Meeting the Needs of All Learners and Universal Design for Learning 

The Universal Design for Learning is a set of principles that helps teachers think about how to meet instructional goals by presenting information in multiple ways, providing multiple ways for students to demonstrate and express knowledge, and creating multiple ways for students to engage in learning activities.  Incorporating UDL principles of design requires us to engage in a thoughtful process as we create our lesson plans.  This process will then provide rich and varied experiences because we have provided diverse ways for our students to access, engage in, and demonstrate knowledge.

In this class we have been fortunate to have interactions with participants who are preparing to teach, and those who are currently teaching a wide range of content courses. The conversations have been dynamic, and they have allowed for everyone to learn about the many ways technology is used in a variety of classroom spanning grade K-college. One of our participants, Sarah, has been sharing the fantastic work she does in her classroom with students who are deaf and hearing impaired. Sarah has been reminding participants that when we create lessons for the classroom or documents for presentations that we need to be aware that our materials need to be accessible for all learners.

In this video, Sarah discusses captioned media and how to do use UniversalSubtitles/Amara. Sarah also shared a Prezi about closed-captioning.  And below is an assignment Sarah uses to teach students about captioning.

As we continue to explore technology in the K-12 classroom, it is critical to have conversations about how technology can provide all students ways to learn, be engaged, and demonstrate their knowledge.

Caption This! 1. Record a video of yourself speaking or signing a funny joke.   2. Upload your video to YouTube.   3. Caption your YouTube video by creating a free account at www.universalsubtitles.org. Watch the tutorial. Captioning is very simple to do! (Please don't try to use YouTube's voice recognition beta version for captioning. It's not accurate.) 25pts 4. Embed your captioned YouTube video in a new post. Watch the following video to learn how to embed your video directly from Universal Subtitles/Amara.  screencast.com/t/Y2pAE4qUbo (You can also copy and paste the direct link from Universal Subtitles/Amara). 5. Comment on at least 2 other students' videos. 5pts *You'll receive bonus points if you include another speaking/signing person in your video.* 6. Be creative! Try to record a unique joke.  No inappropriate jokes or your post will be taken down and you will receive a zero!

Collaboration in the Classroom 

Last week our learning focused on collaboration in the classroom.  Many participants discussed the differences between cooperation and collaboration and explored how collaborative activities might engage and motivate students.  Participants also created fantastic artifacts and explored how digital tools might increase opportunities for collaboration in the classroom.

While participants used a variety of tools, Padlet was the most popular. TJ shared the Padlet that she created for her 8th graders as part of their QR Code Scavenger Hunt.  And Vivian created two Padlets for her classroom. On the first, she posted videogames students could use to learn more about algebra and on the second they posted their responses about the game. Vivian explained that using Padlet allowed her to meet her students’ diverse learning styles and to “give them exposure to other ways in learning and practicing math skills.”

Many conversations also revolved around if Instagram was appropriate for the classroom and if so, how it could be used. Steve and Sarah demonstrated how Instagram could be used to document skits and interpretations of stories.   

Storybird was also popular with many teachers in English language arts exploring how it could be used for creative writing.  However, Jaclyn (a high school student) created a story in Storybird for her AP Statistics class on experimental design.

For more great projects, please explore the discussion forum!

Personalization Recap

Last week the course was dedicated to personalization in education. Participants discussed the difference between personalization and individualization and ways to tailor instruction in virtual, blended, and face-to-face learning environments.

Participants created fantastic artifacts that showcased personalization in the classroom. Below are links and descriptions to just some of the amazing products that participants created.  For more great examples, please visit our Discussion Forums. And if you are looking for additional resources and digital tools related to personalization, please check out our Delicious account(@k12techcourses).

Sally used Blenspace to teach spheres of the earth.

Aubrey used Prezi to explore advanced newspaper design.

Thanks to all the participants who have been sharing their knowledge and learning!  

Becoming a Connected Educator 

Last week, the course was dedicated to connected learning. We watched videos, read articles, explored resources, and discussed theories, concepts, and tools. We also produced artifacts that showcased the ways we create connected learning opportunities in the classroom and the ways we develop professional learning communities.  Many participants discussed how the concept of connected learning is two-fold: (1) it focuses on students’ experiences and (2) it values the learning communities created both in and out of the classroom.

There were also participants who not only examined students’ connected learning, but their own connected learning.  For example Don Lourcey, the Director of Professional Learning, at North Carolina Virtual Public School shared two artifacts a Popplet and a Voicethread. Don’s Popplet focused on both his personal and professional digital footprint, while his Voicethread provided a prompt for other educators to respond.  

