Literacy, Technology and Instruction Syllabus

APPALACHIAN STATE UNIVERSITY
LITERACY, TECHNOLOGY AND INSTRUCTION

Second Teacher Term, 2003

Course Description

Schedule

Grading

Textbooks

Instructor	Office	Phone	E-Mail	Office Hours
Julie Horton	201A	7171	hortonjk@appstate.edu	M & W: 10:15-11:00 and by appointment
Mary Timothy	301	2685	timothym@appstate.edu	After Class and by appointment

You are encouraged to make appointments to see your professor.

College of Education Conceptual Framework

Course Description
This is a required course in the College of Education's core curriculum. Its purpose is to provide students with a broad understanding of professional issues related to literacy, technology and instruction. The impact of media and various technologies on society will be examined. There will be a special emphasis placed on developing understandings of what it means to be literate in a multimedia culture.Throughout the course, a variety of instructional methods will be used; students are encouraged to examine their own learning processes as part of this instruction. The course is based on the assumption that all knowledge is socially constructed, and that learning is achieved through active engagement of the learner. This theoretical view will be addressed directly and modeled as the predominant instructional approach. Students are expected to become active members of this learning community, in preparation for their role, in and out of the classroom, as professional educators.We will meet both as a whole group and as smaller break out groups throughout the semester.

Note: This is not a methods class, nor is it intended as a substitute for either FDN 3100 or CI 3750. Students should also be aware that different sections of 3850, while focusing on the same concepts and overall objectives, have considerably different assignments and instructional styles.
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Objectives
Students will:
1. Learn to engage in dialogue as a primary means of increasing professional knowledge.
2. Develop an historical perspective on literacy, technology and media.
3. Critically evaluate their own literacy and learning processes.
4. Develop computer, multimedia and telecommunications skills.
5. Understand the role of ethnicity and gender in literacy, technology and instruction.
6. Critically analyze and evaluate mass media formats.
7. Utilize media and technology as part of a design/production process to communicate effectively.
8. Recognize the impact of media/technology on school and society.
9. Understand the role of computers and telecommunications in the classroom.
10. Develop a conceptual understanding of the competencies addressed in the the Advanced Technology Portfolio.
11. Begin to build a web-based telefolio to satisfy the requirements of the Advanced Technology Portfolio.

Schedule

Unit	Date	Topics	Assignments Due
Introduction	July 7th	Setting purpose for course, attitude, small group activity (course description) Logistics (syllabus, projects, grades, expectations, small groups) Introduce Literature Circle Project Review Literature Circle Handouts Read Kinzer Article-SSR	Library Reserves Literature Circle Portfolio Assignment Kinzer Article
Unit 1: Literacy	July 8th	Questions about syllabus Literature Circles (model and practice) using on-line article Expounding Boundaries of Literacy by Kinzer (small group/large group sharing - What does this mean for me as a teacher, or in instruction?) Assign Inquiry Research Topics	Read Kinzer Article - Library Electronic Reserve Literature Circles (Teaching "Whole Language and Music Literacy article) Computers and Physical Education Do Mix MathStories.com: The Solution to Finding Creative Math Word Problems
	July 9th	Purcell-Gates Introduction and Jigsaw Activity Cooperative Learning Resources: Cooperative Learning Center at the Univ. of Minnesota International Association for the Study of Cooperation in Education Prepare for Literature Circles	Purcell-Gates Introduction Inquiry Research on Selcted Topic (one word-processed page) APA guidelines Read Purcell-Gates Introduction and Chapter One Last Day to Add
	July 10th	Literature Circles #1 (Ch.2-4) Debrief Large Group Discussion Review Literature Circles Portfolio Assignment Prepare for Literature Circles	Read Purcell-Gates Chapters 2-4 Prepare for Literature Circles #1
	July 11th	Literature Circles #2 (Ch.5-6) Literature Circle #3 (Ch. 7-8) Small Group Discussion (Ch.9) Review Literature Circles Portfolio Assignments Work on Literature Circle Portfolio	Read Purcell-Gates Chapters 5-9 Prepare for Literature Circle #2 and #3 Work on Literature Circle Portfolio
Unit 2: Media Literacies	July 14th	Entrance Ticket Small group/large group sharing - what does this mean for me as a teacher, or in instruction? Introduction to Media Video	Get 'em Thinking! Using the "3 Rs" of Media Literacy Classroom Strategies for Exploring Realism and Authenticity in Media Messages Literature Circle Portfolio Due
	July 15th	Media Project Assigned Power Point Article Discussion Tough Guise Video and Discussion TruthorFiction.com	Absolute Powerpoint by Ian Parker on Library Reserve Media Project Paper Media Posters
	July 16th	Work on Media Project	Work Time in Class
	July 17th	Work on Media Project	Work Time In Class
	July 18th	Media Project Presentations Power Point Article Discussion No Child Left Behind Discussion	Absolute Powerpoint by Ian Parker on Library Reserve (Try Again) High Stakes Are for Tomatoes Teaching: From A Nation at Risk to a Profession at Risk? Media Project Due
Unit 3: Technology and Literacy	July 21st	What is technology? Technology: The Dark Side (Digital Divide Video, Part I) Lab Webquest Introduction - How is webquests a useful tool? How does it promote literacy?	Read Creating a Webquest: It's Easier than You Think online (http://www.education-world.com/a_tech/tech011.shtml) Copy Webquest Template on the shared folder (See Webquest tutorial) Be sure to bring Zip Disks Telefolio and Webquest tutorials
	July 22nd	What is technology? Technology: The Dark Side (Digital Divide Video, Part II Webquest Content in Small Groups Begin Storyboards for Webquest Lab Time Review of Rationales	Review Webquest Scoring Rubric Review the "Building Blocks of a Webquest". This will give you a good idea of how to begin constructing your webquest. Groups chosen by now with ideas
	July 23rd	Finish Digital Divide Part I and Debrief Begin Storyboards for Webquest Lab Time Review of Rationales Review of Rubrics NC Curriculum DPI Standards	Reading: Internet Project: Preparing Students for New Literacies in a Global Village in Reading Online Review Webquest Scoring Rubric Work on webquests *NOTE:* Only the Student Webquest is required Webquest criteria Review Webquest website The WebQuest Design Process WebQuest Taskonomy: A Taxonomy of Tasks WebQuest Taskonomy in Pictures Review specific examples of webquests From ASU & NCWiseowl site Elementary Secondary
	July 24th	Assign Class Reflection What Is Literacy by Jim Gee - SSR (Powerpoint presentation) Introduce Telefolio Review telefolio templates and begin your telefolio Telefolio Criteria Telefolio Rubric Telefolio Resources	Bring zip disk with 3 changes to webquest Review at least two of the ASU elementary student Telefolios. Here is one particularly good example Copy Telefolio Template on YOUR zip or floppy disk (See Tutorial #1 on copying files)
	July 25th	Webquest Scoring Rubric	More Webquest examples ;review at least five webquest examples. Resources for web images: Google Image Search AltaVista Image Search Yahoo! Picture Gallery
	July 28th	Lab Time	Work on Webquests, Telefolios and Class Reflections
	July 29th	Lab Time	Work on Webquests, Telefolios and Class Reflections
	July 30th	Lab Time	Work on Webquests, Telefolios and Class Reflections
	July 31st	Lab Time Webquest Mini-conference rules Webquest Mini-conference schedule Course evaluations Individual evaluations	Class Reflections Due
Last Day of Classes	August 1st	Webquest Mini-conference (Lab)	Webquests & Telefolios due

