INDEPENDENT SCHOOLS INQUIRY PROJECT

“MINDSHIFT! RETHINKING EDUCATION FOR THE 21ST CENTURY”

FINAL SCHOOL REPORT – April 2012

SCHOOL:

INQUIRY TEAM MEMBERS, GRADE(S) TAUGHT, SUBJECT, FOCUS :

SCHOOL BACKGROUND AND CONTEXT FOR THE PROJECT:

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“This project has helped us begin to understand the power of social media in the classroom and how to use it to enrich and extend the learning environment for our students. The four teachers involved in the project have taken risks and experimented within their own classes. They created enriched environments for their students and are an invaluable resource to the rest of the faculty who are only just beginning this journey.”

Helen Carayannis – Gr. 5 Technology; Social Media (Schoology.com) in a Mythology Unit

Lee Hamr – Gr. 10 Science and Gr. 11 Social Science; Social Media (Twitter.com) in reading awareness and sourcing information

Rosa Mastri – Gr. 6 Art; Social Media (wikispaces.com) use in a clay animation activity

Havergal’s main curriculum initiative is teaching for understanding, which guides our work in all areas. The implementation of technology is driven by curricular goals, and we seek to embed the use of technology as organically and as transparently as possible.

In this project we wanted to explore how social media might enrich teaching and learning at Havergal across a variety of subject areas and grade levels. Its potential to provide asynchronous and differentiated learning opportunities, digital artifacts that evidence engagement and understanding, activity-relevant communication between teachers and students, (and among students), and opportunities to model good Digital Citizenship were particularly intriguing.

Each of the four Havergal researchers was asked to focus on an individual aspect of

Havergal College

OUR ESSENTIAL QUESTION:

OUR ACTION RESEARCH STORY:

1. PURPOSE AND SCOPE OF THE RESEARCH AND HOW IT MAY HAVE CHANGED:

2. FUNDING AND SUPPORT:

3.

4.

5.

3. PROJECT PROCESS:

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“[I was] …learning a new way to present information. It was the first time using a wikispace and overall I found it easy to use and convenient. It was easily accessible and I liked that I could look onto classmates’ wikispaces and interact with them.” Grade 11 student

"How can we use social media to enhance student learning?"

Guiding Question: How do social media and mobile devices contribute to visual literacy in the classroom studio? Is interactivity a component of this?

We are grateful to Havergal’s administration for supporting our participation in this project. Resources included the use of class time and available technologies, particularly in-class laptop equipment. The action research was greatly assisted through the guidance and direction of Tony Nardi, Head, Library Information Resources, and was conducted in conjunction with Havergal’s Technology Integrator, Paul Shuebrook. I am particularly indebted to Paul for the invaluable advice and implementation of the pre-and post action surveys and the shared wikispace. Further, while no additional funding was required, release time was requested in order to collate and analyze data. Our team further appreciated the opportunity to attend professional learning conversations at participating CIS and OISE sites.

The original purpose of the research was to determine the role that social media plays in student learning. Would students see social media sites as a potential way to research information for academic purposes? With the advent of more sophisticated smart phones and tablets, is research becoming less dependent on desktop and laptop computers? Anchored to an online interactive project, the goal was to track student use of devices, search engines and research sites to determine the role each of them played in student learning.

The Baroque Exchange project was intended to explore the use of social media as a method for exploring and making learning connections in art history. Students selected one artist from the 17th century European Old Masters to research in depth, role-playing that the artist was on exchange in the 21st century, visiting with the host student over the duration of the 6-week project. Students constructed wikispace pages using text, images, and embedded audio and video clips. Writing in the first person and in role as the artist, students made comparisons between cultural elements and artmaking processes, making connections between contemporary work (their own and others) and between 17th century artists who were contemporaries of the artist, painting and sculpting in the Baroque style. To this end, students were encouraged to continue with the role-play by interacting in the wikispace with other artists. At two points in the project, students completed reflections in the wiki pertaining to the Baroque style and their experience learning using wikispaces. The culminating component of the project included a presentation of the artist to the class, (in character), using live or recorded performance.

Assessment for/of Learning: The wikispaces component (in-role information exchange) was assessed

4. ASSESSMENT STRATEGY:

a) DESCRIPTION OF THE DATA COLLECTION:

b) MAKING SENSE OF THE DATA:

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Data was collected in three ways: a pre-action survey, document analysis of a class wiki, and a post-action survey. The pre-survey was oriented towards understanding the use of electronic devices used for research. The document analysis was designed to understand student interaction, the connections made between artists and eras, and the depth of understanding gained in the process. The post-survey explored student response to online research, and the use of social media for organizing and communicating their learning.

Pre-survey

While Pre Survey results indicated that 100% of students used the internet for research purposes, the degree to which the selected search engines could provide depth and breadth of understanding was less apparent. It was apparent, however, that tablets and smart phones and similar devices have not supplanted the laptop or desktop computer for student research. Further research would be necessary to understand to what degree these results could be generalized to other student groups.

