Introduction

Greetings! My name is Becky Schwartz. I teach Earth Science and, after a 7-year hiatus, Biology at Lisle High School and I also serve as the 6-12 Science Department Head for District 202. I have been a science teacher for 17 years. I received my B.S. in Biology from Northeastern Illinois University and received my M.A.T. from Dominican University. I also moderate the Ecology Club and National Honor Society.

I was born and raised in Chicago but live in the western suburbs. I have two kids, Liam (12) and Nora (9) and our dog Juno! My hobbies include hiking, biking, camping, reading, gardening, cooking, photography, and scrapbooking. I'm also an avid sports fan of many Chicagoland teams.

I have all but completed this educational technology endorsement program and will finish this summer with EEND 680. I teach in a 1:1 building and I'm looking to expand my repertoire of assessments, educational technology tools and use of multimedia for science.

STEM is a large part of our district's science curriculum, so incorporating and using technology is an integral, daily part of my lessons. I am very much a risk-taker when it comes to technology. I'm always looking to use new ideas in class and share technology success stories with my school colleagues. I get many ideas from colleagues on Twitter and email listserves. I'm looking forward to adding/enhancing my edtech repertoire and add to my PLN as I get to know all of you!

678 Course Reflection

And just like that, I am one class away from completing this Technology Specialist endorsement program through the University of St. Francis. In the last 18 months, I have grown as an individual and educator, meeting the demands and challenges of this program with an open mind and a willing spirit. This course required a bit more work on my part in comparison to other USF courses, but the outcomes were beneficial and will definitely move me forward in my career.

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There are two takeaways from this course that I'd like to reflect on. The first relates to the importance of essential questions in driving course objectives. Essential questions are necessary and integral components of a unit's daily lessons. The students need to observe and understand the relatedness of each essential question as a unit progress from beginning to end. The essential questions also help to formulate assessment criteria when a unit wraps up. Good essential questions can drive the learning and be linked to quality instructional materials.

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The second takeaway relates to the first. Essential questions are the bones of a good project/problem-based learning (PBL) unit. With the aid of technology in the classroom, students have an opportunity to solve problems and generate educational materials that support their wonderings. PBL units also use the 4 Cs - creativity, collaboration, communication, and critical thinking - to enhance a student's learning experience and develop the 21st-century skills needed to be a responsible digital consumer and citizen. This course has provided a wealth of research to support the use of PBL in education. As technology continues to advance, I'm certain PBL will be a common way of learning in classrooms, including mine.

678 Artifact Reflection #2

In Module 4, I reflected on the feedback that several of my classmates gave on my PBL unit ideas and ended up pursuing my third topic listed. My essential question for is “Why is all the ice on Earth melting?” I started to get some ideas about this topic in the last USF course (677) I was enrolled and the idea seemed plausible to pursue with my high school Earth science students. You can find my climate science PBL unit outline HERE.

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This is a science topic that requires considerable research and students can arrive at multiple “correct” answers to satisfy the essential question. Most of the technology listed in the unit outline I have used before with my students, with the exception of the infographic platforms. Because I want my students to create quality infographic posters as one of their end products, I expect that I will need to provide some instruction in order for them to use Canva, Piktochart, and/or Adobe Spark. I'm excited to see what my students create!

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I think that sharing information outside of the classroom is a powerful means to communicate with other people. Student-generated infographics about climate science not only show other teachers what’s going on in other departments but it validates the importance of this topic to other students who are not enrolled in the class. This type of project-based learning promotes student voice and choice; something they would readily admit they don’t have the opportunity to engage in very often in any of their classes. This should be a great opportunity for my students to show what they know in supporting the essential question “Why is all the ice on Earth melting?"

Once I try this PBL unit for the first time next school year, I'll be able to reflect on the pros, cons, and outcomes of the unit, collect student feedback, keep some of the infographics for future school years to show students, and use my experience to educate others in my building. I worked tirelessly on this unit and hope to find success with it next school year.

678 Artifact Reflection #1

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In Module 3 we were asked to do some brainstorming to generate ideas for possible Project/Problem-Based Learning (PBL) units. Problem-solving and critical thinking experiences are the types of learning I hope to offer my science students every day and these types of activities align with the expectations of the Next Generation Science Standards. It's not my present reality, but with time, effort and collaboration on my part, several well-designed PBL units could be implemented in my classes. This instructional shift would ensure relevancy and keep the students coming back for more.

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Keeping the end in mind is a good mantra to recite for anyone in education, but especially with PBL, a teacher needs to stay the course and keep the kids focused on the outcomes. Sustained inquiry can be a challenge for teachers to maintain with their students, no matter what level of experience they might have. Teachers definitely need to be flexible and adaptable with PBL and also willing to learn with her students and make some mistakes along the way.

There are MANY resources on the internet that include great PBL lessons and units that could be implemented right away. Finding the TIME to wade through the information is a reality most teachers, including myself face. Best advice for any teacher considering incorporating PBL: take it slow and collaborate with like-minded people to achieve the best unit that packs the most punch for student learning. You can find my brainstorming document HERE.