Educational Application of Word CEP 810 The use of Word for educational purposes is endless. This document explains why (problem of practice & rationale for making a difference) and how (strategy for using this document & strategy for assessing students’ work) students will create an invitation card.
The problem of practice this document is addressing. Nowadays, it’s very hard to find students with neat handwriting. It’s true that handwritten invitation cards tend to be more personal, yet the word processor helps students edit their work without the hassle of tearing paper and doing things all over again, which is frustrating.
The rationale for why this document will make a difference. Using Word to create an invitation card will help make a difference in 2 areas:
Presentation:
An invitation card definitely looks better and more ‘inviting’ when typed on a word processor. Students can insert pictures, change the font style and colors, and do all sorts of tricks to change the way the card looks.
Time:
The beauty of a word processor is the time it saves when editing is needed (which is almost always the case). Students can delete, add, and change the information without having to rewrite the whole card.
Engagement:
With a word processor, a teacher is much more likely to engage students in the process of writing an invitation card. Students get to use technology to produce a document that can be useful in real life. What else can be more motivating?
Strategy for using this document. The process of creating an invitation card is done in this order:
Students think of a purpose for the invitation card: birthday party, visit to a museum, camping, lunch/dinner. Students are introduced to the layout of an invitation card; they are taught where to write and what information to include in each of the following areas: address, date, greeting, body of the letter, closing statement, salutation & signature.
Created by: Jean-Claude Aura
Date: October 26, 2008
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Educational Application of Word CEP 810
Students are taught how to edit the appearance of the card by inserting and formatting pictures, including borders, centering the script and changing the font style, size and color. Students are taught how to proofread the card using the ‘spell check and grammar’ option. Students are taught how to use mail merge to send the invitation card to multiple recipients. Students are taught how to change the printer’s settings to get an appropriate print out of the card. Students are taught how to save the card for easy future retrieval. If necessary, students are taught how to insert a chart for a more organized aspect of the venue, time and day details.
Strategy for assessing student work Students are assessed based on the criteria below:
Have the students decided on a purpose for the card prior to getting started? Are the students familiar with the layout of an invitation card: is all the information in the correct place? Are the students able to manipulate pictures easily enough to get the desired outcome? Can they change the position of a picture? Can they change the font style and colors to suit their needs? How efficiently do the students use the ‘spell check and grammar’ option? Do they still have spelling mistakes and basic grammar mistakes? Are the students able to create a list of all the recipients they intend to send the invitation card to? Are the students struggling to get the desired printed outcome (portrait / landscape / colored)? Have the students saved their card in a place easy enough to find for future retrieval? Have the students managed to create a table for a better organization of the card details?
Created by: Jean-Claude Aura
Date: October 26, 2008
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Educational Application of Word CEP 810 Summary Just like we all do things for a reason, students too need to understand the reason behind creating an invitation card using a word processor. Once they understand that need, combined with the joy of using Word’s endless features to perform practically any task, students won’t want to create an invitation card otherwise. I’ve even had students come to me with other invitation cards they themselves have designed; and that’s how I could really and truly assess the success of that very first activity that stimulated their desire and enthusiasm to further better their skills, that is this document.
Created by: Jean-Claude Aura
Date: October 26, 2008
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