Wikispaces Project There are three primary groups of data emerging from the wikispaces project:

The vertical (across-time) and horizontal (across space) connections made between the present day and the 17th- century life. For example, comparisons of architecture, technology, artmaking, culture, politics appeared in a number of student wikis, with technology being the most frequent. It is of note that a number of students referred to their own artmaking in comparison to the Master artist they had researched.

The second data group related to the use of embedded media that students used to support their written commentary. It is not surprising that all students incorporated images into their pages. Nearly one half of students embedded video clips. Of greater interest is the use of images or video that students had either transformed or created themselves, again representing close to one half of the participant group.

Given the focus question undertaken by Havergal, I was particularly interested in how students would interact with each other (by engaging in discussion through messaging and blogging) within the wikispace. Nearly three-quarters of students posted on peer wikipages and an identical number responded to postings on their own pages. While students reflected that this was the most fruitful component of co-constructed learning, meeting the other requirements of the project appeared to influence the volume. One student reflected: “Cut[ting] down on other requirements for our own wiki space, and more requirements to interact with others would make those valid connections prioritized”.

Post-Survey

A majority of students agreed that wikis provide an effective way to explore a topic and communicate their learning. It was somewhat surprising that they also agreed that social media websites are an effective way to conduct research. The question may need further refinement, or student responses

c) ARTIFACTS, GRAPHICS, IMAGES :

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c) ARTIFACTS, GRAPHICS, IMAGES cont’d:

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Student Reflections

“My initial plan was to do a fake twitcam --a live stream of Caravaggio talking to a webcam and answering questions from twitter as they are sent to him. I thought this would be a fun way to present my information because I could be in character as Caravaggio, maybe even in a costume. It would also give me an opportunity to ask questions from different perspectives. I thought that maybe different artists could also have twitter accounts, and this could be a way for me to address the differences and similarities between other Baroque artists. I could also build off the tweets from other artists to talk about Caravaggio's life and his painting style. I could also have tweets from artists in the future to show Caravaggio's influence. Another possibility that this form of presentation allowed is that I could also have tweets from critics of Caravaggio. I could have a tweet from Bellori criticizing Caravaggio's use of realism over idealism…This initial plan had a lot of possibilities for an original way of presenting information.” Grade 11 student

‘Rubens’ appearing on the Ellen DeGeneres Show

c) ARTIFACTS, GRAPHICS, IMAGES cont’d:

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Galileo’s animated interview and Journal Reflection on a visit to the Ontario Science Centre (in 2012)

Excerpt from recorded script

Ellen: Our next guest is very interesting, he’s an artist that actually

“I really made a connection with Caravaggio as though he were here in reality. He made me think about my artist skills compared to his… My artistic thoughts are much like his for I like to put my feelings about life and society into my work, however Caravaggio is much more fearless about his work; where I tend to hold back a bit more and plan a lot, he liked to go for it! …I am going to try to be more fearless with my work, although this will be way out of my comfort zone, I think that it will give me a new perspective on visual art. Caravaggio taught me how to look at life and art, he taught me how to make art in many different ways, and he also taught me that the way you choose to live your life and how you perceive life can hugely

The most meaningful part of this experience was the commentary between artists, because I was able to apply what I learned in discussion with other artists of the time. I was able to apply the deep knowledge about one artist to these conversations and receive some broader knowledge about other artists from the Baroque period.

Grade 11 student

A journal excerpt from Velazquez, April 3rd,

2012:

Wandering down the streets of Toronto was an especially different experience… while I walked I listened to music on this thing called an iPod. I'm not sure how it works- but [my exchange student] somehow managed to make some of my music play on the little device, which I could then hear through these little buttons that I had to stick in my ear. It's such a wonderful invention! I spent my whole day listening and walking, a little bit of Tomas Luis de Victoria, some Alonso Lobo, followed by some park bench sketching. Take a listen to one of my favorite selections by Francisco Guerrero called Magnificat: I am especially fond of his music, he was born in Seville like me…. When looking for inspiration, I would often turn to his works, there is so much emotion that one cannot help but be moved. He has this way of capturing an astonishing variety of moods in his music, from ecstasy to despair, longing, joy, or even passiveness.

d) FINDINGS

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Many of these findings pertain to student perceptions of their learning, using an online collaborative format:

· Although wikispaces were constructed using a common template, each student personalized their pages through ‘voice’, images and embedded audio and video.

· Writing-in-role required a greater depth of research about the artist in order to portray them with authenticity.

· Students developed a personal connection to the artist in question, which, in turn, facilitated their connection to other artists - in-role interactivity further strengthened the understanding of the era

· Students perceived a greater depth of understanding and retention of the topic when compared to traditional art history learning.

· Students were more willing to take risks in using less-familiar technology to share their learning.

· Students are more inclined to use social media as a representational or communication method rather than for research.

HIGHLIGHTS OF THE PROJECT:

Notable Successes:

· Students made significant connections vertically (across time periods) and horizontally (within time periods).· Students felt that the learning was meaningful and that it reflected themselves as developing

artists.

· Researching one artist deeply led students to richer learning about the Baroque style.

