Digital History: Using Technology to Enhance Social Studies Education 7-12

Collaborate with other history teachers from around the state and learn how to use various technologies to teach more efficiently and engage students more deeply

historyisaweapon

Location: CVEDC i-Classroom, Fort Ethan Allen, Colchester

Dates:   August 4-8, 2014  8 am – 4 pm 

Cost:  $980 (including 3 St. Mike’s grad. credits and the textbook) for CVEDC members
 $1030 (including 3 St. Mike’s grad. Credits and the textbook)   non-members

REGISTER FOR THE COURSE

This is a practical, hands-on technology course specifically designed for 7-12 grade History, Social Studies, and Civics teachers.

  • learn how to locate some of the amazing web-based resources that have just recently become available, including photo collections, documentary and film sites, virtual field trips, comprehensive lesson plans, common core aligned assessments and tasks, etc, etc.
  • learn how to create your own Professional Learning Network to stay updated on current trends and tools
  • learn how to quickly manage, organize and share your favorite web resources using Diigo social bookmarking
  • learn how to use various web-based tools to their fullest potential – including Google Apps (Docs/Drive, Sites, Maps, etc), Prezi, WeVideo and many more
  • learn how to use various iPad apps – including iMovie for digital storytelling and Griffin iTalk for high-quality audio podcasts and VOX POPS
  • learn more about how Learning Management Systems can help you stay more organized and create a more efficient digital workflow for you and your students

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Hope to see you there….

Click here to check our the Digital Badges you will earn…

Rationale:

While many professional development opportunities exist in our state for technology integration, and a few  exist which focus on pedagogy and instruction in 7-12th grade Social Studies classrooms, there are few, if any, that deal with both.  The purpose of this course is to do just that – to consider how how to mindfully integrate technology with innovative pedagogy to create very real and very practical outcomes.

Course Description:

This course is designed for Middle and Secondary level history teachers interested in taking advantage of the latest and most innovative technologies to become more efficient practitioners, to improve student outcomes, and to promote greater communication and collaboration beyond the classroom walls.  Participants will learn how to take advantage of a growing number of amazing web-based resources including lesson plans, primary sources, images, photographs, art, music, interactives and videos.  Participants will also learn how to create their own digital space to organize course materials and improve communication and student workflow.  Finally, participants will be encouraged to consider some of the latest paradigms and innovative practices and challenged to move beyond their typical routines.  The latest Common Core State Standards, SBAC assessment criteria, and NETS standards will be reviewed and integrated into our practice.

Objectives:

  • Participants will locate new web-based resources for use in their classrooms.
  • Participants will develop a system for locating, organizing, and accessing these web-based resources quickly and easily.
  • Participants will create their own digital space to store digital files, share assignments, and communicate with students and parents.
  • Participants will evaluate some of the latest educational initiatives and choose one to model in their classroom.
  • Participants will present their learning to their peers in a final reflection and exhibition of learning.

Primary Methods of Instruction:

  • facilitated online threaded discussions within our learning management system
  • hands on workshops with guided instruction
  • small and large group discussions utilizing critical friends protocols

Instructor Biography

I began teaching Social Studies and Civics at Harwood Union High School in 2007, where I also served as a Technology Integration Specialist up until this current year when I began teaching full time.  I earned my teaching license from Saint Michael’s College, and recently graduated with a Masters Degree in Education.  Prior to teaching at Harwood, I designed and taught several different online courses for the Community Colleges of Vermont.  I have been very active in the educational technology community with frequent presentations at both the VermontFest and Dynamic Landscapes technology conferences.  I am a teacher first, and a technology specialist second and I firmly believe that we must provide a healthy balance of human interactivity and technology in our classrooms.

Below is a video I made to help define what I believe 21st century skills are.  It is not forsaking time-honored skills, but rather using new skills to communicate and to collaborate on a scale never before imagined.

Syllabus

(Note: this syllabus is from last year and will be modified slightly this year)

Course Outline

 

Title: Digital History: Using Technology to Enhance Social Studies Education in grades 7-12

 

Rationale:

While many professional development opportunities exist in Vermont for technology integration and a few exist that focus on pedagogy and instruction in 7-12th grade Social Studies classrooms, there are few, if any, which deal with both.  The purpose of this course is to do just that – to consider how to mindfully integrate technology with innovative pedagogy to create very real and very practical outcomes in the 7-12th grade Social Studies classroom.

