Assignment:
Essay Assignment: Utilize web-based tools to find and research classroom resources
Requirements:
• Preferably typed in Microsoft Word; contact me if you need to use a different format
• 2000 word minimum
Preface
As a course certified by the School of Arts and Sciences for the Rutgers Core Curriculum, students who enroll in Education & Computers (05:300:350) must fulfill Goal y (Employ current technologies to access information, to conduct research, and to communicate findings) of the Core. This assignment will provide evidence about how well students have progressed toward that goal over the course of the semester.
Overview
The Internet in all its various forms has been transforming pre- and in-service development of professional educators. Digital tools will be an important aspect of professional development in the 21st Century. Educators will be expected to use digital technologies for numerous professional purposes, including individual and collaborative research. (Council of Chief State School Officers, 2013).
For this essay, you will select a website that has the potential to support your efforts to advance your expertise and professional development in education. This assignment has several major goals. These goals are consistent with various levels of Bloom's Taxonomy:
? Illustrate the structure of an educational website. (Applying)
? Judge the quality of sites that can support your professional development and expertise. (Evaluating)
? Explain how teachers can use the website as consumer and producers of research. (Analysis and Creating)
? Describe how theory influences the tools and resources offered in the website. (Evaluating)
You should select a website for this assignment that you think would help advance your growth and expertise as a professional educator. Please select one site from the list located on the final page of this document. If you wish to choose a different website, please check with your instructor first and seek approval before continuing.
Requirements
? Your instructor will inform you about procedures (e.g., due dates, details for submission, formatting etc.) for completing this assignment.
? You must include headings for each of the sections.
? Citations must include quotes around cited text. Author name with page number found in parentheses.
? Follow any additional formatting requirements as detailed by your instructor.
? Essay must be proofread for spelling and grammar.
? Essay must fulfill all conditions of the rubric. (Found on course site)
Essay Sections
Introduction
For this section, provide a brief introduction to this essay (one or two paragraphs). This introduction should identify the website that you have selected for the assignment. It should also provide an explanation about your reasons for its selection.
Section 1: Mission, Structure, and Organization of the Website
The structure and organization of a website affect the success of its mission(s). These elements influence its appeal, range of offerings, accessibility, efficiency, and ease of use.
This section must:
? Discuss the primary mission(s) of the site (i.e., the ways in which it supports professional development and practice).
? Provide a written overview or "road map" that describes the organization of the site, including its main components or sub-sections as well as a basic description of what tools or resources are included in it.
? Include a graphic organizer (e.g., concept map) that provides a visual representation of the organization of the site.
? Provide an in-depth exploration of one of the major components of the site in which the student explains how the resources in those sub-sections or components help to fulfill its mission(s).
Section 2: Quality of the Website
If educators are to use Internet resources effectively, they must develop the skills and knowledge to make judgments about the quality of the sites they employ for professional development (Cunningham, 2014; Forcier &Descy, 2008). Judging the quality of a website is a balancing act. Educators must consider numerous criteria when making such a judgment. Few websites are excellent with with respect to all criteria. A strong, effective website, however, will robustly address most of the following criteria.
? Authorship & Sponsorship
? Who is the author of the site or materials found on the site? What are his/her credentials or other evidence of expertise in the area?
? Where does the author get his/her information? Is the source reliable? Provide support for your assertion.
? Who sponsors the website? Are the sponsors reputable?
? Accuracy of Information
? Where does the author get his/her information? Is the source reliable? Provide support for your assertion.
? Is s/he presenting opinion, argument, or evidence? How do you know? (For example, a drug-maker may not be the best source of information about a particular medical condition and appropriate treatments. Similarly, the NRA might not be a completely objective source of information on gun violence.)
? Currency
? Is the information current and up-to-date? (This doesn't necessarily mean that the publish date is within the last few years; rather, it means that the page/site provides information that is generally accepted to be the latest thinking or still useful today.)
? Are links up-to-date?
? Presentation & Technical Aspects
? Are the tools/resources easy to access?
? Is the design of the website appealing?
? Is it well-organized and easy to navigate?
? Does the site feature multimedia elements (e.g., video, graphics, audio, animations)? If so, do they enhance or extend the usefulness of the website? Are they distracting, superfluous, or unnecessary?
Section 3: Research
Research is the lifeblood of modern professions, and it is a core mission of most universities. Historically, teachers have been consumers of research. They used the knowledge research to improve their teaching. However, a trend in professional development is to encourage teachers to become producers of research by conducting pedagogical investigations, also known as action research (Conference on English Education, 2009; Henderson, Meier, Perry, &Stremmel, 2012; National Science Teachers Association, 2010).
As you explore and examine the website, notice the topics that it addresses. Prompted by the topics that you see addressed, propose a research investigation that an educator (e.g., teacher, administrator, counselor) could explore with students, and that would add to his/her knowledge in one of the areas covered by the website.
Classroom research usually addresses a practical problem or challenge within a classroom or school (e.g., aggressive behavior during recess, using student-generated graphic organizers to understand science concepts).
Follow these steps:
1. Identify a problem area and formulate a question (e.g., Can student-generated graphic organizers enhance students' understanding the life cycle of a butterfly?).
2. Identify the subjects. (i.e., the students involved in the investigation - grade, number, gender, etc.).
3.Identify the tool(s) for gathering data (e.g., interviews, work samples, surveys ).
4. The approach for interpreting data (Will the data be quantifiable? Will it be qualitative?)
5. Speculate about how that information can improve classroom practice.
(For additional information about classroom/action research, use the links located under the heading Additional Information near the end of this document.)
Section 4: Theory
If research is the lifeblood of a profession, theory is its spine. Theory helps to explain what isknown; it allows for predictions about novel circumstances; and, it promotes newresearch efforts that benefit practitioners in the field (O'Donnell, Reeve, & Smith, 2009).
Examine the resources and tools, information and knowledge presented in your website. As you examine these items, consider which one of the major theoretical perspectives (i.e., constructivism, cognitivism, behaviorism) appears to have the greatest influence over the ideas, practices, and approaches offered by the site.
Once you have made that determination, do the following tasks:
? Select two items from the website that you think are representative of the theory that that you think most influences the mission of the website.
? For each of the two, identify and explain in detail how each item is consistent with the theoretical perspective that you identified.
? Each of the examples must be supported with citations from course readings.
? Citations must include quotes around cited text. Author name with page number found in parentheses.
Readings:
Teaching Toolkit- How student Learn 1 to 4
By Paul Surgenor