6711 reflection

In my Personal Theory of Learning from week one, I emphasized student engagement. I still believe that engagement is the key to learning. This course has provided me with a toolbox of technology applications based in teaching and learning theories that will help me to actively engage my students. However, it is not about what I can do with technology, but what the students can do with the technology.

I am just beginning my career as a teacher, and am still adjusting and making improvements to some basic classroom management issues. My studies with Walden have expanded my horizons and will allow me to think outside the box as I try and solve these routine classroom dilemmas. Immediate adjustments that I am making to my teaching practice include brainstorming ways to convert teacher centered lessons to student centered lessons. And how might I integrate technology into those student centered lessons so that students are engaged in the content and using class time wisely. I am thinking of how to present content to students in the form of problems to be solved, provide them with access to the tools they need to find solutions and set specific expectations for concluding their research and presenting their information to an audience. We could use word documents or spreadsheets to analyze data. Web Quests can connect us to a world of experts in any field. Virtual field trips can take us to see places we might never have the opportunity to visit in person. Power Point, Voice Thread and Prezi allow us to share our thoughts with the world beyond the classroom through multimedia.

Long-term changes I am planning for my teaching practice include creating an on-line classroom. For example, when a student is absent, how and when do I take time to catch them up to date on the material they missed? If I had a course wiki set up, I could keep a running syllabus and have pages where the class compiles notes in the form of reference materials. I could have links to handouts so students could print out a copy of anything they missed or lost. I would like to record instructions and rubrics for class projects on Voice Thread so students would have a reference that they could consult anywhere, any time. I would like to find web-based applications like Quizlet that I could use to administer assessments that would provide immediate feedback to students and reduce the paperwork for myself.

There are a multitude of changes I could and should make to my teaching practice. It can easily become overwhelming. What I intend to do is pace myself by trying out one new idea at a time, and improve upon it through reflection until it works well. Then I will add another new idea and polish it in the same way. I also need to consider students individuality and group dynamics. What works well with one may not work with the next. And I must always remember to teach the skills behind the activities and not assume them. Teach the students to work in groups before assigning them a group accountability project. I am enjoying the process of filling my toolbox of theories and applications, and look forward to the next course. …after enjoying a little well-deserved break.

Technology for Social Learning

In this week's video on Social Learning Theories, Dr. Orey describes social learning as occurring when students are actively engaged in conversation while constructing knowledge and artifacts. Web 2.0 tools such as wikis and blogs allow users to collaborate on editing and viewing conversations and documents. What makes this technology advantageous is that the users need not be together physically in order to work and learn together. In addition to collaborating to create knowledge, building web sites and multimedia projects have the added advantage of constructing a digital artifact which can be shared with an audience outside the classroom. Working as a team with web quests to find and validate answers to questions students are operating within Vygotsky's Zone of Proximal Development. The article on Social Constructivism at the Emerging Perspectives web site states that children develop thinking abilities through interactions with adults. Through the internet, students have instant access to experts in any field and can learn from these highly qualified more knowledgeable others. Connectivism, a new theory to describe learning in the information age, is the use of technology to seek out knowledge that others are willing to share. Unfortunately, all the information on the internet is not of an academic nature, and as educators, along with teaching students to find information, we must teach them to also be critical consumers of education, capable of seeing through bias and commercialism to find the truth as it is constructed through our social interactions.

VoiceThread

Here is a link to my first attempt to create a VoiceThread. I am sharing a situation that I encounter daily in my classroom. I think it is a fairly universal situation, and constant vigilance on the part of classroom teachers may be the only cure.

http://walden.voicethread.com/share/3755404/

Constructi(v/on)ist

I completely agree with the first sentence in chapter 11 of our text which states that generating and testing hypotheses are often connected to science class. Other examples given expand the concept to include using spreadsheets for a math or accounting class, and a strategy game for history class. These ideas are great if one happens to be a science, math or history teacher. So what about foreign languages? I am completely failing to see how I could integrate generating and testing hypotheses together with technology into my classroom. Maybe I could come up with something if I contemplate the topic for another few weeks. I visited the other project-based learning resource sites listed and still failed to find an idea I thought might be incorporated into my own classroom.

The compound interest spread sheet, the acid rain experiment and the history strategy game are all examples of constructivist learning because the students are constructing meaning through experience and not creating an artifact. The spreadsheets were pre-formatted; the students did not actually create them. Nor do the students actually create the acidic water or the strategy game.

In searching the pbl-online site for project ideas for foreign language class, the only search result was for debates. I suppose that might work if the debate was conducted in English about a historical or contemporary political topic. I participated in debates using the second language in a 300 level course at the university and found the experience challenging. Debates are another example of constructivist learning; constructing meaning through experience.

One example given by Dr.Orey in this week's video that is highly flexible and adaptable to almost any subject area is a Power Point presentation. I would consider creating a presentation with Power Point to be an example of both constructivist and constructionist learning theory. The students are constructing meaning through the creation, presentation of their own, and viewing of others' projects. The students have also created a digital artifact which they can share with peers or with a larger audience outside the classroom.

