Submitted by Tina L. Thomen
SLM 521: Telecommunications & The
Internet
Internet Course Module
Internet Course Module
Image from www.tourismcouncilofcarrollcounty.org.
Goals:
Objective 1:
Students will be able to
identify and locate technology resources of local community organizations and evaluate
them for accuracy and suitability.
Objective 2:
Students will be able to use
technology to communicate and collaborate with peers, parents, and the larger
community in order to nurture student learning about community service
opportunities.
Objective 3:
Students will be able to
design developmentally-appropriate learning opportunities that apply
technology-enhanced instructional strategies to support the diverse needs of
learners.
Content Overview/
Introduction:
As effective teachers, we need to provide meaningful
learning experiences for our students. Students actively engage when activities
answer these ever-burning questions: Why
do I need to know this? How will this
help me in the future? Will I ever really use this information again when
I’m older?
Community service learning has become a state-wide
graduation requirement for our students.
Beyond the mandate, we want our students to realize the personal rewards
that result when we give back to our community. In addition to
volunteering their time and energy, students can also benefit by learning about
how to access a variety of services.
While the World Wide Web opens windows to a global
community, this same tool also reveals resources available right in the back yards
of local businesses and county organizations. As teachers, we may live in one
town and commute to another area. How well do we know our students’
neighborhoods? Even for those who
live and work in the same community, how
well have we tapped our local resources to share with students in the
classroom?
Activities:
Reading & Discussion – Take a
virtual tour of your community by visiting the following websites:
ü
Tourism Council of Carroll
County Maryland – Learn
about upcoming events connected to your content area such as the Book Fair each
November. Click on the specific town
where your school is located. Explore
organizations such as the Historical Society, the Arts Council, or
ü
Carroll
County Chamber of Commerce -
Meet county government and business leaders who could guest speak in your
classroom or who could mentor students by offering community service learning
opportunities. http://www.carrollcountychamber.org/
ü
The Town of
Hampstead – View an example of
one town’s website and then visit your school’s town website. What events are important to the parents and
students in this town? Consider
these examples: History teachers, just how long has Hampstead Day launched each
Memorial Day weekend? What parks and ball fields do students run
and compete on each week? What local
resources could you tap for career day or some special topic such as the environmental impact of the
Hampstead Bypass on the box turtle? Imagine the interdisciplinary potential
of science and English teachers working together to help students study the
local scientific facts and then write a persuasive essay about this issue! http://ccpl.carr.org/hampstead/
Reading & Discussion - Visit
the following websites to learn more about what makes a valuable community
service project for students.
ü
Maryland
Department of Education Service Learning – Visit this site and click on the county where you
teach. Read through several examples of
lesson plans that local teachers created to incorporate community service with
the curriculum. Visit a neighboring
county’s link to access more lesson plan ideas.
http://www.marylandpublicschools.org/MSDE/programs/servicelearning/lea.htm
ü
Maryland
Student Service Alliance –
Access materials to help you evaluate what makes a valuable service
project. Read more lesson plans created
by teachers from local communities. http://www.mssa.sailorsite.net/define.html
Assignments & Specifications:
Assignment #1:
Visit 5 or more websites of local agencies
that could provide community service opportunities for students. Annotate and evaluate these organizations for
appeal to your specific student population.
Include the hyper-linked organization name, contact information, and URL
address. You will post this and your
lesson plan from assignment 3 as one html file linked to your index page.
ü
Example:
Tourism
Council of Carroll County Maryland – This site provides access to upcoming events and local organizations
that support English and the Arts. The
local Carroll County Arts Council offers special screenings and productions of
plays that could interest my students. In addition, the Arts Council needs assistance
with fundraising efforts. Several
community leaders are Arts Council members who may offer to guest speak in my
high school English class. The Tourism
Council may be reached at 410-386-2983 or via email at
members@carrollcountytourism.com. http://www.tourismcouncilofcarrollcounty.org/
Assignment #2:
Contact a minimum of two
local organizations either by phone or email.
Introduce yourself. Inquire about
volunteer opportunities for students and about potential guest speakers for a
given topic related to your content area.
In about 200 words, write a response about the following: list who you
contacted, explain why you chose that organization, describe the response from
that organization, and reflect on how you may develop this relationship
further. Post this response in the
Discussion Forum on Blackboard. Read at
least one fellow student’s posting and comment on their new contacts so we can
begin to share local resources.
Examples:
ü
A teacher may
email the contact name listed at the county’s Historical Society website to
inquire about preservation projects that students could assist with or learn
more about.
ü
Perhaps a
teacher could contact the local American Legion to ask a member to speak on
Veteran’s Day.
Note: Although
taking this first step may feel uncomfortable, the potential speaker will most
likely feel honored and students will appreciate the relevancy to their lives.
Assignment #3:
Create a lesson plan to incorporate
a community service learning project related to your content area. Although you may only realistically be able
to devote one class to this, provide the lesson as a springboard for student
action and follow-through. Discuss
options with your school’s service learning coordinator for additional
ideas. Post this lesson plan along with
your list of 5 annotated sites as one html file linked to your index page.
