For my Web- Based Multimedia Design for Educators class, we have the opportunity to create a Multimedia Montage Project. I will design an interactive website where multimedia is being used to enhance communication, understanding, and learning. Masterman (2006) evoked the idea that "Students themselves rated the effectiveness of the online study skills materials more highly than reading a book or visiting a website, while many teachers involved in the study reported that the materials were 'very effective' at enhancing bother the learning experience and the achievement of outcomes" (as cited in Walker, Jameson, & Ryan, 2010, p. 215). Students and teachers benefit from online study materials rather than reading a book. I asked a student in my class and he agreed that he'd like to see more online study websites.
To aid my project, I have joined two online communities: Learning Math and Online Tools for Educators, both on Thinkfinity. I believe that the Learning Math community will provide me with adequate resources and ideas for incorporating math and technology. There are other math educators in this community, so I will gain from their thoughts and ideas and any successful experiences they have had in the classroom or online. I think that the Online Tools for Educators will help give me ideas of the different online tools I can use for my math students. Although not all of the members are math educators, they can provide feedback for the questions: What tools are beneficial for websites? Are there certain graphics or a graphics website teachers use? What motivates the students the most while working online at home?
I think my involvement in these communities will support the design of my project. I would like to see ideas and experiences from other educators. I want to incorporate some type of blog into my website, so I'd like to ask other educators how they incorporated them and if they were successful. I'd also like to throw my ideas out there and receive feedback from other teachers. If I find my project extremely successful and useful, I'd like to share it with others. Learning math will provide me with advice and experience from other math educators. Online tools for educators will provide me with effective tools that I can use in the classroom. My goal is to incorporate knowledge from both groups to form online tools for my math students.
Reference: Walker, S., Jameson, J., & Ryan, M. (2010). Skills and strategies for e-learning in a participatory culture. In R. Sharpe, H. Beetham, & S. de Freitas (Eds.), Rethinking Learning for a Digital Age: How Learners Are Shaping Their Own Experiences (pp. 212-224). Routledge: New York, NY.
Melissa,
ReplyDeleteIt seems like you really have an enthusiasm for math that I probably would have benefited from in my middle school years. I think that math is one of the toughest subjects to integrate some sort of multimedia project into, and I think your idea of a blog is a great start. It gives students a chance to interact with one another. I'm not sure if you're looking for suggestions, but just a thought that popped into my head: the standardized tests are requiring open ended written questions now, perhaps practice with this while implementing your current unit? Just a thought!
Good luck with your plans!
Hi Melissa - it sounds like you're off to a great start. I would be interested in hearing more about your project. I'm still struggling a bit developing an idea. Math, like Johanna said, is somewhat difficult to integrate the multimedia technology. I'd like to use it authentically without jamming it in to meet a requirement.
ReplyDeleteHi Melissa,
ReplyDeleteI'm glad to see that you're taking full advantage of the community resources Thinkfinity has to offer. Please do not feel limited by the TF communities, though. You are more than welcome to join other communities outside of TF that may be *specific* to math educators who wish to implement more multimedia into their classroom setting.
Jim brings up a great point in his comment above -- it's important to provide *authentic* learning experiences when incorporating Web 2.0 tools in any classroom setting. I know for a fact that another math education major who took the first course (Teaching with Digital Tools) created a wiki for his students that focused on a unit he was teaching using GeoGebra.
It's definitely possible to bring multimedia into ALL classrooms regardless of content area -- it's just a bit more difficult when it's outside the bounds of the humanities. Difficult, but NOT impossible!
I look forward to seeing how your MMP progresses throughout the course of the semester!
Nice job, Melissa!
Erica