learned many new skills and hope to implement some of them in my classroom. Exposing my students to different forms of digital media will better prepare them for the technology rich future that will exist when they leave high school. It will also give them more meaning and enjoyment while they are in my classes at high school. I will start by incorporating a few ideas and then work on gaining access to the additional technology so all students can gain access.
Wednesday, July 08, 2009
EDIM 508 u06a1 It's a small world after all...
Reflect on Julene Reed’s article and post a blog entry that presents an idea for using digital media as part of a project, activity or lesson in which you aim to develop students’ respectful and ethical minds.
I am starting to see the interdependencies of the courses in this program; I am developing my synthesizing mind!! Reed’s article read much like a copy of the information that was covered in Friedman’s and Pink’s writings that I first read for the course EDIM 507 – Using Technology to Support Creativity. I have always been interested in the global viewpoint that we can bring to our classroom and now feel much more equipped to bring combine this with my newfound experience and expertise with digital media. These courses have been very complementary of one another. It would be a good recommendation for students to do these two courses at the same time or at least in the same semester.
The information in Reed’s article does not directly relate to the information in Chapter 6 (The Ethical Mind) of Gardner’s Five Minds for the Future; however, it does correspond nicely with the development of the respectful mind which Gardner emphasizes in Chapter 5 of the same book. Like Gardner, I do see many important connections between the two minds. Although we are not directly asked to comment on Gardner’s reading, I want to share a sentence that I found profound and is now on my Facebook profile as well as on a sticky note on my computer - “We are responsible not only for what we do but for what we do not do” (Gardner, 2006, p. 149). For me this sentences explains what it means to have an ethical mind and is reminiscent of something I remember my parents telling me – character is who we are when no-one is watching. For many young people they lack positive role models at home and do not know what it means to do good work and to have a strong character. But back to the task at hand…
In today’s increasingly flattening world, many people no longer associate themselves with being citizens of one nation; instead they may see themselves as global citizens. They may have been born in Papua New Guinea, educated in Australia, mentored in the US and now work between offices located in Mumbai and The Hague. Today there is an increasing sense of competition amongst both businesses and education institutions to attract the best candidates regardless of their nationalities. It is becoming more and more infrequent that young people remain in the community where they spent their childhood. Like Reed said “[w]ith the increased focus on outsourcing and global competition, students must be prepared to compete and succeed by using creativity and ingenuity, and they must be able to work with people from all parts of the world” (2007, ¶3). In order for our students to become good workers and citizenship they must develop a global perspective.
As I have mentioned in a previous blog, I am very lucky to be involved with the IB programme. At the heart of this programme is the goal to provide students from across the global with an education focusing not only on content knowledge but also on character building. This can be noted in the IB Mission Statement:
This statement mirrors closely the writings of both Gardner and Reed.
One of the requirements in the IB Chemistry class that I teach is for all science (Biology, Chemistry and Physics) students to collaborate on a project. The main aim is to “encourage an understanding of the relationships between scientific disciplines and the overarching nature of the scientific method” (IB, 2007, p. 33). The very collaborative nature of this project works in developing a respectful mind. It also allows for a great discussion on the place that ethics plays in the development and growth of science. In Gardner’s book he states that science can be taught the same around the world as it is a universal language. I do believe this to be true, but how science is taught and the classroom expectations are very different in different areas of the globe. The IB curriculum is designed in such a way that cultural bias is minimized and there is an international focus in some content.
For the last few years while doing this project, I have wanted to collaborate with students from another school, hopefully in another country. Through my exposure to new digital media tools this will be closer to becoming a reality. Students would be able to work in heterogeneous school and subject groups to research, test and evaluate. Communication tools like Google Docs will allow students to work cooperatively and collaboratively on documents at the same time. Using applications like Skype with added webcams will allow students to have real time chat. Applications such as Voicethread will allow students to post work and have other members of their group leave comments if time zoning is a problem. Students can also share their comments and results in a group wiki. The project could culminate with a sharing of results via SlideShare or Glogster. Live presentations could take place in both schools and aired via meeting rooms like GoToMeeting, WebEx or Skype.
Having students work in heterogeneous groups will mean students will have to be respectful of each others contributions and beliefs. For example, if the partner school is located in a Muslim area of the globe, class meetings would not be able to take place on Friday as that is the Muslim Sabbath. This project would not only be about learning science but learning about different cultures and different ways of thinking. Projects like this should make great inroads towards helping students develop their respectful and ethical minds.
References
Gardner, H. (2006). Five minds for the future. Boston, MA: Harvard Business School Press.
Reed. J. (2007). Global collaboration and learning. Retrieved July 8, 2009 from http://www.edtechmag.com/k12/events/updates/global-collaboration-and-learning-2.html
International Baccalaureate Organization. (2007). Chemistry guide. First examinations 2009. Chippenham, Wiltshire; Antony Rowe Ltd.
