|
| |
Background
During this school year we faced 9-11. Multiple
strategies and intelligences were our answer. These lessons are two of
many lessons for a unit on Heroes. We utilize six themes per year which
are planned on a flexible basis. We post unit plans in the room and on the
Internet. We invite students, parents, teachers and community to add
questions to our units. This gives us the flexibility to be open to
current events. This inquiry process allowed us to incorporate 9-11 into
the curriculum. All strategies apply across demographics. For more detail on this planning see our Heroes site in the intermediate
section. Many teachers in California received directives from the
Media, Districts Offices and
Administration cautioning and giving guidance.
Information flew from many directions. The traditional delivery system was determined to be not
effective. As teachers we had done extensive
research as a group. We wanted to employ these strategies
integrating technology. Our goal was to develop *Action
Research, which according to Geoffrey Mills (2000) defines action research
as "... any systematic inquiry conducted by teacher researchers, principals,
school counselors, or other stakeholders in the teaching/learning environment,
to gather information about the ways that their particular schools operate, how
they teach, and how well their students learn." Mills identifies four main
steps in the process:
 | Identify an area of focus; |
| Collect data; |
| Analyze and interpret data; and |
| Develop an action plan. |
Our area of focus was the idea that students could organize,
interpret, and connect new information with their existing knowledge base in new
ways with technology.
|
The Goal
|
Our group wanted the following;
*Dr. Geni Cowan, "The User Friendly Approach to Research."
(2001)
|
