Reflections on Learning spacesSpace has a direct impact on social and emotional well-being. Enclosed spaces with desks all in a row can feel “prison-like.” More open, flexible spaces inherently create a more creative and collaborative feeling. Thinking back to the Visual Literacy course, we need to keep color and other visual stimuli in mind when creating spaces. A messy space can feel chaotic, for example. It is difficult for students (and adults for that matter) to focus in dark, cramped spaces. These are rarely objectively perceived, of course, but we have all felt how rooms can affect us. In this way, the classroom space itself contributes to the ability to learn.
REFLECTIONS
Visual Literacy is one of the keys to unlock the potential within all the previous courses. We are currently living in a very Visual Age: social media is largely visual, texting is largely visual (emojis), TV, movies, most of the Internet is incredibly visual. We read visual texts far more often than we read verbal/linguistic texts, and yet, in many ways we have lost the grammar of visual language. Many students instinctively feel and are moved by images and colors, but aren't able to explain why they work the way they work. It's the classic English class issue regarding English grammar: "I'm not sure why the comma goes there, it just sounds right." Our English teachers take the time to explain the rules and regulations of language, but far too often we do not take the time to discuss the rules and regulations of camera angles. And, yest, camera angles do affect us, perhaps in ways even more deeply important than commas.
As educators, we need to be mindful of this, and whenever possible teach our students visual literacy. This goes beyond the reading of charts and graphs. They are important, and typically what educators think about when they think about "visual literacy." My above infographic shows that I am not arguing against charts and graphs. I also am not arguing against art class, another space in which "visual literacy" is important. Clearly, those spaces where we typically think about visuals are important, but other disciplines need to demystify visual grammar in their courses, as well. Looking at a video, a painting, a photograph, and yes, charts and graphs and maps are all incredibly important. Knowing how to decipher the codes within those images is even more important. Reflection
As I progressed through this unit, I found my thinking shifting. I have not been the biggest fan of flipping the classroom. In theory, it sounds nice- freeing up class time for more hands on practice. But, in my personal practice, I have found that attention spans seem to drift during videos, or students out right do not watch them. In my Broadcast Journalism class, we used several online tutorials for skill building. After two class periods, I noticed students were struggling hard, not able to complete the tasks. I asked what was going wrong, and the answer was that they did not want to watch the videos. “He’s boring.” Ugh.
“The flipped classroom is an easy model to get wrong. Although the idea is straightforward, an effective flip requires careful preparation” (7 Things). Just asking students to watch a video is wrong-headed. This method does require a lot of thinking on the part of the teacher. A lot of reflection and thought. It is also, often better to make your own videos. You can add a level of personalization that helps increase engagement. But, I think the more important piece is from Ramsey Musallam: Curiosity comes first, embrace the mess, and practice reflection. We need to foster that curiosity in our students by teaching them to be Active Viewers. This is the key to empowering our students. Far too often they passively consume information, videos, games, blinking lights on a screen and words floating through the air. They are not actively engaging with the material. I think some of this comes from the desensitization of the modern world. Attention spans have shifted and drifted, sure, but that doesn’t mean that we can stop thinking about what we see. For me that is the benefit of a thoughtfully and purposefully flipped classroom. Using these methods, we can train our students to think about what they are watching, and continue fostering that curiosity that is foundation of all learning. It is messy, and difficult, but possible. Reflections
This unit was an interesting challenge for me. I am a co-teacher for a TV Production class, but in general, I provide PD for teachers. So, I definitely was trying to think through both things in my head working through all of this. I like to think that my TV Production class is largely set up as Project Based Learning, but have learned some important ideas to consider for next year. Most importantly, framing units around a Driving Question will provide much needed context to "drive" the learning.
Thinking about my staff's needs, I am very hopeful for the sketch above. I call it a sketch, because I know there is more that needs to be developed in order for it to be truly successful. I am excited by the ideas Jennie Magiera has about changing and re-energizing Professional Development. By creating a year-long PBL PD, not only can I find unique and very personalized ways to help my teachers grow, but together we can experience Project Based Learning. For the teachers who are not currently in this class, or who have not yet tried PBL, this can show them how powerful it can be for deep learning. For those who have done PBL, we can help each other refine our projects and make better experiences for our students. As I think about my classroom next year, I know that I will be working to better foster a growth mindset in both my students and my teachers. I was most struck by Eduardo Briceño's article "Mindsets and Student Agency." For me, the most important thing to remember is in order to create a culture that supports and fosters student agency begins with the adults: "For example, teachers can explicitly frame lessons or projects as opportunities to work on what we don’t know and go beyond our comfort zone to build capabilities. We can make better use of student mistakes and confusion as opportunities to learn, clarify and study the learning process. We can give feedback to students focused on their behavior, their choices, their strategies, rather than on being smart or talented." I am in a position to walk that line to assist the adults and the students in my building. I look forward to assisting both groups. Reflections:
What was my biggest takeaway from this course on Global Collaboration and Community?
A couple of years ago, I was at a PLAYDATE with Jennie Magiera and she kept mentioning the day’s Twitter hashtag. I finally asked her, “why the heck would I want to be on Twitter? Isn’t that for people talking about whatever food they ate?” She laughed and showed me her Twitter feed. I was overwhelmed by the sheer amount of resources, ideas, and camaraderie. I sat down, joined, and tweeted “@MsMagiera @astillman am I trending, yet? New to twitter. #playdate14” From that inauspicious start, I have joined several vibrant communities and have learned so much. It is vitally important for educators today to reach out and discuss the issues we are all facing. Whether crowdsourcing resources, troubleshooting issues, or just commiserating, being a connected educator provides you with a massive network. Helping others tap into that not only helps grown my own PLN, but adds more powerful voices to the mix. What changes will I make in my teaching and professional development practice? For me, and it is sad/funny, that I never really thought of this, but the biggest change for me is thinking through how I will discuss social media with students. I have evangelized the power of social media for educators for some time, now. I know my students “get” social media on a level that I don’t (most of it was built for them, after all), but I want to help guide them in using it to its fullest. Connecting with the topics they are passionate about and, more importantly, the people who are are important in those fields/topics. Social media allows us to connect in ways that were nearly impossible before. That needs to be leveraged more in student’s lives. Not, just following your favorite band, or actor, but connecting with people who are building communities around music and film, for example. What impact will this have on my students? I touched on this briefly above, but to move the thought further, I am certain that as we all learn these tools for connecting to other people we will discover new ways to enhance our student’s learning. That could be as simple as discovering innovative ways to use edtech tools, or new ways to use non-edtech tools educationally. Also, the old adage about “two heads being better than one” is amplified when we think of crowdsourcing lesson plans! How have I become a more courageous leader so far? What steps will I continue to take to become a more courageous leader? As I grow my own PLN, I have access to educators doing amazing work that pushes my own thinking, making me a better educator and courageous leader. I will continue to learn, and more importantly, share what I am doing (and learning) to help others grow. Is there a better definition of leadership?
We use Schoology as our LMS at Chicago Academy High School. It has a social media look and feel that can be used to help teach students aspects of Digital Citizenship in a safe space. For this lesson, Sara Carroll, Dana Shabica, and I put together a lesson plan for our RISE Communities (our version of a "homeroom").
In this lesson, students will discuss various social media tools and how they present themselves online. We will discuss the differences between "fun" social media and professional social media, stressing the importance of maintaining a strong "personal brand" that is professional and smart. Finally, they will open their Schoology accounts and create a professional profile using the skills we have discussed. |
AuthorI am the Technology Coordinator for Chicago Academy High School, Chicago's first 1:1 Chromebo0k School ArchivesCategories
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