Reflections
Student and parent feedback on the Drug Unit was overwhelmingly positive. In the student evaluations, most students said their favorite part of the unit was making the digital movie. One student wrote," My favorite part of the drug unit was making the actual movie. I believe that film is an excellent medium for projects because it combines such a wide array of subjects: technology, art, writing, not to mention the actual topic of the movie." Most students enjoyed learning the content through the drug theme. They also enjoyed learning the technology associated in making a digital video. Although the student and parent responses to the unit were mostly positive, there are areas in which this unit could be improved. Adding additional support for learners that struggle with technology would be important to making the project less difficult for those with a limited skill set around technology.
Students have varying degrees of familiarity with technology and may not be as efficient using digital video, or not have fluency around video, sound, and animation software that other students do. This mixture of abilities makes it imperative to have many ways to help students obtain the knowledge required to be successful utilizing technology. Next time I would have additional time built into the schedule to get answers to technology problems solved by having consultancies as a class. In addition the use of word walls, paraphrasing texts, and additional demonstrations would be useful for students struggling with vocabulary and key concepts.
Supporting Diverse Learners
The drug unit not only allows students to personalize their movie, but it also allows teachers to tailor the video to students of different academic and technical abilities. Students with different academic abilities all must meet the minimum content requirements, but are encouraged to do more advanced research in the areas of their interest. For example, strong math students are encouraged to present higher level statistical analysis. This unit also can be personalized for second language learners or students with speech disabilities; they are encouraged to have other students narrate their video. The video project is also personalized for students with mixed experience with digital video technology. Students with little background in digital technology, 3-D animation, or audio editing can make a more technologically basic video. Students who have an extensive background in technology software are encouraged to use more advanced applications in their video productions such as Maya(R)