Cognitivism

Our theme this week is cognitive learning theory. The assigned readings from our text, Using Technology with Classroom Instruction that Works (Pitler, Hubbell, Kuhn & Malenoski, 2007), discussed the use of questions and advance organizers. These tools are useful in that they activate the background knowledge onto which we may hope to build new information. In the course video Cognitive Learning Theories, Dr. Orey explained that it was important to make many connections between old and new information (Laureate Education Inc., 2007). Activating background knowledge gives the students an appropriate place to attach new information which will hopefully help them in recalling that information later. The piece from this same chapter about students creating an artifact in the form of a travel brochure before taking a field trip is an example of what Patricia Wolf explained in the video from week one; a hands-on experience necessary to create background knowledge where none existed before. Giving a context to support new information gained from the actual field trip. The second chapter, Summarizing and Note Taking, was about teaching students to sift through unnecessary information to find the essential ideas and major themes. I think I remember Patricia Wolf comparing the brain to a sieve which constantly filters out irrelevant input. Teaching students to purposely filter information helps make the essential material more clear; part of the first requirement for meaningful learning as given in The Theory Underlying Concept Maps and How to Use Them. The combination notes created with Power Point are an example of Paivio's dual coding hypotheses that information is stored as both images and text (Laureate Education Inc., 2007). Creating more connections increases the likelihood of the information being more easily retrievable in the future. Connections, connections, and more connections.

In our course video this week, Dr. Michael Orey explains that Behaviorist theory developed by BF Skinner is based on operant conditioning. An individual responds to the environment, and if the response is reinforced, it is more likely to be repeated in the future. Chapter 8 in our text Using Technology with Classroom Instruction that Works describes the use of rubrics with which students self-evaluate the effort they put into a course. The effort grade is then compared to a formal assessment grade. In keeping with the behaviorist theory; the teacher is trying to identify behaviors associated with effort. The effort theoretically should be rewarded in the form of a good grade on the exam. The purpose of the rubric is to bridge the gap in time and space between the effort behaviors and the student receiving the grade, which is to say that it helps the students see the correlation between the behavior and reward. If the correlation is not evident individually, it should be apparent in the form of group data. Chapter 10 in the same text gives examples of various technologies which provide drill and practice exercises to deepen understanding and proficiency. The multimedia examples include several educational games and tutorials. As learners interact with the program, they are given opportunities to respond to stimuli in the form of questions or scenarios. Correct responses are immediately rewarded with reinforcing feedback, while incorrect responses direct the learner to reevaluate their choice. The technology has the ability to meet each individual’s personal learning needs with the pace of the lesson and instant reinforcement; something that is impossible for one teacher in a traditional classroom full of students to accomplish. In both strategies, learners are being reinforced for appropriate responses, which in essence is the basis for Behaviorist learning theory. Technology assists in this process by providing more individualized reinforcement in a timelier manner.

I am now able to use blogs, wikis and podcasts. I am optimistic that I will be able to incorporate these tools in my classroom as a way to increase student engagement and collaboration. I have already begun using a wiki to coordinate the activities of my Cub Scout Pack. The knowledge I acquired through this course will assist me in using the views of current educational trends to support an argument against resistance I might encounter to implementing technology-based, student-centered activities in my classroom. The Marc Prenski articles were especially enlightening. An interesting observation I have made recently leads me to believe that although students today are familiar with using the internet, they still need plenty of guidance in interpreting the information that they find. When given questions to research, they typed the entire question instead of using key words. Then they recorded the first likely looking answer without any reflection upon whether or not the answer was feasible. Critical thinking for 21st century learners. Because I have so recently completed my undergrad work, I believe my perspective on teaching was already student-centered. Thanks especially to one of my mentor teachers who modeled an excellent example of a student-centered classroom. However as a per-diem substitute teacher I did not have the opportunity to plan activities. In my new position as a long-term sub, I am looking forward to trying out some project-based learning activities in which the students create artifacts. I am sure that as I continue my studies with Walden University, my knowledge of learning, teaching and leading with technology will continue to expand. I also plan to follow a few good educational technology blogs through my RSS aggregator. My first and most important goal is to acquire a teaching position. It is difficult to transform a classroom environment when I don’t have my own classroom. I have just taken a big step toward that goal in accepting a long-term sub position. Completing this assignment successfully will build my resume and strengthen my qualifications for a permanent position. Unfortunately, the classroom does not have an interactive white board, which would have been my first choice for starting to integrate technology into lesson planning without access to 1:1 computers. It looks like I will have to be more strategic in planning activities around the availability of the computer labs. My second goal, once I obtain a permanent position, is to implement at least one new student-centered project-based learning activity which utilizes technology each month. And in successive years, reflect upon in order to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of each activity and continually strive to engage students by allowing them to use of tools they are familiar with.

I just accepted my first long-term sub position. I don't know whether I am more excited or nervous! I am sad that the position is in another district and that I won't be socializing with my boys and their teachers on a daily basis as I have grown accustom to lately. But it will be a great experience; expanding my horizons, and my resume.

