SAG

__** Student Advisory Group (SAG) **__

We have a group of students from three different high schools who have been provided an opportunity to have a voice when it comes to their learning and technology use in the classroom. We affectionately call our group SAG. There are 15 students and 2 teacher advisors who are involved in this unknow and exciting process.

**__The Concept__** Superintendent of Learning of Prairie South School Division, Lori Meyer, initiated the SAG group. She believed that there was a need for student voice when it comes to middle years and high school learners. The vision for the group started in November with her contacting Brett Young and Tana Rowe to be the teacher advisors.

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This video was made using a cell phone.


 * __ Our first meeting __** was to gain trust and to share what adults want from this group of grade 9 and 10 students. After that it was the adults job to step back and let the experts work. Those experts were the students. They know best of how they want to learn. Yes, all learners are different but it has been many years since this group of teachers have been 14 and 15 years old. We talked a lot with the group on the use of cell phones as this is a technological tool that is attached to their hands 24/7. Why not try to use what they are already using to broaden their learning? We left this meeting asking them to think of ways we can use our cell phones in the classroom.


 * __ Our second meeting __** we ate food (which is important to the teenage brain) and discussed different ways that they thought about using their cell phones. Their answers were pretty simple... use it as a calculator, Google, calendar, or text someone for information. We left this meeting with a task. Ask one of the teachers you trust if you can use your cell phone in their classroom for a specific task. We also started our FB group to use it as communication tool between meetings. This was the student idea not the adult idea. This meeting lacked a little luster. Pretty predictable. What was evident was that students didn't know how to think for themselves when it came to their education. They sat back and waited for us as teacher to tell them what to do. There was a lot of wait time... making us think as teachers that we needed to bail them out.... but we didn't. We fought every teacher urge to take control over the situation.




 * __ Our third meeting __** we ate food, again, and discussed how their chosen teacher responded to their request to use their cell phones in their learning environment for a specific task. Out of the three high schools only one group with one teacher found success. The other two groups were blocked with a ”no” from the teacher and no explanation of why they couldn’t. Through discussion it was interesting to hear that students could use iPods but not iPhones. Why is that? The group decided that it was the word “phone” that spooked the teachers to allow cell phone use. We talked about the fear that teachers have in using cell phones and how they are perceived as a distraction to learning. As adults we voiced how teachers do not want to look unknowledgeable when it comes to their classroom. They want to appear they are in “control” of every aspect of their space. Our SAG members then went on and taught us all the underground use of their cell phone in their classes. We learned that students use their cell phones as “note passing devices” known as texting. This wasn’t a surprise how they are constantly using them right under the teacher’s nose. Teachers think they are “controlling” the cell phone use but they are blinded to what is actually happening. Another example came up with use of the internet. A student asked their teacher to use their iPhone to look up information for a class project. The teacher said no and they needed to walk down a flight of stairs and go into the computer lab to get the information. What happened was the student walked out of the classroom and around the corner and looked up the information on his iPhone, then walked back into the classroom as if he had been to the lab. The student then posted his frustration of slow computers on our groups FB page.

A question that was brought up by the students is, "why teachers are allowed to use their cell phones in class?" Students perceived that teachers are always texting their friends during class time. Another puzzling question that came up is, "why are students allowed to use mp3 devices (aka iPods) but not able to use their phones?". With apps today, texting is possible on their iPods, but teachers are not aware of this.

What challenges came out of meeting is to have the students create some sort of information session for each of their high schools to be presented at a staff meeting. Students decided to look at the “underground” use of cell phones, confront it and provide different ways teachers can use cell phones to enhance their learning. They brought up the idea of creating a video to provide information for their teachers. What was cool… they want to use their phones to create their presentation. As a teacher I was thinking video camera. I was not thinking use the thing that teachers are trying to ban. Again students are showing that they are brilliant. We just need to step back as teachers and realize it. The end of the meeting was very positive. There was a sense of purpose to what they wanted to accomplish. Students were pumped to be able to educate the teacher!



