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We cheered her up!
Friday, May 24, 2013
Get well wishes from the class...
We cheered her up!
Reviewing the Paper has been a snap...
Reviewing the students research papers has been a snap with the Google Docs and Chromebooks. I can carry the equipment and check their paper where ever I happen to be: at home, in meetings, hotels, mother-in-law's hospital room. The fact that a spreadsheet or document shows up bold in my drive when someone has done something has been a quick way to know if a student is ready and wants me to see the corrections. In fact, in some instances it has been helpful for both the student and I to be on the same page at once so edits can be explained.
Today, I could not travel back to my home school in time for the 4th period class. I was able to be on the students papers while not there, so they knew I could see what they were doing. The librarian kept an eye on the class (my office is in the library) and they worked until I arrived.
Today, I could not travel back to my home school in time for the 4th period class. I was able to be on the students papers while not there, so they knew I could see what they were doing. The librarian kept an eye on the class (my office is in the library) and they worked until I arrived.
Monday, May 20, 2013
C3B4Me Check-in
The research papers have always followed a C3B4Me protocol. The students have three other people read and edit their papers before giving it me. The readers have 3 criteria to follow: 1) does the paper answer the essential question?, 2) does it move logically from point to point?, and 3) is it grammatically correct, and in active voice. One person of the three can be the students' Critical Friend and two have to be adults.
To coordinate the time when I see the paper the classes and I have set up a community check-in spreadsheet. The students fill in their name, the three names of the people who read their paper. When they have made the corrections the 3 readers suggested, they type Ready into the next spreadsheet cell so I know it's my turn. When I'm done I type my initials to replace the word Ready and the students know it has been checked and can be reviewed for the next round. When the paper is completed, and has my final approval, a cell is blacked out with the word DONE reversed in white.
The beauty part is the students can see at a glance where they are in the process, and where others are as well. They have been more willing to collaborate with those needing assistance to get caught up. Since they can work from home, I see work being done from day to day without my prodding.
My only suggestion might be Google Hangouts.
To coordinate the time when I see the paper the classes and I have set up a community check-in spreadsheet. The students fill in their name, the three names of the people who read their paper. When they have made the corrections the 3 readers suggested, they type Ready into the next spreadsheet cell so I know it's my turn. When I'm done I type my initials to replace the word Ready and the students know it has been checked and can be reviewed for the next round. When the paper is completed, and has my final approval, a cell is blacked out with the word DONE reversed in white.
The beauty part is the students can see at a glance where they are in the process, and where others are as well. They have been more willing to collaborate with those needing assistance to get caught up. Since they can work from home, I see work being done from day to day without my prodding.
My only suggestion might be Google Hangouts.
Wednesday, May 8, 2013
New Insight Regarding the Study...
In a moment of quiet repose about what's happened with the study this semester, I believe I can see how two opposing views came together and clashed. Like two people acting on two versions of the same story, so has this research class and the technology department.It comes down to the interpretation of the word research.
The rub (as they say) is that the word research is used by teachers and is understood at the main offices to mean term paper project (a retrieval project). Information is gathered, and then reviewed in a paper to demonstrate a level of understanding.
For retrieval, using one search engine is fine. Using Google or even Google Scholar is fine. Writing a paper with the 'research' option open to the side where information can be 'Googled' as the paper is being written can work. The student is reviewing knowledge and presenting an understanding of existing knowledge.
For research, the skills are different. Many information sources are cross-referenced, then proved or disproved. The facts are located, checked for legitimacy, then put into notes to be sorted and organized later when the authentic data proves or disproves them. Researchers are reflective and make judgments based on considerations of many pieces of information and ghost nuances.
The Chrome Book is excellent for usual, run-of-the-mill term papers. The Chrome Book can be made excellent for research with the addition of apps. The IT department thinks we are doing term papers and that why we do not need any of the apps. They are thinking mainstream thinking, not gifted.
YouTube Tutorials..
...and what a shame the school technology department cannot figure a way to allow access to the YouTube tutorials that would make learning how to use the Chrome Books magic...or learning how to access databases, or make citations, or any number of drill-and-kill skills that all the students will use when they are ready. Taking the lesson once, to everyone at the same time, ensures I'll be reteaching it again and again as students need the information.
