Preparing Educators for the Millennium Generation

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Preparing Educators for the Millennium Generation

• Dr. Jean M. Casey

Professor - Reading/Early Childhood/Technology
California State University, Long Beach
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Writing my own storyColleen

• The New Literacy begins at age three

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Writers Readersages 7 and 3
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Todays Focus

• How PBS Ready to Learn, that has produced Sesame
  Street, Reading Rainbow and programs to interest
  and light the fire of knowledge for preschool
  youngsters, can now go the next step and empower
  them as writers and readers.
• How collaboration between educators and media is
  our next most important challenge.
• Language Processing makes Language Experience
  work What I can say, I can write. What I can
  write, I can read! (Van Allen, Casey)

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Important Facts

• The child has an absorbent mind ages birth to
  seven (Montessori). Learns second language,
  music, math, computers much more easily at that
  age.
• Small muscle coordination is developmental and
  sometimes doesnt occur until 7 or 8 years of
  age.
• A pencil is a tool that needs small muscle
  coordination to use. It is easier for a young
  child to hit the a key on the computer than to
  write an a. A computer is a sophisticated
  pencil, a writing tool that works well for young
  writers.

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Teacher Education and Technology

• Descriptive Study of the Reading Program in ABC
  School District - Cerritos, California (Casey)
• 21 Schools-qualitative and quantitative study of
  the reading program in all classrooms
• Teachers enthusiasm, love of learning and
  expectations for students.
• Simi Star Project - Research on early literacy
  and technology (Casey)
• 6 School Districts-26 classrooms-1000 writing
  portfolios
• Students with daily access to computers for
  language processing all became readers and
  writers.

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Research Support

• Simi Star Conclusions
• Teachers idea, administrator support.
• Students in the WTR classroom averaged two
  writing levels higher and exceptionally high
  reading attitude compared to control.
• Sixth grade follow-up study-Students won the
  county writing contests/their own website/all
  were proficient writers and readers.

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Education Testing Service Evaluation of WTR

• 10,000 Kindergarten and Grade 1 students at 21
  sites (R. Murphy and L. Appel)
• Writing to Read (WTR) Three year study most
  extensive research on computers and early
  literacy
• Children in WTR write better than comparison
  groups
• In Reading, Kindergarten WTR students have a
  significant advantage over comparison students.

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NCLB and Technology

• NCLB requires teachers to integrate technology
  into ongoing instruction and make technology a
  part of the learning process.
• The value of technology is knowing how to use it
  to learn, the goal is for every student to be
  technologically literate before entering
  secondary education. (NCLB 2003)

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The Beginning - Failing at Five

• Codey (Age 5, Kdg.) was placed in the low group
  in his class.
• When asked to write, he avoided the task, because
  he couldnt do well with a pencil.
• The computer made a difference for him.
• He went from low group to author in one session.

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Codeys Literacy Success

• The computer empowered him to write.
• The computer proved to him that he was not dumb.
• The computer gave him a tool to type in any word
  he saw and then hear it spoken to him.
• It was his ticket to the Literacy Club

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Los Angeles Unified School District Waterford
and WTR

• Waterford Early Reading Program in 244 schools
• Waterford used by about 150,000 students at 1,600
  schools in 40 states.
• It puts the learner in control of his learning,
  processing his own language experience stories.
• It has the outstanding music, graphics, sound
  educational materials for comprehensible input.
• Its based on a good understanding of reading
  development. (G.Reid Lyon, NIH)

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Estimate Brandons Level of Maturity
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Brandon, Age 6, Gr. 1
Brandon 12-13-95 It is raning hrd twoda. I lik
the ran bekaz I lik gateng wet. I lik plaing in
the ran.
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Anthonys Story (2 versions)
Version 1 Pencil and paper
Version 2 - Computer
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Mini web, Multilingual, Maxi Learning Project

• Dr. Rachel Cohen - University of Paris, France
• Dr. Gloria Medrano - University of Zaragoza,
  Spain
• A network which links children aged 3 to 8 from
  10 countries using 4 languages.
• Research shows that using technology at an early
  age, before children become candidates for
  school failure, can indeed make a significant
  difference.

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Davids Story (Age 6, diagnosed A.D.H.D.)

• 9-18 dinusors lift 200 yers a goe They had
  fites. Evey day they had fites. One day a
  dinusor was eating gras. And a dinosaur got in a
  fites. The bigis dinnsor wan. it was nite time.
  it was snowing for a week.the dinsaurs dide.

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More from David

• gorchwoshtin live he was the first presit.He
  was born in ' 16-48.He was 1 yers old. He was
  nise he noow lots of thing. he had fan win he was
  2 yers old he had tlooes. Noul he is 3 yers old
  he was omoste in pescol. noul he is 5 yers old he
  is in cinagarn.noul he is 6 yers old he is in
  fiest gard.

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Outcomes for David

• Without a classroom computer and a knowledgeable
  teacherDavid would probably have spent the next
  six years in a special categoryon Ritalin.
• Without a classroom computer and a knowledgeable
  teacherDavid would probably have been lost in
  our one size fits all educational system.
• With a classroom computer and a knowledgeable
  teacherDavid became an early member of the
  literacy club and, in the 7th grade, he designed
  the Web Page for his class.

