Reflection For Integrating Technology into Content Areas

During this course I had an opportunity to delve more deeply into the NETS standards for teachers and students.  I believe these standards are important for teachers to understand in order to effectively implement technology within their classrooms.  Just reviewing the NETS-T got my brain going on all the possibilities that technology can enrich the learning environment.  I believe that if teachers incorporate these standards within their classrooms, the learning experience for students will be greatly enhanced and the classroom will become a place for innovation and creativity rather than a place where students are the simply “looking for the right answer” and regurgitating information.  I have also had I had an opportunity to explore a variety of Web 2.0 tools (some of which I have used previously and others that I learned from group discussions) with my students to address various NETS-S standards in my classroom.  I particularly enjoyed the “Tech it out” e-mails, which highlighted a variety of websites that I have not used before.

            This course has also given me the opportunity to explore project and problem based learning.  Before this course I had used the terms project and problem based learning interchangeably.  Through exploring resources presented in our discussion forum, I learned how to differentiate between the two and understand how I could utilize each type of learning experience to maximize student understanding of critical content.  While I have already embedded various project based activities into my curriculum, upon reflecting on my curriculum I have found that I rarely have students participate in problem based experiences.  Often problem based learning activities seem overwhelming.  I have learned that these activities do not necessarily need to take place over extended periods of time, but can be implemented within a shorter time frame.  With this redefined idea of problem based learning, these activities seem less daunting and I look forward to designing more of my lessons to incorporate these types of activities. 

            Through the creation of my GAME plan, I had the opportunity to explore resources that have previously been utilized only by a small group of teachers.  Currently, my district is in the process of upgrading our current technology and have been exploring the use/implementation of a variety of technology tools/resources.  While it has been great to participate in these discussions, I have become frustrated with the lack of communication/training on these resources.   Rather than wait for the district to provide training, I reached out to my colleagues to learn more about how I could use these tools with my students.  From these conversations/discussions I have learned about an online program called Compass that uses students reading scores to design individual instruction based on student need.  I have created an account for all of my students and have had them use this program to practice individual reading skills.  I have also learned that I can assign students certain activities/assignments and have had students participate in lessons involving figurative language.  I think this program could be a great way for students to practice their reading skills, and will help me differentiate the instruction to meet the needs of my diverse population.  I look forward to continuing with this program this year, and am excited to see how this program impacts students reading scores when they have access on a continual basis. 

           

The second goal I created for this course was to start planning for an “Open Library”  to take place at my school.  This is a long range goal that will not be implemented until next year, but this course gave me the opportunity to explore available resources and begin dialoging with my colleagues about my vision.  Next September I plan to begin an “Open Library” from 6-8 in the evening.  Horizon’s “Open library” will occur twice a month and will be a time where students, parents, and community members can come to learn about technology (set up e-mail accounts, learn how to check students grades online, sign up for school newsletters, etc.),  make connections with community resources (Catholic Community Services, Interfaith Medical Clinic, Ferndale Public Library, sign up for free and reduce lunch, etc.), and use our resources in our library to better their understanding of our community and enrich the lives of our students.   My principal was very supportive and is excited to see our school become more of a community center. 

Making Progress

I have spent the last few days researching how I can best implement each of my goals.  My first goal was to learn more about an online learning program called Compass.  This is a program that our district pays for, yet it has only been utilized by our special education and Intervention classes.  I think this program would be greatly beneficial for all students and could help teachers differentiate instruction to meet the needs of all learners.  Unfortunately, I have had a medical emergency that has landed me in the hospital for a few days, therefore the meeting that was supposed to take place on Monday did not occur.   Since I did not have time to discuss this program with my colleagues, I have spent some time exploring this resource and have set up groups for each section of my language arts classes.  I am not sure how to import their previous tests scores, but hope that upon further exploration and guidance from other teachers, I will be able to differentiate assignments based on specific student needs.  For now I have assigned all students a lesson on figurative language (which they have been learning about while I have been gone) to check for understanding on literary devices.   I plan on having students give this program a try on Monday.  After students have completed this lesson I will have a better understanding of what the results “look like” and how I can use this program with a diverse group of learners.

