Creating a Digital Story

I just finished my digital story project on iMovie. I had my story that I wanted to tell which involved my struggle with losing my dad to lung cancer when I was in high school, and then moving on without him. I loved that we could incorporate pictures and music in addition to narration. I definitely feel that I've gotten to experience being a student again and not knowing exactly how to do what I needed to do. I know that this feeling only came from one source, and that was just from the anxious feeling that many of us get when we have to use something that we've never used before (especially on a major assignment). I know that this is a sentiment my students will also feel, and therefore, I'm grateful for how Dr. Hofer responded to me about it. He explained the new concept in class, gave us time in class to work on, and set up open lab times when we could get help from him. To sum it up: reassurance. It made me feel a lot better, and I know that if I ever do this project it will make my students feel better as well. The anxiety could be even more heightened for students without very much computer experience, and for people who don't do change well.

I loved the flexibility for students that the concept of this project provides. The requirements allowed us to make it literary or personal - I chose personal when I saw the slice-of-life memoir option. In retrospect, maybe too personal. I was nervous about presenting it in class because I thought I'd get choked up, but Dr. Hofer was there with the reassurance once again to help me keep chuggin' away. I also really liked the peer-review that we did. This project would appeal to so many different types of students not just the linguistic ones that so often teachers who fall into ruts only help. I loved that. Also, for once, the story itself mattered --- instead of so much good grammar and punctuation. Another problem that students could run into could be transitions; I liked the way I did the title screens, but I realize how much trouble transitions are in writing for students anyway.

If I do this project in my classroom, I would slow down the explanations of it in class and increase the time in classroom the first week. Then, I would scaffold it away into the second week during open lab time and just be there for as-needed help. I would increase the peer-review to extend from just written script, to the narration and visuals, and finally the movie as a whole. I think collaboration among students is very important. I would be quick to encourage and resassure my students. I really feel that I've learned a lot and I hope my students do as well.

Creating a Digitial Story

Creating this digital story was truly an experience for me. As soon as the initial assigment was posted, I began to think about what story could I tell. I think that one of the most valuable lessons that I learned coming through school and now in my education classes is that to make something meaningful, it helps if it is personal. The slice-of-life memoir called my name, and I was led to write about my experience with losing my dad to lung cancer when I was in high school. At that point, I realized I have a subject and plenty of visuals; I knew that I had a story, but I didn't know the best way to tell it. I think that is a problem that my students will experience. Whenever I wrote words on the page, they didn't seem good enough. I worked on about three different versions (ways of telling the story as well) until I settled on the one I thought would be most appropriate for the project. Then, I forged ahead with the technology part of the assignment.

iMovie opened my eyes to an entirely new way of thinking about a story -- actually having a student-created movie. Now, I realize that this is probably common knowledge to the rest of the world, but to me it was earth-shattering. For once, I could think about the story I wanted to tell and its effect on my audience instead of just relying on the having sentences with good grammar to get a good grade. I think that my students will really like this as well. This project is one that (once given an overview of the program), students can do on their own with moderate help (as-needed) from the teacher. It provides benefits with regard to oral competencies -- because of the required auditory section. It allows artistic people (especially yearning-to-be-photographers) to flourish and really feel that they own this project. The peer review was another awesome part of this project.

I think that students who are not familiar with iMovie will be a little scared at first -- at least I was, but after they get used to it, it'll go easier. It would have been nice if I could have worked on this in my room (like the PowerPoint presentation), but coming to the lab worked fine. Again, students who are not familiar with computers would definitely be put off by this project, and they would need extra reassurance and help.

I would spend more time on the inital discussion of the project to develop that reassurance in the less-computer-apt student, which I think would minimize what I saw to be the biggest challenge of getting used to a new piece of software. I would probably have more in-class lab time for the first week before setting students out to finish the project. I would encourage peer-review for each stage -- even include auditory (feedback on the actual narration) and the visuals. I really felt like I experienced what my students will feel after learning they have an assignment using something they've never worked with. I learned a lot, and I feel a great sense of accomplishment because of it.

Going Beyond Word Processing

I really enjoyed reading chapter six. I discovered a lot of new ideas as well as found reinforcement for some ideas that I'd already considered. Kajder begins this chapter with a quotation that I see as a central part of my teaching philosophy for English: "Writing is the heart of the English class. In one form or another, it is constant: we are reading it, doing it, or preparing to do it" (Jim Burke).

