Advanced Google Search - Finding Reading Levels of Resources

I'm going to disturb and unsettle some Library Media Specialists here for a second (I'll redeem myself in a bit), so please stick with me.

Most people think they generally know how to search the web.  In fact, some of us think we are pretty good at searching the web and finding valuable resources.  However, when you look at the tricks  and tips most of us actually employ to complete those searches, it's actually pretty unimpressive and without much strategy.  Sadly, those unimpressive search strategies are the exact same strategies we "relay" to our students if educators don't take a more progressive view of systematic digital resource research.

The harsh reality is that most of our searches start with Google.  And so do most of our students.  While we may wish they started in databases (or at least proceeded to them in deeper research), they typically do not.  I challenge all of you who have the luxury (sadly it has become that in so many schools) of a Library Media Specialist available in your building to help you rethink that approach when teaching research to your students.  These folks are experts in this area and can really jump start some high quality ideas and lessons that will be invaluable to your students today and in the future.

Let's say, though, that we were to stick to Google alone.  Did you know that Google has an Advanced Search feature that really drills down into some focused and interesting results.

I'm going to let another Waukesha instructor, West's Mark Grunske, share his nifty little tip about using Google's Advanced Search to find appropriate resources on the Internet based upon the reading level.  As you visit Mark's blog, you'll see the details of how to do this.  Go and try it yourself.  And in doing so, you'll see lots of other Advanced Search options that may make you see how valuable having a little bit more systematic, advanced search strategies (even in Google) can be in finding the digital information you REALLY want!

From Mark Grunske's blog:

"This month's Google tip deals with finding appropriate readings for students at different reading levels........

When I first saw this trick, I immediately thought of all of our work in AO as well as the current leveling in Science and the similar changes coming to English and Social Studies............To search Google for sources sorted by reading level all you have to do is the following......."

Read the rest of the article at Mark's blog - Google, Gadgets, and Grunske - Reading Levels.

And again, visit your Library Media Specialists to start exploring how we can teach kids to be better "seekers" and "finders" of information.  In a world where everything is digital and the accessibility to information continually explodes, these critical skills are as an important as being able to read the resources once our students have found them.

Survey Says Freshmen Find Blackboard Resources Helpful

Growing use of Blackboard, the district's Learning Management System (LMS) has sparked conversations about the actual value Blackboard can add to the teaching and learning experience.  Nicole Land, an English Teacher at West High School, has provided some insight on the topic, asking her students how they feel about using Blackboard.

At West High School,  each teacher is maintaining a Blackboard course for each face-to-face course taught.  Within the course the instructors provide students (and their parent(s)/guardian(s)) access to a  course-focused Google Calendar, access to resources and assignments for the course, and possibly even some multimedia content related to the course.    While the implementation is in its earliest stages at West, students are already adapting and responding to the availability of the resources digitally.

Land recently asked 40 of her Grade 9 students enrolled in the West House (a pilot of a traditional "house" structure where teachers co-plan, co-teach, and converse about student progress with a cross-curricular emphasis) how they are using and feeling about the Blackboard course she maintains. There responses add some clarity to the question of how a resource like Blackboard can impact the learning experience for students.

Reviewing the Responses

Question:  What do like about the Blackboard 9 English site?
Points to consider:

• 40 % said they like the calendar, indicating that these students appreciate clarity about what is planned for and expected of them
• 38% of the student indicated that they like that they like how the site is organized (25%) or say that it helps them with homework (13% -- orange)
• Only 5% of the students said "Nothing", although it was an available survey option

Question:  How often do you use the calendar?
Points to consider:

• 61% of students said that they use the course calendar "Sometimes" (23%) or "Frequently" (38%) -- an indicator that students are engaging with the course calendar even though it is not required
• 10% of students report using the calendar if absent, a sign that students take responsibility for missed coursework if required to

Question:  What would you like to see improve (or more of) on the Blackboard 9 English course?

