Multimedia Design Project Assessment (MDPA) Report

Product URL: http://shoppingextravaganza.weebly.com/

AnalysisLearner AnalysisThe learners are of ages 11-13 with varying instructional needs. A few of the students have learning disabilities that require extra instruction and very distinct, step-by-step instruction. Furthermore, several students (even some without documented learning disabilities) learn best when directions are read aloud or rephrased. On the other hand, some of the students are advanced and enjoy a discovery-based, student-centered learning challenge without having the step-by-step instructions or the direct instruction. The majority of the students I teach are used to student-centered instruction but not used to project-based learning. They are, however, accustomed to learning in small groups with specific teacher-driven activities and instruction.

Context AnalysisAt my school, we follow a strict bell schedule of five academic periods consisting of 50-60 minutes each. On average, my class sizes range from 15 to 25 students with one to two inclusion classes. Technology is limited within the classroom; therefore, the computer lab or library computer area would need to be reserved to complete a web-based project. At my school, each grade level has a Netbook cart containing a “class set” of Netbooks (18); however, only on a very good day do all of those 18 Netbooks work properly. The teacher (myself) and the co-teacher are both proficient in technology and comfortable addressing student technology needs as they arise throughout the web-based project.

CONTENT STANDARDS:o MCC7.NS.1(d)  Apply properties of operations as strategies to add

and subtract rational numbers.o MCC7.NS.3 Solve real‐world and mathematical problems

involving the four operations with rational numbers.o MCC7.EE.3 Solve multi‐step real‐life and mathematical problems

posed with positive and negative rational numbers in any form (whole numbers, fractions, and decimals), using tools strategically. Apply properties of operations as strategies to calculate with numbers in any form; convert between forms as appropriate; and assess the reasonableness of answers using mental computation and estimation strategies.

MATHEMATICAL PRACTICE STANDARDS:o Standard 1: Make sense of problems and persevere in solving

them.o Standard 2: Reason abstractly and quantitatively.o Standard 5: Use appropriate tools strategically.

NETS-S (TECHNOLOGY STANDARDS FOR STUDENTS)o Standard 4:  Students use critical thinking skills to plan and

conduct research, manage projects, solve problems, and make informed decisions using appropriate digital tools and resources.

o Standard 6:  Students demonstrate a sound understanding of technology concepts, systems, and operations.

Task AnalysisAt the end of this web-based project, students must be able to answer the following Essential Questions:

What are the different forms of rational numbers, and when do each of these forms appear when shopping?

How do I use different forms of rational numbers such as percents, decimals, and fractions interchangeably to solve problems in a real-world context such as shopping?

How do I calculate a percent discount and tax and apply these to find a total price?

How do I apply properties of operations as strategies to add and subtract rational numbers in order to stay within a given shopping budget?

What technology tools are available to help manage my shopping budget, and how do I use these tools effectively?

Additionally, the students need to accomplish the following objectives during this web-based project:

Use current knowledge of operations with positive and negative rational numbers (whole numbers, fractions, decimals, and percents) to make purchases at online stores without exceeding the $1000 budget.

Apply knowledge of positive and negative rational numbers to locate and select the best online "deals" (or sales) in order to purchase the most complete outfits (shirt, pants/skirt, shoes, etc) as possible without exceeding the $1000 budget.

Furthermore, the students must also display the meet the following dispositional objectives:

Work collaboratively throughout the duration of the project with their partner on all pieces of the project.

Complete their part of the project (while collaborating with their partner) and assume their assigned responsibilities.

Take responsibility of individual learning needs by accessing the resources provided throughout the web-based project.

