Cell TalkIntegrating Technology and Education

by: Yushaneen Wilson

Cell Talk:What is it?

• Cell Talk is a project that will enable students to connect biological concepts discussed in class to the real world topics.

• Cell Talk is an innovative means of integrating technology into the classroom .

Cell Talk: What will students do?

• Students will:

• research a disease state to connect biological concepts to the real world.

• log on to the Cell Talk website to view project descriptions, project timeline, goals and groups assignments.

• check the site weekly to view that tasks for the present week.

• complete each weeks assignment.

• submit work on their personal blogs according to project timeline.

• receive feedback on their personal blogs.

• participate in group discussions regarding project status.

• submit additional guiding questions in their personal blog comments section.

• consult with teacher for additional support or guidance.

• present research finding at the end of the academic quarter.

• At the completion of this assignment students will:

• learn how to use multimedia resources for educational purposes.

• have conversations using scientific jargon.

• connect scientific issues to concepts learned in class.

• utilize the six facets of understanding. (Wiggins & McTighe, 2002)

• develop organizational, team work and presentation skills.

Cell Talk: What will students learn?

• Students will log on to the official cell talk website. (www.cell-talk.blogspot.com)

• This site provides the project overview, details and resources.

Cell Talk: How will the process work?

• Students will review the “Welcome” post, which provided the an overview of the project.

• Each week students will view the Tasks section to learn about the project details

• Each week a new task will be posted. Students will complete the assignment and post the results to their personal blog.

• Students will perform research around the guiding questions that are provided in the “Welcome” Post.

• Student will add additional questions based on their own research interests.

Cell Talk: TimelineProject 1, Assignment Timeline

Class 1 • Internet Safety & Step 1

• Submit: Internet Safety Worksheet & Proposed Blog name

Class 2 • Step 2

Class 3 • Step 3

• Submit Googling for Gold Activity

Class 4 • Research

• Submit - KWL Chart

Class 5 • Science Discussion

• Submit - Research Questions & References

Class 6 • Research

• Submit - Graphic Organizer

Class 7 • Science Discussion

• Submit - Research Questions & References

Class 8 • Research

• Submit - Graphic Organizer & KWL

Class 9 • Presentation Prep.

Class 10 • Presentations & Science Discussion

Cell Talk: Will students present their work?

• Students will present their work using the media of their choice.

• Students will connect what they learned to topic discussed in class.

• Students will be required to answer the call guiding questions from “Welcome” post and questions specific to research interests.

• Students will be limited to a 10 minutes maximum.

Cell Talk: What resources are provided?• The following resources are linked on the

Cell Talk website for easy student access.

• Internet safety site

• internet safety contract pdf

• Blog tutorial site

• graphic organizer site

• Credible references tutorial site

• KWL chart site

• MLA citation creator site

• Rubric creator site

• Dictionary

• Thesaurus

These resources can be found on the Cell Talk website under the heading “Required Resources” as shown above.

Cell Talk: What are “science discussions”?• During this time groups update the class on

the status of their projects and connect their findings to concepts learned in class.

• Students use scientific jargon as they describe their projects.

• Students receive guidance and feedback from the classroom community.

• Students create “actionable items” to help their projects move forward.

Grading

• Classroom community will determine what constitutes a “fair assessment” for this project.

• We will work together to create a rubric for presentations and blog assignment submission.

Cell Talk: How can I learn more?

• You may learn more about Cell Talk by visiting the official website:

• www.cell-talk.blogspot.com

• There you will find the “Welcome” Post and “Tasks” post described in this presentation.