Points to consider:

• 22% of students asked for more videos to be available -- a possible sign that some students prefer instruction delivered in a "flipped," on-demand model
• Only 3% of students asked for "Clearer Directions" on the course, suggesting that students have sense of what they are asked to do when engaging with Blackboard content
• 42% of the students surveyed were seemingly content with the organization of Blackboard, as they suggested nothing needed to be improved at this time

Question:  How often do you use the Blackboard 9 course for English?

Points to consider:

• The results suggest that students are not presently accessing Blackboard consistently as a critical source for interacting with instructional content
• The data may speak to the lack of consistently accessible technology for students to access a Blackboard course in as needed in the classroom

While the data collected may not be earth-shaking or surprising, it lends some evidence that students find value in resources that are made available to them in an on-demand, digital outlet such as Blackboard.  With the ever-present societal suggestion looming that young adults today are disengaged and lack educational commitment, embedded within Land's students' responses is an dissenting opinion -- one that suggests making learning resources available to students in alternate ways is accepted and valued by students.

As momentum for Waukesha One, a personalized learning platform being investigated in the School District of Waukesha, grows, teachers, like Land, who are investing significant time and energy into developing their coursework in Blackboard 9 will be rewarded as more students come "online" with more access to resources daily.  Fortunately for Land, by listening to what her students have to say about the experience they are having in the online course today, she'll be in a stronger position to develop an even better online experience for her students in the future.

Shrinking the World for Middle School Students

With a great idea, a lot of passion, and the daring willingness to try something new, the seemingly "impossible" has become a reality, and has made a very clear impression on some of Central Middle School's students. 

Through the use of Skype, a popular video conferencing solution, Ann Zindler's Readers' and Writers' Workshop students were able to make a deeper connection to an author they were studying in class -- an author who just happens to live in the United Kingdom. 

"[On December 4th], seventh grade students at Central enjoyed Skyping with the author of one of our literature circle books, Payback.  Rosemary Hayes, at the request of four of my students, spent about 40 minutes chatting from Cambridge, United Kingdom with our kids who read her book.  [The students] prepared several questions and took turns speaking with her about her writing process and passion for writing, her research, and specifics about the characters upon whom she based her novel," Zindler said.

The technology used to accomplish the task was fairly standard and simple to set up.  Zindler installed Skype on her school desktop computer.  Using the document camera that Zindler uses for other classroom instruction as her web cam, and using a fairly inexpensive set of computer speakers and microphone that was available from the Central library, the stage was set for the event.

The real work, though, was done by the students.  They were responsible for reading Hayes' book, discussing the work through the structure of a literature circle, and then preparing questions and comments for the author in advance of the actual Skype call.  All were critical elements in preparing for the actual meeting with the author.

And how did the kids feel about the opportunity to interact with an author?  Here is the collective reflection from Zindler's students: Wendy F., Jesica C., Kelsey N. and Brianna O. 

"Meeting an author can be a once in a lifetime chance.  When Ms. Rosemary Hayes, of Cambridge, England, author of Payback, asked us if we wanted to meet through Skype, first we were surprised she even answered our email.  When we opened the email that she sent us, we literally started jumping up and down.

"Meeting her was amazing.  Some of us have met other authors, but hadn't even read that particular author's books before meeting him or her, so we didn't get as much out of it.  Since we had read Ms. Hayes book we had many questions and so did other kids who had read the book and joined our Skype.  After we were done and all of our questions were answered, I understood the book a whole lot more and understood why she wrote it the way that she did.  It's an amazing way to meet an author."

Like any technological tool that can be used in the classroom, the effectiveness of Skype to connect with the author is directly related to the quality of instructional planning and delivery by the instructor, and the commitment and engagement of the students to embrace the opportunity.  As Zindler and her students have demonstrated, the proper infusion of technology into the classroom can make for some unforgettable experiences for our students.

If you are interested in learning more about how to Skype an author in your classroom, view the Skype an Author network website:  http://skypeanauthor.wetpaint.com

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