Looking back at certain moments in my life filled with angst, frustration, working under pressure, I surprisingly came to a conclusion that these were the most powerful learning events of my life. They made me - ME, shaped my teaching style, formed my outlook on various things in life, and opened my mind to tolerance, understanding, and compassion. Mainly, travels to different parts of the States and Europe contributed to my most powerful learning experiences.
I remember one of my travels specifically. It was my first visit to the United States, the country with culture so different from mine that at first it left me confused, searching for connections to my understanding of life, and scrambling to better my English :) Luckily, I ended up in New Hampshire, where the language was easy enough to understand for a newcomer. Beign a part of Easter Seals camp staff was an eye-opening experience as well as it was the first time I worked with children with disabilities, an entirely rewarding and humbling experience by itself. Even though I was questioning my sanity at the time, wondering about how in the world I was stupid enough to sign up for this crazy deal, but eventually I came to understand the importance of my undertaking as it helped me realize how big this world was, and how different, but not unequal, cultures were, which made me a better teacher and still helps me try to inspire my students in the secluded county of McDowell to look beyond the county line, open their minds to a multitude of possibilities ready for them to undertake, and view the world as a place for collaboration, not division. And, Globaloria enhances my beliefs even more!
Friday, June 26, 2009
Thursday, June 25, 2009
Homework assignment
Just as doing my homework assignments for the admin class I took this semester from Concord Univeristy during the four weeks of Twilight obsession, I am unveiling my blogs to follow early in the morning, while it' not too late!
Lately, I have been following Ian Jukes's blog after listening to his presentations last summer. His insights into the 21st century learning gave me tons of food for thought and provided good support for opening my mind to the teaching and learning opportunities initiated by Globaloria. The work my students have accomplished this year proves that 21st century learning is taking place in WV schools . In the end of the year, my studetns have produced a video that shows their accomplishments in this class and is a great evidence of their engagement and hard work.
I have also decided to follow up the edu blogs website suggested by Rachael yesterday during the session. I am extremely interested in the issues of 21st century literacy and digital divide as these are the roadblocks we frequently hit as teachers working in high poverty areas. Despite the location and peculiarities of school locations, teachers still need to leave no child behind and find ways to help all the kids to be successful within the 21st century workspace.
Lately, I have been following Ian Jukes's blog after listening to his presentations last summer. His insights into the 21st century learning gave me tons of food for thought and provided good support for opening my mind to the teaching and learning opportunities initiated by Globaloria. The work my students have accomplished this year proves that 21st century learning is taking place in WV schools . In the end of the year, my studetns have produced a video that shows their accomplishments in this class and is a great evidence of their engagement and hard work.
I have also decided to follow up the edu blogs website suggested by Rachael yesterday during the session. I am extremely interested in the issues of 21st century literacy and digital divide as these are the roadblocks we frequently hit as teachers working in high poverty areas. Despite the location and peculiarities of school locations, teachers still need to leave no child behind and find ways to help all the kids to be successful within the 21st century workspace.
Thursday, May 21, 2009
Tying up loose ends...
Last week was a bit hectic as the much-anticipated and feared date of the game presentations neared. We also had visitors from Globalora staff and Texas who came to see how Globaloria works within the middle school setting. Students willingly shared their insights into Globaloria, what they learned, how it helped them work better in groups and become more familiar with Web 2.0 tools.
Wednesday, the day of our presentations, was both nerve-wrecking and rewarding. The students have put in a lot of work during class hours, after their lunch, and after school. Even though their games were not completed, the game presentations were engaging and well prepared for. Every group member, even the shyest one, contributed to the presentation. To share the student success and the results of their hard work, Sara and I invited our county assistant superintendent and technology integration specialist to be on the panel of judges. We also had a teacher from another middle school from the county come and videotape the presentation. Of course, our administration was present, supporting the students.
Even though the presentations are over, we still have a lot of work to do. The students have to assemble their games, and with Jeff's help, they are slowly moving to their goal. Even though student motivation is there, we still promised to bring cookies and milk (their choice!) for the groups who upload their finished games to the game gallery by next Friday! Middle school bribing sometimes works magic :) Blogging, organizing pages, and finalizing games is all that's needed to successfully finish up the year.
The time we spent in our first year of Globaloria was challenging, highly educational, and very rewarding for the students who embraced the 21st century learning skills and tools and have come out being ready for challenges future might bring them!