Resonating ideas:
1. Prewriting and Reflection: Five minutes of monitors off free-write to help students jumpstart their writing as well as in conjunction with post-writing reflection in a writer's journal.
2. Revision and Editing: Locating topic sentences in paragraphs by highlighting them in green, as well as supporting details in red, and transitions in blue (with standard colors for assignments and collecting these color-coded drafts) as well as using conclusions for introductions.

During the past year, I've helped my mom teach her students about writing. I feel that the ideas presented with solutions in the resonating ideas make up the majority of students' writing mistakes. For many, getting started is a problem as well as feeling too satisfied with a first draft. Most students have editing/revising mistakes on varying levels, and I feel that the other suggestions will make these mistakes more visible to them.

Lingering questions:
1. Calkins (1994) idea that students discuss positive rather than negative aspects of their writings. In the classes I've helped, I encouage for each positive a negative and vice versa. I think that one problem in our schools today is that we as teachers are too concerned with being politically correct and not hurting our students' feelings. While I don't think that teachers should intentionally be mean to their students, I think that we cripple them by allowing them to think that everything that they do is perfect. For instance, if I take my child to the doctor. I want the doctor to do everything he can to cure him, not just pat him on his head and call him a good boy. Therefore, I think it is stronger to discuss both positives and negatives.

2. I am also a little wary of the roaming to different stations technique of pre-writing. I believe in collaboration, but I would want to makes sure that each students writes on what he/she is comfortable with, and not just have Johnnie writing on the topic that Susie suggested because he really has a crush on her and wants her to notice him. I would want to experiment with this task in my actual classroom before implementing it on an important topic.

Creating a Powerpoint

I've really enjoyed this powerpoint presentation because it is one that I will actually be able to use it for teaching (making me feel rewarded) and for something other than just showing that I can work my way around the computer program. I've been most challenged by generating content material because I'm worried that what I'm really interested in my students will not be, so I'm constantly going back and trying to shoot ideas by other friends and teachers I know. I want to insure that there is a balance between the "fun" part of my presentation (hiphop) and the traditional poetry that I need to teach so my students can pass the SOL. With regard to the technical part of PP, I was challenged by finding a background color scheme that I thought would be interesting but not take over my presentation.

I thought about the objectives that I wanted to deliver to my students. I kept in mind that I want the presentation to be interesting and informative. I thought about the zone of proximal development - not too hard and not too easy for the students. I wanted to have lots of info so the students stay busy and on track. I want to move them from relying on me for all the answers to finding the answers themselves about poetry (that stemmed from thinking about my own experience in high school).

There was a very real value of mappping it out beforehand. I would not have known where to start with this presentation if I hadn't done that work. It made my powerpoint design go smoothly - I could focus more on extra info and animation instead of the main idea content.

I wanted to use more audio/video files - but I only found them on copyrighted spots such as (VSpot on VH1.com), so it can make the powerpoint not flow as well. Keep trying is my advice for that. I also ran into wanting to put too much writing on the slides -- this is very boring. I constantly have to remind myself this powerpoint is not a replacement for class notes -- students shouldn't be copying down every slide -- it is an aid for lecture. Keep thinking about how you would feel as a student listening to this presentation.

I would definitely use a mapping out program like we did if I do this again (which I will).

It depends on where I'm teaching. I'm student teaching at Grafton, and they have lots of computer resources for students. If I'm in a similar situation, yes, I would do a powerpoint project. If I'm in a less affluent situation, I would be more uneasy about doing this type of project because I wouldn't want it to take the majority of my class time when we have to be covering more writing and literature for the SOLs.

