remixed digital sources

There is great value in having students study original sources, and a great number of them can be found on the web. Simply viewing sources online, however, does not take advantage of their value. The ability to deconstruct these sources, literally, by tearing them apart while working over and through the ideas is very useful.

Take the example of my section on Romanticism. I've listed three original sources that I want my students to read and discuss. I want them to be able to cite their contributions to the Romantic movement as a whole. There are a number of ways to do this, of course, but I'd like to explore an Education 2.0 alternative.

First I find the source online, in this case, Wordsworth's Preface to Lyrical Ballads. I want to be able to mark it up, write all over it, highlight and underline. There are very worthy digital annotation tools, such as Diigo, which I have used with success. But I've found greater simplicity in a Firefox extension called Google Docs Bar, which allows me to capture whole articles or portions of text, and turn them into Google docs, retaining much of the digital format. Once a captured article is a doc, I can manipulate it any way I like. Check out my example.

My plan is to use this as a viewing template, which students (in their small groups) can copy-paste into their own documents, and further annotate, defining words, answering my questions, and highlighting sections which support their responses. They will share those documents with each other and me. I will be able to see who is contributing what, as well as how far they've progressed in their comprehension of difficult reading material.

What do we accomplish when we tear ideas apart and put them back together in our own way? Understanding.

announcing pronounce

Here's a great tool for assisting second-language learners, or anyone: Pronounce, a Firefox extension that you can download here. Whenever we come across a word online that we aren't sure how to pronounce, we can right-click, select pronounce, and a pleasant voice will speak the word, providing the correct pronunciation. This is fun!

assessing understanding

At each point of our sections in which we emphasize overarching ideas, we will assess understanding. Frequent assessment is always important because it helps both students and teachers to see what is understood, and what needs more work. Frequent assessment also makes it clear to students what you expect of them. There are a variety of ways to assess what students know, but we will start with the traditional quiz, presented in a non-traditional way, through a Google form, which allows for a variety of quiz types, all in the same form. Most quizzes rely on memorization of facts, which does not always evaluate understanding. We want to utilize more interactivity by asking students to demonstrate what they know.

In the previous lesson, we asked small groups to come up with the four most important characteristics of Romanticism. They read an overview of the topic, discussed and debated the merits of given characteristics, and committed their decisions to a list. The teacher monitored the groups and clarified concepts, but did not lecture or produce the 'correct answers.' The first questions on the quiz revisit those discussions, and require brief textual responses:
Once they've proven that they have retained the outcomes of the previous lesson's discussions, it's time to demonstrate whether they can identify the lesson's intrinsic qualities outside of the lesson itself:
A checklist was used as a Google form type so that the test-taker could choose all that apply. Not one of these items has been discussed previously, so students must use what they have learned to make a decision about each item. Now, we'll bring reading comprehension into the mix, using higher order quotes in a multiple choice form type:
These quotes were chosen completely at random, therefore, students will have no familiarity with them, and must rely on their understanding of concepts.

Finally, we will end this quiz with an example of what they may find on a final exam, an explication of a quote. This is a quote taken from the overview material they have previously read and discussed, and will be answered in paragraph format:
All of the students' responses will be accumulated for you onto one document, so that you can easily see how their understanding is progressing.

The information itself may seem somewhat esoteric, but the ability to demonstrate knowledge is overpowering in the way it transfers to lifelong learning.

simplifying the overarching idea

We want our students to come away from our classes with the overarching idea which creates enduring understanding. Such learning is not forgotten over the weeks of summer vacation, but becomes a foundation for further understanding. So, for instance, we don't just teach Frankenstein, or a few poems by Wordsworth and Blake, and call it a day. The overarching idea is Romanticism itself, the abstract for which we provide concrete examples.

Now, it's certainly easy enough to put a list of the characteristics of Romanticism on the board for students to copy into their notes. That's Education 1.0, which they are distancing themselves from more and more everyday. We could put the characteristics into a slideshow, along with fancy graphics. I'd call that Education 1.5. But both methods merely point out how much I know, and how much they are able to memorize. What we want is enduring understanding, and a comprehensive yet efficient method for getting there.

Most textbooks provide information about the different eras we study, but it's just background noise, and students won't pay much attention to it unless we change the dynamics. Tell your students that it is up to them to discover the characteristics of Romanticism (or, any topic). In fact, narrow it down for them: Which are the four most important characteristics of Romanticism? The number doesn't matter, really; they can add or subtract as their research dictates. But providing a number limit creates a dynamic where they have to debate amongst themselves which factors are most important, and be able to defend their positions. The exercise only works in small groups, where they will end up competing group-to-group to come up with the best ideas for the right reasons.

What are you doing all this time? Monitoring. Clarifying. Providing resources.

As far as resources are concerned, you can point them to that blurb in the textbook as a start, if it's useful. There are other online sources for an overview listed on my course design notes page. On that page you'll see that even YouTube has some interesting videos on the subject. Your students will likely think them a bit corny, but no matter, they will augment the reading. These videos also add a further dimension of art and music.