Course Assignments and Grading - All assignments must be completed in order to pass the class.

Assignment	Due Date	Point Value
Literature Circles	July 14th	20
Media Analysis Project	July 18th	25
Telefolio	August 1st	15
Webquest	August 1st	30
Class Reflection	July 31st	25
Community of Practice Participation	On-going	35
TOTAL		150

Literature Circles (20)
We will be discussing Victoria Purcell-Gates book, Other People's Words, using a "literature circle" approach in which each member of a small discussion group has a given job (e.g. Discussion Director, Summarizer, Investigator, etc.). Each student will be assigned jobs for each week of discussion and will prepare materials related to those jobs.

Media Analysis Project Presentation (25)
In this project, you will work in groups of two to three to analyze a stereotype or category through two different media. You will create a presentation of your analysis and present this to the class.

Telefolio (15)
You will begin the creation of a web-based telefolio to be used to organize the Advanced Technology Competency collection that is required for licensure. A template is available in the class shared folder. You will begin your telefolio by using the Webquest project (see below) as an artifact in this telefolio.

Webquest (30)

In groups, you will create a Webquest project. This project should follow the basic Webquest design, and use a standard Webquest template (available in the class shared folder). NOTE: You will only need to complete the Student Webquest template.

Class Reflection (25)
At the end of the course, a take-home exam will give students a chance to synthesize the ideas developed throughout the three units and to reflect on the readings and class activities.

Community of Practice (35)
This class is structured around a Community of Practice model of learning. You are required to attend all class meetings, and your active participation in discussions is expected. Unexcused absenteeism will result in a grading penalty. You should always be prepared for class; assigned tasks such as readings, study guides, and out of class activities must be completed. Preparation for class is demonstrated through your active participation in classroom discussions and other activities. Being “shy” is not an excuse for not participating; after all, you aspire to be an educator. The Community of Practice grade will include performance in all of the following areas:

Attendance - Expected. Five points will be deducted for each absence from your community of practice grade.
Participation in small and large group discussions
Preparation for class (including all readings and assignments)
Class Activities
Quizzes

A: 95-100 A-: 90-94 B+: 87-89 B: 84-86 B-: 80-83 C+: 77-79 C: 72-76 C-: 70-71 D: 60-69 F: <60%
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Academic Integrity Code: Be sure you have read and understand the student's academic integrity code. While there will be assignments in this
class that do require students to complete work in groups, it is expected that all other assignments are completed individually and are original. Also, be sure to provide appropriate reference citations and always give credit where due. Plagarism will be taken very seriously and students will be held accountable according to Section VIII of the Academic Integrity Code.

Textbook and Readings

Purcell-Gates, Victoria. (1995). Other People's Words. Harvard University Press: Cambridge, MA
Additional Readings will be available on-line.
Students will also need to purchase a zip disk.