My contributions to the WebQuest wikis.

I made one contribution to the section dedicated to strong introductions. Mine was the one about Monarch butterflies. Some other parts of the webquest weren't terribly strong, but I felt the introduction was good to get students going.

I also made a contribution to the section about weak role choice components. I thought there were some outstanding components to the WebQuest as a whole, but it involved no role choice whatsoever.

In addition, I submitted a contender for the Worst Conclusion Ever contest. This is the worst conclusion. It's all another task for students to do. It doesn't do anything you told us makes a good conclusion, and it does everything you told us makes a bad conclusion. It is the Worst Conclusion.

Maine Memory Network

The division between English and social studies has always seemed odd to me. After all, English is a social study in the most basic sense -- the purpose of reading literature is to get a view of how people interacted in other times and places. With this in mind, many of the exhibits online at the Maine Memory Network could be used in an English classroom. Reading primary sources is an essential part of studying literature of the time. Also, because the Maine Memory Network focuses on Maine, students will be able to have more of a connection to the material. For instance, while reading a book that takes place around the time of the Civil War, we could access documents pertaining to what things were like in Maine at that time. We could then compare and contrast these two accounts.

Copyright and Fair Use

1. A student snaps in half a CD-ROM the teacher really needed for her next class. The teacher decides to make a back-up copy of all her crucial disks so it never happens again. This is permissible.

This one's answer (That it is permissible) is interesting to me because it brings up one of the common misconceptions about technology. Because software was distributed before the Internet, people got used to the idea that they were paying for the data on the disc, or the disc itself, when they bought software. In reality, because data is so easily copied, trying to sell it would be a fool's errand. Instead, my understanding is that companies are actually selling licenses to use that data. With the advent of digital distribution, this is an important distinction to make.

6. A middle school science class studying ocean ecosystems must gather material for multimedia projects. The teacher downloads pictures and information on marine life from various commercial and noncommercial sites to store in a folder for students to access. This is fair use.

I like the notion that this is true, because it is something I was worried about. It can be discouraging thinking about how the world of copyright seems designed to work against us.

9. A technology coordinator downloads audio clips from MP3.com to integrate into a curriculum project. This is fair use.

I found this interesting because it wasn't what I would expect. I think it's great that a website like mp3.com is out there. Teachers need resources to have compelling lesson designs, and it's good to know somebody is willing to provide.

11. A teacher videotapes a rerun of Frontier House, the PBS reality show that profiles three modern families living as homesteaders from the 1880s did. In class, students edit themselves "into" the frontier and make fun of the spoiled family from California. This is fair use.

This was another case where I didn't expect it to be true. It seems to me that, as long as a person adds onto the work, it's okay. The trouble comes up when somebody just redistributes a piece of work.

12. A student tries to digitize the shower scene from a rented copy of Psycho into a "History of Horror" report. Her computer won't do it. The movie happens to be on an NBC station that week, so the teacher tapes it and then digitizes it on the computer for her. This is fair use.

I found this one interesting because the answer is that it is true, but that manufacturers are trying to stop it from happening by putting on blocks. Those blocks are almost certainly meant for regular users, but they adversely affect teachers as well. I also thought it was funny that the article recommended snatching up laserdiscs.

19. A high school video class produces a DVD yearbook that includes the year's top ten music hits as background music. This is fair use.

The article says this one is false, and the reason it gives says that it's because yearbooks aren't meant for instructional use. This is interesting because it shows me that, as long as I'm using something for instructional use, chances are it'll be allowed, with some exceptions as laid out in the article.

How to help someone use a computer

Phil Agre wrote this informative and interesting article, called "How to help someone use a computer." He writes first a list of things a tech-savvy instructor must tell themselves before attempting to help someone use a computer, and next goes into a list of rules which will be easier to follow once those basic facets are believed.

One important thing from the first list that I particularly connected with was his statement that the user "might be afraid that you're going to blame them for the problem." In any teaching situation where I am the instructor, I like to instill a feeling of peace in the person I'm teaching. That's not to say I talk down to them or make them feel I'm condescending -- I just try to let them know that I'm on their side, and that I do in fact remember what it's like being a beginner at something, because I am often a beginner at things.

An important entry from the second list is the one that tells me to keep in mind how abstract my language is. I often forget how concrete computer programs feel to people. I am so used to an abstract view of programs that that is what comes naturally to me, and I will need to pay careful attention to making my language as concrete as the user's experience of the program they're learning.

When teaching the class about Google Earth, I feel I won't have to worry about many of these problems, because Google does very well at creating intuitive user interfaces. However, we will be careful to try and go as quickly or slowly as people need us to. We will also encourage questions from people, because I think a lot of intimidation about computers is just people being afraid to ask questions.

Chapter 10: Going Beyond the Classroom

The final chapter of "Fires in the Bathroom," appropriately enough, talks about how to extend learning outside of the classroom. The last tip reminds us to support the learning that students are doing when teachers aren't around.

I'd never thought about it before, but that is a vital part of being a teacher. Students are with us for only a small fraction of the day. When they aren't with us, or even in school at all, they are still learning. They're learning things about their friends, or their family, or just subjects that they're interested in. As much as we can without becoming intrusive, teachers should guide that learning and make it even more effective. Teachers aren't filling empty vessels; we're making connections.

