Category: Weekly Reflections

This week we had another guest speaker come in named Rich McCue. Rich is the Manager of the Digital Scholarship Commons. He introduced us to a few different kinds of tools like Google Gemini and the magic eraser tool on Google Photos. These tools could be used in the classroom as well as personal use. He encouraged us to think about how tools like these could be used in a classroom setting. I really enjoyed how hands on this workshop was because it made it much more engaging and fun to listen to. We were able to try out different features that these tools have like removing backgrounds, editing photos, as well as videos.

One thing that he said that I had never really thought of before was about privacy and data ownership. Rich explained that when you upload a picture onto for example Google Gemini it goes to a server in the United States meaning it can be accessed under the Patriot Act, so he remined us to never upload student pictures since there isn’t a clear answer on who actually owns it.

We also played around with video editing and podcasting using iMovie and Microsoft video editor which was super cool. I really liked how he gave us lots of time to play around with the different tools. He showed us a few videos with different things wrong with them like a shaky camera, loud noise, etc. which was to help us notice and avoid these things when creating videos. Overall, this workshop was a lot of fun and very informative, I enjoyed how interactive and hands on it was.

 This week in class we had a guest speaker Jesse Miller who talked about digital citizenship and online privacy. His presentation was very engaging, and I loved how interactive he was with the class, prompting us to react with emojis to his questions as well as to type in the chat. This made the class much more interesting and engaging. It also made me think a lot about how closely connected our professional and personal lives are when it comes to technology. He pointed out how our generation grew up with social media which makes us a lot more social media literate.

 Jesse started by asking us to think back to the first social media platform where we had a positive experience. Most people said Instagram, but others said platforms such as Facebook, Tumblr, snapchat, and more. It was actually very interesting to see other people’s experiences and to think back at my own and see how young I was when I first got it and how much social media has changed since then. He shared examples of how technology can have serious impacts like the Canucks riot in 2012 when social media was used in a good way to help the investigation. This really showed me how serious and powerful digital footprints can be even when you think what you are posting or sending is only temporary. 

He talked a lot about personal vs professional as a teacher. As a future teacher maintaining personal and professional boundaries online is very important. I am aware that as a future teacher remembering to think before you post and being aware of your online presence is extremely important as it could be viewed by employers, coworkers, parents, and even students. I remember being in Grade 7 and looking up my favourite teachers on Instagram and requesting to follow them. Looking ack at this I can understand how important these boundaries are. Jesse gave a few examples of how data can be collected such as scanning IDs at a club and simply using the Wi-Fi in a store. This really made me realize how unaware some of us are to all of the ways that data and information about us can be collected in our everyday lives. 

One thing that stuck out to me was phones in schools. For me I have always seen phones as something that is not allowed in a classroom especially in elementary and high school, less so later on in high school. I feel like I view it that way because in elementary school we weren’t allowed to have phones out and if we did it was rare so when I went in to high school that view carried over. Now in BC phones are not allowed in classrooms unless they are approved by a teacher. Jesse framed this in a way to give teachers power rather than restrict students. I agree with this because being in a classroom where a teacher has taken phones away, I found myself holding a resentment towards them. It almost made me like them less because they were known as the “strict” teachers. Instead of banning phones completely I think students should be taught how to use them responsibly, safely, and that they can be used as helpful tools in the classroom.

Jesses talk was overall very eye-opening, it made me realize that as a future teacher and being in this new generation of growing up in the digital world and being on social media its more than just knowing how to use technology, it’s about modeling how to use it responsibly.

For week four our class took a field trip to downtown Victoria to visit the Pacific School of Innovation and Inquiry or PSII for short. This was probably one of the most interesting and intriguing learning environments that I have seen. It was very clear from when we walked in that this was not your typical high school. There wasn’t really any classrooms and there was a lot of open collaboration rooms where students could work. There are no bells, set schedules, and no clear separation of subjects like math, science, and social studies, they are all interconnected in their inquiry projects. Walking through the building students were just working at their own pace on projects based on an inquiry question which was very cool. You don’t see that often where a large group of students are able to work together and stay on task.

What stood out to me the most was how calm it felt, there was barely and “big lights” such as fluorescent lighting, they used other things to light up the rooms like lamps, string lights, and other warm lights. It felt very stress free. The students have a lunchtime at 12pm but they were allowed to take it whenever they want basically. So for example, if they were working on their project and didn’t want to stop for lunch they could take their lunch break after.

