Final Reflection

To Infinity and Beyond!

An Approach to Teaching Science Fiction

Lesson Plan Overview

            I have created a science-fiction unit using a flipped-classroom approach.  At first this course was developed with the intent of teachers being able to use material for students needing credit recovery or for teachers who did not have time to teach the genre within the allotted school year time.  However, after much contemplation and reformatting, this course is now designed for teachers to use a flipped classroom where students complete a portion of learning online for homework and then come to class for more dynamic participation and discourse.  For this course, I have focused only on the first week of lessons.  During this one week period of in class and online homework, students engage in meaningful learning becoming comfortable with the science-fiction genre.  Lessons include:

In-Class Activities	Online Activities
§  Blogging as a writing genre and how to use    blogs effectively §  Discussion on blog reflections §  Discussion on examples of science fiction from literature, theater, movies and television §  Class discussion of Ray Bradbury and his influence on the genre §  Reactions to “There Will Come Soft Rains”	§  View video mash-up §  Blog about what they think science fiction is §  View PowerPoint lesson on elements of science fiction §  Identification of science fiction elements in video clip §  Read “There Will Come Soft Rains” by Ray Bradbury

Implementation

            Although I am not in the classroom this year, I was able to get three 8^th grade students to participate in this week long implementation knowing that they would have to give up their lunch time to talk with me for the in-class activity portion and were willing to take on the additional homework at home!  This is not nearly as ideal as completing this assignment with a full class, but it was nice to work with a small group of students and delve into science fiction on a deeper level.  The students did everything that was asked of them and sat with me each lunch period for a week to participate.  The students definitely did the majority of the work completing all of the necessary online components.  The discussions I had with these students were amazing.  They shocked me with the insights gathered from reading Ray Bradbury’s There Will Come Soft Rains.  With the success of this implementation with only three students, I cannot wait to see what the current writing teacher does with three classes of 8^th graders when I give him access to all of the materials.  I look forward to observing these classes.

Reflection

            The overall learning goal for students during this first week’s session of the unit is to develop an understanding of the science fiction genre, its themes, and its importance as a genre.   Students are learning to use a tool that will help them to enhance their writing and using other tools to enhance their learning.  Blogging is a genre within itself, an students must learn the appropriate conventions.  Some underlying assumptions include that students know how to manage and manipulate information found on a website and blog page. 

            This technology affords students to improve their written word and understanding of science fiction.  There are some constraints, however, with the largest being that students may misuse the blog page by not following proper netiquette rules. Constructivism is present in these activities as students must determine their own definition of science fiction.  Because behaviorism is a person's response to visual stimuli and that in turn affects behavior, it will be interesting to see how different students develop their own understanding of the genre. 

            This unit is intended to supplement the existing curriculum at my school.  The new writing teacher will be using it to guide students during the writing of science fiction.  It is extremely important to take into account the differences in student learning.  This unit was developed with each student in mind and many activities are planned for multiple learning styles.  In order for this to be a success in the classroom, teachers and students must have a few basic computer skills including keyboarding, manipulation of a website for information, and blogging.  Although blogging and PhotoStory will be taught, it is assumed that teachers and students have a basic understanding of how to use information presented on a website. 

            Students were assessed on each of the assignments completed in the first week activities.  They were assessed on their first blog posting, two written reflection assignments and participation in the in-class discussions.  Each of the assignments were assessed using a teacher created rubric.

Technology played a huge role in these lessons.   The advantage this technology holds for this role is that students will find the technology simple and fun to use.  I think the unique contribution this technology has in facilitating learning is that many students tend to be visual learners.  Viewing video clips to bring science fiction to life really helped students develop a self-created understanding of science fiction.  I expected that students would hone writing skills through the blogging, and the students loved being able to respond online.  They had thoughtful responses to the questions posed and enjoyed the in class discussion as well.  I was lucky in that I had previously had these three students in class, and there were practically no questions on the technology because they had learned it in class last year. 

I would have to say that in just a week’s time, these three students understood the science fiction genre better than the entire group of 8^th graders I taught the genre to last year.  Incorporating the video clips really helped the students because they are very visual learners.  Allowing students to blog about their thoughts first and then come prepared to discuss in class permitted students to process the information and prepare their thoughts.  The three students selected are not out-going students and rarely participate in in-class discussions.  The blogging allowed them to come prepared and ready to talk!   

