Blog on Blogging

Blogging Has Changed The Way We Communicate

     In thinking about how Blogging has changed the way we communicate, my mind drifts to an opening vignette in Mel Brook’s History of the World Part 1, where the camera fades from black onto caveman Sid Caesar painting an antelope on a rock wall. The iconic voice of Orson Welles begins to narrate the scene: “Even in most primitive man, the need to create was part of his nature…” Well, I don’t need to describe it. This is a blog after all, you can watch it yourself:

     Blogging is but the current incarnation of human creative self-expression and the criticism of others. If we really look at what’s out there in the “Blogosphere” most blogs can fall within these two camps of creation or criticism. And it seems the big money makers are all about the criticism. Critiquing new tech fads, stock options, politics, or even life itself. We seem to love reading about other people's opinions.

      And in my opinion, the only thing blogging has really done is to make those opinions more accessible. Once, our opinions were kept safe and to ourselves, possibly unveiled every other Thursday at the local coffee house. Now, every single person has the power to unleash their thoughts and feelings to everyone, everywhere. What consequences might this have for the world? Well, for one, we could simply not contribute, and go on living unscathed. But what about those who are already subscribed? Those who say blogging is the blossoming of true democracy and the downfall of government and corporate owned media? It could be a good thing. It could be a bad thing, an unvetted form of yellow journalism, or as Thomas Jefferson wrote in his blog, “Democracy is nothing but mob rule….”  Or worse, it’s the death of the fourth estate:

PBL and Haiku LMS

Link to Course: https://wssu.haikulearning.com/nick/haikulmsminiunit

This course developed from a need to provide, in a non-threatening manner, an opportunity for teachers to dive deeper into the idea of proficiency-based learning. After the basics of PBL were understood, I then wanted teachers to start thinking about how we’re going to implement it, stressing the need for some kind of technological component. The original project was designed in conjunction with the learning theories discussed in Teaching with Technology. To fulfill the OCT requirements, I included a unit demonstrating how project-based learning can be a strong component of proficiency/competency-based education. Part of this was showing how online collaborative tools can aid in the project-based learning process.

The project combined several online tools. Primarily, the Haiku Learning Management system was used as the central nexus, as I had secured a year long pilot to test out it’s standards-based gradebook capabilities. The introductory video was created using Powtoons. While the project-based learning template was created using Realtime board, and its explanatory video created using Screencastify.

I tested out the first module during a PD session yesterday and received positive feedback from my peer teachers. Although my district is professing a transition toward proficiency-based learning, there has been very little evaluation of the technical side behind the process. No real planning of what the final PDL system will look like has yet occurred. I hope that this might spur us in the right direction and also hope that it convinces others of the need to include some sort of technological component.

PBL and Haiku LMS by Nick Fahey is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

Week 12 OCT

Final Project

Link to course in progress: https://wssu.haikulearning.com/nick/haikulmsminiunit

Link to Google Doc Plan: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1sRYDw-pljE1sEFjOxl5yEFKJu5DXzJy3UvlXST0GPUk/edit?usp=sharing

I've decided to combine my OCT final project as the final component of my mini-lesson for Teaching with Technology. I wish to create a four part workshop to introduce teachers to the ideas of proficiency-based learning and show how a learning management system like Haiku LMS can aid in facilitating a more personalized approach to learning. Teachers will be evaluated summatively using a standards-based gradebook. Here is the outline of my course:

Course Outline

• Introduction/Overview
• Objectives
• Prerequisites

• Unit 1: PLP and Standards Based Grading

• Objectives
• Demonstrate understanding of Standards/Proficiency-Based Grading and Grade book
• Show understanding regarding why an LMS would be helpful in implementing a personalized proficiency-based learning environment.
• Assessment
• Discussion Posts

• Unit 2: Haiku LMS

• Objectives
• Identify the parts of a Haiku Page
• Home Page
• eportfolio
• Top Toolbar
• Bottom Toolbar
• Class Tabs
• Gradebook
• Assignments
• Dropbox
• Inbox
• Identify Haiku Page Modules
• Polls
• Discussions
• Rubrics
• Assessment
• Haiku Exam

• Unit 3: Create a Class

• Objectives
• Design a Haiku Page
• Decide what is best for your situation:
• Simple or more complex design
• Create an assignment and align it to the standards
• Assessment
• Creation Rubric

• Unit 4: Tools for Creativity: Combining Standards with Project-Based Learning

• Objectives
• Identify ways to use various online tools to enrich instruction
• Assessment
• Haiku Exam
• Rubric

The lessons within each individual unit will be organized using the "read, watch, do" type format.  Unit 4 will be designed to introduce teachers to various online tools and present examples of how the tools can be used to facilitate project-based learning assignments that in turn can be show cased in a student's e-portfolio.

Week 12

This week I began putting My mini course together. After the initial outline I found the task of creating the course to be more difficult than I had imagined. Particularly I was struggling with a balance of introducing the concept of Proficiency-Based Learning as well as give an overview of the Haiku learning management system. I think I ended up with general overview of both the concept and the ability of Haiku to aid in it's facilitation.

 I decided to use the "read, watch, do" type of lesson structure as it seems like the best way to keep content and assessments as simple as possible while still providing for some depth. As I began to create the first unit I struggled to find material to use for the read section that was brief bu thorough. Eventually I settled on using the resources provided on the VT department of ed website. I also decided to try a quick activity where students must evaluate for relevancy and pick and choose 3 readings out of 9. I used Haiku's poll feature as a way of recording choices.

 To complete the unit students will need to participate in an online discussion. I will next need to create some sort of introductory video that shows how, as an enrolled student, your efforts are recorded in the standards based gradebook. I also created some badges that can be earned after mastering the standards.

Week 10 and 11

These past weeks, we reflected on models that could be used to evaluate levels of technological integration within the classroom. I found myself leaning toward Bloom and TRUDACOT model Aas a general means of assessing current use of technology in the classroom and as tool for planning better implementation of technology. I also found the TRUDACOTS emphasis on evaluating technologies use in making learning more personalized interesting.

Week 11: Scratch!

This week we explored the beginners world of coding and I tested out the online program scratch. I found the tutorials and the interface to be totally welcoming and I could see this easily being integrated as a tool for creating learning artifacts. At first I attempted to make an underwater game where a diver collects starfish, but I scrapped that and decided to follow one of the nifty tutorials provided. This tutorial on how to make a pong game lent a good introduction to the basics of making a game using the drag and drop Scratch boxes. After completing the tutorial I decided to spiff my game up, making a one level Arkanoid clone. There's still a few bugs... like sometimes the ball gets stuck in a perpetual loop between two walls, the ball doesn't always bounce off the paddle the right way... and for some reason I can't figure out, one has to click the green flag twice to reset the game. The rest works just fine. Enjoy!

Audio Project: The Tell Tale Heart

The Tell-Tale Heart

For this project we were faced with the creation of an audio project. I decided to do a rendition of the Tell-Tale Heart by Edgar Allen Poe. I have a small recording set up for voice work. This includes a Blue Yeti microphone and a large box with lined with sound proof padding. I used Audacity for the initial recording. Using it's tools to normalize the sound and reduce background noise. I also used it's echo tool for parts of the narration. I toyed around with the idea of using audacity to mix the sound effects and music but eventually settled on wevideo since that app already provides the user with a nice library of free and open source sounds. So, I added some effects and music, threw together a graphic, using google slides for the bloody text, and Hipstomatic for the rest and there it was! It was late, so I neglected to perfect the opening transition... I tried remedying this using the Youtube editor. I think it came out alright.