Bringing It ALL Together - A Comprehensive Final(ish) Look

    

THE FINAL PROJECT

 

My Personal Narrative:

My teaching journey has taken a very nontraditional path.  However, there have been a few threads, or connections, that have been consistent throughout my life, and I think the two most prominent ones are my natural affinity for teaching, and my love of languages.  Rather than continue this story in the traditional way of a written reflection, I'd like to share this part of my personal narrative with a link to a digital story that I recently created:

The fact that I know how to create my own digital story and have actually just shared that here with you, is the best possible segue I can think of to lead me to my next section...

My TECH Identity:

Thinking about Noon's classifications, I would have considered myself a techno-traditionalist (or maybe even - gasp - 😳 - closer aligned with a technocrat - sigh - 😔) up until only a few months ago. However, my recent graduate coursework has thrust me forward into the realm of a true techno-constructivist.  💪😀

I now find myself actively considering ways to incorporate opportunities for using technology within both curriculum specified content and other differentiated learning units that I have designed to supplement and support curriculum for my middle school ELA students.  Additionally, whereas I would have previously kept my head in the sand so to speak about AI, I am now much more open to the potential benefits of using it to support my teaching practice, and I'm thinking critically about ways to guide my students to develop an understanding of how to use AI as a supportive tool and an educational resource.  I recognize that it is an important part of my job as a teacher to help my students develop digital fluency just as much as they need support in their English language and home language fluency skills.  TECHNOLOGY IS ANOTHER LANGUAGE.

An AI generated image of ME (haha) as a techno-constructivist!
...I think I still need to work on my prompts.

Our special guest Molly Bogad (Why does that name sound so familiar? 🤔😉) did a great job walking us through all the ways to construct an effective AI prompt in her thoughtful and comprehensive AI Presentation.  The better the prompt, the better the outcome...

Here's the first image I got from AI - keep in mind I wanted the teacher to look like me!

Maybe AI didn't quite capture my face and fashion sense, but because I had given pretty specific prompts, I was able to get a diverse, multilingual, tech-infused classroom environment that even includes a little bit of humor which is exactly me.  Nailed it!  🔨   So overall, not bad.

My WHY and connections to our TEXTS:

In my English language classroom, I am passionate about a few key things.

• AUTHENTIC VOICE

            This idea has been at the forefront of my goals as a teacher even before stepping foot into this digital media literacy class. Since I am currently studying for my TESOL Master's, I'm actively looking for ways to not only strengthen and support English language development but also literacy in students' home languages.  

I believe in additive bilingualism and want to support my students literacy in ALL languages - including home languages and digital ones.

• BUILDING TRUST AND COMMUNITY WITHIN THE CLASSROOM

            Regardless of the content, finding ways to develop a sense of trust and community within the classroom is essential. Pierson spoke about this idea and Dr. Michael Wesch also highlighted both confidence and connection as key factors in Baby George's quest to conquer that stair. Personally, one of the ways that I curate a positive environment in my classroom is through integrating my own authentic voice of humor as often as possible (🙄). I'm also looking to transition professionally into a position where I am supporting and teaching predominantly English language learners, and as one who has learned another language myself, I can attest to the fact that understanding the nuance and humor behind a joke or pun in another language means that you have a deep understanding of that language. 

I believe that my classroom should be a place of trust and community - a place where students can feel confident to express themselves in their authentic voices and feel heard when they do so.

In Education's Death Valley, Sir Ken Robinson encourages 

• DIVERSITY, CURIOSITY, and CREATIVITY as key elements of an effective and successful classroom.  Rather than conform to standardization, I'm actively looking for ways to embrace, celebrate and harness the unique diversity of each of my students and curate an atmosphere in my classroom that shows evidence of just that. 


I believe that the cultural and linguistic diversity of my students and their families is an asset and a strength.

