Page 2 Thematic Units and the Web

Meaningful Learning and Interactivity on the Web

Using the Web to promote meaningful learning is much more than simply having (a) students browse sites that have common content, (b) gather information here and there for use at some later point in time, or (c) use the Web to research a topic on their own. Planning Web activities for students with mild disabilities should include consideration of the structure of the learning, the amount of guidance the learner will receive, the activities that emphasize higher order thinking skills, and the interactivity of sites used. These principles are not exclusive of each other but work simultaneously, each influencing the other to support meaningful learning. For example, when there is no real structure to a Web-based activity, or activities/objectives are not tied to specific Web pages, students tend to jump carelessly from link to link searching for information. Before long they become lost in cyberspace, moving to or through Web sites that provide little direct information or relevance necessary for completing the original assignment. Students with learning disabilities or attention problems might end up researching a different topic altogether or be completely off task playing games. No matter how authentic or problem solving oriented an activity may be, students are sometimes only passively involved (e.g. just reading or experiencing information on a Web site) rather than taking notes, searching for, or thinking about specific information to complete a specific task. A more meaningful learning experience should be one that has students actively involved in making choices and decisions during the activity.

Interactivity should be the key principle behind meaningful learning on the Web. Interactivity can either take the form of selecting Web-sites that offer interactive student activities, or teachers using traditional methods (e.g. worksheets, small group discussions, specific projects, etc.) as a means to scaffold and connect the Web to student problem solving and related thinking and/or production-oriented activities (e.g. preparing reports, multimedia presentations, and written assignments, etc.) Table 1 provides examples of interactive Web sites in the area of math, science, language arts, and social studies.

A second and equally important principle affiliated with meaningful learning on the Web is to provide some degree of structure and organization to the unstructured universe of browsing. For example, student engagement in computer-based learning often is more meaningful when students are intrinsically motivated to learn and actively engaged in the learning process (Okolo, 2000; Grabinger, 1996). Imposing structure is an entirely different challenge, especially when the content and objectives a teacher desires the students to experience on the Web are different from those associated with a single Web site. For example, searching the Web for information to create a thematic unit on whales will reveal hundreds of sites! These sites may provide a wide variety of resources such as:

1. Whale songs: A resource for teachers, students, and whale lovers that offers lesson plans at http://www.whalesongs.org/;
2. Plans to construct " Lucy" a 55-foot inflatable whale at http://whale.wheelock.edu/whalenet-stuff/LucyPage.html;
3. Specific information on Beluga Whales at http://whales.magna.com.au/DISCOVER/BELUGA/index.html;
4. Whale facts from the Whale Club at http://www.whaleclub.com/facts/whlfacts.html;
5. Videos of Keiko the whale at Discovery.com (http://www.discovery.com/stories/nature/keikohome/videogallery.html);
Word problems with whales using thematic units found at http://curry.edschool.Virginia.EDU/go/Whales/WordProb.HTML or at http://www.EnchantedLearning.com/subjects/whales/activities/math-code/mclist.shtml.