Group projects and creative learning

      I commented on the post What does learning feel like? in the blog What Ed Said created by whatedsaid. It is actually a large student projects including What does learning look like? Year 6 PYP exhibition unit, the PYP exhibition is a large student project that allows students to chose a favorite filed and do research in groups, a creative way to let student engage in their own studies.

    I really like the idea of students research because this is a rather novice idea in my home country. The only group work students are familiar before university is their study groups which only serves the purpose to academic grades. The PYP activities will allow students to actively engage in the study because the field was picked by their own choice of interest, and not just sit there and be fed the knowledge by teachers.

    Students will also gain the experience of cooperating with others, which is a main current of nowadays since more and more progressions require group working and brain storming. The feedbacks of many students said that they learn how to cooperate with other, showing that this project not only serves an academic purpose, but also teaches them how to work with others. Also, the research will let the students have a taste of real life instead of holing in their narrow world of schooling. In the post the students comment that they learn how to be grateful of what they have, which is an ethical issue parents and teachers find it harder and harder to teach children.

    Group projects may seem a waste of time in some people’s opinion because children may not be mature enough to see the whole picture; but everything needs a first start, and I think a big group project on social inequitiy is a good start for them to learn and cooperate with others and give them more insights on their subjects and on themselves.

Reaching students with technology

Now a day we live in a world of technologies, while we are bathing in the convenience of the technologies in hand, how should we prepare our next generation to face this ever changing world?

Pay attention to what children need

And what do students need

We are living in an era when mass media, information and technology expend in geometric progressions. Four or more decades ago computers were not popular because they were heavy and expensive, their function were mainly to calculate large statistic numbers. Two decades ago, the internet started to open up to publics, and the computer had shrank smaller. I remember when I was a kid the teacher took us to the computer room once a week, but we just went there and play some computer games and print some pictures. Twenty years later, the TV, iPod, iPhone, iPad, laptops, cell phones, DVD and CD ROMS, Bluetooth, optical network, Wii, wireless communication…and so on. Firefox, Google, Wiki, blogs, Podcasts, Online Collaboration, Skype, MSN, GPS and Google Maps, YouTube, e-Portfolios and countless others were born according to the internet and new technologies. Everything had advance so quickly that it became harder and harder to keep up with the trend. The question is, how are we going to prepare our children and students to use these new tools?

  Statistics show that unlike the generation of young people who probably started to use computers and cell phones in their high school or university, the younger generation started to get a hand on the technologies in an early age, some even started when they were infants. They inevitably will have a better hand on the new technology than their parents or teachers. As teachers or parents, the first issue we have to face is how are we going to reach to them? Students nowadays spend even more time on TVs, internets, texting, iPad, iPods, and Facebook and less time in studying because only some of them think studying is important, others don’t see why they need to learn the things that seem to have no use in the future. Needless to say about the students that have difficulties in graduating. Further disappointment will only drive them further away.

  The film suggests that we reach them with the tools they already have, like giving an activity about texting in class, Google Mapping the places we study in geography class, or YouTube some songs and operas in music classes. These are good way to reach out to them since they can feel the connection of the curriculum and everyday life, and perhaps more of them will be willing to study and reach back to the teachers. But first thing first, the teacher has to take the first step of the leads, so it is best for teachers to learn and master as much technologies as they can to use them as tools to reach out.



Is it a myth that technology can replace teachers?

I am interested in the myth saying that technology will replace teachers. In the first chapter of Brave New Digital Classroom: Technology and Foreign Language Learning, the author states that “technology will not replace teachers in the future, but rather teachers who use technology will probably replace teachers who do not.” This really intriguers me because I’ve been thinking about this for awhile.

It is true that technologies enables and strengthens teachers teaching, and those teacher that can use the technologies have a better chance to stay in jobs than those who cannot follow the footsteps of the trend. Take my parents for an example, they are great teachers and knew well how to teach in the traditional way: microphones, chocks and blackboards. Now a days the schools asked them to make Power Points of their lessons and put them on the e-learning platform for students to download and study, some lessons even ask them to record their voices in the Power Points.  My parents are having some difficulties getting a hand on the technologies because it is rather difficult for them to learn because of their ages, but they still have to meet the standard since it became a must nowadays, those who cannot follow the rules are in danger of losing their jobs.

But on the other hand, it is no myth that technology can replace mankind, let along teachers. While the teacher play a critical role in teaching and the technologies only serve as assisting tools, the importance of teachers may wane through time. A lesson can be videotaped and play over and over to students taking this course every year, in that way the teacher will not be needed to teach students so often. The day may come that teacher and school are no longer needed, people who want to learn can simply download the videos of the lessons and discuss it with others or mail to the experts for answers. This is a high possibility that cannot be overlooked as a myth.

Tips for web safety

Nowadays the internet has become essential in many people's life. Unfortunately, the internet has become more and more dangerous since not all people on the net have good intentions. Here are some small tips to keep you safe from potential harm:

 

1. Create a strong password for all your accounts online.

l  If possible, create different account names and passwords when you register in websites. There are some important things you should know about passwords:

l  Passwords are private, don’t give them to anyone else, because there are no guarantees what he or her will do with it.

l  Do not choose a word easily guessed or a word from the dictionary, they will be too vulnerable.

l  Blend in capitals, numbers and codes in your password will increase your safety.

2. Do not open mails or files that you do not know from, there is a high possibility that they carry virus that can steal your information or destroy your computer.