Challenges:

CONCLUSION:

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“This project gave us the opportunity to experiment with the use of Social Media in the secondary curriculum. Our conclusions helped to inform our teaching practices to further develop projects that incorporate Social Media for the purpose of extending and deepening student learning and understanding. ”

Wikispaces makes learning visible and fosters meaningful connections between students, their own work and that of their peers. While engaged in project and inquiry-based learning, students voluntarily step out of their comfort zone. The value of collaboration in this action extended past the classroom. Co-constructing understanding of digital media in education sparked meaningful conversations about curriculum and pedagogy amongst my colleagues in this project.

Learning art history using constructivist and visual culture approaches engages students in a greater degree of interpretation and transformation than transmission approaches. Students are more careful with known information and strive to make reasonable inferences into the unknown. Using their own culture and, in some cases, their own art as a reference point added a valuable reflective dimension, situating the student within, rather than as, a spectator of art history.

The in-role component of the project gave students a highly personalized and reflective element to their learning – students considered themselves and their culture in new ways. The ability to embed different kinds of media led to innovative problem solving during the sharing of their learning.

Social media allow students the opportunity to participate directly in the public discourse around the arts and heighten accessibility, extending the ‘fourth wall’: the artistic audience that exists beyond the walls of the studio or gallery. Almost reflexively, students can post direct responses to gallery and museum exhibitions whose websites allow feedback through discussion forums. Not only can student responses to public installations appear right alongside professional art critics, but direct interaction with professional artists is made much simpler. Whereas a face-to-face exchange might not present a possibility, live video conferencing and interactive podcasting can facilitate learning conversations. There is an experiential immediacy, both to artistic expression and to viewer response. For arts educators, fostering a critical voice in students, and a metacognitive understanding of the creative process, will enable them to benefit from art-related exchanges. An individual student or

“The idea of [Facebook] being used for a presentation, instead of procrastination, is something engaging in itself; something I could work with…” Grade 11 student

“I found inspiration by skyping with my own exchange partner, and putting my art exchange in the mindset of a real exchange.” Grade 11 student

“That's where I came up with the plan to find a map of Rembrandt’s home town on Google maps and embed it as a widget, so that the viewer could actually tour around Lieden...” Grade 11 student

RESOURCES WE RECOMMEND:

For Students:

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Wiki http://www.Wikispaces.com

Background Research

Oxford Art Online http://www.oxfordartonline.com

Britannica School Edition http://school.eb.com

Search Engine Tools

Advanced Google Search http://www.google.ca/advanced_search

Online Art Resources

Google Art Project http://www.googleartproject.com

World Images Database http://worldimages.sjsu.edu

Artcyclopedia http://www.artcyclopedia.com

Online Journals

Arts Journal www.artsjournal.com

The Art Wolf www.theartwolf.com

Citing Sources

KnightCite- Online Citation Generator http://www.calvin.edu/library/knightcite

Books

For Professional Learning Teams:

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Canadian Film Encyclopedia, Biography of Patrick Watson, retrieved online March 15, 2012 from CANADIANFILMENCYCLOPEDIA/content/bios/patrick-watson

Clark, R. (1994).  Chapter 3:  Art in theory.  Art education:  A Canadian Perspective (pp. 53-77).  Toronto, ON:  Ontario Society for Education through Art.

Duncum, P. (2004). Visual Culture Isn’t Just Visual: Multiliteracy, Multimodality and Meaning, Studies in Art Education, 45 (3), pp. 252-264.

Emond, A-M. (2006). A study of visitors’ musings in the traditional and contemporary art galleries of the National Gallery of Canada.  Canadian Review of Art Education, 33, 75-99.

Erickson, M. (1998). Effects of art history instruction on fourth and eighth grade students’ abilities to interpret artworks contextually. Studies in Art Education, 39(4), 309-320.

Garoian, C. (2001).  Performing the museum. Studies in Art Education, 42(3), 234-248.

Guilfoil, J. (2002). Chapter 19: Teaching Art with Historic Places and Civic Memorials. In Y. Gaudelius & Y. Speirs (Eds.), Contemporary Issues in Art Education (pp. 250-263). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice-Hall.

Gude, O. (2007). Principles of Possibility: Considerations for a 21st-Century Art & Culture Curriculum, Art Education, Vol. 60 (1), pp. 6-17.

Habermas, J. (1984). The Theory of Communicative Action: Reason and the Rationalization of Society (Vols. 1-2, Vol. 1). Boston: Beacon Press.

Hayes Jacob, Heidi. (2010). Curriculum 21 : Essential Education for A Changing World, Alexandria, Va: ASCD.

McKeon, P. (2002). The sense of art history in art education. Journal of Aesthetic Education, 36(2), 98-109.

Rahn, J., (1998). Autobiography as a Tool in a Teaching Environment and Studio Practice. In E. Sacca and E. Zimmerman (Eds.), Women Art Educators, pp. 128-137. Boucherville, QC: Canadian Society for Education through Art.

Smith, R.A &Simpson, A. (1991) Aesthetics and Art Education. University of Illimois Press (140-146).