Film & the Back Channel

My classes are wrapping up the year reading Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet which includes viewing the 1968 Zeffirelli film version.  While the acting leaves much to be desired, there is merit in showing this version because it provides students with a view of the time period and it is used in various critical thinking activities.

We compare and contrast the cinematography of Zeffirelli's R&J (1968) with West Side Story (1961) in the opening brawl sequence--there really is no comparison, WSS is amazing-- and focus on how the filmmakers used the source material of Shakespeare's play, meeting Common Core Standard 9-10.9. Students point out similarities in camera shots and staging of the opening brawl sequence.  They notice the use of high angle shots to showcase the chaos of the fighting, as well as the use of close-up shots to highlight specific characters. They even recognized the actor who played Tybalt as the same one who played Basil Exposition in the Austin Powers series. 

After the opening sequence and the Prince's yelling at all parities about having started another civil brawl, the next scenes in the 1968 film that correspond with Act I of the play are rather boring for modern teenage audiences.  Whereas I stopped and replayed all the scenes of WSS ad nausem to point out the cinematography and framing, I refuse to stop the 1968 version--like ripping off a band-aid, the quicker we view it, the quicker we will be done. To keep them enthralled, students participate in a class back channel discussion using TodaysMeet.com. 

On our class set of Chromebooks, students join the TodaysMeet room that I created and I go over the ground rules for the period:

1. Students must use their real names. I give students a participation score for the period, so no name equals no credit.
2. Students must demonstrate digital citizenship and use school appropriate language.  I don't mind if they misspell or abbreviate, but no profanity or sexually explicit posting is allowed.
3. Students are to comment on what they see AND answer the questions as they are posted to the room.
4. Students type in all lower-case letters, while the teacher types in all caps.

I don't follow a Q1/A1 format for posting questions during this activity, instead I post using all caps.  Since the conversation is very fast paced, I keep my caps-lock on for faster typing and so students can differentiate my questions and comments from the rest of the group. There is always a bit of silliness that occurs, but I remind the students about the purpose of this activity: to have a scholarly discussion.  There is a time and place for comedic conversations and blurt-out posting, but this is not it. 

To archive each period's chat session, I make a quick screencast using Screencastomatic.  I turn off the microphone and record scrolling through the chat so that the video archive is about 5 minutes long, as opposed to a full 43 minute period.  After uploading the screencast directly to YouTube, I use YouTube's edit features and add music.  I then post each period's video to our Edmodo group where students can compare and contrast the conversations from the various periods. 

Take a look at the archives from Friday's back channel discussion of the 1968 Zeffirelli version of Act 1, scenes 1-5 of Romeo and Juliet.

#CEL13: Connections

I couldn't afford the cost of attending the entire NCTE conference this year in Boston, but I was able to attend and present at the Conference on English Leadership, an intimate conference tied to the main NCTE event that was held November 24-26.

The 2013 CEL convention focused on the theme of Transformative Literary Leadership and Learning, and my session was STOP BLEEDING RED INK: Using Paper and Online tools to assist in evaluating student work. I'm very passionate about changing the perception of English teachers as red pen wielding warriors. English teachers should not be lugging home piles of papers to red pen and spending 20+ hours outside of school grading student work. Available technology AND teaching strategies can empower students to create better products better than any red mark on a paper. I'm very grateful to Heather Rocco and the CEL leadership for the opportunity to share my thoughts how on to transform literacy learning in the classroom with people who can effect change in their districts.

Celebrity Sightings & Twitter

Twitter has become such an integrated part of my professional learning. Sharing resources, working out issues, and conversing on Twitter with like minded individuals has propelled my teaching practices.  On more than one occasion, I was called "prolific" in reference to my tweeting habits during the conference-- if they only knew. One of the highlights for connecting via Twitter is being able to meet tweeps in person, face to face. 

#CEL13 love that so many of those I follow on twitter are here in person!
— Kate Baker (@KtBkr4) November 25, 2013

There were quite a few people at the conference who I did not recognize until they mentioned their Twitter handle.  One such moment occurred with Colette Benett:  it wasn't until I saw her Twitter handle @teachcmb56 that I realized I follow her on Twitter and regularly read her blog. "OH! You're Used Books in Class! I love your blog!"  was my immediate response when I connected with her and fellow teacher Stephanie Pixley during #CEL's social hour.  Nothing beats discussing Odysseus, Frankenstein, and Pygmalion over a class of Cabernet. 

