Using Online Collaborative Tools to Foster Middle School Students’ “Public Voices”

Author(s):  
Nick Lawrence ◽  
Joe O’Brien

Digital participatory media offer urban social studies teachers a unique opportunity to foster students’ civic skills and public voice while enhancing their understanding of social justice within a democratic society. This case study addresses how an 8th grade U.S. history teacher in a New York urban school, when using wikis and online discussion with his students, came to realize that “what [technology] users need in order to take charge of their own online decision making is at best an art and, more often than not, a series of trial-and-error solutions” (Lankes, 2008, p. 103), while operating within two constraints identified by Bull et al (2008): “Teachers have limited models for effective integration of media in their teaching; and, only limited research is available to guide best practice” (p. 2). While using digital collaborative tools enabled students to develop collaborative and communication skills and begin to learn social justice oriented content, the teacher faced challenges related to technology integration, curricular alignment, selection of appropriate digital tools, and fostering online academic norms among students. This chapter focuses on a teacher’s three-year journey from his first day of teaching to his connecting the use of technology to relevant curricular content to promote his students’ use of online public voices for social justice.

2016 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 32-45 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nick Lawrence ◽  
Joe O'Brien

Digital participatory media offer urban social studies teachers a unique opportunity to foster students' civic skills and public voice while enhancing their understanding of social justice within a democratic society. This article addresses the continuation of a New York City 8th grade U.S. history teacher's journey to use digital tools to foster his students' collaborative and communication skills and to help them learn social justice oriented content. While doing so, he overcame challenges related to technology integration, curricular alignment, selection of appropriate digital tools, and the need to cultivate his students' online academic norms. In doing so, he confronted Livingston's query about whether the use of technology necessitates a “fundamental transformation in learning infrastructure” and the need “to rethink the relations between pedagogy and society, teacher and pupil, and knowledge and participation” (2012, p. 8). He ended this part of his journey with these new challenges: how to enable his students to become navigators of their learning; ways to align the curriculum with his students' thinking; and, managing a dynamic instructional support system guided by his students' learning. His goal is “to forge a bridge between [his students'] media production and civic engagement' (Kahne, Lee, & Feezell, 2012).


2018 ◽  
pp. 219-233
Author(s):  
Nick Lawrence ◽  
Joe O'Brien

Digital participatory media offer urban social studies teachers a unique opportunity to foster students' civic skills and public voice while enhancing their understanding of social justice within a democratic society. This article addresses the continuation of a New York City 8th grade U.S. history teacher's journey to use digital tools to foster his students' collaborative and communication skills and to help them learn social justice oriented content. While doing so, he overcame challenges related to technology integration, curricular alignment, selection of appropriate digital tools, and the need to cultivate his students' online academic norms. In doing so, he confronted Livingston's query about whether the use of technology necessitates a “fundamental transformation in learning infrastructure” and the need “to rethink the relations between pedagogy and society, teacher and pupil, and knowledge and participation” (2012, p. 8). He ended this part of his journey with these new challenges: how to enable his students to become navigators of their learning; ways to align the curriculum with his students' thinking; and, managing a dynamic instructional support system guided by his students' learning. His goal is “to forge a bridge between [his students'] media production and civic engagement' (Kahne, Lee, & Feezell, 2012).


10.32698/0772 ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
pp. 113
Author(s):  
Eryzal Novrialdy ◽  
Herman Nirwana ◽  
Riska Ahmad

Adolescents are currently in the midst of technological sophistication, which is very helpful for its development. On the other hand, many adolescents are trapped in the problem of technology addiction. Adolescents are the most age group who experience problems with the use of technology, including online games. Online game addiction is the loss of control over the use of online games, which makes other daily activities are disrupted. Online game addiction in adolescents have an impact on several aspects of life, such as health aspects, psychological aspects, academic aspects, social aspects, and financial aspects. Lack of understanding about the risks of online game addiction can get adolescent stuck in online game addiction. This research aims to describe high school students understanding about the risks of online game addiction. The sample consisted of 255 high school students selected by proportional random sampling technique. Data was collected using a scale measuring understanding of the risks of online game addiction. Data analysis used a quantitative approach with descriptive methods. The results showed that high school students understanding about the risks of online game addiction was included in the moderate category with an average score of 198,48 and an achievement score level of 55,14%. Therefore, school counselors must to improve high school students understanding of the risks of online game addiction.


