812 Part B: Storyboard and Script

Currently, our group is working on researching the educational possibilities of various Google Applications. As a group, we have decided to use Google Presentations to share our "storyboard" with viewers. Currently, our storyboard can be viewed here. My "storyboard" for Google Calendars, which has not yet been added to the group's Google Presentation, can be viewed here with my script (which is also included in the speaker note area on Google Presentation).

While this is still a work in progress, in preparation for our final group presentation, as a group we have decided to individually research one or two Google Apps and include our findings in the group's Google Presentation with scripted notes. At this point in time, our group has not yet decided if each individual will create the voice over for his/her particular slides and edit them individually, or if one group member will create the voice over, one member will edit, etc. Additionally, details regarding how the script will be said, transitions, special effects, sound, etc. are forthcoming. 

Please note, due to me being out of town this weekend (without Internet access) I will make revisions to this blog posting to indicate the updated notes for our group's final presentation, as several members are still making revisions for Sunday's post. 

812 Part C: Implementation

Please click on my podcast link to listen to my Part C: Implementation podcast for the Wicked Problem Project. Also, my RSS feed can be found on my MAET Blog, powered by FeedBurner.

811 Wikis Lab

I have had the opportunity to use wikis in several of my courses over the past few years and find them to be both student and teacher friendly. For this particular lab, I edited the "Lahser High School" Wikipedia entry to reflect a new link. I read through the information already posted, and felt that adding a link to the district website would be beneficial for viewers. Below is the screenshot of the added link.

For the second component of this lab, I created a MAET Wiki. Due to the fact that it's summer, and I am not currently in contact with other teachers or students, I invited my sister (who is also a teacher) to collaborate and view my wiki. As I mentioned before, I like the user friendly format of wikis (especially pbworks) and find them very useful in the classroom.

812 Part A: Brainstorm Session

Here is the link to the YouTube video of our group's initial brainstorming session for our CEP 812 Group Leadership Project in which all group members were present and participating and a timeline was discussed. For this particular meeting, our group used Vyew, a free online video-conferencing software. The advantages of this particular tool are that a larger group of members are able to participate (whereas other tools are limited to two or three people), and there is an audio chat, text chat, recording, document sharing, and document page capabilities. The disadvantages involved the difficulties with reverberation with the audio; however, we were able to use the chat function to complete our initial planning for our project. Personally, I had a difficult time following the conversation because it was constantly moving as group members continued to contribute to our discussion. Thankfully, there is a feature on Vyew that allows for the conversation to be downloaded. I found this especially helpful afterwards to make sure I hadn't missed anything significant. 

For our Group Leadership Project, we decided to focus on the educational possibilities of a variety of Google Apps. Each member of our group is researching a specific Google App (or two related Apps) with the focus on its relevancy in the classroom. We also decided to use Google Presentation for our final project and are also using Google Docs to collaborate throughout the research process. I personally selected Google Calendar and am in the process of learning more advanced capabilities of the application and how it can be used most efficiently in an educational setting. 

812 Part B: Application of TPACK

Part B: Application of TPACK

The new “Applied Math” course I will be teaching this fall was designed for students who need an alternative to Algebra II because they struggled academically in Algebra I and/or Geometry. In preparation for my new students who have shown an academic need for careful planning and extra support, I believe that introducing an online WebQuest will provide a structured research project for students who might otherwise feel overwhelmed by the task. In addition to the WebQuest, including video blogs will also encourage the blending of technology and pedagogy (TPK) by providing an opportunity for students to work with technologies they will most likely encounter in a professional realm later in their lives. It also encourages students to take advantage of a creative outlet for sharing what they learned from the project. I believe that incorporating the WebQuest research with the video blogs supports the objective of engaging students by making concrete connections to encourage more positive attitudes toward learning mathematics.

As I mentioned in a previous post, in order to promote authentic student engagement, students need to feel motivated and connected to the course material.  Choosing to create a WebQuest and having students create their own video blogs encourages them to take a personal interest in the course. For this particular project, my pedagogical objective is to engage students in class material through focusing on their own personal investment in their learning. Throughout the course of the year, I plan to cater to the unique interests of my students (in homework sets, project proposals, etc.) in the hopes that I can help them make real-world connections to their future ambitions. For example, I may have a student who does not believe he/she will attend college, but will focus on working in construction instead. Knowing this as the teacher, I can utilize examples that are pertinent to a specific profession/interest.

