Abstract
Centrally-planned educational policies, pedagogy, and practices, are evolving, no longer limited to teachers standing in front of a room delivering content to students. The ubiquity of the internet, wireless networks and other technologies have torn down the walls of the classroom, morphing it into a variety of unconventional, location-independent, learning settings. New models of online and hybrid learning can provide learning options and individualized instruction for students, with the goal of increasing engagement and achievement. School settings can be adjusted to respond to complexities of increased diversity, globally, by drawing on daily, lived experiences of students. Project Learning, to be presented, here, serves as a model of inquiry-based learning, designed to bring students’ realities into the classroom while actively linking new concepts and skills to the existing knowledge base. The Project has been field-tested by this researcher at the two diverse sites in the U.S. Implications confirm that students’ background and current realities must constitute the basis of policies, practices and pedagogy for teaching and learning to occur (Massa, forthcoming). Students in classrooms located in highly distinct areas of the U.S., conduct joint research on a common aspect of their respective communities, ranging from historical, cultural, urban/rural development, or other. A collaboratively written Research Paper provides opportunities for partners to negotiate a common topic, develop research questions, organize the paper, showcase communities in which the students live– and bring that reality into the classroom. Digital technology facilitates students in creating a secure web site to disseminate information via Instagram. Two team members video conference via Google Talk, participate in threaded dialogue, and exchange pertinent documents. Google Earth permits students to display aspects of their communities with 3-D present-time geographic representation; local Project liaisons coordinate the time difference in both diverse areas.
Details
Presentation Type
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session
Theme
Educational Organization and Leadership
KEYWORDS
"Educational Organization", " Educational Sites"