DesignOverviewSince this project was designed to be used as a culminating web-based project, the students have already been introduced to the actual content. However, now they are using that content and applying it in a real-world context through this project’s task. Videos to help the students maneuver through the application pieces of this project (such as calculating discounts and tax) are provided in the resources section of the WebQuest rather than throughout the WebQuest. The reason for this is because there is already a link to a written step-by-step guide (created by me) -- embedded within the WebQuest -- explaining how to apply operations of rational numbers to calculate tax, discount, subtotal, and total. Since I have many students who like to participate in self-guided instruction, I included the instructional videos in a separate page for those students who feel that they need the extra guidance in addition to the step-by-step written instructions.The videos I selected and evaluated to include as part of the extra content instruction page of the Webquest were:

1. “Sales Tax and Discounts” by Matt Jagow retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kvSuigPJ7fM

2. “Converting Percents to Decimals” by Khan Academy retrieved from https://www.khanacademy.org/math/pre-algebra/decimals-pre-alg/percent-intro-pre-alg/v/converting-percents-to-decimals--ex-1

Throughout the WebQuest Process, the students were provided with videos explaining how to create the Google Spreadsheets and Google Docs requested as part of their final products. The following videos were chosen due to the appropriateness of the language, content, and length. These videos were linked on the “Process” page of the WebQuest:

1. “How to Create a Google Spreadsheet” by Google Gooru retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZPpjHu89oCA

2. “How to Create and Share a Google Doc” by @ONE retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EKt3-fruLyE

DetailsAs mentioned above, several of my students (with and without documented learning disabilities) require the directions to be read aloud, repeated, and/or summarized. Therefore, on several pages of the WebQuest, they will be able to click on the speaker button to have a narrative of the directions read aloud or a narrative of the summary of the directions spoken. Also, for the students who tend to have technical difficulties or trouble navigating their way through web-based projects like these, they will be able to click on a link (on the Introduction page of

the WebQuest) that will provide screenshots and narration of where to look for assistance and other navigation information.Furthermore, many of my students learn best when an example of the product is available. Therefore, for each type of product expected, the students will be provided an example of what it should look like when completed as well as a blank template with step-by-step instructions (and guided videos) on how to create similar documents and spreadsheets in Google Docs. The optional videos were included for the creation of the Google Docs and Google Spreadsheets due to the wide range of familiarity with Google Docs and similar technology -- with some students being fairly new to Google Docs and some students using Google Drive features daily.

This assignment was designed for pairs so that the students would have access to peer instruction and collaboration as needed throughout the project.

The following multimedia was utilized in this WebQuest:

Videos: Technical Guidance/Instruction (with Google Drive features); Extra Content Instruction (as needed); Overview of WebQuest for students who needed the extra assistance becoming familiar with the technical aspects of the WebQuest (assistive technology).

Audio: Narration of the written directions and narrations of summaries of the project roles/responsibilities, task, and process of the WebQuest for students who need directions repeated, read aloud, and/or summarized (assistive technology).

Google Doc Collaboration

DevelopmentWeebly was used to develop this WebQuest. Two weeks were dedicated to the development of the WebQuest content (including creating videos and audio narration) while another week was used to verify that the content was inserted into the Weebly, the Internet links worked, documents downloaded, and audio and video were embedded and worked properly. Finally, another day was set aside to run a trial of the WebQuest with two of my former students to ensure that everything made sense and flowed smoothly from start to finish.

ImplementationThe purpose of this WebQuest is to serve as a culminating activity for the first unit of 7th grade math in which the students study, in depth, rational numbers and operations with rational numbers as well as using rational numbers interchangeably. The last standard of the first 7th grade math unit is for the students to be able to apply operations of rational numbers within real-world contexts. Once the students have learned how to perform operations with rational

numbers and also how to used them interchangeably, they will be able to use that knowledge to complete this task which will then allow them to apply their knowledge of rational numbers to real-world contexts (as MCC7.NS.3 standard states).

If I were to implement this project, I would need to arrange at least 3-5 consecutive class days (due to the timeline of the project which is about one week) in the computer lab and/or the library computer section. Since the students will be completing most (if not all) of this project at school, I would also need to verify that the websites students will be “shopping” on for the WebQuest (specifically the ones linked in the WebQuest on the process page) are not blocked on the school computers.

