Project Proposal

For my project, I intend to illustrate ways in which graphic novels and comic books may be used in conjunction with pre-existing curriculum through the use of technology. Thus, this mini-course is designed for instructors of English Adolescent Education. Although all examples of curriculum alignment will be made using Grade 8 requirements, the techniques that will be utilized will be by no means exclusive to that grade level.

Project Topic:

Integrating Sequential Art into an English Language Arts Curriculum

Needs Assessment

Instructional problem: Graphic novels and comic books are used infrequently in schools. Although there can be many reasons for this, I believe that one of the main reasons is that they do not receive the credit they deserve as a form. This is in large part due to instructors not knowing how to properly incorporate them into an ELA curriculum.

Content: ELA instructors will learn how to effectively integrate the use of graphic novels and comic books into curriculum.

Analysis of Learners: The participants in this mini-course will be English Language Arts Educators at the Secondary Level from New York State. They will be of a mixed demographic in terms of grade level within the secondary heading, years of teaching experience, gender, age, and education (i.e. participants will be mixed between those with Bachelor's degrees and those with graduate degrees). They have all had experience operating under the NYS ELA Standards and have developed curriculum accordingly. Additionally, the participants are motivated and will be readily engaged.

Instructional Context: This course will occur entirely online through the use of a Wiki and a multimedia approach to learning. The course will use a multimedia approach to establish a basic understanding of sequential arts, its benefits in the classroom, and how it may be integrated into curriculum. The content will be divided up into three units, each of which is constructed towards the ends of the participants achieving the target learning outcomes for course. Additionally, each unit contains unit-level objectives which also work towards this end. There is both supporting and essential prerequisite material for each unit, as well as for the course as a whole. Each unit will be constructed such that it will begin by listing out the objectives for that unit, followed by an overview of the topic, as well as activities to provide formative assessment of the given objectives. Each unit will end with some form of summative assessment of the unit's objectives. After completing the course, the students will then be required to submit as summative assessment for the course that asks them to design and submit a one-week unit plan that utilizes effective sequential arts instruction.

The lessons have been designed to focus on a student-centered environment. In particular, metacognitive skills such as self-assessment and monitoring one's own comprehension to address breakdowns will be crucial skills for the learners in this course to possess.

Task Analysis

Performance Objectives

After taking an online mini-course using a Wiki format, the participants will be able to:

identify the distinguishing features of sequential art
identify the benefits of sequential art in an English Language Arts classroom
generate a unit plan that integrates sequential art into an English Language Arts curriculum

Prerequisites

Essential Prerequisites

The ability to develop unit and lesson plans that meet NYS ELA standards
Basic computer and internet literacy
The ability to communicate clearly and effectively using the conventions of standard English
Knowledge of effective pedagogical strategies in the ELA classroom

Supporting Prerequisites:

Receptiveness to new information and ideas

Sequencing

Unit 1: What is Sequential Art?

Target Objectives - Participants will:

1. Define, recall, and apply key vocabulary items

2. Identify vocabulary items when analyzing a page of sequential art

3. Develop a rudimentary understanding of the history and cultural significance of sequential art

Unit 2: Why is Sequential Art Beneficial in the English Language Arts Classroom?

Target Objectives - Participants will:

1. Identify, recall, and explain the motivational, linguistic, and literacy benefits of sequential Art

Unit 3: How can I Successfully Integrate Sequential Art into My Curriculum?

Target Objectives - Participants will:

1. Identify the NYS ELA Learning standards that a sequential arts curriculum applies to

2. Become familiar with existing resources for sequential arts instruction

Summative Assessment - Unit Plan

Target Objectives - Participants will:

1. Using knowledge gained from the previous units, develop a lesson plan focused on sequential art that is in line with the previously stated benefits, appropriately addresses the NYS ELA learning standards, and properly utilizes at least five sequential art vocabulary items.

Instructional Curriculum Map

Media:KurtICM2.pdf

Methods and Rationale

The framework that I will utilize in this course, made up of constructivist epistemology, reader-response pedagogy, and nondirective methodology, derives from my fundamental principles of a participant centered classroom where participants are encouraged to bring their own cultural and personal backgrounds to the reading and discussion of texts.

My first fundamental principle, that is, a desire for a largely participant-centered classroom is founded in a constructivist epistemology. A participant-centered classroom can be classified as a constructivist philosophy because in a constructivist epistemology, “all knowledge is a matter of interpretation” (Hinchey 45). Therefore, an educational model in which all participants in the classroom share responsibility for the discussion is far superior because twenty learners sharing responsibility for a discussion could very well, and hopefully would, yield twenty different perspectives, or in this case, assign twenty different meanings to the same fact. In order to effectively use a participant-centered teaching philosophy, making use of a nondirective teaching model is bestbest. According to Bruce Joyce, the nondirective teaching model’s primary focus is on “facilitating learning” (Joyce et. al. 271). When considering cultural values, a nondirective teaching model is extremely effective because allowing the participants share an equal amount of the “responsibility for the lesson” does not discourage participants from learning as themselves (Joyce 273). In other words, a participant centered classroom encourages participants to develop their own perspectives on the material, thus making having participants varying cultural backgrounds somewhat beneficial to the lesson as it ensures varying perspectives. Additionally, in an on-line course such as this, a participant-centered virtual classroom is an absolute necessity because the instructors ability to control or direct a discourse is limited at best. Thus, as instructor, facilitation is of key concern.

