Genocide Web Site Access

Hi everyone,
I would like to share with you my newly created web site that is directly geared to the course that I teach entitled "Studies in Racism and Diversity". Please feel free to visit the site and leave comments based on what you see - thanks!!
Visit web site...

Web Authoring: Assignment Due 4/5/10

Given the fact that there are so many technology applications (eg. PowerPoint, Windows MovieMaker, Storyboard, etc.) where the inclusion of music can significantly enhance the end product, the "FreePlayMusic" site more than fit the bill! Many of the tasks that I engage in with my students allow for the insertion of music, audio, and sound byte files that peak the interest and enthusiasm, not only of the student who is creating the product, but additionally those who will be privy to seeing these student creations when they are traditionally shared in the classroom on my laptop and overhead projector or even the Elmo. Upon spending some appreciable time with the site in checking the vast array of music genres and styles, it is very evident that this site is an indispensable resource for students and teachers alike in adding "pizzazz" to their creations. Admittedly so, teaching the Holocaust and genocides course brings with it not a host of happy and upbeat material, so when students are asked to create a product along these topics and include music as an enhancement, it goes without saying that anyone would be hard-pressed to locate a comfortable variety of music from which to select a musical piece - this site was more than adequate in offering appropriate "material". I personally chose the music file entitled "We Will Be Together Soon Underscore" as a piece that I might have chosen if I were to have to create a Holocaust task and need to add a musical accompaniment that was relative and in good taste.

One additional comment I wanted to make was in regard to our Chapter 12 weekly reading assignment - it has to do with the last paragraph on page 258 of our coursebook. It states, "...and each page within the site should use consistent colors throughout." I took exception to this suggestion and firmly believe that, if there are distinct varied topics or subjects being presented within the site, having pages with their own color scheme is a definite draw rather than hindrance. As long as the pages are not too gaudy, "electrified", or busy, working to achieve separate page "identity" will captivate rather than distract students.

Assignment Due 3/22/10: Chapter 8 - "Diagrams, Maps, and Webs"

This chapter was very informative and actually gave me some deeper understanding on technology tools I am already using like Inspiration. I was pleasantly surprised to find new tricks to implement when using Inspiration like the "Transfer" button that allows for importing of diagrams to MS Word. Also exciting was the ability of converting Inspiration diagrams to HTML via the "Export" button to enable posting to a web site for students to view AND use!

One serious intention I have in utilizing diagrams will be to use Inspiration to have my students create a storyboard when my 10th grade class is reading "Of Mice and Men". My #1 priority year-long goal for them is to have tall of them increase their reading comprehension skills. Progressive storyboards would work well toward this end!

Three sites I found helpful were:
1. A great Inspiration diagram that charts the Cambodian Khmer Rouge. This would be a boon to my instruction in the racism course I teach.

2. Another site was "Education World: Timelines" which displayed a sample timeline at the top of the page and then provided related information below.

3. Lastly, "Graphic Organizers by Scholastic" provided a great graphic organizer that could be used in my Prep ELA 10th grade class that acts as a sort of sociogram that charts relationships between characters in a novel as well as charting plot, conflict, etc. This type of organizer really aids these students, who are traditionally 2-3 grades below grade level reading ability, to comprehend more of what they read and to interact more significantly with the text.

Assignment Due 3/22/10: Chapter 7 - Digital Images

Currently, the course that this week's assignment would apply to the most would be "Studies in Racism and Diversity". The lesson plan that was created requires that students would engage themselves in the creation of a PowerPoint presentation that exhibited their new knowledge pertaining to the Holocaust. They were expected to utilize digital images in the PPT slides, where appropriate, in addition to adding other audio-visual enhancements such as sound files, static and animated graphics, and movements of slide components.

I plan on continuing to utilize digital images in instructional PPT's I develop that I use in establishing contextual knowledge prior to initiating a unit plan for instance on Edgar Allan Poe.

Also, a great use of digital images occurs in the development of web quests where animated images always stir excitement and interest.

I visited 3 Chapter 7 companion sites that I thought were very worthwhile.

CoolCLIPS was full of clip art that contained both simplified graphics and professional looking work also.

CoolText.com offered a magnificent array of labeling options for such uses as headings in PPT slides or just insertion into word processing documents. I've used similar programs before and this one clearly seems like a winner!

"Using Technology in the Classroom" was a site that offered 20 activities for older students where the use of digital cameras could generate some very exciting projects such as taking photos of school staff at work and then creating related captions underneath the picture and then posting these at a career fair.

TTCR: Fluency, Vocabulary, and Comprehension

1) Technology That Supports Fluency: I visited "Visual Thesaurus". This site closely resembles the Wordle concept whereby a student can enter a word and the program will generate a web of synonyms. This site is a timely one for me personally due to the fact that I have started a new trimester as of today and I am utilizing a new method of handling vocabulary usage with my students. One of the five pieces of information that the students need to enter is a synonym for the assigned word for the week. I can't wait to share this site with my students and have them offer some feedback to me regarding their usage of it.

