The Ecstasy of Technology

Throughout my observations, I have seen new technology integrated both seamlessly and clumsily. But, during one recent observation day, I witnessed a class that utilized technology fairly well with the content being studied.

The class had been reading, studying, and working with A Long Walk to Water by Linda Sue Park over the past few weeks. In each of the 7^th-grade classes I observed throughout the day, the students engaged with the target set on the old-fashioned blackboard by the teacher: “I will watch a TEDX presentation about Salva Dut [the real-life character from the book] and reflect upon the information that he shared. I will also look at Salva Dut’s Water for South Sudan website [waterforsouthsudan.org] and reflect on the information provided there.” This lesson had the students engaging in many different types of educational tech, old to new.

The Book:

The class had been reading Linda Sue Park's book over the past week(s) following a teacher-customized version of the NYS module. The class teacher, Ms. Arakkis, stated that the short book was enjoyable for the students, and each class I observed, this seemed to be true as the students were engaged and interested.  

The TEDX:

As the students watched the video of Salva Dut, they filled out a short worksheet that was designed to keep them engaged with the speaker. The teacher encouraged them to listen, attempting their best to answer the questions, but reassuring them that they need not every answer.  Across multiple classes, students noted the strength of viewing the TEDX video to complement and strengthen the reading of the book. The author's voice and image brought to life allowed them to see Salva Dut as more than words represented on a page that formed a story of a far remote subject. 

"Information isolated from contexts, people, and actions is worthless. But when people use good information for good purposes - when they use it to experience and create genuine acts of cognition - information can be a powerfully liberating tool." (Christenbury 247)

The Web:

http://www.waterforsouthsudan.org/

After the class watched the TEDx video and discussed the questions, tying the discussion back to the reading of the book and reinforcing previous class discussions with the new perspective granted by the video, they formed pairs and used Google Chromebooks to explore Salva Dut's website. 

The class' use of technology was admirably woven into the lesson. The multimodal engagement with the text kept them engaged and generating thought. Towards the end of the class, the students asked the teacher if there was any way they could have Salva Dut come to their school and speak. When the teacher told them that she would find out but she thought he was very busy at this point with his causes, they suggested that maybe, instead, they could try and raise money for his organization. Their deep engagement with the text spurred active engagement with the core of the author's mission, to share the story and get people involved. This is genuinely reflective of the innovation in the classroom espoused by the Christenbury text: "innovation is a way of thinking. It is a way of considering concepts, processes, and potential outcomes; it is not a thing, a task or even technology" (230).

With Spring Break imminent, the students were not assigned any homework. But, when they returned they would be continuing work with this unit. From what I observed, this would be a great impetus for a writing project exercising the standards:

• Conduct short as well as more sustained research projects based on focused questions, demonstrating understanding of the subject under investigation.
• Gather relevant information from multiple print and digital sources, assess the credibility and accuracy of each source, and integrate the information while avoiding plagiarism.
• Draw evidence from literary and informational texts to support analysis, reflection, and research.
• Develop personal, cultural, textual, and thematic connections within and across genres as they respond to texts through written, digital, and oral presentations, employing a variety of media and genres.