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Student Responses to a Digital Textbook Continued

noreply@blogger.com (David Scott) — Sat, 21 Jan 2012 23:55:00 +0000

This post is part of a four-part series exploring the curricular potential of digital textbooks or what I am calling "Integrated Inquiry Resources." Read the first blog here for an introduction to the ideas that informed this project as well as the inquiry resource itself. And then a second blog for an outline of the inquiry tasks imbedded in the resource and accompanying student work.

This blog post is a continuation of a previous blog post that reports on findings from an anonymous student survey which sought to document the impact of a specific integrated digital inquiry resource on levels of student engagement and learning. Of a total 50 students, 44 responded to the survey.

In the previous post I outlined some of the more positive responses to this inquiry resource. However, not all student responses were positive. Unlike the cheery picture here, some of the students comments point to a need to seriously reconsider both the organization and design of the resource along with the curricular model (why we teach a subject) and the pedagogical strategies (approaches to instruction) adopted within my digital textbook. What follows are findings associated with the questions in bold.

Finding 4: The clamation rendering of Plato's Allegory of the Cave was only moderately successful in bringing students into the world of Greek ideas and the rebirth of this learning during the Renaissance. As can be seen below, about 40% believed this was so and about an equal percent thought that these video links did this only moderately well. Notably about 18% felt that this animation failed in this regard.

Download Create Chart7. The Plato Allegory of the Cave inquiry question was trying to bring you into the world of Greek ideas. To what extent did this question make you think deeply about the rebirth of Greek learning during the Renaissance?
	answered question		44
	skipped question		0
		Response Percent	Response Count
Extremely well		11.4%	5
Very well		29.5%	13
Moderately		40.9%	18
Slightly		11.4%	5
Not at all		6.8%	3

Did this resource help make the study of the Renaissance more interesting and engaging for students?

Finding 5: Although the resource did help make the topic more engaging for students, especially among students in one class, there was a significant number of students who found some of the sections of this digital textbook and by extension learning in the classroom not very engaging. From the advantage point of someone who put so much work into creating this resource, this was a disappointing finding. However, as I will explore at the end there was some design flaws in how I went about creating the unit. Based on the survey here are a sampling of some of the student responses to the question.

With a focus on the video links, as can be seen below over 60% of students felt the resource made the study of the Renaissance more interesting.

5. Compared to a normal textbook, did you find the video links brought to life European history in way that was more interesting to you as a student?
	answered question		42
	skipped question		2
		Response Percent	Response Count
Absolutely!		35.7%	15
Very much so		26.2%	11
Somewhat		14.3%	6
Not really		14.3%	6
Not at all		9.5%	4

A sampling from the focus group and survey responses confirm this:

Three main advantages to the digital inquiry resource was that it was a resource always at hand and available, it went in-depth more so then our regular textbooks, it was easy to click the links and listen more about what we need to know.

The digital inquiry resource gave us a visual 2. It let us explore as far as we wanted into sertain topics 3. It let us use are laptops to its full capabilities

When reading a textbook there is a lot of information but the information is not always relevant to your specific question. Likewise, when you are using a digital inquiry resource you are able to find information that specifically relates to your specific question. This is because there are so many videos out there.

To me its the fact that writing everything out is long and tedious. Also I like it because I love technology and as a result this really helps. It was easy to access. Everything that we needed was there. Also is easier to go deeper into the topic by using video links.

We didn't just look at words, we got to see what some of these things might look like.

Finding 6a and 6b: Responses from both the survey and focus group sessions point to some structural problems with how this digital textbook, and by extension the overall inquiry unit in general, was designed. Here are a sampling of some of the responses that point to the limitations of this resource. I have grouped the responses in relation to limitations of: the design of the layout, the pedagogical strategies used to support this resource, along with the inquiry tasks themselves.

6a) Issues with the design and layout of this inquiry resource:

There is a limit on the pages and information and how much the creator put in.

Sometimes it was hard to read. Also it is harder to organized pictures and vids to make it more visually interesting.

Maybe make the page style more eye capturing to really drag the reader

People were getting easily distracted (Not me) =) Constantly needs charging

This text-book could have more visuals such as pictures and more types of links such as interactive sites, etc. It could also be more specific on dates for timelines and more so to the point rather then dragging on.

The points here were well taken, although Shashi Shergill helped me with some editing at the end to make my writing more grade 8 friendly, having created the resource almost completely on my own it was very text heavy as I did not have the time to create a magazine style layout. One of the things I hope digital textbooks will embrace are elements of design and stop trying to hit kids with reams of information. In this regard, links to sources behind the text can make the textual elements needed, less apparent. Despite the links to videos there was an absence of pictures or other design elements that would make the pages appealing to a reader.

The most prominent limitation to my digital textbook, as articulated in a focus group session was a lack of more interactive links within the resource. Although I had links to rubrics, maps, some sites showing the spread of the Black Death, and a very interesting site showing the different routes along the Silk Road, there was an absence of a number of elements I initially wanted to include. As this students suggests there were few interactive diagrams or sites, such as a web quest. I wanted to include Khan Academy style tutorials as well, but simply ran out of time to create this. As I will explore in the end, this points to a need for a more collective effort to create a resource like this. Moreover, it provides an opportunity for the resource itself to become a student project where students become knowledge creators rather than knowledge consumers.

6b Issues with the inquiry tasks along with the pedagogical strategies used to support this resource:

The teacher stops the video a lot, where as when you read, you can keep on reading until your done. 2. Easier to lose file / DVD]

The videos were long. Rather tedious.

Not carry on with Renaissance for so long

make more art based projects

Maybe make some more visual things like have us make a skit on one of the events leading to the Renaissance or trying to paint Renaissance art. Have more visuals and make the videos shorter so they don't lag on.

Have the kids making videos to the knowledge they know, so it would be fun project, and would prove that they know something about the Renaissance.

Here we see a number of limitations with this resource including the length of the unit and a lack of creative projects associated with the inquiry tasks. I think these comments raise two important insights that should inform any future digital textbooks. The first of these is length. After having done the Renaissance for three years now, I have launched some epic inquiry units around this topic. However, I now understand that longer is rarely better. The inquiry units students seem to most enjoy either run parallel to another unit, so they have some variety in what they are doing, or they are very short, focussed, and concise. I see now that some of the tasks were perceived as redundant and going over the same thing.

However, the most important point raised by these findings concerns the inquiry tasks themselves. All of the tasks, including preparation for the debate speech were very writing heavy and perhaps not as creative as they should have been. Students were largely representing understandings already found somewhere else, even the task on historical significance, although requiring a reasoned judgment, did not require a lot of creative thinking. Moreover, there was no authentic audience for students to present their work. Here, I think my problem was I dragged many elements of the old model of education into this new digital medium. Without opportunities for students to draw on their creative and imaginative capacities to create new knowledge and represent their findings in creative ways, the findings here point to the need to create digital resources that supports aspirations for a more creative and interactive forms of education, rather than positioning students as passive recipients of already settled knowledge.

Student Responses to a Digital Textbook

noreply@blogger.com (David Scott) — Sat, 21 Jan 2012 18:23:00 +0000

Over the last week the media has been awash in news stories surrounding Apple’s unveiling of their new iBooks 2 application for the iPad. This free App provides a user-friendly platform allowing anyone with an Apple computer to create their own digital textbook specifically tailored to the educational needs of both their students and their specific subject area. Touting the many features that make this resource infinitely superior to the large cumbersome textbooks we grew up with, the presence of imbedded videos and interactive animations, promises, according to Philip Schiller, Apple’s senior vice president of marketing, to provide students with “a more dynamic, engaging, and truly interactive way to read and learn” (South Asian News Agency). For its most ardent champions this digital platform even promises to reinvent education itself.

In working over the last year on what I have been referring to as an “Integrated Inquiry Resource” created for a grade 8 Humanities unit on the Renaissance (see this blog post here for the resource itself), I too have been trying to create a classroom resource that could leverage the potential of a digital textbook. To create my prototype, because my students have computers and not iPads, rather than use an ePub or iBooks 2 platform, I used Pages to create the digital textbook and then turned it into a pdf document. It is worth noting that I fervently hope Apple will make the iBooks 2 platform compatible with computers, as this is a major hindrance of their current publishing platforms which only allow students to leverage the full potential of their IBooks 2 on an iPad.

Within the resource I created, I provided among other things, links to short videos on the historical events addressed in the unit, inquiry questions meant to spur students to think critically and uncover the themes and content connected to specific aspects of the Renaissance, as well as links to assessment rubrics and accompanying strategies imbedded in the document to help students provide sophisticated responses to the inquiry tasks outlined after each section. See this blog post here, for a complete outline of the tasks included within this unit on the Renaissance.

By undertaking the tremendous work involved in creating a textbook from scratch, it was my hope that through creating opportunities for a flipped classroom, Khan Academy style tutorials, and links to remarkable videos, I could truly create something that would make the classroom only one site where meaningful learning takes place. However, before I, and others in the field of education, blindly embrace the potential of digital textbooks, I think what is needed is more considered thought and greater empirical evidence as to both the opportunities and limitations opened up by the adoption of digital resources in the classroom.

To this end, through taking part in a research initiative at Calgary Science School, I asked my students to respond to a ten-question anonymous survey asking them to provide feedback on my “Integrated Inquiry Resource.” Based on the preliminary findings from the survey, I followed this up with a series of focus group interviews to further explore themes and interesting findings that emerged from my students’ responses. In my next blog post, I will comment on the findings that emerged from these conversations. This blog post reports on the responses of my students to a survey that asked them to comment on the impact that my digital textbook had on their learning.

