LITERACY AND RESEARCH PROPOSAL
Using the Website to track student literacy and research development through blogging.
| Concept: THE WEBSITE WILL BECOME THE CENTRAL MANAGEMENT STRUCTURE TO TRACK STUDENT PROGRESS IN THE AREA OF WRITING AND RESEARCH. We will be using the GOOGLE suite of resources for students to track their educational progress at the school as it relates to project development. Between the Google suite of resources and POWERSHCOOL, we should be able to catalog and track everything our students do academically. The Google suite will allow students to have access to all of these resources when logged into the New Media Website: Personal Blog, (including video uploading), Microsoft Word, spreadsheet, and powerpoint creation without having to have Microsoft office installed, Document sharing and collaboration with others, Calendar that allows sharing of mutual agenda items with others, photo archiving, email, (includes support for sending and storing large files… over 6 gigs of space, and a host of other features. | |
| Methods: 1. As student users log in to the website, they are able to “update their profiles” 2. Database will be expanded to include the following user data: graduationyear projectname blogaddress Photo 3. When students log in, if they have not yet created a student blog on blogger.com, they will be asked to do so. Once they have created their blog, they will be asked to enter their blog address in the “BLOGGER” field on their student account. the blog will then appear in their “My Place” blog address on their student account on the new Media website. Only the student can see their own blog when here. 4. Admins , (M. Khalila, M. Ina, myself, etc.) will be able to see a list of every advisory and every student in each advisory, and make certain student accounts “public” so that they can be viewed by anyone who visits the website. Having your account made “public” will be considered a special privilege, since this is an indication that your work is good enough for the public to see and that you are trusted to have only presentable content on your blog.
5. Blogs are a turnkey solution that offer quick results. They allow video uploads, text, and image posting and are a good way to present student work. Also note, however, that there is a field for a “personal website” also, (which can also be made public by an administrator). Seniors who made websites with M. Shoana will be candidates to have their websites made public on the New Media website once they have completed integrating their content. 6. Once our students have blogs up, we will assign schoolwide and/or grade wide writing and research assignments . Here we will be providing actual mini assignments that help students learn about the process of research. I have investigated the I-Search process (http://www.literacymatters.org/content/isearch/intro.htm ) but I am looking for something even more specific that deals with discernment of sources, how to conduct intelligent web searches, how to choose sources from multiple points of view , how to find out WHICH QUESTIONS TO ASK about a topic you don’t know much about, how to identify and approach primary sources, etc. 7. The student blogs will be used to track student completion of these schoolwide and/or grade wide assignments. They can be then integrated into the lesson planning work for all subject areas that will be addressing these topics. Example assignment: For 10th and 11th grade students: Today’s lesson is on how to begin conducting research on a subject you know nothing about , using a graphic organizer to outline your thoughts, and a search engine as a research tool. Step 1: Make a web with the subject in the center of the web, and, branching out from that web, all of the related subjects in hierarchical fashion. Always keep in mind the fact that some of the sub-categories that you associate with a main subject may not be directly related to the main subject at all (in other words, your initial thoughts and word associations with that subject may be incorrect). Step 2: Using Google, (or one of the more specialized search engines on our list), enter keywords or a QUESTION ( for example: “What are the causes of acid rain?”), and then look at several of the search results. Choose search words that you believe will get right to the heart of the subject. Step 3: Read through five of the best looking results produced by the search. Use the discernment worksheet provided to help you learn how to discern between sources. Step 4: Compare the web you made with the results returned. Does any of the information match? Are there subjects, words, or concepts coming up in the initial web results that are NOT on your web? Are there things on your web that may not be relevant to the topic or need to be thoroughly researched? Step 5: Revise your web to match some of the initial results you found. Write an outline for a 5 paragraph essay with the new facts you’ve derived from these five new sources. Use the HIGHLY EFFECTIVE WRITING BOOK, make your outline based on the guidelines given on page 5. Step 6: Identify which points you wish to re-enforce in your 5 paragraph essay with deeper research. Do another Google search on this topic alone, combined perhaps with certain keywords, following the rules given on your keyword search document. Take notes. Step 7: Type your outline , with an much detail, into your BLOG with the title: MARCH 7 PROJECT OUTLINE. Conduct a good spell check. Save your work. Your advisors, parents, and school administrators will be reviewing this material. Make sure it represents your BEST work. | |
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