EvaluationStudent Learning –During future implementation of this WebQuest, the students will be expected to produce two Google Spreadsheets containing the information requested within the WebQuest. One spreadsheet will contain the shopping budget including the subtotal, tax, discount, and total calculations (application of rational numbers). The other spreadsheet will consist of an outline of 12 outfits that the students must put together using their purchases. The reason the students must create this list of 12 complete outfits (minimum) is to make sure that the students considered every part of shopping for back-to-school and not just focusing on purchasing something just because it was “cheap.” At the end of the WebQuest, student learning will be assessed at the end of the project using two rubrics (one for each required spreadsheet) to evaluate the quality and content of the products created throughout the learning experience. The students will also complete the reflection at the end of the WebQuest which will require them to consider what they had to know about rational numbers and operations with rational numbers to complete the WebQuest as well as to think about other ways knowledge of rational numbers is useful in the real world.

Product Design –As a trial run for this WebQuest, I had two of my students complete the WebQuest and make comments/ask questions as needed throughout any parts of the WebQuest on the content and technical issues (broken links, lack of audio, navigation issues, etc). In addition to having continuous dialogue with my former students as they completed the WebQuest, I also asked the following questions upon their completion of the WebQuest:

1. Was any part of the WebQuest confusing to you? 2. Were any of the links confusing or broken when you tried to use them?3. Were any of the directions in the task or the process unclear?4. Did any of the steps need more explanation or clarification?5. Were the goals of the WebQuest clear?

6. Were the videos and audio links helpful (or could you see them being helpful to any of your peers)?

I also had a colleague read through the WebQuest to make sure that grammar and spelling were correct as well as content and technical aspects of the WebQuest were clearly explained and navigable.

Below, two of my former students (from last year) are completing the trial run of the WebQuest.

Reflection

Project Development – Through the development of this project, I learned that using a website creation tool such as Weebly helps tremendously with ensuring that the design quality and aesthetics of the WebQuest is appealing and engaging for the students. However, what didn’t work well with website creation tools like Weebly was the fact that I couldn’t upload audio and video files directly onto the site (unless I paid for a subscription to upgrade). Therefore, instead of being able to embed the videos and audios just as they were, I had to link the audio through a file and upload the video to YouTube before embedding it into the WebQuest. As far as the planning is concerned, I learned that it is best to start by developing the standards and essential questions first, followed by the task, and then the evaluation. I attempted to create the process before the evaluation and tried to wait until the end to pull in the media aspects (like the audio and video) which was an overall disaster. What I will do differently in the future is develop my evaluation after I have established my objectives and then create the steps of my process to lead up to the desired outcome (product to be evaluated).

Instructional Design – With this WebQuest, the videos and audio clips were included as a way to accommodate for my students with learning disabilities as well as for the students I teach who just need extra instruction both in content and technology. By making these videos and audio clips optional, though, it provided an option for a more student-directed, discovery-learning type

WebQuest that many of my advanced students enjoy completing. Looking back, I wish I would’ve added more audio clips throughout the WebQuest possibly in the form of hints or suggestions.

Personal Growth – Through this project, I re-learned what I already knew about myself – that I have a hard time letting my students learn on their own. The teacher in me wants to provide everything for them rather than letting them figure it out along the way. Several times throughout the development of this WebQuest, I would begin to type very detailed instructions about how to complete a certain step or part of a certain step; and I would have to stop and remind myself that it is okay for them to have to figure some parts out on their own using the resources provided to them.

For Others – My suggestion to other teachers and colleagues who may consider doing something similar to this WebQuest with their students would be to make sure that you utilize technology (especially audio and video) as a means of differentiating. I strongly believe that this is what makes the difference when it comes to a successful web-based project and one that isn’t successful. Also, I would highly suggest to incorporate collaboration as much as possible to allow for the students to help each other. The more they are able to help each other, the more they learn for themselves and they learn how to help themselves, which is a critical skill for a lifelong learner to possess.