Hello, all! Today I’m sharing an amazing website and blog I recently discovered.
It’s called TeachersFirst!
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| Tech Notes. https://blog.tcea.org/teachersfirst-resources-source-for-learning/ |
What I love about this resource is it is designed by teachers for teachers, and it contains a substantial collection of lesson plan ideas and tech tools librarians and teachers can easily integrate into curriculum. The ability for librarians to integrate “technology into the curricular areas… based on their knowledge of pedagogical principles and school curriculum, along with their technology expertise and collaborative experience” can allow librarians to serve as “leaders and valuable assets to their schools” (Johnson, 2012, p.3). Leadership, in the form of sharing useful tools to enhance relevant student learning, is a significant part of the American Association of School Librarians (2009) guidelines, and “collaboration with teachers is required in order to create authentic opportunities to incorporate information literacy in learning” (Wine, 2016, p. 209). TeachersFirst can certainly help librarians be leaders and key collaborators especially in the realm of educational technology. For example, the section of the blog “Tech How & Why” archives practical recommendations regarding how to use technology and why the technology is beneficial to supporting students’ learning (TeachersFirst, 2023a). In addition, there is a list of timesaving tools available (TeachersFirst, 2023b)! Time saving always makes teachers’ and librarians’ ears perk up. As a matter of fact, school librarians identified the number one obstacle to assuming increased levels of leadership was time (Johnson, 2012). And the best part is membership to TeachersFirst is free!
TeachersFirst provides content that is applicable to all core subjects areas, but also contains relevant topics called “Must Knows” for everyone teaching children such as bullying, copyright and fair use, and internet safety (TeachersFirst, 2023a). The later may be especially useful for librarians whose goals are often revolving around providing a school hub that is a safe, communal place and teaching information literacy skills. In regards to technology in particular, it is critical for technology to be incorporated into the curriculum today because tech and digital media is so prevalent in society. Not including it would not mirror the world we live in and set students up for difficulties. Librarians must stay abreast of the ever-changing digital environment to truly be the leaders in instructional technology and have the greatest impact on student achievement. After all, “the value of the equipment lies in the ability of the teacher to use it in a way that enhances instruction, and many teachers won’t be able to do this without adequate support,” likely from librarian leader working in the same building (Overbay et al., 2011, p.58). Having a resource like TeachersFirst can help librarians take on that role independently. Although there are many other avenues of support depending on the school district, such as administration, instructional technology specialists, STEM specialists, and instructional coaches (all wonderful in their own right!), I think it is important to intrinsically search out ways to add value to the position of librarian. Simply from my own experience in one small district, I found the underlining school culture to be tainted with fear (instead of love, trust, and friendship). When some of us operate in that type of environment, it’s not always easy to work optimally with other teaching staff because everyone is so guarded. But librarians can use supportive resources like TeachersFirst to network with a community of leaders and possibly change their relationships at school.
So, let’s look at the latest tech tool of the mouth listed on TeachersFirst blog which is specifically useful for those teaching social studies or incorporating history into their curriculum. The tool discussed by the author, Melissa Henning (2023), is Argument Wars. In short, Argument Wars takes its name from legal debate. Argument Wars encourages students to immerse themselves in heat of historical Supreme Court cases by becoming a virtual lawyer. Students choose a side to represent and flex their persuasive muscles to try to win their case (thus, this could also be an interesting tool for English teachers teaching persuasive writing or public speaking too). As Henning (2023) explains, students are required to practice good research skills too because they must “argue their points in four rounds using supporting documents and other historical cases.” If the student wins a round, they earn a point. Naturally, the student with the most points wins the case. I think this creative activity really takes advantage of students competitive natures. When I taught English, my students were super competitive about vocabulary games! I found providing opportunities for learners to actively engage and be creative produces more motivation. For those of you wondering about accommodations, not to worry. Henning (2023) reports students can play in Spanish or English, there is a read-aloud feature, and the helpful packets.
https://www.sites.google.com/site/courtcivics/_/rsrc/1328597684092/toolkit/constitution/argument-wars/Argument%20Wars.jpg?height=307&width=400
I love how this blog is set up for an easy reading. The information for each tech tool is organized by headings that display a summary of the tool, the grade level in which it could be used, the purpose, if an app is available, if payments are required for use, ease of use, privacy information, if special software is required, accessibility, capacity (if the number of accounts are limited), and how the tech tool fits the ISTE Standards for students. Everything you need to know is right there in front of you!