My second goal is a long term desire to create an “open library” time for students, parents and community members.  We were not planning on implementing this until next year, but are using the rest of this year to create a vision of what we want this to look like.  This week I have been looking into different community resources that we could invite to come in and provide information during this time. I found that we have a service called Ferndale Community Resources Center, which provides resources to individuals who are in need of extra support due to financial problems.    I have also found contact numbers for people at the Opportunity Council of Whatcom County and the Interfaith Clinic who also provide services to those in need of support.   I will be meeting with my colleague who is helping create this “Open Library” next week to outline how we want to structure this time, and what outside services we would like to contact. 

Moving Towards My Goals

My two primary goals for my GAME plan involve meeting with other teachers to see how I can utilize resources we have at our school.

My first goal is to learn more about the online program called Compass and create accounts where students can individually work on improving their reading proficiency.  I have set up a meeting with a colleague who uses this program in her intervention classes, to discuss how she uses this with her students.  During this meeting I would like to address how she manages the data she receives from this program and get ideas about how I can best use student data to inform my instruction.  Currently this program is only being used with intervention classes (10-12 students per teacher) and I am curious to see how she feels the management would change if this was being used with all Integrated Studies classes (60 students per teacher).   After this meeting on Tuesday of next week I would like to get student accounts set up by the following Friday.

My other goal is a long term goal of creating an “open library” where students, parents, and community members can come access community resources 2 nights a month.  I have already spoken to my principal and a few of my colleagues about this plan and they have all been supportive of this vision.  I would like to spend the next couple weeks doing a little research to see how other schools have created a “community center.”  Using ideas from these resources I will then prepare a plan to share with my principal to see if we have the funding/support from the district to make this happen.

GAME Plan

As I reviewed the NETS-T standards, I struggled to prioritize just two of the standards that I want to improve upon.  Often with technology, I find myself getting excited about all the possibilities that I struggle to find a focus and to set specific/strategic goals.  As I reviewed the NETS-T, I found that each of the five standards contained elements I would like to work towards, but in the end I decided to focus my GAME plan on NETS-S Standard 2: Design and Develop Digital Age Learning Experiences and Assessments, and NETS-S Standard 3: Model Digital Age Work and Learning (International Society for Technology in Education, 2011). 

            My first goal is to use technology to “customize and personalize learning activities to address students’ diverse learning styles, working strategies, and abilities using digital tools and resources” (International Society for Technology in Education, 2011).    My district currently has an online program called Compass that provides interactive reading lessons/activities based on individual student test scores.  Using data from Washington State Measurement of Academic Progress, this program builds individualized reading lessons that target specific skills that students need to work on.   Through this program teachers also have the ability to create/assign lessons to individuals students and/or to the larger group.  This program will then send the teacher a report on student activities/assessment on reading progress. 

While this program has been in our district for a couple years, I have not received any official instruction on how to access this program and how to begin using this resource with my students. The feedback I have gathered from teachers in other buildings on this program have been generally very positive regarding student motivation and engagement.  The background research for this program shows a positive correlation between time spent using this program and test scores, so I am interested in how I could use this resource to better individualize instruction for all students. 

My goal is to learn about how to use Compass online learning to individualize reading instruction in my classroom.  My action will be to interview teachers within my district about their experiences with Compass and learn how to set up accounts for my students and import their current scores.  During this time I would also like to discuss how the teacher can access the assessment tools to get feedback on individual progress.  Using information from these interviews, I will then set up accounts for my students.  Students will participate in this program 2-3 times a week for 15 – 20 minutes. I will use reports generated from this program to monitor individual student progress.  At the end of each day that students participate in Compass online learning, I will have them fill out an exit slip where they summarize what they learned that day.  I will also take note of student engagement and time spent on task.   After four weeks of using this program, I will have students complete a Google survey to evaluate how they feel the use of this program impacted their reading skills.  I will use student feedback, as well as individual student reports, to decide if this program is something I want to continue. 

