Searching for Innovative Uses of Technology
Using Digital Annotation Tools to Collaborate around Research
An Individual Project
By Kate Grunow
Case #1
An Individual Project
By Kate Grunow
Case #1
- Reference information
Ferriter, William M., and Adam. Garry. Teaching the igeneration: 5 Easy Ways to Introduce Essential Skills with Web 2.0 Tools . Bloomington, IN: Solution Tree Press, 2010. Print. - A Brief Description of the Case
The purpose of this case is twofold. One purpose is to manage (i.e. organize) digital information. Too much information can become problematic for students. Shared bookmarking and digital annotation tools enable users to tag sent by keywords. Tagging functionality the user tags a sentence, paragraph, or entire page, Tagging systems make it easier for teams to search and filter collections curated collaboratively. A secondary purpose using share bookmarking and digital annotation tools to collaborate around research is to develop collective knowledge. Global collaboration brings people from diverse backgrounds together to work towards a common goal. Time zones and the culture of work in different regions are barriers to successful global collaborations. This innovation enables teams to overcome the barrier by collaborating asynchronously. - The technology and resources involved
This case makes use of the most commonly used shared bookmarking and digital annotation platform in education--Diigo. The platform is device agnostic, but does require an internet connection for full functionality. Educators should sign up for a basic Diigo account. After signing into the platform as a basic user educators need to apply for a Diigo Education account. Once approved educators will need to create student accounts and assign each student to a Diigo group. Finally, an extension or toolbar is required to use Diigo's annotation tools. The educator might check with their technology director or district support contact to see which extension is best suited for their environment. The technology department can sometimes assist with the installation process by pushing out the extension as a package to the appropriate computers. Extensions and/or toolbars are available for Chrome, Firefox, and Edge.
4. What prior skills and knowledge are required of students?
The case requires students to have knowledge of using search terms to locate information online for a desired task. Specifically, using advanced search options to perform keyword searches with expanders and limiters as needed. Students must also know how to use the basic features of Diigo. This includes highlighting and annotating web pages, adding tags, saving to their Diigo library, and sharing saved content with Diigo groups. Students should also be able to read laterally and apply a variety of critical evaluation strategies.
5. What are students asked to accomplish exactly?
The class is researching a controversial issue in small groups. Using the social bookmarking and annotation tools in Diigo, students work collaboratively to curate a collection of shared bookmarks around an assigned research topic.
6. What are the procedures of the project?
Students begin the process of collaborating around research by learning about group roles and responsibilities. The following six roles and responsibilities are defined for students to ensure collaboration is productive and leads to a variety of high quality websites to explore for further research.
Original thinker - The original thinker is responsible for saving and sharing relevant websites for the group to consider when they begin to dig deeper into the research using Diigo's annotation tools. A successful original thinker saves and shares at least twenty, high-quality websites related to the topic of study with the group
The case requires students to have knowledge of using search terms to locate information online for a desired task. Specifically, using advanced search options to perform keyword searches with expanders and limiters as needed. Students must also know how to use the basic features of Diigo. This includes highlighting and annotating web pages, adding tags, saving to their Diigo library, and sharing saved content with Diigo groups. Students should also be able to read laterally and apply a variety of critical evaluation strategies.
5. What are students asked to accomplish exactly?
The class is researching a controversial issue in small groups. Using the social bookmarking and annotation tools in Diigo, students work collaboratively to curate a collection of shared bookmarks around an assigned research topic.
6. What are the procedures of the project?
Students begin the process of collaborating around research by learning about group roles and responsibilities. The following six roles and responsibilities are defined for students to ensure collaboration is productive and leads to a variety of high quality websites to explore for further research.
Original thinker - The original thinker is responsible for saving and sharing relevant websites for the group to consider when they begin to dig deeper into the research using Diigo's annotation tools. A successful original thinker saves and shares at least twenty, high-quality websites related to the topic of study with the group
- Connector - The role of a connector is to look for connections between subtopics. Understanding secondary connection is an important part of building the background knowledge needed to understand the overarching research topic.
- Reliability Cop - The Reliability Cop is responsible for deleting untrustworthy websites from the shared collection.
- Mind Reader - The Mind Reader sifts through the shared bookmark collections and tags of other users for websites of value their group may have overlooked.
