Learning to Change/ Changing to Learn: Student Voices

The third PSA in a series created by Pearson Foundation and the Consortium for School Networking, focusing on the challenges and opportunities of integrating technology into teaching practice around the world. Students discuss the ways in which they use technology at school, at home, or in their everyday lives.

How can we continue NOT integrating technology into teaching practice?

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Week 9 – Using Games, Immersive Social Networking, and Virtual Worlds in the Classroom

My Second Life Persona



Before writing this reflection I decided to take Dr. Rosen’s advice and become a Second Lifer to experience a bit of real-life avatar adventure.  I had hoped to make it to the Sistine Chapel, having read many wonderful things about this particular ‘island’.  However, perhaps I did not give it enough of a chance, as I never experienced that feeling of “social presence” Rosen references.  Instead, I felt like I would if I were a stranger at a cocktail party where everyone else is attired in appropriate dress and I were the one in blue jeans.  As a rule, I consider myself to be a fairly outgoing person.  I have a reputation as being the life of the party, there’s no chance of me ever being mistaken for a shrinking violet!  This was not so much the case in Second Life. If anyone came close to approaching me I quickly pushed ‘page up,’ the command for flying and launched into the air lest they attempted to engage me in conversation.  I felt akward and out of place in this virtual world.

Rosen and Brooks-Young both present a strong argument for the use of games, immersive social networking, and social worlds in the classroom. There’s no denying that that immersive power afforded via technology can activate realistic sensory information in much the same way as if the learner were engaged in the real life activity.  Immersive social networks enable students to access information in a variety of ways and are available 24/7. Learning becomes a personalized experience as students have the ability to access the format best suited to his or her style of learning. (Rewired p. 112.) Students feel less inhibited in a virtual setting and are more likely to communicate.  When tied to the curriculum, game playing becomes meaningful and reinforces learning.  Again, we encounter the media-hyped risks associated with the use of web 2.0, and again, Brooks-Young advises teachers to use these as learning experiences so that our students will know how to safely conduct themselves online, and how to handle themselves in situations which make them feel uncomfortable.

A virtual field trip to the Louvre has probably been the closest experience to an online game that I have been able to provide for my elementary students.  http://www.louvre.fr/llv/musee/visite_virtuelle.jsp?bmLocale=en  I provided a little instruction on how to navigate the site and we journeyed across the hall to the computer lab where students explored to their hearts content.  The only problem I encountered was when Joey ‘Smith’ zoomed in on a naked breast, so much so that it filled up the entire screen. He then proceeded to share with the boys seated on either side of him.  I admonished him to, "please take a more mature attitude", while in the back of my mind, observed that his naked breast fascination was quite appropriate for the average fifth grade boy, and then wondered how many phone calls to the principal it would take before I was banished forever from taking students to the lab. Fortunately the experience resulted in no angry phone calls and I have since learned to educate my students a little more on the subject of nudes in art prior to encountering them.

Though the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act would interfere with my ability to use immersive social networking since none of my students are over the age of 12, I would very much like to use some sort of networking as a voluntary extension of classroom learning. I am able to use edublog, so far I have only experimented with its use, but I think I’m ready to take it to the next level and use it in an interactive way. Edublog does provide a format for uploading podcasts, images, videos, links and more.  I would like to see if I can offer it as a way to encourage the participation of some of my more shy students.

I explored a few virtual learning environments geared more towards use with elementary age students, and discovered Whyville, http://b.whyville.net/smmk/top/gatesInfo?topic=about Teachers can register to use this fun site with classes.  It appears that the creators of Whyville are serious about online safety, because once you sign up, they DO check to verify that you are actually a teacher.  The 554,727 registered citizens of Whyville earn “clams” by playing educational games and users create their own avatars. It was interesting to note that the University of Missouri sponsors the Hot Air Balloon Race game where users are challenged to navigate the altitudes and analyze vector fields to navigate a hot air balloon. ( Say What???)  Probably more appropriate for use in the art room was an activity sponsored by the Getty Museum.  Though I imagine that this site will be blocked at school, I believe it would certainly provide an immersive type of learning experience for my students and I believe that I am now equipped with the knowledge to make a powerful argument for its use.