A self-pacing, independent study course allows students to move at their own pace with their personal abilities. Being able to access information when it is needed enhances and anchors the knowledge in the learning process. This is a best practice pedagogy, researched with empirical studies.
A self-pacing, independent study course allows students to move at their own pace with their personal abilities. Being able to access information when it is needed enhances and anchors the knowledge in the learning process. This is a best practice pedagogy, researched with empirical studies.
Online tutorials can unleash self-directed learning.
Pros and Cons Overview
When I wrote for the educational grant, I was shooting for updated technology that would allow the students to use digital resources for their research efforts. The Chrome Book was the updated technology suggested by the technology department because of the wide variety of add-ons that would allow space for individual investigations while still permitting me oversight.
There is good stuff to talk about:
1) the technology is faster;
2) the students access their work more efficiently with very few (if any) lock-ups or shut-downs;
3) they can access their work on personal devices on the way home or at their after-school activities;
4) the peer pressure has encouraged longer and deeper reflections about the lessons in their blog posts;
5) the research papers are getting written faster without me holding everyone's hand;
However, the apps mentioned in the grant were
EasyBib (a note-taking system to replace the index cards),
Diigo (an annotating program to highlight online passages of interesting articles and then store for further use),
Jing/Screencast (image capturing program that can build layers of text on the image and then make videos), Blogger (to be used as the online journal), and
Picasa (image managing and editing tool).
When the Chrome Books arrived, Blogger was set up and the students began keeping daily records of the lessons and how the lessons applied to their projects.
As the projects advanced, however, the lack of the other apps made work-arounds necessary.
EasyBib was unusable because the format we need to use (APA) is a purchased app, which was not included in the Chrome Book package we got.
Diigo, the editing version of Picasa, and the video capabilities of Jing/Screencast were not included, but would have permitted thorough completion of the research projects.
Chrome Books do not recognize Microsoft Word, so moving from existing work on thumb drives or Microsoft products has been a problem. Converting a Word document to a Google Doc loses formatting and arrives messed up.
The Chrome Books do one thing, search Google. They do it fast, and they can do it anywhere provided the server can be accessed and the battery is charged. However, they do not hold a 6 hours charge. They DO get through 4+ class periods before needing a charge to get through another two complete classes and since I teach two classes per school, that's enough for two days at each school. So, no complaint on that score, just an observation.
Anything beyond the basic Chrome Book set up is an extra expense or requires additional set-up. Other search engines have to be bookmarked (then not bothered with, as I observed students doing). The school database URL had to be copied into a Shared document (which was soon forgotten, meaning the students relied on non-scholarly information). Notes and sources were done in an Excel spreadsheet so they could be coded together (that got too unwieldy to manage, or was not bothered with) whereas EasyBib would have generated online notecards that are cited immediately and dropped into a Reference page while the 'cards' could be sorted into paragraphs much in the way online Solitaire is played. The note card issue has been especially difficult since being able to sort note cards is what makes writing a research paper easier.
The Chrome Books, while quick to start and getting to the students work, have not been the panacea they would have been had they come with the apps necessary to make the research projects more than retrieval projects. BUT, overall, the impression is positive and worth doing again.
There is good stuff to talk about:
1) the technology is faster;
2) the students access their work more efficiently with very few (if any) lock-ups or shut-downs;
3) they can access their work on personal devices on the way home or at their after-school activities;
4) the peer pressure has encouraged longer and deeper reflections about the lessons in their blog posts;
5) the research papers are getting written faster without me holding everyone's hand;
However, the apps mentioned in the grant were
EasyBib (a note-taking system to replace the index cards),
Diigo (an annotating program to highlight online passages of interesting articles and then store for further use),
Jing/Screencast (image capturing program that can build layers of text on the image and then make videos), Blogger (to be used as the online journal), and
Picasa (image managing and editing tool).
When the Chrome Books arrived, Blogger was set up and the students began keeping daily records of the lessons and how the lessons applied to their projects.
As the projects advanced, however, the lack of the other apps made work-arounds necessary.
EasyBib was unusable because the format we need to use (APA) is a purchased app, which was not included in the Chrome Book package we got.
