2011-2012 Projects

2010-2011

2011-2012

2012-2013

School-based PD

2011-2012 Model Classroom Projects “I literally saw these kids grow as people, not just as students.” - Justin Zobrosky, 6th Grade teacher, South Bend, Indiana The 2011-2012 program is defined by a shift in workshop pedagogy, resulting in projects more focused on real world problems and students’ schools and communities. Technology integration remained a component of all projects, and focus for a few. The project load also tripled, with twelve projects spread across the United States. 2011 Workshop Approach The summer workshop model changed to emphasize the idea that learning happens everywhere. Called “Mission Possible” each workshop day presented a challenge that teachers had to collaboratively solve using local resources, museum experts, people, and a variety of mobile and digital tools. Resulting projects utilized local problems and opportunities as well as action-oriented and student driven work. This shift towards civic engagement is evident from project titles. Teacher Audience The 2011-2012 audience was dominated by State Teacher of the Year award winners, as a result of their attendance at the summer workshops. At the school-year implementation level, however, many of these teachers acted as mentors by pulling in entire grade levels or resource teachers to collaborate in the project. As a result, the impacts went beyond the workshop audience, notably changing the practice of a first-year teacher in South Bend, Indiana and two fifth grade team-teachers in Shawnee, Kansas. 2011-2012 School-Year Program The Model Classroom’s consulting model shifted to be less high-touch. Pedagogy was a bigger focus than technology. While several teachers received on-site support from the MC team, many teachers were supported virtually through phone calls, Skype, and shared documents.

"Caring Crew: Day of Caring" 3rd grade Teacher: Lucy Popson School: Walter Douglas Elementary School; Tuscon, Arizona (Demographics: Urban, 74% Free & Reduced Lunch, 37% English Language Learners) Timeframe: Year long Challenge: Students worked cooperatively in a “Caring Crew” to address problems including trash on the school grounds and homeless animals in their community. Description Lucy's students are primarily 1st generation Americans. Many face serious challenges including parents who have been deported or imprisoned. This project sought to provide a space for the students to explore their identities, find pride in their backgrounds, build connections with each other, develop empathy for their larger classroom and community, and ultimately make a difference. Using an online collaborative platform for sharing and communicating allowed students to improve their literacy skills and encouraged the participation of non-English speaking/ low literacy level family members. Throughout the school year students participated in ongoing campus clean-ups and fundraising efforts for the local Humane Society. Culminating in a Day of Caring at the school, students presented various ways to contribute to the betterment of the school and to show that they care. Outcome “The students' responses were overwhelmingly positive. Without hesitation the students concluded that the reason why the Caring Crew met its goal was because they worked as a team. In addition, they stated that before participating in the Caring Crew projects they did not know they could make a difference, and mentioned they wanted the Caring Crew to continue.” -Lucy Popson The Caring Crew has become a part of Lucy’s teaching practice. Students entering her class now know that they will be carrying on the tradition of taking care of their school and community. As this project continues, Lucy pushes her own practice to give students more voice and choice and bigger opportunities for making an impact, such as the creation of a school garden during the 2012-2013 school year.

 

"The Changed Landscape: Documentation of Hurricane Irene" 4th grade Teacher: Jennifer Harper School: Cavendish Town Elementary School; Cavendish, Vermont (Demographics: Rural, 45% Free & Reduced Lunch, 0% English Language Learners) Timeframe: 4 months (1-hour block per day) Challenge: Document a natural disaster by collecting the community’s stories and photos for a student-designed website. Description In the fall of 2012 Cavendish, Vermont was severely impacted by Tropical Storm Irene. Every road in the community was damaged and many families were left stranded for weeks. After viewing their town’s documentation of a similar event in 1927, the students took on the role of historian and began thinking about how they could document the 2012 storm. They decided to create a website to capture the 2012 flood, comparing and contrasting the two events. This included collecting documents, interviewing community members, and creating a website that encouraged further participation and contributions from the community. Students brainstormed possible website designs and needs; decided on tasks, teams and roles-- including photographers, composers, and web designers-- then worked together to complete a website for their community. The Cavendish Historical Society provided 1927 documents and photos for the students to scan and upload. Students wrote letters to the Governor, the American Red Cross, the Proctorsville Fire Department, the Cavendish Historical Society, and the National Guard to collect additional pictures and stories for our website. Historians also came in several times to help caption pictures and guide students on what would be helpful to have on the website. Students presented their work at the school’s Art Night, and their final website was also shared at the Cavendish Historical Society. Outcome Website: https://sites.google.com/a/wswsu.org/cavendish-flood/ “In my opinion there is nothing more powerful than having students work on a project that makes a difference for the community they live in. Students were engaged in an authentic project that would be helpful to future generations, and most importantly, they were active learners and thinkers through the whole process. The Cavendish Historical Society said, ‘When the National Guard arrived in Cavendish within a few days of Irene, one of the things they were interested in seeing were the photographs and any documentation from 1927. Unfortunately, we know that Cavendish in future years will again sustain damage from flooding. This time, thanks to your efforts in developing the website, those involved in recovery, will have considerable information, far more than what we had for 1927, at their disposal and in a format that is easily accessible and useable.’”- Jennifer Harper