Amazing geeky awesomeness. Talking abt The Odyssey over wine. #cel13
— Kate Baker (@KtBkr4) November 25, 2013

Colette made an interesting point in one of the sessions (please forgive my paraphrasing): Teachers are always doing dress rehearsals; we are never actually performing a final show. Every period we teach is just a dress rehearsal at best, and if we are lucky to teach the same prep, we can perform it multiple times with the 3rd showing probably the most successful. I think she is right! I wonder, how can teachers be on stage for a final performance? Evaluating teachers' performances via the Danielson model isn't the answer. I also wonder, why do teachers need to be on stage? Why not let the students "steal the show"? Let the teacher be the stage director or set designer-- more thoughts on this for another blog post.



Another moment was during the lunch keynote session, where I sat at a table with fellow educators Meenoo Rami, Amy Baskin, Kate Roberts, Maggie Roberts, Chris Lehman, and others: catching sight of @teachkate written on a name badge, I exclaimed, "OH! YOU'RE @TEACHKATE! I follow you! I'm @KtBkr4!" Once our Twitter handles were shared, we realized that we already "knew" each other. 

#CEL's keynote line-up was jammed packed with Twitter-celebs, amazing educators who cut the edge. Eric Sheninger touted the importance of being connected in his conference opening keynote. Troy Hick's keynote on digital writing resonated with me for it focused on what I am trying to do with my students: get them writing more and for an authentic audience. I carted around my copy of Hick's Crafting Digital Writing hoping to catch an autograph.  Donalyn Miller's keynote on fostering life-long readers was funny, smart, engaging. Meenoo Rami's keynote on connecting with her students and empowering their learning through relevant projects. I want to be in class with all of these people!

Tough decision: tweet or eat during @meenoorami 's keynote .... Actually not tough decision.... #cel13
— Kate Baker (@KtBkr4) November 26, 2013

One of many highlights for the conference was sitting with Meenoo Rami, Kate Roberts, Maggie Roberts, and Chris Lehman during lunch and unintentionally twitter-bombing Donalyn Miller's keynote. We realized rather quickly that the noise we heard emanating from the podium was her phone vibrating every time she received a tweet. We couldn't stop tweeting because her speech was relevant and inspiring, and needed to be shared.

@KtBkr4 @meenoorami @donalynbooks I thought that was so funny and a good reminder of how rich the conversation is around the speakers!
— Christopher Lehman (@iChrisLehman) November 26, 2013

#cel13 @donalynbooks HERE IS DONALYN'S SLIDESHARE: http://t.co/r7JzUyNDhk
— Christopher Lehman (@iChrisLehman) November 25, 2013

One session really got me thinking about writing instruction. Erika Bogdany's Breaking Down Walls: how to break down the walls of a classroom for inclusive learning among staff and students.  By changing the mindset and having staff model independent reading and participate in an Educator's Editing Workshop, student accountability, connections, and performance are increased.

AH-MAZ-ING Educator Editing Workshop breaking down walls. Ts & Ss see/learn more abt process of learning & selves. #cel13 @ErikaBogdany
— Kate Baker (@KtBkr4) November 25, 2013

Interesting concept: Educator's Editing Workshop. Other subject area Ts read/edit Ss work. Strategic, Deliberate & structured #cel13
— Kate Baker (@KtBkr4) November 25, 2013

The Educator's Editing Workshop is simple: invite other staff members from other subject areas to sit with students and conference about their writing.  Amazing concept. Erika is to be commended on her ability to pull this off. She really got me thinking about how I could bring this to my school.

If you've read my other blog posts about grading writing, I harp on this issue: writing is never finished.  Erika made this point in session.

change language: "final draft" needs to be "BEST Draft (for now)" Can always make writing better later. #cel13 #engchat #flipclass
— Kate Baker (@KtBkr4) November 25, 2013

So why do we mislead students by labeling it as "final"?

Another highlight was bumping into Penny Kittle and getting her to follow me on Twitter. 

