As we start the last project for the year, it is a good time to revisit the six core academic values I included in your syllabus. They are:

1. Inquiry - What questions can we ask? 
2. Research - How do we seek out powerful answers to those questions? 
3. Collaboration -How do we make answers deeper, richer, better? 
4. Presentation - How do we share what we know? 
5. Audience - Who do we share our work with? 
6. Reflection - How do we step back and learn from what we have done? 

Your audience for this project will be your classmates. We will be posting our final products into a workshop activity in Moodle. You will be required to watch each others product and grade them using a rubric. Make sure to leave good comments for your classmates. This will help both you and them with the reflection piece.

Now, I gave you some questions to answer for this project. Do not let that keep you from developing your own as you research. If your research sparks a new question or avenue of discovery follow it. Keep in mind we are looking for “powerful” answers to the questions. Check your sources and dig a little deeper. Don’t be afraid to use the tools at your disposal and try and reach out and actually interview or talk to someone in the field you are researching. Remember that collaboration is not dividing and conquering. If each member of your group works independently on different sections it will be hard for you to get a good flow to your project. Plus, better ideas and solutions are discovered when each member of the group helps with the research and shares their thoughts and ideas.

Lastly, I am looking forward to being impressed by you and what you can accomplish.

Blogging again...

You might be asking yourself why I am revisiting this blog, especially since we ended the blogging project at the end of second marking period. Well, to be completely honest, because I am currently taking a graduate course at Millersville University that requires it. As always, I like to be completely transparent with you and make sure you understand why we do the things we do. So, as you are sitting there thinking that I am only doing this because I have too, ask yourself why your teacher is taking a graduate course. Hopefully you understand that I am doing this so I can continue my own education and bring something new back to the classroom. I know I am not perfect, even though you might think so (chuckling to myself here), and that there is a wealth of knowledge out there that can make me better at what I do. How can I expect you to become a life long learner, a student that wants to learn, if I do not walk the same journey and model it for you? So as you revisit this blog from our past, keep in mind that this is more than just a grade for me. It is a way to demonstrate to you that I value you enough to spend my time researching, learning, and trying out new things in order to serve you better. That said, I hope you spend you last few days with me continuing to do the same!


Couldn't resist including this very cheesy video about life long learning...