Ms.+Trieu's+assignment

__ Do You Care Project: How can you make the world a better place? __  Over the course of 6-8 weeks, I hope to embark on an inquiry project around the theme of caring. It will take much planning and upfront work with regards to teaching students about asking questions and proper research skills. I will be working with a grade 6/7 class. Although my plan would already be constructed, I will conference with their classroom teacher and adjustments need to be made. The big question is: “How can you make the world a better place?” Students will be guided to an inquiry of their passion, use multiple sources of information (text, digital, interviews, etc) to inquire on an issue that is of concern to their local community or the world.
 * The Plan **

Iqbal (D’Adamo, 2003) will be the catalyst for this project and I will gather much resource from the “ [|Me to We] ” foundation. Although much of their work is about improving living conditions for children in developing countries, my hope is that students will find a cause, whether it be local or global, that will engage them. It is hoped that a passion will fuel their cause (animal rights, environment, etc). Students will read Iqbal as a class novel and questions will be tracked about living conditions for children in developing countries and how actions of one person can change the world. From the novel, discussions will revolve around rights of a child.

Similar to Daniels’ (Harvey and Daniels, 2009) approach to helping students select their topic, I will have students brainstorm a list of personal passions that can be transformed to causes. We will narrow down the list to themes and have students rank their top three passions. We hope that students will be happy with their choices. From there, we will help students narrow their focus. For example, child labour could be further narrowed down to chocolate production or brand name clothing. Animal rights can be taken from the perspectives of animal testing or animal cruelty. It is hoped that students with similar passions will work together.

Gathering inspiration from Iqbal and Me to We, the classroom teacher and I will model our inquiry to the students. Hiking is my passion and I believe that it is a healthy activity for many students. [|Take a Hike] is a program for at-risk youths in Vancouver. It blends academic schooling with outdoor activities and service learning. My inquiry will revolve on how to help at risk youths in Vancouver which would explore the definition of “at- risk” and looking at substance abuse and other factors that contribute to difficulties for at-risk youths.

As we explore our inquiries together, students will also be given assistance on how to manage their information on a class WIKI. My thoughts of using a NING network was quashed when I realized students had to be 13 years and older. I will be working with 11 and 12 year olds. Students will also be introduced to Diigo keep track of their notes, bibliography, and information. Much class time will be used for discussion and project planning. We will invite guest speakers from a variety of non-profit organizations in the community to speak to the class. It is hoped that students will initiate this process by researching and contacting the organizations.

The final part of the project would be the action piece, whereby students will reflect and document how they can make the world a better place. Some suggestions would be to change a particular lifestyle, volunteer at their selected non-profit organization, and/or write letters of support or condemnation to organizations or government. This is the piece of the project where I am most excited about.


 * The Rationale **

As Halloween quickly takes over students’ minds in the next few weeks, I reflect on a cause I took up 4 years ago when I first entered the library as a new teacher-librarian. I was at a new school with a new position, but I was not a new teacher. With the task of setting up my library and teaching my first library orientation to 27 classes, I was drawn to the UNICEF literature in the staff room. I approached the teacher who was taking it on and asked if I could help him, as I was (am) a great supporter of UNICEF. At that time, I had a friend who was working for UNICEF in Afghanistan and he was constantly on my mind. The teacher gladly accepted my assistance. My responsibility was to spread the message. With 27 classes coming through the library for orientation and book exchange for the first few weeks of September, I knew I had the best opportunity to spread the word. It was this first cause that I realized the power of social media. I showed students a UNICEF youtube video (Unicef USA, 2007) to inform them of the work of UNICEF. I was very proud of how engaged the students were. This was the year UNICEF was moving away from the collection boxes. Our school raised close to $2000 that year. This was the power of one short little video that inspired students to take action.


 * The School Environment **

My school is considered in the middle – to high SES and many students come to school with the newest and latest gadgets. Our lost and found is rather embarrassing in that it is often full of clothing! Their indifference did go to a great cause though. Last year, we donated lost and found items to a local charity. This is not the type of charity work we are hoping to ignite in the students. It is hoped that this inquiry project will create a culture of caring about what is happening outside of their home and school life.

