JLC at Holyoke -- Response to Note from G. Ernest Anderson
Robert A. Hanna, Ed.M.
A response for the EDNET list, in response to your message --
I hope that you got the copy I forwarded to my friends in Fla. and the
JLC
folks. The phone number for JLC is 1-800-422-4339, if anyone would
like
to call for some quicker answers. I can always be used as a reference.
When I was in Florida, using the same software that I believe exists at
Holyoke, we moved from the "automatic" assignment of curriculum (which,
indeed, fourth and fifth graders found boring) to making up our own
lesson
sequences which were curriculum-oriented. For example, there were many
lessons on ecology issues in the reading, science, and mathematics
strands. We would put these into a lesson sequence and call it, say,
"Grade 4 _____ Unit", and assign it to the students when they were doing
that unit in the classroom. We would also make lesson sequences
combining lessons on particular areas where students did not do so well
on
the Florida Comprehensive Achievement Test (FCAT). This combination
seemed to make both students and teachers more interested in the system.
Many teachers who use the system do not realize that this is possible!!
So it may not have been done in Holyoke. It is so easy just to PLUG in
the students and let them go based upon the internal placement test.
However, that is too often what causes boredom, and, I believe, lack of
achievement. But, of course, making your own lesson sequences demands
a
lot of work on the part of someone to get it started. There are
literally thousands of lessons in the system!!! The writing processor
can also be added to the sequences, with "Story Starters" and/or rubrics
that correlate to the MCAS.
Please feel free to contact me if there is any way I can help. I still
remember how to create lesson sequences, and, if I brush away a few
cobwebs, I might be able to help !!!! Please also feel free to contact
JLC.
Look forward to hearing from you !!!
Bob Hanna, Technology Facilitator, Northampton Public Schools
ha...@javanet.com