The instructor’s guide contains several useful tools, discussion questions, a case study, review questions, additional chapter assignments, lesson examples and a student application assignment. As the Instructor, pick and choose which of these materials work for you or you may decide to use our ideas and create your own. This guide is intended to help solidify the information from the chapter and help you as an instructor implement the application of these materials.

 

 

Discussion questions

 

The following questions are intended for use in a small group discussion setting. Please use these questions to help the students understand the important concepts in this chapter. To add interest to class discussions, copy and paste some or all of these questions into a Nearpod https://nearpod.comor PowToon, https://www.powtoon.com, to create a fun, user friendly, student-voice based review.

1. Discuss student productions as a teaching tool.
2. In small groups discuss student productions you remember from your child hood. Which projects stand out? Why?
3. How can student productions benefit your classroom? Please discuss each of the benefits listed in the chapter:

• Individual and group responsibility
• Critical thinking, reasoning and creativity and planning experience
• Developing strong communication skills
• Developing cross cultural understanding
• Visualizing and decision making
• Discovering how and when to use technology and which tools are appropriate.

1. Discuss how student productions can fit in with common core requirements?
2. Brainstorm in small groups several student production ideas you would like to use in your future classroom.
3. In your small groups discuss how you might sell your student production idea to your administration.
4. Discussion productions tools, found in the chapter, that you might use in your student production idea.

 

Case Study: See You on TV!

As you read the following scenario, note both the processes in which students are involved and the products that they generate.

Students in Ms. Farber’s fifth-grade class are working on a media literacy unit that will help them to become more critical consumers of media. Ms. Farber has incorporated standards-based content and language goals across the unit and has planned carefully so that all students are active participants in their learning.

Part of the unit is a five-stage project focusing on one area of media—television advertising— with the goal of producing infomercials, or long commercials. In order to focus their infomercials, students first researched and then designed new products that they believe they can sell to other fifth graders (an authentic audience) using persuasive techniques (Stage 1). With the use of graphics software and copyright-free clip art from the Internet, student teams have developed a three- dimensional model and a one-paragraph description of their products for use in their 5-minute commercials (Stage 2). Teams are currently in the process of writing scripts using both print and electronic resources (Stage 3). Each team must spell-check its script and check it against both the project grading rubric and an “infomercial checklist” before asking another team and then Ms. Farber to evaluate it. As the unit progresses, readings, class discussions, skills-based lessons, and other exercises and activities inform the students’ understanding of media literacy and the development of student products.

During script development, Ms. Farber observes one team reviewing sample infomercials using the DVD player, members of different teams using two of the three class computers to do research, and most of the students working with great animation on their scripts around their desks. Because each team is required to gather feedback from at least one other team about their script, she also sees a lot of intergroup interaction.

In future classes, when the scripts are drafted and have passed evaluation by another team and Ms. Farber, they will go into production (Stage 4). This stage requires the most advanced tech- nology use. Students will prepare whatever scenery and props they need and use one of the school’s digital cameras to film their segment. Students will then use either iMovie (Apple) or Shotcut, free video editing software to edit their infomercial, add any text, and burn it (save it) to a digital video disk (DVD) (Stage 5).

Final versions of the infomercials will be shown to the other fifth-grade classes, who will pro- vide feedback on which products they would buy and why. After the project teams debrief, stu- dents will turn in an explanation of the assignment and a reflection on the different processes they experienced and ideas and skills they learned. They will include any questions they still have about any aspect of the project or unit.

Review Questions:

Answer these questions about the case. There are no right or wrong answers—the goal is for you to respond before you read the chapter. Then, as you interact with the chapter contents, think about how your answers might change.

1. What are some learning benefits that students might derive from creating this product?

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2. What aspects of the process seem to be most important to student achievement toward the goals? Why do you think so?

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3. What is the teacher’s role in this project?

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4. What role does the technology play?

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Ms. Farber has chosen a specific process and product for the student media literacy project, but there are many other choices that she might have made. The goal of this chapter is to help you to understand the range of choices for student production by exploring why production is important to student learning and the many ways in which production can be supported effectively with technology. After reading this chapter you will be able to

• Define production.

• Describe the benefits of student production for learning.

• Explain the role of process in production.

• Discuss guidelines for supporting student technology-enhanced production.

• Describe technologies for supporting student production.

• Evaluate and develop pedagogically sound technology-enhanced production activities.