Wednesday, the day of our presentations, was both nerve-wrecking and rewarding. The students have put in a lot of work during class hours, after their lunch, and after school. Even though their games were not completed, the game presentations were engaging and well prepared for. Every group member, even the shyest one, contributed to the presentation. To share the student success and the results of their hard work, Sara and I invited our county assistant superintendent and technology integration specialist to be on the panel of judges. We also had a teacher from another middle school from the county come and videotape the presentation. Of course, our administration was present, supporting the students.
Even though the presentations are over, we still have a lot of work to do. The students have to assemble their games, and with Jeff's help, they are slowly moving to their goal. Even though student motivation is there, we still promised to bring cookies and milk (their choice!) for the groups who upload their finished games to the game gallery by next Friday! Middle school bribing sometimes works magic :) Blogging, organizing pages, and finalizing games is all that's needed to successfully finish up the year.
The time we spent in our first year of Globaloria was challenging, highly educational, and very rewarding for the students who embraced the 21st century learning skills and tools and have come out being ready for challenges future might bring them!
Sunday, April 5, 2009
Presentation time nears...
Well, the students are almost finished with their individual units and are starting on their game scenes, which brings a lot of creativity, frustration, and seeking for answers into play. The presentation at the board is in three weeks, so I encouraged the students to produce a game demo and talk about their learning process within the course. They are worried about talking in front of the board, but that will help them in the long run.
Our assistant principal and I are trying something this semester. Her acquaintance is an owner of a graphic design company in Florida. We got in touch with him about possibly talking to the kids about this industry and his experiences with it. The guy is very willing to talk to the kids, so we might be setting up Skype session with him some time in future. I am very excited because this session would let our students see the significance and reak world application of what they are doing in this class. Of course, none of my students need to be really nudged to attend Globaloria. They perceive it as "fun learning", with some spending more time on playing rather than working for a specific goal- their game. However, work or play, they are still learning, so I am not complaining much.
Our assistant principal and I are trying something this semester. Her acquaintance is an owner of a graphic design company in Florida. We got in touch with him about possibly talking to the kids about this industry and his experiences with it. The guy is very willing to talk to the kids, so we might be setting up Skype session with him some time in future. I am very excited because this session would let our students see the significance and reak world application of what they are doing in this class. Of course, none of my students need to be really nudged to attend Globaloria. They perceive it as "fun learning", with some spending more time on playing rather than working for a specific goal- their game. However, work or play, they are still learning, so I am not complaining much.
Friday, March 13, 2009
Our progress...
My students are increasingly surprising me with the complexity and creativity of their work. Collaboration between these kids is amazing as they find resources and share them with each other constantly! However, they "play" with Flash a lot and sometimes forget about adding the newly learned stuff to their game! Thus, they need constant reminders to stay on task in addition to having "boss-ladies": Phyllis, Karri, and Chelsey!
Recently, we have organized a parent night at school, with one of the topics for sharing being Globaloria. Josh and Tyler decided to represent the group and talk about their learning in this class. Parents were impressed, which means that we might get a number of willing participants next year. Interestingly, many parents wanted to see this program continue in high school because it was evidently something the students would enjoy tremendously! This night was a good rehearsal for the boys as they have a presentation with the board coming up in April, with the final presentation of the games taking place in May. Knowing about these presentations and working in groups keeps these students accountable towards each other and towards this class, which eliminates my need for grading as a sole means to evaluate the learning process and actually see it take place.
I am excited about the things that the students are learning. They definitely know more than me even though I have progressed a lot further since last June myself!!!
Recently, we have organized a parent night at school, with one of the topics for sharing being Globaloria. Josh and Tyler decided to represent the group and talk about their learning in this class. Parents were impressed, which means that we might get a number of willing participants next year. Interestingly, many parents wanted to see this program continue in high school because it was evidently something the students would enjoy tremendously! This night was a good rehearsal for the boys as they have a presentation with the board coming up in April, with the final presentation of the games taking place in May. Knowing about these presentations and working in groups keeps these students accountable towards each other and towards this class, which eliminates my need for grading as a sole means to evaluate the learning process and actually see it take place.
I am excited about the things that the students are learning. They definitely know more than me even though I have progressed a lot further since last June myself!!!
Tuesday, February 3, 2009
Are we ever going to get back to work???
Well, snow days have provided a nice relief here and there, but I am sooo ready to do away with them and have a decent work week. I guess, we haven't had many cancellations as other schools have, but they still messed with the schedule. Through the chaos of snow days and semester changes, the groups switched schedules, and now the second group is coming in for eighty minutes. The kids are absolutely loving it! The first group, however, are not happy with the change, but so far it hasn't affected them that greatly.