 

“Duck Print Eugene Historical Project” Grade 4 & 5 Teacher: Donna Dubois School: Camas Ridge Community School; Eugene, Oregon (Demographics: Suburban, 38% Free & Reduced Lunch, <3% English Language Learners) Timeframe: One year; with some continuation as placards are installed Challenge Design a city tour that honors Eugene’s history and celebrates its 150th birthday. Description How can a city’s history be preserved for generations to come? Donna Dubois challenged her 4th and 5th grade students to explore the possibilities, but Donna never imagined the traction it would grab from the Eugene community. Dubois’ students selected 20 downtown sites, researched their historical significance, tracked down and vetted old photos, then wrote a script and produced voice recordings that tell a succinct story of the city. When Eugene Mayor Kitty Piercy showed up to learn more about it, she realized this wasn’t any ordinary assignment. As a result, Mayor Piercy pulled multiple city officials and small businesses together who wanted to be involved. As a result of this city-wide collaboration, special signage will be placed at each landmark. Each sign will include a unique scannable QR code linking to the students’ productions. The city began the permanent installation of the tour at an official ribbon cutting in May 2013. Outcome YouTube Playlist of Duck Print Project (includes examples of final videos and production in process) Duck Print Celebration Ceremony video (Friday, May 10, 2013 at Camas Ridge Community School) “It felt to me like our whole class was part of this thing and it felt really special that we were the ones who were able to do it,” - McKenzie Carrier, 5th grade student involved in project "It is important for students to participate in real-world projects, collaborating with experts, and contributing positively to the community in which they live. The Duck Print Project integrates each of the essential skills needed for our students of today to be prepared for the world of tomorrow." - Donna Dubois

 

"Read. Write. Share!" 5th Grade Teachers: Jeri Powers (Reading Resource), Traci Seyb (Technology), Amy Fontaine (5th Grade), Meredith Malone (5th Grade), and three additional fifth grade teachers) School: Riverview Elementary, Shawnee, Kansas (Demographics: Suburban, 5% Free & Reduced Lunch, 3% English Language Learners) Timeframe: One Semester, December to May Challenge: Students collaborate to produce stories in a variety of formats, and publish them publicly. Description “Read. Write. Share!” was a semester long project designed to engage and motivate students to read and write purposefully. In addition to the Reading and Technology teachers, the entire 5th grade team at Riverview Elementary collaborated on this effort. The idea was simple: throughout the semester teachers would pose authentic challenges to students on a collaborative online platform. Over the course of the year, students solved challenges in a variety of formats including podcasts, video PSAs, documentaries and animations and share them online. Beginning with a social studies unit on colonization asking students “What would it be like to start your life over?”, students explores this 300 year-old piece of American history from a variety of angles. Would they consider the challenges of living in Colonial times or consider our country’s most recent “colonists” by investigating immigration within their own community? Once they made their decision, students worked together to write, edit, produce and publish podcasts. As the project evolved, students in two 5th Grade classrooms continued the efforts and published a range of work on topics aligned to social studies and science, including persuasive calls to action around current-day global issues. Outcome Model Classroom Blog Post: http://www.modelclassroom.org/blog/2012/11/jeri-powers-summary.html Student Work: Colonial Student Podcasts “What’s really amazing is that three boys in Amy’s room [a participating teacher] came to her today and want to work on a project to present to the district school board. They want to research and then put together a persuasive presentation as to why we need better technology in our district. Amy is working with them on how to frame their message – with respect, real facts/research… really consider their audience. The boys have gone from teachers giving them a challenge to challenging themselves!” - Jeri Powers, 2012 After the completion of “Read, Write, Share” Jeri went on to spearhead the development of a Model Classroom professional development for her school. Eleven teachers participated in the 2012-2013 program. Since then, Jeri has co-designed and implemented a district-wide professional development. and several of the participating teachers from 2011-2012 have adapted their practice to be more student-driven and project based, bringing in real-world challenges and adopting and after school “Genius Hour” to address student interest.