The content of this course will feature interwoven strands of algebra and functions, statistics, and probability, with a focus on applications of mathematics.  Students will learn to recognize and describe important patterns that relate quantitative variables and develop strategies to make sense of real-world data. The course will develop students’ abilities to solve problems involving chance and to approximate solutions to more complex probability problems by using simulation. As previously mentioned, the initial goal is to create a community of learners by encouraging positive attitudes toward learning math. I believe that providing an opportunity for students to research (math-related) professions in greater depth (TCK) will encourage a greater understanding of math in the real-world and will be valuable resources for students when looking for relevant, real-world examples to support more complex mathematical concepts.

The overall goal of this project, with consideration and application of the TPACK model, is to capitalize on students’ personal interests by providing a structured, well-organized research opportunity in which they explore the role mathematics plays in various professions (PCK). Through this assignment, students will select one profession of interest to them and complete video blogs that share one or two mathematical concepts that are important for that particular job/profession and one or two interesting points they learned about the selected job/profession from their research.

812 Web-Conferencing

For my group's first "brainstorming" session, we used Vyew, a free online video conferencing program. The "meeting" went well, and overall, the group was efficient in sharing ideas, but we did have some difficulty with the sound (there was quite a bit of reverberation and echoing), so everyone opted to use the chat function (located in the lower, right-hand corner). I did find this to be a bit distracting and was constantly scrolling up to read what people were contributing, but every time I'd scroll up, the chat would drop back down because people were messaging. Thankfully, Vyew does have a nice feature that allows for the chat to be downloaded into a text file, which I ended up reading after the meeting to make sure I didn't miss anything. In the future, it'll be important to remind everyone to get headphones prior to meeting to help with the audio. 

In addition to using audio and the text-chat option, we also used the document page to type down the topics each of us were taking. As a group we decided to focus on the relevant educational uses of various Google Apps and each member selected an area to research for the final project (in which we're using Google Presentation... ohh the irony!).

I would like to spend more time exploring Vyew before I introduce it into my classroom, but see its many advantages for enhancing student learning. For instance, I think it would be awesome to contact a high school abroad and read/discuss the same piece(s) of literature via web-conferencing. Also, as a side note, the district I work in uses Moodle, and I could see myself exploring the video conferencing options within that program to help simplify matters for my students. 

811 UDL Principles

When considering the UDL Principles and framework, I do believe that traditional curriculum can often be rigid and make for a more challenging learning experience for many students because traditional curriculum is more content-driven and focuses on developing content knowledge versus skill-based knowledge (or procedural knowledge). For instance, limiting assignments (and therefore assessments) to one option does not encourage students to explore the material based on their own talents and interests (i.e. writing a paper versus creating a web page) and places the focus on "knowing the material" over building specific skills. However, I do also think it's important to note that the world does not always provide personalized opportunities and students need to develop coping skills in which they can deal with real-world situations that may be more "disabling" than what they've experienced in educational settings.

The benefits of analyzing the curriculum for strengths and weaknesses rather than focusing on the student's strengths and weaknesses places the focus on the lesson (and standards) at hand and not on any one student. This helps teachers to address the needs of all students in the classroom instead of only a select few. Though analyzing curriculum in this way can be challenging because it's more time-consuming and various points must be considered in the process, utilizing UDL principles encourages educators to create more authentic learning experiences through analyzing assessments under the UDL umbrella. 

Here is the link to the Google Doc of my lesson modifications and my UDL Checklist. 

812 Part A: Description of Need or Opportunity

Part A: Description of Need or Opportunity

This fall I will be teaching a new course entitled “Applied Mathematics” which is intended for high school students who demonstrate a need to reduce the Algebra II requirement in the Michigan Merit Curriculum due to academic difficulty in Algebra I and/or Geometry. Understanding the daily applications of math in real world settings is a challenge for many students, and unfortunately, many high school students feel a disconnect between their math courses and their real lives due to a lack of real world examples and activities in the classroom. The opportunity presented in this situation is to engage my students by making concrete connections through a pre-assessment/personal inventory activity to encourage more positive attitudes toward learning mathematics.

I plan to address this educational issue with technology by creating a WebQuest in which students explore the role mathematics plays in various professions (This link is a valuable resource for the WebQuest). Students will then select one profession of interest to them (jobs not included in the WebQuest must be approved by the teacher) and complete short 1-2 minute video blogs that share one or two mathematical concepts that are important for that particular job/profession and one or two interesting points they learned about the selected job/profession from their research.

In order to promote authentic student engagement, students need to feel motivated and connected to the course material. The previous WebQuest activity and video blog aim to engage students by encouraging them to take a personal interest in the course. Throughout the course of the year, I plan to cater to the unique interests of my students (in homework sets, project proposals, etc.) in the hopes that I can help them make real-world connections to their future ambitions. For example, I may have a student who does not believe he/she will attend college, but will focus on working in construction instead. Knowing this as the teacher, I can utilize examples that are pertinent to a specific profession/interest.