3. Avoid at all cost to give your personal information to others, especially your ID, credit card number or bank account. People can do many things with it, and you may not only loose all your money but also commit a crime if someone stole your identity to commit crime.

4. Do not linger or chat in websites that are dangerous, such like pornography or violence site. You don’t know who you are chatting with and you do not want to attract their attention.

5. People can be nice, but some people have ulterior motivations for being nice. Do not trust anyone easily.

6. Do not believe in the things “too good to be real” like you won 1,000,000 dollars”, because they are not real at all.

7. Meeting with your net pal can be very dangerous, especially for females. If you decide to meet with him or her, be sure to bring someone with you and avoid meeting where there is no one around.

8. Don’t talk about sex with others easily. You don’t want to give other people the wrong ideas, and you don’t want to be targeted.

9. Do not think no one can find you by the internet and commit crimes online. There are more than one ways the police or other people can trace you down.

10. Be nice and polite when you are on line, if you are hostile to others, there are larger possibilities that you will be subjected to bullies and harasses.

11. If you are bullied, don’t be afraid to reach out for help. Be sure not to response or retaliate, collect evidence of the bully and report it to the police.

12. Avoid trading money online, things can get very sticky.

Safety Tips & Advice is a very good site telling you how to keep safe, please take a look and be sure to keep safe and sound!

Three ways to include blog in teaching

The time of single authority news have been subside by some authority news and bloggers broadcasting their news. Teacher can also be blogger when teaching.

1. Teachers can assign homework related to the lesson using blogs.
 This method allows student to do additiona readings or studying on their own instead of a teacher-center class. For example, if a teacher is talking about Shakespeare and his plays in his or her Literature class, the teacher can assign the student to go home and choose a play they like and read or watch the films. After watching or reading about the play, students should post their reflection on their blogs. The reflection can either be post on the student’s own blog, or put on the blog which the teacher set up. The teacher can grade their reflections on the depth or width the reflections are.

2. Teacher can ask students to do discussion on the blog.
 This method does not require a student to write a new article on their own. It requires the student to participate, discuss and sometime debate on topics. For example, a teacher can post several questions on the blog and ask students to chose a few of them to response. This can be assign as group discussion or individual responses, and the response cannot be simple answers, the responders have to state their own opinion in the topic and explain why they agree or don’t agree with the statements.

3. Teachers can ask the students to respond the lessons and open a window for suggestions.
 The main point of this way is by visiting and responding on the teacher’s blog, student can be more comfortable to talk and share information with the teacher. The teacher can post some tips, suggestions or even addition links on his or her websites to share it with the students to aid their studies; but the teacher can also post non-curriculum topic just to share something with the students. Students tend to respond more freely when they do not need to face the teachers directly. The blog can create a bridge between the students and the teachers.

According to the five "C's" STANDARDS FOR FOREIGN LANGUAGE LEARNING, which indicates five steps to become a successful foreign language learner: Communication, Cultures, Connections, Comparisons, and Communities.

COMMUNICATION
Communicate in Languages Other Than English

• Standard 1.1: Students engage in conversations, provide and obtain information, express feelings and emotions, and exchange opinions
• Standard 1.2: Students understand and interpret written and spoken language on a variety of topics
• Standard 1.3: Students present information, concepts, and ideas to an audience of listeners or readers on a variety of topics.

CULTURES
Gain Knowledge and Understanding of Other Cultures

• Standard 2.1: Students demonstrate an understanding of the relationship between the practices and perspectives of the culture studied
• Standard 2.2: Students demonstrate an understanding of the relationship between the products and perspectives of the culture studied

CONNECTIONS
Connect with Other Disciplines and Acquire Information

• Standard 3.1: Students reinforce and further their knowledge of other disciplines through the foreign language
• Standard 3.2: Students acquire information and recognize the distinctive viewpoints that are only available through the foreign language and its cultures

COMPARISONS

Develop Insight into the Nature of Language and Culture

• Standard 4.1: Students demonstrate understanding of the nature of language through comparisons of the language studied and their own
• Standard 4.2: Students demonstrate understanding of the concept of culture through comparisons of the cultures studied and their own.

COMMUNITIES
Participate in Multilingual Communities at Home & Around the World

• Standard 5.1: Students use the language both within and beyond the school setting.
• Standard 5.2: Students show evidence of becoming life-long learners by using the language for personal enjoyment and enrichment.

My standard blogging would require:

Goal 1: Students learn how to use blogs.
Standard 1: Students learn to use blogs and add in TESOL elements.
Standard 2: Students use the blogs in legal and ethical ways. Personal attacks, pornography or any kinds of violence is strictly prohibited.

Goal 2: Stduents using blogs for feedbacks, discussions, and assignments.
Standard 1: Students should check their blogs frequently and respond to all feedbacks.
Standard 2: Students should keep their posting in a standard and delete any unwanted junk feedbacks or unappropriate advertisement.
Standard 3: Students should always try to finish the assignments on time.
Standard 4: Every Student should have a discussion board and the student should put some topics open to discussion.
Standard 5: Chatting or discussing non-curriculum related topics should be seperated to a chatting board, or the student can choose to create another blog specific for personal diary posting or chattings.

Goal 3: Students respond and communicate with each others and share more information.
Standard 1: Students should try to post their feedbacks in other classmates or teacher's blog.
Standard 2: Encourage students to share their personal experience or knowledge in TESOL, responds from people outside the class is also welcomed.
Standard 3: Assign students to read and share some good materials with each other.

See here for the "STANDARDS FOR FOREIGN LANGUAGE LEARNING"