Teacher Orientation Guide

American Bar AssociationAmerican Bar AssociationDivision for Public EducationDivision for Public Education

2

It’s Nothing to LOL About: How the First Amendment Affects You in the 21st Century

Welcome to the 11th annual NOYS!• During the Teacher Orientation Period you will engage in

activities that will:– facilitate your understanding of the structure of Summit work;– help you become familiar with Fuse Talk (the software); and– prepare for student work on the Student Discussion Board.

• Orientation activities take place:– via phone conferencing– offline; and– online using FuseTalk.

• Some activities are interactive, while others are self-driven.

3

Orientation Schedule of ActivitiesActivity Date

Teachers Access FuseTalk By January 4

Registration for Online Sessions (required for new participants)

By January 5

Online Orientation Schedule January 6, 12, and 19

FuseTalk Guide: Tutorials & Exercises Prior to online session

Registering Student Users By January 15

Review of Curriculum Guide By January 22

Q & A with ABA Staff & Other Teachers (optional) January 26

Teacher Pre-Survey By January 29

4

Accessing FuseTalk• What is FuseTalk?

– Web conferencing software used by the ABA– Communication during the Summit takes place via

FuseTalk on Teacher and Student Discussion Boards.

• Login information will be sent via email by Dec 30.• Log on by January 4 to check access and to provide

sufficient time for troubleshooting. • The online forum can be accessed on the ABA NOYS

website at http://www.abanet.org/publiced/noys/ • Click in the ‘Registered Users Login” section.

5

Accessing FuseTalk1. Enter your login name (in the “Username” field) and the password (in the

“Password” field) and click “Login.”2. Check access of the discussion board from computers that students will use.3. If you experience difficulty accessing the site from any of the computers that will

be used during the summit, please consult your school’s technology professional.

FuseTalk Guide

7

FuseTalk Guide• A separate FuseTalk Guide is included as an appendix to the

Curriculum Guide. • The FuseTalk Guide:

– Is self-driven;– provides tutorials and sequential exercises to help you become

familiar with FuseTalk functions; and– provides tips for navigating FuseTalk.

• Allot approximately one hour to complete the tutorials and exercises.

• Complete activities prior to participating in an online session.

Registering Student Users to FuseTalk

9

• Teachers are responsible for setting up student FuseTalk accounts– Register each student in your class for access to the summit’s Student

Discussion Board. • An excel spreadsheet has been created to assist you. Teachers will

create student login names and passwords, and submit the excel spreadsheet to the ABA.

• After completing the spreadsheet, log onto the Student Discussion Board to open your students’ accounts and add them as users.

• The template, directions for completing the template, and directions for adding student users can be found on the Teachers Only Discussion Board, category Updates & Information, topic “Student FuseTalk Accounts.”

• By January 15, all student users must be registered and the excel spreadsheet returned via email to wendy.holtman@gmail.com.

Student FuseTalk Accounts

Managing NOYS

Teacher Discussion Board

• The Teacher Discussion Board is the primary vehicle for communication between teachers and also with the ABA.

• Weekly updates and reminders from the ABA will be provided here.• The board is a forum to share ideas and seek support from other

teachers; use it for instructional support. – If you’re looking for a source and want to know how other teachers

may have handled a particular issue raised during discussion with students, visit the Teacher Discussion Board.

– Use the Teacher Discussion Board to share great resources you have found that other teachers will find useful.

• Check the board a minimum of 2 x per week.• Please do not share your log in and password information with

students.

Student Discussion Board• Please note an important change to the set up of the Student Discussion Board -

Unlike in previous years participating schools will not have individual school categories. All student activities requiring FuseTalk will take place in Cluster Groups.

• Participating schools have been divided into 5 Cluster Groups, with 8 schools per group. Cluster groups will be numbered, ex. Cluster Group 1, Cluster Group 2, etc. (Please see slides 20 - 21 for your cluster group)

• Cross-school communication will take place in Activities 2, 3, 5, 6, and 7.

• Per activity, you will find your school’s Cluster Group category under Categories once you enter the online forum.

