Reading Flash Mob

Week 4 Reading

I especially enjoyed this review because it's focus was on digital literacy.  The most interesting point that it raised is that reading texts on the internet is beneficial because it is not linear.  What that means is that children don't just read from one line to the next, from left to right the whole way.  There are hyperlinks, pictures and captions, interactive readers, and many other features that put more of a wealth of information at the fingertips of the students while they are reading.  I found this to be especially interesting as I am trying to incorporate online reading with response blog posting in my classroom.

This study was extremely informative.  Instead of using digital storytelling after the reading process, the author used in before and during the reading process to help connect the readers to the story. It was an excellent way to engage reluctant readers, low level readers, and ESL students.  I thought that this was especially innovative since I had no idea that you could do something like that.  It would be interesting to try out.  However, it will not affect my AR project because all of my students are above level. I'm wondering if there would be a way that I could use a similar approach, however, to spark their interest in the novel text.

This article interviewed experts in the field of digital literacy and reading comprehension.  Many of the statements that the experts made were theoretical, as there is no state in our country that uses digital media to assess student comprehension on most standardized tests.  It did, however, bring to mind for me the disparity that draws for my ESL students.  Beginning in the Spring of 2009, the TELPAS (texas english language proficiency assessment system) began utilizing computers to administer the reading portion of the exam.  It cited ease of administration and quicker release of results as the main reasons.  However, I'm wondering now if this has had an effect on how well or poor students perform on the assessment.  They are never asked to read and demonstrate comprehension at any time during the school year other than for this testing.

The last study focused on the differences of reading online versus reading print text.  How does that affect comprehension.  It made me wonder about differences in comprehension for online reading in different genres.  For example, how does reading fiction and non fiction digital affect comprehension?  Is there a difference at all? It is an interesting question to pose considering the wealth of information that is available at the fingertips of students who read online.  Many of the more traditional non fiction texts seem to come more alive with the click of a button, a short video rather than a diagram explaining a concept, and a hyperlink that can explain background information to anyone who is confused.

Week 4 Practical Experience_WordPress_Post3

Well, I didn't find WordPress as exciting as other did.  To find out all about it, please follow this link to read my posts on my WordPress.com.  Don't forget to visit the pages that I created within my blog.

I think I can!  (I love my Michael!)

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Okay, I made an honest attempt to learn how to use the wordpress site.  Here's my first attempt at a post.

Just in case you are having trouble reading the teeny tiny writing in the picture, you can click on this link and it will take you to my blog on the WordPress website.  Hope that you enjoy!

Week 4 Practical Experience_WordPress_Post1

Well, my enthusiasm about wikispaces.com quickly wore off when I saw the price tag for the private label site.  In order to be able to use the site in my class, specifically for the action research project component, I would have had to go with this option.  Have I mentioned yet that the cost for a license for 1 year is $1000?!  Wowzers! That was all I could say to contain myself.  As a result, this week I ventured back into blogging to check out some new sites.  My focus for the week is a site called www.wordpress.com.

If you are going to attempt to use this site, I would advise you to pack your patience.  It takes a lot of getting used to, especially if you are like me, and have been a blogger.com pro for years!  Needless to say, my learning curve for this one is pretty steep.  I'll check back in with you shortly to let you know how things are going.

I'm having information overload, but I do like how much I can accomplish from the dashboard of this site!

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Now I have learned an invaluable amount of information!!  I've learned how to add pages, edit the privacy settings, and more! I love that I can decide page by page which should be private and which should be public.  I can also create a wiki within my wiki.  I know it sounds confusing.  I sure thought that it was, but it's really not. For example, I can have 2 separate wikis for the 2 grade levels that I teach.  I can then set individual pages for class periods based on the grade level.  Because the private label wiki is not free, there are an unlimited amount of wikis and pages that one can create.  I think I just may be ready to purchase a 1 year subscription!!

One of the coolest features that I have found so far is that I can set up templates for my students to use when I am ready for them to start adding to the wiki.  That makes it so much easier for the students to include all of the elements that I am asking them to include.  It actually reminds me of the Creating Ripples Wet Paint wiki in that respect. If I really want my literature circles to begin using this site to collaborate on projects, etc., this would be a great tool to have at hand.

