AddressingAffectiveDomain

Addressing the Affective Domain with Teachers and Students
During the 2010 LwICT Winter Institutes, participants discussed issues related to the Affective Domain. In particular, they were asked whether and how they address those issues with staff and students and what their concerns are. They also shared strategies that worked for them and resources they have used successfully. The following is a compilation of those discussions. Some information has been supplemented, for ex. by adding URLs. We have tried to organize the information to make it easily readable.
 * ** Issues for Students (and Teachers) **
 * ** Areas to **** address **** (starting with teachers) **
 * ** Behaviours/ Strategies **
 * ** Observations **
 * ** Warnings/ Head’s up **

Issues for Students (and Teachers)
What are some very basic points or issues related to Internet, Web 2.0, social networking sites and other such resources that all users need to be aware of (and are often ignorant of), and that inform their behaviour, before they start addressing that behaviour and that of students?
 * Realize that once information is “out there” it cannot (easily) be retrieved, someone probably already has a copy
 * Realize the levels of privacy available in social networking sites, what each one means, and the potential impact for you
 * Digital information and profiles you create and share are very important and could leave you vulnerable
 * Employers research current or prospective employees or job applicants on Internet; the information/ photos you or your friends post can impact you in the future
 * Students (and many adults) don’t realize that downloading is wrong
 * Realize that definitions and social implications are different online and in real life. For ex: Who is a “friend” in Facebook? What are the age restrictions of Facebook?
 * Parental attitude is sometimes: let the kids do… the schools will teach them…
 * Parents are proud that their children are ICT savvy, but they don’t realize how “savvy” they can really be

Areas to address (starting with teachers)

 * Copyright http://lwictcopyright.wikispaces.com/
 * Ongoing PL for teachers
 * Opportunities to discuss “news items” such as cyberbullying with the whole staff so all staff have a common understanding and approach on how to talk with their students.
 * Include a timed-item in each staff meeting
 * Updates on the “latest” at staff meetings
 * Cyberbullying :
 * PBS: //The Emotional Life//. Students need to have the vocabulary to describe their experiences and feelings and assert themselves.
 * //Roots of Empathy// program for schools
 * Update parents on issues, school programs, etc. related to this
 * Downloads
 * FaceBook
 * YouTube and privacy, rights of others, implications of posting, reputation, representing self to the world

Behaviours/ Strategies
The following are miscellaneous suggestions, tips and strategies that teachers have found helpful. They are organized by level; the level indicates when it is appropriate to start using such strategies.
 * Teachers must model ethical and responsible behaviour: reference their resources, refrain from using copyrighted materials, explain proprietary rights and how they are respecting them in the materials they use.
 * Starting in Kindergarten**
 * The strategies listed below will need to be adapted appropriately to each level.
 * Appropriate behaviour is about respect. All talk about affective domain issues should include that aspect.
 * Have a clearly worded //Acceptable Use Policy//. Explain it to parents and students. Review it often
 * As a school, determine expectations for each grade level for “gradual release of responsibility” and for students taking responsibility for their actions, and clearly lay out those expectations and behaviours
 * Affective domain issues need to be addresses in an ongoing fashion throughout the year, use teachable moments as they arise, repeat often.
 * Create a climate where students feel comfortable and supported coming to you to discuss issues
 * Built in/ Infused in each lesson, activity, inquiry, done in context. Part of assessment
 * Some topics such as copyright and plagiarism need direct instruction
 * Teach/ train students to ask permission all the time, starting in K
 * Ask permission to use materials / to post a photo on Internet (ask all in photo)
 * Create assignments that do not use copyrighted materials
 * Use original student-created work
 * Gather first-hand data when possible (i.e. photo of a tree, survey conducted by students)
 * Students know when things don’t “feel” right. Teach them appropriate behaviour to “get out of” such situations.
 * “Just because you can does not mean you should”
 * Have “tech buddies” so older students can mentor younger ones


 * Starting in Middle Years**
 * Establish guidelines for appropriate behaviour first thing in the school year, for ex., in a school-wide assembly or at a special meeting of new students (i.e. in MY or SY). Repeat often, in a variety of circumstances.
 * Search yourself (teachers and students) on Google
 * Identify sites where students can get copyright-released materials (Flickr, Creative Commons, etc.) and teach students how to search them
 * “Would you show this to your grandmother?”
 * Connect to the concept of citizenship in Social Studies


 * Starting in Senior Years**
 * Use checklists that list all resources included in a project and acknowledge permissions granted
 * Get students in high school to research incidents/ issues and legal implications, for ex: downloading, copyright violations, plagiarism
 * Open FaceBook. Do a class on security settings, providing personal information, concept of network in FB, sharing of pictures, rights and responsibilities. CBC podcasts about FB
 * //Note: This is appropriate for Senior Years as the legal age for membership in FaceBook is 16 years.//
 * Use postings from the class blog to discuss what is appropriate and what is not, including moral and legal implications. This is never reviewed often enough.
 * Use what is in the news to start a discussion

Observations

 * Since people are becoming more aware of digital citizenship, they notice more the behaviours of others (students or colleagues).
 * Listening to language and content of discussion from students as indicator of whether implications of behaviours are “hitting home”
 * Behaviour of students should be observable. They need to demonstrate their own knowledge of issues and understanding of the implications in their behaviour.
 * Behaviours need to be assessed in context, not as stand alone
 * Develop a “bank” of suitable comments and language, including positive verbs, for teachers to use as they report on student behaviour in the affective domain
 * Peer and self-assessment is an important component and needs to be encouraged.

Warnings/ Head’s up

 * Pre-made lessons (i.e., Media Awareness, Internet 101) are no substitute for teaching. Teachers need to be knowledgeable and to monitor and moderate the discussions.
 * We do a disservice to our students by blocking access to certain things. Better to have access and use teachable moment to deal with the issues. Use gradual release of responsibility as criteria for the level of responsibility expected in students.
 * Punitive actions (reactive) defeat the purpose and are not effective, although they may occasionally need to be taken. Deal with issues in a proactive way and set “ground rules” upfront.
 * Perspectives of administration (local or divisional), guarded networks, statistics on “personnel use” make it harder for teachers to have sites or applications unblocked for educational purposes and create climate of mistrust and fear
 * Impossible to measure impact of issues that arise when students are at home. This is why issues need to be taught at school so students can carry appropriate behaviours with them when they leave.