- Cleaning Crew - The cleaning crew reviews the shared collection for incomplete entries and ensures website titles and tags follow the same naming conventions for search optimization.
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Next, students develop a plan. A checklist is provided to guide students through the process of assigning group roles, developing a tag dictionary, a plan for communicating in the beginning stages of their research, and setting realistic deadlines.
Select the reproducible guide pictured right to view the resource that guides students through the planning process |
Reproducible Guide
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7. What are the advantages of the project?
There are several advantages to this project. First, the project introduces students to strategies for managing information and collaborating digitally. Strategies for both are useful to students in other classes and their lives outside of school. When students make connections between school and the real world learning is authentic. Authentic assessments target higher levels of Bloom's Taxonomy. In the case of this project students analyze, synthesize and apply what they have learned to create new meaning through their shared annotations in their Diigo groups.
8. What are the disadvantages of the project?
The features of Diigo enable students to have rich conversations about key content in their shared collections. Diigo provides a vehicle for meaningly conversations around research. In the middle grades students have not mastered note taking skills. Annotations must add value to the shared annotation project for students to engage in meaningful conversation and co-construction of knowledge. Highlighting too much or not enough and leaving vague comments are highly probable note taking behaviors for middle school students. The success of the group is at risk when one or two members exhibit these behaviors early on. There is also the risk of absenteeism putting groups at a disadvantage. Students without a reliable internet connection or device at home to keep up with their responsibilities halt the progress of the group temporarily. When long spans of time lapse in between comments, conversation is stifled.
9. What types of effective instructional strategies are included?
The case notes that in successful applications of social bookmarking and digital annotation projects educators clearly define the roles and responsibilities of each group member. Making roles and responsibilities transparent minimizes the stress of adopting new workflows and collaborating with peers. Each group member is assigned a specific role in their research group to scaffold the process of learning to collaborate online. Educators should use modeling and visible thinking strategies to teach conversation behaviors and how to comment in asynchronous conversations. Accountable talk frames are provided as an instructional support resource for this purpose.
10. What are the possibilities that the innovation can be transferred to other teachers, subject content, and different school settings?
Across all subjects, secondary students have experience engaging in collaboration and research to some degree. Given that students will have some familiarity with the process of researching a topic, taking notes, and working together to achieve a common goal, the probability of this innovation being transferred to other teachers, subject content, and different settings is high. Students will quickly make connections between traditional annotation tools (e.g. paper, pencil, highlighter, etc.) and digital annotation tools. Students will also have prior experiences with cooperative learning to draw from and build upon with new strategies for working together digitally. The instructional support resources provide a way for the educator to easily transition students from bricks to clicks. Students can practice asynchronous conversations with familiar tools in small groups face-to-face until they show evidence of readiness to transition to applying the skills online. The user interface is also intuitive and will seem familiar to new users who use social media. Ease of use allows students to focus on the learning objectives. Equitable access could also pose a barrier to transferring the innovation to other teachers, subject areas and different schools. Educators would need to be strategic with blocking time to allot for absenteeism and learner variability.
There are several advantages to this project. First, the project introduces students to strategies for managing information and collaborating digitally. Strategies for both are useful to students in other classes and their lives outside of school. When students make connections between school and the real world learning is authentic. Authentic assessments target higher levels of Bloom's Taxonomy. In the case of this project students analyze, synthesize and apply what they have learned to create new meaning through their shared annotations in their Diigo groups.
8. What are the disadvantages of the project?
The features of Diigo enable students to have rich conversations about key content in their shared collections. Diigo provides a vehicle for meaningly conversations around research. In the middle grades students have not mastered note taking skills. Annotations must add value to the shared annotation project for students to engage in meaningful conversation and co-construction of knowledge. Highlighting too much or not enough and leaving vague comments are highly probable note taking behaviors for middle school students. The success of the group is at risk when one or two members exhibit these behaviors early on. There is also the risk of absenteeism putting groups at a disadvantage. Students without a reliable internet connection or device at home to keep up with their responsibilities halt the progress of the group temporarily. When long spans of time lapse in between comments, conversation is stifled.
