I was very interested in this weeks reading on Online Reading Comprehension, particularly the Reading Digitally Like a Historian, by Michael Manderino. I realize that although I have tried to be very “with-it” when it comes to incorporating technology in the classroom for reading exercises, I absolutely have room to learn and grow. What really struck me was the section about assembling digital text sets. The author refers to the difference between students, who often get one text or article at a time to analyze, and historians and researchers, who often look at multiple texts and articles to analyze them together. By providing students with multiple sources through the online tools we have, such as google classroom, google drive, or a class website, students can read through the articles at their own pace and connect to different themes. “The ability of students to navigate texts independently was seen by the students as advantageous.” (Manderino 2012)
DBQ’s (Document Based Questions) are a big deal in the district in which I work. They are benchmark assessments for students throughout the year and are also incorporated into my curriculum in order to teach the skills of argumentative writing. I really liked the idea of incorporating “Digital DBQ’s” into my classroom. Although the district assessment DBQ’s are not yet digital, I really believe that using them in my classroom curriculum would give students an advantage, not only on the DBQs in my class, but also with online reading comprehension as a whole. I really think that giving the students the ability to look at multiple online sources, rather than a small collection of printed maps and writings will help with their understanding and analysis of primary sources. I liked the example of the Tonkin Project that was discussed in the article. We do a big DBQ in the beginning of the year about King Hammurabi and I would like to mimic the way that this webpage was set up.
Now with this changeover I know that there will be new skills that I will need to teach, and I feel as though I am ready to do that. By scaffolding their learning, starting out by providing them with specific texts and teaching them how to look for validity and reliability, throughout the year I can step back and begin allowing the students to source their own materials. This is markedly different from just providing them with a packet of documents and not allowing them to look for additional information, as I have had to do in the past. I look forward to creating a lesson that will explicitly teach the students how to source online media (Manderino 2012). Yes, students may know how to read and look for articles, but they need to be taught how to analyze them, especially formats that may be new to them, such as videos.
This weeks reading really lit a fire under me. I am beginning to see how I can incorporate these ideas we have been learning into my classroom. I was excited about the blogging and some other tools we have already discussed, but the idea of being able to teach my students skills about reading and researching online that will benefit them in their future has gotten me very excited!
This article also had a big impact on me! I know we are both Social Studies teachers and the article starts out saying that we can't just look at multi-media in general, we need to look at multi-media in our subject area. As a "NON-TESTED" subject, Social Studies is often overlooked. But so much online reading is done in the Social Studies classroom through, movies, speeches, online research, etc. I also blogged about what I have to change in my classroom. You can read more at https://keelygarden.wordpress.com/2015/07/29/can-an-old-dog-learn-new-tricks/
ReplyDeleteI did create a lesson plan on how to Google Search and the link is available on that blog. I had not focused on the idea of multiple sources but I am thrilled you pointed that out to me. I could really use your ideas in my PLN!
This article also left a big impression on me. When we talk about creating authentic learning experiences, I think we often forget how to make digital learning authentic as well. I found the section you highlighted to be impactful- the digital landscape of learning is so vast, and students need to be taught how to navigate multiple sources. I agree that this lends itself perfectly to your content area.
ReplyDeleteI think both of you ladies really incorporated your ideas and new learning about online reading comprehension into the lesson plans that you shared today! I'm excited to hear how these new teaching and learning strategies impact your students next year!
I love how enthusiastic you are about teaching 6th graders to research. It really is an important skills that should be taught in every grade. It would be awesome if you and Keely could do a cross-district project through a shared blog. The younger students could learn from the older ones and I always feel the ability to teach something to someone else/younger than you proves you have learned it yourself.
ReplyDeleteThis is Erin by the way. Everytime I try to post to your page it wants me to sign in as my old blogger account. I don't know how it will show my name but I have given up fighting with it. When I try to change it I have to retype my whole response.
Good post Meredith.
ReplyDeleteI also love the thinking about disciplinary literacies and how they work in online spaces. Many times we think about searching and synthesizing as we read these texts and think that it's foreign, germane, or difficult. In many senses...social studies/history teachers have been doing this for decades. As our students read online, we want them to think about the source, perspective, bias, time period, and be able to analyze across multiple sources to find "truth." That in essence is what we want our students to do as they read as a historian.