Another thing that I found very interesting is how the teachers handle grading, assessments, and subjects. The students work on inquiry projects and the teachers help find ways to connect them to curriculum areas like math and science. If the teachers find that a students project doesn’t include something that they may need in order to graduate then they gently guide them to include that subject area. Instead of receiving letter grades, report cards, and exam grades the students are assess based on competencies throughout the year and then do a summative assessment at the end of the year. Doing assessments like this makes it very stress free for the students, instead of worrying about studying for tests they are able to work on a project that genuinely interests them and at the same time meets the BC curriculum. Some students have a lot of trouble with tests and may do worse on them because of test anxiety. So this approach allows for students to give authentic grades.

Overall, visiting PSII really reminded me of the documentary that we watched called Most Likely to Succeed. Both schools have similar structures where they value creativity, trust, and most importantly student based learning. It showed me that there is this whole new world of how learning in a school can look and how learning can be different for everyone. This school system is definitely not new but it is new to me. Even though I don’t think every school could look like this I definitely think that certain aspects of it could be added to classrooms like flexible learning spaces and using technology in a meaningful way. Instead of restricting them teachers could teach their students how to to use it properly and encourage students to use technology for things like research.

For week two we watched the documentary Most likely to succeed. This documentary explores High Tech High, this school is located in California. This school completely transformed how students learn in a typical high school. Instead of having lectures, bells, tests, and set schedules, the school took a more casual approach it emphasizes project based learning, teamwork, and collaboration. Watching this documentary was very cool because I did not know that these kinds of schools existed and it also intrigued me because I really wondered “how does this work?”.

One of the main things that stood out to me is how much freedom the students were given and how much the teachers trusted them to stay on task and work on their projects. The documentary showed the students working on projects that involved problem-solving, creativity, and teamwork, their projects also included multiple subjects like math, science, and art. The students projects would later be showed at an exhibition at the end of the year where they would get a summative assessment based on what they showed at the exhibition. Seeing the confidence that the students had while showing their projects just showed that they had learned way more than just the facts they learned skills like problem solving and communication. It was cool to see the different roles that the teachers played, instead of being a typical teacher and talking infront of the class they acted more like mentors, helping and supporting the students as they needed. It was shocking to see how engaged the students were when working on something that they were actually interested in..

In most school students are marked mostly on grades from tests and worksheets but at High Tech High their learning is based off of their growth and effort. Instead of cramming for tests the students show their learning through projects and presentations which honestly feels more authentic as you can also see their personality through their projects. This documentary connects very well with the ISTE standards because it emphasizes empowering learners and using technology to enhance creativity. It also connects with the UVic TEP outcomes about prepping future teachers to create inclusive and engaging environments that support all learners. Another thing that stood out to me was how difficult it must be to grade the students, to me it seem like a nightmare. Having to grade each student based off of their final project as well as collaboration, problem-solving, and communication, I’m not quite sure how you would go about doing it but it seems very time consuming and difficult.

With all of these positives there is also some negatives that I noticed while watching. Some negatives is how some students may need more guidance and structure in order to stay on task and motivated. With that though I question “if you need more structure why come to a school like High Tech High?”. I also wonder how materials are distributed evenly to students and if there are ever any issues where a student can’t work on their project because of budget issues not allowing there to be enough supplies for every student. Since many students have never been to a high school like this before students may find it challenging to make the transition from a structured school to one with a more casual setting and freedom. With that though would students from High Tech High have trouble tranisitioning from a less structured environment to one that values structure, deadlines, and standardizes tests/exams like a workplace or university? I find with this there will be pros and cons to anything and based on what I watched everything seems to be going smoothly, the students are learning, and everyone seems happy. I found that I had to remind myself one thing, that it would not be running if it didn’t meet the expectations of for example the BC curriculum or the core competencies because I don’t totally understand how they learn everything that is required in this type of school.

Overall, this documentary really challenged how I think a school looks like. It showed a successful school with successful students that school doesn’t have to be about studying and memorizing facts, it can be about creativity and curiosity. While I don’t think that I would thrive at this type of school I do believe that many students can and will benefit from this type of learning.