 

Course Description:

This course is designed for Middle and Secondary level history teachers interested in taking advantage of the latest and most innovative technologies to become more efficient practitioners, to improve student outcomes, and to promote greater communication and collaboration beyond the classroom walls.  Participants will learn how to take advantage of a growing number of amazing web-based resources including lesson plans, primary sources, images, photographs, art, music, interactive and videos.  Participants will also learn how to create their own digital space to organize course materials and improve communication and student workflow.  Finally, participants will be encouraged to consider some of the latest paradigms and innovative practices and challenged to move beyond their typical routines.  The latest Common Core State Standards, SBAC assessment criteria, and NETS standards will be reviewed and integrated into our practice.

 

Objectives:

  • Participants will locate new web-based resources for use in their classrooms.
  • Participants will develop a system for locating, organizing, and accessing these web-based resources quickly and easily.
  • Participants will create their own digital space to store digital files, share assignments, and communicate with students and parents.
  • Participants will evaluate some of the latest educational initiatives and choose one to model in their classroom.
  • Participants will present their learning to their peers in a final reflection and exhibition of learning.

Content Outline:

Date Topic Assignments
Monday
  • Introductions
  • Norms Settings
  • Course Expectations and Discussion of SAMR and TPACK models of technology integration

 

Teacher Tools Part 1

  • Diigo social bookmarking
  • Personal learning networks
  • How to locate great web-based resources

 

Workshop/Homework Time

  • Begin Homework or work on Lesson Plan
  • Identify Personal Learning Goals
  • Written Reflection #1 – What should the role of technology be in education – critical pro/con analysis.
  • Create a Diigo account, establish a taxonomy of tags, join our group and at least one other group, add one of your favorite websites to our group, and use Diigo to find at least one valuable resource.
  • Create your own personal learning network by subscribing to at least one blog and/or twitter feed.
  • Find 10 new web-based resources, with at least two relating to the Common Core State Standards

 
Tuesday
  • Homework Debrief

 

Teacher Tools Part 2

  • Google Apps for Education
  • Google drive
    • Create and share documents, upload and share files, create and share Google forms
  • Screencast-o-matic
  • Google Apps
    • Calendar
    • Hangouts
    • Voice/video chat
    • Advanced search techniques
    • Maps
    • Youtube
    • News, books, translate, earth, sketchup

Workshop/Homework Time

  • Begin Homework or work on Lesson Plan
  • Threaded Discussion – Reading on the politics of teaching history from The Politics of History, by Howard Zinn
  • Create a folder in Google Drive, rename it with ‘last name, first name,’ share it with the instructor, create a Google Document in that shared folder, rename the Google Doc ‘Reflection’
  • Create a Google Form that will you can use either as a rubric or formative assessment tool. Place the form in your shared Google folder.
  • Find, install, and use an interesting Google app and record the process with Screencast-o-matic, download to desktop and upload to Youtube.
  • Setup and conduct a Google Chat and Google Voice Call
  • Download a video from youtube and place it in your shared Google Folder
Wednesday
  • Homework Debrief

 

Teacher Tools Part 3

  • Digital Spaces – Google Sites, Wikis, Websites, Blogs and LMS

 

Student Tools Part 1

  • Dropbox
  • Digital Storytelling and Ethnography with WeVideo.com
  • VOX POP and Podcasting with the Griffin iTalk app

 

Workshop/Homework Time

  • Begin Homework or work on Lesson Plan

 
  • Threaded Discussion – “A Diploma Worth Having”
  • Create a digital space for you and your students.
  • Create a photo story using Wevideo.com and develop a lesson idea for your students.
  • Create a “This I believe” podcast using iTalk and upload it to your shared Google folder.  Develop a lesson idea using this tool for your students.
Thursday
  • Homework Debrief

 

Student Tools Part 2

  • Editing images using Snapseed and/or Befunky
  • Powerful presentations with Prezi.com
  • Smithsonian Badges
  • Voicethread
  • iBooks Author and eBooks
  • QR Codes in Education

 

Workshop/Homework Time

Begin Homework or work on Lesson Plan
  • Threaded Discussion – Proficiency Based Assessment
  • Edit an image to make it more ‘powerful’ and upload to your shared Google Folder
  • Create a Prezi presentation that includes text, images, video, pdf’s , frames, shapes, and a path.
  • Earn a Smithsonian Badge of your choice.
  • Develop a lesson idea for ways you could use Voicethread, iBooks Author or QR Codes.
Friday
  • Homework Debrief

 

