Project-based learning and the Common Core Standards

1. Free cool tools (and a tech assistant!) for increasing student outcomes (with connections to the Common Core Standards and 21st-Century Skills) Heather Sheridan-Thomas, TST BOCES Cynthia Sarver, SUNY Cortland July 21, 2011

2. Goals Begin developing a long-range, interdisciplinary, project-based unit plan that: Integrates Common Core “Standards for Literacy in History/Social Studies, Science, and Technical Subjects”; and Embeds 21st-century skills Play with, learn (and even take home!) a few “cool tools” that will help with the above: Flip video camera Ning Google docs Delicious

3. Goals (cont’d) Disabuse: 21st-century skills ≠technology (integration). Technology enables 21st-century skills. Enhances your teaching and students’ learning experiences Expands and extends your classroom, pedagogical repertoire, disciplines’ relevance, and students’ world

4. Freewrite (6 mins) What is your definition of “learning community”? Can you describe a successful learning community, broadly defined, that you have been/are involved in?

5. Flip Video Watch video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GEQ9xwdVZSs

6. PLAY AND RECORD! Henry Jenkins and the New Media Literacies Collective http://newmedialiteracies.org/the-literacies.php Play Performance Simulation Appropriation Multitasking Distributed Cognition Collective Intelligence Judgment Transmedia Navigation Networking Negotiation Visualization

7. UPLOAD to YouTube/Vimeo, then UPLOAD to Ning http://www.google.com/search?sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8&q=vimeo Youtube.com http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P6vErybZTh8

8. Ninghttp://tst21stcenturylearning.ning.com/ Tasks (to do now and throughout the day): i) Upload video ii) Answer Profile questions iii) Upload a photo (if you have one; otherwise do it later) iv) Add a link to one of your favorite apps or websites (try a textbox is you’re brave!) v) Comment on the profile of someone else (not your partner) vi) Set up a group for you and your partner (on the front page) OR do we want to set these up in advance vii) PLAY!!!

9. Problem-Based Learning http://www.edutopia.org/project-based-learning-introduction-video http://olliebray.typepad.com/olliebraycom/2011/01/project-based-learning-from-commoncraft-.html

10. Unit Planning Find local problem relevant to your team’s “content area”; outline a unit plan that will engage students in researching, analyzing, and making a “digital intervention” in the issue. -- Common Core Standards for ELA and/or Literacy in History/Social Studies, Science and the Technical Subjects (Focusing on Anchor Standards in Writing) -- Cool Tools #3 & #4: Google Docs and Delicious

11. Common Core Standards http://www.p12.nysed.gov/ciai/common_core_standards/

12. Project prompt & outline Students research and analyze the issue Write short research reports Transfer findings into a digital/online format (e.g., video, website, wiki, and/or social network) in order to make some sort of “digital intervention” in the issue.

13. Student Process Suggested Project Timeline: Presenting the problem (Anticipatory Set, Motivation, Inquiry, Constructivism) Students inquiring into the problem and developing essential questions (Asking Questions, Inquiry, Analysis, Multiple Perspectives, Constructivism) Seeing the problem through a disciplinary lens (Application, Synthesis) Students researching the issue: traditional research reports (Research Skills) Students sharing their research and reconsidering the problem (Synthesis, Evaluation, Reflection) Students acting on their understanding: What are we going to do about it? (Action, Application, Culminating Project)

14. Brainstorm Your task: Locate a real-world problem related to the (curriculum of the) content area discipline that students can researching, analyze, and make a “digital intervention” in. Brainstorm a list of possible topics with your partner. Winnow this down to one-two ideas.

15. Google Docs Google for educators http://www.google.com/educators/p_docs.html cynthia.sarver@gmail.com

16. Delicious My delicious http://www.delicious.com/ Delicious in education More on delicious

17. Share unit so far Go to team Ning. A. Rename it; B. Link your Google Doc page to the toolbar; and C. Subscribe via email to their group’s Delicious feed D. Link this Ning to the TST learning community Ning (under your Group, which they also should rename, if need be).

18. Wrap up Share work Next steps: Finish unit Plan for implementation (preferably in fall) Plan to work with students present today and those in the fall. Talk to your student partners today about this. Plan to stay connected through the Ning, and through other social media (including ENG 506 social network), which I will subscribe to on my page on the TST BOCES Ning

19. Thank you! Have a great summer! Heather and Cynthia hsheridanthomas@tstboces.org cynthia.sarver@gmail.com