We are starting to reap the effects of Globaloria by... letting our students help teachers who want to find out more about new Web 2.0 tools. Yesterday Sara and I were asked by a teacher who is happy to have evolved from a digital dinosaur into "just a big lizard" (her own words :) to help her learn more about wikis, blogs, and podcasts. Instead of jumping in right away, we offered... Josh to help her out. So, as soon as our snow days are over, they are going to meet every morning to learn more about these tools. The growing confidence and belief I have in these kids are another proof that this class helps not only students but also teachers to embrace the 21st century teaching and learning. Of course, I still have long ways to go in the means of acquiring knowledge and prefer conventional ways rather than skyping Jeff far away in NY to help me out with the glitch in the game (Josh :), but I am definitely moving along. What's the next stage of evolution from a digital lizard, I wonder???
We are starting to reap the effects of Globaloria by... letting our students help teachers who want to find out more about new Web 2.0 tools. Yesterday Sara and I were asked by a teacher who is happy to have evolved from a digital dinosaur into "just a big lizard" (her own words :) to help her learn more about wikis, blogs, and podcasts. Instead of jumping in right away, we offered... Josh to help her out. So, as soon as our snow days are over, they are going to meet every morning to learn more about these tools. The growing confidence and belief I have in these kids are another proof that this class helps not only students but also teachers to embrace the 21st century teaching and learning. Of course, I still have long ways to go in the means of acquiring knowledge and prefer conventional ways rather than skyping Jeff far away in NY to help me out with the glitch in the game (Josh :), but I am definitely moving along. What's the next stage of evolution from a digital lizard, I wonder???
Thursday, January 1, 2009
Reflections on Globaloria coming into 2009...
Yesterday, while celebrating the coming of year 2009, I started evaluating our work in Globaloria in 2008. What have we accomplished? What have we learned, on our own and from each other? What have we struggled through? Where have we succeeded? The term "we" for me includes the students and the teachers, because in this class we are all learners, which, as hard and impossible as it seemed to me in the beginning, has proven to be the most rewarding aspect of the class. The end of the physical year is sort of a mid check point for the class, which is getting more challenging but more rewarding at the same time. So, if going back to August...
We have originally started with a diverse group of 15 students, 15 different personalities, ambitions, working habits, etc. that totally "made" the group. The beginning of the semester was chaotic because the structure of the class, the independence in learning, as well as the need for collaboration and dealing with new software to all of us required constant attention, reinforcement of rules, and reevaluation of practices in close collaboration with Denise. Of course, we could not have done anything without the support from our school and district administration as well as the Globaloria team, which ensured quick install of Flash...
From there on, the life in class has taken a form of its own. Up to date, we have lost two students and have accepted a new one, these being the changes that made us reevaluate our grouping practices for the next year because of the huge role collaboration plays throughout the course. The class has also opened various talents in our students and heightened their interest in school (the testimony of one of the parents!). Their game ideas are very relevant to the social issues of today and are overflowing with creativity.
The students constantly surprise me with their catching on to the new things with Flash. Whatever I could not figure out in a million of years, they get it in a snap! However, not everybody is this way, so these students and I slowly go through the tutorials and learn something new ourselves! Of course, if the overachievers don't jump in and explain everything in an instant! I cannot wait to see what this class will bring during the second semester, especially teh final product, which is not only the games, but also my students' social learning, collaboration, and work skills honed throughout the course.
We have originally started with a diverse group of 15 students, 15 different personalities, ambitions, working habits, etc. that totally "made" the group. The beginning of the semester was chaotic because the structure of the class, the independence in learning, as well as the need for collaboration and dealing with new software to all of us required constant attention, reinforcement of rules, and reevaluation of practices in close collaboration with Denise. Of course, we could not have done anything without the support from our school and district administration as well as the Globaloria team, which ensured quick install of Flash...
From there on, the life in class has taken a form of its own. Up to date, we have lost two students and have accepted a new one, these being the changes that made us reevaluate our grouping practices for the next year because of the huge role collaboration plays throughout the course. The class has also opened various talents in our students and heightened their interest in school (the testimony of one of the parents!). Their game ideas are very relevant to the social issues of today and are overflowing with creativity.
The students constantly surprise me with their catching on to the new things with Flash. Whatever I could not figure out in a million of years, they get it in a snap! However, not everybody is this way, so these students and I slowly go through the tutorials and learn something new ourselves! Of course, if the overachievers don't jump in and explain everything in an instant! I cannot wait to see what this class will bring during the second semester, especially teh final product, which is not only the games, but also my students' social learning, collaboration, and work skills honed throughout the course.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)