2) Technology That Supports Vocabulary: I visited the "Humanities" link, the Beaverton referenced title, and poetry. Currently, I have a 10th grade American literature class that I am teaching and the curriculum requires that during one part of the trimester I examine Robert Frost with the students. One of my primary concerns ALWAYS is that all my students can access much of the material that we cover in class. I can now link this to my web site and have the students complete a task independently between class meetings.

3) Technology That Supports Text Comprehension: I visited the Inspiration web site - this is actually a software program that I have the highest regard for!!! One of the books that I share with my students is "Seedfolks" by Paul Fleischman. I use this book in a 10th grade lower level ELA class where the need for visual enticement and successful interaction with the material at hand is of utmost priority. I generate a number of graphic organizers for each of the book's segments to generate interpretation of the book's key concepts/themes.

Inserting Video to Our Blogs

Last week, on Monday, we were requested to experiment with adding a video to our own personal blog. After a considerable degree of effort and numerous attempts to do this, not only with Teacher Tube videos, but with one or two from my own videos stored on my home desktop, I failed to achieve this step. I mentioned this in class tonight and via of advisement from our course instructor, I'll try this step once more. So here goes: click on the arrow below the video screen and see if it will "magically" whisk you away to the video I chose, which by the way, is a good one!

Assignment for 3/15/10 - "Spreadsheets"

This week, 3 web sites I visited were extremely helpful and one in particular, entitled "GRAPHS", was a perfect complement to the lesson that I wrote this week with regard to having students who were not familiar and/or intimidated with the use of MS Excel could actually receive tutorial assistance with this program when apart from the comfort of a partner in school or the teacher. Suzanne Alejandre's user friendly web site was easy to work with and used "snapshots" of Excel screens one would encounter while utilizing this program and visually depicted the how to's in navigating through Excel.

The second site that was awesome in terms of an interactive site for students was "Create a Graph at Kids' Zone". I tinkered around with this site for about a half hour and really got captivated with ease of use and just plain fun that this site offered. Anyone who uses this site should come away with a great hands-on knowledge of how to create practical and visually attractive products in Excel. Again, this is a boon to students who WANT to learn a spreadsheet program such as Excel at their own speed and convenience.

WOW! The 3rd site I was impressed with was the "Safari" site. Not only did it have a list of all major Excel terms but, more importantly, it offered a feature that instructed on how to use Excel to create vocabulary tests in content specific areas. Being an ELA teacher, I would jump at the opportunity to use this "tool"!!

Steve 3/13/10

Cereal Box Assignment: Due 3/8/10

The purpose of this task was to utilize word processing features (specifically MS Word) to revise a typed lesson plan that had the formatting intentionally "discombobulated". The lesson plan that needed formatting was accessible on the class WIKI and the revised and correct version of the lesson was distributed in class on Monday night, 3/1/10. It was our challenge to revise the lesson as it appeared on the handout and to include a related image commensurate with the cereal box theme. Please visit the link CEREAL BOX to see the finished product.

Lesson Task:Chapter 6 /Activity 6 - Integrating Word Processing into Grade/Subject Content

Given the fact that I am teaching 3 very different courses (ELA 10th grade American Literature, Public Speaking, and "Studies in Racism and Diversity"), I have numerous opportunities to integrate word processing into the curriculum. For me, currently and in a teaching capacity, I utilize MS Word to create my lesson plans and post them to a web site for the students, parents, and myself to access. (LESSON PLANS) I also use it to create computer lab lessons that can in turn be posted to a "shared student folder" (SSF) for an entire class of students to access simultaneously for the purpose of directing a focused path of learning for that day. MS Word has been a powerful tool for me in creating web quests/web searches for my students based on unit content.

Pertaining to student use, word processing is being used to record into charts and tables such information as the pros and cons of a topic in a persuasive essay that my 10th graders may be writing. It can be used as a tool to record "response to literature" based tasks whereby a PDF reading piece is posted on the SSF for all students to read and the students are then required to offer commentary to questions posed by me regarding the text. This commentary is then saved to the students' home directory and printed out for me to evaluate. Another use of word processing would be the posting of personal comments by the students on a blog site I have available and the subsequent comments made by the readers of the blog. There are a host of web based sites (tradingcards.com for instance) that offer content based lessons using word processing to create excellent classroom and student "products".
A recent technique where I've used word processing is to use a laptop and LCD projector to create a virtual environment in showing students how to approach and complete specific components of their research paper. One such instance was to construct, right in class, the first paragraph of a research paper that included the context and topic sentence. It was then saved as a document and posted on the SSF the next time we visited the computer lab to serve as a guide in writing the paper.

My intent during the future, as I learn more about the technology available by virtue of taking this EDU 839 course, is to search out exemplary web based content that ties directly to my courses that makes use of having students utilize word processing. Contrary to popular belief, students are not as savvy and comfortable using word processing programs as one would assume - using word processing as often as possible will alleviate this situation.

