Podcasts

I had no idea what a podcast was until last week.  Again, I was unsure about how difficult it would be to use and could I ,do it?  Well believe it or not, it was not as scary as I had initially imagined and was able to work with the program.  However, I still need to spend more time playing with Audacity to get a little better with its use; it can be done. Now that I am familiar with them I hear a part of a podcast on the radio.  It was done by university students in the form of a Bible story.  As we prepare to study the planets, the students could write a short story or do an interview of an astronaut who has visited the planets and tell their story about the trip.  In order to do this students would have to synthesize their planet information and present it in their own words demonstrating understanding and generalization of the information.

Wikis...

Before this section I had no idea what a wiki was and a little apprehensive about using it.  I knew about Wikipedia but did not fully understand why its information might not be accurate.  Since working in wikis I have been pleasantly surprised with how easy they are to use.  Pages can be easily added to organize content into sections.  Information can be easily added and removed depending on the users need.  It can also go from a working document to a finished, published document. 

After working in wiki I have begun to toss ideas around that would make them usable in the classroom.  One large concern is the ability of students to work on wikis from home.  Even though most students have access to internet from home not all of them do, therefore teachers are not allowed to assign homework requiring computer use.  Usimg wikis during school time again poses the problem of the ability to utilize computers and limited computer time.  Wikis would be a great place to make a study guide.  Students could add information on the topic to assist others with studying.  Using the different pages groups of students could be responsible for each section that will be covered.  For example, in a weather/atmosphere unit the wiki  pages could be seperated by atmosphere, weather symbols, weather fronts, water cycle, clouds and heat transfer.  The study guide would then be available on line for everyone. 

Blogs

Blogs are typically about me, me, me, what I think, like, don't like, prefer, want to do or make happen. It is then posted on the web for the whole world to know. In some instances it may be like a public diary or therapy session getting feedback from some friends and even friends I haven't met yet. My writing ability is not a strength so I tend to be apprehensive about publishing things I write.

Blogging with and for students....Hmmmmm? It has its place in education. Students need to be able to communicate. In their generation / culture blogging, twitter and texting seems to be the way to go. They are about quick ways to communicate, long gone is the day of the letter that is stamped and put in snail mail. Within their "quick" communication they have developed a new language using abbreviations such as ttyl, lol....to enable them to communicate quicker. Even though this "quick" method or language is acceptable for casual correspondence, it is still not acceptable in the professional world. Educators can tap into the students current knowledge on blogging and twitter and expand their skills through the use of this familiar and preferred technology.

One transformation from an old school activity to integrate technology is the "Adventures of Teddy" the classroom bear. In the original version of this activity each student took Teddy and a notebook home for a weekend. Over the weekend, the students had to take Teddy with them and record what he did in the notebook. They could write it as a news report or turn it into a story. On Monday they would return Teddy to class and share what he did over the weekend. To upgrade this activity to fit the new generation of students a blog for Teddy could be set up and the student could make posts through out the weekend. This would give students an opportunity to follow what Teddy was doing throughout the weekend as well as respond. This way the whole class could remain engaged in the reading and writing of posts and not just the student who has him for the weekend.

Is Least Restrictive More Restrictive?

As I team teach in middle school inclusion classes I see students in each class with a large deviation in skills.  There are the honor students who "get it" as soon as you say it or show them and can build on the information.  Then there is the middle range of students who will "get it" eventually after a little more demonstrating and hands on activities.  Finally there are the lower students who need continuous repetition of a topic presented in every format imaginable.  There are differing views, do you teach to the top or to the middle?  Remember, there are ranges of abilities within each group.  If you teach to the top, you lose the bottom students who get frustrated and can't keep up as well as some of the kids in the middle.  If you teach to the middle you lose students on the top to boredom and still many at the bottom to frustration and being overwhelmed. While accommodating and differentiating within lessons help many  students, there are still those who either need more direction and practice or the opportunity to inquire. 

By putting our lowest and highest students together in the same classroom are we really doing them any favors?  Even with two teachers, there is not enough assistance and enrichment to go around with a block period.  Yes students could be divided into two separate groups within the class.  However the students know when they are the low group is and don't like to be pointed out as such.  It seems to me that by grouping students into such a large range of abiities no one is being served in their "least restrictive environment".  There are benefits to having a range of abiities within a classroom, such as keeping the bar high for all students.  But, it would also be beneficial to reduce the range of academic needs to a more manageable level.  At some point some of the very low students who struggle with processing and or reading deficits would benefit from being grouped more homogeniously so their specific needs can be met.  Within the grouping they can feel successful working at their potential and not feeling that they are always being compared to students who function at higher levels or think faster.