The Power of Collaboration Janine Lim Berrien RESA
The Power of Collaboration Janine Lim Berrien RESA janine. lim@berrienresa. org
Berrien RESA (ESU) • Serves Berrien and Cass counties in southwest MI • 70 Polycom VSX 7000 s and Viewstations • 662 projects and content provider programs ‘ 07 -’ 08 • 276 PD & meetings ‘ 07 -’ 08
What is TWICE? • Two Way Interactive Connections in Education: www. twice. cc • K 12 videoconferencing organization • Volunteer board members, mostly from educational service agencies • Read Around the Planet • ASK Programs & Michigan Week • Discounts with providers
“Curriculum Videoconferencing”
If your principal or superintendent walked into your classroom during a videoconference, give five adjectives to describe what they would see happening.
5 Postives About Using VC 1. Students have an authentic audience, causing them to take greater care with their work. 2. Students learn to create valid questions. 3. Students reflect upon what they learn and sometimes change their thinking or make connections to what they know. 4. Some of our challenging students’ behavior is so much better because they’re interested in what we’re doing. 5. When we connect to another part of the country or a foreign country, we open our students’ world to ideas they may not learn through a text book. Most of our students do not have opportunity to travel or see areas outside of our rural community and county. Peggy Clore
Collaborations! classroom-toclassroom collaborations professional development collaborations school-to-school collaborations
Why Collaborations?
Who’s Asking?
Tech Coordinator “We bought VC. How do we get teachers to use it? ” • FREE • Most closely matches curriculum • Can be most powerful VCs
Teacher “What’s the value to my students? ” • multicultural understanding and greater positive selfconcept • greater understanding of time, distance, and other children • learn from other viewpoints Owston 2007 Cifuentes & Murphy 2000 Yost 2001 Martinez & Mac. Millan, 1998
Curriculum Director “How does VC meet state curriculum standards? ” • tailored to curriculum goals • adapted to curriculum goals • created from/within curriculum goals
Professor “Did anyone think about the learning theory? ” • social constructivism we learn by talking to others Vygotsky • constructivism - use of VC has a positive relationship with teachers’ preference for constructivism Sweeney 2007 • authentic audience Warschauer 1997
Classroom-to. Classroom Collaborations
Eco-Conversations Carbon Dioxide Emissions Climate Change Warmer Oceans Environmental Clean-Up Fresh Water Bottles Background science knowledge Analysis of scientific method's use Environmental perspectives Economic perspectives Local perspectives Recommended actions / solutions Middle School Science International where possible www. remc 11. k 12. mi. us/dl/Eco. Conversations/
• My students absolutely LOVED IT. You know they really liked it when they are telling other teachers and students about it!!! Talking to another country is by far the best VC out there!! When you have students like those here in Dowagiac who have maybe been as far away as Detroit or Chicago (many not that far) they are fascinated with the accents, language usage……. very cool, I would talk to another country any time it was available! Eco-Conversations: Carbon Emissions
Read Around the Planet
Halloween and Diwali Exchange with India
Mystery. Quest Agenda • • Introductions Presentation of Clues Time to Research Clarifying Questions Sharing Guesses Revealing the Answer Sign-Off
School-to. School Collaborations
School-to-School Mars Elementary, Berrien Springs “While trying to get my teachers interested in having VC Pals, I had to make a point to let them know I only wanted them to share things they already do. Many times when the students do their writings they share as a classroom but that’s it. By sharing during a VC, maybe the work will become more meaningful because they are sharing it with another group of students. ”
Monster Match • Developed by ESC 12, Waco, TX • Descriptive writing & use of wiki • RESA to ESC collaboration (125 classes)
• A few of my reluctant writers shocked me with the quality of their writing and enthusiasm for the project. I think having an audience that goes beyond the building’s walls helps too. It makes the project seem more important. “Gobbling Up Descriptive Writing”
School to School Collaboration Provides Author/Tuskegee Airman Interview
Professional Development Collaboration
Collaboration for PD • www. 123 vc. net Jazzing Up Your Curriculum with Videoconferencing • “Mini-Jazz” 2008 about 30 collaborations resulted from 1. 5 hour training
Challenges to Collaboration • • • Snow Days / Rescheduling Blocked Emails Lack of Follow-Up Lack of School-Level VC Coordinators Project Definition http: //bcisdvcs. wordpress. com/2007/04/24/why-projects-failed-this-year/
Questions? Janine Lim, janine. lim@berrienresa. org TWICE: www. twice. cc CAPspace: projects. twice. cc Berrien RESA DL: www. remc 11. k 12. mi. us/dl Blog: bcisdvcs. wordpress. com Wiki: collaborative. VCs. pbwiki. com Online Classes: Planning Interactive Curriculum Connections www. remc 11. k 12. mi. us/dl/picc Kid 2 Kid Videoconference Connections www. remc 11. k 12. mi. us/dl/k 2 k
Bibliography • • • Cifuentes, L. , & Murphy, K. L. (2000). Promoting multicultural understanding and positive self-concept through a distance learning community: cultural connections. Educational Technology Research and Development, 48(1), 69 -83. Martinez, M. D. , & Mac. Millan, G. (1998). A Joint Distance Learning Course in American Government (No. ED 428005). Owston, R. (2007). Contextual factors that sustain innovative pedagogical practice using technology: an international study. Journal of Educational Change, 8(1), 61 -77. Sweeney, M. A. (2007). The use of videoconferencing techniques which support constructivism in K-12 education. Dissertation Abstracts International. Warschauer, M. (1997). Computer-mediated collaborative learning: Theory and practice. Modern Language Journal, 81(3), p. 470 -481. Also at http: //www. gse. uci. edu/person/markw/cmcl. html Yost, N. (2001). Lights, Camera, Action: Videoconferencing in Kindergarten. Paper presented at the Society for Information Technology and Teacher Education International Conference.
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