Of a possible 50 students a total of 46 students responded to the survey. The findings from this research study open up important insights concerning both the great potential of resources like this, as well as reasons for more considered deliberation before we start proclaiming the dawn of a new era in education. Using student work as another data source along with the survey, for this particular blog post I report on how this resource and accompanying tasks helped students:

Gain a deeper understanding of themes and developments that occurred during the Italian Renaissance
Adopt a flipped classroom approach where content delivery occurs at home and the classroom becomes a place for deliberation and the application of new knowledge

1. What was the impact of this resource on student learning?

Finding 1: As evidenced by the quality of their work and the sophistication of their responses to each of the inquiry tasks, students showed a relatively deep understanding of events and developments leading up to and characteristic of the Italian Renaissance.

Reflected in my last blog post here, in examining student work from each of the four major sections in this resource, I was very satisfied with the quality of their work and the sophistication of their responses to each of the inquiry tasks. In relation to task 2, for example, through focussing on the need to include specific historical details in their comic representation, students were able to well communicate their understanding of a particular element of the Renaissance. Additionally, through introducing students to the SES (state, explain, support) framework, I was also very happy with their responses to task 3 where students showed an ability to demonstrate their understanding of a particular development that led to the Italian Renaissance. Evidence of student understanding was was further demonstrated in their debates concerning which development was most responsible for sparking a renaissance in northern Italy in the 15th and 16th centuries. Their debates speeches were well articulated and the vast majority of students had specific supporting details to back up their assertions.

In the final section, where I asked students to complete a talking to the text exercise and interpretation of the famous Humanist poem An Oration on the Dignity of Man as well as interpret a clamation rendering of Plato's Allegory of the Cave from the perspective of Humanists at the time, I was very impressed with the level and quality of their responses. In the case of both tasks, the rich dialogue that ensued from a class conversation along with their responses were extremely creative and sophisticated. Here is an example of each of the final two tasks I asked students to complete:

Oration on the Dignity of Man

“We have made thee neither of heaven nor of earth,

Neither mortal or immortal,

So that with freedom of choice and with honor,

As thought the maker and molder of thyself,

Thou mayest fashion thyself in whatever shape thou shalt prefer.

Thou shalt have the power out of thy soul's judgment,

to be reborn into the higher forms, which are divine.”

‐Giovanni Pico Della Mirandola

Student SES paragraph:

The Humanists believed that man was great and humans were meant to live as individuals, not to live for the glory of god. More specifically, humanists tried to enforce the public eye that the concept of humanism was a moral obligation, not a treachery to god. By this I mean that thought was shifted from god in heaven to humans on earth. There was a shift of judgment and humans began to think that they were capable of achieving, questioning and reasoning. This lead to a political reformation in society and civilization, which was developed from humanism. Humans began questioning authority. In the poem it says, "to be reborn into the higher forms, which are divine." I think this is saying that when humans started to understand that they were meant for something, they were able to achieve illustriousness.

Student Response to Plato's Allegory of the Cave:

Symbol 1: I think that the Humanists would have interpreted the cave as a place not being able to shape yourself. More specifically they would have seen this as the prisoners are not allowed to see behind them they are not allowed to see what they want to see. By this I mean the jailers are controlling what the prisoners believe and what they see. In the video they are chained so that they can only see what is in front of them. I think this is showing that they prisoners are only seeing one thing and that their perception on the world will never change because they cannot believe what they cannot see (outside the cave). They can see merely this shadow play.

Symbol 2: I think that the Humanists would have interpreted the freed prisoner as a humanist. More specifically they would have seen this as the perception of the ex-prisoner changes when he is introduced to these new and exciting things outside the cave. He know believes what he believes not what the captors what him to believe. By this I mean when the prisoner is released he now has a world to get to discover for himself. In the video it says that the prisoner when he is let go he achieves a new perception of the world and he wants to share this perception with his friends. I think this is showing that he also wanted for the prisoners to learn and to experience the other outside world.

Finding 2: the video links and accompanying summary helped students gain a greater understanding and appreciation of the historical context that set the stage for the Renaissance.

When asked the question: "To what extent did the video links help you gain a better understanding of the 2, 500 hundred years of European history we covered when beginning the unit?" students responses were varied, but here is as sampling of some of their insights:

• The videos really helped me understand the Renaissance better. I feel that the videos gave me a better understanding of it as well. The videos helped me visualize it better which was good but I would have gotten the same knowledge with the textbook.

• I feel like now I have a better understanding of how it was at that time with the video.

• It was a very good visual helping us understand how life was back then

• This helped me understand further of what was not discussed in class, however, it was sometimes hard to catch what they said in the video, therefore I had to watch the videos multiple times just to obtain small information. Other then that, it was nice how you could continue watching and get a feel of how the history went.

• I think it did well on helping me understand because I really enjoy visuals in class rather that listening to lectures

• They helped me much more that if I used a textbook.

• It helped when we were struggling, plus, it was very interesting most of the time
yes because a picture is 1000 words so wouldn't a video be 1,000,000 words?

• I feel that my understanding really improved. Now its stuck in my brain and we toke time learning it therefore I really understand the unit.

• The videos made me more intrigued in my learning. I, being a visual learner, could relate and learn to the best of my ability from this.

Finding 3: As evidenced by the following comments, there are some limitations with an over reliance on videos and documentaries to transmit knowledge.

• it was sometimes hard to catch what they said in the video, therefore I had to watch the videos multiple times just to obtain small information.

• it gave me a better visual but nothing really thrilled me

• I believe that I would have been better able to understand the Italian Renaissance if we used a hard copy of a textbook.

• The video links gave a good sense of the time frame of the Italian Renaissance. As well, we saw the comparison between the time frame of the Italian Renaissance in comparison to other significant European events. However, I believe that I would have been better able to understand the Italian Renaissance if we used a hard copy of a textbook.

• I feel that the videos did help my understanding of European history. But the projects we did regarding the Renaissance i feel helped me more than the videos did.

• The first and the second on were very helpful but after that I do not think any one was watching them

2. Did this resource help students adopt a flipped classroom approach to learning?

Finding 4: This was one of the more interesting findings in my survey. Data suggests that at the junior high school level, as apposed to say the University or high school level, it may be harder than we think to get students to watch content at home. However, the content that students are asked to watch may greatly determine whether students would watch content at home. However, students did find watching documentaries on a topic much more interesting than solely reading a text based resource.

In moving to a flipped classroom approach to learning it is argued by advocates of this approach that content delivery, which largely requires passive instruction, can occur at home and the classroom becomes a place for more active learning involving working through questions, discussing concepts and ideas, and applying new knowledge. Through creating links to documentaries and videos within this digital resource, I hoped to flip some of the content delivery for students to watch at home. However, the results of the survey show that my aspirations here were less than successful.

When asked whether they watched the links to videos at home, as can be seen below the responses were as follows:

1. When assigned to watch links within the Renaissance resource at home or on your own, did you do this? (answered question 43, skipped question 1)

Response Percent Response Count:

Always 23.3% 10
Most of the time 30.2% 13
Sometimes 25.6% 11
Rarely 11.6% 5
Never 9.3% 4

This means about 1/5 of students rarely or never watched videos at home, while just over half watched them always or most of the time. This speaks to the fact, that at the junior high school level, as apposed to the University or high school level, it may be harder than we think to get students to watch content at home; even if this content comes in the form of documentaries that many students their age do find interesting to watch. This being said, I did receive several comments from students that they sat and watched an hour and twenty minute long documentary on Leonardo da Vinci on their own because they found it so fascinating.
When asked whether they watched videos in the resource that were not assigned for homework but were encouraged to watch for interests sake, as can be seen below only 7% said they did so on over two occasions, 45% said an one occasion, and 48% said never.

2. Some videos in the resource were not assigned, did you ever watch some of the video links on your own? (answered question 44, skipped question 0)

Response Percent Response Count:

On two to three occasions 6.8% 3
On one occasion 45.5% 20
Never 47.7%

In a similar vein, when asked how often they went back to re-watch videos to gain a deeper understanding of the historical time period, about 20% reported they did so often, about 37% did so on a few occasions, and about 36% did so rarely or never.

4. How often did you go back to watch videos to get a better understanding of the topic you were studying? (answered question 44, skipped question 0)

Response Percent Response Count:

Many times 20.5% 9
On a few occasions 36.4% 16
Sometimes 13.6% 6
Rarely 22.7% 10
Never 13.6% 6

These findings speak to limitations as to the extent, within this context, the flipped classroom format is a viable model to help students to extend their learning on their own. This is confirmed by the fact that students were quite pessimistic that other students could be counted on to watch videos at home. When asked what percentage of students they thought could be counted on to watch an hour video at home for homework, over 45% of respondents indicated that only about 1/3 of students could be counted on to do this. Here we find interesting questions concerning the types of students most likely to watch a video for homework. It may point to already keen and academically successful students willing to do this, while students who are struggling could be less inclined to watch a video for homework. This finding, therefore, points to the need for further study as to the viability of the flipped classroom approach. However, probably predictably most 60% of students found watching videos at home preferable to reading a text-based resource, while only 14% claimed this was not the case; the others answered that it was somewhat preferable to watch a video at home.

Thank you if you read this; it's a bit of a slog.

Digital Textbook Inquiry Tasks for the Renaissance

noreply@blogger.com (David Scott) — Sat, 21 Jan 2012 16:13:00 +0000

by Dave Scott

What follows is post number two of a four part series on the curricular potential of digital textbooks. These posts are the result of an action research study I have been involved in as part of a research initiative at Calgary Science School to encourage innovation and reflective practice within an inquiry-based environment.