Author(s):  
Rinaldi Masda Syahputra And Johan Sinulingga

This research analyzed the readability of reading texts taken from English textbooks for grade VIII students of SMP Negeri 1 Kabanjahe of 2016/2017 entitled English in Focus published by Pusat Perbukuan Departemen Pendidikan Nasional. Being important a textbook as the most used in sources of a class, textbook should be readable and appropriate for the students especially for the reading texts inside it. The goal of this research was to find out how is the readability of those reading texts in the textbook.To describe and investigate the readability, this research used a readability formula measurement called SMOG Grading Formula which is found by G. Harry Mc. Laughlin. The source of the data were 20 reading texts taken randomly from English in Focus textbook.The major findings of the study showed that the readability of 20 reading texts were in the variety level for students within 5th elementary school to the 10th grade high school students level, and it found that 13 of 20 reading texts or about 65% of the data are appropriate for the 8th grade students who are the user of the book. Meanwhile, this research also found reading texts which are not appropriate for the students. There are 3 reading texts are too easy and 4 are too difficult for them. So, 35% reading texts in the data is not appropriate for 8th grade students.


2021 ◽  
pp. 105678792110036
Author(s):  
Tonya Johnson ◽  
Edward Lehner

New York State, in all of its regions, has a growing number of diverse public-school students, including many immigrant groups, accounting for a significant change in the ethnic and racial demographics of the state’s student population. Despite the rapidly changing student population, the teaching force nonetheless remains disproportionately White and populated primarily by women. A growing body of research suggests that the ranks of paraprofessionals, many of whom are already working in schools, may be the ideal population from which to develop a more fully diversified teaching candidate pool. Informed by a theoretical lens of social reproduction and drawing from an expansive data set, this research surveys the unique barriers that paraprofessionals face in accessing information about licensure and navigating local and state requirements. Specifically, the current work examines the needs of candidates at an urban community college and presents findings from a pilot support program designed to increase paraprofessional credentialing leading to teaching licensure. The findings of this work highlight not only the need for teacher and paraprofessional preparation programs to alter recruiting and skill-acquisition practices but also the need for continued research to better understand how to support multiethnic, multilingual, and multiracial teacher candidates.


2001 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. 6-10 ◽  
Author(s):  
Graham Boyd ◽  
Brian Hemmings ◽  
Eddie Braggett

This article reports the development of a career education program for gifted high school students in a New South Wales selective, coeducational high school. The program replaced a previous approach that was demand-responsive, generic in approach, and not aligned with student needs. A needs analysis of the school and a formative evaluation were undertaken to ensure successful redevelopment of the program. These evaluations resulted in the following changes to the school's program: earlier and more flexible career awareness opportunities; increased scope for clarification of values; inclusion of psychological, psychocreative, and social elements; integration of career education and student welfare; lifelong learning emphases; aspiration enhancement for particular students; strategy employment for females; and an expansion in community learning opportunities. A program influenced by these elements was then highlighted as a best-practice exemplar.


2008 ◽  
Vol 56 (2) ◽  
pp. 145-161 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daryl W. Kinney

Nontransient 6th- and 8th-grade urban middle school students' achievement test scores were examined before (4th grade) and during (6th or 8th grade) enrollment in a performing ensemble. Ensemble participation (band, choir, none) and subject variables of socioeconomic status (SES) and home environment were considered. Fourth- and 6th-grade achievement tests consisted of Reading, Math, Citizenship and Science; 8th grade included Reading, Math, Social Studies, Science, and Language Arts. Analyses indicated significant differences yet small effect sizes for main effects of SES and ensemble participation. Higher SES students scored significantly higher on all subtests except 4th-, 6th-, and 8th-grade reading. Sixth-grade band students scored significantly higher than choir students and nonparticipants on every subtest of 6th- and 4th-grade achievement tests. Eighth-grade band students scored significantly higher than nonparticipants on 4th-grade Reading and Math and every subtest of the 8th-grade achievement test except Social Studies. Similar results for both cohorts suggest that band may attract higher achieving students from the outset and that test score differences remain stable over time.


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