ü
Lesson plan format: At a
minimum, include the following headings: grade level, content area, objectives,
activities, any informal or formal assessments, and how you will meet
individual needs. Ensure in your lesson
plan that you and students eventually reflect on this service learning project.
Submission:
Assignments #1 & #3 - Create one file to include your 5 annotated sites
and the lesson plan. Post your
activities as an html file to the McDaniel Web Server, create a link to the
file on your index page, and send your instructor an email notification
containing a hot link to the assignment (not to your index page) and the
assignment file's URL. For more information on the posting process Click here.
Assignment #2 - Post your 200-word
response in the Discussion Forum on Blackboard under the topic of “Community Contacts.” Read at least one fellow student’s posting
and comment on their experience in this outreach process. This forum will allow us to share contacts
and discuss opportunities across all content areas.
Rubric:
|
Assignment |
unacceptable |
developing |
accomplished |
|
Annotated websites of local community organizations |
List of websites without
any annotations; less than 5 websites provided; websites are not local in
nature. |
Annotations present yet not
connected to the teacher’s specific student population; contact information
may be missing. |
5 or more websites are
annotated thoroughly and related to a specific student population; contact
information is provided. |
|
Blackboard Discussion Posting about the contact process |
Brief statement about the
organization being contacted; lacks reflection about follow-up plans; student
fails to respond to another peer’s posting. |
The summary meets length
requirements yet lacks the reflective piece; summary provides incomplete
description of the organization’s response. |
The 200-word summary
concisely lists who was contacted, explains why student chose that
organization, describes response of that targeted group, and includes a reflection
about follow-up measures. Student
responds to one or more peers on Blackboard. |
|
Lesson Plan relating community service to content area |
Lesson Plan lacks
objectives that connect community service with context area; several elements
of required format are missing: grade
level, content area, objectives, activities, any informal or formal
assessments, meeting individual needs, and reflection. |
Lesson Plan lacks SOME of
the elements from the required format; community service project is more
general in nature rather than directly connected to the needs of local
community. |
Lesson Plan includes all
elements from the required format; objectives relate community service to the
content area; community service project appeals to students and actively
engages them in their community. |
Bibliography of Other Resources & Readings:
University of
Maryland – This site provides staff and faculty of
UM with a handbook about how to structure service-learning opportunities. Secondary
teachers may browse this site for ideas about incorporating projects with
curriculum. http://www.csl.umd.edu/Faculty_Staff/
Good
Character.com –
This site offers more examples of service learning projects and valuable
sections devoted to the reflection element for students. http://www.goodcharacter.com/SERVICE/primer-10.html
Library Corner - This site
provides teachers with a comprehensive list of books about service learning for
grades K-12. http://www.servicelearning.org/lib_svcs/lib_corner/
The Corporation
for National and Community Service - This
organization was “formed to engage Americans of all ages and backgrounds in
service to meet community needs... These include projects in education, the
environment, public safety, homeland security and other critical areas through
the Corporation's three major programs: Senior Corps, AmeriCorps, and Learn and
Serve America.” From http://www.nationalservice.org/about/programs/index.asp
Service
in Service-Learning Education: the Need for Philosophical Understanding. By:
Service-Learning and Standards-Based Instruction in Middle Schools.
By:
Seitsinger, Anne M.. Journal of Educational Research, Sep/Oct2005, Vol. 99
Issue 1, p19-30, 12p, 6 charts; (AN 17991647) Article
available online in PDF format for McDaniel students at the Academic Search
Premier database. The abstract summarizes this article as follows: “The author
analyzed teacher reports to determine (a) attitudes and beliefs toward Service
Learning (SL); (b) extent to which teachers implemented SL; and (c)
relationships between teachers' attitudes and beliefs, SL, and standards-based
instructional practices.”
Antidote
to Learned Helplessness: Empowering Youth through Service. By: Mueller, Alison.
Reclaiming Children & Youth, Spring2005, Vol. 14 Issue 1, p16-19, 4p; (AN 17099088) Article available online in PDF format for McDaniel
students at the Academic Search Premier database. This brief article provides a powerful
message for at-risk teens in becoming givers rather than receivers. In general, teachers learn how projects must
be meaningful and connected to real human needs within the community.
KAYE,
Cathryn Berger. The Complete Guide to Service Learning: Proven,
ISTE Standards:
This course activity
addresses the following ISTE Standards:
II. PLANNING AND DESIGNING LEARNING ENVIRONMENTS
AND EXPERIENCES
Teachers plan and design effective learning
environments and experiences supported by technology. Teachers:
A. design
developmentally appropriate learning opportunities that apply
technology-enhanced instructional strategies to support the diverse needs of
learners.
C. identify
and locate technology resources and evaluate them for accuracy and suitability.
V.
PRODUCTIVITY AND PROFESSIONAL PRACTICE
Teachers use technology to enhance their productivity
and professional practice.
Teachers:
D. use
technology to communicate and collaborate with peers, parents, and the larger
community in order to nurture student learning.
A complete listing of all ISTE standards can be found
at:
National
Educational Standards for Teachers
- http://cnets.iste.org/teachers/t_stands.html
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