         My second goal is a long-term goal focused around NETS-T Standard 3:  Model and Design Digital Age Work and Learning.  Within this standard teachers are required to “demonstrate fluency in technology, collaborate and communicate with students, peers, parents, and community members using digital tools and resources, and model and facilitate effective use of current and emerging digital tools” (International Society for Technology in Education, 2011).  This standard stood out to me because it addresses a topic that another teacher and I have been talking about for the last few months. 

         One of our district goals is to make connections with our community, and we were thinking about using our school library to create a community center where students, parents, and community members could come learn about technology in a safe and supportive environment.  Our vision is to open the library from 6pm-8pm so parents and/or community members could come in after work. During this time parents could sign up for e-mail accounts, access our online grade books, and learn about community resources that are available.  We were also thinking of inviting community organizations to come in and make presentations and/or provide flyers with information on how people could access their services.  With technology becoming the center of many students’ lives, I feel that it is important for parents to know how students are using online resources from social networking, collaboration, to communication with the larger community.  Parents could also explore many of the tools/resources students are using to become more familiar with them and to provide guidance in making the most of the resources students are using and to teach them to use the Internet in safe and ethical ways.

         My goal is to encourage parents/community members to view our school as a “community center” where they can learn about technology and access community resources to improve the lives of students.  My action would be to create an “Open Library” time at my school twice a month for students, parents, and community members to access technology and other local resources.  I have already discussed the idea with my principal and other colleagues and they are supportive of this vision and have stated that they would be willing to volunteer at the “Open Library” at various times throughout the course of the year.  I would like to take the rest of this year to complete my plan of what this would look like and to create a publication to inform the community of this opportunity.  My goal is to implement this plan beginning in September of 2012.  I would monitor the effectiveness of my plan through Google surveys of those who attend Open Library.  With this survey I would seek to gain information about what services people were interested in learning more about and how we could improve connections to the community.  I would also monitor the effectiveness of this program through attendance.  I would take notes on who is coming (students, parents, community members) and ask for feedback on how we could ensure that this experience is worthwhile.  I would like to run this program for the 2012/2013 school year, then use data on attendance and community feedback (through exit slips and/or Google surveys) to decide whether this program is an effective use of school/teacher resources. 

Reference:

International Society for Technology in Education.  (2011).  Iste NETS-T, Advancing Digital Age Teaching.  Retrieved from http://www.iste.org/standards/nets-for-teachers.aspx. 

Final Reflection

            The resources in this course have reaffirmed my belief in establishing a balanced learning environment in which students are provided various learning opportunities to enhance their understanding of critical content.  We have had the chance to explore various learning theories, each with its own interpretation of how humans interact with external stimuli to learn new information.  During this course I learned a lot about the fundamentals of how the brain works to process information,  and will be using this information to guide my planning and construction of lessons/activities for my students. 

            While each theory has positive implications for the classroom, what stood out to me the most was that each theory stated that students needed to be active participants in the learning process.  In the video Technology: Instructional tool vs. learning tool, Dr. Orey stated that direct instruction in the form of a lecture only works well for 5% of our students. (Laureate Education, Inc., 2011 b)  This statement is supported through an analysis of how people learn and by studies that indicate that when students have the opportunity to interact with new content, they are able to create more concrete connections within the brain therefore leading to greater retention of new information.  

            Another common theme that was communicated through many theories was the idea that the more connections that people can make with new information the better the chance of recall at a later date.  Allan Paivo’s Theory of Dual Coding supports the creation of connections through integration of pictures, audio, and text. This integration enables students to work with new information using various modalities.  ((Laureate Education, Inc., 2011 a) With the understanding that dual coding can help students create stronger connections with new material, I have redone many of my lessons to incorporate pictures/images and/or video to introduce new concepts.  I have also changed many of my assessments and note taking sheets to include a visual element in which students are not only required to write their response, but to also create a visual representation of new information. 

