When I started to get interested in integrating technology into my teaching and learning I kept hearing about how the conversations and making connections were a big part of it. My friend Chris encouraged me to start blogging and to be honest I couldn’t understand why I would do it. I thought that by blogging I would be like one of those people who like I the sound of their own voice so to speak. You know the type. Well I began anyways just to see where it would take me. Well it took an interesting turn this past weekend. I had the most unusual response to a blog post ever. I got a phone call. I was really shocked when I listened to the message. The voice at the other end had read something I posted and wanted to post it on his site and asked me to write for him in the future. We share a common interest and goal. And there it is: making connections and conversations.
Every semester I have my students choose an ethical issue that is of interest to them and they complete a project on it. The project has consisted of a written report and a presentation to the class. I decided to change things up a bit this semester. Instead of the usual typed, double-spaced two page report and a presentation, usually on PowerPoint, which is usually a lot of text being read word for word from the screen, I had them do something a little different. I am learning more and more that knowledge is easy to access these days. So I am making an effort to structure my assignments so that students must do something with the knowledge they have easy access to. So this time I asked them to write a simple article on their issue of choice. This article was to be similar to an entry in Wikipedia. I called the assignment Catholicpedia and they were to put their article on our class wiki. However, it was the presentation that I wanted to be the focus of this assignment. Students were advised not to use their article for their presentation. They were told there was to be no reading. They were told that they were to present their issue in a creative manner of their choosing. And it was my hope that they would incorporate the use of technology in some way. They were to create a presentation that would leave an impression, not one that would be forgotten as soon as it was completed. The first two groups presented and twelve hours later I am still thinking about what they have created. Mission accomplished. The first group took their issue, capital punishment, and created a radio broadcast of a panel discussion on the issue. Part of their broadcast was a “call-in” segment in which the students in the class could ask questions and make comments. Wish I had recorded it! At any rate here is the audio file. I hope you’ll have a listen. Capital Punishment Radio
The second group created a video using a digital camera to illustrate how little, it would seem, that people know about stem cell research. The quality of the editing, I thought , was quite well done.
I wanted to post this group’s video as well. Their topic was child labour and I wanted to show their video because I think it demonstrates the kind of things I spoke about in another post. My students in this video point out that the labour practices of the supplier of our school’s uniform is somewhat suspect as they refuse to disclose the location of their production sites.
Last school year I took what I learned from the K12 Online Conference and put it into action. I sought out a teacher who would be willing to join me in an online collaborative project and we used a wiki and a blog with our two classes. The students were very excited to be working with a group of students on the other side of the ocean and one of my students remarked that she was motivated to work hard on this project because of the global audience who would be watching via the web. I recently bumped into one of my students from that class who has now graduated and she asked me if I was doing another “wiki project” because she thought it was “so cool.” As a teacher you wonder what they will remember once they have left you. I am confident that the students who engaged in this project will remember this learning experience they had in my class.
But to get to my former student’s question about whether or not I am doing another “wiki project” the answer is I sure hope so! To that end, I had been thinking about a way to connect with teachers who would be willing to join me and my students in a collaborative adventure. So to try and establish some connections with Catholic teachers who would be interested in giving their students a learning opportunity like the one my students had I have set up a place for developing a community of Catholic Teachers Online. It is a wiki that I have set up to allow you to let the Catholic education community who you are, your grade/level, subject area, and to start conversations with other Catholic educators that would be interested in making a connection. I hope we can build a community of educators who are brave enough to step outside the box and start something new and exciting for their students.
To close up the Flat Planet Project Neil and I were interviewed by Chris Betcher for his Virtual Staffroom Podcast. We had a great conversation about the project and web 2.0 in general and the incorporation of technology into the classroom. When thinking about our conversation it made us realize that the world really is flat considering this was a three-way conversation between three educators on three different continents. I’m sure Neil and I will be thinking and talking about what we will do next. Furthermore, we would like you to join us. We would love for our next collaborative project to reach beyond our two countries. It would be great to have a third or even fourth country/continent join us for the next project. After all, as I have said before the word catholic means universal and we would like to make our next project a truly catholic one.
Well I have been away from my blog for the past couple of weeks while I devoted my time to the Flat Planet Project that my class collaborated in with Neil’s class in London, England. In this post I will share my reflections on the project.
I first got interested in online collaborative projects and using wikis and blogs last autumn when I “attended” the K12 Online Conference. I viewed presentations on wikis by Vicki Davis and Mark Wagner, and one on collaborative learning projects by Sharon Peters. These really motivated me (along with many other presentations “there”) to explore Web 2.0 tools and to think about how I could improve my students’ classroom experience with these tools.