Don recognizes that his professional learning networks are crucial in how they continue to develop and grow as educators. He explained, “For those still on the fringe, it is so important to understand that it is okay to lurk and observe for a time, but communities are all about the conversations and contributions. I am better because of my professional learning network (PLN). My PLN engages me in the learning, but I also realize that the communities I belong to really do care what I have to say.”

While it was great to see the various ways educators are connecting, there were some participants who admitted they weren’t connected and expressed a desire to do so.  We encourage the participants in this MOOC to recognize this course as an opportunity to start becoming connected educators. Here are some of our suggestions:

• Be active on the course discussion boards. Share your learning with others by taking the time to view participants’ creations and provide feedback.
• Ask questions.  If you are interested in a particular topic or want to know more about a topic, post questions on the discussion boards, Twitter, and/or Facebook.
• Participate in Twitter Chats, Google Hangouts, and other events that allow you to talk with other educators.
• Connect with others in your content area or grade level by exploring your the opportunities provided by professional organizations. These communities have websites, journals, webinars, and many other resources for to access.

Welcome to Week 2: Personalization 

We have a lot of exciting announcements for you.  Please read this thoroughly as it has important information. Thanks! 

Our co-facilitators are participating throughout the course (you can learn more about them by clicking on "Meet the Team" on the left menu) .  However, this week Nancy Copeland, Greg Marten, Kara Sevensma, and Andrew Vanden Heuvel are taking lead on facilitating the topic

of Personalization.  You'll see some great information, questions and responses from them in

the Personalization Discussion Forum (in Week/Module 2).  And, most notably, they are

hosting a live Twitter Chat from 7-8PM EST on Thursday, October 17.  If you are

unfamiliar with how to Twitter Chat, you can watch this video (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xAWtiOPe4-I) or read this blog (http://janetfouts.com/how-to-participate-in-a-tweet-chat/).  

Some of you have asked about getting your badges.  The pre- and post-survey badges are

given automatically when you complete the survey.  In addition to providing feedback on

your discussion posts, we are also providing feedback as you work on your other five

badges.  That means it doesn't happen automatically for those badges right after you submit.

We try to grade ASAP so that you can get your badges, but thanks for your patience as you

wait.

Uploading your picture to the roster has been a little bit of a challenge for some of you.

Please see the "General Discussion Forum" on the main course homepage as we have

started a thread on this topic.

Please reserve the "General Discussion Forum" on the main homepage for general

discussion.  Many of you posted your consume or create for "Connected Learning" under

the General forum instead of in the Connected Learning Forum in Week/Module 1.  Each

week has its own discussion forum located in that Module.  For this week, please post your

Personalization comments (consume, create, etc.) under the Week/Module 2 Personalization

discussion forum.  

We're hoping you've had a chance to go in and review everyone's work in the Connected

Learning Discussion Forum.  If not, feel free to do so as you will learn a lot!  Listed below are

things we've learned from week 1.

• Discussions on the forum explored providing students with: a) learning experiences that foster notions of ownership; b) a sense of voice; and c)+ expanded learning communities. "What the Heck is a Teachpreneur?"  seemed to also be a popular article with many participants finding themselves inspired to take this learning to their classrooms.  
• Delicious was a popular tool and we hope you continue to explore how you might use this resource in your classroom. Also, just a reminder, you can follow our Delicious account (http://d.me/k12techcourses) for additional resources and digital tools.   If you have your own Delicious account and want to tag a link you think we will find interesting, please tag it with #k12techteaching
• Many of you are also now following us on Twitter (@k12techcourses) and Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/educationtech.courses) as well as this Blog (http://k12techcourses.blogspot.com/). We will continue to use these social media outlets to update you on course events.  

An early report card on Massive Open Online Courses

This week the Wall Street Journal published an article, An early report card on Massive Open Online Courses. While they highlighted the benefits of MOOCs, such as open education for large numbers of people, the article primarily focused on the issues surrounding MOOCs and how educators are working to remediate these concerns.

Overall, the article suggested that often participants enrolled in MOOCs feel disengaged and isolated, which leads large numbers dropping out of courses.  However, facilitators of MOOCs are finding solutions, for example, by providing weekly videos or motivating messages. Other solutions included providing a blended model and interestingly enough students who paid even a minimum for the course were more likely to complete it.

The article highlights research that has found students who interact with other students, by participating in discussion forums, are more engaged and do better in the course. However, what they don’t know is why some people are active on discussion forums and others are not.

This leads to interesting questions. Why do you participate in discussion forums in blended or online courses?  In any of your blended or online classes what makes you feel engaged? Why do you decide to participate in discussion forums over blogs, Facebook, Twitter, and other social media? And how do you make that decision? What helps you be successful in online or blended questions?