Chapter 9: When Things Go Wrong

Chapter nine of "Fires in the Bathroom" talks about when teachers and students begin to feel discouraged by school. At one point, the essential problem for teachers is summarized as being a "balance between maintaining their authority and letting students know they care about them."

I feel this gets to the heart of a bigger issue in teaching: The balance between teaching as a profession and teaching as a lifestyle. All teachers end up somewhere on this spectrum. At one extreme, they consider teaching to be just a job, and are so disconnected from their students that learning the material becomes difficult. At the other extreme, teachers strive too far to become connected to students, and either lose the ability to control them or lose the ability to keep track of them. I feel like maintaining this balance is essential, and that it changes day-to-day, rather than being a constant ethos. Some days, it will be important to remind myself that it's just a job; other days, I will have to remember that these kids have lives of their own, and that what's happening in those lives is just as important as what I'm teaching them.

Chapter 8: Teaching Teenagers Who Are Still Learning English

Chapter eight of "Fires in the Bathroom" focuses on a subject I have had no experience with: Teaching students who aren't yet fully comfortable with English. Near the end of the chapter, one of the sections discusses the special problem of writing in this situation. The authors suggest that the challenge of a writing assignment could be reduced for English-language learners.

I appreciate this advice, because I feel teaching my students how to write effectively will be the most important thing I do. I think writing well in English is an intimidating goal for many students, even ones who have been raised in English-speaking households. People get discouraged because they don't grasp the art of it right away, and so they begin to think that writing well is just a talent they will never have. This is not true; there is an art to writing well, but it is more of a tool than an art. I want to teach students that, even if they don't craft beautifully composed and elegant sentences, they still must be able to communicate well in writing in any field they wish to enter. And, best of all, developing the functional mechanics of writing will lead to a better grasp on the art of it, if desired.

Chapter 7: Teaching Difficult Academic Material

Chapter seven of "Fires in the Bathroom" talks about how tough material should be taught. There is one section that specifically addresses difficult literature, which is something I will definitely deal with. The authors include such tips as making it clear why students are reading the piece, relating reading to their lives, and finding out why they feel the way they do about the book.

I think students in school should be challenged every day of their lives. What is school, if not a safe environment in which to be challenged, and grow in the process? That holds true for literature as much as it does for any other subject. If we're reading a difficult piece, I will challenge them by eagerly awaiting their interpretations even as I help them to express them in an effective and constructive way. If we're reading a less difficult piece, I will challenge them to interpret it in a way they've never thought of before.

Chapter 6: Motivation and Boredom

Chapter six of "Fires in the Bathroom" deals with a subject I've seen a lot of during my field experience. One excellent chart deals with the problem of timing activities while mindful of what's going on outside of school. It gives a time (Such as "After lunch"), a list of things that are good for that time, and a list of things that are bad for that time.

I noticed a huge difference in how students responded to an activity based on when it was taking place. It's important for us as teachers to remember that nothing occurs in a vacuum. School is just one facet in the lives of students, and chances are it's not the most important one for many of them. Teachers have to remember that, rather than us being the boss of the students, the interplay is more complicated than that. They are responsible for doing assignments we give them, but we are responsible for making sure that the assignments will help them learn and not just discourage them. With that in mind, we have to be willing to change our instruction based on what's going on in the course of the day. Rigidity is death in a classroom.

Chapter 5: Teaching to the Individual, Working with the Group

Chapter five of "Fires in the Bathroom" addresses the struggle between the need to treat students like individuals without ignoring the fact that they naturally group themselves. One section talks about group work. That section contains a series of tips about setting up group activities.

I feel like setting up group work will be one of the more challenging parts of being a teacher. I remember group work from when I was in high school, but I don't remember any of it being particularly rewarding. As time goes by and I observe and learn more and more, I will be sure to take careful note of when group work seems to enhance a lesson and when it seems to detract. I will try to break down group work into a series of elements, and determine what works when. This part of the chapter will be instrumental in that learning process.

Chapter 4: Creating a Culture of Success

Chapter four of "Fires in the Bathroom" talks about the expectations that students and teachers have for one another. One tip that I feel will be important in my teaching career reminds us to always be clear about why students have earned the grade that they did. As a corollary, it tells us to expect that students will revise their work, fixing the problems we have pointed out.

This is one of the best things about being in Mr. Ryder's classroom. He manages to expect a lot from students, yet still allow them to revise if an assignment is disappointing or to catch up if they fall behind. In an English classroom, a lot of the work will be of the type that can be revised. A teacher can quickly get on a class's bad side if he or she won't allow revision. Ultimately, the most important thing to remember is that I'm not testing them on what they know already, I'm teaching them new things and expanding their horizons, and that process can take differing amounts of time.

Chapter 3: Classroom Behavior

Chapter three of "Fires In The Bathroom" focuses on different challenges to classroom management, and different ways teachers can help keep things under control without stifling students. One part that jumped out at me was when students discussed what they feel like when a student has their head down. On the one hand, three students talked about how the teacher should address the behavior in a private, respectful way, without drawing attention to it. Afterward, three other students discussed how one student having their head down can cause a disruption that eventually reaches the entire classroom.

This kind of contradiction seems at first like it might cause problems, but I think this is just more reason every student must be treated as an individual. Teachers have to read the tone of their classrooms, and should respond accordingly to behaviors. In some classrooms, a student with their head down will become the focus of all attention. In others, students will respectfully ignore that student and keep paying attention to the instruction. In either case, it's up the the teacher to know their students well enough that the response is clear.