Several years ago, I became frustrated by hearing of teachers lessons that were derailed by technology problems. Things like the wireless dropping connection, a website not loading correctly, or a camera unable to download pictures had the potentiality to stop a lesson dead in its tracks and discourage teachers from being creative. The fear of something not working overshadowed the possibility for rich lesson.
The same type of problems occurred when students would be working on projects, and they were faced with any kind of problem outside the scope of the directions. The students would just stop work, raise their hand, and wait for someone to come and help them on to the next part of the project.
While these cases aren’t true for all students and teachers, they occurred enough to look at what could be done to empower both to overcome those issues. Around the same time, schools were exploring different avenues of both student enrichment and empowerment. Having done some research on the web looking for programs for students and technology, and talking to both our student and staff, we created Tech STARS (Student Technology Advocates and Resources).
The purpose of this program would to empower students as leaders and advocates for technology, while providing them training on troubleshooting and other tools used throughout our curriculum. We decided that lunch-time would be the best time for this club, and while I work between buildings, I would travel during lunch to help run these sessions.
In order to keep the numbers manageable, we decided that 2-3 students per classroom would be the most that we could accommodate. We also encouraged teachers to select students who filled out a slip expressing their desire to become a Tech STAR, rather than teacher choosing the “most responsible” students. To help encourage students to sign up, I created this video as a commercial to be shown in the classrooms.
The response to both the video and the concept were overwhelming. It was particularly gratifying to see that students who don’t typically volunteer were eager to join. I had several parents approach me at an open house this fall, either thanking me for having their child in the club, or telling me that their child couldn’t wait until after break to have a chance to be at Tech STAR. I even had a parent come to me and told me that their child made it a priority to come find me over his classroom teacher at open house just to show off his new iPhone 4s.
The sessions for Tech STARS take place during lunch recess time and online using Edmodo. Edmodo is a website that can be best described as Facebook meets Moodle. The website allows me to create a course for Tech STARS where I can have discussions, video resources, polls, and quizzes. This has become an incredibly important tool for the club.
Typically, the sessions include some type of hands on experience for the students. For example, students got to see what the inside of a computer looks like, or practices taking pictures with new digital cameras before teachers received the cameras in the classrooms. They have also created helpful posters using Comic Life to model examples of the right and wrong ways to use computers. These sessions have been enjoyable, but often do not provide enough time to explore anything in great detail. That is where Edmodo has come in.
Using badges that I have created in Edmodo, I have created an incentive system for students. After each session, as an assessment for that particular topic, I create a 3 question “basics” quiz focusing on the most important elements of that day’s concept. The students then have the option to take that quiz, and earn a “basic badge” for that topic. There are no grades for Tech STARS, yet over 70% of the students take these quizzes to earn badges on their profile.
In addition to the basic quizzes, students can take “expert” quizzes. These quizzes come before the lesson, and include video or web resources that in essence teach the concepts that we will using in the following lesson (much like a flipped classroom). The students can then take the quiz in which they need to get 7/10 on the first attempt to be an expert. Over 50% of the students attempt these quizzes each week. Students are also encouraged to participate in discussion questions, as well as posting their own tech questions to the group in Edmodo.
We have begun to work with teachers when designing lessons where the Tech STARS can help teach or support the various technology components that they have learned. For example, students who used the new Kodak Ze1 cameras first in Tech STARS were able to help teach their class how to use their cameras for a lesson back in the classroom. One student even wrote a letter to his teachers asking them to use Edmodo in their 5th grade classroom, providing examples of how it may be used. Those classes are scheduled to start using Edmodo this month for their reading groups.
So far, we have been very excited by the early results of the Tech STARS program. There is tangible evidence that the students are using this knowledge in their classrooms, and the teachers are using them as resources.
I would love to hear about any similar programs and experiences, or answer any questions about how Tech STARS works. Leave your comments below.
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