Web-Based Research Models

My exploration of web-based research models has proved to make a interesting night of web-browsing. I thought that the GraveNet pages were enlightening. These models allow students to access information much more easily and quickly than ever before, which in a time-restricted classroom setting would be a very good thing. Also, they allow students to peruse (at their own pace) newer information. This advantage fulfills the UDL principles of multiple ways and flexible ways to appeal to various learning styles. Easy access to this information is easy if the school/homes of students do in fact have access to the internet; however, web research becomes significantly more difficult if this access is not had. Another disadvantage of web research is the higher possibility that students will not effectively use this time to research and rather might spend time on websites that are off-topic. The web model has to be in the zone of proximal development for students; in other words, it is necessary that the information challenge the students but not be too challenging for them to respond to it. As Kajder points out in her text, web research in the classroom also establishes more work for teachers during class as he/she must help each group. Teachers must work in advance to develop specific sites for students to visit and constantly monitor the computers to ensure students are visting them and only them. I think that the most effective purpose of web research combines exploring a topic/ answering a question with giving multiple perspective. For high schoolers, I think it would be effective to combine these two concepts into one model. I liked the Banned Books and Nelson Mandela sites. I really liked the WebQuest format and especially the one on F. Scott Fitzgerald & 1920s. I thought it incorporated UDL principles well - including reading a classic paying particular attention to part of The Great Gatsby, using the internet for information, participating in a collaborative effort, and appealing to different interests including entertainment, important people, and clothes of the 1920s.

UDL Reflection

My initial impression of the Universal Design for Learning principles is optimistic. I really like that it accounts for individual learner preferences and that it constantly stresses both multiple options and flexible options. The powerpoint examples in last week's class were really interesting and helpful for me in comprehending the new concept of UDL.

When we first mentioned UDL, I (inaccurately) assumed that it was a new concept that only really applied to Powerpoints, which made me a bit apprehensive. Today, however, we discussed that is an incorrect assumption. UDL does not have to involve powerpoints at all. More importantly, it is a mode of instruction which appeals to a wider range of students that a single-mode approach.

I admit I was a bit apprehensive at first about powerpoints in an English classroom, but since class last week, I've really changed my mind about that fact. That's the greatest thing about UDL for me so far: it's adaptable for each teacher. I don't want my class to be dominated by a powerpoint - I want to use it to help aid class discussions and group work and, yes, even some teacher lecture. Digital media can open doors for students that haven't been opened before. Quickly, powerpoint can actually show all of the students at once what Shakespeare's Globe Theater looked like (without having to wait for a book to be passed around). They can hear Alfred, Lord Tennyson read "The Charge of the Light Brigade," which can make the poem come alive. They can listen to the music of the 17th century when they read its poems. All of these elements can easily be incorporated into a PowerPoint - allowing the teacher to use them quickly and intelligently. This use of powerpoint could detract from its usefulness if it is overused to the point that students are on overload or get bored with it.

I believe that it is reasonable to expect teachers to follow UDL principles - even if they don't realize UDL is the correct name for them. UDL principles are embedded in the types of knowledge that we're studying in ed psych: general pedagogical knowledge and pedagogical content knowledge. A teacher must know how to get the information across to her students so that they can take it and run with it - all the students and not just the high-achievers who understand it the first way she presents it.

The moral/ethicial implications of UDL include the possibility of a teacher not being right. Some of these techniques will not work for all students - some might not work for any students; however, it forces a teacher to move off the pedastal of "this is the way I've taught it for 25 years, and it's always worked before." UDL forces all teachers not to get in a stagnant mode of teaching. It is constantly changing to fit the needs of new students.

Technology Autobiography

To put it simply, I like technology; whether it be relating to the relatively new computers, cell phones, or iPods or the technological concepts which I have always taken for granted, such as electricity, indoor plumbing, and automobiles, my life is made much for enjoyable because of technology. Now for the real topic at hand, my technology autobiography....

My family got our first computer when I was in the eighth grade, but I had previously been exposed to them in my mother's office and in school computer classes. I was very excited to get a computer because ICQ was quickly becoming the "in" mode of communication for my friends at school (and my mom and dad were very glad that their phone bills could decrease and I could still talk to my friends on the computer). Over the next few years in high school, instant messaging and email remained important ways for me to communicate; although, as I started driving, began to use my cell phone more, and increased the number of school and social activities, my computer's role began to change from a more social one to a more scholarly. My computer became an efficient way to research topics for school projects - especially with databases such as the Student Rescource Center from Galenet. When I entered college, my laptop began to have equal roles for instant messaging and schoolwork. I use the database resources from Swem a lot to get sources for papers. In the summertime, I have worked for my mother who is a guidance counselor. At work, I have used the computer especially Word and Excel. I like the power that the internet brings to its users; when I come upon a concept or word that I don't understand, I quickly go to the computer and "google it," and I typically learn the answer in a couple of minutes, instead of having to go the library and spend all day trying to find my answer.