Recently, there has been much discussion of Apple's free iBook 2 application that allows anyone to create interactive textbooks for the popular iPad tablet. See this article here for details on an application Apple believes is going to revolutionize the textbook market. In working on what I have been referring to as an “Integrated Inquiry Resource” created for a grade 8 Humanities unit on the Renaissance (see this blog post here for the resource itself) over the last year, I too have been trying to create a classroom resource that could leverage the potential of a digital textbook. In the next two blog posts I would like to report on feedback I have received from students as to the curricular potential of the digital resource I created. Let me begin by outlining the inquiry tasks I created within this digital textbook.

Within this resource, I provided among other things, links to short videos on the historical events addressed in the unit, inquiry questions meant to encourage students to think critically and uncover the themes and content connected to specific aspects of the Renaissance, as well as assessment rubrics and accompanying strategies to help students provide sophisticated responses to the inquiry tasks outlined after each section. By undertaking the tremendous work involved in creating a digital textbook from scratch, it was my hope that, through creating opportunities for a flipped classroom (see this article for a full explanation on what this entails), Khan Academy style tutorials, and links to remarkable videos, I could create something that would make the classroom only one site where meaningful learning takes place.

To this end, within the resource I began by trying to provide the context needed to understand the creative flourishing and rebirth of classical (Ancient Greek and Roman) learning that was the Renaissance. Here, I included a chapter outlining some of the major events, from the Golden Age of Ancient Greece to the Fall of Rome on through to the Black Death, to provide the historical background of this age of renewal and rebuilding. Writing in a conversational voice, I accompanied a brief discussion of each period with hyperlinks to short video clips posted on YouTube of various documentaries drawn from sources such as the History Channel and PBS, to help bring these events to life. Noting that the Renaissance can be understood as period of renewal and rebuilding after the ravages of the Black Death, this video on the Bubonic Plague is an example of the kinds of documentary clips I used to help show the impact this event had on Europe. At the end of this section in the digital resource, students were asked to create a historical timeline outlining the historical events covered in this 2,500-year expanse of history. Here is an example of a historical timeline students created:

From here, after providing a series of lectures on the different aspects that make up the event we now call the Italian Renaissance, I had students choose from a list of five characteristics that can describe this time period (i.e., a period of renewal after the ravages of the Black Death, a period of intense artistic activity). Then using the cartoon-making program Pixton, we had students explain this particular characteristic of the Renaissance in this graphic novel style medium. See this Demonstrating Understanding Through Pixton blog post for an explanation of this task, along with the comic below for examples of the kind of work students created:

Students were then asked to choose from a list of 16 developments that led to the Italian Renaissance (i.e., The Crusades, contact with the Islamic World, the fall of the Byzantine Empire) and after a talking to the text note taking exercise, create a SES (state, explain, support) paragraph on their area. After presenting their development to the class, as a culminating final activity, students were asked to use criteria for historical significance and decide which development was the most historically significant for igniting a Renaissance in northern Italy during the 15th and 16th century. As a culminating activity for this section, students were asked to defend their decision in a horseshoe debate format. Here, the emphasis was on developing two arguments as to why your event was significant, developing these ideas, and identifying historical facts to back up your opinion. Unfortunately video footage of the debate was erased, however, here is an example of a student's debate script.

In the final section, we created a series of tasks that, among other things, sought to surface the worldview of key Humanist and Renaissance thinkers. To take one example, after revisiting the concept of Humanism emphasizing that this movement involved the rejection of the medieval obsession with the afterlife at the expense of this life and placed man and his potential at the centre of things, using two superb video clips to bring students deeper into this notion, we asked students the following question:

Drawing on this History Channel video Humanism Triggers the Renaissance, and after watching this Clamation version of Plato's Allegory of the Cave, how do you think Humanist thinkers would have interpreted the symbols in this story meant to contain a hidden meaning?

See this blog post for video footage of what this conversation looked like. Here, rather than just saying the Renaissance involved the revival of Greek learning, I wanted to show this by bringing students into the world that Humanists would have been encountering in reading the ancient classics of Plato and Aristotle. Here is an example of a student response to this question:

Symbol 1: I believe that the Humanists would have interpreted the chains as a barrier holding them back. The barrier is the overpowering belief of God or a supreme being, which is stopping them from moving forward. Due to such an intense belief of God, people would assume that God would give them the inventions, which held them back from taking the initiative to actually do something. Cities and towns would not have been nearly as progressed because people believed that if it were meant to be, God would have made it as such. However, when the belief of humanism became popular, people became motivated to do things on their own and cities became more advanced much sooner. In the video, the cave dweller’s hands are chained back, showing that their belief in God is restricting them from advancing and pushing forward.

Symbol 2: It is my belief that the Humanists would have interpreted the real world outside as reality. Just a glance at the real world would have shown the cave dwellers that they did not need God, or a higher being to control them. People could do things on their own, rely on themselves instead of some mythical being. The real world was representing what the world could be if people believed in themselves, and believed that the individual could be great. In the video, the cave dwellers are unable to see the reality of the world, because they are chained back by the belief of God. I think this is showing that many extreme religionists were unable to open their eyes, and turn around to see the real world.

Geology and the iPad

noreply@blogger.com (Erin Couillard) — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 17:54:00 +0000

-by Lisa Nelson, Grade 7 Math/Science

Teaching a group of grade 7s who have used 1:1 Macbook laptops for the past three years and are now part of a 1:1 iPad initiative has been somewhat challenging. The students were slightly discouraged by the limitations of the iPad at the beginning of the school year. It was our goal as a grade 7 team to get students to buy-in to iPads and to note the good things about them.

We started the year with the ‘Planet Earth’ unit in Science. To alleviate some of their frustrations, we decided to give them a project that would showcase some of the positives of iPads and ensure that they had the opportunity for success.

In past years, in collaboration with two geologists and other colleagues, my partner teacher, Erin Couillard, and I designed a field trip through the Bow Valley, showcasing different geologic landforms. We chose to modify the field trip this year to include a visual timeline depicting the geologic history of the Bow Valley region as the main product. In previous years, we had experienced challenges with the follow-up from the field trip. With the iPads, students were easily able to record or capture evidence of geologic formations which could then be used once we returned to the classroom.

Advantages of using Mobile Technology for this project:

Portability/Flexibility
Students were able to take their iPads on this trip. They had their iPads in their backpacks, and were even accessing them on the not-so-simple hike we went on. The ease in which iPads can be transported and used made them ideal for this task.

Built in camera/HD video camera
On the field trip, students were asked to use their iPads to document evidence of different geologic activities including evidence of an ancient inland sea, mountain building, deposition, glaciation and erosion. They were also required to complete a booklet, answering questions about the various landforms they saw. iPads made it easy for students to document the trip.

Project options
Following the field trip, students created a presentation using only images taken on the trip and a script using information learned from the geologist and Science class. The students needed to work collaboratively within a group to choose the best images taken on the field trip to represent each geologic event. They then placed them in the appropriate historical order in a slideshow. Students gave a presentation to the class discussing how the photo provided evidence of the geologic event, and linked the event to other stages on the timeline. We worked with students to generate a rubric for assessing the presentations. The students used Keynote to create their slideshows. You can watch a sample slideshow here (though there are no words, as the students presented in class with a script) Students had the option to use iMovie as well to show their images and record a script.

The field trip was deemed a success by most students, though some seemed to think it would have been just as easy to complete the project without iPads.

Some student thoughts:

“…without the iPad, we would just have used a camera to take the pictures.”

“On the field trip, (iPads) made things easier in a way because we didn’t have to upload photos from a camera. We could take notes on the trip, too.”

“It was harder without a laptop because normally I would make an iMovie with external sound, but I had to do a Keynote instead and I don’t really know Keynote.”

From a student who is new to our school (from a school without 1:1 laptop/iPad access): “The iPad helped so much with this project. We got to make a presentation to the class without having to make a poster or something. Keynote made it easy to collect and order our pictures of the (geologic) events. I also like how now I can do research without having to use the textbook all the time. It’s so much lighter to carry my iPad than textbooks.”

Student Engagement Captivates Me

noreply@blogger.com (Ivy Waite) — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 18:55:00 +0000

By Ivy Waite

Student engagement captivates me.

Why is it that certain things are irresistible, while others can be such a challenge for some to find captivating? How can teachers take advantage of those things that captivate to engage our students in the classroom?

We can - if we are willing to think creatively.

During the first term of the school year I had the privilege of teaching the inaugural class of the World@War elective here at CSS. History, of warfare in particular, has always been a very popular topic among my students (mostly male). As a topic that I am also very passionate about, I decided to combine the demand for history with avid interest in popular media representations of the war to give rise to this completely independent, inquiry driven course.

Students were challenged to propose projects that had to be focused on a major conflict from recent human history (500 years), and had to include the following media types as resources:
• Documentary Film
• Period Film (from the time of the conflict, if possible)
• Feature Film
• Variety of online resources (full MLA works cited list required)
• Video Game (Call of Duty series, Battlefield, Minecraft, etc.)

Students worked in small groups (3-4) to determine the focus of their project, and to complete the proposal. It was up to students to decide what the guiding question of a project would be, and to focus on what their essential understandings would have to be in order to answer their question.

The trimester flew by. Every second day my room was filled with students watching films on their laptops with headphones, editing the footage from their own gameplay to use in their documentaries comparing the real Battle of Stalingrad with the campaign challenge from the game Call of Duty World at War, and pouring over research notes on the tactics used throughout the Korean War. Other students chose to take a different direction and looked at genocide in Rwanda, French Revolution, and the history of weaponry throughout the two world wars up to today.

The following video was created by one of my students who struggles with staying focused in regular classes but got excited about the possibility of bringing his love of gaming into the classroom. I was extremely impressed with his work and the way that he remained focused throughout the class.

