Just In Time

I'm always desperately searching for ideas for my computer tech curriculum. Part of the reason has to do with my frustration with the dragging timeline that some teachers at my school are on in terms of collaboration. Last year, in particular, was horrible. I watched in amazement as teacher after teacher assigned the students the same type of research project on the same topic. The best example was the Saint project. Since I teach at a Catholic school, Saints are taught at every level, but what shocked me was that there seemed to be no variation in what the students did at each level. The only difference I observed was the length of their paper. Otherwise, there was little difference. No wonder if one listened closely, one could hear the audible groan whenever a teacher attempted to introduce the saint research project. The kids had been there and done that. Anyway, like the students, I have experienced the same moan and groan of boredom with some of the teachers whenever I get word on the projects they're doing. Therefore, part of my mission at school has been to serve as a catalyst for ideas. As I talk to teachers about what they're doing, I try to toss in ideas on how to integrate technology into their learning. Fortunately, we also have some new teachers at school who are just dying to get their students thinking creatively. In addition, one of these teachers is clearly moving into that Stage 3 of technology integration, even though she's not aware of it. She wants the kids to PRODUCE something for a wider audience, not just herself. That's why I always embrace sites like the InTime one - they provide more ideas of how I can get teachers to think about technology integration in their classrooms.

I took a look at the Technology area and found 32 videos. I looked specifically at a collaborative project that focused on habitats because I know this topic was recently covered in our 3rd grade, and I wanted to see how the teacher was utilizing technology. Also, the sources that the teacher used are ones that our school has access to as well. Although the lesson might be too much for our 3rd grade teacher who is very uncomfortable with technology, it did give me some great ideas for next year on how I might be able to collaborate with her in the lab while she covers that unit. I'm finding that rather than expecting the classroom teacher to run the technology side of things, I'm having to do it. And for now that's okay. I'm hoping as the teachers see others using technology and see how much the students love it they will catch the bug. In the habitat unit, I especially like the reference to Enchanted Learning and have added this to my teacher Delicious account. I also liked the utilization of Kidpix to create a more educational presentation. I have a tendency to only use Kidpix for the younger ages who create more "cutesy" presentations.

In addition to the Habitat unit, I also looked into the Harry Potter research project for the older grades. My principal is really pushing research-based projects, so I'm constantly searching for ideas, and I liked how this one utilized research, collaboration, and presentation. Based on this lesson, I can see where my school is falling short; our research projects tend to be the typical ones where students are finding information and are creating something strictly for the teacher or classroom. In other words, production is for a very limited audience, and therefore the students don't necessarily see the relevance. The Harry Potter project involves much more critical thinking on the type of audience the novels cater to, rather than on the book itself. I like this angle because the students are forced to apply their knowledge to a deeper level. I also like this project because of the integration of a variety of technologies - everything from the Internet to spreadsheets and graphing software to an overhead projector and Powerpoint. Finally, once the project is finished, the students are expected to email their results to the survey participants, emphasizing that production aspect of technology integration.

Overall, I really liked the InTime website and have also added it to the teacher account in Delicious. I'm hoping that my teachers will take a look and utilize the website. I think the added benefit of video will spark teacher interest in the lessons.