Search and bookmark 8 educational sites and tag them for others to view and reflect on what was found on those sites
1. National Archives: Eyewitness
In December of 1968 the Apollo 8 spacecraft conducted the first manned mission to the moon. The flight was conducted by Jim Lovell, Bill Anders, and Frank Borman. This article showed pictures from the world's first occupied spacecraft orbiting the moon along with photos of original transcripts from that mission. There is also an audio track that was a recording of a monologue by Frank Borman describing the view from the capsule and some of the crew's tasks (i.e. running experiments, positioning the capsule by fire the engines, etc.). Borman also described his feelings about being 240,000 miles from home in an inhospitable environment as being foreboding and colorless.
Primary sources are good for students to see and use for research because it can be very inspiring and bring about realism to the sometimes blandness of a textbook.
2. N.E.A. Achievement Gap
Student Groups Currently Experiencing Achievement Gaps:
-ethnic minorities
-English language learners
-Students with disabilities
-Boys in elementary grades/Girls in high school math & science
-Students from low-income families
One idea mentioned in the N.E.A. website about becoming a culturally competent educator that resonated with me was that we could determine the diverse groups served by our schools. Consider cultural, linguistic, racial, and ethnic diversity and find out the degree to which families and students in these groups are accessing available school services. This seems important because we don't want to assume what our school population's characteristics are based on news reports or even empirical journal articles. There might be local concerns that may be affecting why these students may be at greater risk. We need to find out why some are utilizing services while others are not, and work with those who might feel discouraged or aren't seeing the value in those services.
Another idea talked about by the N.E.A. that I felt was highly important was that educators should assess what their school staff perceive as their staff development needs are related to providing services to each group. This is to say, that it isn't enough to go at it alone in searching for possible characteristics that affect student learning conditions and their needs. Instead, it is always better to get multiple views on a subject as important as designing or prescribing services to students.
Lastly, I felt the most important yet difficult culturally responsive component was to build and use a network of "natural helpers" at school and in the community as well as "experts" who have knowledge of the culturally, linguistically, racially, and ethnically diverse groups served by your school. Logistically, this might be a tall order but the potential rewards are great. Experts might be trained personnel and costly, but natural helpers could be anyone with insight into a schools population (i.e. parents, business owners, local law enforcement, local church groups). The rewards of this kind of action by the school would be an environment in which students feel a sense of belonging and safety which is a major contributing factor for academic success.
3. Stop Cyber Bullying
According to the test I took for ages 7 to10, I fall into the category of "cyber saint". It doesn't seem too difficult as an adult because I do little social networking and at this age I'm aware that employers often view the content on employee and prospective employee profile pages. The articles were an eye opener for me in that I'm now more educated in ways in which children view the internet; often the majority of their social life revolves around it. For younger children (ages 7 to 10), these articles helped me to be aware that I'll need to teach students about avoiding scams by internet preditors, don't send emails in anger (cool off first), and don't just idly accept being bullied on line (tell an adult). I would also like to reveal to students the dangers of change emails. Like the fact that viruses are spread through them, as is personal information that might not be intended for other people, and that they might simply frighten younger siblings.
4. Kathy Schrock's Guide for Educators
"The Science of Hockey" piqued my interest on Kathy Schrock's page. In particular the section about why ice is slippery. The fact that it (ice) is slippery is a one of a child's first bits of knowledge but why rarely crosses our minds, and if it does we usually have the wrong idea about it. This article brings a real world example to the physics and properties of ice through the visuals of ice skating. This item could be useful in a science class to explain physical properties of water.
Schrock's site also had tools such as a rubric for scoring student oral presentations. This rubric can be used directly in many presentations or can be altered to fit the assignment. The scoring items are: organization, subject knowledge, graphics, mechanics, eye contact and elocution. This site can be a very useful resource for teachers of any grade level because it is able to be customized.
5. Multiple Intelligences
After taking the Multiple Intelligences test I scored: 88% on logical-mathematical, and tied at a score of 75% on intrapersonal and interpersonal scales. From the video Big Thinkers: Howard Gardner on Multiple Intelligences, multiple intelligences are looked at from a psychological standpoint. It was said that the U.S. approaches education from a mode that is very narrow in how we teach our students and that subject areas are too broad. The lack of depth causes students to forget a vast majority of what they learn at the expense of learning critical thinking skills and understanding of the scientific method. Gardner asserts that learning to self assess is critical to becoming a successful adult.
6. Teaching Tolerance Lesson Idea
The lesson described in the article, "The Geography of Diversity", can be applied to grades 3 to 5 and is a great lesson for a social studies assignment with the topic of the diverse lineage within a classroom. The lesson has students investigate their individual ancestral background and report it to the class so that it can be marked with a colored sticker on a displayed map of the world. From that, students are prompted to write and essay on why the diversity of the U.S. is important. The final draft of the essays are written on paper bordered with gift boxes representing how each of us brings a gift to a community. Students are to color in the gift boxes so they are noticeably differently from other students' and the finished product is placed on display for others to see and enjoy. I would likely follow the same lesson plan in my classroom and would like to display the class' world map (with stickers) and essays in the school library and have the students make a second copy of their essays for a class collaborative book.
7. EdChange Multicultural Awareness Quiz
After taking this multicultural awareness quiz, many of the facts were eye opening to say the least. For example, according to the National Center for Education Statistics, 40 percent of all U.S. schools have no teachers of color on staff. This is a problem because this characteristic has been linked to students believing educational success is not for them with a blatant lack of role models with whom they can relate. Another figure which I'm struggling to understand fully is the 2007 study in which UNICEF found that the U.S. and the U.K. were ranked the lowest among the worlds 23 richest countries in regards to 40 indicators of child well-being. I haven't personally worked in very low income areas yet which makes me wonder what some of this counties inner city schools are like and the kinds of conditions in which their students live.
8. Netiquette
On the Netiquette quiz I scored a 10 out of 10. 8-l It seems that a lot of netiquette is based on the same social rules that exist in the non-digital world. It is important to teach this in a classroom because it can lead to many problems for young people that may lead to cyber bullying and emotional or physical harm. Education will lead students to good internet practice and as adults, will help them in the future to work in this environment with professionalism. In addition, students will be able to interpret what is being communicated and in what tone it is meant to be taken. Better understanding in this area, leads to better judgment.
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