Review of Educational Use of Wikis - Posted Class Wiki Task

I visited Rachel Boyd's site "The Wiki Way". It was chock full of helpful guides, hints, and tools to make a wiki site come to life. I especially was drawn to the "Bling" feature/tutorial that instructs potential wiki users on how to add "pizzazz' to their wiki for the express purpose of captivating students visually into using the wiki. Once they are hooked on looking, having them work with it is much more probable. I also cherish the notion of being able to post documents to the wiki - one such desired example would be student modeling documents that can serve as a benchmark for current students in approaching and completing an assigned task. The ability to add helpful web links that supplement classroom teachings is another boon to wiki use. Posting my weekly lesson plans would be yet an additional feature that both parents and students could make practical use of.

Assignment #5 - 2/22/10: Content Area WebQuests

I chose 2 WebQuests that are closely related to courses that I currently teach. 1) "Studies in Racism and Diversity" - The first site, dealing with the concept of race, speaks to considerations of what constitutes race, how global societies establish diversity and social interactions based on race, and what some of the misconceptions are in defining race. This would be an excellent "adventure" for my students to pursue given the fact that much of the course examines racism and genocidal issues in history. 2) American Literature - Whoa...did I find a mother load of resource material that my students would have a field day with regarding "The Crucible". At the "front end" of each school year, in October, I spend approximately 4-5 weeks teaching this play to my students. This year, my students derived so much interest in this awesome piece of literature (one of my most favorites to be sure!) that they didn't want to "leave" the play once it was completed. This particular webquest delves into a contextual examination of some of the key aspects that played a major role in what took place in Salem, Massachusetts, in 1692. Prior to always starting a curriculum unit, I dedicate a significant amount of time to sharing background knowledge with my students about the specific piece of literature. It never fails to pay dividends during the course of study of a literary work. THIS WEBQUEST WILL ENABLE ME TO RAISE THAT CONTEXT TO AN EVEN GREATER DIMENSION! CAN'T WAIT TO TRY IT!!! :)

"Digital Nation" Response

Steve Flynn - Response to:
Frontline: “Digital Nation” Aired 2/2/10

The program hit the nail on the head with the comment regarding technology communication without social interaction. It is indeed a sign of the times that we are witnessing. So much attention is given to being involved in a “techno-culture” that leads to removal of face-to-face contact and socialization. It reminded me of home teaching situations where, due to some students being confined to home for various reasons and time periods, they are deprived of the social aspect of daily life. Also, a converse situation occurred immediately after the Blizzard of ’78 when people were relegated to walking as the sole means of mobility – it catered to people actually communicating on a face-to-face basis. It was great! I experienced this first hand!

Some other pieces of information that were worthy of note:
1. Students were characterized as having difficulty in digesting learning.
2. Dr. Turkle’s quote: “To be creative, not distracted!”
3. Dr. Yung: coined the term “Internet Addiction” – he was the first to classify it as a psychiatric malady.
4. Internet “rescue camps” – these were devised as a “de-tech” (as in “detox” center) method of weaning teens off technology overload.
5. For 15 year-old Young Ill (not sure of the spelling!), this rescue camp didn’t work. He couldn’t even communicate with his mom.
6. S. Korea serves as a model for using technology prudently. At the same time that students are taught to read, they are taught to go on-line, BUT cautioned to do so responsibly. Nevertheless, there are 1000’s of Internet “huts” existing that cater to infatuation with techno-related activities.
7. “Netiquette” – Internet etiquette
8. Major premise offered by Steve Major: The world’s going to require kids to build things and be problem solvers. Currently, kids are not headed down that path with their focus being on technology and NOT critical thinking skills!
9. Mr. Levy’s comment: “The world has sped up, education has not!” SO TRUE!
10. Professor Baurlein (?): Students can’t write – only 6% of professors said that students are prepared coming into college ready to go – kids now write in paragraphs, not essays!
11. “Paying attention to 1 thing is an art lost!” This clearly sums up the state of learning at the hands of technology today AND what, I feel, was the main message of this program.

NOTE: This program may be viewed in its entirety by visiting the following link:
"Digital Nation"

Assignment 2/8/10: 3 Types of Portfolios_Response

EDU 839
Steve Flynn
2/8/10: Assignment 4 Response (Portfolios)

1) A working portfolio constitutes a collection of a preservice teacher’s formative work as it relates to producing educational pieces that meet performance and teacher education program standards. This may be exemplified by unit/lesson plans, multimedia presentations, and reflective “diaries”. They are intended to depict growth and development of the preservice teacher.

2) An assessment portfolio includes specific pieces or artifacts that are required by the education program and that allow for assessment by the education program to determine a teacher’s qualifications toward standard.

3) The showcase portfolio contains the preservice teacher’s exemplary work (artifacts) with consideration, for instance, given to addressing a standard(s). These showcase portfolios are assembled typically to be utilized in the process of seeking employment as a full-fledged teacher.