CLCS Unit Lesson 2

UNIT OBJECTIVE: Educators & students will be able to discuss, question, collaborate about, and describe food allergies from an entry level point of view. As part of the collaboration, compiling basic research in order to add to the community resources will comprise their introduction to knowledge- building communities.

Cognitive Strategies for Collaboration

Why Discuss? Collaboration as a teaching technique offers advantages that may not be found in the traditional, top-down lecture manner of teaching & learning. Specifically, learning from one’s peers increases interactive contact time & frequency, especially in larger classes. Information exchanged may be more context- specific, as our peers are more likely to share similar ages & educational backgrounds. Most important, even with excellent texts, a single vantage point presented by a teacher may have less immediate application than the multi-dimensional perspective provided by a group of minds working together. In other words, if you do not develop an immediate connection with your teacher, it is likely that connection with your peers’ perspectives will provide some area in which you may relate, making the topic material more relevant to your immediate life and thus a working cognitive framework.

How to Discuss Log in to the Wiki platform using your user name & password (log in found to the upper right of your screen). Edit functions will appear on the same screen that you were reading, click on the upper most edit function listed and type your entry text; at the lower left of that screen you will find a save page function that will return your view to the screen with the edit functions listed. You have posted! Now your peers will be able to read, and edit, what thoughts you have entered. If you make substantial entries, you may wish to save them in an alternate format such as word, as the edits your peers provide may not suit your long term intentions. You will then have access to your original entry for future revisions, as necessary.

What to discuss? Three topics of varying food allergies are provided for sample instructional material. Multiple references are offered for more information, which are summarized briefly in the introduction to each food allergy type. If you locate information within the references that you feel should be included within the introduction, that section is also editable and you should feel free to include those changes. With the right intentions, all collaboration, and presentation of introductory material should be as inclusive as possible!

Prior to beginning this discussion task, please answer the following:

Topic-specific metacognition: What do you know about allergies? Do any of the following food groups affect you, your family or friends? If so, how? If not, what effects do you think that they might have upon people who are affected? Please record your Initial thoughts under this link.