PRODUCTION PORTFOLIO

by Kendrick LeBlanc

Foundations of Curriculum Studies I/II

Summer Institute 2005

Mount Saint Vincent University

Day 1 

What technology has re-mediated my curriculum?

Response:

One particular example that comes to mind for me is a web based tool called "mygradebook"(mygradebook.com) which I use on a daily basis.  It has revolutionized the way in which I manage my students progress especially how I manage their grades.  No longer do I have to spend countless hours calculating and recalculating final scores as was done in the past and is still done today by some teachers.  All of the calculations are done by the program.  It has been a real time saver in what seems to be a hectic profession where it is often difficult to find even a few minutes to put in students grades let alone hours to calculate them by hand.  This may not seem like a big deal to many other scholars, however this software has been invaluable to me.  

Of course, at our school we do have a software grading system that more or less does the same thing as I have mentioned, however it is not well liked by most teachers and is not very user friendly.  There are still teachers who still prefer to calculate their marks by hand.  This is great and all, however I feel that my time could be better spent enriching my curriculum and students' lives with thought provoking lesson plans that really engage the learner.

The key reason that I have chosen to use this software is due to the fact that it is so easy to use and it is web based.  All of the students that I teach are able to access their grades with the click of a mouse once they have been given a class code and password.  This software program also offers online access 24 hours a day and students are able to view updated sub totals as well as updated assignments, tests, quizzes etc... that are made available through an online interactive monthly calendar.

One thing that I have found in using this grading system is that students are continually aware of their progress in the course.  Student feedback from this software program has been nothing but positive as they wish other teachers were using this grade management tool as well.  Since I have been using this program I have also seen some students scores increase due to the fact that students say they are more conscientious about their grades as they continually know how they are progressing throughout the course.  

In sum, I do realize that "grades" are not really the best measure of a students performance and their intellectual knowledge, however in a data driven society, it has sadly become the only thing we seem to measure as student success or failure.  I believe that Ursula Franklin said it best when she speaks upon the bitsphere and biosphere and to where humans have ventured in relation to advancements in technology and where we seem to have forgotten about how we need to put more value on nature and the "environment" as we are continually destroying the biosphere as we know it. "It is salutary to remember nature's inescapable sequences, to not forget that the seed has to be in the soil before growth can begin, that the trees do not grow into the sky, the day has no more than twenty-four hours, and that the sun rises and sets regardless of political events.  Those concerned with the advancement of technology, with finding new and more encompassing ways of doing things, often underemphasize the none-negotiable embeddedness of human society in nature.  No one, individually or collectively, can separate from the biosphere.  We just can't opt out of nature."(Franklin, The Real World of Technology, p.167)