• Design appropriate assessments for technology-enhanced process and product.

When you have completed this chapter, which NETS*T will you have addressed?

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The sample activities, tools, and student products presented in this chapter will help you under- stand how to apply the standards described in this chapter and address the learning goals for student production. For common core standards that guide production and therefore the content of this chapter, see the Meeting the Standards feature.

SAMPLE LESSON: PRODUCTION

With sufficient scaffolding, time, and feedback, Ms. Farber’s students were able to produce infomercials that demonstrated their understanding of persuasive techniques used in the media. During the project Ms. Farber’s students were enthusiastically engaged. Ms. Farber wants to try another project with a relevant product. This time, she wants to focus on some of her curricular math goals. She searches the Web for good ideas and comes up with an idea by teachers Tom Scavo and Byron Petraroja from LessonPlanZ.com http://lessonplanz.com . Their detailed description made this math lesson sound like an effective and fun way to meet the standards (http://www.corestandards.org/Math/). She copies down the plan’s outline:

ADVENTURES IN STATISTICS

Problem: Are the areas of classrooms in the sixth grade larger, on the average, than the areas of the fifth-grade classrooms?

Procedure:

• Students hypothesize what they think the answer to this question might be and document their responses.
• Discuss the practical applications of the ultimate findings.
• Talk about the length and width of the classroom and how to go about measuring it. Estimate these measures by sight and write down the estimates for future reference. Discuss what is meant by the area of the room and then compute using the above length and width estimates.
• Working in pairs, all students measure the length and width of the classroom. First one student from each team measures while the other records, and then they switch roles, measuring again. Record the two sets of measurements on data sheets. When all the teams have completed the measurement task, write the data on the black- board and compare. Note discrepancies between the measurement pairs. Take again those that cannot be attributed to measurement or round-off error.
• Arrange for the students to measure each of the fifth- and sixth-grade classrooms in the school with the same procedure followed earlier.
• Convert the data to common units and then use calculators to compute the area. Make sure students accompany all answers with appropriate units.
• Examine the data.
• Line graph the data. Then change the line graphs to bar graphs. Examine the graph data.
• Repeat the above lessons for number of students and compare the area to the number of students.
• Compute the average area of fifth- and sixth-grade classrooms and the average number of students, showing student work. Then compute average area per student.
• Prepare a presentation of the data (they invited the principal), each student team taking a different part.

Source: Reproduced with permission from Drexel University, Copyright 2005 by The Math Forum @ Drexel. All rights reserved.

Ms. Farber can instantly see that students will be active and focused on an authentic task, and she likes that many scaffolds are provided in the form of teacher mini-lessons and worksheets. She decides to analyze the lesson with the Lesson Analysis and Adaptation Worksheet (found in chapter 1 on page 33 and in the Lesson Planning module of the Companion Website) to see ways in which the lesson might be improved. As a result of her analysis she decides to use this lesson, but to change it in the following ways:

1. Add the standards and curricular goals that apply. She sees that, in addition to math content standards, the lesson can help students meet goals for communication, problem solving, critical thinking, and even creativity in their final product. In addition, the lesson addresses a variety of literacies (technological, mathematical, visual) and student learning preferences.
2. Add additional resources. Instead of just their meter sticks, students can use a pedometer, a measuring tape, or another rule of their choice to measure. Ms. Farber will also make the computers available for students who want or need to use a spreadsheet to calculate, a word processor or drawing program to make their charts and diagrams, and presentation or other software to produce their final product. These choices help address the needs of a variety of students, from those who need more structure and support to more independent, gifted students.
3. Add more choices for the final product. Students can use the data to argue for or against any of the reasons they gave at the start of the lesson for the practical application of the lesson. For example, one group might create an action maze to help future students carry out the same calculations, while another might write a letter to the school board about overcrowding at their school.
4. Spell out specific assessments. Ms. Farber will observe her students, check their written work, and use a rubric to evaluate their final product. She will also ask the students to write a self-reflection of their process and product, and determine whether their final products should become part of their grade-level portfolios.

Ms. Farber believes that, with these changes, this lesson will be accessible to all of her students and that all of her students will have the opportunity to achieve the intended goals.

