What to Consider When Planning for Electronic Portfolios - ISTE Article 8

Strategic Questions, What to Consider When Planning for Electronic Portfolios, by Helen C. Barrett

An electronic portfolio, a record of student work that demonstrates student achievement or improvement.

A portfolio should include:
*learner goals
• guidelines for selecting materials
(to keep the collection from growing
haphazardly)
• work samples chosen by both student
and teacher
• teacher feedback
• student self-reflection pieces
• clear and appropriate criteria for
evaluating work (rubrics based on
standards)
• standards and examples of good work

Question 1: Why keep a student portfolio? I believe a portfolio I a good idea for several reasons. First, it allows teachers to show parents and students the work the student has submitted, and how it relates to the included rubric. This way, when a parent wants to know why the student received a particular grade, there is a trail of evidence. Also, a portfolio can be used to apply for jobs or grants to show exemplary work. For legal reasons, a portfolio is a good idea. Because it presents a legal record to document what the student has accomplished and how the teacher has administered the coursework. Finally, a portfolio allows a teacher to keep track of each student's work to assign a fair grade.

Question 2: How can we bring electronic portfolios into the classrooms of tomorrow? Fortunately, since this article was written twelve years ago, there are now freely available electronic portfolios to use such as Tasksteam. All the students need to do is access a computer either at home or at the school's computer center to submit electronic assignments to contribute to their portfolio.

Barrett, H. (1998). Strategic Questions, What to Consider When Planning for Electronic Portfolios. Learning and Leading with Technology, 26 (2) pp. 6-13

Ryan Kelly

These Infomercials Teach Science - ISTE Article 7

These Infomercials Teach Science, by Lindsay Cesari and Patrick Donahue.

What a great article! The authors found a very clever way to incorporate the NETS*S standards into the science curriculum introducing 8th graders to the periodic table of the elements by having the students make an infomercial to sell their element. The were able to introduce, digital storytelling,advertising techniques, Photoshop software editing, and the concept of marketing and having a board meeting to decide which element they will purchase. The students who did this project were checked by formative assessments daily and a summative assessment at the end of the project.

Question 1: The article mentions a "Creative Commons license" What is that? It is a nonprofit website that helps direct you to material that you may use. With a Creative Commons license, you keep your copyright but allow people to copy and distribute your work provided they give you credit. Use caution though, it is not screened for inappropriate content.


Question 2: What other science topics could benefit from this method? Students in a biology class could sell their cell and have to explain why their cell is the best. For example a student could sell a neuron and charge a premium for it because they make up your brain. Another student could sell a muscle cell, and another could sell a pancreas cell. The students would learn a great deal researching why their cell is better than the other ones. This would meet the CA standards about cells and a NETS standards about using technology.



Cesari, L. & Donahue, P. (2010). These Infomercials Teach Science. Learning and Leading with Technology, 37 (8)

RYAN KELLY

Beyond Show and Tell - ISTE Article 5

Beyond Show and Tell: Using Spreadsheets to Solve Problems, by Mary Burns

The author brings up a good question. Have we really moved beyond "show and tell" or are we still just presenting information in what she calls generation one tools such as PowerPoint? We need to create information, not just present it. Spreadsheets can be used to present data tables and charts, which is sadly what most teachers are using them for, or spreadsheets can be used for "what ifs" to create new information by altering the decision making process.

Question 1: What would a better use of a spreadsheet be other than "Show and Tell?"
I would have my students use Excel to develop a chart based on their knowledge of population biology and limiting carrying capacity. That would force them to apply the concepts of ecology and utilize the graphic function of excel to model the rise and fall of populations.

Question 2: What can be done to increase the use of spreadsheets as a learning tool for students? Not just as a display, but as a way of generating information and critical thinking.
I think the answer to that is that teachers need to feel more comfortable with the software before they will be able to apply creative ways to challenge the students. School districts could include spreadsheet training seminars for their teachers to show them how they can be more than just a pre-made chart.
Ryan Kelly

Learning Connections ISTE Article 4

Learning Connections
Dynamic Human Anatomy, by Ken Felker

The article showcased a hot new software based on MRI technology; a truly amazing fully interactive 3-D color animations of the human body is now available for High School or college Human Anatomy classes.

Question 1: Isn't the good old "Anatomy Coloring Book" interactive enough?
The new software "Dynamic Human Anatomy" software developed by Primalpictures.com takes a quantum leap in making anatomy visual for students to grasp the three dimensionality of the human body and its layers of tissues. Coloring in the outlines in the old book just doesn't impress me anymore after seeing this new technology.