Battle of Stalingrad: Reality vs. Call of Duty World @ War

During the second term, I once again challenged my students to read and review five novels. After some serious thought about media literacy, and the realities of what media students are consuming, I decided to allow them to review the campaign story from a video game that they were currently playing or planned to play. The results have been outstanding. Videos expertly pieced together using scenes from the game to support a mature critique of multiple aspects of the game have been entertaining and exceptionally well put together.

The following video is one example of the reviews that have been submitted thus far.

Call of Duty Modern Warfare Three Review

Exemplary learning truly does occur when we incorporate curriculum meaningfully and seek innovative ways to engage our students!!!

For more information on the place of gaming in the classroom, check out this page on my personal blog Creative Craniums: "Learn A Little: Articles to Chew On - Gaming in the 21st Century Classroom".

The Top 10 for Future Teachers

noreply@blogger.com (Erin Couillard) — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 17:10:00 +0000

-by Garry McKinnon, Superintendent

I had an interesting experience on January 11 at the University of Calgary when I joined three other superintendent colleagues to share with 350+ Faculty of Education students who are in the last semester of their Bachelor of Education program, some views on the state of education and some advice as they prepare to enter the teaching profession. My role was to represent the charter school perspective.

I emphasized in describing the unique role of the 13 charter schools in Alberta that charter schools are public schools which receive the same level of funding as any other publicly-funded school jurisdiction in Alberta. Charter schools do have a unique mandate to serve as a centre of research and innovation and to develop exemplary teaching practices, which can be replicated in other schools. In describing how each charter school does have a unique approach to learning and teaching, which is outlined in the school charter that is approved by the Minister of Education, I made reference to the Calgary Science School charter principles which include: engaging students in authentic learning experiences through a disposition of inquiry; enhancing learning and teaching through the use of technology and providing a variety of rich experiences in environmental and outdoor education and taking learning beyond the walls of the classroom. I suggested with reference to my 43 years of experience in a variety of roles in several school jurisdictions that I have come to believe that every school should be like a charter school and have a clearly articulated philosophy and guiding principles.

In responding to the question, "what would you like to see from graduates as future teachers?", I made reference to learning and teaching in the Calgary Science School and feedback I have received from students, parents and teachers in outlining the following:

1. Having a Passion for Teaching - Teaching by its very nature is a very complex, challenging undertaking and at the same time it is a very rewarding profession which has a profound impact on all aspects of our lives. We need individuals in the profession who have a passion for teaching; it is a vocation- a calling. Each day I see teachers in our school who are highly dedicated and engaged in doing everything possible to help their students experience success as learners. The one concern is that teaching can become consuming and it is important for teachers to find a balance in their personal and professional lives.

2. Understanding and Operating from your Essence - I believe that our inner beliefs and values or what could be described as "our essence" have a significant impact on our actions. It is important to understand and operate from your essence. The teachers in the Calgary Science School have chosen to be in this school because the guiding beliefs and principles of the charter are consistent with their personal and professional essence.

3. Having Strong People /Relationship Building Skills - Clearly as educators we are in the people business and having strong people skills and being driven by a desire to build positive relationships are fundamentally important. You need to reach the child to teach the child. Students and parents in describing the special qualities of the Calgary Science School teachers made reference to teachers truly caring about their students and caring about what they are teaching. They described a prevailing culture in which there is a strong sense that, "we are all in this together and this is a good place to be".

4. Being Able to Actively Engage Learners - The ability of teachers to achieve a high level of engagement of students as learners while addressing curricular expectations through varied, meaningful, authentic learning activities is a key measure of a quality education. The Alberta Education pilot survey Tell Them for Me which makes reference to provincial and national norms of student engagement and other school survey data reflect a high level of engagement as one of the hallmarks of the Calgary Science School. Students in describing how they are motivated through a variety of experiential learning activities observe that in the Calgary Science School, "it is never just an ordinary day".

5. Being Confident as a Teacher and Being a Confidence Builder - Teaching is all about confidence building. Teachers strive to build a high level of confidence in each of their students by providing success experiences. Teachers in order to be confidence builders must have a solid base of confidence in themselves. Teachers in the Calgary Science School are accustomed to having many visitors to the school spending time in the classrooms and they are encouraged in keeping with the charter school mandate, to be very open about their professional practice and to seek opportunities to share best practices with others. They certainly need to have a high level of professional confidence.

6. Being Collaborative and a Team Player - We know that students do not learn well in isolation and similarly we know that learning and teaching is significantly enhanced through teacher collaboration with colleagues, teacher and student collaboration and student collaboration with their peers. It takes a special effort to develop collaboration and team building skills, but it most certainly is worth the effort. The willingness of teachers to be team players and to contribute to the culture of collaboration within the school has been described as a key to the success of the school.

7. Demonstrating an Innovative, Risk-taking Orientation - Teachers who pursue a teaching position in a charter school are by the very nature of the mandate of a charter school, risk-takers and innovators. If we want our students to have an entrepreneurial spirit as learners, our teachers must be models and mentors of risk-taking and innovation.

8. Being Skillful in using Technology to Enhance Learning and Teaching - The Calgary Science School teachers embrace opportunities to use technology to enhance learning and teaching. The real measure is not the fact that every student has a laptop or iPad, or that there are Smart boards in every classroom; it is how technology is used as a learning and teaching tool. The student demonstration of their learning through such things as electronic portfolios, blogs, Google Docs, displays with QR codes and technology-enhanced research and presentations is the real measure.

9. Maintaining a Research Focus - In the Calgary Science School, the focus is on the science of learning which is embodied in the teaching of mathematics, science, the humanities, the fine and performing arts, environmental and outdoor education and in essence all aspects of the school learning experiences. Teachers are models and mentors of a disposition of inquiry and research practices.

10. Maintaining a Learning Focus - Teachers see themselves as learners. They embrace opportunities to become engaged in job-embedded professional development through the 16 days that are allocated in the school year calendar, opportunities to conduct their own personal research projects which are funded through the Calgary Science School Research and Innovation project, graduate coursework and a variety of other professional development experiences.

Certainly this list of desirable qualities of teachers, is not all-inclusive. During the past school year, students, parents and teaching staff members have been engaged in a process of making meaning of the unique aspects of learning and teaching in the Calgary Science School through the development of 16 descriptors of Exemplary Teaching and corresponding descriptors of Exemplary Learning. These documents serve as a framework for teacher recruitment, professional growth plans, teacher evaluation and professional development. I have attempted to identify the knowledge, skills and attributes that I would like to see among individuals entering the teaching profession. As well, I see them as essential for bringing about significant change in learning and teaching in our schools.

I believe that we are in a very exciting and certainly a very significant time in education in Alberta. We have seen the in-depth consultative process associated with Inspiring Education and Inspiring Action and most recently the open dialogue on education fostered by our new Minister of Education the Hon. Thomas Lukaszuk as he prepares to finalize the Education Act to be presented at the spring session of the legislature. The importance of hearing the student voice and focusing on authentically involving students as engaged thinkers, preparing them as ethical citizens and promoting an entrepreneurial spirit in learning and teaching has been highlighted through this process. It has been suggested that there is a need for a major shift in what we are doing in our schools as we establish Alberta as a leader as a knowledge society.

During the panel presentation, I made reference to the enthusiastic involvement of the eleven student teachers in the Calgary Science School this past semester and pointed out to the education students that they have an important role to serve as change agents. I also made reference to the many examples of exemplary learning and teaching, many of which have been highlighted in the Connect! blog, which cause me to feel very excited about the direction we are going as a charter school as we strive to develop a deeper understanding of what a transformation in education should look like. It was a good experience to share these ideas and dialogue with the group of future teachers at the University of Calgary and I look forward to continuing the dialogue through the Connect! blog.

Market Collective, A Big Hit!

noreply@blogger.com (Erin Couillard) — Fri, 23 Dec 2011 16:07:00 +0000

By Anton S (Student, 8.3)

Recently, grade eights embarked on a mission to complete graphic novels based on a list of short stories including Alice Munroe’s Day Of The Butterfly and Roald Dahl’s Lamb To The Slaughter. During the process of creating the graphic novels we were asked to convey the theme of the story through our illustrations. We were also asked to create graphic novels that draw in the reader through diverse paneling, the introduction of poetic language, and varying points of view. Although this process took over a month to complete the time and effort put into the project was well worth it.

At the end of the unit we were given the opportunity to present our exceptional creations to the City of Calgary. Specifically, the students were able to share their hard work at something called the Kensington Market Collective, which is a place where artists from all over Calgary come to display and sell their original artwork, jewelry, clothes, music and much more. Although we were not selling our novels, on Saturday, Dec. 10th the classes of 8.3 and 8.4 had a chance to showcase their graphic novels at the Kensington Market Collective. Overall, the booth representing our graphic novels at the market was a hit. During the all day session about 14 students took turns showing their work and explaining the process of making a graphic novel. Many came and went to see the wonderful graphic novels that our grade eight classes created. Having our work marked by teachers is nice but having our graphic novels appreciated by a wider community, many of whom were artists, is even better.

Students into Scientists

noreply@blogger.com (Neil Stephenson) — Thu, 22 Dec 2011 22:10:00 +0000

by Deirdre Bailey and Amy Park

It began with a conversation on how best to develop deep understanding of biological cycles. When we considered simply slicing fruit and vegetables in half and leaving them out in the open to observe the resulting changes, we never anticipated the smells, the new life, or the learning that would ensue.

The suggestion that we use Google Docs to facilitate collaboration and data management through the scientific process provided an excellent opportunity for introducing students to the incredible value of facilitating collaborative research and documentation through technology. See examples of our student work in Google Docs linked here.

