CurriculumAnalysis

Critique of Drug Free (iOS App)

Disclaimer: This project is very technology heavy. I used four applications just to write and video edit these presentations. If you have trouble viewing any of the material that is found on this page, please contact me immediately so that I can correct the problems. As an aside, the second video automatically plays when the page is loaded. I recommend that you Pause that video until you have had a chance to view the introduction.

Introduction: (click here if you have trouble viewing this introduction)

For the purpose of this activity and presentation, I will be demoing several tools along with my video review for you all to see. You can see my own video introduction to this material in the space to the left (recorded with the EduCreations App on my iPad).

EduCreations is a great way to create an introductory video similar to the one that I am demonstrating for you here.

For the purpose of this introduction, I wanted to ensure that all viewers had the ability to understand why I was choosing to use Glatthorn and his seven levels of curriculum as a basis for my critique. It was also important that I take a minute to explain why I am focusing on an iOS app rather than a traditional curriculum since BYOD is traditionally through of in a Device Centric manner rather than a Curriculum Centric manner.

 

 

 

Critique: (click this link if the video does not load properly: DrugFree)

The critique/analysis of the app “Drug Free” and its  use in a school setting can be found in the video to the left. As an outline of this presentation, I used the seven aspects of curriculum (as presented from Glatthorn) as a guide to walk through and demonstrate this app. I begin with a critique of the current political situation for teaching drug education in Colorado and then we examine the effects of this curriculum in both written and taught form.

In terms of the written curriculum, this app is very robust. It has features that allow teachers to edit and maintain their own courses. Each section of the app is editable and allows the teacher to turn off and disable certain features for each section or course. The written curriculum embedded within this app is designed on the principal of short instruction with immediate feedback – meaning that each section has a short instructional period followed by several questions for students to answer.

The taught curriculum within this app is highly differentiated. Students can select to begin learning at any step in the process. Each unit and lesson is self assessed, and teachers can monitor the curriculum as students progress through the material. Each student provides evidence on every lesson as to what they have learned.

The final aspect of curriculum that I want to examine is the supported curriculum with this app. Within the resources section, there are extensive studies, documentaries, pamphlets and materials for teachers and students to use. It also has an extensive teacher edition that encourages reflection and learning by the teachers administrating the program.

Overall:

I am excited by this app and would give it five stars (out of five) as a resource that can help teachers differentiate learning in a traditionally difficult subject.

Technical Note: This is the first time I have used the two programs that I used to create this review. In order to record the video, I used a program called Camtasia Studio by TechSmith. Camtasia allowed me to do screen recording of my iPad on my PC screen. The second application I used is called Reflector, which allows you to project your iPad screen using AirPlay onto a Mac or PC screen. Reflector is great for presentations and demonstrations and I would highly recommend it in an education setting. As I was doing this presentation, I had several technical issues, which you can see as you watch the videos. The audio in EduCreations picks up even the most minute sounds in the room around you. Reflector has a hard time rendering graphically intensive applications and can sometimes close unexpectedly (which did happen at one point in this presentation). I think that the technology I used is a great way to demonstrate and critique iOS applications, and I would recommend them in the future (after they continue to get a little more polish).