Project Evaluation

In analyzing the development of my TechQuest, I can say that I do feel somewhat happy with where I am currently in its development.  Though I feel I have a long way to go, I plan to move forward in collaboration with my department's input and assistance, which I hope will only improve the quality of the project.  I think taking on a project such as this one should incorporate more input from those who are doing similar instruction as yourself.  Though group feedback is very beneficial, having input from someone covering the same curriculum could be almost invaluable. 

My approach to another project of this type would be to try and incorporate peers within my department more often, encouraging collaboration on the content of the project itself.  Though they may not have the technical knowledge to carry out the project, they could definitely help develop some key components they would like to see incorporated and give feedback focused on the curricular aspect of it.  I just feel as though doing so would make the project more comprehensive and increase its quality.

The one thing about this project I would change, which I feel could definitely benefit others, would be the time of year in which it was implemented.  I find at this time of year, my students definitely did not want to learn about study skills.  They were willing to click through the links, listen to a snippet of the podcast(s), and only read minimally.  Where students may do this anyway, I believe catching them at the beginning of the year and right when I begin working with them, will have a big impact on how seriously they take the project.

It may work at other times of the year as well, but I'm finding many of my students are on cruise control right now and have little interest in new topics/concepts.  A large part of this due to the population of my students and the fact that all struggle with disabilities, which affect their learning.  However, I pride myself on developing a good rapport with my students and in sitting with them, while going over the project, I feel as though this is the reason they've been honest in telling my they aren't very focused on learning something new.  They seem somewhat intrigued by the idea, but don't seem able to stick with it right now.

I don't know that I'll endeavor to do this same project again, but rather take this project and build on it.  I'm undecided as to whether a quiz is the route I want to go, as I think this may intimidate the students.  I'm thinking an introductory survey, questioning the students, as to their knowledge of study skills would be better.  Something they feel they can answer openly and honestly, so that I can get a good grasp of where their skills lie and go forward from there. 

I like the idea of having students using the blog to kind of journal their efforts of practicing and using study skills.  I'd like them to also be able to view the things their peers are doing, so that they can get an idea of what things are and aren't working for others.  I believe all kids really do want to be good students, some just need more tools to help them do so.

Project Implementation

OK, so I tried a "new" site to create a podcast, which I'm kind of excited about and look forward to sharing on Teachers2Teachers.  The following is a breakdown, of sorts, of my experience(s) so far with trying to implement my project.  I definitely feel my project in particular will be implemented much more easily at the beginning of the year.  Try the link to the right, for an introduction on my Study Skills Tech Quest

Internet Research

As a Resource Room Mathematics teacher, I find I'm constantly looking for ways to improve the way I deliver my instruction to ensure my students can "get" math.   However, because the population of the students I work with is receiving Special Education services, I also have a study skills course, and find myself constantly trying to work with students to improve their study skills.

It's because of this that I started looking into ways to set up a system/program, which would allow the students access to ways which help them improve their skills.  Yeah, I've put posters on my walls to give pointers and talked over the skills with my students, most of them pay the posters and myself no mind and are more fascinated with posters of animals and the cute little quotes which accompany them. 

Though I primarily limited my searching to Google, I found that it was important to distinguish between "Study Skills," and "Study Skills Lessons."  Otherwise, my research took me to places where most of the sites like TeacherVision.com, which try to lure you into paying for or getting a trial membership (which I ended up doing), because they were wanting to sell me templates, and lesson plans.

Overall, I found more free sites than I anticipated and a wealth of information.  Some of which almost seems daunting and ironically had me feeling like one of the students who's been given a 3 month long assignment at the middle school.  I had to fight the temptation to be overwhelmed and want to throw my hands up in the air out of frustration.