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The LakeChapter 1 by LibbyAge 5
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The LakeChapter 2 by LibbyAge 5
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The LakeChapter 3 by LibbyAge 5
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The LakeChapter 4 by LibbyAge 5
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The LakeChapter 5 by LibbyAge 5
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Outcomes for Libby?

• Without a knowledgeable teacherLibby will
  probably hate being forced to read decodable
  books and, as a result, will be bored with
  school.
• Without a knowledgeable teacherwho understands
  about phonemic spelling as a first stage, Libby
  will probably stop writing her novels.
• There is real magic in enthusiasm. It spells the
  difference between mediocrity and
  accomplishment. (Norman Vincent Peale)

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Mat sat on a fat cat just wont hack it. It
failed with SWRL in 1970. It will fail again.
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Importance of Early Experiences

• Children who lack access to books, who are not
  read to in the home, start school with a
  significant disadvantage.
• On-target students typically start kindergarten
  with 3000 hours of pre-literacy activities in the
  home. At-risk students start with just 50-250
  hours of the same activities. (Adams, 1990)
• Without effective intervention, this deficit
  continues to increase yearly.

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Benefits of Computer Access for Young Children

• Empowerment and control of learning - accepts
  computer as a lifelong learning tool
• Interactive, visual positive feedback
• An experience that can support the development of
  learning, logical thinking and ability to solve
  and analyze problems

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Software to Review

• Dr. Peets Talk Writer
• Waterford Early Reading Program (Pearson)
• OpenBooksLearning
• Writing to Read 2000
• Write Outloud (Don Johnston)
• KidWorks Deluxe or KidPix
• Clicker 4

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Jessicas Story (WTR Age 5)

• The Vois Inside You
• One day Jenny seid to her mom I want to do
  jimnastiks Her mom seid OK why dont you try out
  for the Olimpiks? Jennys techer was tuf. it was
  the day of the Olimpiks. Jenny was scard when it
  came to her tern. Then she herd a vois it seid
  you can do it. Jenny ran to the beem.
• She did a back flip the vois cep saing you can do
  it. Then it came agen you can do it. She one
  the Olimpks

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Classroom Integration

• Six networked computers/Internet
  connections/Teachers Computer
• Computers integrated in writing process all day
  long
• 88 Classroom writing ideas in Creating the Early
  Literacy Classroom (Casey)
  

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Pre-school Teachers

• Model reading, writing and daily use of computer,
  understand how to inspire and encourage children
• Understand about providing writing and reading
  experiences for at-risk students
• Understand the needs of on-target students as
  well as those leading the way and living in a
  technology household

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Power of PBS Communication

• Ready to Learn resources for Parents and Teachers
  need to be a part of home-school communication at
  every school and in all teacher training
• Generations of learners, because of programs like
  Schoolhouse Rock, can recite the Preamble of our
  Constitution. Now we need new programs like this
  that highlight how young children can use the
  technology as a tool to write, read and learn.
• PBS should show children, parents and teachers
  the value of computer technology in literacy
  development.

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Leadership

• PBS Ready to Learn - The next step Children as
  Authors
• Collaboration between university and K-12
  educators, parents and media to give voice and
  literacy to all preschool children
• Human beings learn through interest and need to
  know. They need role models that inspire them and
  tools that empower them to become literate.

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Inspiring Friends to Use the Computer

• Federal mandates like Good Start, Grow Smart have
  demonstrated great success with 3 and 4 year olds
  literacy.
• Preschool is a gift for a lifetime.

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Literacy Success for All Learners

• Anthony (Age 10, Gr. 5), Poor eye-hand
  coordination
• Brandon (Age 6, Gr. 1), Poor eye-hand
  coordination
• Codey (Age 5, Kdg), Teacher labeled him a
  low-low
• David (Age 6, Gr. 1), Diagnosed A.D.H.D.
• Jessica (Age 5, Kdg), Motivational Writer
• Libby (Age 5, Kdg), Gifted, GATE

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Remember

• One hundred years from now it will not matter
  what kind of car you drove or the sort of house
  you lived in.
• But the world may be different because you were
  important in the life of a child.
• Education is not the filling of a pail, but the
  lighting of a fire. (W. B. Yeats)

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Dr. John Henry Martin

• The computer can give the learner the worlds
  most beautiful feeling, the Greek Eureka I got
  it, I know it, I can see it, I can understand it!
  Thats a transforming feeling to be awakened
  from dormancy, from sadness to strength, to
  dignity. I can write, I can read!

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Where to get more information

• Early Literacy The Empowerment of Technology by
  Jean M. Casey, Ph.D. (Revised Edition 2000) ISBN
  1-56308-458-9
• Creating the Early Literacy Classroom by
  Jean M. Casey, Ph.D. (2000) ISBN 1-56308-712-X
• jeancasey_at_aol.com
• www.csulb.edu/jmcasey