Development and Implementation of an iTEC Scenario within Learning Activities

Development and Implementation of an iTEC Scenario within Learning Activities.

Using Mind Mapping in Analyzing, Creative Writing and Critical Thinking

Using Mind Mapping in Analyzing, Creative Writing and Critical Thinking

 This story’s unique quality is its focus on creative writing using mind mapping tools and increasing students’ level of understanding and analyzing fictional and real world events. Another unique quality of this scenario is its availability with various school subjects such as Turkish, English, Literature, History, Geography, Chemistry, Biology. Using mind mapping tools for reading and enhancing creativity may motivate students and allow for non-traditional tasks and activities to be used in the classrooms.

Core Purpose

-To use mind-maps and related approaches as a powerful tool for learning, in particular to promote deep understanding while at the same time encouraging a cross-curricular approach.

-To make reading writing and analyzing events fun for students and bring them closer to technology not only for their school subjects but for their daily routine life experiences as well.

Narrative Overview

As a 24 year Literature teacher Galip has always observed how difficult to get students to read and write as a part of their daily routine except for obligatory reading and writing assignments given as a part of school curriculum. He tries a few methods to have his students a bit more involve in topics covering the school curriculum but none of them is as effective as he desires to be.

He realizes there is something wrong with the teaching approaches he has been using and thus he decides to add a piece of technology to his teaching. After going over some handy creative writing and brainstorming tools, he chooses mind mapping tools to use with his literature classes. First he does some activities by himself to see how functional they are for his curriculum topics. Once he is satisfied with the activity he has done he decides to use it with his class and prepares the work process under certain titles by defining duration for each step. He writes his Learning Story using iTEC Composer.When he feels that everything is ready he implements his new method with a great excitement in his class.

Design Brief

-Create three mind maps of a novel, tale, story for a specific audience depending on the pre-defined work process standards embedding technology into the school curriculum to bring a factual source about.

-Brainstorm using Uchronia. (An alternate ending or an alternate course of events for a novel, tale, story)

Dream

At last it is time for Galip to start his activity with his class. He takes his students to the computer lab at school. First he introduces the creative writing activity and then he talks about mind mapping tools and what they are used for showing some printed examples to his students. He does not want to talk about the whole work process the reason why he does this that he does not want his students to fall after or before each other during work process. Since he has 30 students in his class he wants his students to work in groups of five. For this he uses TeamUp tool to create groups. Once the groups are ready he asks his students to discover mind mapping tools giving them the links of various online mind mapping websites

He tells about the basic principle lying under mind mapping tools and wants his students to play freely with them. He allots ten to fifteen minutes for this activity because mapping tools will be the main tools for their creative writing activity. He asks the groups to think of a novel or a story they read before and with their group decides on one novel or story. Galip asks the groups to imagine how they would use mind mapping tools with the story or novels they choose. The group members work together, brainstorm and give their ideas .Galip listens to them and comments positively on group ideas. Reflect: The students take notes or record them using Vocaroo and share them both with their team members and other groups and save them to use for the next step of the work process.

Explore

At this stage Galip asks the groups to search on the internet and find at least three or four examples of Mindmapping works and go over them and comment on them and try to understand what they have been made for. The students find the examples and discuss on them and compare them .These sample works give them ideas about their own mind maps to be done at the next step. 

Reflect: The group members bring all their findings, ideas together and take final notes or record them. The groups interact with other groups to share ideas or inspire from each other.

Galip asks the group to come to the class with their story or novel books or documents for the next step that will be carried out a week later and asks them to revise the story or novel they have chosen.

Map

The students are ready with their material at the computer lab. Galip asks the students to write the main characters of their stories and three positive or negative features of their personality in the story. Once the groups are ready with the required information about their stories, Galip asks them to mindmap this information about the characters of their stories. They can even add photos of the characters. For this activity Galip allots 15 minutes. Each member of the group has a specific contribution to the activity. While the groups are working Galip walks among the groups, makes suggestions or answers the students’ questions trying to be as helpful as possible to encourage students.

When the groups finish their task Galip checks them and gives feedback and then they show their alternate ending maps to other groups and get their feedback and suggestions. Reflect:The groups take necessary notes or record the feedback given and suggestions made and go over their maps and make changes if necessary.