In browsing the sites, I felt as though what I'm attempting to do will be somewhat unique in its approach, as I want it to be appealing to the students, keep them from feeling overwhelmed, and find it useful.  I want what I present to be something the kids will want to go back to, when they need help.  Probably something away from what Middle Tennessee State Univeristy has, which seems a bit away from cutting edge and overwhelming, while at the same time  above someone else's study skills attempt on Wikipedia to give some pointers on studying.  With the Wiki, I felt as though they left a GREAT deal of information out, regarding proper setting, study time, etc.  While it presented as potentially overwhelming, it seemed rather limited in the number of pointers it gave.

Though many of the sites I reviewed may serve as a guide and may help me implement my project, I can't say I'd recommend them for my students.  With a couple of sites, (How to Study and Study Guides and Strategies), I found that their presentation could have one feeling as though developing his/her study skills will be tougher than mastering all of those science terms, and that's really the opposite of what I'm hoping to do.

I think the site I appreciated most was the site put together by the Cook Counseling Center, at Virginia Tech University.  It's from the "Handbook for Virginia Tech Students with Attention Deficit Disorder, and where it may present too much text for my students, it did coordinate the colors decently and it made sure not to have a hundred links on one page.  This decreases the chances of a student feeling overwhelmed and increases the chances of engaging them in the message. 

All of this stated, I'd love to incorporate Brain Research along with Multiple Intelligences and various learning styles in what I bring forward, but I feel as though 1) I'd be biting off a much bigger chunk than I can chew right now and 2) I'd be accomplishing the opposite of what I'm seeking, in keeping my study skills pages simple.  Though someday, I may be able to use LDPride.net to assist me in developing a site, where my students can seek out study skills based on their own individual learning styles, right now, I just want the kids to get the basics!

Maybe as I progress with the project and improve it, I can offer those advanced kids links to sites that will assist them in honing their skills in specific subject matter, such as the Education Atlas, which has links for various sciences, math, history, etc.  For now I believe that aspect of the project is more of something for the future.

One thing that may assist me is that I've also learned there is a desire for others in my department to develop some more curriculum in this area.  While I'm feeling as though I may be treading some new ground in what I'm attempting and that I have a very long road ahead of me, I do know there are a great deal of resources out there.

I've also learned that some of the materials I need are better found in the books I've come across over the years and that my peers, both regular and special education teachers are great resources.  They can help me in determining which areas it is I need to focus the most on, based on their experiences with the students, so that I make sure not to miss out on one or more areas that may be vital in helping students improve their skills.  No matter how it comes out, I think the project as a whole may prove to be very rewarding.

Project Description

As a Special Education teacher, I'm in a similar, yet different world than many regular education teachers, in that I teach students and support them in their learning, but often support all academic subjects, rather than focusing on one.  Though my role has changed in the past couple of years, where I now primarily teach Resource Room math, I still have two separate study skills classes, in which I see students every other day. 

One of the challenges with a "study skills" class is finding time to actually work on the students developing skills that will improve their ability to be academically successful, while becoming more independent.  Though many students lack good academic skills, many students with special needs have mastered a "skill" which impedes their ability to be successful, known as work avoidance.  Much of this is because they lack confidence, but also because they lack in many academic areas and avoidance has become a survival tactic of sorts. 

My hope is to compose/construct a presentation which I'll be able to share with the students in my study skills class at the beginning of the school year.  This presentation would likely be a PowerPoint or Keynote presentation, with reinforcement provided via a website for student review. 

After presenting to the students, I would guide them to the site individually, where they could access various types of information, highlighting things that would be described as good study skills for different situations.  One section may outline how to take notes while reading, while another may discuss ways to prepare for tests or various types of tests.  That section may progress to good test-taking strategies.  There may also be a section discussing how to choose a good partner to work with in class. 

All of this may then be followed up by a Moodle quiz/review, to check/ensure the student(s) are grasping the skills that are intended to be learned.  To add some student interaction to the mix, I'm strongly considering the incorporation of a blog, which would allow students to post skills they have used, which they have found success in using.  Though my students may avoid work, they still love to be successful and once they find a way to do it, they love to talk about it!  My hope is that by creating a blog for them to post on, I may develop a culture in which the students help each other become better learners and students.  :)

Reflection...

