Collaboration with Sandra Cortesi, Director of the Youth & Media Center from Harvard's Berkman Center, and our soon-to-be MS Leadership Council
Sandra and her Team represent a fabulous local resource! The new MS POP Initiative is an exciting follow up from her visit with the Middle School Tech Team last year and this collaboration opportunity provides a remarkable "focus" for this year's Leadership Council.
Why we are so excited?
- Opportunity to collaborate with the Berkman Center and participate in their innovative work and contribute to the center’s ongoing research
- Means to stay up-to-date on current ways that young people interact with digital media such as the Internet, cell phones, and video games, harness associated opportunities and address media challenges
- Opportunity for the Middle School students to develop as leaders
- Shape MS technology policies (rules/norms)
- Design and develop two units for the 7th and two units for the 8th grades and facilitate the instruction.
- Student-driven teaching is the most effective. Students teach each other what is most important to them (with adult framing of the conversation). A sample of student-driven topics of interest we envision:
- Privacy, reputation, and social media;
- Safety; Online relationships;
- Creativity and strategies to make student’s work more visible;
- How to use the Internet as a tool for empowerment - how the Internet can teach students anything they want to know more about;
For some quick background on the Berkman Center:
