Online Projects, Collaboration Sites and Publishing Opportunities

Lesson Idea Name: Reflecting on Photosynthesis and Cellular Respiration

Content Area: Biology
Grade Level(s): 9th-12th grade
Content Standard Addressed:
SB1. Obtain, evaluate, and communicate information to analyze the nature of the
relationships between structures and functions in living cells.
e. Ask questions to investigate and provide explanations about the roles of photosynthesis and
respiration in the cycling of matter and flow of energy within the cell (e.g., single-celled
alga).
(Clarification statement: Instruction should focus on understanding the inputs, outputs, and
functions of photosynthesis and respiration and the functions of the major sub-processes of
each including glycolysis, Krebs cycle, electron transport chain, light reactions, and Calvin
cycle.)

Technology Standard Addressed:

2. Communication and collaboration
Students use digital media and environments to communicate and work collaboratively, including at a
distance, to support individual learning and contribute to the learning of others.
a. Interact, collaborate, and publish with peers, experts, or others employing a variety of digital
environments and media

Selected Online Project/Collaboration Site/Publishing Opportunity: Padlet

URL(s) to support the lesson: https://padlet.com/llayfie2/pcr

Describe how you would incorporate an Online Project/Collaboration Site/Publishing Opportunity in your
classroom:
In my classroom, using online projects/collaboration sites/publishing opportunities will be seamlessly
integrated into the routines and procedures of the course. I think it’s important for students to be able to (1)
get the content delivered in a different way than just myself and (2) help one another grasp the content. The
rule three before me makes more sense to me now as a teacher candidate. Collaboration skills and being able
to work with others in a team setting is a very important life skill and I think that providing students with
opportunities to do this in the classroom will provide them with early access to obtaining this skill.

Allowing students to use publishing opportunities in the classroom is really important, as well. I think students
should have an outlet to share their work with others around the school and possibly state/nation. This
provides students with further motivation to complete the assignment with dignity and not just a grade. It
requires that students delve into the topic and really reflect on what they’re provided with.
What technologies would be required to implement this proposed learning activity in a classroom?
Students will be able to access and edit this Padlet using a computer/laptop or handheld smart device.
Describe how the following features are addressed in this learning experience (note: all of them may not be
addressed in the project, but most should be if you are reaching a high LoTi Level).
a. Collaboration with peers, near-peers, mentors outside their classroom and often beyond their
school: Using programs like Google Drive and other educational collaboration sites allows students to
work together as they create their original products.

b. Student-centered learning and knowledge creation (creating original data and or producing original
products as a result of engaging in a project): Through using online projects, students will be able to

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 Online Projects, Collaboration Sites and Publishing Opportunities
participate in mass data-collection and analyze this data to create things such as graphs, charts, and
other ways to represent the data.

c. Higher-order thinking: This requires students to not only know the information and be able to
regurgitate it, but apply the concepts learned to a new environment. The application stage of
completing activities provides higher-order thinking.

d. Students publishing their original work to others who will use/care about their product: This gives
students a sense of pride and accomplishment. Understanding that their work will be used for others
to view that care could provide better discourse and better results than would normally turning in a
worksheet for a grade to the teacher.
Bloom’s Taxonomy Level(s):
☐ Remembering ☐ Understanding ☒ Applying ☐ Analyzing ☐ Evaluating ☐ Creating

Levels of Technology Integration (LoTi Level):

☐ Level 1: Awareness ☐ Level 2: Exploration ☒ Level 3: Infusion ☐ Level 4: Integration
☐ Level 5: Expansion ☐ Level 6: Refinement

Universal Design for Learning (UDL):

The technology tool selected for this lesson is Padlet, a program that a creator creates columns and
responders add responses to each column in a sticky-note fashion.
Engagement: This lesson was also designed so that outcomes are authentic, communicate to real audiences
(their classmates and those outside the classroom) and are purposeful (helps students understand the
processes of photosynthesis and cellular respiration).
Representation: This lesson shows a different representation of the information rather than the detailed
diagrams that we have been providing students within the past.
Action and Expression: Students will use multiple means of communicating the processes of photosynthesis
and cellular respiration from what they’re used to and extend to this online version.
Lesson idea implementation and Internet Safety Policies:
Implementing this learning experience does not require students to sign up or reveal their identity in the
online environment. There are settings in the Padlet that allow the creator to monitor and approve comments
and posts to ensure that students are not posting inappropriate things on the classroom discussion based the
columns prompted there.
Reflective Practice:
I feel like the activity will help students summarize the processes of photosynthesis and cellular respiration
more than just understanding each step and the details of each. Sometimes, students get caught up in the
details that they lose sight of the big picture. There are a series of technology tools like virtual labs that
students could participate in to further extend this lesson.

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