Effective Instructional Models for Internet Use in High School

Effective Instructional Models for Internet Integration in the High School Curriculum

Julie Coiro, Jill Castek and Laurie Henry
University of Connecticut

Internet Workshop

Internet Project

Internet Inquiry

Internet Project This activity will provide an opportunity to explore different ways that students and their teachers are connecting and communicating with others from around the world through email, listervs, electronic discussion boards and central curricular web sites. Internet Project may take place as you work with another class on a common learning activity, with students and teachers communicating extensively about the topic that both classes are exploring. Internet Project may also take place when many classes contribute data to a common site and then, after the data are analyzed, see how their data compare with others. Often there will also be discussion between participating classes about the meaning of the results and even opportunities to use the data for further analyses. Each leads to rich opportunities. Internet Project Examples Students at the elementary level are being exposed to all kinds of exciting Internet Projects (see Susan Silverman's Webfolio for many great examples of K-5) They are beginning to move into the higher grades with examples like The Joke's On: Students construct and analyze political cartoons based on current events Student Created Document Based Questions: Students find primary and/or secondary source documents and create questions for their global peers to answer online. A Series of Unforunate Collaborations: Pre-service teachers in undergraduate and graduate school team up with 5th and 6th graders to create, interact and respond to the Lemony Snicket series. More intensive collaborative projects are being created as well. International Schools CyberFair: Students conduct research about their local communities and then publish their findings on the World Wide Web. Recognition is given to schools for the best projects in each of eight categories: local leaders, businesses, community organizations, historical landmarks, environment, music, art, and local specialties. In these projects, the organization outlines the guidelines and your students work collaboratively to publish their findings to share with the larger global community. Explore this year's winners to see the power of these projects. Global Virtual Classroom The GLOBE Hands on Education and Science Program
Try It Out Explore at least one of the Internet Project ideas in your content area, noting the overall goal, the expected timeline, particular tasks, methods of assessment and important hardware and software needs. How might a project like this impact your instruction?
Language Arts/Literature The Media Mosaic Project: Media Literacy for Global Youth (IEARN): Participants are encouraged to be better informed world citizens by analysis and comparison of the news media which influences and shapes the points-of-view, values and decisions of the world community. CBBC Newsround Chat invites teens from around the world to voice their opinion and interact. NewzCrew: Engage youth in dialogue about news, media and democratic issues. This is part of the Global Kids Email Newsletter. Newsday Project: Create a newspaper with others and keep in touch via the electronic discussion board.Writer's Window: Students are invited to join continous stories or read and respond to creative writing with others around the world. Aspects of Love: (IEARN Project) Participants express themselves either in writing or drawing, to help them develop tolerance to other's opinions and shape their values through the power of love. Laws of Life (IEARN Project): Young people ages 9-21 are invited to express in their own words what they value most in life. The Peace Diaries Our Dream School	Science Human Genetics: A Worldwide Search for the Dominant Trait: Collect and analyze information to determine which traits are controlled by a dominant gene. Exchange your hypothesis, data, and conclusions with other students around the world. The International Boiling Point Project: Boil water, collect data on several factors, and submit your results to a central database. Then, students can analyze all of the data to reach an answer to the question "What causes a pot of water to boil?" Electricity: How Much Do You Use? Students gather data about their own household electricity usage and find the average amount used in a week. They compare this to the average amount of electricity used in other parts of the country. RoadKill 2004: Students and teachers get involved with scientific monitoring of an environmental parameter using the Internet to increase participant awareness of motor vehicle hazards with wildlife. YouthCan: Youth Communicating and Networking about Environmental Issues Global Warming Project: Students research, share and debate with multiple technologies in this project.
Math Are You Getting Enough Sleep? Keep track of sleep patterns for a week and analyze the results. Global Grocery Lis t: Share your local grocery prices with participating classrooms all over the world. Heads Up: A Study in Probability The Global Sun Temperature Project: Join schools from around the world as they try to figure out how their geographic location (i.e. where they live) affects their average daily temperature and hours of sunlight. National Math Trail: Submit math problems related to your local environment. The Noon Day Project: Measuring the Circumference of the Earth Connecting Math to Our Lives (IEARN Project) - Call for Participation Math and Agriculture (IEARN Project) Project SkyMath Stock Market Projects Interactive Stock Market Project Stock's Quest Global Stock Market Game Bialik Stock Exchange (Advanced Economics): Students are expected to develop an innovative idea/product, form a company, and ultimately sell their product to the public, i.e. the general student body.	Social Studies Geogame Interactive Web Project: Locate yourself on a map and send it off as a mystery to other participants. Life on the Streets: Learn more, share stories and contribute resources. Online Expeditions: Online interactive journeys along with people who travel to exotic locations. Decisions, Decisions, Online: Join in on the conversations or interact with national surveys about student reactions to contraversial issues like TV Violence, Napster, Animal Testing or Human Cloning. Doors to Diplomacy: encourages middle school and high school students around the world to produce web projects that teach others about the importance of international affairs and diplomacy. Child Soldier Project (IEARN) Youth bear witness to the issue of the child soldier and how it affects their lives, their families, their communities and their countries. Hunt for Famous Explorers: (KIDPROJ) Students make nine clues about Famous Explorers and challenge other classes to identify their explorer. UNICEF Discussion Board: Students are encouraged to speak out, interact, and take action with regards to a number of global issues. Direct link to the Online Forums.
Search a thematic topic of your own using Google, Yahooligans, or KidsClick
Other Internet Project Resources Internet Project: View an online presentation by Don Leu from the University of Connecticut CIESE Online Collaborative Projects: Real Time Data Projects,Partner Projects and more. IEARN Projects: Students use the Internet and other information communication technologies to engage in collaborative educational projects that both enhance learning and make a difference in the world. Connected Classroom Project Registry for elementary and secondary levels KidLink (KidPROJ list of current and past projects) Carr, J. (2002). Quick Tips for Teachers. In Project pillars: Foundations for success in online curriculum Projects. Research Innovation and Access section of AccessEd, Education Queensland. Available: http://www.edna.edu.au/sibling/pillars/html/tips.htm Judi Harris' Virtual Architecture Web Home outlines examples of curriculum-based educational telecomputing projects and resources into categories like interpersonal exchanges, information collection and analyses, and problem solving. Tools for Collaboration from the Global Schoolhouse Network The TestBed for Collaboration walks you through the process of getting started and then links to four examples of collaborative projects. EPals Classroom Exchange has a database of over 3000 classrooms around the world seeking classroom keypals.