WebQuest

Here is the Spoken Word Webquest:

http://benjamingentry.wix.com/spokenwordwebquest

Field Experience Report

Observations:

On January 22nd, 2015, I was lucky enough to be invited into Gilbert H. Hood Middle School in Derry, NH by Mrs. T, one of the unified arts computer teachers. I met with Mrs. T in her classroom around 8:00am, 10 minutes before her first class of the day. Her room was set up with 20-30 iMac computers on desks along three of the walls. Mrs. T’s desk, materials, and storage space were in front of the fourth wall. The center of the room housed a medium-sized table, a projector unit, and mostly empty space. The three walls that had the computers in front of them were all whiteboards and had tons of important information written on them (such as class instructions, reminders for digital citizenship, and steps on logging in). The fourth wall had mostly various posters about computer use, motivation, and the like.

After giving me a brief overview of her classroom and some of the programs she uses in it (the big ones were Google Drive and Edmodo), Mrs. T welcomed in her 8th grade class and had them do typing exercises by playing different typing games online. Mrs. T placed herself in the center of the room so that she could easily see all of the students’ screens. This allowed her to efficiently manage the classroom and keep her students on task when they became distracted. Once the students had worked on their typing exercises for 10 minutes, Mrs. T informed them it was time to begin the day’s assignment: creating a Voki and placing it on the websites they had been working on.

Digital Story - The Birth of Slam

My digital story is a brief look at the history of Slam Poetry, its founder, and its essence. Enjoy!

 

Youth Spoken Word - Lesson Plan

Lesson Plan: Youth Spoken Word for English Class (Grades 11 or 12)*

By Benjamin Gentry

*Plan is based on a 50 minute block. Certain procedures may have to be adapted accordingly (or broken into separate classes) depending on actual class time.

“Big Idea” this lesson plan supports: How are alliteration, assonance, sensory detail, and simile used in youth spoken word?

Title:

Special Skills of the Slam Speaker: Alliteration, Assonance, Sensory Detail, and Simile

GSE’s/GLE’s/Frameworks:

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.L.11-12.3
Apply knowledge of language to understand how language functions in different contexts, to make effective choices for meaning or style, and to comprehend more fully when reading or listening.

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.L.11-12.5
Demonstrate understanding of figurative language, word relationships, and nuances in word meanings.

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.11-12.3
Evaluate a speaker's point of view, reasoning, and use of evidence and rhetoric, assessing the stance, premises, links among ideas, word choice, points of emphasis, and tone used.

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.11-12.5
Make strategic use of digital media (e.g., textual, graphical, audio, visual, and interactive elements) in presentations to enhance understanding of findings, reasoning, and evidence and to add interest.

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.11-12.2.D
Use precise language, domain-specific vocabulary, and techniques such as metaphor, simile, and analogy to manage the complexity of the topic.

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.11-12.3.D
Use precise words and phrases, telling details, and sensory language to convey a vivid picture of the experiences, events, setting, and/or characters.

ISTE.1a: Apply existing knowledge to generate new ideas, products, or processes

ISTE.1b: Create original works as a means of personal or group expression

ISTE.5b: Exhibit a positive attitude toward using technology that supports collaboration, learning, and productivity

ISTE.6: Students demonstrate a sound understanding of technology concepts, systems, and operations.
a. Understand and use technology systems
b. Select and use applications effectively and productively
d. Transfer current knowledge to learning of new technologies

Objective(s):

1. Students will be able to define alliteration, assonance, sensory detail, and simile
2. Students will be able to observe, recognize, and isolate the use of alliteration, assonance, sensory details, and simile
3. Students will be able to demonstrate the use of alliteration, assonance, sensory detail, and simile in a spoken word piece
4. Students will be able to express a thought, theme, or concept via a spoken word piece that includes alliteration, assonance, sensory details, and simile

Materials:

Internet access, word processing software, a “SoundCloud” free account, access to pre-selected YouTube videos, a microphone equipped device (such as a smartphone or computer), access to lesson specific WebQuest with instructions and worksheet, paper and writing utensil (or laptop) for note-taking

Anticipatory Set:

Students will be shown a YouTube video of a youth spoken word performance.

Students will be asked to discuss how the performance differs from formal poetry. They will be asked what kind of techniques the performer used, making note of the lack of rhyme and standard verse. Students will be briefly informed about alliteration, assonance, sensory details, and simile.