 

"Excellence is our Destiny" 6th & 7th Grade Teachers: Tania Grimes, School Director & Justin Zobrosky, 6th & 7th Grade Teacher School: Xavier School of Excellence; South Bend, Indiana (Demographics: Urban, 78% Free & Reduced Lunch, 1% English Language Learners) Timeframe: Academic Year Challenge: Explore ways to integrate service learning projects into the school-wide curriculum. Description What does it mean to be an active and engaged community member?’ Initially focusing on how to help the local community, the project began by raking and cleaning the yards of nearby residents who were physically disabled, elderly, or simply could not find the time take care of the yard. Students then brainstormed a way for the school to give back to the Cardinal Nursing Home, who had donated to the school. As students built relationships, they decided to interview and record the stories of selected residents. Students’ reflections were published through songs, poems, stories or monologues, and then shared online with school leaders and the community. Outcome “I literally saw these kids grow as people, not just as students…. The ample effort, emotion, thought, and sincerity poured into this… project is something I had never expected to achieve as a first year teacher…. As I plan to continue this project for years to come, planning it around standards is not going to be the goal. Building relationships and life experience dealing with unfamiliar people and places is what it is going to be all about…. Instead of using grades and other material incentives to motivate behavior, we will use these moral incentives of building relationships to encourage character growth and moral consciousness.” - Justin Zobrosky, Project Lead and first year teacher

 

Citizenry Through Service Middle School Homeroom Teacher: Beth Oswald School: JC McKenna Middle School; Evansville, Wisconsin (Demographics: Suburban, 28% free and reduced lunch, 3% English Language Learners) Timeframe: 5 weeks Challenge: Encourage students to explore the school looking for areas of need. Description Beth Oswald shared, “The character education and citizenship component of homeroom is increasingly being neglected in my middle school as a result of high-stakes testing and the data-driven interventions mandated by NCLB. Students are being pulled from homeroom for academic remediation (math and reading interventions), and, as a result, cannot participate in those activities designed to address their socio-emotional needs.” Citizenry Through Service used a unit on empathy to encourage students exploration of school and community needs. In one activity, students visited a food pantry and photographed items that would help them through hard times and identified missing necessities. Students determined the need for basic necessities including shampoo and soap, then worked together on a community call to action using Facebook and YouTube. This cross-disciplinary project required students to collaborate and use a variety of academic skills - reading, writing, and general communication skills - while developing technological talents and a sense of self and citizenship. Outcomes Beth reports that the result of this project was increased student empathy for community members struggling to make ends meet. The students’ call-to-action resulted in the creation of Facebook posts and a YouTube video designed to draw attention to the food pantry’s need for basic necessities. Students also sent the video to a number of large soap and shampoo producers in an effort to make a larger impact, but they replied that they do not do donations on a local level.

 

More Than Just Football Middle School Cross-Curricular Teacher: Cynda Fickert, 6th Grade Math, and four additional teachers in Language Arts, Visual Arts and Social Studies School: Auburn City Middle School, Auburn, Alabama (Demographics: rural, 58% free and reduced lunch, 0% English Language Learners) Timeframe: 4 weeks Challenge: Students create a scale model of a monument representing Alabama citizenry Description Ninety percent of the Alabama state citizens described themselves as college football fans. Auburn, Alabama is home of the Iron Bowl, the college football rivalry game played between the University of Alabama Crimson Tide and the Auburn University Tigers. This cross-curricular project was spearheaded by a middle school math teacher wanting to redirect her students to explore and discover other important aspects of Alabama beyond football, and looking to find ways to use math for student civic engagement. The project explored symbolism and citizenry, challenging teams of students to select an Alabama citizen or event to memorialize. Students used a collaborative online space to brainstorm, draft ideas, and share work. As students developed their scale models, they used a design thinking process to ideate, draft, design, and build. Students projects were published online and presented at a “Community Day.” Outcomes Project Wikispace “My students and I began discussing [our Community Day] in class today, and they are super excited!... [I]t’s hard to get them excited about projects this late in the school year. They like the idea of the freedom they will have, and they appreciate the trust I have placed in them.”

 

“Corporate Citizenship” High School Marketing Students Teacher: Laura Jones School: Pasco High School; Pasco, Washington (Demographics: Urban, 71% Free & Reduced Lunch, 19% English Language Learners) Timeframe: Semester Challenge: Develop business proposals to serve the community’s needs through the student-run DECA Doghouse. Description The Pasco High School Marketing Program utilized a student-run store, the DECA Doghouse, challenging student employees to investigate their population and develop proposals to become a better corporate citizen at school and beyond. Reflecting on exemplary models like TOMS Shoes, they researched, evaluated, and debated business case studies. As a team, students determined ways to take action within school and the community at-large, a high-poverty community. Students experimented with a range of tools-- including social media, QR codes, and polling tools-- to collaborate, connect with customers, and market the DECA Doghouse. Project proposals included school-wide recycling, providing support to homeless teens, and collecting clothing for Goodwill Industries. Outcome “This program is helping me push the envelope in terms of the limitations of my technology and the district’s technology policies. These ideas need to be pushed and these conversations… need to happen in order for us to successfully educate students who will need to access, learn and evaluate technology resources.” - Laura Jones, 2012 Laura’s students continue their efforts on technology integration, using Edmodo and a new set of iPads. They continue to implement the Corporate Citizenship project, resulting in some spin-off opportunities. They won a National Youth Leadership Council Project Ignition Grant and students created a campaign, "Don't Wreck Your Text" to raise awareness of the dangers of texting and driving.

