Category Archives: Online Training Modules

Teach Civic Engagement Using Social Media with KQED Do Now (An Online PD Module)

May 17, 2013, 9:45 am • Posted by Matthew Williams
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Do Now

Are you interested in having your students debate about current events with other students from around the country? KQED Do Now is a weekly activity for students to engage and respond to current issues using social media tools like Twitter. KQED aims to introduce 21st Century skills and add value to learning through the integration of relevant content and new media tools and technologies. Do Now gives students a chance to practice civic engagement and digital citizenship skills while they explore ways to connect topics in their classes to the present day.

If you are interesting in using Do Now with your students, here is a self-paced tutorial that will get you oriented and ready to implement. Give yourself about 1 hour to go through it. Also, if you are interested in participating in the KQED Do Now working group for Fall, 2013, email Matt Williams at mwilliams@kqed.org. Educators who participate in working groups will receive a small stipend.

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Filed under: Online Training Modules, Teacher Trainings
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PD Module #3: Narrated Slideshows for Arts Education (self-paced)

April 29, 2013, 2:14 pm • Posted by Kristin Farr
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ArtsPDcoverimage

Nearly every student who is in school today will enter the workforce needing skills in media production. From social media to YouTube videos, many industries will require a knowledge of how to leverage online platforms. In the arts classroom, media production is a dynamic way for students to gain these technical skills, while also practicing aesthetic valuing, design thinking, communication, and creative writing. All of these skills can be cultivated through the use of media-making projects. For this reason, student media-making projects are an excellent way to introduce these 21st century proficiencies.

A good, basic-level media project to use with students is a narrated slideshow. The programs used to make one are relatively simple and students can either take their own photos or find properly licensed images on the web in addition to using their own voice to narrate the story. KQED has developed a new tool for educators to assist in the understanding of how to create a slideshow as well as the implementation of such a project in the classroom. Arts-focused slideshows can be used in visual and performing arts classes as a reporting, portfolio, or assessment tool, but they can also be used in other subjects, such as history and social studies, as a tool for understanding culture through art and artifacts.

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Filed under: Arts, Online Training Modules, Teacher Trainings
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PD Module #1: Implementing Science-Based Media Projects

February 6, 2013, 3:26 pm • Posted by Jessica Neely
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Implementing Science-Based Media Projects to Enhance Teaching and Learning

Science media projects that enhance student learning and engagement offer limitless possibilities for creativity in learning subject matter. Below are just a few reasons to incorporate media making projects into the science curriculum:

  • Technology is engaging!
  • Media projects give students the opportunity to connect to real life to concepts learned in class.
  • Students develop relevant and important communication skills
  • Media making and science share necessary skills (synthesis, analysis and evaluation of information, and critical thinking collaboration)
  • Media is another (fun!) form of text that can be used to build literacy skills found in Common Core State Standards

As a science educator, where do you begin when first contemplating the development of media making projects for your students? Right here, of course! The online professional development module is a self-paced exploration of

  • the different types of science stories that students may tell
  • the different types of media projects you might consider introducing
  • the various tools, equipement and resources available for media making projects

By the end of the module you will have gone through the process of creating a well thought out plan for developing a media making project for science students. Enjoy!

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Filed under: 6 -12 Science, Online Training Modules, Science, Teacher Trainings

PD Module #2: Narrated Slideshows for Science Education (self-paced)

December 11, 2012, 11:40 am • Posted by Matthew Williams
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Today, science demands sophisticated skills not generally taught as part of standard science curricula. Ideally, science instructional strategies teach a body of knowledge and cultivate other abilities required for the practice of science. For example the scientific community values collaboration and teamwork, critical and focused observation, the use of technology for data collection, evaluation of information, and communication skills. All of these skills can be cultivated through the use of media making projects. For this reason, student media-making projects are an excellent way to introduce these 21st century proficiencies.

A good first-step media project to use with students is a narrated slideshow. The programs used to make one are relatively simple and students can either take their own photos or find properly licensed images on the web in addition to using their own voice to narrate the story. KQED has developed a new tool for educators to assist in the understanding of how to create a slideshow as well as the implementation of such a project in the science classroom.

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Filed under: 6 -12 Science, Online Training Modules, Science, Teacher Trainings
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