Procedures:

1. Following the above anticipatory set (10 minutes), the teacher will assign the students into four groups – 1 minutes (Total: 11 minutes)

2. Each group will be given one of the four terms (alliteration, assonance, sensory detail and simile) and asked to use their phones, laptops, or other electronic devices to find the definition of their group’s term - 3 minutes (Total: 14 minutes)

3. The teacher will ask each group to prepare a working definition and two examples for their term - 3 minutes (Total: 17 minutes)

4. Each group will share their definition and two examples for the rest of the class – 5 minutes (Total: 22 minutes)

5. The teacher will hand out a worksheet with three HOT questions pertaining to the youth spoken word performance shown during the anticipatory set:

a. Which of the four techniques do you feel works best in the spoken word piece you chose? Give examples and defend your choice.

b. Analyze the theme or idea behind the performance and formulate one or two sentences to describe it.

c. Evaluate how the four techniques contribute to the speaker’s theme or central idea. What line, phrase, or word stood out to you and why?

- 3 minutes (Total: 25 minutes)

6. The teacher will show the performance again and allow students to respond to the three HOT questions, walking around the classroom to provide help where needed. – 10 minutes (Total: 35 minutes)

7. The teacher will inform the students of their homework assignment: to follow the steps of the Webquest (as referenced below).

a. Write their own short spoken word piece that must include at least 2 of the 4 techniques discussed.
b. Create a SoundCloud account.
c. Record and upload to the group a reading of their spoken word piece (along with the text of the piece)
d. Listen and give positive and constructive feedback via a comment on at least two classmates’ pieces

- 10 minutes (Total: 45 minutes)

Closure:

After explaining the homework assignment, students will be asked to turn-and-talk to a partner, reflecting on which of the four techniques is their favorite and why. The teacher will collect the HOT worksheets at this time and answer any questions about the homework assignment that students might have. – 5 minutes (Total: 50 minutes)

Assessment:

Assessment of objectives will be achieved in four major ways.

1. Through direct question and response, students will be assessed on their ability to formulate a working definition and example based on procedure steps 2-4.

2. Through observing and listening to students’ responses during the aforementioned group work and also during the HOT worksheet and reflection segments.

3. Through the physical collection and evaluation of each student’s responses to the three HOT questions on the worksheets.

4. Through the examination and evaluation of the end product of the WebQuest (a sound recording and text inclusion of a spoken word piece)

Student Artifact:

The student artifact will be a two-to-three minute sound recording uploaded into the course’s SoundCloud group along with the transcript of the performance posted along with the recording.

Modifications/Accommodations:

Students with disabilities or learning impairments:
- Could be allowed to take the HOT worksheet home for additional work time.
- Could be only required to complete a 1-to-2 minute recording while using only 1 of the 4 discussed techniques

Students who are gifted:
- Can be a resource for students who might be struggling with the assignment
- Could be asked to think of their own HOT question pertaining to the lesson
- Could be required to include at least one instance of all 4 techniques in their spoken word performance

Resources

https://soundcloud.com/
https://www.youtube.com/user/YOUTHSPEAKS
Webquest link will go here once it is completed

Shane Koyczan

For any EDU 533 students who might be browsing my blog, I wanted to share these videos I mentioned in class. For anyone who isn't my EDU 533 class, watch the videos anyway, they're fantastic.

To This Day by Shane Koyczan

Troll by Shane Koyczan

Shane's website: http://www.shanekoyczan.com/

Response to Frontline Technology Videos

Image retrieved from http://oedb.org/ilibrarian/50-educational-video-games-that-homeschoolers-love/ (Which is also a great resource for educational games!)

I found both of the PBS Frontline Technology videos, Growing Up Online and Digital Nation, to be fascinating documentaries. Despite the fact that I, myself, was part of the generation that "grew up" online, I hadn't previously taken the time to consider just how much of an impact the internet has had and continues to have on my growth and way of life. Not only did I find the videos eye-opening, but I found parts to be terrifying and jaw-dropping. This was especially true of the exposes on Autumn Eadows and Ryan Halligan in the Growing up online video - I can't imagine being a parent and discovering that my child was doing those kinds of things online (exposing themselves or being cyber-bullied).