 

"Make an Impact" High School Engineering Teacher: Bryan Coburn School: Northwestern High School; Rock Hill, South Carolina (Demographics: Rural, 40% Free & Reduced Lunch, 5% English Language Learners) Timeframe: Semester Challenge: Devise and propose solutions to a local water shortage. Description Bryan Coburn’s scenario or “mission” presented to his Introduction to Engineering students was inspired by the community’s very real drought, a drought so bad that cars could only be washed on specific days. South Carolina is not alone: approximately one-third of the US is at high risk for water shortage. Students identified and examined environmental issues related to water scarcity in their community, then designed solutions to be shared with the community and experts. Students created online portfolios showcasing their research, 3D designs, and multimedia presentations marketing their designs. Student proposals included documentation of each stage of the design process, a design brief, decision matrix, a prototype using Autodesk Inventor 3D professional modeling tool, and a final presentation where students pitched their proposed solution to a ‘grant’ review committee consisting of local engineers from the community, the city water manager and the school’s principal. Upon project completion Steve Brown of the Pearson Foundation commented “The fact that Bryan is now having his kids think of the world around them as their classroom, while not new, is really at the center of what we’re trying to do with this program... And frankly, it has less to do with technology or digital media per se and more to do about a mindset. The list of digital tools they used is not nearly as impressive as the fact that they want to make an impact on the city water situation in their community.” Outcome Press: eSchool News “Project Aims to Inspire the ‘Model Classroom’” Project Artifacts: Team Presentation (Prezi): Water Conservation Project Team Website (Weebly): Online Portfolio of work Project Website (Weebly): Make an Impact Photos-Project in Process: Project Process Photos “We didn’t just sit there and learn. We actually did fun and involving work. You wanted to be there. It would be great if it [these hands-on real world projects] could be spread around to other classes.” - Lakasha, a student of Bryan’ who was so inspired by the project that she spent a weekend learning HTML code for the website.

 

"Robotics and Social Networking" High School Physics Teacher: D. Allan Bruner School: Colton High School; Colton, Oregon (Demographics: Rural, 33% Free & Reduced Lunch, 0% English Language Learners) Timeframe: Academic Year Challenge: High School Robotics students explore ways to improve team collaboration, communication, and improved mentorship opportunities for younger students. Description Located in a rural Oregon mill town community, Colton High School is challenged by limited resources and struggles in science literacy. Teacher Allan Bruner creates opportunities for students to engage in projects that bring science to life. Allan challenged the High School Physics students and LEGO robotics team to explore how they could use technology to improve their competitive edge, build team collaboration and begin a mentoring program that provides an early opportunity for students from a nearby middle school to get involved in robotics. The project began with team building activities to jump start the collaboration between the two schools. Students experimented with their own mobile devices and tested a social network as a means for collaboration and mentorship. As a result, students found creative ways to work together and share ideas. This mentorship resulted in students entering the High School robotics program, where they remain engaged today and continue seeking opportunities to mentor younger students. Outcome "Of the original high school students involved ... five are currently pursuing degrees in engineering sciences; two are officer cadets with the ROTC programs at their universities; one student continues to pursue studies to become a mathematics teacher….Our project has had some powerful impact on those moving on into post-secondary opportunities.” D. Allan Bruner, 2013 reflection

 

“Feeding the Nation” High School Culinary Arts & Community Service Requirement Teacher: Andy Mogle School: Norwalk High School, Norwalk, Iowa (Demographics: Suburban, 20% Free & Reduced Lunch, <1% English Language Learners) Challenge: Develop and prepare a series of meal plans for a local shelter, then document and share with the community. Description: After attending a summer “Mission Possible” workshop, Andy set out to get his Culinary Arts students involved where nutritional education is most needed. Andy planned for his students to collaborate with local homeless shelter staff and service organizations to develop, then deliver and serve, a series of five nutritional meals. However, due to scheduling issues with the students and multiple logistics at the shelter, the project had to be abbreviated to one visit. Andy shares that his students were able to reach and serve about 20 people living in the shelter. Importantly, this event opened up a discourse on the histories that led them to the shelter, making students realize how even small issues can lead a person to homelessness. Outcomes Andy reflected, “I used much of what was taught that summer in creating the plan. I regret I wasn’t able to fully execute the project....I know the students gained a lot of life learning from just a single event. I wish we could have completed the whole plan and returned over time so the students could experience the ongoing struggles the economically disadvantaged face every day in their lives.”