Adapt

Choose a lesson for your potential subject area and grade level from the technology-enhanced lesson plan site, Lesson Planet, https://www.lessonplanet.com or Kid Zone http://www.kidzone.ws/plans/. Use the Lesson Analysis and Adaptation Worksheet from chapter 1, consider the lesson in the context of production. Use your responses to the worksheet to suggest general changes to the lesson based on your current or future students and context.

Practice

1. Write objectives for a technology-enhanced project. Write specific content and language objectives for Ms. Farber’s project. Share them with a peer and revise them as necessary. Use the “objectives” table from chapter 1 as needed.
2. Create student roles. Review the learning activity examples in this chapter. Choose three of the projects and suggest what roles you might create for students and who an authentic audience could be for each of the three projects.
3. Assess technology-enhanced learning. Choose one or more of the learning activity examples from the chapter and develop an assessment plan. Address who will be assessed, when, in what categories, based on what criteria. Also suggest how you would generate an overall assessment for the project.

Explore

1. Create a production handout for students. On paper, use graphics, text, and any other modes you can to outline for your students a production project that you might use in your class. Include information that explains to students the content and process of the task. Add a brief description of how the task process will be accessible to all students, regardless of language proficiency, content knowledge, or physical abilities.
2. Create a quick reference for production software or hardware. One way to learn a piece of software or a technology is to make a reference to help someone else. Choose a piece of software or hardware that you might use in the production process in your classroom (see Table 7.2 for tool ideas). Explore your choice, examining the features and learning about the opportunities that it offers. Then create an explanation for students on how to use it. Be sure to make your reference appropriate for diverse learners.
3. Examine a production project. Choose a production project from a text, Web site, or other resource that is relevant to your current or future teaching context. Explain how the project you choose meets the guidelines and provides the opportunities mentioned through- out this chapter. Describe how it might be adapted to better meet the needs of all students and to use technology more effectively.
4. Create a production project. Review your content area standards and any other relevant standards. Choose a topic that works within these standards and other curricular requirements for your state or region and develop a technology-enhanced project around it.

 

Additional Student Application

The following assignment is intended to help individual students go beyond what they’ve read and apply the information from the chapter. After reading chapter 7 students will have a broad overview of student production and how to apply it. This application assignment will delve more deeply the uses of technology, more specifically, in designing your own ideas for a school production using examples and ideas from other classrooms.

Two Scenarios from local schools

Student productions can be a fun way for students and teachers to work together to create a final product that they will all be proud of. The following 2 examples are given to help you see how student productions can be used in the classroom.

1. The first example is, School Store, put on by the 4th graders at a local elementary school.

This program requires students to plan and set goals, in small groups, deciding what they want to produce or what service to provide at the store. They also decide what to charge for their product or service and figure out each of the needed items to produce their product. The dates for the School Store are set in advance, so the students must be prepared.

During the School Store each of the small groups work together to sell their products to the students and parents visiting their store. The students work to get customers in their store by advertising and marketing their product to the customers. They might even elect one student in the group to bring in customers. Each person visiting is given school bucks to use to purchase items or services.

After the store project has been completed the students are responsible to count up the amount of school dollars they have earned and compare it to all of the other student’s sales. They also compare their sales to the goals that were made at the beginning of the process.

1. The second example is, Chanel 3 School News, produced by 8th students attending the local Middle School.

The 8thgrade students work together each morning to produce a news program that is viewed by the entire school each day. The students are broken into small groups and given production jobs. At the beginning of the school year students apply for these jobs required to produce the news program. Jobs include: News Anchor, Sports Caster, Camera Operator, Sound Supervisor, Editor etc..

After the news is produced, it is edited by the students and put on the air for the enjoyment of the rest of the student body and staff.

 

Assignment

Compare these two student production ideas with the information you read in chapter 7. Choose one of these examples and answer the following questions.

1. Discuss how these 3 areas fit into student production.                                                                    a. Student benefit, b. Teachers roll, c. Scaffolding for Ell and SPED students
2. Consider the 3 stages of production, planning, development, and evaluation. How do you think the teachers in charge of these projects implemented these tools?
3. Please describe 2 objectives you would fulfill using student production.
4. What content areas can be covered using this activity?
5. List 2 production tools you might use in this the student production process. How do you think these tools were used in the student production you chose to look at?
6. List several benefits to students through this student production.
7. Reflect on how would you assess the success of this production?

 

Activity

Using one of the above ideas and questions as a jumping off point, design your own student production. Please use the three-stages of production and five-stage project guidelines, found in the textbook, to direct your process.