From Day 1 to Day 12, our young scientists were engaged, excited, and passionate about their discoveries. Throughout the process, students developed deep understanding of decomposition, the scientific process, collaboration, problem solving, data analysis, and so much more.

The following video outlines the entire process and the amazing learning that resulted.

Verbal Assessments in Physical Education

noreply@blogger.com (Tammy Berry) — Wed, 21 Dec 2011 22:17:00 +0000

by Tammy Berry, PE Specialist

Mr. Schmeichel and I are in the process of working on improving on our reporting process by conducting verbal interviews with specific grades of Physical Education students every term.

Our focus questions are as follows:

1) How does an Interview / Conversation (recorded and shared) based Term Assessment allow the students a deeper understanding of the PE programs goals as well as their own areas of strength / areas for improvement?

2) How is this form of assessment and parent feedback a more effective means of communication (compared to the written term-ending comments) for parents with regards to their son/daughters’ progress in PE?

Why are we doing this in PE?

Ultimately many of the outcomes will relate directly to our daily practice as well as the students' experiences and learning. We want to become better teachers, better communicators, better at using technology and a variety of resources to further our practice. We want our students to be healthier, have a higher degree of fitness, and understand where they can improve and take advantage of their strengths on a daily basis. We want the parents to more fully understand their child’s progress as well as improve the communication between teacher-student-parent.

How will we know if we have achieved our goal?

When the feedback from the student, parent and teacher surveys come back and the data is compiled, we will get an understanding of the student/parent/teacher’s perspective on the value of this type of assessment as it relates to student understanding and parent communication.

We welcome your comments and feedback. Please email us at:

Dean Schmeichel or Tammy Berry.

Using the Model Method in Math Problem-solving

noreply@blogger.com (K. Sonico) — Wed, 21 Dec 2011 21:33:00 +0000

by Kevin Sonico

Mr. Cheng and I are conducting a research project in our classrooms on how using the model method or strategy in math improve students' problem-solving skills. Effectiveness of the method will be measured in the increased ability of students to solve word problems and enhanced confidence to communicate their thinking and process.

Students in Singapore are first taught the model method in the 3^rd grade. Hoven and Garelick (2007) stated that “[i]n Singapore, where 4^th and 8^th grade students consistently come in first on international math exams, students learn how to solve problems using the bar model technique.” They go on to write that “the bar modeling tool has taught [students] not only to solve math problems but also to represent them symbolically – the mainstay of algebraic reasoning.”

In choosing to teach this particular method or strategy, that is the model method, we are making problem-solving an integral part of the concept, rather than an add-on. Problem-solving scenarios bring context to the abstract nature of numbers, hopefully adding meaning to the curriculum. Content areas where the model method will be used are fraction, ratio, proportion, percents, and algebra.

For our study, we will document our use of the model method through the exploration of word and numerical problems (around the theme of proportional reasoning). Student progress throughout will be monitored with video journals, quizzes, surveys, interviews, and assignments.

In our years of teaching, we have not seen much evidence from student artifacts that show visual models for solving problems. Making it a focus will expose students to a new way of thinking and problem-solving. In addition, the visual method of teaching has been exclusive to the fractions unit in our practice. Expanding it to other curriculum/content areas encourages us to adapt new teaching strategies and techniques that we may not have previously employed.

We acknowledge that students learn in different ways. The model method argues that “through the construction of a pictorial model to represent the known and unknown quantities and their relationships in a problem, students gain better understanding of the problem and develop their abilities in mathematical thinking and problem-solving.” (Hong, K.T., et al., 2009). By explicitly teaching the model method, we are equipping students with another strategy to use in solving problems aside from the procedural and/or symbolic perspective.

Ultimately, the measure of success is improved confidence among students in solving word problems. As this study focuses on teaching the model method to solve problems, our goal is for students to be utilizing this strategy as a method for problem-solving or as an alternate way of verifying their solutions. Therefore, the number of students using the model method and the frequency with which they utilize the model will also serve as indicators of success. Rubrics will be in place to gauge students’ ability to solve problems.

Another expected outcome is the impact that teaching the model method will have on our teaching practice. If used extensively in the classroom, we will be able to observe the model method’s benefits as well as its limitations. We also hope that other teachers will begin to adapt or implement the model method in some capacity in their practice.

Feel free to contact me via email should you have some feedback or comments on our study. You may also choose to follow me on Twitter (@ksonico). We look forward to connecting with other teachers who use the model method or who are interested in using it in their practice.

Click here to read about other math ideas from the Calgary Science School.

References

Hoven, J. & Garelick, B. (2007) Singapore math: simple or complex?. Educational Leadership (vol. 65 no 3).

Hong, K.T., Mei, Y.S., & Lim, J. (2009). The Singapore Model Method for Learning Mathematics. Singapore: Panpac Education.

The Internet is NOT a Library

noreply@blogger.com (DAlden) — Wed, 21 Dec 2011 20:41:00 +0000

The Internet is truly not a library, and shouldn't be confused as one. Ask most students what a library is, and they inevitably offer a reply with the words books, information, borrow, etc. included. If you truly understand a library, which in its essence must have at the very minimum, these words- information, evaluated, selected, categorized and organized for access- then the clarification becomes obvious. In Siva Vaidhyanathan's 2010 publication The Googlization of Everything (And Why We Should Worry), he offers a very clear explanation of the mighty search engine (and everything else) we call "Google". The Internet and the dominant search engine of the day, is different in all respects from a library.

We need to ensure our students are aware of the many differences between the Internet and libraries. We don't need to "worry": our students need to be informed, and aware, of these differences, and develop competencies in searching, evaluating and selecting, recording, processing and synthesizing the information into knowledge from both online and print sources. And let's not forget, most libraries include access to the Internet, and online databases. It's not an either/or choice. Rather, it's an informed and integrated selection of the best resources for each specific information need, and best suited to who is doing the research- age, learning style, etc. all come into play. It definitely isn't a simple choice of library OR Internet. Our world is a complex, burgeoning world of information, non-information and misinformation. We, and our students, don't need to "worry" about that, we need to be informed, and astute consumers of information, from all sources.

The "Better" Life Strategy

noreply@blogger.com (K. Sonico) — Wed, 21 Dec 2011 18:38:00 +0000

by Kevin Sonico

After studying about different organelles that are present in cells and looking at examples of organisms under the microscope, students in Grade 8 explored the life cycle and life strategies of a unicellular and multicellular organisms. Through their research, students compared and contrasted these two different types of organisms. Students brainstormed on what content areas they could find out about each; these were a few of them: life cycle, life span, reproduction, examples of organisms. Several of them constructed graphic organizers like Venn diagrams and tables.

After collecting and researching, students were then prompted to write paragraphs on this question, "Which organism (unicellular or multicellular) has a "better" life strategy?" using the background research. Their arguments and the quality of them were entirely shaped by the quality of their research. When students seemed to struggle with providing strong arguments, they were urged to provide concrete examples, data, etc.

A pendulum debate followed where the two sides (unicellular vs. multicellular) provided their arguments and counter-arguments. A speaker from each side presented an argument then a rebuttal/counter-argument was made by the opposing side. Students were free to change their opinion/side as arguments and counter-arguments were presented - hence, the strength of one's arguments rested on the number of students you maintained or persuaded to change their opinion.

The ultimate goal of this activity was to acknowledge that despite the diversity that exists among organisms, there lies a common thread: that our need for survival shapes our life strategies and behaviour.

This was the students' first taste of the pendulum debate in Grade 8. This activity will later be used most extensively after this unit, following a persuasive essay on deciding which body system is the most important (to be explored in a later blog post).

You can read about other science projects here.

Cell image by RambergMediaImages

Hungry Countries Math Exploration

noreply@blogger.com (Erin Couillard) — Tue, 20 Dec 2011 22:38:00 +0000

by Erin Couillard

The last time I looped between grade 6 and 7, I noticed a gap existing in students understanding of equivalency and their ability to make connections between ratios, fractions, and decimals. This was after teaching the same group of students for two years, and placing a large emphasis on this strand. Through conversations with colleagues, we recognized that this is an area many students find challenging, in all grade levels. I began to think about other ways of teaching these concepts that would build a deeper, longer-lasting understanding.

While working in our Math lesson study with Galileo, a problem began to take shape where students would use fictitious countries (named Country A through I) which would each be assigned a number representing “People” and a number representing “Food Units”. Each country was assigned a people to food ratio where we purposefully built in combinations that would bring out student misconceptions (see the chart below). More about that in a minute.

In table groups, students were given a cup that contained the number of food and people present in their assigned country. This was represented by two different colors of tiles. Students had to decide, based on their population if their country was well fed or not. Groups then began to fill in a chart on the Smartboard and were asked, with their groups members, to rank the countries in order of best fed to worst fed. This generated a great deal of discussion within groups and as each group put their ranking up on the board, prepared to defend their choices. This is when the misconceptions began to appear. Students wrestled between countries C and G, finding it difficult to prove which country was better fed with their newly forming understanding of ratios.

Once a ranking was established that the entire class could agree with, students were asked to, using manipulatives, create a ‘twin country’ to each of the countries above that would have the same ratio of food to people, but a different population and to model this. Through this task, it was very apparent which students had a deep understanding of equivalency and who was able to represent their thinking concretely and pictorially. Students also began to generate other ways, besides using manipulatives of demonstrating and explaining equivalent ratios and fractions such as symbolic representation.

This problem led students into additional problems working more directly with fractions.

Country	People	Food
A	1	4
B	4	4
C	7	31
D	2	5
E	3	12
F	2	30
G	6	32
H	5	1
I	15	60

The Unexamined Life is Not Worth Living

noreply@blogger.com (Erin Couillard) — Wed, 14 Dec 2011 21:40:00 +0000

Rachelle Savoie is a teacher currently on leave from the Calgary Science School. She has taken a position teaching junior high humanities at the Canadian International School in Abu Dabi, United Arab Emirates.