Question 2: How could a Middle school life science class benefit from such software?
I believe that you are never too young to start learning about your own body, how it works and how to take care of it. For younger students the teacher would need to focus on the larger muscles and bones and some simple concepts such as how muscle is attached to bone by ligaments. Then the students could go the to graphics and review the mechanics of a joint and see the animation of joint articulation. Introducing that colorful and realistic anatomy will inspire students to learn more about themselves and how to treat their bodies well.
Ryan Kelly

Learning Connections ISTE Article 3

Learning Connections Article
Improving Small group Learning, by Tammy P. Smith

Infusing technology of all kinds, such as iPods, overheads, digital video cameras, computers, tape recorders, science probes, and WebQuests is small groups can be a great way to engage otherwise attention deficit students. Students who may not enjoy paper and pencil may enjoy the kinesthetic use of technology. Once you have their attention through creative use of technology, it is much easier to present the academic content.

Question 1 - How can using technology engage students in higher-order thinking?
At an elementary level, students can explore an interactive site that shows a botanical garden learning what types of plant life would exist in different biomes. You could then ask them a question that would force them to relate how those plants looked to the type of climate they grew in. And the students would have to explain why they look different in a desert versus temperate coastal forest for instance. This could then be related to the theory of evolution and how the different plants evolved those observed characteristics to survive in the prevailing climate.


Question 2 - What is the benefit of a small group project using technology over lecture? It is essential to engage students before you can teach them anything. Today's children are exposed to a myriad of technology that flashes and makes sounds and has colorful moving pictures so a teacher standing up in front of them talking for almost an hour is going to put them to sleep. A small group working on a project allows collaboration among the group and using technology keeps them engaged.

Ryan Kelly

ISTE Article 6

Communicate with Pictures: Using Still and Video Photography in Science, by Paula Setters

In Science, there are many times when technology as simple as photography is still an effective and engaging tool for teaching. Still and Video photography are good ways to maintain connections to real life which is a good way to maintain interest of students and they are welcome substitutes for lecturing. Videos are a great way to show difficult concepts that would otherwise be difficult to demonstrate by projects or experiments. Even movies such as Return of the Jedi speeder bike chase scenes could be used in a fun way to demonstrate momentum and inertia. The fact that most schools already have video equipment means that utilizing this kind of technology is not a large financial outlay for budget strapped California schools.

Question 1) This article is from 1999. Is it still relevant?
Yes, absolutely! With the overwhelming success of digital cameras and digital video cameras, it is easier and cheaper to use photographs and digital video in classrooms. The digital images can be easily modified and integrated into presentations, web pages, or Youtube clips.

Question 2) How could we use video to encourage science student to use high-level thinking?
Instead of just watching informative videos, such as the ones the article suggests, students could use their video cameras to make a video designed to teach other students a scientific concept. The act of studying the concept, analyzing how to prevent it and performing the lesson are excellent ways to add critical thinking and decision making to this use of technology.

Ryan Kelly

Reference:

Setters, P. (1999). Learning & Leading with Technology,Vol 27, Issue 4, Pg 36. Communicate with Pictures: Using Still and Video Photography in Science, ISTE,org

Curriculum Design and Technology Integration

Curriculum Design and Technology Integration, by Robin Beaver and Jean Moore

I think this article brings up a good point that some teachers focus too much on the technology and they lose sight of the lesson and of the students needs. The article did a great job laying out steps in order to encourage higher-level thinking while still giving great ideas about how to integrate technology into the curriculum. They reminded us to outline activities for each level of Bloom's taxonomy and each learning style in Gardner's theory of multiple intelligences. They used a lesson on the solar system as an example.

Q1 Is there a monumental flaw to this article that is caused by the standards based testing?
With standardized testing being used to judge student performance in very specific subject areas and with those test grades becoming what makes or breaks the job of the teachers, I see a disconnect between what is best for the students and what is going to prepare them to pass the standardized test. The use of technology in the article is no doubt a great service to the student, but using video equipment to create a commercial for a trip to another planet (the example in the article) is unlikely to help them pass a rigorus test on the structure and composition of that planet. Hence, they will learn a variety of important skills, but still fail the standardized test.
Q2 Is there a way around the disconnect I stated in question one? I think with an extremely thoughtful and skillful teacher, the students may be guided to be creative using technologies such as those listed, while still directing their efforts of the required topics in the standards. Perhaps they could make a sales video to travel to a certain planet because it has an atmosphere made of methane, and everyone wants to visit that on their planetary vacation. That way, they are using the proper terms and comparing and contrasting the solar system in enough detail to help them pass the standardized test. Perhaps the teacher could say, when writing your newsletters or making your video commercials for the planetary trips, you must properly use these terms: matter, methane, gas, rock, inner planets, asteroid etc... That would be the guidance needed to ensure the activity is preparing them for the standardized test as well as being a valuable technology learning experience.

Beaver, R. & Moore, J. (2004). Curriculum design and technology integration. Learning and Leading with Technology Journal 32 (1), 42-48.

This blog by RYAN KELLY