New Concept Map for UDL

I have attached my new concept map for Universal Design for Learning. With this concept map, one can understand the different aspects of Universal Design for Learning. Those aspects are: The Power of Digital Media, Origins of UDL, UDL Framework, UDL Implementation and the Application of UDL. In this concept map you will notice that the UDL has been seperated into five sub-sections. Each sub-section has bold font and is an important element to UDL. For instance, the first sub-section is "The Power of Digital Media". This area points out that media is flexible in many ways such as being: networkable, markable, transformable and versatile. The concept map has been helpful to me. Every time I finshed a page I created a new sub-section(s) and found it helpful with my reading comprehension.

Newly Chosen Standard

I have chosen a new standard from Connecticut's Common Core of Teaching Standards, which can be found here. My new standard will be my inspiration for my digital story, amongst other things. My standard falls under the subject of English and reads as follows:

 "VI) Materials For Instruction: English language art teachers select and create materials based on instructional purpose, literary merit, impact of the medium, parameters of the curriculum and student's developmental needs." (http://www.sde.ct.gov/sde/lib/sde/PDF/Curriculum/Curriculum_Root_Web_Folder/ccteach_ela.pdf)

In my digital story, I will be talking about the different tools we use to learn, how we all think and learn differently and the idea of technology as the best learning tool of the present and future. I hope people enjoy it once it is finished!

Changes and Progress

I will be moving forward and making changes to both my website and my blog as the weeks go on. I plan on re-posting a new concept map that will connect more directly with the chosen reading about the Universal Design for Learning. As I move forward with my digital story, I realize I still have more work to do. I must replace many if not all of my chosen photos due to copyright infringement. While we learned about copyright infringement earlier in the semester, my photo choices just goes to show how easily one can forget and make a mistake. As it is now, I have left my copyrighted photos in my digital story in order to have bookmarks and a blueprint for what photos I need to take. I will also be looking to certain websites and sources such as the creative commons for images that I may use legally.

Other than these issues, I feel that I have had a good experience in this class so far. I never realized how quick and easy it was to set up a website or blog. Digital stories are rather simple as well. The software and sites involved make the process easy for people of all ages and skill levels. This is what makes technology such an important tool. It is accessible and and is already being used by so many of the students teachers encounter.

The Purpose Project from Jim Burke

Jim Burke's Blog

After reading Jim Burke's latest post from February 8th, it is easy for one to start thinking about their own purpose in life. It is easy to get caught up with the little things in life and forget the big things. I think this is especially true when you are a high school senior. You are bombarded with college, graduation, etc.

Burke's idea of centering a course around any subject they want for his seniors is fantastic. His seniors chose "purpose". This idea is effective because it allows them to be involved in the direction of the class, rather than have the class be only about the teacher and his/her ideas. So, as these seniors are going through the joys and pitfalls of their senior year, they are also discovering their purpose at the same time as they are reading, writing and analyzing literature. That seems to be pretty spectacular when you think about it.

Inquiy-Based Learning in the Classroom

     I have used inquiry-based learning in the form of webquests while teaching high school English in the past. In particular, I remember using a webquest with the goal of students writing a persuasive essay about the war in Iraq. I set up a document with several sources relating to current events and politics. I then had the students search these sites in order to find answers to questions I had written regarding the war. For instance, I asked: How much does the war cost the U.S. everyday? After answering these questions through their research, they were able to form an opinion about the war and talk about in an educated manner.
     I thought it was important for the students to able to form an opinion about important current events. This is a good example of how inquiry-based learning can be used in the classroom to help students in the future. Many of the students could now hold endless discussions on the Iraq war and war itself.
    

Feel free to check out my new website. It will be changing constantly!

My Website (Work In Progress)

UDL for Active Readers

I have posted my UDL and the subject is active reading. When students read there are many tools they can use to help them gain a strong understanding of the text. There are different "tools" they can use to help them regardless of their love or level of reading. These "tools" fall under three categories: Pre-Reading, During Reading and Post Reading. I have created a tree with an example of each tool under each category.

