Showcasing Student Work
Like it or not, one demand I make in my classroom is that each student is required to exercise creativity and individualism. I make sure this happens constantly with the various activities, projects, labs, essays, etc. which students work with in my classroom. As a result, I feel that everyone in my classroom is capable to produce "good work". I see that not only to they work hard on them to achieve every detail and the best grade possible, but they create something meaningful and something they are truly proud of. The following pictures will give you an idea of the different types of student work in my Biology classroom. They vary from traditional assignments such as book reports, posters, mini books, and pop-up books; to Web 2.0 applications such as Prezi presentations and Google Docs reports. Each one of them helps the student strengthen their understanding of the subject.
Traditional Student Work
Using Web 2.0 Tools
One of the first Web 2.0 tools I used in my classroom was Prezi. It was interesting that at first I found a lot of resistance by students. They all knew how to use PowerPoint and did not want get out of their comfort zone. But as they worked on their presentations I could see a dramatic change and a little light bulb light up above every student's head and I noticed that their perspectives were changing. It was also wonderful to see that afterwards many students even started using it for other class presentations as well. (Click on the image to the left for the Prezi presentation)
Google Docs was another application I began to use. I am sure every teacher in the few years has heard these excuses from students, "Sorry, I forgot my flash drive at home" or "I do not have Microsoft Word so I was not able to complete the assignment". My prayers were answered when I heard about Google Docs, no more excuses. All my students love it. Everything can be done online and it is one of the best tools for collaborative work. The first time I assigned them to work on a book report about their favorite animal. (Click on the image to the right to go to the Google Docs presentation)