Bird Rap Video

Discovery, discovery, discovery! I think this video excelled at many levels. The instructor provided a lesson plan that went above and beyond what the students learned about songbirds. The students learned how important it is to site sources. The students learned collaboration in a group (other scientists). The students were given the opportunity to learn about several technological devices to aid them in discovery (hand held computers, video cameras etc...). Here the instructor went a step further in that she only taught each group how to operate one device. Many studies confirm that by explaining a procedure (how to use, in this case) one is more likely to retain the learned concept. By leaving the students to teach each other the instructor enacted a powerful learning tool. The students learned how to create a spreadsheet. The students learned how to persuade, speak to an audience and most importantly, the students learned to ask why. All of the above does not even begin to encompass the technology that was intertwined in every step throughout the lesson. I truly did not notice any weaknesses, maybe because the class was science and I am biased on the subject. One would only have to see the part of the video where the students gave a presentation to know that, whatever the discipline was, the students learned the intended and had fun doing so. Bravo, Laura Lee