Personal Multi-media Projects:Experience of Olean’s ELA
Department
Sally Ventura, Olean High SchoolLou Ventura, Olean High School
Tim Houseknecht, Catt-Allegany Teacher Center
Initial Goals of the Project
• Provide a student-driven & authentic assessment with guidelines & suggestions from teachers
• Allow for creative expression• Have students learn great ways to showcase
their skills to colleges and employers
Additional Outcomes of the Project
• Provided a platform for 21st century skills: • Critical thinking & problem solving• Media literacy• Technology literacy• Flexibility & adaptability• Initiative & self-direction• Climate of collaboration• Leadership & responsibility
History of the Project
• Our concept of the classroom changed when we rewrote the English 12 curriculum.
• The project began as a shared folder on the district server.
• Students wanted to personalize their work creatively.• We recognized the limitations of our own knowledge
base.• We needed someone in the room who understood the
goals of the project and had the technical know-how.
History of the Project• We started to use the Teacher Center’s
Sample Word project. • An online option was also discussed. • Many students loved the online version.• We liked it because it got around some
technical problems.• It offered an opportunity to promote a positive &
responsible web presence.
Work SamplesHere are some better examples of student work from our first year of online projects:
Wordpress.com Projects:
Brianna BakerSarah ShembedaCaitlyn McNameeChris Mosher
Projects done in MS Word:
Kevin StevensKatelyn ParksCasey Konieczka
How We Are Using Wordpress• Each student creates their
own account.• Pages can used instead of
posts.• Comments are turned off• One of the many Wordpress
themes can be used. • Email, address and phone #’s
not included.www.wordpress.com
Another Idea: Wikispaces• Very easy to set up.• Ad free educator
accounts available.• The teacher can easily
set up student wikis.• Files can be uploaded to
each wiki. • Each student has their
own wiki address.• Multiple pages can be
made in each wiki.
Another idea: Wordpress.org
• Software can be down-loaded to a server and hosted by your school/district.
• Allows for more district control. • Go to www.wordpress.org. • Educational showcase at
http://wordpress.org/showcase/tag/education/
Yet another idea: Edublogs
• Similar to Wordpress.• Blogs have ads, but can be turned off with a supporter account.• Schools can purchase larger accounts.• Go to www.edublogs.org.
Challenges & Solutions
Challenge:• Accessibility to Programs & Equipment
Solution:• Team up with technology coordinator.• Convince administration to lower security settings in some
cases.• Be prepared to sell the idea to administration.
Challenges & Solutions
Challenge: • School security and student privacy issues
Solution: • Remove contact info from online work. Contact information
would be in an email or letter that would include a link to the online work.
• Create 2 projects • one web-based (no contact info)• one MS Word based
Challenges & Solutions
Challenge:•Technical Know-How
• Our knowledge needs to be increased.• Some kids know more than we do.• Uneven student skill base
Solution:• Students teach skills to other students• Outside tech help (Teacher Center, BOCES, etc.)• Improve and utilize (develop and implement) a standardized
student tech skills plan.
Other Challenges
School Politics • Department duplication
AssessmentAuthentic assessment takes time, but worth the effort.
Developing a rubric to assess workMaintaining flexibility
Grading Rubric in present form
Unexpected Bonuses
• Got to know our students better• Professional development
o Video cameras, scanning, digital images, blogging sites, school networks, Delicious online bookmarks, the list goes on and on
• Team approacho Relationships: Student to student, Teacher to
teacher, Students teaching teachers, Teacher to administrator, Outside agency assistance
• All students contributed
What Next?• Start next year off with this project.• Modify and improve our rubric.• Bring on other teachers in our department and other
departmentso We worked with the Music and Art departments for several students'
projects.• Make a wish list:
o schedule tech helpo look at programs and equipment (be part of the conversation for tech
purchases)• Make sure students share the product of their isolated efforts
with others, like colleges and employers.• In other words – Live locally & think globally.
Resources• Cattaraugus-Allegany Teacher Center’s Tutorials page:
http://cateach.org/Tutorials/tutorials.htm • Teacher Center’s Example portfolios:
http://delicious.com/cateach/PortfolioExamples• Wordpress: www.wordpress.com• Wikispaces: www.wikispaces.com• Tim’s sample Wikispaces account:
http://thouseknecht.wikispaces.com/ • Wordpress.org: www.wordpress.org• Edublogs: www.edublogs.org
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