2.4 Higher Order Thinking Skills
Candidates model and facilitate the effective use of digital tools and resources to support and enhance higher order thinking skills (e.g., analyze, evaluate, and create); processes (e.g., problem-solving, decision-making); and mental habits of mind (e.g., critical thinking, creative thinking, metacognition, self-regulation, and reflection). (PSC 2.4/ISTE 2d)
Reflection:
This lesson was created as the culminating activity in ITEC 7445: Multimedia & Web Design in Education. The artifacts I have included are the web quest and the project report. In this web quest, 7th grade social studies students explore the topics of Apartheid in Africa and Nelson Mandela. Students will explore various primary sources and documents relating to the topics. The student assessed on their learning by creating videos on the topics of Apartheid and Nelson Mandela.
This project allowed me to model and facilitate various new technology tools with students, such as creating self-reflecting videos and sharing these videos with our school community at our Taste of Holcomb Bridge event. Students videos and analyzed various media forms from documents, videos and music to develop an understanding of the issue of Apartheid in South African and the impact Nelson Mandela and F.W. de Klerk played in this global issue. Students had to use higher order thinking skills to determine the impact this period in time had politically, economically and humanitarian acts across the globe. The students researched the event and topics and developed videos which reflected the importance this event had in history and still plays today. Once completing the research, the students worked together to develop and create videos using various digital tools which were viewed by the school community. In this unit, students were presented with a global issue and were asked to research the topic to develop an understanding and develop a product to educate others on the impact of Apartheid.
After implementing this project in the winter of 2014, I did find working with some of my 7th grade students still required amount of guidance and modeling needed to facilitate higher order thinking skills and processes in this project. I would like to develop a way for their videos to be housed on the internet for more global and community awareness and in a way for there to be discussion about the topic of Apartheid.
The work that went into completing this artifact positively impacts student learning. As digital tools and resources are used to support and build critical thinking skills, problems solving skills and other higher-order thinking skills, learning is enhanced. The impact on student learning will be assessed via completion of the various components to the web quest and along with the video creation. Additional results of student achievement on their summative common unit assessment along with the CRCT exam are a reflection of student mastery of the material and their higher order thinking skills. With students videos being shown at a school events, the school improvement and faculty development is impacted and assessed based upon community and parents feedback. Faculty development is impacted by others teachers seeing the culmination of an authentic learning experience and the results and engagement which exist in this type of instructional model.
This project allowed me to model and facilitate various new technology tools with students, such as creating self-reflecting videos and sharing these videos with our school community at our Taste of Holcomb Bridge event. Students videos and analyzed various media forms from documents, videos and music to develop an understanding of the issue of Apartheid in South African and the impact Nelson Mandela and F.W. de Klerk played in this global issue. Students had to use higher order thinking skills to determine the impact this period in time had politically, economically and humanitarian acts across the globe. The students researched the event and topics and developed videos which reflected the importance this event had in history and still plays today. Once completing the research, the students worked together to develop and create videos using various digital tools which were viewed by the school community. In this unit, students were presented with a global issue and were asked to research the topic to develop an understanding and develop a product to educate others on the impact of Apartheid.
After implementing this project in the winter of 2014, I did find working with some of my 7th grade students still required amount of guidance and modeling needed to facilitate higher order thinking skills and processes in this project. I would like to develop a way for their videos to be housed on the internet for more global and community awareness and in a way for there to be discussion about the topic of Apartheid.
The work that went into completing this artifact positively impacts student learning. As digital tools and resources are used to support and build critical thinking skills, problems solving skills and other higher-order thinking skills, learning is enhanced. The impact on student learning will be assessed via completion of the various components to the web quest and along with the video creation. Additional results of student achievement on their summative common unit assessment along with the CRCT exam are a reflection of student mastery of the material and their higher order thinking skills. With students videos being shown at a school events, the school improvement and faculty development is impacted and assessed based upon community and parents feedback. Faculty development is impacted by others teachers seeing the culmination of an authentic learning experience and the results and engagement which exist in this type of instructional model.