Galip reminds the groups about the PD workshop to be held at the next session a week later. He wants the groups to bring all their maps (Three printed story mindmaps)  and documents with them and he arranges teachers from different branches to invite to the computer lab to evaluate and give feedback about students’ mindmaps.

Reflection: The groups take notes on their friends’ and teacher’s comments and feedbacks on their mindmaps and revise their mindmaps once again and also make changes if necessary.

At the end of the lesson Galip asks the groups to come to the class with an alternate ending of their stories. He wants them to think hypothetically about the ending of the story and write their ideas on a piece of paper ( What would happen if Prince Charming did not kiss the Snow White ?) for the next stage a week later.

Make

The groups are ready for the next stage at the computer lab. First Galip talks about Uchronia ( Changing the course of an event with an alternate ending) giving some examples( What would happen if World war I did not broke out ?) and asks the group members to bring their alternate ending ideas together to come to a mutual alternate ending. The members of the group work together and start creating their final mindmaps about their stories. They get help from Galip whenever they find something difficult or cannot compromise with the group members about a specific issue. When the groups are ready, Galip checks them and gives feedback and  they show their alternate ending maps to other groups.

Reflect:The groups take necessary notes or record the feedback given and suggestions made and go over their maps and make changes if necessary.

Galip reminds the groups about the PD workshop to be held at the next session a week later. He wants the groups to bring all their maps (Three printed story mindmaps)  and documents with them and he arranges teachers from different branches to invite to the computer lab to evaluate and give feedback about students’ mindmaps.

Ask and Collaborate

The groups and the guests,  a literature teacher, an IT teacher, a history teacher and some students from other classes  are ready at the computer lab for the PD workshop. The groups show their mindmaps to the teachers and students, answer their questions and take notes or record videos of their feedbacks and suggestions. The groups ask questions to the guests to improve their mindmaps. The groups listen to their observers very carefully and respect their point of views. 

At this stage Galip prefers acting just as a guide accompanying the guests. When the PD workshop is over, Galip visits each group’s stand and give his own feedback and take small reminders of each group activities to be used for assessment.

Reflect: The students bring all their notes obtained from PD workshop and discuss on them and make their final changes and finalize their story mindmaps.

Show and Collaborate

When the work process is finally completed the groups take the images of their story mindmappings and upload them on their blog or online file and photo sharing websites, on iTEC  Facebook group and Twitter for other iTEC schools students and teacher and even parents and relatives to see and like them our comment on them. They can even hang them on school notice boards for other schools students to see. Reflect: Taking all the work process into consideration Galip evaluates the groups work based on a rubric assessment .His assessment is open to students to discuss over and give their own ideas.

Trends

-It is not an easy task to motivate students with obsolete methods. A change through technology is a must.

In Turkey most of the teachers are unaware of positive use of technology and internet in the class and this situation causes them to fall behind the students and to lack in 21st century competences. This situation causes them to feel the professional run-down

It is always a challenge for teacher to get the students to brainstorm, analyze and write in a creative way.

Possible Approaches to Teaching and Assessment

-Instructional Learning

 -Project Based Learning

-Collaborative Learning

-Enquiry Based Learning, Formative and summative assessment

identification of skills.

Environment

-Classroom (with internet access)

-Online space for uploading information

People & Roles

-Teacher as coordinator of overall activity, instructor of research methods, facilitator of research process

-Student as researcher

-Parents, Relatives, School Friends and other teachers.

Interactions (INCL. Pedagogies)

-Enquiry-based learning

-Working in small groups and coordinating between groups

-Computer and Communication Skills

-Internet Literacy  -Increased Learning Capabilities

Activities

-Interviewing

-Researching using various methods and sources

-Analyzing data from multiple sources

-Interacting with interdisciplinary subjects

-Working inside and outside of school

-Team work – photo editing

-Using collaborative writings tools

-Using Mind Mapping Tools online

Resources (Incl. Technologies)

-Voice recorders, cameras,

-Internet access

-Online Mind Mapping Tools

-TeamUp Tool

-2.0 web tools, tablets, IWB, Smart Phones

-Social Media

-Video hosting Web sites.

Benchmark and Plan

Dream
Introducing, understanding and questioning a design brief

Explore: Observation
Collecting information in relation to the design brief

Map
Creating a mindmap to understand relations between the collected information

Reflect
Recording audio-visual reflections and feedback

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