**__Our fourth meeting__** took place at Peacock Collegiate. The goal of the meeting was to have the students divide into groups to tackle a presentation for their teachers. The group decided to talk about 1) Underground use of their cell phone and technology 2) How teachers can use technology to cover SLO’s 3) Feedback from teachers and students on what they like and dislike about technology. The rest of the meeting was spent using the iPods and iPads, that Mrs. Meyers so graciously acquired for our groups use.



**__Our fifth meeting__** took place at Peacock Collegiate. This was a different than our other meetings. The goal today is to create a presentation that the students will use to communicate to their teachers. The three areas of 1) Underground Cell Phone use 2) Positives on how Teachers and Students can use cell phones in the classroom and 3) Teacher's perspectives on cell phones in their classrooms.  Our journey is only beginning; even though we are we are creating a presentation for staff of the Prairie South School Division. Using project based inquiry learning (PBIL) students are discovering why teachers may be hesitant to have cell phones used on a regular basis in their classrooms. They are also using their voice to share with educators why using cell phones are a valuable tool to their learning. Cell phones are enhancing the classroom not hindering learning.
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** Reflection of our morning adventure ** It took the SAG advisors to help the students with convincing staff it is ok to talk about cell phones in their classrooms. It was interesting that some teachers who were asked their opinion on cell phones in the classroom refused to answer on camera. In our opinion, teachers who are not comfortable with technology do not want to put themselves in a vulnerable position to talk about gadgets. Those teachers who are actively using iPods, iPads, computers, cell phones, etc… were the first in line to talk to our SAG group.


 * The question the advisors had are these**… What are teachers afraid of? Why is the thought of moving into the 21st century intimidating?

** What is fun for the advisors ** … Watching students create. Having a student break into the room and state “I am an awesome movie maker”. Watching students ask each other how to complete a task on iMovie. Giving over the control to the students, who are the ones that should have control over their learning. Watching students from three different high schools build community. Watching students share what happens in their school. Just watching students share learning!!!!!

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 * Observations from our SAG group ** … There are a lot of teachers that don’t know about their phones and students know more about their uses. That teacher is afraid of cell phones because of texting. Teachers are for use of cell phones but do not like how students text. That the amount of students who are actually texting in class when their teacher doesn’t know it. How easy it is for students to hide their phone by using books or papers to hide their phone. It is different from school to school. That some teachers are so behind in their use of technology that students are surpassing them.


 * Use of Cell Phones in Classroom Tweets **

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 * SAG Teaser Trailer for Video **


 * Our SAG students Quest for Knowledge about Cell Phones in the Classroom **

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 * Our Exit Interview Questions with the SAG group on what they learned during the course of this process **

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**__Moving Towards 21st Century Learning Wordle__**
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Our 2012 Spring journey is slowly coming to an end. Each group presented to their highschools. But before they did their presentation a few things needed to happen. Each school group went over their presenation with an administrator to make sure they were ready to go and their administrator was aware of the content of the presenation. Our administrators were awesome and supported this adventure with whatever we needed.
 * __Planting the Seed for the 2012-2013 School Year __**

Here is one of our members presenting to their teachers.

 Although our students were nervous during their presenation the reactions from their teachers was awesome! Each school also emailed their teachers with the students contact information and wiki address if they wanted more informaiton or just wanted to ask the students questions.

__**Our Final Meeting**__ -

Our final meeting took place June 19, 2012. The purpose of this meeting was to debrief on the SAG experience. We had each of the schools share their presentation experience. Although each school had the same presenation their experience was not the same. One schools teacher's created a discussion that took the presentation and turned it into a debate over cell phones in general. The second highschool, which has been having a lot of cell phone discussion, took the opprotunity to share their thoughts on the discussion that has been happening through out the year. The third highschool really just applauded the students on their well organized efforts.

Our students felt their goal of "planting the seed" for the 2012-2013 school year was accomplished.

When going around the room discussing what the SAG group learned and enjoyed over the 6 months of meeting, the number one response was working with people from different schools. Not only are they sharing their love of technology, they are learning to work in cohesive groups for a common goal.

We are looking forward to see what next year's journey will bring us. The SAG group has decided to work on creating two workshops. One will focus on the teacher and how they can incorporate cellphones into the classroom for learning purposes. The second will target students and how they can use their cellphones responsibily in a learning environment.