9. What types of effective instructional strategies are included?
The case notes that in successful applications of social bookmarking and digital annotation projects educators clearly define the roles and responsibilities of each group member. Making roles and responsibilities transparent minimizes the stress of adopting new workflows and collaborating with peers. Each group member is assigned a specific role in their research group to scaffold the process of learning to collaborate online. Educators should use modeling and visible thinking strategies to teach conversation behaviors and how to comment in asynchronous conversations. Accountable talk frames are provided as an instructional support resource for this purpose.
10. What are the possibilities that the innovation can be transferred to other teachers, subject content, and different school settings?
Across all subjects, secondary students have experience engaging in collaboration and research to some degree. Given that students will have some familiarity with the process of researching a topic, taking notes, and working together to achieve a common goal, the probability of this innovation being transferred to other teachers, subject content, and different settings is high. Students will quickly make connections between traditional annotation tools (e.g. paper, pencil, highlighter, etc.) and digital annotation tools. Students will also have prior experiences with cooperative learning to draw from and build upon with new strategies for working together digitally. The instructional support resources provide a way for the educator to easily transition students from bricks to clicks. Students can practice asynchronous conversations with familiar tools in small groups face-to-face until they show evidence of readiness to transition to applying the skills online. The user interface is also intuitive and will seem familiar to new users who use social media. Ease of use allows students to focus on the learning objectives. Equitable access could also pose a barrier to transferring the innovation to other teachers, subject areas and different schools. Educators would need to be strategic with blocking time to allot for absenteeism and learner variability.
Case #2
- Reference Information
Shapiro, Jordan. (2016). Learning Tools For Microsoft OneNote May Be One Of The Most Disruptive Education Technologies Yet. Retrieved from https://www.forbes.com/sites/jordanshapiro/2016/01/25/learning-tools-for-microsoft-onenote-
may-be-one-of-the-most-disruptive-education-technologies-yet/?sh=64c4788e172b
McKnight, K. (2017). Leveling the playing field with Microsoft Learning Tools. Research report retrieved from http://edudownloads.azureedge.net/msdownloads/Learning_Tools_research_study_BSD.pdf - A Brief Description of the Case
Fourth grade teachers from Bellevue School District successfully integrated Microsoft's Learning Tools to improve writing. The district has a one-to-one laptop initiative. Students were introduced to Learning Tools at the onset of a social studies capstone project. Educators engaged students in read to write strategies using the Immersive Reader, Dictate, and parts of speech features to enhance traditional approaches to teaching revising and editing. As a result of the innovative use of Learning Tools, struggling readers overcame reading and writing barriers and interacted with classroom materials at higher levels in other content areas. Educators concluded the use of Learning Tools enabled teachers to transform learning in new and meaningful ways that could not have been achieved without the digital tools. - The purpose of the innovation
The purpose of Learning Tools by Microsoft is to make learning accessible for all. In the context of K12 Learning Tools focus on reading and math. The tools are designed to encourage self-directed, independent earning. - The technology and resources involved
Microsoft Learning Tools is a suite of tools available in OneNote, Word, Outlook, and Office Lens. The tools can be used online as well, but with limited functionality. Educators interested in using Learning tools will need the desktop applications for Microsoft Word and OneNote Notebook Installed on a Windows device. Office Lens is available in both Android and Apple app stores. Classroom use will require a headset to avoid hearing audio from multiple devices playing at the same time. The Dictation tool requires a headset with a microphone. Audio ports will vary across devices. Educators should check with their district's technology department for more information about headset compatibility with district devices.
- What prior skills and knowledge are required of students?
Students will need to know the applications they can access Learning Tools in and the steps to enable Learning Tools. The steps in Word, OneNote, Outlook, and Office lens vary across platforms and devices. Students will also need to know how to use a headset, enable their microphone, and some basic troubleshooting steps. Revising and editing will require the student to be able to read their own writing aloud and hear grammatical errors. Students will also need to be taught how to speak punctuation into the Dictation tool to achieve the desired effect. For example, to add an exclamation point students should speak the word "exclamation point" into the microphone - What are students asked to accomplish exactly?
Students use Microsoft Learning Tools to support a capstone project in the fourth grade. Students are expected to read a common text and use their understanding of the text to inform their writing. Using the Immersive Reader students read a common text as a member of a small group. Independently students author a piece of writing and use the Dictation and Parts of Speech features to revise and edit their writing. Evaluation of the impact of this use case was based on the overall quality of student writing assignments submitted for the capstone project. Educators used a rubric to assess student writing. After comparing student writing samples produced with Learning Tools to those produced without it was determined that the use of Learning Tools improved the overall quality of the writing students produced.. - What are the procedures of the project?