Over the span of this and the previous course, I've felt as though I've made some pretty significant growth, in regards to my awareness, knowledge, and skills with integrating technology, web-based or otherwise, into my teaching.  I think my teaching style has always been somewhat of a guide on the side, encouraging students to move as far as they can on their own, before seeking me out.  I feel as though a heavier integration of technology allows me to do so even more.  That being said, just because the technology is there, it doesn't mean my role is eliminated or even diminished.  In some cases, I feel as though it may increase my role.

With the integration of technology into my curriculum, it becomes vital that I monitor its effectiveness and appropriateness, and interact with students to check for understanding and provide guidance if needed.  Students will make efforts to appear engaged, as to not stand out amongst their peers.  Though technology has become the standard in society today, it should not be assumed that every student is technologically savvy and should be somewhat understood that those who are not, are likely to take on the role of the "fly on the wall."  They may feel as though they are "dumb" for not being able to comprehend all of the things their peers are doing, in what appears to be such an effortless manner. 

Additionally, some technologies are more student friendly, so various technologies will present different obstacles for each type of curriculum, each student, and each teacher.  Integrating web-based technologies encouraged me to look more closely at what various technologies could do and what potential hurdles may be presented with technologies which are not web-based. 

Specifically, I think of Moodle vs. Power Point.  Though I'm not sure I'm a fan of a Moodle lesson, over a Power Point lesson, it does offer a student the freedom to interact solely on the web, without needing a place to save or a program to run the lesson.  The same could be said for Google docs, vs. Microsoft Word or Apple's Pages.  This makes for some pretty powerful accessibility.  Almost gone are the days of having teachers complain they couldn't open your files or students not being able to access their work outside of school.

Given all of this personal interaction and exposure to technology, since we've started these courses and due to the fact that I gave myself a rather broad goal, I would have to say I've achieved, but not surpassed, my goals for learning about technology.  This is not to say I'm satisfied with my achievements, because I believe I've just begun to scratch the surface on how far I can go with integrating it into my curriculum, but I do feel I've learned a significant amount.

In the future, I'd like to make the subject(s) I work with more accessible to the students, especially those who fall behind, due to illness or inability to maintain the pace of the class.  With a Resource Room, I also find that some students are being held back by the class' pace and would benefit from being able peek ahead a bit.  If there are sample of every topic available, they could do so.  This would just benefit them in preparing to move back into the general education setting.  My hopes are that over the summer, I can work toward making some of this a reality, whether it be through Moodle or a different site.

Wikipedia hmmm?

So I have to admit that I let myself get a bit behind on my blogs, but I'm glad I'm still plugging away on them, because I'd have never noticed some of the omissions on Wikipedia, regarding my school.  I took the time to add a sport and correct the name of our PE teacher, as it had not been updated.  (Link in title; screenshot below).

Slideboom!

Okay, so this may not be an educational technology the kids would access, yet it may be.  I was looking for a way to embed my Power Point into Moodle, and then my web page.  I began to get frustrated, as it seemed easy for the PC, yet I found nothing for the Mac.

A Google search took me to iSpring, which was specifically designed to carry out the task I wanted to carry out.  However, after looking at the specs, I noticed I couldn't use iSpring on a Mac!  Ugh!  C'mon!  Really?  New software that doesn't work on a Mac?  Irritating!

What iSpring DID do, was give me a link to a site called slideboom!  It's not the "best" software, but it was free, it let me do what I needed to do, and it hasn't bugged the crap out of me yet with emails trying to get me to buy it!

So, Slideboom made a new friend and I just wanted to share with the rest of you, in the instance you decide you need to Flash too.  :)  Notice that the title of the blog is also a link to the site.  I'll post my project on my links menu.