Even though the school district that I work in created email addresses for all of my students, they don't have to have one to sign into the site.  That's great, especially considering how difficult it was for my students to learn the random combination of letters and numbers that were used to create their emails.  I can simple use the display names that they were given, and default their passwords to their lunch numbers/student id numbers.  Then none of my students will be able to give me any excuses about how or why they couldn't get into their email to log into the wiki site!  It makes an extra step for me, but somehow I think it will be worth it in the end.

I'm going to keep playing with my wiki site and working out kinks.  I am in the process of planning out my next grading period, and I am excited to try to find ways to incorporate the wiki into the curriculum!

Week 3 Practical Experience _WikiSpaces_Post 2

So far, I must admit that I am a bit overwhelmed. I'm sure that comes with all new technology, but it's hard for me because I am usually so much better at this.   I'm learning a lot, however.  I already like it better than Blogger because I have more control over the security settings, and I have an easier way to track changes made to the site.  I'm thinking of using it to encourage discussion across class periods and maybe even across classroooms if I could get the other teachers on my team or in my department to be interested in it.

Here is a link to what I have created so far.  I'm warning you, it may be pretty lame. I changed the background, and I have only been able to add 1 page.  It's very simple, but I think too many pages will be too overwhelming.  I do think that it will be a great  way to get my 6th graders into technology, however. I"m looking forward to exploring the different ways that I can use it!

I love that I can track changes down to who did them and at what time.
There is no way for the students to delete their history, either!!

Week3 Practical Experience_Post 1

For this experience, I had the hardest time deciding what to do.  I kept thinking that I should do something that was relevant, and something that I could see myself using successfully in my classroom.  After several days, and about 25,000 parent conferences, I decided to find a wiki site that I could begin using.  My students parents have been in such an uproar about the blog site that I needed to change things up a bit.  I'm not really sure that they will be any more receptive to a wiki, nor do I really care.  My concern is that the children are safely, responsibly using the internet.  I'm expecting a backlash, but there is really nothing that I can do about that.

So without further delay, my practical experience this week was with a great site, www.wikispaces.com.  I chose this site because it offers a private label site that is closed to the outside world, and I thought it would help my parents become a little more at ease.  I looked at wetpaint.com, but I can hear someone complaining about the fact that their are advertisements on the page that I am not able to control.  I have used pbworks.com in the past, and I just don't find it to be very user friendly at all.  I'm also hoping that I will be able to use this in my classroom to help facilitate book clubs and literature circles.  It may even help with my AR project, if I chose to go down that path.

I have signed up for a free 30 day trial of the private label site, and begun watching tutorials.  I have learned so far the basics of navigation and administration on the page.  I will continue with adding pages, templates, etc., and I plan to share the link to my wiki in my next post!

Week 3 Reading

This article was mainly about incorporating digital storytelling into reading curriculum. It did an excellent job of giving concrete, step by step ideas for implementation. I definitely plan on using this resource to help design my study.  The graphic that I chose to include in this post shows how the digital storytelling process lines up with reading strategies and writing strategies.

This article was also a very good resource for understanding how to implement digital technology in the classroom.  It offered a variety of suggestions for cross-curricular projects, and overall I think it will be an excellent how-to guide to help me out on my journing.  One of my favorite things about this article is that it goes into depth about the actual components of digital storytelling.  It fully explains all aspects and why each is important to the overall process.

I loved that in this study digital story telling was used as a way to teach expository texts.  Often times, non-fiction is put on the back burner, especially when it's time to construct projects.  I loved that this study was conducted by a woman doing her action research project.  It really opened my eyes to the possibility of using digital storytelling in expository settings.  That is a big weakness for a lot of my students, and it definitely has peaked my interest towards implementing  digital story telling in that area of our curriculum. 

This study is actually a review/analysis of several studies that have already been done.  It looks at the relationship between digital literacy and technology integration and middle school literacy rates.  The study itself shows that there is a clearly measurable amount of positive effects of digital literacy.  However, it also urges the community of practice to increase research efforts to distinguish the specific area(s) where technology integration has the greatest effect.  I hope to add to the body of literature in respect to metacognitive awareness and critical thinking/analysis skills.

BP11_OMM_Voki

Here is my Voki Commercial.

