Tradition and Transformation: Adapting 21st Century Media and Tools to Refine the Language Arts Classroom

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David Baroody- Browns River MS

david.baroody@cesu.k12.vt.us

Essential Question:

• How can teachers and students use 21st century media to enhance the skills of close textual analysis, re-reading, outlining, and drafting while incorporating the modern concepts of collaboration, communication, and creation?

My own journey…

My own journey…

• Curriculum teaches analysis of text and use of text evidence to validate a claim. Traditionally, du Maurier’s “The Birds.”
• Increased prevalence of visual and audio media, placing emphasis upon teaching visual and oral analysis.
• Use of visual and audio media as source materials, with blended analysis.

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Blending Source Materials

• We begin the year discussing the importance of “speaking with authority,” and how authors use their written medium to convey lessons and experience, as well as to entertain.

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• Taylor Mali’s “Totally like whatever, you know”

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• Video… How does the author bring the work to life, using his voice to “speak with authority?”

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Outlining and Drafting

• The following exercises practice outlining, planning, and drafting responses explaining close textual analysis. They allow students to “speak with authority” using new media capabilities.

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• How to Comment on an Online Post
• Does Google make us stupid?
• Wordsmithing

Persuasive Essay Unit

• This unit looked at a number of different topics affecting students, teachers, and parents in education today, including: the use of incentives to boost student performance, the place of creativity in school, and the increased role of social media in education.
• Combined visual and audio media as source material with traditional persuasive essay format.�

Personal Essay- Podcasting

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• This  unit studied three narrative skills: how to build an effective and engaging narrative, the difference between crisis and conflict, and how authors can effectively "show, not tell."
• Students read texts, including blogs, listened to podcasts, and kept an annotated bibliography documenting their understanding of 10 different traditional, audio, and visual essays.

Public Speaking

• Additionally, this unit put a premium on “speaking with authority” as students were expected to hand in an oral paper.
• This led to a discussion of how to use the voice effectively, and allowed practice with a variety of aspects of oral fluency.
• An excuse to continue practicing analysis skills…

Oral Fluency

• Students were asked to watch and critique the following videos. The first two present “bad” speakers, Darth Vader and Yoda, while the third is decidedly good.
• TomTom Vader
• TomTom Yoda
• TED

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Student Examples- Podcasting

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• Student Example- “Casey-Available”

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• Student Example- “Strut”

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• Student Example- “My Baseball Bat”

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So What is New?

• Textual analysis is still there… but the collection of texts has changed.
• Student response is still there and follows expected format… but the presentation has changed.
• Increased emphasis on public speaking polished with editing capabilities.
• Authentic audience