My second fundamental principle is a belief in a classroom where participants are encouraged to bring their own cultural and personal backgrounds to the reading and discussion of texts. This ideal derives from a constructivist epistemology and is rooted in reader-response pedagogy. Reader-response pedagogy, according to Hinchey, is a pedagogy in which participants “own experience and background” must be “central concerns” (Hinchey 76). In other words, in reader-response pedagogy, especially in literature, participants are to read a text and then relate to it through their own experiences and understanding rather than simply taking the text at face value as the gospel truth. The social and educational goals for participants of my framework are directly related to my belief in a reader-response pedagogy that can only grow in effectiveness based on current cultural trends. In regards to globalization in the current historical moment, immigration has once again moved to the forefront of public policy in the United States largely due to the tremendous influx of immigrants in the past few decades. This massive immigration has lead, and continues to lead, to an increasingly diverse pool of learners in the American school system. Therefore, an educational pedagogy is needed that not only accepts diverse learners, but embraces them. In order for a reader-response pedagogy to perform to its maximum capacity, participants must be confident and comfortable enough to bring their whole self into the readings and subsequent discussions. This includes gender, ethnicity, and cultural and socioeconomic backgrounds. The fact that participants from not only different cultural and ethnic backgrounds, but also different economic background, will be engaging in discussion where all points are equally valid provides relevance to the current historical moment in regards to economic trends. Therefore, in a reader-response pedagogy, participants being from differing backgrounds is not only sufficient, but rather, crucial to maximizing lesson potential as the varying participant backgrounds will provide new depth and enrichment to discussions. Using nondirective methodology allows for the open-forum environment needed for a reader-response pedagogy in which participants are assigning their own meaning to facts. This notion of participants assigning their own meaning to facts based upon cultural perspective is very representative of the current historical moment in regards to post-modernism, in which the only truth is that there are no definitive truths. In regards to the social goals of my framework, the fact reader-response pedagogy will allow participants to discuss meaning through their personal experiences will, particularly in a diverse classroom of learners, increase equity and make many lessons inherently adopt a multicultural mode.

The pedagogical framework that I am utilizing has several implications in terms of practice. For example, as I am utilizing a nondirective teaching model, teacher and participant will be sharing responsibility to a discussion. However, as the teacher, I will have further responsibility as a facilitator of discussion, guiding participant development and growth (Joyce et. al. 271). This method of discussion will lend itself perfectly to reader-response pedagogy, with participant bringing their own perspective into the discussion. In order to stay in form with my curricular goals, I believe that performance based assessment is the best method. Compositions such as paragraphs, essays, and journals would be particularly favorable in an English Language Arts classroom, and therefore also with instructors of ELA, due to their nature, that is, being completely participant generated with an emphasis on thinking and then writing critically. Also, products such as research papers, stories, plays, and poems would be effective achieving the goals that my pedagogy sets forth because such products allow the participant to bring a certain degree of their personal experience to the assignment. A writing portfolio providing a sample of each of these types of work would is an excellent method of assessment because it provides a wide variety of texts to aid in assessment of the participant.

My fundamental principles of a participant centered classroom where participants are encouraged to bring their own cultural and personal backgrounds to the reading and discussion of texts leads to the framework that I will utilize in my classroom being made up of constructivist epistemology, reader-response pedagogy, and nondirective methodology. By utilizing a reader-response pedagogy, largely due to the current historical moment, that is to say, due to an ever diversifying population, participants will be able to tap into their diverse backgrounds to benefit their education. The reader-response pedagogy being utilized will require me to use a nondirective teaching method in order for the participants to have some control over where discussions lead to. Participants designing discussions, and eventually assigning personal meaning to facts signifies moreover where we are in the current historical moment, that is to say, this method very much signifies postmodernist input in that it does acknowledges the idea of multiples truths, or simply no one truth. Overall, this framework represent a relatively constructivist epistemology based on the participants being allowed the responsibility of assigning their own meaning to facts. I believe that in practice, this framework could truly make a diverse participant population comfortable in sharing cultural experiences while staying relevant to, and learning a great deal about, many wonderful pieces of literature.

In this unit, there are three models of teaching that I will be using.

References

Hinchey, Patricia H. Finding Freedom in the Classroom. New York: Peter Lang, 2004.

Joyce, Bruce, Marsha Weil, and Emily Calhoun. Models of Teaching. United States: Pearson, 2004.