BP10_Comment to Andrea

Please follow this link to my comments on Andrea's blog.

BP9_Comment to Melissa

Please follow this link to my comments on Melissa Lodhi's blog page.

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Check out my Voki!!!

The Web 2.0 tool that I chose to research this week was www.Voki.com.  This is a website that allows you to create an avatar that is completely customizable.  They can be used for just about anything that you can think of.  You can choose an avatar from cartoons, classics, political figures, and even animals.  After selecting an avatar, you can customize even further.  You can change the skin color, hairstyle and color, eye color, lip style and color, and much more. There is even an option to add bling to your avatar, which is simply accessorizing.  You can wear glasses, carry a purse, pose in front of a car, and so much more.  They offer several backgrounds for you to choose from.  Once you have finished customizing your avatar, you can add voice to it.  You can do this via telephone, typing text, microphone, or adding a pre-recorded file.  It's a very easy to use site, and best of all it's free!

I am extremely excited about what this tool could be used for in my classroom.  I hope that you enjoy watching and listening to my Voki, as I have used it to express my thoughts and ideas.  One thing that I did not include in my message is that Voki will soon offer an educational site. This site promises to be ad free, and will have teacher friendly features that other sites offer.  You will be able to register for 1 license, and list all of your students under the umbrella of 1 account.  Unfortunately, however, this site will not be free like the public site.  Still, I am very interested to see what it has to offer.  It has not yet been released, but I did sign up to receive an email when the site goes live.  Hopefully that will be very soon.  

Again, I hope you enjoy listening to my Voki tell you about all of the exciting possibilities for using Voki.com in your classroom!

Week 2 Reading

This article was about successful implementation of digital storytelling in a Kentucky school.  The director of technology was very ambitious in her program, and it made me hopeful.   Moreso than just helping with my action research, she really inspired me to continue down the path I am on.  My ultimate goal is to teach teachers and empower them to empower our students.  The students did very well, and were able to produce amazing digital stories to represent several things that they learned throughout the program.  The program itself integrated many of the principles of problem based learning, which I found very refreshing.

This study focused on using digital storytelling with gifted children.  It was a great way to keep the students engaged and still allow them to think outside the box, so to speak.  The thing that I identified the most with in this study was the part where she talks about the mistakes she made. She specifically mentioned that she ignored some of the components of a great digital story when she gave her students instructions and how it drastically affected the result.  This reminded me that I really need to take into account that all components of the process are equally important. Not giving them proper attention will affect my results.

The focus of this study was using Second Life, a virtual world, in conjunction with storytelling.  It added a new dimension to the process that I had honestly never thought about using before.  I especially loved that the author of the study used it for literary analysis of a poem.  It really brought to light how subjective interpretation of that genre of writing can be.  I found that one of the biggest keys to the success of this initiative was the amount of time they spent planning exactly what they wanted to say or do.  This was key in helping the students find their voice and truly express themselves.

This article stresses the importance of mastering the art of digital storytelling, and how key in can be in developmental education.  One of the biggest points that I took away from reading this article is that digital storytelling offers students the opportunity to become owners of the learning.  Often reluctant students really enjoy having the creative power to express themselves in a non-ttraditional manner.  I think this tool would be wonderful to use in a classroom of students who may not always actively participate in class.  It would be interesting to see if the prospect of being in charge of the content motivated them more and increased the level of comprehension and retention.

BP7_OMM_Blogger

Here is my commercial.  Enjoy!

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The Web 2.0 tool that I chose to explore was Blogger.  I am interested in using in for my Action Research project because my aim is to see if utilizing technology will cause my students to have an increase in the quality of their reading responses.   Having a blog seems like it would be an interesting way for students to write about their thoughts and ideas, and really understand what it means to be an author (that someone WILL read what they write). 

I am planning to use this tool so that the students can have a place where they can both write their thoughts and read others.  I have even gone as far as to wonder how conversation can or will be kept alive as they comment on each other’s blog postings. 

