Updated Course Proposal with WEB TOOLS

Phonological Awareness 101

“Phonological Awareness is a broad skill that includes identifying and manipulating units of oral language – parts such as words, syllables, and onsets and rimes.” - "Phonological and Phonemic Awareness." Reading Rockets. N.p., n.d. Web. 11 June 2014.

Course Description:

This course is designed for students who are potential Primary-level teachers or those current teachers who could benefit from a better understanding of phonological awareness, its purpose and effective means to teach these skills to young learners.

Course Duration: 8 Weeks (2 Weeks per Module)

Course Objectives:

Students will:  

1. Demonstrate a practical understanding of phonological awareness and its usefulness to beginning readers.
2. Evaluate various phonological awareness strategies/activaties and determine their effectiveness.
3. Design phonological awareness instruction. 
4. Examine phonological awareness assessment/progress-monitoring tools for effectiveness. 

Course Activities:


Students will:

• Read scholarly articles regarding phonological awareness and respond in the form of discussion board posts.  Elaborate and respond to posts by colleagues. (Objectives 1, 2, 3, 4)
• Create educational materials to share with parents/families. (Objective 1)
• Research phonological awareness activities and evaluate their usefulness. (Objective 2)
• Develop an authentic lesson aligned to Common Core State Standards that focuses on a phonological awareness skill.   (Objective 3)
• Design a gaming experience that can be used during a classroom lesson centered on phonological awareness instruction. (Objective 3)
• Administer a phonological awareness assessment and illustrate its effectiveness. (Objective 4)
• Create a culminating presentation that will demonstrate gained knowledge to co-workers. This should include a technology component, informational handouts, etc.

Assessment:

All activities will be assessed using scoring rubrics. As a long-time student, I have always appreciated a good, thorough rubric because it eliminates unneeded worry (by the student) about teacher expectations. All assignments (included discussion board posts) will be accompanied by a scoring rubric.

Module 1: What is Phonological Awareness? (Objective 1)

• Read Article “Phonological Awareness is Child’s Play.”  Take a stance on the following statement in a discussion board post: Is phonological awareness important to developing good readers? Why? Is it possible to be a good reader without these experiences?
• Respond and elaborate on at least two posts by fellow teachers.
• Create a flyer or newsletter for parents that:
  • Describes phonological awareness and its importance to students.
  • Demonstrates the parents’ role in development of phonological awareness.
  • Possible activities for use by parents/care givers.
  • Resources for parents to use to help nurture their child’s phonological awareness.  
• Multiple Choice Quiz regarding Phonological Awareness
   
  Module 2:  How Can I Teach Phonological Awareness? (Objective 2)
  

• Research various activities that can be used to teach phonological awareness. Choose one activity for each of the skills below.  Practice the activity with a child (age 4-6). Report your findings in a compiled presentation using Prezi.  For each activity, describe: the process, the student response, the Teacher response and the outcome of the activity.  Do you think it was effective? Would you use it in your classroom? Demonstrate at least two of the activities during a video to include in the presentation for classmates to view.
  Skills:
  • Rhyming
  • Syllable Counting, Blending or Segmentation
  •  Phoneme Blending or Segmentation
  • Word Discrimination
  • Onset & Rhyme
• Discussion Board Post: Choose the activity you found to be the most effective. Share it with fellow teachers. Briefly explain the process, your experience when practicing it with a child and why you chose to share it.
   
  Module 3: Designing Phonological Awareness Instruction 
  

• Discussion Board Post: Should explicit phonological awareness instruction be required in all Pre-school/Kindergarten classrooms? Defend your position with evidence and real-life examples.
• Design a KTIP lesson plan that focuses on one or two phonological awareness skills. The lesson should last between 30 to 45 minutes and include an interactive gaming experience from What2Learn that focuses on one of the learning objectives.  
• Teach the designed lesson plan and write a 3-page reflection about the experience.
   
  Module 4: Phonological Awareness Assessment
  

• Read “Assessment and Instruction in Phonological Awareness.” Respond to the following prompt: Is assessment of phonological awareness important? Why or why not?
• Conduct phonological awareness assessments on four students. The first two students should be assessed using the ESGI software. The other two should be assessed using the PAST test. Report results and write a two-page reflection that compares/contrasts the two assessment measures.  
• Final Project: Create a presentation that includes information that can be shared with co-workers to improve Phonological Awareness instruction within your school. This presentation must include: a technology component, informational handouts, accessible resources, etc.  

Course Media Tools:

1.  Voice Thread:  This web tool will be used during the discussion posts within each Module. It is a traditional discussion area that incorporates video and voice recording capabilities.  I chose this tool because it allows students to communicate ideas in a more authentic and personal manner.  Information is retained more easily when it is presented in this way.
2.  Prezi: This presentation creator will be used by students to present their phonological awareness activities from Module 2 to their classmates. This is a very effective presentation tool that combines enticing graphics with unique transitions.
3. Smore:  Smore is an online flyer-creator that allows users to create super-simple and stunning informational flyers. Students will use this tool during the creation of an informational flyer/newsletter to share with parents. It simplifies the process of flyer creation and allows the information to be shared digitally.
4. What2Learn:  This web tool allows Teachers to use and create online interactive gaming experiences for students. Pupils within this course will be required to create a unique gaming experience that focuses on a phonological awareness skill within their lesson. I chose this tool because it is unique and it provides a highly engaging learning environment for young children.
5. Slide Share:  This presentation creator will be used by students to create their final project that is to be shared with their co-workers during a PD or Growth session. This tool allows users to create vivid and enticing slide shows with incredible graphics and features.  It will enhance the course by providing students with a great means of presenting their gained information to others.