4.3 Diversity, Cultural Understanding & Global Awareness
Candidates model and facilitate the use of digital tools and resources to support diverse student needs, enhance cultural understanding, and increase global awareness. (PSC 4.3/ISTE 5c)
Artifact:
Around the World with 80 Schools
Reflection:
In the past school year, one fourth grade classroom in the school participated in the Around the World with 80 Schools project. This learning experience was based on online communications between students in different parts of the world. The participating teacher did not feel comfortable to engage her students into each task of the project, but many Skype sessions and writing activities helped facilitate learning that increased student global awareness and enhanced their cultural understanding.
During this project, diverse student needs were taken in consideration and opportunities for success were developed to support all learners. For example, the English as Second Language community group within the project was chosen intentionally as a focus group to motivate English Language Learners (ELL) students in the classroom. These students were able to easily connect with students in Spain who were learning English because they understood the process of learning another language. In addition, the ELL students taught the Spanish-speaking audience new English words and phrases, and the process helped them feel successful and appreciated. To address diverse needs of students in the class, a choice of communication mode was given by the teacher. Some students chose to take pictures and talk about them in Skype sessions, while others wrote blog posts about their school and community. A small group of students chose to work together to create a video report about their classroom.
The class did not connect with eighty schools as the project intended, but students built strong relationships with one school in Spain. Students were able to compare and contrast the schools in the USA and Europe. They learned interesting facts about life styles, interests, and traditions of each other’s communities. The fourth grade classroom itself was a diverse group, with five different ethnicities and cultures represented. The learning experience helped students see how similar their lives were because of the geographical location and how different they were because of the cultural differences. Technology enhanced the learning experience by providing opportunities to see each other’s images, read blog posts, comment on them, and have conversations in a face-to-face setting via Skype.
Technology helped students travel virtually across the globe and connect with peers from a small town in Spain. This connection helped fourth graders develop an understanding of the global diversity. They obtained knowledge about geographical characteristics of the place, learned about the life style of their virtual friends, and experienced different points of view on issues such as school uniform, learning second language, and ways to spend leisure time.
This project made an impact on students and their appreciation of different cultures and life styles. Students discovered how writing, reading, speaking, and presentation skills were relevant to real life. It made their learning relevant, authentic, and engaging. When students reflected on this project, most of them noted that they never thought that learning could be so personal. Hopefully, these students and the classroom teacher would continue advocating for global online projects and increasing the interest for them in the school.
It would be necessary to encourage the classroom teacher to live up to the challenge of this project next year and actually connect with more than one school. It would be a powerful and eye-opening experience for students and teachers to learn about multiple places and cultures in a short time. Teachers could be innovative and integrate English Language Arts and Social Studies objectives into the process to address required standards in the curriculum.
In the past school year, one fourth grade classroom in the school participated in the Around the World with 80 Schools project. This learning experience was based on online communications between students in different parts of the world. The participating teacher did not feel comfortable to engage her students into each task of the project, but many Skype sessions and writing activities helped facilitate learning that increased student global awareness and enhanced their cultural understanding.
During this project, diverse student needs were taken in consideration and opportunities for success were developed to support all learners. For example, the English as Second Language community group within the project was chosen intentionally as a focus group to motivate English Language Learners (ELL) students in the classroom. These students were able to easily connect with students in Spain who were learning English because they understood the process of learning another language. In addition, the ELL students taught the Spanish-speaking audience new English words and phrases, and the process helped them feel successful and appreciated. To address diverse needs of students in the class, a choice of communication mode was given by the teacher. Some students chose to take pictures and talk about them in Skype sessions, while others wrote blog posts about their school and community. A small group of students chose to work together to create a video report about their classroom.
The class did not connect with eighty schools as the project intended, but students built strong relationships with one school in Spain. Students were able to compare and contrast the schools in the USA and Europe. They learned interesting facts about life styles, interests, and traditions of each other’s communities. The fourth grade classroom itself was a diverse group, with five different ethnicities and cultures represented. The learning experience helped students see how similar their lives were because of the geographical location and how different they were because of the cultural differences. Technology enhanced the learning experience by providing opportunities to see each other’s images, read blog posts, comment on them, and have conversations in a face-to-face setting via Skype.
Technology helped students travel virtually across the globe and connect with peers from a small town in Spain. This connection helped fourth graders develop an understanding of the global diversity. They obtained knowledge about geographical characteristics of the place, learned about the life style of their virtual friends, and experienced different points of view on issues such as school uniform, learning second language, and ways to spend leisure time.
This project made an impact on students and their appreciation of different cultures and life styles. Students discovered how writing, reading, speaking, and presentation skills were relevant to real life. It made their learning relevant, authentic, and engaging. When students reflected on this project, most of them noted that they never thought that learning could be so personal. Hopefully, these students and the classroom teacher would continue advocating for global online projects and increasing the interest for them in the school.
It would be necessary to encourage the classroom teacher to live up to the challenge of this project next year and actually connect with more than one school. It would be a powerful and eye-opening experience for students and teachers to learn about multiple places and cultures in a short time. Teachers could be innovative and integrate English Language Arts and Social Studies objectives into the process to address required standards in the curriculum.