Week #7

Quote: "Working cooperatively was a new concept for the class, and even

though the students had completed preparation activities where group members assumed different roles, students were less engaged working as a group than when completing independent tasks. This was even the case when technology was involved, although they were more engaged when all members of the group were actively involved with the technology. (Adlington & Harvey, 2010)"

Response:  Working in a group wetting is challenging for all ages.  Even in adulthood, whether it be a workplace setting or in a post-secondary setting, working collaboratively is challenging.  In post-secondary education I often found that I (as did many of my peers) preferred to work independently.  We often did not believe that other members of theg roup had the same level of ownership as we did, for our own work.  If we had gone into the experience with more collaborative experience I suspect that the group work assignments would have been easier. 

In the workplace group work is commonplace.  Some situations are rewarding and positive and others provide challenges.  My years of experience in the workplace leads me to the conclusion that the older we get, the more the persoanlities of the group, play into the equation.  We want to work with people that we are comfortable with and feel competent in their work ethic that is is comparable to our own, or perhaps even more advanced. 

http://www.edweek.org/ew/articles/2012/12/01/kappan_quinn.html

I selected this article as it speaks to the basic challenges facing teach group and collaborative work skills.  In generally, many people believe that group work is the same, but in actuality it is not.  We need to understand these concepts so that we may appropriately build upon them to create a technology-rich environment.


1. How might your citizen journalism project resemble a technology rich projet?
I plan to utilize oral history interview techniques to record stories of retired coal miners.  By utilizing basic videography and digital recording students will become engaged in the project.  They will be able to do more than just read and write.

2. What did you learn about sucessfull implementation of tchnology rich projects?
While it is not a new concept that technology rich translates to more work, it does bring home the point that to engage in a technology rich project it is important to engage the support and collaboration of others.  Utilize the resources available such as developing a project that is cross-discipline to build upon the assistance of another teacher, or utilize classroom aids.  The juggling of resources is challenging when insufficient technology skills are found in the teaching staff.  Learn to utilize the strengths of those around you.  I've often looked at teachers as being the "Lone Ranger" in the classroom, I've learned through this curriculum that is no longer the case.

Adlington, R., & Harvey, H. (2010). Acec2010 - engaging young learners: The multi-faceted and changeable nature of student engagement in technology -rich learning projects. ACEC 2010: Digital Diversity Conference, Retrieved from http://acec2010.acce.edu.au/sites/acec2010.info/files/proposal/172/acec2010engagingyounglearners.pdf

Quinn, T. (2012). G-r-o-u-p-w-o-r-k doesn't spell collaboration. Education Week, Retrieved from http://www.edweek.org/ew/articles/2012/12/01/kappan_quinn.html