TIA Sources - iPads for Research, Nicole Guevarra, Librarian, Washington High School

Washington is so very hectic this time of year. Every student and teacher is scrambling with end of the year tasks. We have EPAS, AP, and IB testing. While we prepare our seniors for graduation and college, we are hosting a series of events including College Advising Forums, FAFSA Nights, College Cafe, and Decision Day. Departments are showcasing student achievement with Cafe Night, Art Festival, and culminating research projects. Many service learning programs are taking place in and around the building. This is wonderful for our school community!

I used the iPads in the classroom for our Argumentative Literacy TIA research assignment. Washington has a focus on close text reading and argumentative writing. Three time a year every student examines a series of sources and argues a position on a given topic. Progress of the TIA (Targeted Instructional Area) scores are charted and become 10% of every class grade.

The Argumentative Literacy research assignment asked students to create their own TIA. Students browsed the internet and specific sites to get ideas for questions. Questions were to be high interest, arguable, and somewhat controversial. Students were also required to have six quality sources for consideration when determining and arguing a position. Sources needed to vary in reading levels, be a combination of text and images, and present both sides of an issue.   

We worked with Google@CPS to email themselves articles and to communicate with their teacher. For information gathering we searched Student Resources in Context database. I often teach these websites in the computer labs so using the iPads in this instance was a simple substitution. However, this lesson wouldn’t have been possible without a mobile lab. It was a good exercise for me because I am new to using iPads to teach. I was able to practice with directing the class and management of the devices. I was originally nervous that students wouldn’t stay on task with all the fun options so easily available, but they did! It was gratifying to see students excited about using iPads and as always to see students eager about learning. Giving students an opportunity for something different kept them on track and interested in navigating the database for research.