• DIGITAL LITERACY SKILLS NEED TO BE TAUGHT AND PRACTICED

“In the English classroom, teachers have the potential to help students navigate the world using new technologies to their advantage. Boyd explains that 'technical skills, media literacy, and even basic English literacy all shape how teens experience new technologies.' (2014, p. 23).” Spiegel, Prensky Revisited (p.14)

“Despite their perceived fluency in the language of technology, students should be encouraged to learn other “languages” as well by asking them to learn in multiple modes. For example, the digital worker must be asked to learn the ways of the digital creator and in traditional ways, as well.” Spiegel, Prensky Revisited (p.15)

“Most formal educational settings do not prioritize digital competency, in part because of the assumption that teens natively understand anything connected to technology and in part because existing educational assessments do not require this prioritization. Although youth are always learning as they navigate these systems, adults — including parents, educators, and librarians — can support them further by helping turn their experience into knowledge.” Danah Boyd, Ch.7 It's Complicated (p.180)

I believe that it is my job to get to know my students, learn what they already know (not make assumptions based on age or grade level), and help them to develop skills in technological and digital platforms.

What Will I DO or CHANGE:

Up until last week, the only thing I kew about PODCASTS is that they exist, and some people do them. That's it. I had never done a podcast of my own, and I certainly had never considered using it as a tool within my ELA classroom. And then Brittany Richer Ahnrud shared her presentation. This got my wheels turning. I had found my "thing." Because I have already spent several years developing and implementing a year-long thematic unit with my middle school ELA students, it seemed natural to build a digital component into this. Adding some type of technological piece to this unit was an unrealized goal this past year, but this class has given me the time, support, and inspiration to really develop it. Yay! 🎉

Here's a little background on the whole unit. At the beginning of the year, middle school ELA students choose a historical figure that they want to learn about and eventually "become." I encourage students to choose carefully as they will be deeply focusing on this person in different projects throughout the entire year.

• Term 1 - Become an EXPERT about a Historical Figure
• Choose Historical Figure
• Research (multiple credible sources that will be cited in a bibliography)
• Write a Research Paper using academic language and standard formats
• Term 2 - Take expert knowledge and present it in a new way to a different audience
• Summarize information about Historical Figure
• Choose most important and relevant details
• Write a biographical Children's Book using appropriate language for target audience
• Illustrate Children's Book and decide layout to send to "publisher"
• Write an Author Bio about self but in the 3rd person - Voice and Perspective
• Term 3 - BECOME the Historical Figure
• Write a Summary or Short Bio AS the Historical Figure in the 1st person
• Memorize the summary
• Become the Historical Figure in a Wax Museum Presentation (families and lower elementary grades visit in a school-wide event)
• Term 4
• Choose elementary grade to present Children's Book to (target audience)
• Practice reading Children's Book
• Read Children's Book to chosen elementary audience

This project is something that I have developed, implemented, reflected on and refined over the last several years. It hits ELA targets in READING, WRITING, SPEAKING, and LISTENING, and it allows for students to demonstrate knowledge and literacy skills in multiple modalities. It also is collaborative with other content areas and grade levels. BUT it is missing a good technology component. This is what I intend to improve.

I'm going to add a PODCAST to the beginning of term 3. Since at this point in the year students are "becoming" the historical figure that they spent the first half of the year becoming an expert on, I will give them an opportunity to work with a partner to develop a podcast interview.  I'll teach my students how to use the podcast platform, AdobePodcast, using this tutorial that I have found to be very helpful, even for a beginner. One student will be the interviewer, and the other will be the interviewee. Partner teams will be given these  guidelines as they work through this part of the assignment.  Using a podcast in this way connects to my key beliefs by asking students to literally use their own voices and work with a partner to continue to develop trust and community in our classroom.  By having the opportunity to practice becoming the historical figure with a peer before our bigger school-wide wax museum event, it allows for trust and confidence to grow.  Also the podcast format can be done and redone as many times as the students would like until they are comfortable with their final product that they will present.  Students will be encouraged to ask questions that they are curious about in their interview, and they will be able to show creativity in how they choose to develop and present their interview.  Lastly, I'll be actively teaching and allowing student to practice with digital tools, creating an environment of digital literacy in my classroom.

I created this grading rubric for both the interviewer and the interviewee to be used for assessment of the podcast component of the unit.

Finally, I'll encourage student pairs to come up with a name for their podcast.  Depending on who the historical figure is, it may be a fun way to add a little humor to the project.  I will sign off with a few potential ideas that might be able to be turned into a Punny Podcast Program Title...