Final Project: Links Page

• Section 1: Standards
• Section 2: Objectives
• Section 3: Pre-Assessment & Materials
• Section 4: Lesson Delivery
• Section 5: Closure & Assessment
• Section 6: Survey
• Section 7: Survey Results

Final Project Section 5: Closure & Assessment

Closure:

• The teacher and students briefly review and summarize the articles which are analyzed by the groups as well as the connection between the articles and the amendments. The teacher and students provide final comments during this discussion.
• Students write brief responses to one of the situations presented by the teacher at the beginning of the unit

Assessment:

• Students must correctly identify the amendment to the Constitution which applies to each article being analyzed. They must provide written explanations of the reasoning processes which led to their decisions. The reasoning processes must correlate with facts from each article as well as follow sound methods of reasoning.
• Each student must independently complete a similar review sheet to demonstrate his/her ability to correctly understand the contents of various amendments and how they relate to specific issues.

Final Project Section 4: Lesson Delivery

   This plan can cover 4 to 6 separate days, in order for the students to fully emmerse themselves in the fine points of the U.S. Constitution.  The teacher can start by presenting students with hypothetical situations which could affect their personal life situations.  Such examples can include:

• You are told you have to practice a new religion which has recently been established by the government
• The government forcibly confiscates the guns which your family uses for hunting
• You are not allowed to vote in the next presidential election after your 18th birthday.

The students discuss their reactions to these and other situations which could personally affect them. The issues must relate to various items in the amendments to the Constitution.  Next the students, working in groups of 3 or 4 begin to take pictures or video (using the digital camera) of visual representation of different Constitutional amendments.  They will upload these pictures onto their computer.  Students will also search the internet for various current news articles discussing violations of the Constitutional amendments.  Students are required to identify the amendments referred to in the articles and the reasoning processes which led to their decisions.  The students will cut and paste their pictures and articles onto PowerPoint slides and create a short presentation on relating the amendments in real-life situations outside the classroom.  After all the groups have completed their analyses within a designated time frame, the entire class reconvenes to present their slides and compare/contrast them. 

Final Project Section 3: Pre-Assessment & Materials

Prior Knowledge:

• Students must be familiar with the U.S. Constitution, including the amendments
• Students must have basic computer skills and how to integrate pictures onto slides such as PowerPoint

Materials Needed:

• Personal Computer for each team
• Scanner
• Projection System
• Digital Camera
• Computer software such as Microsoft PowerPoint

Final Project Section 2: Objectives

The students will be able to:

• Use the ideas in the Declaration of Independence to evaluate the conduct of citizens, political behavior, and the practices of government
• All students will describe the political and legal processes created to make decisions, seek consensus, and resolve conflicts in a free society
• Explain why people may agree on democratic values in the abstract but disagree when they are applied to specific situations
• Evaluate possible amendments to the Constitution
  

Final Project Section 1: Standards

Academic Standards

• 8.2  Students analyze the political principles underlying the U.S. Constitution and compare the enumerated and implied powers of the federal government
• 8.2.6  Enumerate the powers of government set forth in the Constitution and the fundamental liberties ensured by the Bill of Rights.

Technological Standards

• Teachers design, develop, and evaluate authentic learning experiences and assessments incorporating contemporary tools and resources to maximize content learning in context and to develop the knowledge, skills, and attitudes
• customize and personalize learning activities to address students’ diverse learning styles, working strategies, and abilities using digital tools and resources

Survey Results

Link to Results Page

Final Project: Survey

Please take some time and fill out this survey, your input is appreciated!
Click here to take survey

Powerpoint With Interactive Menu

BCS Survey Results

BCS Results

BCS Survey

Drunk History Video

Facebook in the Classroom

Facebook, in itself has revolutionized social interactions around the world. Millions of people on an hourly basis use the site for connections and discussions, with old friends, new acquaintances, networking groups, activities, and some use it to simply waste time. It has created a central location where people can reinforce and expand their real-world social connections. What began as a network site for Ivy League students and faculty to connect with each other, it opened its doors a few days later to the public and allowed them to network with the world. It has over 65 million active users, using the network site on average for 20 minutes a day, and has obtained an 85% market share of United States University students.

