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Below are some tips to help you make the most of your
collaborative project work on the Internet
• Try to create a globally aware classroom/school environment.
The collaborative, community nature of iEARN may provide a
very different online experience to those young people who
are used to "anonymous" correspondences on the web.
Having systems for students to better understand the interconnectedness
of the world will make their online collaboration with global
peers much richer. E-mail messages come to life through maps,
and a basic understanding about the background and culture
of their online peers.
• Create a system for peer-editing in your class. Preparation
and transmission should be seen as two different tasks. Preparing
the message, researching and creating material to be transmitted,
is a very important part of the whole process. Students will
be writing with real purpose for a very real audience. The
presence of this audience provides an incentive for students
to produce the most effective communication possible. Consider
creating a feedback process where students have the opportunity
to comment on each others work, peer edit, and then revise
accordingly.
• Communicate. Even if you can't contribute for weeks,
send a note to say so. That way, your partners know that you
are still interested in participating.
• Ensure language is cross cultural. How much of what
is being sent needs explanation or description for an audience
from a different culture? Slang or colloquial language needs
to be used carefully. Translating student writing into a context
that is most universally understandable can open interesting
discussions in your classroom.
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Experienced teachers will advise that
you and your classroom start by getting involved in an existing project
online, rather than trying to start a project of your own. Participating
in other projects is a great way to meet other potential partners,
and learn about the many different projects initiated by teachers
and students throughout the world. It can be a great way to develop
ideas for how to integrate collaborative projects into your classroom,
without having to take on the role of facilitating the involvement
of other classes your first time participating. |
Starting
Points and Support Structures in iEARN
As you begin participating in other projects, you will soon find
that you have global colleagues and peers to turn to should you
wish to coordinate a project of your own in the future. In this
way, your classroom truly becomes a global community member that
can draw on the breadth of a network as your classroom develops
throughout the year. And, you will certainly develop ideas about
how you would want to structure a project as a facilitator after
experiencing at least one yourself.
In addition to the materials you will find on this CD, there are
several support networks open to teachers who are beginning to match
projects to their curriculum.
- Teachers'
Lounge
 here
you can communicate with teachers in the network to share your
experiences and ask questions to teachers who have been using
collaborative projects as part of their classroom for some time.
- Online
Professional Development Courses
these subject and theme specific online courses are facilitated
by iEARN teachers/facilitators and are designed to help
teachers select and integrate a project into their classroom.
- Hands-
On workshops
workshops are participant driven with the goal of enabling
educators to begin working on projects and developing a
support network in your school.Through iEARN's unique approach
to Project-Based Learning young people acquire skills in
critical thinking, and cross-cultural awareness while connecting
their learning to real world issues, making learning challenging
and enjoyable!
Rubric for Responding to iEARN Project
Forum Postings
Thoughtful responses to the postings of global peers can
generate ongoing dialogue about important project topics,
issues and actions. The following rubric can be helpful in
preparing and posting responses:
1. Thank and compliment the author of the posting for contributing
to the iEARN project dialogue
2. Comment on the content presented in the posting –
topic(s) addressed, important insights, ideas, reflections,
experiences, perspectives, concerns, needs addressed in posting,
etc. - and the contributions the posting makes to the project,
including how the posting builds understanding of important
project topics
3. Make connections of commonalities and diversities between
the content of the posting and your own experiences, ideas,
insights, perspectives, reflections, etc.
4. Contribute reflections, ideas, perspectives on how the
posting and the dialogue being generated in the forum leads
to actions in the project that make positive differences in
local to global communities
5. Ask thoughtful questions of inquiry to extend the dialogue
with the author of the posting and all project participants,
for example:
- ask questions for further clarification
- ask for more information, ideas to extend understandings
- invite continued conversation with acknowledgement of
the contribution ongoing dialogue makes to the project purposes
- ask about positive actions that could be taken with ideas,
reflections, experiences, concerns, shared in the posting
- offer support, collaboration and questions on how support
can be provided for issues/actions addressed in the posting
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