W5 podcast

For our week 5 assignment, I created a questionnaire designed to gauge students' use of technology in and out of school. I then created a voice recording of my own and several of the students reactions to the results of the survey. In the recording I forgot to include demographic information. I have no intention of re-recording so I will include the demographic information here: I interviewed 35 7th and 8th grade students in our small rural district in in a lower income region of upstate NY. Here is a link to the podcast: http://podcastmachine.com/podcasts/14169/episodes/74522

Partnership for 21st Century skills

Browsing the p21 web site, the first thing I noticed was the list of corporate sponsors. Are these companies looking for potential market shares that come with the integration of more technology in the hands of students? Or are they genuinely concerned with training the next generation of future employees? Both?

"55 percent (of employers) say schools are deficient in preparing students with basic employability skills (such as attendance, timeliness and work ethic)" Who is responsible for teaching young people these skills? Is the school system really to blame? I think parents have, or should have, much more influence over these factors than the school. So is it the school not preparing students for the workplace, or the parents not preparing their children to be productive members of society?

I think that concepts presented on this website are definitely geared toward redefining public education to better fit the needs of the future. I wish I had the opportunity to try out some of the concepts in my own classroom, but I don't have a classroom. At this point, all I can do is sit and watch what the tenured teachers are doing and wonder how it fits into this initiative, or if it even does at all.

For Josh: I have not been ignoring your comment, I just got busy and a little behind on work this week but I think I am getting back on track now. To fill the rest of you in: For our week two discussion topic, I made a statement about our responsibility as educators being to teach students to be wise consumers. Technology is great, but it can be expensive and maybe having the newest fastest gadget is not more important than paying the bills. So then Josh and I made some comments back and forth. I proposed that I could live without my cellphone, and dared Josh to convince me that cellphones are completely necessary (especially for adolescents). Josh then asked me if I use my phone to listen to podcasts. Well, the answer is no. Although I admit that I should. A couple years ago my college professors suggested that it would be a good way to practice my Spanish listening skills. I did look into podcasts back then, although it was a while ago. I remember that I was intimidated by the "subscribe" button. I wanted to download just one podcast to see if I liked it. I was afraid I would become forever subscribed to podcasts that I no longer cared to receive. Then at that time I was still using dial-up. It would have taken a day and a half to download one podcast. Yes, I live in a very rural area and even in NY, USA, there are still places without access to broadband or cable internet. I currently have sattelite internet, which is a small step up from dial-up but a long way from cable or broadband.

My blog is blocked because it has been flagged as possible SPAM? or a terms of use violation? I only created this thing because it was part of a class assignment and now I am under cyber arrest? Really?

In our course video for this week, “Blogging in the Classroom”, Cathy Martin explained how she used a blog as a forum in which students used critical thinking skills to respond to hypothetical historical situations. I really like that idea and would use a Blog in my own class to present a similar scenario. In my high school Spanish courses, I could ask students to put themselves in the place of various oppressed peoples throughout the history of Latin America or Spain and encourage a discussion that would cause them to view history from a perspective other than that which is written in the text books. These are fascinating topics that are aligned with the LOTE “Cultural Understanding” Standards which never seem to get enough attention throughout the school year because the real focus is generally on language acquisition. Maybe, if we were lucky enough, a person with firsthand knowledge of the topic we are discussing might find our blog, join in our conversation, and share their experiences. That would certainly expose my classroom of little cultural diversity to multiculturalism in a very real way. References Laureate Education (Producer). (2010). Blogging in the Classroom [Course Media].

Mission complete. If you look to the right you will notice that I accomplished both of my objectives for today. I feel like a technology wizard! Seriously, I'm glad the techno geeks that design this stuff make it so easy.

RSS. Part of the assignment for this blog was to enable a link to activate RSS feed. Well, I have not yet found how or where to do that. But there is a link at the bottom of this page that says "Subscribe to: Posts (Atom)" Is that the RSS feed link? The first classmate I have traded blog comments with is Lisa. I can click on her name and go to her profile, but I would like to find an easy way to link to her blog. Wouldn't it be neat to have a link to her blog right on my blog page. Sounds like homework...

Background: I am a non-traditional student who recently obtained a NYS initial teaching certification for adolescent Spanish. I chose teaching for my second career because I enjoy my two sons and want to be involved in their lives. I chose Spanish as a major because in my previous career it became evident that the ability to communicate with Spanish speakers was a unique and worthwhile pursuit. I currently work as a substitute teacher in my small home-town district.

Purpose: I am currently enrolled in my fourth course, Understanding the Impact of Technology on Education, Work, and Society, at Walden University in pursuit of a Master's degree in Integrating Technology in the Classroom. As part of my assignment for the first week, I am exploring Blogs and RSS.  I'm not sure that I have anything interesting or unique to contribute to the world of blogging, but I hope to gain some ideas about how blogs can be used in the classroom to help students gain 21st Century Skills.