My Godson, Keegan, as Odysseus

In this image my Godson Keegan is playing the part of Odysseus. This is an example of how Photoshop can be used to help students visualize themselves as a part of the story. Any student can be inserted into an image to make literature such as Homer's "Odyssey" more relevant. Please feel free to comment and let me know what you think...

Common Core State Standards

I chose to focus on the Common Core State Standards for ELA. I think that these standards apply to the general goals of education as it relates to English as a subject matter. It also points out that we, as educators, are trying to develop students who are college and career ready while also being functioning and literate members of a modern society. To me these are the basic goals of education, though they are not the only ones.

I think I can differentiate instruction in order to cater to different learning styles in many ways. For instance, some people will learn better through a video than through listening to audio of a play or story. Also, I believe that students can act out scenes from plays and novels to make them more personal and relevant. While there will always be certain standards to meet, teachers can use their own creativity to foster the creativity of their own students. For instance, required reading versus reading where students have a choice usually represents  a sharp contrast in the interest of the student. Students generally dislike required reading because it is things they have trouble relating to or simply find boring. It is my job to make these required readings and writing activities relevant and exciting. If a story's language or content seems outdated, I need to find a way to make it relevant and exciting to people of all backgrounds in order for them to complete the tasks necessary to meet these standards.

Teddy Bears and The Use of Blogs in a Classroom

After reading "Teddy Bears Go Blogging" by Brenda Sherry, my belief in the integration of technology and education has only been strengthened. While I am not ready to say that typing is the same thing as writing, this exercise still seemed valuable in the sense that the kids were interested and in control to a certain extent. I am a big believer in anything that allows students to take control of a project themselves and let it be their own. I think it is great that they write something that can be seen by so many people that can also comment with their own thoughts and ideas. It also forces them to learn about the process of editing and understanding that when they write, they need to think of their text as something that will be seen by an audience.

While I think blogging is an excellent tool to get students to write, it is important to also emphasize the traditional writing process. That process involves three main phases: pre-writing, writing and post-writing. Blogging does touch upon all of these steps, it concentrates mostly on typing. Jim Burke would agree with me when he says typing and writing are different in his post from December 27th, 2010: http://jimburke.typepad.com/my_weblog/2010/12/typing-is-not-writing.html. While blogging requires students to use the whole writing process, it should be used as another tool but not the only tool.

Jim Burke: The English Teacher's Companion

As I looked through the extensive lists of recommended blogs, I decided I wanted something that related to my own experiences and field of concentration. With experience as a high school english teacher and a concentration in secondary english, it was easy to choose. I chose "Jim Burke: The English Teacher's Companion". I already knew the name because of Professor Winslow mentioning Mr. Burke as a "must read" in our first Reading/Writing class.

As I have read through Mr. Burke's blog, I have already found posts and ideas that are both practical and helpful. For instance, his latest post deals with happiness as it relates to education and raising children. As educators, we often struggle to find answers. We want to solve problems regarding students and even our own lives. Burke points out many alternate points of view before coming to his own. He says:

"Dealt the brain we are, born into the family we are, into the era and culture we can only claim as our own, we must make our own way forward, becoming as Hesse's Siddhartha says, our own teachers, taking from those we meet along the way what words, what wisdom will help us make sense of the world and find our place and purpose in that world." (http://jimburke.typepad.com/, Jan 23,2011)

We spend so much time as a society complaining about different generations, particularly how technology has affected youth in a negative way. While I am only 27 years old, I have seen how kids are more reluctant to pick up a book than a computer, and it has frustrated me. But I think what Burke is talking about here is embracing our society and culture. For instance, instead of cursing technology, learn how to use it. While I understand how to use a certain amount of technology and have grown up with the internet, I am looking forward to learning more. I feel that it can be used as a bridge between what I want to accomplish as an english teacher and the different generations of students I will teach in the future.