through the use of tools like Creative Commons licensed media. • How to engage in inquiry based learning as a community of learners.
As part of this process, I have modeled the reflection and creation of web-based learning artifacts that I expected of our students. If you are interested in my reflections on the collaboration process and student feedback in this process, please view my blog posts on this collaborative unit at http://
theunquietlibrarian.wordpress.com/category/ media-21/ and my overall collaborative unit resource page at http://theunquietlibrarian.
wikispaces.com/media21capstone-buffy
that
links to videos, photos, web resources, and more learning artifacts that reflect this year long effort.
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School Library Media Center Resources Used in Project Implementation Students accessed computer hardware, database materials, and print materials to engage in this collaborative learning experience. As a participant in the Media 21 Capstone project, I received an additional 16 station wireless laptop set and cart to facilitate student learning. We also made extensive use of our teaching lab, which houses 30 desktop computers. Dr. Bob Eddy, my school principal, agreed to purchase two databases, Gale Global Issues in Context and History Resource Center, as well as twelve novel sets (ten books each) to support student learning.
presentations. The resource that students used most, however, was me, the school librarian. As outlined above, I was an integral resource in designing, teaching, and facilitating the unit on a daily basis for an entire semester. As we kicked off the school year with a poll requiring students to text their responses via their cell phones, one student wondered aloud, “What kind of teacher are you?, students quickly came to regard me as more than the librarian; I was their co- teacher with Ms. Lester. The students perceive us a team who work together to provide them learning experiences that are uniquely different from any other in their school experience here at Creekview High School because we integrate technology as a tool for inquiry and learning.
“The resource that students used most, however, was me, the school librarian.”
Goals and Standards Met in Information Power: Building Partnerships for Learning
The mastery of Georgia Performance Standards and AASL Standards for 21st Century Learners were assessed through two primary means: teacher and librarian generated rubrics and student self- assessments.
Students demonstrated the accurate
In addition to the materials purchased for this project, students used existing resources, such as Gale Virtual Reference Library and SIRS Researcher, as information sources. We also accessed many of our free and integral tools through the Internet, including Google Documents, Google Sites, Gmail, Google News, Wetpaint wikis, LibGuides (for research pathfinders), Wordpress blogs, Flickr, Twitter, TeacherTube, YouTube, Netvibes, Evernote, and RSS feeds from a variety of information sources.
We also used the physical space of the library for reading, group activities, literature circle meetings, and collaborative learning activities. The class essentially met every day in the library either in the lab or the commons area for the semester. We also used our large screen and overhead LCD projector with integrated sound for our culminating
Media
www.mimame.org
and effective use of information in the research papers, research/learning portfolios, individual blog posts, and class presentations. They showed growth in their ability to create original research questions and to formulate their opinions on issues based on the research they engaged in. Students demonstrated excellence in information seeking and knowledge generation by exceeding our and their own expectations with the written portion of the research project using more than the minimum number of information sources required and writing double the number of minimum pages required. Students demonstrated exemplary skill in group participation through the literature circle group wikis, peer editing/writing groups, and in helping each other with their digital research portfolios; additionally, many students worked together to provide feedback and suggestions as they worked on their individual presentations.
At the beginning of the semester, our students were used to answering basic comprehension questions and working in isolation. Through this project, that mode of learning was disrupted as they became part of a community of learners in which sharing, dialogue, and questioning were valued. Students
Spring 2010
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