ConnectingClassroomsAcrossContinents

=**Welcome to the Connecting Classrooms Across Continents: Planning and Implementing Globally Collaborative Projects **=


 * Category:** **Kicking it Up a Notch**
 * Presentation Title:** **“****Connecting Classrooms Across Continents: Planning and Implementing Globally Collaborative Projects” (20:06) __2 CATNIP HOURS__**
 * Webpage:** http://k12onlineconference.org/?p=335
 * Presentation Description:** Globally collaborative projects are an exciting way to engage your students in authentic learning across continents. Combining a variety of web 2.0 tools can remove the barriers of time and distance to connect your class internationally. Learning to collaborate in an online and inter-cultural environment will clearly be a critical skill for their future. Learn how to develop a successful global collaboration and participate in a real time project with Kim and Jennifer! Although aimed at elementary school, teachers of all levels will find inspiration and practical ideas throughout this video!
 * Presenter:** **Kim Cofino,** Bangkok, Thailand & **Jen Wagner,** California, USA

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 * Essential Questions and Summary.** (Please follow this format.)

1. Why is it important to use the right tools for the task in order to develop an engaging collaborative project?** 1. It is important to use the right tools for the task when developing an engaging collaborative project by enhancing it and make its easily accessible. For example, allowing the students to choose their communication. This guides them to find tools that are suited to their needs. It also helps students to build the communication channels that they can navigate, which results in positive collaboration for the assigned tasks. It helps them to develop an understanding because they relate to it. This can have long-lasting impressions.
 * Bari Candy
 * Oh the Possibilities 333**

How can thorough planning facilitate successful globally collaborative projects? Oh the Possibilities 333** 2. Thorough planning when facilitating successful globally collaborative projects creates a clear path with a result and how to get to the result. Defining goals, outcomes, benchmark guides the students to develop a final meaning. Setting explicit expectations such as deadlines and scheduling or assigning individual tasks makes it clear from the beginning where the students are piecing together their information to reach a common goal.
 * Bari Candy

How can implementing globally collaborative projects help students begin a personal learning journey? Oh The Possibilities 333** 3. Implementing globally collaborative projects helps students to begin a personal journey that creates meaning. By allowing students to plan how they will complete the project, it provides for a better understanding of creating, implementing, evaluating and reflecting on the process. Students find comfort in organized tasks with deadlines and clear expectations, allowing them to complete the task. Applying all this in a globally collaborative project allows for connection and motivation to their “real world”.
 * Bari Candy

Summary: How can I utilize this in my teaching?** This session really just offered alternative and reinforcement activities to enhance my teaching approach. Allowing the students to choose their communication, plan and design the process of collaborative projects develops their technology skills in a manner that is on their level of understanding. Creating clear paths with a result and how to get to the result provides guidelines, yet gives the students freedom on how to actually “get there”. Personal reflection, such as group critiques in the art classroom, offer students a different, more casual form of assessment. By providing students with an opportunity for a better understanding of creating, implementing, evaluating and reflecting on the process of collaborative projects allows for more time I can spend actually working with my students.
 * Bari Candy

2. Your name: Keri Hargrave Session Title:**“Connecting Classrooms Across Continents: Planning and Implementing Globally Collaborative**
 * Why is it important to use the right tools for the task in order to develop an engaging collaborative project? **
 * Response: If you don’t use the right tools, then part of the meaning and excitement in the project may be lost. For example, if you only used the internet for a collaborative project, the engagement might not be as strong as if you used web cams and video. Students are engaged when they can actually see the person/people they are communicating with, and you wouldn’t want to sacrifice this. When the students are engaged, then they will more likely collaborate with one another. **

How can implementing globally collaborative projects help students begin a personal learning journey? ** Response: The power of collaboration in student learning is wonderful to see. But to be able to collaborate globally with another teacher – for me, and for my students to collaborate with other students – for them, would be very very exciting. This can be utilized in the classroom as a true example that we are all lifelong learners. First it can be utilized to teach standards set forth by the state; however, it goes so far beyond the standards. You are teaching and learning about what is happening in the real world. You are trouble shooting every day with all the students and the other teacher, and it’s extremely organic. You teach each lesson, then from the successes and mistakes from the last, you continually plan, organize, and think about how to drive the project. But as you “travel” the students are communicating and reflecting and reporting, so they are actually doing the driving.
 * How can thorough planning facilitate successful globally collaborative projects? **
 * Response: Planning is extremely important in a successful global collaborative project. There are so many facets in putting this together, that it won’t be as meaningful or educational without proper planning. For example, this type of project needs to have objectives, standards, essential questions, assessments, constructive activities, and real world applications – just like a lesson taught in the classroom. However, since you are working with another class across the globe, you need to plan with the other teacher to make sure she/he has the same or similar expectations of the project. Maybe their standards are different, or as they said in the video, maybe they are assigning it for a homework assignment, and you are doing it for a 6 week class project. The teacher discussion of what the pace is/will be and final results are is crucial for it to be successful, and this is all part of planning. **
 * 
 * Response: By implementing globally collaborative projects, students will learn about themselves and about how community works. First they will learn that they can contribute in their own personal way towards a common goal. This promotes high self-esteem and ownership in learning. Second, students will learn that community isn’t just the people in their classroom or neighborhood, community can be global. When we work together with people – across the world – we develop a unique community based on our common interests and goals. As students start to experience this, they will hopefully know that they aren’t the only ones studying the planets or concerned about recycling. They will understand that there is a whole multicultural world out there, and other people are experiencing similar or different things to them. They have the capacity to reach out to those people and connect as a part of a community. They will learn that no man is an island – we are one together. After they realize this, they can think about the possibilities of what good we can do for humanity when we put or collaborative efforts together. **
 * Summary: How can I utilize this in my teaching? **

3. Your name: Alec Fick Session Title: **Connecting Classrooms Across Continents: Planning and Implementing Globally Collaborative Projects** Essential Question 1: **Why is it important to use the right tools for the task in order to develop an engaging collaborative project?** Response: One must choose the correct tools for any project one tackles, whether it be building a tree house or an online project. The tools at hand need to be appropriate for the skill level of the person using them so that he/she will not be intimidated by their unfamiliarity. It is best to start small and build from there. Essential Question 2: **How can thorough planning facilitate successful globally collaborative projects?** Response: With any of a number of team members working on a project that may have multiple layers of complexity, it is best to plan ahead so that the work load can be divided up according to one's strengths. This way, you have the best people working on the areas that they are most comfortable with and have the greatest expertise. Furthermore, it is always helpful to have benchmarks so people know what is expected of them and in what time frame. The end result is the best project with the least amount of tension. Essential Question 3: **How can implementing globally collaborative projects help students begin a personal learning journey?** Response: The students learn to work with their peers as well as follow instructions from their mentors. Such lessons will build positive self images and confidence in their abilities, some of which they likely did not even know they possessed. Summary: Tackling collaborative projects can be a daunting task at first, but smart management and the right tools can make the journey a rewarding learning experience for all. It is important to start out with a simple project and not get overwhelmed from the beginning, and assigning individual tasks will ease the work load and give the best results. When students see teachers and their peers plan thoroughly, they began to see the importance of the project.

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