The Unexamined Life is Not Worth Living

After working at CSS for almost 4 years, I had begun to take the act of questioning for granted. It is ingrained in our culture to question. It is what we base our charter on …inquiry.

However, historically, and in many educational institutions, questioning is not the predominant component of learning. In some cases it is not even encouraged. Upon arriving in the United Arab Emirates and meeting my students, I suddenly realized that many of them had been taught in schools where rote learning and memorization was the norm and questioning was a skill they had not developed.

This summer I had come across a resource called, 6 Hats of Thinking (see link below). Since September I have incorporated the 6 Hats of Thinking in various novel study activities, social studies assignments and current events discussions. This helped the students become comfortable with questioning and laid the ground work for a project I wanted to do for the grade 8 Renaissance unit.

Teaching the Renaissance is one of my favorite units in all the grades. The areas you can explore are endless and there are countless connections students can make to today. I was given an idea of a project a few years ago that I never got around to exploring, and because this year is all about trying new things, I thought it would be the perfect place to do it. This project has many of the elements that I believe all worthwhile learning needs to incorporate.

What I know about teaching and learning is it needs to be relevant, engaging and meaningful. During PD days at CSS we often grapple with how to accomplish this. One way we often talk about authentic learning is allow students to ‘become something’ through their work – that is become a mathematician, become an artist, become a historian. This allows students to realize that the work they are doing is something that people do in the real world. The student becomes part of the learning and becomes something through the learning, as opposed to the learning just happening to them. The project, “Becoming a Humanist,” is something I believe meets these criteria.

Humanism is one of the key ideas that grew from the Renaissance worldview; Questioning, Curiosity, Risk-taking, Learning (For those of you who work in an inquiry based school- sound familiar?). To introduce the project we watched a documentary about Socrates. Many conversations were sparked from it, one in which was around Socrates most famous quote, “The unexamined life is not worth living.” We started discussing why people believe the things that they do. We talked about how people hold many opinions, but wonder can people justify and explain their opinions? From there, students started asking questions about things they had always wondered. What transpired was an enthusiastic level of engagement that I strive to see every day in the classroom. All the work we put in at the beginning of the year on what makes a good question and what are different ways of thinking were starting to materialize.

One of the challenges, but also the liberating part of the discussions, was the fact I had no answers for them. What? A teacher who doesn’t know everything? Shocking, I know. The first part of the project, the part that I think is the most important part and the part I am focusing on in this blog post, was coming up with a question. I encouraged students to come up with a question that people are still searching for an answer to today, a question that many people hold different opinions about. When I started to give some suggestions, the students said, “Miss, if you tell us the question, then we are not being true humanists!” This is entirely correct, so I let them loose.

The next day they needed to have to have their question ready to share. All I can say is, wow! They came up with such insightful questions that I hadn’t even thought of. Questions like: Is it possible to become anything you want? Can dictators be good people? Is equality possible? What is fear? Can the world exist without war? Why do we have to lose something in order to realize how precious it was? Are you in control of what happens in your life? How do you know what you are doing is good? If many people believe something is true, is it?

We are starting the part of the project where they need to find an answer their question. This is requiring them to interview people (family members, teachers, experts) and do their own research. The questions they are examining are difficult and it is going to be a challenging journey to reach an answer that uses logic and reason. However, it is the process of questioning where the real learning is happening. I don’t expect them to be able to fully answer questions that people have been asking for hundreds of years. I am more interested in the process. They are living the life of a humanist; asking questions, having meaningful conversations and examining their own life. “Success is a journey, not a destination. The doing is often more important than the outcome.” –Arthur Ashe

Click to read about other Humanities projects from the Calgary Science School.

Thinking Picture from @boetter

Determining Historical Significance

noreply@blogger.com (Neil Stephenson) — Wed, 14 Dec 2011 20:53:00 +0000

Students in grade 7 Humanities are currently completing an assignment called 8 Events Leading to Confederation, adapted from the website http://historicalthinking.ca/.

Historical Significance Unit

Inquiry Question: What event is the most significant event in Canada pre-confederation?
This unit opened with a discussion on the difference between ‘the past’ and ‘history’. We examine many events, past and present, using the following criteria:

– The event had deep consequences for many people 
– The event affected many people 
– The consequences of this event lasted for a long period of time

We evaluated a variety of events including the Vancouver riots, 9/11, Expulsion of the Acadians and more, by creating inquiry questions that would help us to better understanding each event and their impact.

Students were then given 16 events in History to examine using the criteria. Students developed 3 inquiry questions for each event so they could better rate each event and its significance in comparison to other events. After this was complete, the group chose 8 events from the original 16 that they considered most significant based on their research and their ratings.

Next, all 16 events were then put on a timeline, but only the 8 most significant events were represented in image form. The most significant event was largest and the least significant was smallest on their timelines. This visual helped students see not only when these events occurred in comparison to other events, but that some events were occurring simultaneously for extended periods of time. This timeline changed some opinions after visually examining the duration of events in relation to other events in history.

After creating these timelines, students participated in a discussion jigsaw. Each person from their original group was assigned a new group. These new groups discussed the events they thought were most significant, and many individuals were surprised to find that their 8 events did not always match with other students’ choices. Many rich discussions came from this activity as students attempted to change each other’s minds about which events had deep, longer lasting consequences and which events impacted more people. I was impressed with the deep understanding they had acquired while meeting with their original groups. By the end of this discussion, students were to come to a consensus on the 8 most significant events. This proved to be very difficult as many individuals felt strongly about the events they originally chose.

Students then chose an event they would most like to learn more about. They were assigned an event with 2-3 other students who had similar interests. The goal of this next project is to learn about events in more depth and share their knowledge with the class, using the following guiding questions:

What was the event, conflict or disagreement?
What factors led to this event, conflict or disagreement?
What impact did this event and/or conflict have on other events we have studied?
What was at stake for all parties involved?
How would each of the three major groups (French, British, First Nations) be impacted by this event?
Using the criteria for historical significance, explain how this event had a deep and long lasting impact on the future of the country.
What if this event had not occurred? What if the results were different?

Inquiring into Waste and Our World

noreply@blogger.com (Deirdre Bailey) — Wed, 14 Dec 2011 00:53:00 +0000

by Deirdre Bailey and Amy Park

Our Grade 4 classes have spent the past three months inquiring into the topic of "Waste and Our World" with the goal of developing an appreciation and understanding of their roles and responsibilities as global citizens of this environmentally fragile and increasingly endangered planet. We had hoped that our inquiry would help students feel empowered to sustain environmentally conscious action as part of their everyday lives.

Our first mission was to collect garbage from the school ground. Students were shocked to discover that we had collected over 4lbs of lunch-related waste in one day and that this amount was repeated by the following class the next day! This activity made it clear that action for the environment was needed and could have a very real effect in our immediate community. As a group, we concluded that one minute public service announcements highlighting a need for change in our daily practices would be the best way to inform our school peers and inspire action.

In order to build understanding and knowledge prior to designing their PSA's, students worked through a variety of tasks which included:

creating a decomposition timeline using human waste collected in the immediate area
discussing the composition of various human waste items and the factors affecting their breakdown
digitally documenting human waste samples from our school grounds
completing a retrieval chart with hypotheses on their specimen's origin and ultimate destination

Once students had a good understanding of the impact our human waste can have on the environment, we turned our attention to natural waste and consideration of how our natural world discards, reuses and recycles. As part of our exploration we:

explored the Weaselhead Natural Area digitally documenting natural waste samples
completed a retrieval chart with hypotheses on their origin and ultimate destination
connected with two expert speakers, one from the Centre for Affordable Water and Sanitation Technology, and Pat Allen, from Worms@Work

Armed with a new understanding of how human and natural waste fit in our world, students watched some exemplar PSAs and advertisements aimed at communicating powerful environmental messages. We then worked together to build a rubric outlining what exemplary work might look like!

CATEGORIES	Lots to improve, keep working/trying. (Kindergarten-ish)	You’re okay but...	Good job, met expectations	Excellent! *THIS IS YOUR TARGET!!!*
Content Research	Boring and meaningless facts! Used only a single source. Copied!	Partially researched, lacking information, “is that it?” incomplete	Well researched, descriptive, relevant.	Interesting and helpful facts! Engaging! Has obviously used multiple sources. Original and in own words.
Content Script	Uses “tired” words. Lacks description. Information is unclear. Off topic and confusing. Unconvincing. Audience is bored...	Unconvincing, “I’m confused”	Sufficient, concise, competent, clear message.	Uses juicy words. Descriptive. Is clear on the facts. On topic and makes sense. Persuasive. Exciting - captivates the audience’s attention.
Images	Inappropriate, fuzzy, irrelevant, unrealistic, doesn’t go with the subject/script/topic	Unpleasant, may not be appropriate to message	Appropriate, pleasing, satisfying	Realistic! Relevant! Memorable! Detailed! Appropriate! Clear! Interesting!
Voice	Lacks expression, boring, mumbly, too quiet or too loud, “notalkinglikethis” and “no.... talking.... like.... this.....”	A little mumbly, a hard time following, needs practice	Clear, nice, good expression.	Lots of expression, enthusiastic, good volume, enunciated well, speaks at a great pace
Groupwork	Making one person do all the work, “me first”, arguing, fighting, using only one person’s idea, nobody is cooperating, bossing, all talking at once, “my idea is better”, not sharing	Inefficient, needs help and support, argumentative	Nice to people, shares, demonstrates positive body language	Cooperative, inclusive, everybody has a voice, communicative, compromising, taking turns, incorporating everyone’s ideas, on task, “you first” mentality

FInally, students supplemented what they had learned with the info on their retrieval sheets and internet resources to create one-page storyboards communicating their ideas effectively and concisely. Once their storyboards had been approved, they worked in collaborative groups to add voice to their own images creating short movies highlighting differences between human and natural waste and the impact they both have on our world.