Each group needs to keep their notes and ideas somewhere, so have them open a Google doc, where each group member is allowed to share from their own computers. Make certain they add you as a share partner, so you can monitor progress, see who's contributing, and leave comments. Tell them the first thing you want to see on this shared document is a list of four characteristics they think are most important, based on their readings and discussions. With each new source reading or viewing, they must rethink that list, and change it or reorder it if necessary. Google docs provides access to their revision history.

By the end of this exercise, your students should not have to memorize a thing. They will know the characteristics of Romanticism. And, when they read Frankenstein or Wordsworth's poems, they will know what to look for. And, you will have the tools to know what they know.

in raptures over Apture

You know that experience of finding something you've always needed, but didn't know you needed? I've got so many useful 'tools' in my education toolchest, that I don't add many new ones unless I come across something that knocks my socks off. Apture appears to be one of those applications I've been looking for, but didn't know how to define. Here's what makes it special.

Normally, when we want to refer our readers to further information or another site, we provide a link. Apture works like a linking mechanism, but instead of redirecting the browser to another location, viewers are able to access the information directly from your site.

Since I like to try out the various applications I highlight in this blog before writing about them, I've got some of my own examples to share with you. Note: If you are reading this from a feedreader, you won' t be able to see the effects I'm writing about, so click through to my site; it'll be worth it.

• In the art of science, I wrote about how those from the humanities can learn from the sciences, and vice-versa. Writer/scientist C. P. Snow was referenced in a quote. You could always Google that name, or I could provide you with a link, but both would necessitate you taking the extra steps to do the research. If you're only mildly curious about who Mr. Snow is, you probably won't go to the trouble, but you never know what you might miss from not making that connection. That's what learning is, making connections, but we only have time for so many. Apture allows you to hover or click on the link, delivering immediate gratification.
• In yesterday's post, listen up, I pointed you to some podcasts, such as this one, a professional reading of 1984. Place your cursor over the link, and you'll be able to listen to this excellent presentation without leaving the site.
• In how tall is that?, about a tool for helping students visualize extreme measurements, I referred to a tornado described as 300 feet tall that terrorized Southern California recently. Tornados in this part of the country are unusual, so it was great fun to be able to show you that tornado in a video from the link.

Of course, you can add podcasts and videos to websites in other ways, but Apture finds relevant media for you, making it quick and easy. You can also add documents, which I see as the most useful feature for teachers. If your students have their own blogs, they could present a project, with the various pieces connected to links through Apture, and viewable directly through their site.

If you're like me, once you start using Apture, you'll find it to be something you've needed all along.

listen up

The theory of multiple intelligences tells us that we learn from all of our senses, not just those that rely on reading. The theory holds that some of us may learn better with different creative approaches, such as utilizing music or art or movement. Intuitively, we know this, but we tend to favor lessons that rely on reading and verbal instruction. Whether we subscribe to the multiple intelligences learning theory or not, there is no denying that we all learn through repetition. As an English instructor, reading and writing still top my list of teaching modalities, however, I strongly advocate listening to stories, poems, and plays in addition to reading.

The internet provides various options for listening to text, but here are a few of my favorites. Yesterday, Open Culture posted links to a wonderful reading of 1984. Listen to the introduction; it's read very professionally. You can play the podcast from your computer over speakers for the entire class as they read along, or, provide links from your website so your students can download the readings to their ipods. Great homework assignment. Open Culture has a long list of excellent audiobooks, freely available for listening or download, which will enhance your classroom lessons.

You'll find another extensive library of audiobooks at LibriVox, which provides works from the public domain. These are available as mp3 podcasts, and are read by volunteers. Here's an example of the opening to Pride and Prejudice.

There is an entire site, ShakespeareCast.com, devoted to podcasts of Shakespeare's plays and sonnets. This recording of Romeo and Juliet is student-read.

Add a welcome dimension to the readings you do in your classroom: listen.

what is worth understanding?

I'm constantly thinking and re-thinking course design. And, always at the back of my mind is this question I encountered in Understanding by Design (Wiggins & McTighe): What knowledge is worth understanding? Sure, we have a curriculum to cover and we have standards to uphold, but though these might seem to be too much for one semester, we know that they aren't enough. We want our students to leave our class with enduring understanding:

• represent a big idea having enduring value beyond the classroom
• reside at the heart of the discipline (involve "doing" the subject)
• require uncoverage of abstract or often misunderstood ideas
• offer potential for engaging students

I'm also impressed with the developers of Cutting Edge Course Design, who believe that a well-designed course should:

• enable students to solve problems
• prepare students to think for themselves in the discipline

We know it's important to envision specific goals for our lessons, but sometimes the curriculum or standards can cloud our thinking, or cause us to be mired in the details. Try to imagine: what will the student take away from this lesson? what will it mean a year from now? ten years from now?

So, for a specific example, I not only want my students to know the characteristics of Romantic era literature, but I want them to be able to make comparisons to Enlightenment era literature (neoclassicism) that came before. Why was it important to change the existing philosophy of literature? I want students to be able to read something modern and tell me which era has influenced this modern text.

This is the overarching goal or big idea. This is where critical thinking or uncoverage comes into play. And this becomes the basis for designing a course.

If you'd like to follow along with me as I design a course that begins with a big idea that is worth understanding, check out this document which I'll be updating in the weeks ahead.