Dissolving Boundaries Project - NECC 2007

Met two teachers from Ireland in this session. This project is a collaboration between students in Northern and Southern Ireland to bring the two politically separate geographic areas together in a variety of projects throught the year.

They use Moodle as the framework for all the work.
Students connect in collaborative writing on wikis they have discussions using video conferencing, computer conferencing and Skype.

WIKI Project Ideas
One collaborative project is story writing. One school write the Plot and the other school writes the story. It is all done online in the Moodle Wiki.

Monster Exchange Project Idea
Another project is "Monster Exchange" which may be familiar to many of us however the Wiki technology brings a real user friendly interface. Student in one locaton draw a picture of a monster and then write a description of a monster. Only the writing is posted on the wiki. The partner school/student will draw a picture (hand or computer) from the written description. In the end both pictures are added along side the writing. Students compare pictures to see how similar and different they are and how the writing could have been edited to bring them closer together.

An intersting point was raised about the use of colors on the web site. Orange couldn't be used because it was associated with a political group from the north. Green couldn't be used for the same reason but in the South. Red, Blue and White were associated with the UK so was off limites for political reasons. These seem minor but have major implications when trying to open lines of communications.

Benefits of project:
• Very motivating, great memories from past students
• Elements of sectarianism in school – student comments reflect that they have changed their views based on the project.
• Pupil develop better skills
• Sence of repsonsiblity
• Understanding of others.

Project Web Site: http://www.dissolvingboundaries.org/index.html