Students had the opportunity to showcase their first products in front of their classmates, after which they were provided with constructive feedback that was related to the rubric and based on the work. Throughout this process, students learned how to give feedback as well as how to receive it, and use it to improve. They were able to learn by reflecting on the work they and their classmates had created, and were then given an opportunity to use what they'd learned to refine their final movie project.

Here's an overview of the process:

Of the 22 projects, our group selected the best of the best to represent our learning and the message we hope to convey. Please help us get the word out by commenting below, sharing your feedback and your ideas on how we might be able to share these with a broader audience. Thanks for listening!

Student Exemplar 1: Nature Killers!

Student Exemplar 2: Think About the Future

See more examples of student PSAs here

These Kids Get It!

noreply@blogger.com (Neil Stephenson) — Tue, 13 Dec 2011 23:00:00 +0000

by Deirdre Bailey

Today was amazing for a number of reasons.

We finished our decomposition lab this morning. It had been an enlightening few weeks of learning what becomes of a perishable food, halved and left in the open for three weeks. Some awesome things happen to rotting fruit after it starts to smell, not least of which are fluid loss and bacteria growth. This morning, the tomato had given birth to a new family of fruit flies, all of whom remained happily trapped under the wrapping as our young scientists whooped victoriously while pressing their faces to the creeping mass of molding vegetable.

As today was the last day of our lab, we were burying our specimens in dirt with plans to test soil content and plant growth in the New Year. Most students were happy to put an end to an experiment that was becoming increasingly hard on the stomach, however one group in particular stood out as they proceeded solemnly to the dirt pile with their specimen, chanting the name "Alfred" in melancholic tones. "Aaaaalfreeed, life won't be the same without your stink... Aaaaalfreeeed, you taught us a lot about mould.... Aaaaalreed, we are going to bury you so you can grow a plant..." Alfred was their cucumber.

When I think back to the things I remember from Grade 4, I struggle to recall anything memorable outside of field experiences, Christmas holidays and family trips to Ireland. I imagine however, that if I had spent two weeks watching Alfred shrink, stink, and give birth to fruit flies, that I would remember Alfred. As adults, we seem to spend a tremendous amount of time discussing, warning and lecturing without experiencing and we forget so easily that our most powerful inspirations to date will have almost exclusively resulted from actual emotional experiences.

After lunch we had a presenter come and talk about endangered species in North America, specifically wolves. She asked the kids a number of questions which they were eager to answer, one of which was about why maintaining the wolf population was of benefit to trees. Thirty plus hands went up.

"Because the nutrients in their poop help build rich soil for plant growth..."

"Because they eat animals which would destroy the trees in larger quantities..."

"Because they sometimes eat plants and poop the seeds which helps distribute the growth..."

Three months exploring the Weaselhead and connecting online in order to develop meaningful videos highlighting local natural waste and its place in our ecosystem had paid off. Natural organisms have a place in the wild, these kids had seen it. "Wow, you guys really get it" was our presenter's response. "I have this conversation all the time with adults and it is hard for them to understand how wolves are connected to the trees."

"EVERYthing is connected to the trees!" was one indignant reply. Followed by:

"..those adults, you have to explain a lot of things to them, there's so much they just don't understand..."

We learned a lot about native species in Alberta in 45 minutes. We learned a worrying amount about what our government says they're doing to protect them, as even to 9 year olds, many of their policies appear outdated and nonsensical. I gave the students sticky notes at the end of the presentation to jot ideas and questions about our current Endangered Species Act, what's working and what we should change. One student kept coming back for more notes... "Three's the limit right Mrs. Bailey? I can only have three ideas?" Who told this kid and at what point in his life that he could only have three ideas? He wants to write to the government on behalf of every one of the 13 male sage grouse left in our province. Then he wants to tell them that shooting wolves won't save cariboo, that Little Red Riding Hood was a liar, that wolves aren't the bad guys. He also wants to tell them to forget about the oil in the ground on the Blood Tribe land and just re-introduce the Swift Fox population the way they'd planned in 1973 and that they should be ashamed they've waited so long. He's got classmates on board.

Adults should remember that it's that simple. Kids are already curious and creative. They want to explore things and find out what's happening. Nothing about who they are is average, obedient or passive. All that is left to us, is to foster an awareness of the possibilities that surround them, to allow them to explore and then to get out of the way. Let them ask questions, make decisions, be different. There's more to their futures than resigned consumption and obedience.

Click here to read about other science projects from the Calgary Science School.

Goodbyes

noreply@blogger.com (Neil Stephenson) — Tue, 13 Dec 2011 20:43:00 +0000

Guest post from Calgary Science School student teacher, Mariana Sanchez.

(Cross posted on Mariana's blog)

December 2nd was my official last day as a student teacher. The last day was a total whirlwind! I felt like I was running all over the place trying to get our last minute labs organized while I was trying not to focus on the fact that it was our last day.

It’s so hard to think that I won’t get to go to the school everyday. The group of students went from being a group of kids to my kids. I’ve grown attached to all of them and I will miss them! If I had any doubt about being a teacher I now have 50 extra reasons of why I want to keep teaching. Having the ability to inspire someone to push themselves to excellence or to get them to keep going when they want to give up is something not to be taken lightly. To have a student say that I’ve made their day, is amazing. It’s not something that I can just walk away from.

As much as I taught them about algebra and integers-they taught me about patience and acceptance. They waited calmly as I sometimes stuttered and fumbled through material. I will always remember my very first lesson when I said I was nervous and they all started to clap for me, and told me I would do just fine. I got the impression that they were thinking, ‘we’ll make a teacher out of you, don’t worry.’ The students were so encouraging after the first couple lessons and would tell me I did a good job and that they learned something (even though I’m pretty sure it was a review)

It will be hard to leave the school community too. The whole staff was supportive of us. When we were having questions about assessment one of the teachers started a “Lunch and Learn” where we could bring any questions about school and she would help us work through them. We had questions about portfolios and social networking and got a crash course in how to set up Twitter and Blogs. I had a question about how to use algebra tiles and we got a mini tutorial. Even when we were trying to write our proposal for a conference coming up we got extra help and got ideas from the conversations we were having in the staffroom. I felt like everything was open to us and they didn’t hold back any knowledge from us. This had a huge impact on my experience this year!

I am glad that I can keep volunteering in different areas at the school. The only hard part will be trying to balance this with my own classes and work. I don’t think I’m quite ready to leave the school yet and the learning/teaching environment they have built. There is still more learning to be done!

Mixing the Real and the Virtual

noreply@blogger.com (Neil Stephenson) — Fri, 09 Dec 2011 22:28:00 +0000

As written in a previous post, one of our teachers, Dan McWilliam has been playing with augmented reality in his wood shop elective class.

As a new semester begins - students can now visualize how their designs will appear in the real world. And even go so far as to place themselves digitally beside their 3D designs as this student has done with their chair design..

Demonstrating Understanding through Pixton

noreply@blogger.com (David Scott) — Thu, 08 Dec 2011 15:27:00 +0000

This term the Grade 8 Humanities team has been experimenting with creative ways for students to demonstrate their comprehension of key concepts and ideas surrounding the Italian Renaissance.

Informed by Wiggins and McTighe's Understanding by Design, we are interested in shifting the focus of learning from students memorizing isolated bits of information to designing tasks that require performances of learning that show deep understanding of concepts and big ideas encountered over the course of a unit.

For Wiggins and McTighe understanding can be divided into six facets including:

explanation
interpretation
application
perspective
empathy
self knowledge

Searching for mediums that would allow students to explain their understanding of events and developments that make up the Italian Renaissance, recently we have been exploring the potential of the digital story-telling medium Pixton to achieve this end. (Another project using Pixton to create graphic novels based on short stories can be found here.)

We felt Pixton had significant potential for gives students the freedom to design their own comic characters and add real life backgrounds, we felt this would be an ideal medium for students to be both creative while also showing deep understanding of events and developments associated with the Renaissance.

As we set out on our study of the Renaissance we wanted to highlight for students that the Renaissance can not be reduced to one simple definition; in fact it can be understood as a whole series of developments and changes that occurred over a long period of time.

After supplying our students with a series of resources to draw from, the task we devised for this performance of understanding was as follows:

Within a group of five choose one of the developments associated with the Italian Renaissance. To show your understanding of this development, using the program Pixton create a one page comic explaining how your topic responds to the question: What was the Italian Renaissance?

Your Renaissance comic will be evaluated on how clearly and concisely you are able to communicate the most important elements of your topic, your ability to bring in supporting details from your research including quotes and other specific facts and information, and how free of errors your comic is in terms of spelling, grammar, and punctuation.

The topic areas are as follows:
A period of rebuilding and renewal after the devastation and destruction of the 14th century
A period of rebirth of Greek and Roman thought and styles that provided a model for all aspects of life including art, writing, architecture, and politics
A spirit of Humanism that put man and his potential at the centre of life and learning
A time of great artistic activity and innovation
A spirit of discovery and scientific inquiry into the inner workings of nature and the world
Here are some examples of student work that followed from this task:

"Building a Culture of Inquiry"

noreply@blogger.com (Neil Stephenson) — Wed, 07 Dec 2011 23:32:00 +0000

Tomorrow morning one of our staff, Neil Stephenson, has been asked to deliver a presentation to the Ministry of Education in Halifax about inquiry at the Calgary Science School.

