Having nearly completely the first two weeks of the 2015-16 school year, I am starting to see how the Kenan experience is currently and will continue to have an effect on me, my individual students and my classes overall. Besides connecting me with some of the most knowledgeable and professional individuals I have ever met, taking part in the training and internship has given me a better understanding of teaching techniques and toolbox of technology to use with my students.
Students in Scientific Visualization working in Chronozoom to create timelines of technological advancements in visualization techniques
One tool I learned about while at the first PA was Chronozoom. Using this online tool, my students are currently making interactive timelines in both my Scientific Visualization class (covering advancements of Sci Vis) and my Game Art and Design class (development of games from ancient times through modern digital games). In the past, students would use index cards that were hung around the room. Using Chronozoom, my students are using modern technology to replace more old fashioned techniques, which fits in more with the curriculum I teach to them. All of the students were excited to try a new way to create a timeline and have been successful so far!
Equipment purchased for my classroom using funds available from the ASSIST Center at NCState as part of the RET Grants
And, my internship led to how I will teach students about a variety of tools used in designing and creating visualizations in science. The lesson I am creating for Kenan in relationship to my internship completely changes an entire unit that I teach from boring to vibrant using technologies that my students would not otherwise have available to them.
Besides incorporating the use of environmental sensors in my new lesson on spreadsheets, I have also created a lesson for my Advanced Game Design class around the Arduino Lilypad. This will help them become much better programmers than students in past years. Thanks to the generosity of the grantors who sponsored my mentor, cohorts in my group received a lot of equipment for use in our classrooms and I can’t wait to get started with some of it…those units need to come quicker than they do!
I also learned about an tool that can help with planning out projects known as XMind, which is used for mind mapping. Planning prior to starting any project is an important step towards success. I have often taught students a number of brainstorming techniques, but this tool gave me the best overall personal success, allowed me to visually see how things connect and will hopefully show my students how to make those connections as well.
However, I don’t want people thinking it’s all about the tools I learned while taking part in Kenan that carry over into my classroom. I am bringing a wide assortment of new teaching techniques into my classroom as well!
Student sketchnotes on running meetings
The first is the use of sketchnotes taking the place of traditional note taking techniques. To be honest, since I teach at a magnet school with a focus on the arts, I was a bit surprised to have only just learned of this note taking technique! Students openly shared with me that they rarely, if ever, look back at written notes. They also admitted that they tend to spend a healthy bit of time doodling while taking notes in other classes. As I explained to them that those doodles could become their notes, they were very interested in trying it out, but were also a bit wary of how much time it takes to draw a series of notes instead of just copying what they are given. I explained that the idea is to get the big picture, not every detail of information and that they should still include some written notes, then go back and flush out the graphic related to the information. So far, they seem to really enjoy taking notes this way as I modeled for them how to use the technique successfully the first time I lectured new material.
And, speaking of lectures, I have cast aside the reading of projected, state-generated slideshows as well! I now move around the students and they are much more interested in what I have to share with them and engaged in the conversation. For our first activity, I flipped my classroom. I provided them with all the notes I would normally use (often to put more of them in a comatose frame of mind) for lecture and provided them with a hands-on activity (making the timelines) on their own. I told them to highlight what they consider to be the most important advancements in visualization techniques or game history (depending on the class) and find three artifacts that demonstrate why those events/developments are important. One important thing was that I did not limit them to including the information that was in the lecture material. I wanted them to explore and add to the topic on their own.
Tomorrow, my Scientific Visualization class will critique the contents of their timelines as a group. We will discuss what they did well in developing their final product, what they could have done differently to improve on it, what they felt was important to include on their timeline plus why it was important and what is important to know about the items they did not include. By using their product as the driving force for knowledge of the required material instead of the state-provided PowerPoints, the students should gain a better understanding of the material as they are more invested in understanding what changes have been important to the development of their topics over time. I will also show them my timeline covering the state-provided lecture materials for: Objective 2.01 – Describe the Historical Significance of Scientific & Technical Visualization and Objective 2.02 – Describe the Advancements of Scientific & Technical Visualization. Students will then will have this resource as a study guide for next week’s quiz as well as having done the research on their own. I am curious to see how well this new way of teaching the material works over lecture and rote learning through worksheet style assignments such as matching exercises.
So yes, Kenan has had a dramatic effect over how I operate in my classroom! More to come on this in the future…