Yay! @pennykittle follows me! Gushing blushing goodness! Love twitter for connections & #cel13 for opportunity to meet f2f
— Kate Baker (@KtBkr4) November 26, 2013

I have some reading to do: I picked up copies of Penny Kittle's Book Love, Donalyn Miller's The Book Whisperer and Reading in the Wild.  While I have had a hand in crafting the curriculum, I'd like to see what else I can do with my students besides whole novel instruction for reading. While I didn't grab it YET, I'm also enamored with Chris Lehman and Kate and Maggie Roberts' concept of Falling in Love with Close Reading. Their session got me thinking about how much close reading I do with my students (A LOT). Really, we don't need to close read everything in class. It does take up a lot of time and I can always sense the moments when my students have had enough. So putting Kittle's and Miller's ideas into practice with this notion of selective close reading, I wonder how I can restructure my class so that reading is more student centered and authentic.

I want to close read every text I teach w my Ss. Good to put in perspective! It is ok to only do parts, not whole. #cel13
— Kate Baker (@KtBkr4) November 25, 2013

Really, CEL could be renamed Connecting English Leaders because this conference was more than just sharing ideas about the future of ELA in schools or sharing progressive projects in conference session.  This conference promotes collaboration and connections. I have so much more to process and write about this conference-- probably another 10 blog posts, but to sum it up for now, take a look at these two tweets:

"at end of day we want to feel like we are energizing our colleagues" @MaggieBRoberts #cel13 Lift each other up, not be beaten down
— Kate Baker (@KtBkr4) November 25, 2013

"Our work can't happen in isolation" #cel13 @meenoorami here! Here!
— Kate Baker (@KtBkr4) November 26, 2013

To see ALL of the tweets from #CEL13 search Twitter or try drinking from this firehose of a stream.

Collaborative Digital Information Projects

My students used their phones to create voice recorded projects and I'd like to continue evolving their skills into eventually being comfortable doing collaborative digital presentations. Technology can easily be used to facilitate student presentations and overcome the fear of public speaking and provide valid opportunities for reflection and collaboration.

In this video, Kate Summers explains how her science students use collaborative tech tools for creating projects that teach concepts to other students.

In order for this project to work, students need access to tech and inter-personal skills to effectively and efficiently work with others.  With our Google integration almost ready for roll out in the coming month, I could have students engage in such activities and have them post the projects to Edmodo for sharing and review.  

In the Spring, we will be working on Homer's The Odyssey and Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet, both of which are heavy with historical information. In the past, I've divided students into groups and they would research a topic and then later jig-saw to share the information. Completed using paper and having students present in class, time constraints and preparation became an issue. By digitizing the projects, students can work in or out of class and presentations can be viewed multiple times online ensuring all information is absorbed.

Capturing Classroom Videos

Screencasting

Using the FREE and super easy Screencast O Matic web tool and a $25 headset, I've started to create videos that will supplement my explanation of concepts studied in class. I haven't really used videos all the much for flipping my classes because of accessibility and inequity with technology in the classroom, but now that those issues are close to being resolved, I am very interested in learning how to  to add videos to my bag of tricks.

This is a 15 minute video that I created which explains elements of an adapted version of "The Cask of Amontillado" by Edgar Allan Poe. I just made this video today during the 2nd half of my prep period in one take. I had the document previously created, and I recorded myself discussing the text. Students don't have a copy of my answer sheet, but now they can use the video to make sure their pages are complete.

For one of my students on homebound instruction, I created a personalized screencast to show her how to navigate Edmodo and answer some of her questions. As I always tell my writers, showing is much more effective than telling. Now I can show them showing is more effective!

For our study of Steinbeck's Of Mice and Men, I opened the book using the Kindle Cloud Reader and recorded myself discussing elements of Chapter 1.  Students then completed various tasks reviewing Chapter 1 and viewed the screencasts prior to taking a quiz. Many students stated that they preferred the screencasts to a live lecture because they could control the pace. As a delivery method for information, the screencast is efficient, and using Screencast-O-Matic, I was able to create the video in under about 20 minutes taking into account the time for uploading to Youtube.