Facebook in its evolution is now being pondered for use in the classroom, and this presents an interesting argument for its pertinence in the scholastic field. The combination of media sharing, messaging, event groups, and the multitude of applications offered from companies and private users, create a platform for students to culminate ideas for class, discuss challenging notions from lessons, and talk directly with their classmates and teacher, even plan group projects and presentations. I have used networking sites, not Facebook, in other classes and it has been most educational, as well as provided a forum for the students to discuss topics directly.

The spontaneity of the Facebook site makes it neutral ground for students and faculty to share ideas. This idea motivates students to participate by choice, not by coercion. The informal channels of free thought that progress on, “the Wall,” promote interaction between the members of a group. The connection to RSS-feeds allows instantaneous updating for students to keep up-to-date information.

However, there are egregious downsides to using Facebook in class as well. The informal use creates a false sense of security to its users. The thought that even in a private group, information uploaded will remain private is naïve. A term coined recently, “ambient intimacy,” refers to the constant sense of closeness users feel with their circle of friends through the use of technology. This “intimate feeling” is misleading, because of the lack of strong regulation over information sharing on the internet. Student’s naivety on their digital footprint creates a false sense of security on the amount of information shared, as well as content.

We have to conclude that the use of Facebook, as well as other social networking sites are here to stay and will evolve more as technology gains precedent in daily life. It is still in its infancy, and it will be very interesting to see how it evolves over time. As I can see its pertinence in the classroom setting, I would disagree in its use at this time.

Reflection on ISTE-Standards

Consider how technology has become such an important part of learning. Technology allows for a finer, more individualized degree of interactivity in order to customize the learning experience based on the needs of the user. Technology provides new resources for learning that overcomes distance and time. Technology becomes integrated in multiple ways for instructional purposes. As a new technology is developed, educators think and reflect on how that too should become incorporated into their classrooms. Sometimes these insights arrive one idea at a time. At other times, there is a wild flurry of growth and activity while technology is added to support teachers' instruction and students’ learning when the conditions are right. It takes funding and committed support of all parties involved (administrations, boards, parents, students, teachers) to develop appropriate projects for the integration of technology into our education systems.
These standards talk about the implementation of teaching important lessons using technology as a support tool to supplement the lesson. However, this "laundry list" of requirements deals with the ideal situation. Teaching in the ideal situation is plausible, but not a practical assumption in the current state. I did appreciate one notion noted, that, "Teachers use their knowledge of subject matter, teaching and learning, and technology to facilitate experiences that advance student learning, creativity, and innovation in both face-to-face and virtual environments." I appreciated that technology was listed last. I have an ongoing fear that the use of technology will pervade the learning process and both students and teachers will become overly dependent on the use of technology in order to produce "good lessons." When you overly depend on the use of technology, often the lesson gets pushed to the wayside and is lost in the clutter of visual aids and sound and video bytes. This particular standard suggests using technology as a supplement and not the primary tool in the administering of the lesson.

Reflection: Essential Conditions

I am amazed at the increased dependency on the use of technology in classrooms. As someone who remembers life without the internet and the spread of information and technology, I find it disturbing that a good presentation or lesson has to involve an excessive amount of technological support. Whether it be visual aids, other forms of media, a good presentation is virtually required to have some sort of technological element to supplement the information. But at what cost? I feel that the use of technology in classrooms has created a hinderance to the absorption of materials. Students who are bombarded by the use of technology invariably become more and more dependent upon it. Likewise, teachers who become dependent on technology as an integral portion of their lecture or lesson, can easily lose the central theme of that lecture or lesson, with the use of flowery effects, colorful backdropsm and media clips.

Blog #1

I can't believe I stayed sober for this.....