A Science-Fiction Lesson Plan

Science-Fiction Lesson Plan

Content	What is the content you are teaching and what are the big ideas? What are the challenging concepts that students struggle with or are difficult to teach? Consider your state standards (GLCEs or HSCEs) as you develop the essential questions you are trying to address.	Content: Writing Science-Fiction I am currently developing an online science-fiction unit for students who may need credit recovery or for teachers to use when crunched for “in-class” time.  Teachers may use this for a grade or for an extra credit project.   Big Ideas: (Unit Essential Questions) Why write science-fiction? What effects can science-fiction have on society? What are the implications of science-fiction? Lesson 1: What is Science-Fiction? I can... Determine my own definition and understanding of Science Fiction. Write a blog response to the question, "What is Science Fiction?" Recognize the first English-written Science Fiction novel. Understand extrapolation. Identify major themes in Science Fiction. Recognize the four major elements in Science Fiction. Essential Questions: What is science-fiction? What is the first recognized English written piece of science-fiction? What is extrapolation? What are the major themes of science-fiction? What are the four major elements of science-fiction?
Pedagogy	What pedagogical strategies are you using and why? What theories of learning inform your strategies? What learner characteristics did you take into consideration?	I am using both cognitive constructivism and social constructivism in this lesson.  Students are developing their own understanding of what science-fiction is through viewing a video mash-up and responding with their thoughts through a blog posting.  As the learning progresses, students will view a a Power Point to examine extrapolation, themes of science-fiction, and the four major elements of the genre.  Students will then view a video clip and use this clip to determine elements of science-fiction.  Students will also read Ray Bradbury’s There Will Come Soft Rains and answer element questions.  At the end of the lesson, students will blog about their findings of reading Ray Bradbury’s piece and discuss with one another about how it is a good example of science-fiction.
Content & Pedagogy	How do these particular strategies help you teach the content mentioned above? Why choose these strategies over other approaches? Are there any technical or physical constraints that figured significantly into your choices?	I chose these particular strategies because most students are visual learners.  I tried to incorporate as much visual learning as possible.  I also incorporated the blog postings and having to respond to each other’s posting to build that social learning.  No two people are going to have the same exact thoughts on this science-fiction piece, and therefore, have the opportunity to learn from one another.  There are some technical constraints that figured into my choices.  I do not have a recorded lesson of myself teaching this content.  I may consider doing this as I feel it will help students achieve greater learning.  I just have not developed it into the online course yet.
Technology	What technology will you be using and why? Is the use of this technology absolutely necessary to achieve your objective? That is, would be impossible to teach the lesson without it? Remember that content specific technology (e.g., probes, graphing calculators, Geometer’s Sketchpad, United Streaming videos) are used to teach a content-specific concepts, whereas content-general technologies (e.g., Flash animation, Web 2.0 technologies) may facilitate deeper understanding by allowing students to manipulate information, explore a “network of ideas,” and investigate multiple representations of material.	I am using Weebly, Google-Docs, videos, blogging, and MicroSoft PhotoStory.  Due to the fact that I am developing this as an online course, these technologies are absolutely necessary to achieving my objectives.  The entire course will be online and all communication and collaboration will be online.  Even though this lesson does not incorporate MicroSoft PhotoStory, the final assessment in this unit is a visual story production.  This will allow students to bring their writing to life and be forever preserved on the Internet!
Technology & Pedagogy	How does the technology you have chosen fit with your pedagogical strategies and theories about learning? What types of learning strategies are employed by the technology?	The technologies I have chosen fit with my pedagogical strategies and theories about learning because they are engaging tools that will allow students to be active participants in their own learning.  Students are constructing knowledge through videos and readings.  They then become social after creating their own knowledge of science-fiction and express their thoughts and comment on the thoughts of others through blogging.
Technology & Content	How does your choice of technology help you teach the "big ideas" and address the essential questions underlying the concept your lesson addresses?	First of all, my choice of using Weebly to set up this unit will help students achieve understanding of the big ideas because of its ease-of-use.  The incorporation of video will stimulate the learners visually and help them create a deeper understanding of what science-fiction is.  Blogging with the students will help them to deepen their understanding of the elements of science-fiction and why it is important to write this genre.
Assessment	What do you want your students to know, and how will you know when they know it?  How will you assess what students have learned?  What role does technology play in these assessments?	I want my students to build a meaning of what science-fiction is and what the major themes and elements are.  I will know they have reached full understanding when viewing their blog responses and how they respond to others.  I have created one rubric for assessing their first blog posting.  It can be found at https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/viewform?formkey=dEMyN1BhT2lSSFRvV045UU9vX084V2c6MQ#gid=0. Technology will play a huge role in my assessments as they will be rubrics created using Google Forms.

If you are interested in viewing the progress of this online unit, feel free to visit at http://mcclainssciencefiction.weebly.com.

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