Here's the slide deck created for the presentation:

The "Qualities of Strong Inquiry-Based Work" comes from a modified version of the Inquiry Rubric created by the Galileo Educational Network.

The Expert in the Classroom

noreply@blogger.com (Ivy Waite) — Wed, 07 Dec 2011 18:20:00 +0000

By Ivy Waite

It is so amazing to come to work and know that you have a team of people ready to support you. While I do still have days where I feel overwhelmed, I know that I will pull through alright. How can you drown in a pool full of life preservers?

This term I am so thrilled to be able to collaborate with an expert in my drama elective. Caroline Murray is an amazing arts educator, and has joined the CSS team to work with me regularly to ensure that I am delivering the best possible fine arts education to my students in a drama elective. On our first day working together she walked in ten minutes before class, and together we brainstormed a lesson that had students focused on using their bodies as tools with which they can powerfully communicate. Next we extended the activity through a silent characterization lesson... After several successful lessons together, including one which saw 48 students in grades 7, 8 and 9 improvise silently for over an hour, and a couple more planning sessions, I am amazed at what is happening in the class! (Watch for my future post on student engagement for more details on the project: Getting Dramatically Engaged).

Similarly, Jaime and I, and our students, had the opportunity to collaborate with experts in our immigration unit. The Calgary Catholic Immigration Society (CCIS) provided our students with an authentic connection to people going through the process of immigrating to Canada. Students conducted two interviews with English students from CCIS and created digital stories to share the journey that each person had taken to get to Canada. The results were moving and emotional to view, and truly demonstrated exemplary learning. They were able to understand the curriculum on a much more human level, and the understanding that they gained of the content was human, deep, and authentic. Watch for a future post outlining the project!

Working with experts allows both teachers and students to gain a more complete understanding of curricular outcomes and more. I look forward to having Shannon Mitchell-Flek, our school-counsellor, in to work with my class in health; exploring the idea of working with the Learning Through the Arts program; and beginning work on a sustainability forum idea with Jaime, the rest of our grade 9 team, and Erin Couillard.

I love this place!

ConnectED Canada is Coming to CSS!

noreply@blogger.com (Neil Stephenson) — Wed, 07 Dec 2011 12:36:00 +0000

In May 2012, a new annual Canadian educational conference is starting and the Calgary Science School has been asked to be the first host! This exciting event will be taking place at our school May 25-27, 2012.

ConnectED Canada will be a yearly educational event that brings together teachers, administrators, students, parents and other stakeholders with the purpose of sharing innovative practices and building a national collaborative network.

Rather than traditional conferences which are usual held at hotels of off-site conference centres, ConnectED Canada will be held in different schools across the country each year . The purpose of hosting the event in a school is to allow participants to experience living examples of innovative practices and classrooms. Hosting it in a school also allows for a student voice to be included - a key element of ConnectED Canada.

Additionally, as opposed to more presentation-driven professional conferences, ConnectED Canada will be built around conversations and discussions. The event will provide time and space for educators, students and parents to discuss various topics, share current practices and ideas and built relationships that will extend beyond the three days.

Are you interested in hosting a discussion?

Right now we are collecting proposal for conversation topics that attendees would like to facilitate. If you are interested in facilitating a discussion, please complete this form.

ConnectED Canada will be accepting proposals until December 8th, 2011. Those who submit proposals will be notified by December 22nd.

General registration for the event will begin in early 2012. Due to the limited size of our school, we are capping the event at 300 participants.

For more information contact George Couros or Neil Stephenson.

And be sure to spread the word!

See you in May!

Hand image: cc licensed ( BY ) flickr photo shared by cogdogblog

The Gift of Team Teaching

noreply@blogger.com (Neil Stephenson) — Tue, 06 Dec 2011 22:14:00 +0000

by Candice Shaw, Grade 7 Math/Science Teacher

As a teacher with 2 full years of experience, I acknowledge that I have learned a tremendous amount in those years, much more than University education could ever teach me. However, I know that I have even more to learn in order to better my practice.

I graduated from University in 2008, so my education is fairly recent. This means that I was taught in the ways of current pedagogy, such as practices in inquiry and constructivism. These principles are ingrained in how I teach and develop activities for students. I have not needed to learn another way of teaching, but just simply how to further develop my skills in this current practice.

As part of my professional goals this year, I am focused on reciprocal collaboration with colleagues, as well as keeping my practice innovative and current. Recently, I stumbled upon the most effective professional development opportunity to date: team teaching.

To date, I have been involved in 2 team teaching lessons. The first lesson was with my Humanities partner, working on research skills, reading strategies and writing of factual information in students' own words. The second lesson was with my Math/Science partner, in order to have our students "think like mathematicians", focusing on building a mathematical community and providing clear mathematical communication of ideas.

The process of planning and assessing collaboratively and delivering a lesson with a colleague is a powerful experience in learning, for both teachers and students. I have discovered that team teaching provides many professional development opportunities, such as:

Observing and reflecting upon colleagues' teaching styles, routines and methods, especially when they are different from my own.
Receiving positive and constructive feedback from colleagues on my own teaching and delivery of lessons.
Collaboratively planning more authentic and engaging questions and lessons.
Improving my enthusiasm for topics through brainstorming and discussion with colleagues.
Improving my knowledge of new topics through discussion with colleagues.
Ensuring teacher expectations and assessment are consistent for all classes and students.

Student learning is also enhanced by the team teaching experience. After our math lesson, students reported that they enjoyed working with another teacher and learning different ways to complete the same math procedures that were already taught. They were able to share with peers from other classes and it was reassuring when their ideas corresponded. It was a novel experience for them to work with another teacher and different peers, so attention and engagement were generally high throughout the activities.

I have discovered that team teaching is an absolutely invaluable experience for my professional development. Many of the barriers to participating in PD are overcome. Time is not taken away from teaching, although the planning stages require more time investment than solo planning.

Team teaching allows for observational opportunities of other teaching styles and approaches in an authentic setting. It is engaging and active for all participants, and feedback is relevant to actual teaching practice. Team teaching allows for skilled to be practiced and improved through reflection, rather than PD where you are 'told' how to improve your practice.

I have found that all of the stages of the process, including planning, teaching and assessment, offer valuable learning opportunities. Of course, the real value of team teaching will be in the continued collaboration and reflection between colleagues in order to further shape and extend teaching practice.

Creating Graphic Novels 2.0

noreply@blogger.com (Neil Stephenson) — Tue, 06 Dec 2011 20:01:00 +0000

Over the last few weeks grade eight Humanities students have been working hard to author their very own graphic novels based on a list of selected short stories including Alice Munro's Day of the Butterfly and Roald Dahl's Lamb to the Slaughter.

Inspired by Larry Lessig's Ted Talk arguing for the revival of our creative culture, our goal was to get students creating, rather than just consuming graphic novels. To this end, we structured the learning in a way where they would be introduced to modes of thinking and creating practiced by graphic novelists in the real world.

As part of this process, students learned to construct the important elements of graphic novels:

• paneling (storyboarding)
• varying point of view
• moving the story forward through images
• working with dialogue and captions
• flow/sequencing
• creating mood and
• incorporating elements of theme

This was the second year that our grade 8 students have worked on the Graphic Novel project. Learning from our first experience with the project last year, we made a number of changes that resulted in stronger student-created graphic novels with more interesting paneling, greater demonstrations of perspective and visual innovations that did a far better job of capturing the idea of theme within their short story.

Learning from last year we:

• Used the more manageable genre of short stories instead of novels

• Brought in professional graphic novelists to offer guidance and advice
• Discussed and analyzed more real world exemplars of graphic novels
• Provided more strategies on how to visually tell a story in a compelling way

Here is one of the student created Graphic Novels:

We believe that this project encompasses numerous facets of authentic inquiry-based learning including:

Connecting with the Experts

In order to expose students to how professional graphic novelists incorporate these elements in their own work, we invited a local graphic novelist, Justin Scott, to present to our students. In the video below Justin speaks to a number of important aspects in creating a graphic novel:

Integrating Technology in the Classroom

Students were given the freedom to create their graphic novel in a medium of their choice including using the comic-making website Pixton or drawing it on their own. This video from Pixton does a great job of explaining the technology our students used to demonstrate their learning!

Showcasing Student Work

In an attempt to validate all the hard work students put into this project we provided students with a space to showcase their work. Now that the graphic novels are finished, we are teaming up with the Kensington Market Collective to give our students an opportunity to display their work to thousands of Calgarians. At the same time, our students will be able to teach Calgarians what they learned about graphic novels so they can make their own!

Building Deep Understanding

Learning from the structure of the project last year, we made choices to focus more on building students’ understanding of the literary elements that point to the theme of a story including poetic devices and the central conflict. Further, we embedded additional discussions around compelling examples of graphic novels and explored the different ways that graphic novelists create mood and develop characterization. Through this process students created more effective graphic novels as well as developing greater understanding of the different elements of short stories. This short video shares one of the grade 8 students commentary on how they created mood and visually represented the theme of the short story in their graphic novel:

Providing Formative Feedback Loops

The final piece of the puzzle is to provide students with meaningful guidance at key stages in the creative process. As a part of a formative feedback loop, students received extensive praise/criticism for their graphic novel rough drafts. Students then had the opportunity to consider the feedback and make appropriate changes. At the end of the project they were asked to demonstrate how they enhanced the project based on the feedback they received. The Podcast below is an example of type of discussions that were embedded throughout the project:

Overall we were extremely pleased with the quality of the student work, as well as the engagement and buy-in demonstrated by students.

Here’s a final example of a student-created Graphic Novel: