Differentiation Quest

Create an example of differentiated communication practices to post for students or parents and share on your blog. Reflect thoughtfully on the concepts presented in the Differentiation section of the Communicate skill and utilize three resources.

After completing a blog post that meets the requirements of this quest, submit the link to your post in the Submission Form at the bottom of this page.

Social Collaborative Tools with Livebinders

Banneker High School's Common Read 2014



Instructional Tools - Vocabulary Flashcards for studying The Slave Narrative of Frederick Douglass

Student Exemplar of a Prezi Presentation Tool on the American Revolution:


Reflection:
There are many resources available to differentiate information for all stakeholders.  I often find that there is no one way students learn best, there are actually multiple ways.  So, as a teacher, I am constantly having to use a mixture of everything simply to say the same thing.  That is because one method may be successful today and not tomorrow or vice verse.

The beauty of the Internet is that information you want to present may already have been created by other teachers who are willing to share their resources.  As a teacher, you simply have to make sure the resource does everything you want it to do.

I know Ga Virtual is interested in simply exposing teachers to lots of resources, but I would only recommend teachers use 3-4 resources and continue to stick with those resources.  An online class must attempt to maintain consistency if students are expected to follow it without many glitches.  If flashcards are something you want to use for vocabulary, then all vocabulary sessions need flashcards on the same flashcard forum.  If PowerPoint or Prezi is how you want to present vocabulary, then keep PowerPoint or Prezi for all vocabulary activities.  

In preparing to teach Ga Virtual Classes, I would go ahead and pick 5 resources I know I want to use regularly for that session.  When I start a new semester, this is when I would add or delete what I have done.  But, I would keep it very consistent because it is too many things to do at once.

I will use Symbaloo to save some of the resources.  Other resources I had another app or resource that did the same thing.  But, as a way of keeping all my resources together, I will go back in this platform to capture these resources!  

The Newsletter Quest

Creating a collaborative online community amongst stakeholders is an essential part of all virtual instruction programs and best practices. Reflect, for a moment, upon the examples provided throughout this quest and the preceding sections in Communicate. Identify three highly effective methods of communicating with stakeholders and create an artifact for each utilizing the resources outlined throughout the module and discuss the topic in your blog.

Communication in the online classroom can take a variety of forms, and weekly updates utilizing a Newsletter format for example, provide instructors a forum to relay student achievement, classroom updates, upcoming events, and important curriculum information in a creative, engaging format.

Thinglink is similar to Animoto.  Animoto seems easier to manipulate than Thinglink.  Flipsnack is really great for creating online books and resources students can use as reference.  Another resource similar to Flipsnack is Issuu.  Smore is excellent for Newsletters!  It could also be used as a great News Item!

• Thinglink- With this program, users add captions on top of an imported image or graphic. Then, when viewers scroll over the icons, the captions appear. Thinglink also provides users the option to embed videos as well, and the program is extremely user-friendly.

This video is created with Animoto.  It introduces a discussion topic:

• Flipsnack – With this tool, users can create a flipbook of student work using images or pdf files. This tool affords instructors opportunities to create virtual portfolios of student work and collaborate across various areas of study as well. However, instructors must always consider FERPA when publishing student information.

Class Syllabus via Flipsnack

• Smore – As an online “warehouse and wizard for creating a newsletter,” Smore provides templates that are all easily modified to align with the focus of the Newsletter. Users can embed links to videos,web sites, and audio. The file is maintained, and other instructors, administration team, or stakeholders may also add comments.

News Quest

News Item via Edmodo (Screenshot):

As an online instructor, how do you plan to incorporate news items and announcements? What resources would you reference to format news items? Create an example of a News Item and share the example in your blog.

News items for me are usually current events where students have to analyze an editorial cartoon or a video or an article.  I already have a Current Event Write-Up Sheet where students share what they learned.  I actually have several different write-up sheets depending on the student's skill level of reading and writing comprehension.  Announcements may also include when new resources are released.  For instance, when I post PowerPoints or Videos that are enhancing the subject matter, I will announce it on a news feed.  I also like to remind students about upcoming projects or tests.  Many times, I will provide a list of major items that we need to accomplish for the week.

Homepage Quest

Bulletin Board Home Page Screenshot

Ongoing Communication

Integrating the ideas presented in Communicate: Stakeholders quests, create a blog post in which you discuss reasons why effective communication remains an essential part of online instruction. In the blog post, create an example of an ongoing communication that could be sent to all stakeholders. Ensure the product is creative, informative, and adheres to FERPA guidelines.

Effective communication is so pivotal to online instruction because the teacher is not physically present to address questions or concerns.  Many students just do not follow directions carefully.  So, instructions and explanations must be clear and detailed.  And, when one communicates virtually, there is a copy of that message, so it is even more important to monitor what and how you say words.  Following the guidelines of digital citizenship is a must!


Sample Ongoing Communication pushing students to continue completing their assignments:

Communication Guidelines

Sample Welcome email (generic)



Personal Notes Vs. Mass Communications

1.  Personal notes should only go to those with a vested interest in that specific person.  For example, when you are emailing a student, you may want to copy the parent and/or an administrator on the email.  A parent and administrator would have a vested interest in the student.  But, you do not want to copy people who have no business with the specific information.

2.  Mass Communication should ideally be for items that affect the entire community.  For instance, a teacher can send a mass email if they want to share a scholarship or maybe a piece of technology information that would be beneficial to the community at large.  One piece of information a teacher could share could be free tutorial services in academic areas for students.  This would be something of value to all stakeholders.

3.  Stakeholders are any persons with vested interest in the Ga Virtual School Learning Platform.  That can include and not limited to parents, students, administrators, IT personnel, teachers, community relations that have some impact on the teaching and learning.

School Policies regarding Communication:

Communication Guidelines for Students and Parents:

1. Compose a Welcome Email and include the course name, expectations, and specific testing and/or readings or suggested items or necessary materials, such as calculators in mathematics courses. In addition, include the following:
   • A personal welcome message
   • Information concerning the date and time of the synchronous Welcome Session
   • Instructions concerning course access
   • Instructions accessing Course Schedules and Course Syllabi
   • General Instructor Contact Information, including phone, and school email
2. Phone each student enrolled in registration and welcome him or her to the program and class. Note the sample Welcome Call Checklist. In addition, include the following:
   • Speak with the student’s parents, if possible
   • Verify all contact information, including emails, mobile numbers, and phone numbers are accurate
   • Address any questions
3. Document all contact for future reference regarding student performance, special needs, and/or academic issues.
   • document and file emails
   • use a log of information, noting the date, time, context of the contact
   • cc all administrative team members on student concerns, academic violations, or parental issues as determined by the program’s policy for communication.

Tools for Effective Communication:

Dial My Calls: Similar to a robocall, this service allows instructors a method of sending a voice mail message to all contacts. This effective and highly-used site includes free capability for a specific number of calls. Once the limit is reached, users must pay a minimal charge.

Remind 101: All stakeholders may sign up for this service, where instructors may send a general text to all contact. Remind 101 is an excellent tool to utilize when sending out due date reminders or a change in synchronous session time.

Identify Stakeholders

In the virtual classroom, instructors must offer continuous updates to all stakeholders, such as parents, students, and school facilitators. Think about each of these stakeholder descriptions and discuss.

• Do the descriptions correlate to your perception?
• How can they be expanded upon or described further?
• Are there other stakeholders within an online environment not considered above?

The current descriptions of all stakeholders meets my expectations and perceptions.  I think there should also be some type of technology coach there to aid the teachers and students.  Many times, teachers have ideas they want to implement in the classroom, but they may not know the best technique or resource to implement resources.  There was no description of such a person. This person would act more like a coach than an administrator or another teacher.  It is an extra layer of support to help with the integration of technology.  Likewise, I did not see a media specialist for this program.  A librarian is trained on resources for the classroom as well as technology.  These two positions should be considered if a program wants to be thorough in the eLearning platform.