What happens when you:
Allow students to determine what they need to learn, and then enable students to manage their own learning activities?
I recently started a wiki space for my Grade 8 Science classes called Science Alive!
The concept is to let students choose their own topic to explore, and then demonstrate learning on all the levels of Blooms Revised Taxonomy.
It has been exciting starting this project... and scary too!
I have been developing a rather critical blog post, looking at my own attempt at creating and using this wiki in my class. I have told myself time and again that I have bitten off more than I can chew, and that I am expecting too much from my Grade 8's.
I asked my students to 'start' looking into their chosen subjects this weekend. Before dinner tonight (Sunday Night) I checked the 'Recent History' of Science Alive and saw no changes for the weekend other than one on Friday afternoon. I have to admit to being disappointed.
Well I just came back (at 9pm) and I got to meet Joyce.
So, what happens when you:
Allow students to determine what they need to learn, and then enable students to manage their own learning activities?**
Have a look at what Katie and Sara did this weekend: Meet Joyce.
(**See the Instructional Stategy Development section in this Bonnie Skaalid paper.)
Keywords: articulate thinking, Blooms Revised Taxonomy, Blooms Taxonomy, Bonnie Skaalid, creativity, datruss, David Truss, empowering students, food for thought, Grade 8, instructional design, instructional strategy, learning, My Web2.0, pair-a-dimes, Science, Science Alive!, student choice, teaching, wiki, wikis, wikispaces
Comments
Looks like we're on the same track. I've been trying to develop a wiki with two of my classes. The grade 9 social wiki is going well. The other one, well, needs someone who has a bit of motivation which isn't really happening. The grade 9's really like the wiki and blog that we are using and I'm finding much easier to track who is doing what and to edit works in progress. Keep up the great work!