One of the best things about this site is that it is very easy to navigate and easy to use.  The students can log in with their email addresses that the school provides and create an account.  From there, they are set to begin posting.  There is no need for them to create individual blogs, either.  As their teacher, I can create a main blog and change the settings in the permissions to make them authors or contributors to the blog.  This allows them to post their own ideas within the class blog.   The best part, is that they can only edit their own posts.  This is huge, as sometimes students can be cruel.  This way, no one can delete or alter someone else’s writing in any way.  You can also moderate comments.  This tool is useful because it enables you to filter what is posted on the blog.  Students will not be able to write negative comments on each other’s posts because as the administrator of the blog, you have to approve all comments before they are posted.  This may get to be a bit taxing, but it’s well worth it at the end of the day.

BP6_Comment to Bruchetta

Please follow this link to view the comments that I left for Bruchetta Jones.

BP5_Comment to Andrea

Photo by Maurice May Photography

Follow this link to view my comments on Andrea Nichol's blog.

Week 1 Reading

This study talked about the successful implementation of Blogging in an English as a Second Language (ESL) environment .  The stucture for the input from the teachers and expectations of the learners was very clear.  It really helped me to see how I could consider setting up my Cycle 1 Data for my AR project.  The results confirm the need for a substantial amount of groundwork to first be done by the teacher before this tool can be introduced and used in the learning environment. 

Blogging in the Classroom: A Preliminary Exploration of Student Attitudes and Impact on Comprehension.

This study was  about blogging, but specifically in polled students about the authenticity of assignments and the effect that it had on their level of comprehension.  This study was extremely helpful, because the focus of my project is improving student comprehension as it pertains to Language Arts and their ability to respond to what they read.  The part that I Found to be most interesting was that the students reported that having to read and respond to other’s posts really helped them gain a better understanding of the subject matter.  The students also reported that they felt they needed more advance guidance on how to effectively and appropriately respond and comment on their peers entries. 

Group blogs: Documenting collaborative drama processes

Robyn Philip Charles Darwin University

Jennifer Nicholls Macquarie University

This study focused on group blogging, which is when multiple people own a blog and act as administrators on it.  It examines the effectiveness of using the group blog in a drama/theater setting compared to a traditional pencil and paper journal.  I was especially excited to read about how the blog was used as a team building and communication tool, which made the students class time more productive.

Classroom blogging in the service of student-centered pedagogy: Two high school teachers’ use of blogs

April Luehmann (University of Rochester) Robyn MacBride (Greece Arcadia High School)

This study was the study that really made me think that my project could have seriously positive results and a huge impact on education.. One of the most important things that it discussed, in my opinion, is that the effectiveness of a class blog must be measured based on the methods and intentions of the teacher.  Many teachers use blogs in different ways.  In this study, two different teachers’ blogs were studied, both of who used their blogs for different things within their respective curriculum.  It was very promising and encouraging to read about the success and increase in interaction that took place in the classrooms.

The Prose of Blogging (and a Few Cons, Too)

Author(s):

Ramaswami, Rama

Source:

T.H.E. Journal, v35 n11 p21-25 Nov 2008. 5 pp.

This article discusses the research that is currently out there about educational blogging, both the advantages and the disadvantages.  It made me think about how I would like to contribute more to the body of literature concerning this subject.  

BP_Diigo Project

My Diigo Project

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BP1_Google Reader

Image by Ashley May

The feeds that I chose to follow encompass a variety of different topics.  The first 2 subscriptions come from the Edutopia web site.  The first is a blog is devoted to the future of educational technology.  The most recent posts theorize about the future of educational preparation programs. I found this extremely interesting because I have strong desire to pursue teacher prep. as a future career.  The idea of teaching teachers is very exciting to me.  The second blog from Eduphoria is forum for sharing ideas about writing compositions at the high school level.  I found this one especially interesting because I teach 8th grade English, and I feel that it would be a great tool to help me better prepare my students for what they can expect in high school.

The next two feeds are chose both come from the Time Magazine umbrella.  I chose to follow the top stories and the pictures of the day.  These are both tools that I use in my classroom with my students as prompts for writing, conversation starters, and general informational reading.  I thought that adding them to my feed would be a great way to be able to stay on top new developments.  This way, I won't have to constantly check for updates on the internet myself.

The last feed that I get is for another blog called "Adventures in Educational Blogging".  The woman who runs this blog makes interesting posts that add to my knowledge of Web 2.0 tools. I also just enjoyed reading about how well things worked or did not work in her classroom.