Tags
Categories
A little anonymity can be a beautiful thing
February 9th, 2010 by dbarker
But not too much!
This semester, I’m teaching media for the first time. To say that I love it would be an understatement. I am indebted to my friend Andrew for his wonderful lesson plans. To say that he loves this course would also be an understatement. I’m also working collaboratively with Jamie Weir, a fantastic and innovative teacher in Listowel,Ontario. While our courses are not identical, we are flexible and I liken the our collaboration to jazz improvisation. The coolest part about our collaboration is that our students are members of a ning and a wiki where they are able to connect and share ideas.
And now to get to the subject of this post: Anonymity. In order to participate on the ning, students need to display the same level of respect and civility that we require them to display in class. Now, I don’t want to jinx myself, but so far so good. In fact, when I read the comments students write on each others’ blogs, I’m pleasantly surprised to find that they are not just civil and polite, but kind and friendly. I know that there is a common belief that the anonymity (or false sense of anonymity) provided by the internet promotes bullying and other types of antisocial behaviour. All you have to do is check out a youtube post or an online version of a newspaper article to see that.
On the other hand, a little anonymity can be a good thing because while students know that their comments are being tracked by their teachers, they also seem to be more willing to take positive risks that they may not take face to face. See the exchange below between a student in my class and students in Ms. Weir’s class (I’ve blanked out last names and faces).
It’s funny to me that they’re discussing (among other things) the idea that technology creates a barrier to connections and yet without technology, they’d likely have never had this discussion.That seems like a nice note to end on.
Posted in classroom practice, reflection, technoculture, technology | tagged anonymity, blogging, collaboration, kindness, ning | | 2 Comments
Welcome to the Fortress of Solitude
February 2nd, 2010 by dbarker
Looking for a little help from my PLN on this one before my frustration reaches a fever pitch.
I am not a techie. I’m aware. I have only the vaguest understanding of how computers and wireless networks …. well…. work. But I do know this: It is a darn shame–nay an embarrassment–to have a wireless network installed in a school for the specific purpose of enabling students access to the internet that students can’t access. Please imagine, if you will, the sad student holding her ipod touch aloft and looking longingly at the wireless router hanging above her head. Cue strings.
Anyway.
So we have a wireless network installed in the school. Its purpose is student access. But students are not allowed to access it.
I asked our CSA why and he said that it’s not secure enough. A student could, in his words, find a way to hack a teacher password and then they’d have access to EVERYTHING! (Which makes me wonder what dangerous and exciting things I have access to! Evil laughter….)
Ms. Barker: (showing off stylish shoes and batting eyelashes) But… couldn’t they do that on one of the computers in the library lab?
Mr.CSA: Yes, but they’re supposed to be supervised in there.
Ms.Barker: Oh…. (pout)
Mr. CSA: (blink. blink)
Ms. Barker. Okay then. (pout has no effect. Must be losing my touch now that I’m 31) But, um what about other schools with wireless networks for students?
Mr. CSA: We’re the only school that has one.
Ms.Barker: In our board?
Mr. CSA: Yes. We’re the only one.
Ms. Barker: Well, what about other boards?
Mr. CSA: I don’t know.
So, I put it to you, my PLN. Do you know of any schools that have wireless networks for students? How do they deal with this concern? How can I convince my principal (who is new to the school as of Monday and therefore has a ton on her plate) and my CSA to make this happen for our students. It kills me that we have this wireless network installed and the kids can’t use it!
Posted in classroom practice, technology | | | 11 Comments
Don’t smile ’til Christmas
January 28th, 2010 by dbarker
Photo creditAt the risk of jinxing myself, I’d like to take a moment to talk about kindness. Why might I be jinxing myself? Well, I had some great classes this semester, and I suppose it’s possible that my personal philosophy about kindness may go out the window if I have a group of hooligans next semester, but one can hope…
This year I decided that one of the things I would very conscious of was being kind to my students–even when I didn’t receive kindness in return. That may sound easy, but oh, there are days. . . . Basically I felt that for some students, kindness from a teacher was the only form of kindness they received all day. And I also thought that it was important to remember that students (like all people) might have very challenging, stressful, terrible things going on in their lives that have nothing to do with me. Now some may say that I’m a push-over, but I don’t really think I am. I still expect students to earn their marks and I expect certain standards of behaviour, but when I deal with those issues, I don’t think I gain anything by being sarcastic, or negative or domineering.
The bottom line is, if I scare students into behaving, I may have a quiet orderly classroom, but I’m not going to have a positive learning environment. I went to a Marcia Tate workshop where she discussed brain-compatible learning, and felt pretty vindicated because she shared statistics that showed that when students were under stress or feeling anxious, they aren’t able to learn effectively. So I think we should do everything we can to help students to know that they are respected and cared for, and that they can take risks without fear of humiliation or being centered out.
I figure, if the worst thing a student can say about me is that I’m a push-over or a softie, I can live with that. I don’t think it’s true, but even if it is, it’s better than living with the thought that I caused some student unnecessary pain or humiliation because I felt I had to maintain the upper-hand in some power-struggle.
Teachers coming out of teacher education programs get a lot of advice about “not smiling until Christmas.” If I could give some advice, I’d say:
Don’t let anyone try to tell you what type of teacher you need to be, and never lose sight of the big picture. We are not factories churning out widgets. We are human beings trying to help other human beings learn, and they can’t learn if they feel threatened.
And now, I’m going to record some of the notes I got from students at the end of their exams–not because I’m trying to boast or because I think these notes make me candidate for teacher of the year, but because soon I’ll be faced with a new group of students, and I’m going to need these reminders to get me through the tough times. I also want to add, I marked their exams before I read any notes! And I will resist the urge to correct the spelling and grammar.
