SocietalIssues

Our Societal Issues Threaded Discussion via the TEED 512 Angel site
The idea for this assignment is that you will select one resource to explore (from a list of ten resources), become an "expert" on the resource, post an initial summary/comment on that resource using our threaded discussion forum on Angel, and then react to the posts of others on the forum. (Please review the assignment details for word count minimums, etc. in the syllabus!)

The first step is to select your resource from the list of ten or so linked below (scroll down on this page).

Once you have selected and thoroughly explored your resource you can begin the threaded discussion process.
 * Sign in to Seattle University's [|Angel Web site;]
 * Select the Angel site for TEED 512 - Learners and Instruction SECTION 1 - 11SQ ;"
 * Click on the "Materials & Strands" tab;
 * Click on the folder entitled: "Educational Technology Strand";
 * Click on the threaded discussion folder entitled, "Threaded Discussion – Societal Issues & Educational Technology" and follow the directions found there. [When you are ready, you will use the "New Post" button to make your initial posting.]

Note that your initial posting must be made by May 16 and your reaction posts must be made by May 19.


 * If you choose to go for the last 2 points by creating a new Societal Issues resource**, you may use the space below to provide a link to the Web page introducing your resource.

Disability Resource Page - Yantra Bertelli These disability resources can help teachers include disability history in the curriculum and explore critical questions with their students. How do disability rights activists fit into larger civil rights struggles in the United States? How do students define disability? How does language shape our ideas and prejudices? How does language shape experience? The page includes an NPR story about Brown vs. Board of Education and the 1970's fight for the right to education for individuals with disabilities, and a TED Talk by Aimee Mullins.

Josh Tuggle's Societal Issue: Somali Community Services Coalition One of the largest and most immediate issues that plague our school's is the inability to properly serve the immigrant communities that find themselves settling in Seattle. Somali Community Services of Seattle provides supplemental education, community development, job skills and more for Somali immigrants. Since Seattle School District is home to one of the largest populations of Somali refugees and immigrants in the nation, students, families, and schools need as much help as possible.

[|TED Talk by Eli Praiser] Posted by Kat Behrend This TED talk by author Eli Praiser, author of "The Filter Bubble," explains how internet-giants like Facebook, Google, and Yahoo are selective about what information they share with you, based on personal information they have gathered through your past internet activity. They filter your queries based on your link-clicking histories, hiding specific links that they don't think you would be interested in.

Both the TED talk and his book raise the question about whether the internet is in fact a democratic, open portal of information if we don't know what's not being shown to us. The issue is pertinent to our job as educators, as we will be teaching students how to conduct meaningful, legitimate research. The more literate we are as teachers about media democracy and the type of corporate selectivity of information that Praiser discusses, the better equipped we will be at raising these issues of social and informational justice with our students. What internet sources will students rely on for neutral, internet-based research? He also has a list of 10 things you can do to “pop the filter bubble” and see the neutral, un-personalized, un-filtered web. []

Carlito Umali's Societal Issue: College INC. The Sales and Marketing Story

"..my next book is called, 'How to Run a College by a Guy That Never Went to One.'" I hope this gets you to watch the movie.

__A documentary about the dangers of for-profit colleges and universities__

I think that Frontline creates so many great documentaries for high school classes. I picked one in particular called //College, INC.: The Sales and Marketing Story//. As many of our students leave high school, they will look into the possibilities of higher education. One of the many options out there are for-profit colleges and universities. They promise degrees through online programs and/or business campuses. I do not have to say any names.


 * __This documentary exposes many of the dangers of for-profit colleges and universities.__** Many of our students are getting heavy advertisements on TV, radio, and social media from these colleges and universities. I know that many of us have seen the commercials for online degrees. We may even know some students interested in these schools. It is time to ask: **who are these commercials targeting**? **Why are there so many of these ads-everywhere**? **How can I equip my students with information that will help them make informed decisions**? **Are these companies preying on venerable student demographics**? I think this power documentary will empower our students to make better higher education choices.

[|Bridging the Digital Divide using Google Docs] by Bonivi Caculitan

It seems that more and more schools have computers in the classroom and that classes require students to complete assignments after school hours that require them to use costly software like Microsoft Office. However, for low-income parents who most likely cannot afford to buy used desktops, buying software like Microsoft Office is a burden. Thus, the issue is, how can we help bridge the digital divide in the classrooms? There is a divide between what is expected in schools and what low-income parents can afford to give their children to meet the school’s expectations.

Thankfully, there is Google Docs. Google Docs allows you to make documents, spreadsheets, presentations, drawings, and forms for free. It can be accessed anywhere. Students do not have to buy expensive storage devices that they could lose, along with the data stored in them. Students can edit and view their docs from any computer. This allows students to work on their projects at school, at the local library, or wherever they can use a free computer with internet. They can also share their work in real time with others to get their work done more quickly. This is great for group writing assignments.