Furthermore, Henning (2023) includes formal evaluations of Argument Wars using the research of Dr. Liz Kolb (2020) who developed the Triple E framework and the SAMR Model by Dr. Ruben Puentedura (2014). Based on Triple E Framework, Henning (2023) describes how Argument Wars has the potential to engage students learning, enhance learning goals, and extend learning outside of the classroom into real-life experience. She even provides a link to a rubric that is inspired by the Framework so teachers can evaluate how other technology tools may align with objectives. Henning (2023) goes on to outline how Argument Wars is evaluated based on SAMR, which is basically a ladder much like Blooms taxonomy except the levels are based on technology’s ability advance students’ learning (Puentedura, 2014). Based on what Argument Wars has to offer, students can potentially move through three of the four levels of SAMR. Not too shabby.
There are opportunities at the conclusion of each blog post to leave comments, so educators can share their own ideas and experiences with the technology discussed. Sharing and posting seems to be encouraged, which is critical for building up a good support network of people dedicated to the same overarching goals - helping students learn and grow and supporting each other.
As Dr. Brenda Boyer (2016) suggests, I would add TeachersFirst to a list of curated resources for teachers at my future school. I am very excited about this new to me resource and blog for assisting my professional development! I grateful to have a community of practicing professionals at my fingertips, and look forward to integrating their wisdom into my instructional practice.You can sign up for their mailing list or membership too on their website. I have not tried any of their professional development workshops, but I look forward to exploring them in the future.
Happy researching!
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| TeachersFirst. https://www.teachersfirst.com/ok2ask/ok2ask_2-01.png#.Y9_bV9RpInk.link |
References
American Association of School Librarians. (2009). Empowering learners: Guidelines for school library programs. Chicago, IL: American Library Association.
American Association of School Librarians. (2009). Empowering learners: Guidelines for school library programs. Chicago, IL: American Library Association.
Boyer, B. (2016). Meet your learners where they are: virtualizing the school library. Internet@Schools, 23(1), 4+. https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A440057567/AONE?u=nysl_ca_dmvacces&sid=bookmark-AONE&xid=73a967ca
Henning, M. (2023, February 1). Tech tool of the month: Argument wars - part 1. TeachersFirst.
https://teachersfirst.com/blog/2023/02/tech-tool-of-the-month-argument-wars-part-1/
Johnson, M.P. (2012). School librarians as technology integration leaders: Enablers and barriers to leadership enactment. School Library Research, 15
Kolb, L. (2020, December 9). About the tripe e framework. https://www.tripleeframework.com/about.html
Puentedura, R. (2014, September 24). SAMR and bloom’s taxonomy: Assembling the puzzle. Common Sense Education. https://www.commonsense.org/education/articles/samr-and-blooms-taxonomy-assembling-the-puzzle
TeachersFirst. (2023a). What is TeachersFirst? https://teachersfirst.com/about/index.cfm
TeachersFirst. (2023b). Timesavers and handy tools for teachers in the trenches. https://teachersfirst.com/professional-resources/timesavers.cfm
Wine, L. (2016). School Librarians as technology leaders: An evolution in practice. Journal of Education for Library and Information Science. 57(2), 207-220.
I enjoyed reading your blog post. It was so jam packed full of information. When I started researching while getting my masters, I realized how many skills really went into finding information. Teaching students the basics of researching is a lost skill. Many people just search on Google and assume that it is true. However, we have to make them digital citizens. I can't wait to use the resources that are linked on Teachers First. Many times teachers want to use digital tools and resources but don't know where to start. My librarian and I went in together and cotaught on researching with some of our fifth graders. Man, was it fun. Thanks for sharing your thoughts.
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