Software Evaluation # 1
Social Studies Digital Learning Software
By Adrienne Padilla



Title of Software: Social Studies Digital Learning

Producer: Knowledge Box © 2003. Pearson Scott Foreson, Pearson Education, Inc.

Target students (e.g., age or grade-level of students): 4th grade, age 9-10

Proficiency level (e.g., beginning, intermediate, advanced): intermediate -advanced

Description:
Students will explore movies, interactive software, and text all based on Social Studies. They will be able to choose videos, print activities, interactive activities that are all correlated with the Social Studies Textbook the students are currently using. The students have access to both Spanish and English textbooks and the Social Studies Software is available to them in both English and Spanish for support. The software focuses on Texas geography including animals, culture and science-technology for the 4th grade curriculum. The user will be able to watch videos of historical events, people, culture, government, technology in the past, now and in the future and geography. The student will also be able to answer questions on the computer and learn while using online maps. The software has pictures that help the learner better understand the concept and/or vocabulary. The software also gives the learner the option to use audio and hear the text read along with the vocabulary word. They are also given the option to answer a multiple choice question. That multiple choice also offers the student the choice to hear the question and choices by pressing the audio icon. The software also has a vocabulary quiz option they can hear read to them.



Language skills targeted: Comprehension, Cause and Effect, Making Generalizations, Expanding Vocabulary.

Evaluation:
The program’s weakness is that I feel that they should offer more Texas Culture. Another weakness is that on the vocabulary Spelling Bee in Texas there are no visuals only audio and the students cannot refer back without getting out of that window. The software’s strengths are that it provides visuals and it also provides an audio so they can hear how the words should be pronounced. I also like that they have the exact same thing in Spanish, so Spanish speakers could start of on the Spanish software and then move on to the English as they gain confidence. I think is does offers help to ELL’s because it offers the support of the visuals and audios. I also like the fact that they have the same item in Spanish. I do use it in my classroom because of the audio and visual support to the text. The method or approach to language learning is through visual and audio.

Reading Prompt #6

Reading Prompt: Describe an inquiry or problem solving activity appropriate for ELLs that you have used, participated in, read about, or just now thought of. Describe which critical thinking skills it requires students to use and develop. Then, describe how this activity supports language and content learning for ELLs. Finally, comment on how podcasting could be used within the inquiry and problem solving process in a manner which supports language and content learning for ELLs.


An inquiry, according to Egbert Chapter 6, is a process of discovery where the student goes through stages of questioning, reflecting and research. Examples of such activities would be library research and historical event research just to name a few. He also stated that problem solving is defined as making accurate observations, finding and organizing information, predicting, synthesizing and using higher order thinking.

An example of an inquiry and problem solving activity would be a WebQuest activity called "Transform your City/Transforma tu Ciudad". I read about WebQuests in an online professional development course I participated in through the district I work for.

WebQuests are inquiry-oriented activities in which most or all the information used by the learners is drawn from the web. WebQuests are designed to have learners use their time to research through the net, which supports higher order thinking, such as analysis, synthesis and evaluation. There are many WebQuests created by teachers on the internet. WebQuests are usually made up of the following sections:

-Introduction: Developed to capture the interest of the learners.
-Task: This section describes the activities and the end product.
-Process: This section describes the strategies the students may take to complete the tasks.
-Resources: This section includes websites and links selected by the teacher that can be used to complete the assignment.
-Conclusion: In this section the learner reviews what the results should be.
-Evaluation: This section is where the students view the rubric and where the students are encouraged to reflect on the process and results performed.

In this particular WebQuest the students research their city's past, explore it's present and it's future. Students are tasked to create informative oral presentations while working in small groups. They are tasked to use traditional sources such as enyclopedias and periodicals. The students are also asked to view specific internet links and search the websites for pertinent information. They must browse through the information on the site and pick and choose what information they need. Students will then create booklets to document their research within their small groups. This WebQuest is bilingual, it's in both Spanish and English. The teacher can give specific tasks for each individual in each of the small groups.

The critical thinking skills used and developed in this activity are:
-Distinguishing between fact and opinion. Students will be searching websites and deciding in groups whether the information is fact or an opinion.
-Distinguishing relevant from irrelevant information. Students must be able to decide what information they need to complete the tasks. Within their groups they can discuss the importance of specific information and discard the rest.
-Indentify unstated assumptions. The groups must be able to fully understand the information provided in the sites and discuss in groups any assumptions, especially when discussing and imagining the city's future.

The link for this WebQuest is: http://home.comcast.net/~battla44/Bogota2015/webquest.htm
(If anyone has any trouble opening this link let me know in class).

This WebQuest activity supports language and content learning for ELL's by providing the activity in both English and Spanish and by having the students work in small groups to discuss and dissect the information. In addition, in this activity the students are learning through metacognitive stategies. They are learning by exploring and doing the research themselves instead of sitting in class listening to the teacher talk about the research. They are also acquiring knowledge through trial and error. While in their groups they are able to discuss the meaning of each article and develop an understanding while correcting each other. They are also reviewing the articles and information on each site in order to decide its usefulness. Throughout the WebQuest the students will be learning language by asking each other questions and making conclusions about language and text meaning.

Podcasting could support language and content learning by completing daily practice lessons recorded by their teacher. This activity could provide inquiry by questioning the meaning of what the teacher said on the recording, reflecting and maybe researching for the answer.

