What Path Shall We Take? / ED 7710 Week 6

Greenhow et al (2009) argue that the nature of the Internet has changed drastically in the last decade. Referred to as Web 2.0, the Internet is much more than a source of information. It has become much more collaborative, creative and innovative. Since the Web has become such a dominant factor in our lives, both in and out of school, more research is needed. As Greenhow et al point out, researchers need to examine learner’s online inquiry practices, analyze issues of equity and access and study learners’ online identity formation. By the same token, educators need to develop their own online identity and become their own curators of information. The more comfortable and versed in technology that educators are, the better they will be able to serve their students.

Leu, O’Byrne et al (2009) take issue with some of the Greenhow et al research. They make the point that creating students who are Internet savvy is a literacy issue not a technology issue. I agree with Leu, O’Byrne, et al on this critical point. Students need new skills to successfully navigate the Internet and to use it in the creative and innovative ways that are possible. The “new literacies” required of students need to be integrated into the curriculum and not taught solely as a separate class on technology. Therefore, it is up to every teacher to find ways to integrate technology into their own disciplines.

For the past decade, there has been a movement to teach “reading across the curriculum.” Educators finally realized that teaching kids to read is a shared responsibility, and not just the reading teacher’s job. I see the teaching of technology in the same way. The teaching of technology and the new literacies must become a shared responsibility.

Educational policy at the national, state and local levels takes a long time to change. However, the speed of change in technology is unprecedented. As a result, teachers can’t wait for educational policy to direct their efforts as far as preparing students to be skillful, collaborative and creative in their use of technology. Teachers need to be forward-thinking and flexible as they adapt to the new literacies.

Personally, as an English teacher, I hope to improve my knowledge of technology so that I can help my students to develop solid twenty-first skills. I agree with the authors of both articles that the Internet has “great promise and challenge.” I want my students to have the skills to take on the challenge of the Internet and use it skillfully, creatively and innovatively.

Navigating the Web: Challenges

I just finished reading chapters 9 and 10 in The New Lit Handbook, and I see how the information in the chapters connects to the skills in the ORMS model, particularly as they relate to online reading comprehension.

My first impression of Chapter 9 is that it seemed “dated.” The latest reference was 2003. The Internet was not yet the dominant text in education at the time this chapter was written. However, the authors recognized the skills that students need in order to be able to utilize the Internet effectively. The authors discussed the challenges students had in “web-searching.” Although self-inquiry quests seemed to have some success, students had trouble generating questions for in-depth searches. Students were not using keywords effectively and were looking for quick answers. They also browsed and jumped from site to site randomly. Finally, they tended to think that sites were valid simply because they were on the Internet. These challenges lead directly to the online reading comprehension skills discussed in the ORMS model. The model identifies the need for students to be able to generate questions, locate information effectively, and evaluate the validity of information found on the Internet. The authors of the Chapter realized that in order for the Web to be valuable for knowledge construction, individuals must develop the skills to locate and evaluate the information.

Chapter 10 went on to analyze the navigational skills of students. Researchers noted that the way an individual navigated the Internet was influenced by prior knowledge, spatial ability, learning style and motivation. They believed that the complexity of the task was posing new challenges to learning. This coincides with research by Leu et al (2013) in an article I used for my research in online reading comprehension. They argue that in many cases online reading requires more higher order thinking than offline reading.  This is particularly true when students try to synthesize information from multiple sources.

Even though the use of the Internet as a source of knowledge construction has increased astronomically in the past few years, many of the challenges remain the same. Finally we are recognizing that there are specific skills associated with online reading which even proficient offline readers may not possess.

The final idea that I took away from the article is that persistence and flexibility are two of the key factors leading to success as the Internet becomes the dominant text of our generation. From my own experience and challenges, I wholeheartedly agree!

Motivation in the Classroom and in the World: It's Not That Different

  The topic of motivation which is addressed this week in the articles is especially pertinent to us as educators. Dan Pink’s explanation that although money can motivate individuals on simple, mechanical tasks, monetary rewards do not increase motivation on tasks that require cognitive skills. Pink’s findings were related to the business world but can easily be applied to education. According to Pink, people are far more motivated by “autonomy, mastery, and purpose.” Relating this to students, I think that students are most engaged in their learning when they have some choice, when they believe it matters, and when they really want to get good at something. One of the most successful projects that I did with kids was having them research a human rights organization or charity and prepare a presentation encouraging others to get involved. Some kids took it to heart and one group, who researched the Susan G. Komen Foundation, even registered for the Race for the Cure that year. It made me realize how hard kids will work when they see a real purpose for something.  I find that teachers are the most creative and effective when they are given the freedom to develop curriculum and deliver instruction the way that they see fit.

      Arzt, in her article about “Online Collaborative Inquiry,” writes about how blogging motivates kids while reinforcing 21st century skills. Blogging can give kids a real audience and purpose for their writing and I look forward to using blogs in my English classroom this year.

      Finally, Castek et al (2011) discuss online reading comprehension in “The New Literacies of Online Reading Comprehension.” In fact, they argue that online reading can motivate struggling readers because they are oftentimes more successful at that than they are at offline reading. The shorter texts and multimodal nature of online reading fosters comprehension. I will be investigating the skills involved in online reading further in my research paper later this semester.

Embracing Change

After reading the articles for week 2, the theme is definitely that change is constant and as educators we must embrace it. I couldn’t agree more.

McVerry, Zawilinski and O’Byrne present their argument in the article, “Navigating the C's of Change.” Since change is constant, the authors stress the need to develop what they define as the C’s:  creativity, communication, critical thinking, and comprehension. In terms of applying their theories to teaching, the plan for Internet Reciprocal Teaching is concrete and immediately relevant to the classroom. I look forward to implementing a form of their inquiry based instruction in my classroom. I have utilized parts of the plan, but after reading the article I will spend more time on the “Basics of Navigation” described in Phase I. Students are often not as technologically adept as we might assume. I believe that the area where my students need the most instruction in is the Phase II level. I plan to spend more time working with students on evaluating websites for “usefulness and truthfulness.” The authors mention Google News as a site to obtain a variety of sources on a topic. I have also found “Room for Debate” in the Opinion section of the New York Times to be very helpful in providing students with multiple articles on a topic which they can then evaluate for bias and reliability. Finally, I think the inquiry project described “How Do I Make the World A Better Place?” is excellent. As far as implementation, I plan to modify some of the research projects my students do to focus on inquiry rather than research. I would like the work to be more student-centered, which is what the authors describe. I have always believed that when students have some choice in what they do, they become more engaged and productive.

Along the same lines, the John Seely Brown video on “Motivating Learners” supports the idea that we must embrace change. Using surfing and gaming analogies, Brown makes the point that when people develop a passion for something, they collaborate, analyze, evaluate and revise to achieve. More and more I am realizing that these are skills we must develop in our students.  I especially liked Brown’s belief that we need students to become invested in their own learning so that they can scaffold to higher levels as specific skills will quickly becoming outdated. Best of all, I agree that we can’t underestimate the power of play and also, as mentioned in the McVerry article, “Cornerstone of a New Literacies Curriculum,” the power of persistence. Too often, kids want results quickly. As educators, we need to make them realize that the process is as important as the result. Serious learning and quality work takes time!