• Per activity, directions are provided to facilitate cluster group communication among students. Students are also encouraged to read and respond to the postings of students in other cluster groups.

• Teachers are Administrators of the Student Discussion Board. As an Administrator of the board you will be able to attach files, and as needed edit or delete an inappropriate student message.

13

Classroom Time

2009 NOYS participants reported:• Spending 7 – 10 hours per week on Summit

activities, including prep time and copying time• Devoting an average of 2 class periods per week

on Summit activities• Classroom time impacted by students’ access to

computers and the internet at home• Easily modifying activities to fit students’

abilities

Student Orientation PowerPoint

• The Student Orientation PowerPoint is included as Appendix B to the Curriculum Guide, and can also be downloaded from the NOYS website.

• Teachers will facilitate the Student Orientation as a part of Activity 1. Activity 1 is to be completed by February 5.

• The guide will provide an overview of:– Summit terms– Fusetalk, including definitions and functions– Communication tips– Our expectations for student behavior

• The PowerPoint presentation should take no more than 20 minutes to complete. Be sure to familiarize yourself with the PowerPoint before conducting your orientation session.

Student Activities Overview• Activity 2: What is Online Civil Discussion

– Five Discussion Starter Statements will be created by the ABA and posted to the student board by Feb 8

• Activity 3: Timeline of Key Events– Cluster group categories will be posted to the student board by Feb 13.

• Activity 5: Advocacy Groups and the Future of the First Amendment– Cluster group categories will be posted to the student board by March

12.

• Activity 6: Student First Amendment Rights– Cluster group categories will be posted to the student board by March

26.

• Activity 7: The First Amendment in Action– Cluster group categories will be posted to the student board by April 2.

Teacher Pre-Survey & Assignment of School Clusters

Teacher Pre-Survey

• A pre-survey has been designed to capture information about student knowledge from the teacher’s perspective.

• The link to the pre-survey will be sent to teachers via e-mail on January 7 and will also be available on the Teacher Discussion Board in the Evaluation Category under the topic “Pre-Survey.” – Surveys will be administered via Qualtrics, and the results

will be sent directly to ABA staff.

Please complete the pre-survey no later than January 29.

Cluster Group Assignments• Cluster Group 1 – Aspirations High School; Casa Richard

Academy; Hawley High School; Oroville High School; Sandra Day O’Connor High School; Sarasota Military Academy; Thomas A. Edison High School; Warren Harding High School

• Cluster Group 2 – Advanced Technologies Academy; Bishop Ireton High School; Nathan Hale-Ray High School; North Vista Alternative; Middle Park High School; OLA High School; Springfield High School; Winston Churchill

• Cluster Group 3 – Clara Barton High School; Curie Metro High School; Natomas Pacific Pathways Prep Charter; New Kent High School; Northport High School; Parkersburg High School; Peabody Magnet High; Wieland Academy

School Cluster Assignments Cont’d

• Cluster Group 4 – Blue Ridge High School; Bluffton High School; High School for Public Service; Green Mountain High School; Hinsdale South High School; Martin County High School; New London High School; West Liberty-Salem High School

• Cluster Group 5 – Ainsworth High School; Dr. Michael M. Krop Senior High School; Finger Lakes Technical and Career Center; Groveton High School; Kensington Creative and Performing Arts High School; Madison Central High School; Ridgefield High School; The Morgan School

Conclusion

• This concludes the 2010 NOYS Teacher Orientation.

• Student activities are scheduled to begin the week of February 1, 2010. Please take a moment now to review the Student Activity Timeline in the Curriculum Guide for important dates and information.

• Please post any questions and concerns you may have to the “Teachers to ABA” category on the Teacher Discussion Board.

Questions?

Contact Information

Rina ShahABA Division for Public Education

Program ManagerE-mail: shahr@staff.abanet.org

Phone: 312/988-5720

Wendy Holtman Summit Coordinator

E-mail: wendy.holtman@gmail.com Phone: 516/818.8026

American Bar AssociationDivision for Public Education321 N. Clark Street, MS 20.2

Chicago, IL 60654Phone: 312/988-5735