That being said, I found the second video (Digital Nation) to be less of a shock-and-awe campaign and more of a thought-provoking look at how the internet and technology can be used to both help and hinder. I found the section about the drone pilots particularly intriguing (it's fascinating to see such a drastic shift in military resources and mindset), but the section about video games, virtual worlds, and relationships really caught my attention, so I decided to respond to the third question posed under the assignment tabs:

3. Do video games serve a purpose in education or are they a waste of time?

I think the most obvious place to start would be to link to a previous post in which I reviewed an article by a teacher-librarian who implemented game design into her class. In short, she discovered that the elements of game design fit naturally into a wide number of core values that are taught in schools today (such as story-telling, mathematics, problem solving etc.).

However, what was discussed in the Digital Nation video - particularly about the game World of Warcraft - fascinated me. This is a different angle of education than what was proposed in the above article. Instead of considering math or English or the like, the video focused on how online video games can educate on and build individuals' sense of teamwork, relationships, and collaboration.

This is a field of research I've dug into before and everything that I've found points to the fact that video games CAN serve a purpose in education. They have been proven to improve several skills (such as those listed above) in addition to having artistic value. On the other hand, video games CAN also be a waste of time - just like television, the internet, or any other medium can.

But what does everyone else think? Are video games art? Are they educational? Are they a waste of time? Or are they somewhere in between?

References

Digital Nation: Life on the Virtual Frontier [Motion picture]. (2010). PBS. Retrieved from http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/digitalnation/view/

Growing up online [Motion picture]. (2008). PBS Home Video. Retrieved from http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/kidsonline/view/

Infographic of my Digital Footprint

Literature Review of Mary Fran Daley’s article “Using Video Games to Embrace Inquiry: Learning for Life Through Fun”

Mary Fran Daley - Image retrieved from: https://www.linkedin.com/in/maryfrandaley

Summary:

Mary Fran Daley, a second-year teacher-librarian (at the time of her article in Knowledge Quest), creates an empathetic rapport with fellow educators by laying things out as they are. Right from the get-go she explains that, as a newcomer, she had little-to-no classroom management skills and no real knowledge of video games – despite opting to teach a video game design course to “difficult” students.

Before diving in to the meat of her article, Daley explains why she decided to teach the class, claiming that “Technology may not be a panacea for education, but it certainly is one of the most powerful tools at our fingertips to do so much more with less, as we are increasingly asked to do (Daley, 2011, p. 67).” She clearly states that her mission is to guide the 21^st century learner in education with the help of technology.

Having set the stage, Daley then breaks her article down into four main sections – think, create, share, and grow – reflecting on the ups and downs of her pioneering technology class throughout.

Firstly, in the Think section, she explains how video game creation (via programs such as MITs “Scratch”) can and does get students thinking. Daley describes how the complexity of game creation involves higher-order thinking skills as well as media literacy.

Vision of Technology - Teaching a Tech-Saturated Generation

Photo retrieved from http://www.upsidetrader.com/2014/04/02/buy-old-tech-said-will-make-rich-said/

Though many of us that were born earlier than the 90s have commented on this fact, it still astounds me that in my short life-time of nearly 26 years I have seen floppy-disk-drive-capable, black-and-yellow screen computers evolve into lightning fast tablets with high definition touch screens and endless possibilities. Furthermore, it is simply incredible how quickly children are able to pick up and use this new technology in our 21st century world. For example, just a few weeks ago, I opened a simple game up on my Samsung Galaxy S5 phone and handed it over to my 3 year old nephew to play. After chatting with my parents for a few minutes I looked back over to see how he was doing only to discover that he had somehow successfully exited the game and opened the Netflix app, logging into his family’s account in order to watch his favorite shows – this was the first time he’d used my phone without supervision and he was already more tech savvy with it than my parents.

As a student in the Master of Education program at Southern NH University, the above example resonated with me and kick-started my thinking as I prepare to teach. Though not all students learn the same, it is apparent that many children are now exposed to various forms of technology at an early age and it would therefore seem unproductive to not include some form of that technology in the classroom. The question remains, then, how do we as educators prepare to teach a technology-saturated generation of diverse learners? I believe that the answer comes down to using technology as a helpful tool in the classroom (as opposed to a necessary adaptation) and focusing on two areas: connectivity and accessibility.