Student Tools – Part 3 iPad App Exploration

  • iTunes Course and iTunes University
  • Time Lapse animation
  • Keynote for animated statistics
  • Cartoon makers
  • Screenchomp for digital story
  • Adobe PDF app annotation
  • Skitch
  • Socrative
  • Nearpod
  • Evernote
  • Class Dojo
  • Learn.ly
  • SoundCloud

 

Present your final lesson plan and receive warm and cool feedback

 

Present Brief Exhibition of Learning (EOL)
  • Threaded Discussion – Rethinking Learning Styles and How to Teach Reading
  • Explore at least 2 apps, create a lesson idea for each app and be prepared to present these to fellow participants in a 5-10 minute presentation.
  • Final Lesson Plans are presented and feedback is given.
  • 5-10 minute exhibition of learning takes place (what were the 2-3 most valuable things you learned this week?)

 

Primary Methods of Instruction:

  • Facilitated online threaded discussions within our learning management system
  • Hands-on workshops with guided instruction
  • Small and large group discussions utilizing critical friends protocols

Assignments:

  • Written Reflection #1 – What should the role of technology be in education – critical pro/con analysis. (250-500 words)
  • Create a Diigo account, establish a taxonomy of tags, join our group and at least one other group, add one of your favorite websites to our group, and use Diigo to find at least one valuable resource.
  • Create your own personal learning network (PLN) by subscribing to at least one blog and/or twitter feed. Share your PLN plan with participants.
  • Find 10 new web-based resources, with at least two relating to the Common Core State Standard.  Write a brief annotation for each resource, bookmark them with Diigo and then email the links and annotations to me –> henchenm@harwood.org
  • Participate in Threaded Discussion – Reading on the politics of teaching history from The Politics of History, by Howard Zinn
  • Create a folder in Google Drive, rename it with ‘last name, first name,’ share it with the instructor, create a Google Document in that shared folder, rename the Google Doc ‘Reflection’
  • Create a Google Form that will you can use either as a rubric or formative assessment tool. Place the form in your shared Google folder.
  • Find, install, and use an interesting Google app and record the process with Screencast-o-matic, download to desktop and upload to Youtube
  • Setup and conduct a Google Chat and Google Voice Call
  • Download a video from youtube and place it in your shared Google Folder
  • Participate in Threaded Discussion – “A Diploma Worth Having”
  • Create a digital space for you and your students
  • Create a photo story using Wevideo.com and develop a lesson idea for your students
  • Create a “This I believe” podcast using iTalk and upload it to your shared Google folder.  Develop a lesson idea using this tool for your students
  • Participate in Threaded Discussion – Proficiency Based Assessment
  • Edit an image to make it more ‘powerful’ and upload the image to your shared Google Folder
  • Create a Prezi presentation that includes text, images, video, pdf’s , frames, shapes, and a path.
  • Earn a Smithsonian Badge of your choice.
  • Develop a lesson idea for ways you could use Voicethread, iBooks Author or QR Codes.
  • Participate in Threaded Discussion – Rethinking Learning Styles and How to Teach Reading
  • Explore at least 2 apps, create a lesson idea for each app and be prepared to present these to fellow participants in a 5-10 minute presentation.
  • Create a comprehensive lesson plan that aligns with at least one Common Core Standard and at least one NETS standard.  Present your final lesson plans to the group and solicit warm and cool feedback.
  • Create a 5-10 minute videotaped exhibition of learning, which answers the following question “What were the 2-3 most valuable things you learned this week?”

 

Evaluation/Grading:

Participation and Attendance (10 points)

Participants are expected to attend each class, to be on time for class, and to actively participate in class discussions and activities.

 

Final Comprehensive Lesson Plan (20 points)

Create and share a comprehensive lesson plan aligned to at least one Common Core State Standard and one NETS standard. This plan should include all handouts and resources required to teach the lesson.

 

Homework and Reflections (20 points)

Participate in all online threaded discussions and group debriefs, opening reflection, and summative video recorded reflection of the most significant things you learned in this course.

 

Day One – Diigo, PLN, Locating Resources (10 points)

 

Day Two – Google Drive, Google Apps, Screencasting and Youtube Download (10 points)

 

Day Three – Digital Space, Photo Story, Podcast (10 points)

 

Day Four – Editing Images, Powerful Presentations and Smithsonian Badges (10 points)

 

Day Five – iPad App Exploration, Presentations and Lesson Ideas (10 points)

 

 

 



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