Amber Swim's New Societal Issues Discussion Resource: Boys, Gaming, and School In her talk, Ali Carr-Chellman states that boys are behind girls in academic achievement; that there is a gender achievement gap. She claims that this is due to boy's culture (mainly video games) being discriminated against by school policy and teacher attitude. She also sites a decline in male elementary teachers as a factor. All of these things are contributing to boys receiving the implicit message that school is not for them. For a more detailed description and the video of her talk, visit my tech portfolio.

[[image:Screen_shot_2011-05-21_at_12.54.58_PM.png width="169" height="101" align="left" link="http://www.escapistmagazine.com/videos/view/extra-credits"]]Gamification of Education
Some of your students (and some of your colleagues) are spending a lot of time playing online games. What is it about the games that makes them so addictive? Is there a way to harness the motivational power of the online gaming environment to increase student engagement with educational learning targets? Here are two brief videos from the Web site, "[|The Escapist]." The first video is all about "gamification," and explains the meaning of that term in general. It sets up the second video which is about gamifying education.

First video - **gamification**: [|http://www.escapistmagazine.com/videos/view/extra-credits/2985-Gamification] Second video - **gamifying education**: [|http://www.escapistmagazine.com/videos/view/extra-credits/3167-Gamifying-Education]

Watch the videos - maybe twice, they go pretty quickly - and consider, given what you know about schools and learning, whether and how some of this might work ... or not.

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 * Bonus**: Here's a link to an NPR story about the "Quest to Learn" newly begun school in NYC that takes video games very seriously...

  **Bring Back The Boys ** In her talk, ([] )Ali Carr-Chellman states that boys are behind girls in academic achievement; that there is a gender achievement gap. She claims that this is due to boy's culture  (mainly video games) being discriminated against by school policy and teacher attitude. She also sites a decline in male <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: serif; font-size: 16px; text-align: start; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">elementary teachers as a factor. All of these things are contributing to boys receiving implicit messages that school is not for them. She does address the academic challenges girls face, and that the achievement gap widens if the boys are African American, poor, or go to an over crowded school. <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: serif; font-size: 16px; text-align: start; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: serif; font-size: 16px; text-align: start; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">The statistics she sites are alarming and much of what she talks about reminds me of things we have discussed in our program, specifically regarding Culturally Responsive Teaching; that elementary school are mainly taught by women for girls. Carr-Chellman says the video games are not the cause of low academic achievement in boys, but rather a symptom. Then she says that we need to integrate components of video games into school and curriculum to engage boys. <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: serif; font-size: 16px; text-align: start; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: serif; font-size: 16px; text-align: start; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: serif; font-size: 16px; text-align: start; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: serif; font-size: 16px; text-align: start; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: serif; font-size: 16px; text-align: start; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">  <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; display: block; font-family: serif; font-size: 16px; text-align: start; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: serif; font-size: 16px; text-align: start; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">**<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: serif; font-size: 16px; text-align: start; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">What do you think? ** Can we address causes with their symptoms? Are there other ways to engage and motivate boys to learn? I find this topic extremely interesting after seeing a disproportionate amount of boys being disciplined and demonstrating a loss of motivation for school during my field experiences. What are your thoughts, experiences, and ideas?

Orchestrating the Media Collage by Jason Ohler
"Being able to read and write multiple forms of media and integrate them into a meaningful whole is the new hallmark of literacy."

"At the epicenter of the evolving nature of literacy is digital literacy, the term du jour used to describe the skills, expectations, and perspectives involved in living in a technological society. How has digital literacy evolved in the 25 years since digital tools began appearing in classrooms? And how can we make it more responsive to our present needs?" To what extent to do you buy into the central claims with regard to education and technology? Where do your views about the role of educational technology in the processes of teaching and learning diverge from theirs and why do they do so? You can access this article at: [] This article was published in the journal, Educational Leadership. March 2009 | Volume 66 | Number 6 Literacy 2.0 Pages 8-13



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Accessibility in Education Apple Computers
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Accessibility in Microsoft Products
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 * [|http://www.apple.com/education/special-education/] || [|http://www.microsoft.com/enable/products/]<span class="wiki_link_ext"> / ||

There are many features built into the Mac and Windows operating systems that make it easier for students with disabilities to use computers. As a teacher, you need to know how these work. Choose one of these two sites or explore them both. These sites will help you learn about these features, including VoiceOver, Zoom, Speech Recognition, and many more. If you go to the Windows site you will need to click on an operating system (OS) name (e.g., "Windows XP") to get information about that OS. If you go to the Apple site, you'll find a set of links across the middle of the page, "Literacy & Learning," "Vision," etc. Explore these one by one.

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 * Communication - Community Voices, Collaborative Solutions**

iEARN (International Education and Resource Network) is a non-profit global network that enables young people to use the Internet and other new technologies to engage in collaborative educational projects that both enhance learning and make a difference in the world. The specific part of iEARN that I would like you to explore is the iEARN projects page ([]).