The WebQuest/video blogs will span the first two weeks of school (approximately five, 90-minute class periods) with all assignments and research done in class.  At least one class period will be dedicated to showing students how to create and edit videos. Class laptops are available as well as school computer labs to complete all components of the project. Students will be responsible for completing their own WebQuests and video blogs.

The “Applied Mathematics” course will focus on project-based learning in lieu of chapter tests to help students make more concrete connections to real-world applications. According to the CT4Me.net Computing Technology for Math Excellence website, “One of the greatest benefits of project-based learning is gains in students' critical-thinking skills.  However, as Bryan Goodwin (2010) found in reviewing the literature, a major shortcoming in many student projects is that educators tend to assign projects just for the sake of doing them.  ‘Educators can avoid this phenomenon and realize the potential of projects to promote students' critical-thinking by framing projects around a driving question’ (p. 81)… In every good project, students also need to perceive the work as meaningful to them.  A clear connection to an entry event adding this meaning might be via almost anything: ‘a video, a lively discussion, a guest speaker, a field trip, or a piece of mock correspondence that sets up a scenario’ (p. 35).  Students need a voice and choice in fulfilling project requirements, keeping in mind that limited choices be considered and that ‘teachers should design projects with the extent of student choice that fits their own style and students’ (p. 36).  Projects should give students opportunities to build 21st century skills and to use technology that will be useful to them in life and the workplace.  Projects should enable learners to conduct real inquiry, as with ‘real inquiry comes innovation--a new answer to a driving question, a new product, or an individually generated solution to a problem’ (p. 37).  Learners should receive feedback to use in revision, thus learning that real-world work often involves revision.  Finally, students should publicly present their work, as they will be more motivated to produce a quality product when knowing a real audience will view it.” All points aforementioned have been considered when creating the rationale for this particular project with the driving question, “Why does math matter?”

Due to limited resources for implementation, over the summer I will be able to create the WebQuest and test all links to ensure that students will be able to access all pages in the fall. Additionally, I will be working with another teacher for feedback regarding my curriculum planning over the summer and will solicit feedback in regards to this assignment. The actual implementation of the WebQuest activity with video blogs will be completed in the fall by students enrolled in the “Applied Mathematics” course. Indicators of a successful project will be 100% participation and completion of all components of the WebQuest and video blog activity.

Works Cited

Deubel, P. (year from last revised).  Math projects. July 15, 2011, from Computing
     Technology for Math Excellence
     Website: http://www.ct4me.net/math_projects.htm.

812 Introduction

Please click on the link to view my introduction. Thank you!

811 Evaluation of Learning Material in MERLOT

I evaluated the online Applied Finite Mathematics textbook, which was submitted by Judy Baker as a resource on MERLOT. Each chapter of the textbook is subdivided into notes and examples (downloadable as a Word document) and a homework set (also downloadable as a Word document). I had an opportunity to review the first two chapters (Linear Equations and Matrices), which included valid and educationally significant concepts, models, and skills for an advanced math course. I selected this resource on MERLOT because over the course of this summer, I will be preparing lessons for a new remedial math course that I will be teaching in the fall for students who need an alternative to Algebra II.

The lesson notes in the online textbook would be utilized at the beginning of a new chapter to introduce new objectives and mathematical concepts (explanation stage); however, due to the “textbook” nature of the notes, other then for examples, I don’t necessarily think this mode of sharing new information will benefit the students in the course. The students who are enrolled in my Applied Math class this fall have already shown a need for more hands-on, interactive learning due to their non-traditional learning styles. Although, I do see myself using simpler examples and possible homework sets in my class. For instance, the first chapter’s objectives state that after the lesson, students will be able to: graph a linear equation, find the slope of a line, determine an equation of a line, solve linear systems, and do application problems using linear equations. Though these ideas are introduced in Algebra I, the first weeks of the course will be focused on reviewing these and other concepts from previous math classes. The latter chapters of this online textbook seem to cover more complex concepts (Chapter 2 already introduces matrices!), which will be too advanced for my students; however, as mentioned before, I do see myself reviewing the notes and homework sets and pulling pertinent information that I can use for this class.

The format of the online textbook is easy to use with a menu bar on the left that has a link to each separate chapter. Additionally, the website provides several options for downloads (Word doc, pdf, etc.), which is beneficial to both teachers and students using the resource. I also like that there are practice exams and solutions to problem sets, which can be used as additional resources for those students who feel they could benefit from them. Overall, the notes seem straight to the point (though the topics themselves, as mentioned before, appear too advanced for the course I’m teaching). Additionally, there is a forum for feedback and questions which aids in direct communication for both teachers and students who use the website. I will definitely use this online textbook as a resource as I continue to plan for the new Applied Math course this fall.