First of all, thank you so much for taking the time to look at and analyze my assignment. As many of you know, I'm currently working towards my Masters degree in Instructional Technology & Design, and this assignment is part of an ongoing series of posts about technology implementation in K-12 education. We are taking a community-based approach to this discussion and value any input, thoughts, comments, or critiques you have to offer regarding the product offered in each unit.
This week's unit focuses on blogging as a classroom tech implementation. I remember having a personal blog when I was in high school (and still naively under the impression that my posts were private...). It offered an outlet for me to express myself in a more thoughtful way than just having a conversation with a friend or parent. The idea behind using blogs in the classroom follows the same thought process-- students will have the opportunity to thoughtfully reflect on their learning as well as their personal experiences throughout the course of a lesson or project.
What we know about learning has evolved a lot since the time when I was in high school and the direction of educational theory and practice has shifted to incorporate technology in a way that provides students with a more "authentic" learning experience; in other words, teaching students core content through real-world experiences. This is a grand departure from the direct instruction model of learning that most of us experienced in school, but we know now that giving students the opportunity to use the skills we want them to learn and also reflect on their own learning significantly deepens their understanding of those topics and also builds problem-solving and critical thinking skills.
Technology Product - Click here
My product for this week focuses on encouraging students to express their mathematical ideas and engage in meaningful discussion with their teachers and peers. I think that students in math classes often have performance anxiety that makes verbally contributing in class a very scary activity. By bringing the discussion to a place where they can think first, communicate, and edit their responses before sharing will take away some of that anxiety.
The product will be a unit-by-unit math journal component, where each student will make a reflection post at the culmination of every unit of instruction. Each post will incorporate a teacher-supplied prompt or selection of prompts to which the student must respond, as well as a fully articulated reflection portion. The posts will be graded on a standardized rubric or rubrics that the students will have access to while constructing their responses. An example of the content rubric is offered below:
After viewing the sample blog above, I would love to hear your thoughts, comments and suggestions below. If you are a classroom teacher, have you used something like this in your classroom before? Is it something you would consider using? What changes would you make? If you are not a classroom teacher, I still want to know what you think! How might an activity like this have changed your own learning experience?
Thank you so much for your participation!
Most people get put off by blogs because they think the blog needs to read like War and Peace. Blogs essentially allow you to expound on an idea that would be a bit exhaustive or silly to try to read on a normal landing page or a social media post.
ReplyDeleteThe more visual a blog is the better it will be. Try to use user-generated content that you've received permission to use or stock images and be careful not to pirate Google Images.
If you have the ability for plug-ins (like Wordpress) Yoast SEO is a must have. This walks you through Search Engine Optimization (SEO) best practices and helps get your content in from of more eyeballs.
Good luck!
-Grant :)
Grant, thanks!! I need more info about Yoast SEO and how my students can utilize it in class. What can you tell me?
DeleteYes-- I think this is only effective if it is used consistently throughout the year with clear expectations (and the understanding that there will be a learning curve for students).
ReplyDeleteFrom Kate Partain, member of the Blended Learning group on Schoology:
ReplyDelete"I love that! Darren Butler, a published author who developed a writing comprehension course across all subjects, wrote a similar blog post. For many teachers, you know the concern is with security and protection of students. He gives an alternative idea to the tech piece. Check it out! http://www.weeklywriter.net/using-student-blogs-in-the-classroom/"
I think the idea of creating a blog in a math classroom is great. It encourages students to think critically about not just how to answer the questions presented, but also on how to reply back to their peers. Furthermore it facilitates the learning and sharing of mathematical concepts between students in a way that a traditional classroom does not always permit. One of the best things about this seems to be the fact that students have other responses to compare theirs against and to see as examples if they are confused. I also really liked the idea of providing students with a rubric and expectations prior to them typing and submitting responses.
ReplyDeleteIn my classroom, the type of blogging used involved posting a discussion post and then having students respond to it. The downside of this was the fact that I never had students respond to each other's posts. If I used blogging in my classroom, I would make sure to post a rubric, and example, and have students reply to two other posts after they complete their post.
Yes! Super important to include a requirement that they make a quality response on other blogs... "Great job" or "I agree" responses wouldn't be enough, just like in our online college classes.
DeleteThanks for commenting :)
I agree with all of the above (especially the necessary pre-teaching). I would add that, as a social tool, kids begin to feel part of a greater community (a feeling they already know from their own SM experience). It also allows them to participate, as a greater learning community, outside of the classroom. It's a powerful tool, if used with planning and forethought.
ReplyDeleteMy only concern would be getting them to buy in. I think you could start off with super easy concepts then slowly build up.
ReplyDelete- Malveaux
I also agree with all of the above. I would like to add:
ReplyDeleteBlogging can be very productive, if used often enough that a safe environment is created. Improving their communication skill is the goal. The benefits transcends the math concept.
I also went to your sample and posted this:
"Part 1:
I like the open-ended prompt. I am a perfectionist at heart, having the rubric would help me. It would encourage me to meet the highest expectation. It would still be stressful, however with more practice I would improve and be proud.
Part 2: There is great scaffolding here. This gives direction without making it a fill-in the blank response. It gives me opportunity to express my learning in the avenue of my choice."