The thing that struck me most about the project was the level of engagement I saw. As soon as my class got into the computer lab they eagerly got to work on their task. My other grade 12 class were doing the traditional project that I have previously done with this course and they have needed the traditional reminders about not playing games etc. while in the computer lab. I am amazed by some of the things that the students have done with their project pages. One of my students said the fact that we had a global audience was motivation for her to work hard on this project. Another student’s jaw dropped when I told them that they would be partnered with a class in England for this project and she said “that is so cool.”
And now for a shameless plug. I got an email from one of the guys who runs the Wikispaces website. He said, “Your space is a great example of trends we’ve been noticing in education.” And with that he told me that the Flat Planet Project had been named the Wikispaces Space of the Month for April. There are over 25,000 education wikis on this site.
Neil and I have already begun to discuss where we will go from here. We would love to include another class, or two, for another Catholic collaborative project. We would like to perhaps include a class from Australia and Africa. After all the word catholic means universal! If you are a Catholic religious education teacher (anywhere really) and would be interested in collaborating Neil and I would love to hear from you. Please leave a comment.
Well after a few months of planning and discussions the Flat Planet Project is under way. A few months ago I contacted fellow religious education teacher and edublogger Neil and asked if he would be interested in joining my class in an online collaborative project. He jumped enthusiastically on board with the idea and has done a great deal of work to get this project going. (Thanks Neil). I must say even though I searched him out to engage in this process I was a bit worried about how my students would responsd to the idea. Would they be willing to work with a class in a different country, who were 2 years younger than them (this is a big deal when you’re 17/18)? But I must say that since the project was introduced the students have been very keen, enthusiastic, and engaged in the whole process. Today I was talking about the project with some of my students and I told them about some of the places that the wiki and the blog have had hits from and they said they felt a lot of pressure to do well on it because of the global audience, and the judges who will be participating. They also said that this was motivating them to do well. Furthermore, they said it was “exciting”! Ah, now that’s music to my ears!
Wow! You are awesome! You are a true Biblical scholar, not just a hearer but a personal reader! The books, the characters, the events, the verses – you know it all! You are fantastic!
When I was studying Scripture in university my Irish Catholic mother would say “we were brought up thinking the Bible was for Protestants!” Not an uncommon attitude for many Catholic (be they Irish or Italian or miscellanious). So how is your Bible knowledge?!?!
“Marge, you can save more souls with roller blades and Easy-Bake Ovens than with this two-thousand page sleeping pill.”
You are Roman Catholic. Church tradition and ecclesial authority are hugely important, and the most important part of worship for you is mass. As the Mother of God, Mary is important in your theology, and as the communion of saints includes the living and the dead, you can also ask the saints to intercede for you.
I took my Gr. 11 World Religions class on a filed trip to a Synagogue, a Hindu Temple, and a Buddhist Temple. It was a great experience for the students and for myself to see the things we discuss in class come to life. There is only so much you can do in a classroom, but this field trip made what we are studying seem more real for the kids. One of the presenters struck what I thought was an important chord for all of us in the west (he was the leader of the Hindu temple). He discussed how we tend in the west to forget or ignore our spiritual life, much to our peril, and how we tend to focus on the material world. I am glad that I have the opportunity to discuss matters of spirituality and nurture in my students the understanding that they are more than just carbon and water. I came across an interesting article that discussed the decision by Harvard University to drop a proposed mandatory religion course for its students. (Kind of ironic considering the school was opened as a seminary!). I think this is unfortunate, however, they are going to require a course on what it means to be human which will include religion. At least that’s a start.
Christmas is a popular time of year for heading out to catch the latest releases on the silver screen. This Christmas Hollywood has produced a film for those of us who lean toward the “Christmas has lost its meaning” side. The Nativity Story has opened to mixed reviews but I am sure the faithful will turn out in large numbers (though perhaps not as big as the crowds that turned out for Mel Gibson’s The Passion of the Christ). Can anyone else see the irony here? My hat is off to Hollywood for trying to mend fences with Christians/organized religion! What’s that? They’re just in it for the money? The devil you say! See the trailer below.
Just a footnote, I came across a review/Mariology lesson by Fr. Angelo Geiger in response the film The Nativity Story. He in general liked the film but took issue with the portrayal of the Blessed Virgin Mary. You can read his review of the film here.
I came across the film A Distant Thunder quite by accident. It is a short (35 minutes) film that looks at the abortion issue. It hasn’t received any notable press coverage. Big surprise there.
anyways just to see where it would take me. Well it took an interesting turn this past weekend. I had the most unusual response to a blog post ever. I got a phone call. I was really shocked when I listened to the message. The voice at the other end had read something I posted and wanted to post it on his site and asked me to write for him in the future. We share a common interest and goal. And there it is: making connections and conversations.
