There are many technologies that qualify as an online experience that I would be able to use in my classroom. As a music teacher for 3rd through 5th graders, however, it is difficult to create an online experience since my school does not have adequate access to computers.
In the past I was a technology teacher for 4th through 6th graders and used many of these technologies. One that was easy to implement in my curriculum was WebQuests. I have actually used quality WebQuests in every teaching position I have had. These have proven to be fun, educational, and interactive, and they have also helped students develop some lifelong learning skills.
When I created my WebQuest last year, I used it to integrate Social Studies into the technology curriculum. I had my 5th grade students complete a WebQuest on European explorers, which is a unit that they study in their 5th grade classroom. The students seemed very excited to learn their material in a different manner than they had before.
When using a WebQuest, I first modeled what a completed project would look like by showing the students an example project. This gave them some idea of what they were going to be expected to do. We had already discussed and practice accessing information on the internet, so I then reminded the students some of the skills we had already mastered. I also gave the students’ time for guided practice and independent practice, which took up most of the assignment. I felt that the students were well prepared for this assignment both technologically and content-wise.
I think that because of the age group I teach, RSS readers are a difficult technology to teach. I believe that elementary age students may not get the purpose or idea of RSS readers, and how to use them for educational purposes. I also feel that teaching elementary students about online resource validation may be a difficult process. These students are just learning how to access information, and though I feel it is important to teach them proper search strategies and resource validation, it may be a little too soon. This age group is more apt to use websites that their teachers lead them to in order to find information.
2 comments:
I'm impressed by the experience you have in webquests. Until this course, I've never heard of them or had any experience with them. I completely agree with you in regards to the RSS readers. I have JH and young HS students that wouldn't take to that. Their Facebook page acts as their RSS. I like to use interactive websites for our music courses. Students can take the lesson and then the exercise (quiz). They then screen shot the results and send it to me. Thanks for your insight.
-jason byma
It sounds like your students have had some great experiences with webquests. I think that they are wonderful especially for younger students because it is more of a guided practice so there's more support available to them but they still get to learn research skills and also learn in their content area. I would also agree that young students won't see much value in RSS feeds...well I can think of a few students who would read a feed on Justin Bieber =)
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