Smartphone

And while this isn't a screencast, I used my android cellphone to record a quick video of students reviewing the site No Red Ink. Students were using No Red Ink for the first time and since they were really enjoying using the site for grammar instruction, I captured their responses. Using cellphone video recorders are an easy way for students to do book reports, show group work in process, or record a group discussion.

And for something REALLY COOL, Karl Lindgren-Streicher, a 9/10 world hisotry teacher in San Mateo, CA used his iPhone and a time lapse app to create a video showing a day in his class.

Whether for information delivery or capturing the moment, video production in the classroom can be as easy as using a screencasting or smartphone app. If you have any tips, tricks or feedback for making videos and using them for supplemental purposes, please share your ideas and examples.

Digital Citizenship & Data Collection

With all this use of technology and the notion that prospective employers and college admissions officers are researching applicants, students should learn how to be responsible digital citizens and consider the effects of their digital footprints. Are students stomping through the online world, tip-toeing delicately, or dancing madly through the streets a la Mardi Gras?

This topic came up in last night's #engchat on Twitter about college admissions essays. Students tracking their digital footprint could make for a horrifying or surprising project and very relevant in this world where social media puts one's actions on full display.

In thinking about Wordle for analyzing texts, students could complete similar steps for social network aggregation and create a word cloud of their Twitter tweets and blog posts by using Tagxedo or copy/pasting FaceBook status updates into Wordle.

The Process:

1. Students would go to Tagxedo.com and enter in their Twitter handle. Tagxedo collects the tweets and creates the word cloud. Students can adjust the shape, color, font, and layout of the word cloud to create a desired effect. Students could also use a social network aggregator or copy-paste the statuses and tweets into Wordle and create a word cloud.
2. Students would analyze the word clouds and write a reflection journal entry. Is this an accurate portrayal of the student? 
3. The teacher could share with the class the word clouds (without the owner's name) and have the class infer and make judgments about the owner of the Wordle.
4. The class could discuss ways to "clean up" profiles and how to market one's self appropriately on social media. Brainpop offers a site where users can take online quizzes on various digital topics and teachers can access additional lesson plans on digital citizenship.

This project requires some honesty and openness to not leave out "scandalous" posts. The point is to see the messiness and the nefariousness of social networking to open students' eyes to how other's perceive their actions on the web: Enlightenment should then lead to personal growth and improvement.

Grading

Students can be graded on the completion of the process, the journal writing, and discussion participation using the OSU rubric. The epiphany and final outcome is more important than the grade. I'm actually reluctant to grade an assignment such as this because the formative process is much more valuable for the students' learning than a summative grade.

Sample

This word cloud was created on Tagxedo using my blog posts.  It is obvious what I write most about!

Easy as Fish in a Barrel: Structured Socratic Discussions

Having all students involved in a focused class discussion instead of being prompted and lead by the teacher, requires all students to be invested in the process. When the discussion is structured so that all students are vested in the process, students can use critical thinking to practice crafting and supporting arguments.

In this video posted on Edutopia, KIPP King Collegiate High School teachers learn to facilitate fishbowl discussions to promote the Socratic process in class.Using a critical thinking model, the teacher serves as a facilitator of the discussion and orchestrator of the activity. While this isn't a new technique, there are key components mentioned in the video that are applicable for any classroom.

The Socratic Seminar or fishbowl discussion begins with the layout of the classroom and the assigning of roles to students. The classroom is set up with an inner square of about 12 desks, surrounded by an outer square of 12-14 desks.  Students sitting in the inner square are discussing, debating, and arguing the specific topic as they reference texts, use analytic language, connect to other statements made, and agree or disagree with the other participants. Students sitting in the outer square evaluate the participants in the discussion by being assigned a specific role: reporter, silent contributor, and shadow-er.

The video does not explain in great detail the exact tasks each role plays. Generally, the reporter "reports" on the action of the discussion (provides a report after or during the discussion?); the silent contributor participates in the discussion as if he/she were in the middle, but is not allowed to speak until the conversation has ended; and the shadow-er is directly assigned a student in the inner square to evaluate on specific and multiple points.I would think it is awkward for the silent contributor to contribute at the end of the discussion-- although both the reporter and silent contributor would provide an opportunity for reviewing the discussion overall.  The silent contributor would also have to be a student who has self-control, something many students need practice one. The shadower would be the most assigned role by pairing up students in both the inner and outer squares.