Another example of a Podcasting activity that supports language learning is a recording by an English speaking student asking questions that the non-English speaker must answer or repond to. In this activity the student demonstrates inquiry by reflecting and maybe questioning himself or others in search for an answer. He also demonstrates problem solving by answering higher order questions that require predicting or synthesizing. If the student has trouble with answering a question he/she could research and find information that would develop an answer.

The Podcast provides the student with the opportunity to inquire and problem solve. The student is participating in an active process thus acquiring language learning through trial and error. The student may discuss with his peers the correct answer and be corrected in this discuss. The student will also be able to apply the strategies he or she already knows and come up with conclusions about language.

Reading Prompt #5

After reading Egbert Chapter 5 on how technology can be used to encourage creativity and productivity I learned that productivity tools can be used to encourage learners. Productivity tools such as word processors, databases, spreadsheets and e-mail, to name a few, can be used to encourage learners to be creative.

According to Egbert, the importance of language "output", or language production has only begun to be explored in language acquisition. In an ideal situation the learner would be able to produce language and test it out with his/her peers. Producing language within a group setting allows learners to correct their peers and themselves. This feedback is great, but this production alone does not cause learning. Creativity must also be added to the equation. When a learner is creating he is adapting and/or changing. And in order for the student to be creative there must be intentional cognition, support, scaffolding and feedback, and control over language. Working in groups does facilitate both the production and creativity, but they must both be used in order for language learning to take place. In addition, I would also include close teacher monitoring to the production and creativity.

The experience I have had with this is when using powerpoint. Students created a class powerpoint presentation where each group created a slide to be added to the whole presentation. The groups worked together and discussed what would be on their slide. The creativity took place when they actually sat down and created the slide. Students corrected each other and added words to make the slide better. Both the teacher and the students gave instant feedback. Students tasks were modified when they demonstrated difficulty. The teacher would intervene and make a slight change on the task requirements. I found this to be something the students were richly engaged in.

Another experience I have had is with student coauthoring a story. In my experience, I did not use technology to achieve the final product. Although the activity was engaging, productive and creativity was evident in the stories, I could only guess how much more fulfilling it would be to use electronic conferencing software or e-mail to share the stories with a larger group of students.

This type of collaboration leads into productivity and creativity. I think that the active collaboration that a computer can provide via the internet can build on language learning. An example of this is the Wikis. According to Richardson, the collaborative environment in the wikis helps to facilitate the interaction between students. Students are producing and creating in a collaborative environment. The Wikis also provides for feedback while testing their ability to communicate. I think that using Wikis is a great way to facilitate learning for language learners.

Reading Prompt #4

Communication and collaboration is important in every classroom especially in a language learning classroom. As described in Chapter 4 by Egbert, communication conveys knowledge between learners one way or through an exchange. Egbert also describes collaboration as the process in which learners interact socially with one another to create and share understanding. In a learning language classroom, the communication and collaboration in the target language provides the learners with not only language practice but with also a view at modeling within their peers. The students are also able to interact with one another sharing ideas and meanings, which helps to clarify ideas and concepts for better understanding. In addition, communication and collaboration is important in the language learners classroom because the learner is able to take risks using using the target language creatively.

Computers can be used to facilitate communication and collaboration. An example of this is when students interact with other students who speak the target language through e-mails. Another example, could be where students are placed in groups and asked to research a specific topic using the computer. Students would then discuss the material obtained and decided as a group whether to include the information in the research report.

An example that I particularly liked in the chapter was the "Neighborhood Trip". In this example the teacher divded the class in groups and they were each given a task to complete before leaving for the field trip. One group was tasked with creating questions to answer about the field trip they are about to take. The second group was tasked with locating community members to talk to. And the final group was tasked with creating a map using simple mapmaking software on the computer. When all the tasks are completed the groups shares the questions, map and community member with the whole class. After the field trip the class answers the questions and adds any additional facts, information and features to the map. I can see using this activity in my 4th grade bilingual class. As a matter a fact, we are planning a field trip to visit the state capital in Austin. I think this could be a good idea to assign to my class.

Reading Prompt #3

The pedagogical divide described in Cummins in instruction for low-income and affluent students is based in the inquiry-based and transmission based orientations. The inquiry based is curriculum related knowledge and the transmission based is focused on the contenct of the curriculum. The transmission orientation is predominant to low-income schools.



Egbert discussed new technology programs that enhance ELL literacy. For example, students using voice over to help the learning. This helps the L1 and L2 learning.

Reading Prompt #2

Multiliteracies are what we should focus on when trying to identify what is truly important in the students' world and their own reading and writing development. According to Cummins we must focus on all of the aspects of the students' life inside and outside the classroom. Developing multilingual literacies through student significance is the key. The material used must be authentic to them. According to Eggbert, a student must see a need or use of the material in order for it to be authentic. In other words the material becomes relevant to them and to their learning.

I think blogging can be a learning tool for ELL students. In the high-tech world we live in today, addressing students through technology by blogging helps student place a significance on the learning. They are bringing what they know of outside the world and using it also inside the classroom. Thus, breaking the narrow focus that language is only learning within the classroom with no outside intervention.

I was a little nervous about making a mistake when making my own blog. I actually thought the initial set up was easy, but I am still curious to see how I can develop a bilingual teacher blog for bilingual teachers. I know I would have loved to have asked someone outside of my school questions when I first started teaching.