International Baccalaureate. (2009). International Baccalaureate mission statement. Retrieved July 8, 2009 from http://www.ibo.org/mission/
I am starting to see the interdependencies of the courses in this program; I am developing my synthesizing mind!! Reed’s article read much like a copy of the information that was covered in Friedman’s and Pink’s writings that I first read for the course EDIM 507 – Using Technology to Support Creativity. I have always been interested in the global viewpoint that we can bring to our classroom and now feel much more equipped to bring combine this with my newfound experience and expertise with digital media. These courses have been very complementary of one another. It would be a good recommendation for students to do these two courses at the same time or at least in the same semester.
The information in Reed’s article does not directly relate to the information in Chapter 6 (The Ethical Mind) of Gardner’s Five Minds for the Future; however, it does correspond nicely with the development of the respectful mind which Gardner emphasizes in Chapter 5 of the same book. Like Gardner, I do see many important connections between the two minds. Although we are not directly asked to comment on Gardner’s reading, I want to share a sentence that I found profound and is now on my Facebook profile as well as on a sticky note on my computer - “We are responsible not only for what we do but for what we do not do” (Gardner, 2006, p. 149). For me this sentences explains what it means to have an ethical mind and is reminiscent of something I remember my parents telling me – character is who we are when no-one is watching. For many young people they lack positive role models at home and do not know what it means to do good work and to have a strong character. But back to the task at hand…
In today’s increasingly flattening world, many people no longer associate themselves with being citizens of one nation; instead they may see themselves as global citizens. They may have been born in Papua New Guinea, educated in Australia, mentored in the US and now work between offices located in Mumbai and The Hague. Today there is an increasing sense of competition amongst both businesses and education institutions to attract the best candidates regardless of their nationalities. It is becoming more and more infrequent that young people remain in the community where they spent their childhood. Like Reed said “[w]ith the increased focus on outsourcing and global competition, students must be prepared to compete and succeed by using creativity and ingenuity, and they must be able to work with people from all parts of the world” (2007, ¶3). In order for our students to become good workers and citizenship they must develop a global perspective.
As I have mentioned in a previous blog, I am very lucky to be involved with the IB programme. At the heart of this programme is the goal to provide students from across the global with an education focusing not only on content knowledge but also on character building. This can be noted in the IB Mission Statement:
The International Baccalaureate aims to develop inquiring, knowledgeable and
caring young people who help to create a better and more peaceful world through
intercultural understanding and respect. To this end the organization works with
schools, governments and international organizations to develop challenging
programmes of international education and rigorous assessment. These programmes
encourage students across the world to become active, compassionate and lifelong
learners who understand that other people, with their differences, can also be
right (IB, 2009, ¶ 4).
This statement mirrors closely the writings of both Gardner and Reed.
One of the requirements in the IB Chemistry class that I teach is for all science (Biology, Chemistry and Physics) students to collaborate on a project. The main aim is to “encourage an understanding of the relationships between scientific disciplines and the overarching nature of the scientific method” (IB, 2007, p. 33). The very collaborative nature of this project works in developing a respectful mind. It also allows for a great discussion on the place that ethics plays in the development and growth of science. In Gardner’s book he states that science can be taught the same around the world as it is a universal language. I do believe this to be true, but how science is taught and the classroom expectations are very different in different areas of the globe. The IB curriculum is designed in such a way that cultural bias is minimized and there is an international focus in some content.
For the last few years while doing this project, I have wanted to collaborate with students from another school, hopefully in another country. Through my exposure to new digital media tools this will be closer to becoming a reality. Students would be able to work in heterogeneous school and subject groups to research, test and evaluate. Communication tools like Google Docs will allow students to work cooperatively and collaboratively on documents at the same time. Using applications like Skype with added webcams will allow students to have real time chat. Applications such as Voicethread will allow students to post work and have other members of their group leave comments if time zoning is a problem. Students can also share their comments and results in a group wiki. The project could culminate with a sharing of results via SlideShare or Glogster. Live presentations could take place in both schools and aired via meeting rooms like GoToMeeting, WebEx or Skype.
Having students work in heterogeneous groups will mean students will have to be respectful of each others contributions and beliefs. For example, if the partner school is located in a Muslim area of the globe, class meetings would not be able to take place on Friday as that is the Muslim Sabbath. This project would not only be about learning science but learning about different cultures and different ways of thinking. Projects like this should make great inroads towards helping students develop their respectful and ethical minds.
References
Gardner, H. (2006). Five minds for the future. Boston, MA: Harvard Business School Press.
Reed. J. (2007). Global collaboration and learning. Retrieved July 8, 2009 from http://www.edtechmag.com/k12/events/updates/global-collaboration-and-learning-2.html
International Baccalaureate Organization. (2007). Chemistry guide. First examinations 2009. Chippenham, Wiltshire; Antony Rowe Ltd.
International Baccalaureate. (2009). International Baccalaureate mission statement. Retrieved July 8, 2009 from http://www.ibo.org/mission/
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