Carry the Message Project

Unit Overview:  Assignment attached.  In short,  students were asked to ascertain what characteristics people must possess in order to "Carry the Message" in the 21st Century.
Carry the Message Assignment

Lerner-Centered:  Students were completely in charge of the outcome of their projects.  They first had to determine what characteristics they were going to feature, how they would determine if someone possessed these characteristics, and how they would train people if they didn't possess the characteristics.  They were graded on the attached rubric, which I later determined they did not bother to read!.
Carry the Message Rubric

21st Century Skills: Since the ultimate goal of this project is to train 21st Century workers, it was essential to use 21st Century technology.  After the students set up their Google accounts, they were free to use any tools available.  Chris Goodson spoke to both classes involved in the project and introduced them to several possibilities.

Student Achievement:  I found myself having to explain the criteria for the project several times.  I finally decided that having this much "freedom" related to a project was difficult for my students.  I wasn't telling them WHAT to think, I was telling them to THINK.  I didn't give a "number of slides," or any specific instructions.  In fact, I did quite the opposite.  I told them they could do this project any way they wanted as long as the proved their points.  I was asked, "Is this right?"  My response was, "Did you prove your point?"  It wasn't a popular answer!  Students did seem to learn to work well together and, finally, to think without being told WHAT to think.

Student Example 1
Student example 2

Pedogogical Change:  I believe that Communication is the Key to Success - now and always.  The study of Language Arts is all about the study of communication.  I want to continue to incorporate studies of classic literature and necessary grammatical skills with the ongoing question of "How can we best communicate?"

Reflection:  The first problem I encountered was a lack of desire on the part of my students to read the essay assigned and a lack of ability to comprehend and analyze said essay.  I had to reword the initial 3 questions due to the ridiculous responses I received.

Students are very uncomfortable without very specific instructions.  I can only assume this stems from too many years with bubble sheets and "one right answer."  Unfortunately for these students, they are heading to a world the offers more questions than answers.  These students must not only be able to answer questions but also be able to develop more questions.

It took several days of explanation to get the message across to the students, but I believed I had finally succeeded.  Sad to say, I was wrong.  Nearly every project was missing some part of the project - either assessment or training modules.  Although, one group had not even done a presentation in Google Docs or made us of any Web 2.0 tools.  I have ascertained that no matter how many times an explanation is given, students just don't want to follow instructions.

When I was on my 4th or 5th version of the instructions, trying to simplify, I asked people who had witnessed these explanations to offer any suggestions they had.  I mean, really, I'm not proud.  I'll take anything.  My friend shook her head and said, rather sadly, "Short of doing it for them, I can't think of one other thing to do."

I would have to say my project was only moderately successful, but I did try.  Following instructions is a constant problem.  They could be successful, if they choose to be.

Amazing Children

My 14-year-old daughter continues to amaze me.  She had to complete a project for Algebra and she decided to use Animoto.  While I am familiar with the program, I have not worked with it to any great extent. She has never used it, yet she logged in and was able to create an excellent project just by watching the tutorial!  I looked in on her as she was creating, rearranging slides, adding pictures, etc.  She was completely comfortable and had no problems.  It was something to see.  In many ways, she is more comfortable with technology than my 17-year-old son.  These digital natives have no fears.  Most likely, I'll be learning from her from now on!