Pedagogy
Bruce and Levin’s (1997) framework of media for inquiry, communication,
construction, and expression which is based on Dewey’s (1943) four categories
of the natural impulses of the child describe the type of learning students
will experience in this project.
Media for Communication
Through the use of webcams, students will be able to communicate with experts outside the current educational system. They will interview people about their jobs and the paths they followed that led them to their current career. In addition, students will use technology such as screencasting software, presentation programs, and video editing software to communicate their findings with their classmates.
“The language instinct is the simplest form of the social expression of the child.
Hence, i t is a great, perhaps the greatest of all, educational resources.” John Dewey
Media for Inquiry
Collaborative writing sites such as Google Docs will be used for group members to devise questions they plan to ask. Video chatting with the expert in the career path they are interested in will allow students to get their questions answered. Often when we ask a person a question, it leads to another question. This is a natural part of communication and inquiry. Current practice in my classroom is for students to “read” interviews of people working in career pathways they are interested in. While this is better than nothing, it still only enables a student to see what the expert’s response was to someone else’s questions. These may not be the things the student wonders about when thinking about the occupation.
Media for Construction
The process of interviewing an expert about their job will play a major role in students constructing knowledge about career paths. By using video recording, screencasting, and presentation software they will construct knowledge about learning how to use a technology they’ve never used before.
Media for Expression
This is really a combination of communication and construction. Student groups will be allowed to choose the technology application they’d like to use to create a presentation to the class about the career they are investigating. Video editing of the interview they recorded will be part of this.
Media for Communication
Through the use of webcams, students will be able to communicate with experts outside the current educational system. They will interview people about their jobs and the paths they followed that led them to their current career. In addition, students will use technology such as screencasting software, presentation programs, and video editing software to communicate their findings with their classmates.
“The language instinct is the simplest form of the social expression of the child.
Hence, i t is a great, perhaps the greatest of all, educational resources.” John Dewey
Media for Inquiry
Collaborative writing sites such as Google Docs will be used for group members to devise questions they plan to ask. Video chatting with the expert in the career path they are interested in will allow students to get their questions answered. Often when we ask a person a question, it leads to another question. This is a natural part of communication and inquiry. Current practice in my classroom is for students to “read” interviews of people working in career pathways they are interested in. While this is better than nothing, it still only enables a student to see what the expert’s response was to someone else’s questions. These may not be the things the student wonders about when thinking about the occupation.
Media for Construction
The process of interviewing an expert about their job will play a major role in students constructing knowledge about career paths. By using video recording, screencasting, and presentation software they will construct knowledge about learning how to use a technology they’ve never used before.
Media for Expression
This is really a combination of communication and construction. Student groups will be allowed to choose the technology application they’d like to use to create a presentation to the class about the career they are investigating. Video editing of the interview they recorded will be part of this.