Using Learning Tools to revise and edit writing requires the student to open their writing in a supported application and enable the Immersive Reader. Students then speak their writing assignment into the microphone of their device. Using the Dictation tool, students listen for mistakes when they hear their words read back. Other students use learning tools to participate in cooperative learning with their peers. Students are assigned to a group of four that sits together at a table. Each student is assigned a part of a common text. Students in the group are instructed to read the text independently at their seat and be prepared to share what they read with their group. Students have the option to put their headset on and use the immersive reader to listen to the text or read on their own.
- What are the advantages of the project?
Educators noted several advantages to using Learning Tools throughout the fourth grade social studies capstone project. Notably, Learning Tools can be integrated with success under a variety of conditions and learning environments. Educators noted that Learning Tools was especially advantageous for students without access to high speed internet at home, because students can use the suite of tools to support their learning at school and transition their work to home without interruption. Educators saw advantages differ by learning environment. For whole group instruction, educators found the use of Immersive Reader to be advantageous. Educators reported that Learning Tools "leveled the playing field" enabling strong and struggling readers to comprehend complex texts at or above grade-level. Educators also noted advantages to using Learning Tools for small group instruction. Groups comprised of different reading levels were able to engage in Jigsaw lessons using the same reading materials. The advantage in each case is clear. Thoughtful implementation of Leaning Tools levels the playing field for learners with varied profiles. mobile OS now includes a mono output option under its accessibility settings. The new option is intended to help visually impaired people who typically use a single earbud with screen-reading or other assistive technologies. The new mono audio option prevents them from missing out on sounds that are directed to another earpiece in a stereo setup, said Sarkar. - What are the disadvantages of the project?
Learning Tools is praised by many for making learning accessible to all. However, in the absence of a high speed internet connection equitable access becomes increasingly difficult to achieve. While learning tools can be used offline through select desktop applications, there are two disadvantages to working in this manner. First, the educator and the student need a basic understanding of the subtle differences between working on the desktop and working online. OneNote, one of two desktop applications Learning Tools can be accessed in to use offline, needs to be closely monitored to ensure changes to the notebook are syncing properly. Sync conflicts happen more frequently when students switch between the desktop application to working online. Sync conflicts can prevent work from saving and require additional steps to troubleshoot. Second, assigning work in OneNote or OneNote Classroom Notebook for students to interact with using Learning Tools can take some time. It should also be noted that Immersive Reader requires accessible text. Classrooms with dated textbooks and/or curriculum protected in another platform may need to use the browser with limited features. Learning Tools requires an Open eBook file format (EPUB) to run in Edge. - What types of effective instructional strategies are included?
Learning Tools supports independent learning. For this reason, strategies target onboarding students to the platform they will use to access Learning Tools. Modeling and chunking are critical components when planning to teach a new concept or tool. The strategy "I do/we do/you do" is an effective strategy for teaching students how to use the Immersive Reader to revise their writing. The strategy ensures the gradual release of responsibility shifts from teacher driven to student driven with appropriate levels of support at each phase. The technology in this case has built in instructional strategies to support student learning. For example, the Immersive Reader is designed to support read to write strategies. When the immersive reader is enabled the Parts of Speech are highlighted as the text is read aloud. When students enable the subject and verb buttons incomplete sentences and sentence structure are easier to detect. The Dictation feature also functions as a substitution for reading aloud writing to hear mistakes. Finally, when using Learning Tools in Edge, enabling Reading View removes distracting ads and unnecessary content engaging the learner in time on task.
- What are the possibilities that the innovation can be transferred to other teachers, subject content, and different school settings?Districts typically operate in one of two environments-- Google or Office 365. For educators working in an Office 365 environment the possibility of transfer is much higher. The possibility is even higher in classrooms with one device per student and/or daily access to computers. Educators attempting to use Learning Tools intermittently will find transfer difficult with the number of skills needed to use Learning Tools independently. In the absence of onboarding and routine use, educators may associate Learning Tools with loss of instructional time and opt to stick with the proven methods they know instead.
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