Summertime Curriculum Development

As summer is starting, many teachers are enjoying a break from the grind of developing new teaching ideas to reach their diverse student populations. However, setting up a new course using technology tools for September can take the entire summer, especially if it is starting from observations made in your own classroom. After five years in alternative education settings, I find that many high school students in all grades (9-12) lack critical thinking and basic research skills needed to make informed decisions. As adults, these students will be expected to participate in our society, making decisions that affect not only their individual lives, but oftentimes those of others as well. I am spending much of my summer vacation developing a commencement-level high school elective course that focuses on developing those research and critical thinking skills. Among the tools I am using in creating the course is the Blackboard Online Course Management System. After researching a number of computer-based course managment systems, I have found Blackboard easy to use as a supplement to my regular face-to-face classtime lessons. By placing learning links, assignments and quizzes online, I am enabling my students who miss class, but have computer access at home to stay caught up. This is a great advantage with reluctant students who often spend time in out-of-school suspension, or miss days for other reasons. Many schools use this incredible tool, and training in how to use it is available online.