**Adobe - Youth Voices** The idea here is to put digital multimedia tools into the hands of educators and underserved student populations around the world, and to give them plans for using the tools to explore issues and "take action in the own communities." If you go to their opening page: [], you will get an introduction to the project. I recommend that you then click on "An Educator's Perspective" over on the left and investigate further. If you sign up you will have access to the curriculum.

The avowed aim of the Children's Partnership Web site is to "... undertake research, analysis, and advocacy to place the needs of America’s over 70 million children and youth, particularly the underserved, at the forefront of emerging policy debates." The document I would like you to consider is this one: "[|Empowering Parents Through Technology]."

Consider the sources, funders, etc. for this organization....

The **Digital Divide** from [|Wikipedia] This is an article on Wikipedia that describes the concept of the digital divide and gives resources for exploration. Click on "[|Wikipedia]" and, when you get to their main page, type "[|Digital Divide]" in the search box that appears on the left side of the page.

The [|NCTI] is the National Center for Technology Innovation. Go to their Web site ([]) and, use the search bar at the top of the page to search for the NCTI video, **" Ideas on Innovation, An Interview with Yong Zhao.**" (or just go straight to this page: [] ) You willl have to then select video (click on the close captioned icon) or audio (click on the headphones icon). Yong Zhao is a "Distinguished Professor" at Michigan State University. This should stimulate some controversy! Watch this video and make a few notes (or text somebody (?)) along the way. The interview / conversation meanders a bit and comes to no definite conclusion. Nevertheless, it presents some rather direct challenges to your profession and should give you a chance to think about what you value as a teacher. The central question is a twist on a timeless classic: "What knowledge is of most worth in the future?"

This is another resource from [|NCTI], the National Center for Technology Innovation. Go to their Web site ([]) and, search for this title: "T**he Power of Social Media to Promote Assistive and Learning Technologies: A Collaborative Issue Brief.**" According to the site's authors, the purpose of the brief is to: (1) provide a primer on social media and how they work; (2) highlight the benefits of the new social media to promote using assistive and learning technologies for all students and especially for youth with disabilities; and (3) explore the barriers to using social media and the ways that vendors, developers, and educators can overcome them.

"BOSCO (Battery Operated Systems for Community Outreach) is an effort to bring internet connectivity, VoIP phone service and web 2.0 collaboration training to (now former) Internally Displaced Persons camps in Northern Uganda, in collaboration with the Archdiocese of Gulu." Start Here: [] to go to a Wikispaces blog posting (September 27th, 2009) and read an introduction from Wikispaces.com, one of the organizations working with BOSCO. THEN click on the link to the [|BOSCO Web site] in the first line of the blog posting and, from there, explore the [|BOSCO Web site]. I suggest that you consider and discuss the advantages and the disadvantages this technology carries with it as it works its way into the lives of people in Uganda. How and why might you connect your students to theirs?

If you're interested in connecting your class to a Peace Corps volunteer abroad, you can get more information and consider signing up at the following website: [] I recommend that you click the reddish "Educators" tab over on the left side of the page and explore there for lesson plans and stories, service learning ideas, etc. Here is a quote from a recent Seattle University Master in Teaching student who introduced me to this site: "When I was a volunteer, I was connected to a teacher in Kirkland (4-5 grades) and we did a cool penpal program between a class in my community and his class. The class in the USA also rounded up a ton of school supplies, and while on a trip back home, I was able to get the stuff, visit the class, then take the supplies to my community in El Salvador. I also set up a blog that I would write in and the students would all go to their computer lab in the USA and visit it and see my pictures. It was cool for them to see what I was up to. Overall, it was a great experience! I've already signed up and waiting to be linked to a volunteer for my new Spanish classes. As at teacher, when you sign up you get a handbook, monthly e-newsletter, Peace Corps calendar with photos and facts from around the world, the New Coverdell World Wise Schools publications, and other stuff, besides being linked up with a volunteer." My suggestion is that you explore the possibilities presented via the Web site and then consider how and why you might use this in a classroom here in Washington state.

[] By Jonathan Nalder (2007) The author contends that our students live in a world that is different from the one in which we grew up (duh) and describes ten applications that characterize technology for today's children. He concludes with some thoughts about social networking. This article is not exactly out there on the edge of current thinking about educational technology and its applications but if you want to consider one author's view of the more or less current landscape of popular technology for the k-12 set, this is a start.
 * Living with Digital Natives and Their Technologies**

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 * Tech-Savvy**

This is getting quite dated now but, if you are interested, read the summary linked above then try the "Executive Summary," or the "Full Report." Find something more up to date with regard to women, girls and technology, read it, and comment on that! It's your opportunity to pave the way for cohorts of the future. (You might start here: [])
 * Educating Girls in the New Computer Age** (2000)
 * ANOTHER OPTION:**