Diigo, the editing version of Picasa, and the video capabilities of Jing/Screencast were not included, but would have permitted thorough completion of the research projects.
Chrome Books do not recognize Microsoft Word, so moving from existing work on thumb drives or Microsoft products has been a problem. Converting a Word document to a Google Doc loses formatting and arrives messed up.
The Chrome Books do one thing, search Google. They do it fast, and they can do it anywhere provided the server can be accessed and the battery is charged. However, they do not hold a 6 hours charge. They DO get through 4+ class periods before needing a charge to get through another two complete classes and since I teach two classes per school, that's enough for two days at each school. So, no complaint on that score, just an observation.
Anything beyond the basic Chrome Book set up is an extra expense or requires additional set-up. Other search engines have to be bookmarked (then not bothered with, as I observed students doing). The school database URL had to be copied into a Shared document (which was soon forgotten, meaning the students relied on non-scholarly information). Notes and sources were done in an Excel spreadsheet so they could be coded together (that got too unwieldy to manage, or was not bothered with) whereas EasyBib would have generated online notecards that are cited immediately and dropped into a Reference page while the 'cards' could be sorted into paragraphs much in the way online Solitaire is played. The note card issue has been especially difficult since being able to sort note cards is what makes writing a research paper easier.
The Chrome Books, while quick to start and getting to the students work, have not been the panacea they would have been had they come with the apps necessary to make the research projects more than retrieval projects. BUT, overall, the impression is positive and worth doing again.
Tuesday, May 7, 2013
Pictures and editing images
Editing pictures has been an issue now that we are into our research papers and thinking about presenting the research findings in a public showcase. The Chrome Book allows storage of photos, and there's some adjustments that can be made, but editing and enhancing the image like could be done in Jing, Screencast, or perhaps Picasa cannot be done because those were not purchased.
When this study began, the request was to have the tools these students could use to produce professional products with digital resources. That has not happened. Although the Chrome Book has been a helpful convenience for students to move around and work anywhere, and for me to see their work from multiple places, it has been a glorified laptop. The add-on tools are the resources that would have given the students the ability to digitally create their research on a bigger scale than the paper/pencil format did.
So in the end, taking notes and editing pictures and generating work using YouTube tutorials did not happen. In fact, I would say it made efforts more challenging since the goal could be seen but still unreachable.
Some days I believe it might have been better to keep with the notebook journals and index cards.
When this study began, the request was to have the tools these students could use to produce professional products with digital resources. That has not happened. Although the Chrome Book has been a helpful convenience for students to move around and work anywhere, and for me to see their work from multiple places, it has been a glorified laptop. The add-on tools are the resources that would have given the students the ability to digitally create their research on a bigger scale than the paper/pencil format did.
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So in the end, taking notes and editing pictures and generating work using YouTube tutorials did not happen. In fact, I would say it made efforts more challenging since the goal could be seen but still unreachable.
Some days I believe it might have been better to keep with the notebook journals and index cards.
Heading into the research papers...
Surveys done with Google Forms had mixed reviews. The biggest concerns involved getting recipients to access the survey. Sometimes they worked fine, sometimes there were issues and many recipients did not take the surveys. A solid review of procedure is worth considering for next year.
One issue with surveys I had, as the teacher, is making sure I knew what my students were doing. Some students moved directly to their surveys without reading the handouts available on the class Site. Those surveys were not written with proper flow, or focus. With monitoring 18 students, each at different stage of research, my Share With Me file is enormous. Keeping track of where everyone IS at any given time has been a problem. A couple last minute 'catches' were necessary. This is a prime example of why Teacher Dashboard is critical as a monitoring tool.
It's a case of too many irons in the fire!
One issue with surveys I had, as the teacher, is making sure I knew what my students were doing. Some students moved directly to their surveys without reading the handouts available on the class Site. Those surveys were not written with proper flow, or focus. With monitoring 18 students, each at different stage of research, my Share With Me file is enormous. Keeping track of where everyone IS at any given time has been a problem. A couple last minute 'catches' were necessary. This is a prime example of why Teacher Dashboard is critical as a monitoring tool.
It's a case of too many irons in the fire!
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