Why I like this...
Students need structure: The classroom set up promotes the discussion and puts students on the spot and the specific roles keep everyone involved. The roles are different from the ones I've seen before and I can see practical application-- my favorite being the shadow-er. I also like that it is another opportunity for peer review/evaluation and that the students are taking responsibility for the discussion instead of listening to the teacher lecturing. I also like that this activity promotes face to face conversation--something modern students need to practice since they like having their faces glued to a computer or cell phone screen.

What I dislike...
The 4:22 video does not provide suggestions for shy students to overcome fear of speaking in class nor does it provide specific examples of what happens after the discussion. The video assumes that all students will be prepared and responsible in the discussion process-- I can't always assume students will be model citizens of the process. Also, specific rubrics are not provided. In theory, I like the possibilities of this activity, but realistically, the teacher and students need to be organized, prepared, and structured.

Previously, I've used a koosh ball or other soft material ball to facilitate whole class discussions.  The room is arranged so that all students are facing one another in a large square or circle (no one in the middle). Students come to class having written down 3 questions on the assigned topic. They take turns throwing the ball to either ask a question or answer a question.  One student is charged with keeping track of who speaks and how many times. The goal is to have everyone in class ask at least one question and add to an answer for one question.  This works well as an introductory activity to class discussions, but the conversation becomes too disjointed having to rely on the throwing of the ball to keep it going. I will say that the baseball players in the class usually get a kick out of this type of discussion.

Applying the KIPP fishbowl technique in my classroom, instead of being in small groups (which is my usual set up for structured discussions), my students could as a whole class argue answers to open-ended questions. Since my classroom layout is similar to the fishbowl layout, it would be easy enough to move some desks around so that students could debate on topics that connect to the literature studied (heroism, leadership, euthanasia, resolving conflict, civil rights, attaining the American Dream, etc). The Socratic discussion could be used as a precursor for writing an argumentative essay. Also, as stated in the video, the skills used in a Socratic discussion are the same skills that are used in daily life when arguing or supporting any point made.  Small group, whole class, or just speaking to one person, the critical thinking skills used in the Socratic discussion are skills that students need for every class and beyond.


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Update 12/7/12:  Applying the Socratic Seminar in Class

Students engaged in their first Socratic Seminar based on questions connected to Chapters 1-2 in Steinbeck's Of Mice and Men. I adapted the process shown in the video above.

My Process:

1. Desks were arranged to create an inner circle of about 8 students and outer circle with the remaining members of class. Ground rules and expectations were discussed.
2. Students in the outer circle used their devices or a netbook to sign on to TodaysMeet.com and join the chat room I created for the backchannel discussion. The outer circle asked questions and made comments. 
3. Four students in the outer circle volunteered to be the two Recorders of Answers and the two Reporters of Interesting Points. They kept track of the conversation on a collaborative Google Doc.
4. The discussion questions were posted one at a time on the front board and I moved the conversation along as needed. 
5. After about 10-15 minutes, the students changed roles and new questions were asked of the inner circle.

The questions themselves were open-ended, connected to the novel, and controversial so that students could reference the text, provide numerous opinions, and support their arguments. Students stated that they liked being given the choice to participate in the spotlight of the inner circle or keep a lower profile, but still strong presence, in the chat room.

After some initial trepidation, silliness in the backchannel chat room, and the inner circle learning not to talk over each other, the conversation progressed smoothly. I was able to moderate and facilitate the conversation as needed--which was minimal, except as you'll see towards the end of period 2's conversation. Notice the students aren't shy for calling out the inner circle or noting when students are monopolizing the conversation.

For the first time doing a backchannel discussion, things went well. I'm pleased with the level of engagement and can ignore the silly comments. Some of the students' comments were spot on and most haven't read to the end of the novella. One student stated that George was the kind of friend who would take a bullet for Lennie-- little does he know where George will "take" that bullet! A few knowing students did chuckle at the use of the cliche in period 8.

Today went so well because it was structured but still allowed the students to take control. I just hovered and monitored until needed.  The next step will be to add the role of the shadower so that students can get peer evaluations on their speaking and participation skills.