Someday perhaps Pia Spearsong and I will journey back to Second Life for that trip to the Sistine Chapel Island.  For now though, my real life is occupying the majority of my waking hours.

Week 8 – Digital Imaging

Celina~age 10

self portrait painted using a digital black-and-white halftone image for reference

This week’s reading introduced the creation and sharing of visual images. The Digital Diet walks us through setting up a Flickr account and offers practical suggestions on the use of image sharing in the classroom.  Brooks-Youngs identifies common objections to the classroom use of photo sharing sites,   “…privacy, safety, bullying, copyright infringement, and, recently, child pornography concerns.” (TEACHING with the TOOLS KIDS REALLY USE p 79).  The book then goes on to work through each issue presented, providing instruction on the ways that these objections can be developed into lessons for educating our students on these issues.  Brooks-Young also brings up practical strategies for the use of photo and image sharing in the classroom.

TEACHING with the TOOLS KIDS REALLY USE, the title of Brooks-young’s book pretty much says it all.  To be effective twenty-first century educators, we must permit our students to both generate and share visual content online. Students DO love photography, it’s inexpensive and easy to use, it is engaging, and permits many opportunities for collaboration.  Digital images provide excellent reference for many uses in the art room.

My elementary building only has four digital cameras available for classroom use, however, that has not been a deterrent for using them on a fairly regular basis. Last year my Second graders traversed the hallways, working in small groups, using photographs to identify different geometric forms. Third grade photographed examples of texture and contrast.  Fifth graders took pictures of themselves and examples of their art which we compiled into an animoto video.  Fourth grade used photobooth software to take a portrait and convert it to a half-tone image. This image was used as reference for a monochromatic self-portrait painting.  This year my sixth grade students are hard at work on their choice of a digital photo based self portrait project and fourth grade has made it to the editing portion of their cereal commercials. There is no doubt that students LOVE these activities and I love the level of engagement they provide. 

For the most part, student collaboration has been a relatively smooth experience.  We have had to work through some ‘hurt feelings’ issues, it provided the perfect opportunity to implement some character-ed curriculum. These collaboration activities also set the stage for group analysis and evaluation. (Only ONE cereal box out of five could be selected for a commercial.  What constituted the best design? I loved one group’s creative solution.  When they were unable to narrow the selection to one, they decided to go with a commercial for a variety package. )    As the facilitator, my biggest complaint is the level of noise that is generated due to my extremely large class sizes.  I have also experienced some issues stemming from my lack of understanding how to best manage some of our projects.  One solution I have found is to have students brainstorm problems that they anticipate and then brainstorm solutions to those problems.  Their insight is impressive and students tend to adhere to their self-created guidelines.

I could foresee great benefit to image sharing, but additionally, my district bans all photo and video sharing sites. I have created group animoto videos, which I share with my other classes, and I plan to share our cereal commercials videos as well. My students love both seeing and viewing their work and that of their classmates presented this way.  It’s a meaningful and relevant connection to the way that they live.  

Currently the computer labs in my district’s elementary buildings are limited to the use of photobooth as far as image editing.  I think I would enjoy using photoshop with my older grades, though I would need to become a little more proficient myself.  After viewing the video http://www.thejohnnycashproject.com/  which invites participants to view the video and then provides images for them to edit, each of which is added to the video, I have begun planning with my tech specialist to see if we can determine a the way to do a similar project with students. To the best of my knowledge, all free image editing web-sites are blocked at my school.  I have requested that the block be lifted for one of the sites which does not require registration for online use.  Those wheels turn painfully and discouragingly slow…

Final Self-Portrait

Just when I was becoming deeply enamoured of Photoshop I have managed to do something so that I am unable to view the desired image size.  This image is a screen shot of a screen shot.  Hopefully there is no loss of resolution.  : )

Fu-fu-fu-fuN!

voki Sheryl speaks for herself

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She doesn't look much like the real me, but I like her anyway!