This project fits well with the grade 6 Social Studies curriculum on Global Citizen (BC Ministry of Education, 2006) as well as the province’s social responsibility performance standards on exercising democratic rights and responsibilities (BC Ministry of Education, 2006). Reading and Publishing the project would target the Language Arts curriculum directed towards reading and writing for information. Using the wiki and WEB2.0 tools such as Diigo will meet the expectations for the ICT curriculum. Project Based Learning is a major focus at our school and district as we move away from the traditional stand and deliver model of teaching to a more student driven inquiry process of learning.

My principal is a strong proponent of PBL and last year encouraged (mandated?) each team to try out a PBL project. Some were successful, while others were not. She believed so strongly about PBL that she allocated extra staffing into my library position. This meant that instead of teaching 1 day a week (0.2FTE), I would be responsible for helping teams with their PBL. My principal would be very excited about this project and to see it come to fruition.


 * The Connections **

While reading Harvey and Daniels’ (2009) book, I was inspired by inquiry projects that led students to action. They write about teaching with the “big idea” in mind which reminds me of the ubiquitous quote that can be found in any library: “Reach for the stars and you will land on the moon!” Learning is no longer about memorizing dates and events, but about finding meaning in students’ learning. Willis (2006), a neurologist turned classroom teacher, studied the brain activity of engaged students. PET scans shows high brain activity when students “connect personally and interpersonally with the material and to feel that it is relevant to their lives” (p.43). This supports what I see in this inquiry. When students choose a subject that they are passionate about, they will find relevance to it in their lives. Perkins (as cited in Harada, 2010) contends that when students possess information that is meaningful to them, they are “enabled to do certain things with that knowledge” (p. 14). It is hoped that this inquiry will lead students to take action based on the new knowledge they have acquired.

Ultimately, not only do I want my students to be engaged and critical learners, with this inquiry, I hope the students will become more caring, informed, and active citizens. Not only would I like to create a culture of inquiry, but also a culture of caring. Gordon (2010), taking from the AASL standards on national information literacy, cites that learners should use the skills they learn to “pursue personal and aesthetic growth” (p. 82). When I teach students to read for information and/or pleasure, I often ask them how the information or the story has changed their thinking. This is what Adrienne Gear in her Reading Power for Fiction (2006) and Non-Fiction (2008) define as the strategy of “Transformation”. When students are able to explain how their thinking has changed, they are not summarizing or regurgitating information, but relaying how the information has affected them. They see a “big picture” and they are “organz(ing) the story (information) in terms of their lives” (Gear, 2006). It is through transformation that we can “see” students using their critical thinking skills.


 * __ Bibliography __**

BC Ministry of Education (2006). **Grade 6 social studies**. Victoria, BC: Retrieved on October 7th, 2011 from []

BC Ministry of Education (2006). **Social responsibility performance standards**. Victoria, BC: Retrieved on October 7th, 2011 from []

D’Adamo, F. (2003). **Iqbal**. New York : Atheneum Books for Young Readers.

Gear, A. (2006**). Reading power: teaching students to think while they read**. Markham, ON: Pembroke Publishers.

Gear, A. (2008). **Nonfiction reading power: teaching students to think while they**
 * read all kinds of information ** . Markham, ON: Pembroke Publishers.

Gordon, C. (2010). **The culture of inquiry in school libraries**. //School Libraries Worldwide, 16//(1), 73-88.

Harada, V. H. (2010**). Librarians as learning leaders: Cultivating cultures of inquiry**. In Sharon Coatney (Ed.), //The many faces of school library leadership// (pp. 13-28). Santa Barbara, CA: Libraries Unlimited.

Harvey, S. and Daniels, H. (2009). **Comprehension and collaboration: inquiry**
 * circles in action**. Porstmouth, NH: Heinemann.


 * Me to We Foundation** http://www.metowe.com/

[]
 * Take a Hike Foundation ** . Retrieved on October 7th, 2011 from

UNICEFUSA, (2007) **Child Survival PSA**. Retrieved on October 8th, 2011 from []

Willis, J. (2006). **Research-based strategies to ignite student learning: insights from**
 * a neurologist and classroom teacher ** . Alexandria, Virginia: ASCD.