Thank you Ms. Barker for a wonderful english class. This is probably one of the classes I will most miss from this semester, and perhaps even this year. I really liked the use of technology and I liked the way you taught us. Thanks. Good luck next semester. -Alex
Thanks for an amazing semester. You did an awesome job with this class and I feel I have learned so much from my experiences here. you made getting up for this class every day enjoyable. I can honestly say although I’m glad to be leaving high school behind me, I’m sad to be done with this class. Thank you so much for everything you do! -Sara
I don’t think you should change anything about yourself or improve your the best English teacher I have ever had. I learned a lot being in your class and I love you as a teacher.-Shannon
Usually in my English class I wouldn’t get involved because I felt my opinion didn’t really count. But you showed the entire class it’s perfectly fine if you don’t understand the text or have an opinion that people might not agree with. In college we as adults need to know where we stand in life. You taught the class to be unique and to stand up for what we felt is right. I will never forget the second day of class having us decide to agree or disagree to questions that really mattered. Those questions got us thinking not only in the answer but what we believed. Thank you for showing not only me but the teachers and students that English can be fun again. -Celine.
And now if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to go get some tissue.
Posted in classroom practice, reflection | tagged classroom management, kindness, Marcia Tate, notes from students, reflection | | 5 Comments
Reflections on this semester’s love affair with technology
January 19th, 2010 by dbarker
I could use the extended metaphor of a torrid romance with a sexy bad boy to describe my experience with technology this semester, but that might a bit overblown and, some might argue, a product of my students’ obsession with Team Edward vs. Team Jacob. Zombies are also trendy right now, but I don’t think brain is equipped to fashion that metaphor right now.
So, let’s get to it.
As I finish up this semester I’ve had some hits and misses. If you’ve read some of my other posts this year (and I know, they have been few and far between. New school, new challenges, new excuses), you’ll know that I approached my classes with year with a kind of outlook that can only be described as naively optimistic. I saw rainbows and puppy dogs everywhere I looked. I assumed my students would be putty in my hands because they were digital natives and I GOT them. So, in summary:
Stumbling blocks:
- I didn’t consider that other members of the staff might resent the fact that two English classes were scheduled in a computer lab every day when access to computer labs is already at a premium. Not my fault, but it didn’t really matter.
- Although my students are digital natives, they were not all tech-savvy
- Although most of my students use social networking sites and web 2.0 apps on a regular basis, a number of them balked at using these tools for educational purposes
- Many students were opposed to sharing their work (even though many of them are okay with showing inappropriate pictures on facebook!)
- Some of my students have adopted anti-technology positions in, what I can only assume is, a desire to please authority figures who condemn technology as frivolous or non-academic.
- Paper: I still need paper for some things, and for some reason I feel like I’m being judged as a bad teacher if my students don’t have any paper handouts. I’m working on it.
- Oh, and apparently I adopt every new tool that interests me.
Now, for the good news:
- Some of my students changed their minds. I had a student tell me that initially, he was “creeped-out” by edmodo, because he didn’t really understand what it was. He is a thoughtful cautious student who has taken to heart all the warnings about the dangers of posting too much information about yourself online. As the student learned that social networking sites can be leveraged for positive purposes, he came to love edmodo because he found that he could access assignments and send me messages using a tool he was already using (um, that’s the internet if you’re wondering. Or the “the infornet” as my mother-in-law calls it). Edmodo has been a huge success. It’s eliminated a great deal of paper–not to mention excuses.
- Ning: I used Ning for a number of different purposes. At first I didn’t really know how I’d use it (I’m finishing my action research project on this and I’ll post it soon so I won’t go into great detail here), but eventually the most significant use became blogging. Some of my students were skeptical about the Ning at first, but their work stands for itself. They shared and read ideas they would have never otherwise encountered. They also reached much deeper levels of synthesis and analysis because their posts were not “published pieces” in a traditional sense.
- My website and class blog. I did a pretty good job of updating my class blogs on a daily basis. Now when I scroll back through my posts, I have a wonderful series of snapshots of my semester. It’s fantastic. I never managed to update my “daybook” or planner the way I’ve kept my blog up to date.
In the immortal words of Joss Whedon, “Where do we go from here?” (Oh, Buffy, how I miss you)
- I’m going to use Ning even more, and try to do even more with student blogging now that I have evidence that supports its effectiveness.
- Edmodo: I need to do more training at the beginning of the semester so that students use edmodo properly. (How to submit an assignment vs. how to send a link)
- Use less paper. I can do it!
- Bring in Diigo. Love Diigo, but didn’t really get a chance to try it.
I think that’s plenty for now. I’ll keep you posted.
I promise.
No really!
Posted in Hamlet, Reading, classroom practice, education, internet safety, reflection, technology, writing | tagged digital natives, edmodo, ning, reflections, technology, wordle | | 4 Comments
Intro to Hamlet
November 30th, 2009 by dbarker
While my husband watched the Grey Cup I made an intro to Hamlet movie. I am indebted to Slings and Arrows…
Posted in Hamlet, classroom practice | tagged ENG4U, engagement | | 0 Comments
« Previous EntriesBlogroll
- BallLOG
- By buddy Doug’s blog
- Cool Cat Teacher Blog
- David Warlick’s blog
- Eat Local London
- Edublogs
- Incsub
- Mr. Kesteloot’s Class Blog
- Ms. Weir’s Musings
- My friend Chris’s blog
- Non-runner Girl
- Northumberland Independent
- Portable PD
- The Lamppost Blog
- Will Richardson’s Blog about Technology and Education
- Wordsmith