            With exposure and exploration in this class,  I have also jumped into the world of blogging with my students and have given more creative control of concept maps to my students.  Before this class I often used Inspiration to create concept maps for my students to “fill in the blanks” while learning new material.  This year I decided to encourage students to create their own concept maps to outline main ideas presented in class.  As a class, I first began modeling these maps  as a group activity using my computer and projector.  After the class read an article/passage, we constructed our map using words and images to represent main ideas and details.  Through this process I used a lot of think alouds to guide my students in the organization of new information.  Students had the opportunity to provide feedback on map organization and the linking of ideas.  I am hoping that with continued guided practice and scaffolding,  students will be able to identify critical information within text and create concept maps on their own. 

            This year I have also began blogging with my students.  Before my time at Walden, I was unfamiliar with blogs and unsure of how I could utilize them in my classroom.  Creating my own blog and keeping track of my learning through journal reflections posted on this blog has helped me gain knowledge and a deeper understanding of how this tool could be used to facilitate new learning in the classroom.  I currently have my 8^th grade technology students completing a daily blog that summarizes new learning in the classroom.   Students are using this tool to describe the use of different technology applications, and how they might incorporate these activities and applications into their other classes.  Later this year I am hoping to use blogs as a discussion forum for students to interact with one another to share ideas of how technology can support their learning in the classroom.

            This year I would like to continue building my “tool box” of instructional strategies and learn more about how technology can be seamlessly integrated into my classroom.  While I have had students using various technology applications in the classroom, I do not feel that I have utilized technology in a way that promotes collaboration between students.  I am currently using blogs as a place where students can independently reflect on lessons/activities in the classroom, and I would like to begin using these student blogs to facilitate discussions between students.  I am also working with my students to create wikis in which they will eventually be responsible for building a group wiki to demonstrate learning on new content presented in class. 

            I would also like to use technology as a way for me to communicate with my parents.  I currently use e-mail and have a webpage to be in touch with parents, but I would like to use my webpage as a more interactive experience for both students and parents.  I currently have basic information posted on my webpage that stays consistent throughout the course of the year.  I would like to improve my use of this tool by creating a page that includes updated homework assignments, classroom announcements, and examples of student work.

            Overall this course has been a positive experience for me and I am excited to begin using the various tools with my students.  I believe technology has the power to open our students’ eyes to real issues that are going on outside the classroom walls.  I believe it is our duty as educators to help students use these tools to critically analyze and interpret issues that are affecting our society.  Our society is changing at a rapid pace, and while the tools we are using today may be outdated by the time our students graduate from high school, it is important that they understand how to use technology tools to collaborate, communicate, and solve potential problems.  The tool may change but the significance of the thinking processes will always be the same. 

References

Laureate Education, Inc. (Producer). (2011). Program five: Cognitive learning theory [Video webcast]. Bridging learning theory, instruction and technology. Retrieved from http://laureate.ecollege.com/ec/crs/default.learn?CourseID=5700267&CPURL=laureate.ecollege.com&Survey=1&47=2594577&ClientNodeID=984650&coursenav=0&bhcp=1

Laureate Education, Inc. (Producer). (2011). Program thirteen: Technology: Instructional tool vs. learning tool [Video webcast]. Bridging learning theory, instruction and technology. Retrieved from http://laureate.ecollege.com/ec/crs/default.learn?CourseID=5700267&CPURL=laureate.ecollege.com&Survey=1&47=2594577&ClientNodeID=984650&coursenav=0&bhcp=1

             

Katie's Voicethread

Challenges in Today's Classroom

http://voicethread.com/share/2293802/

Social Constructivism in Today's Classroom

According to the social constructivist theory, knowledge is gained through an individual’s interaction with peers and their surrounding environment.  Social constructivists believe that through actively participating in social situations new knowledge is constructed when individuals modify their realities and previous experiences to accommodate/assimilate new information. While I disagree with the argument that all learning takes place within a social setting, I do think that this type of learning activity, when designed with clear learning objectives and structure should play a role in today’s educational setting.  According to Pitler, Hubbell, Kuhn, and Malenoski in the book Using Technology with Classroom Instruction that works students will need “to be prepared for the fast paced, virtual workplace that they will inherit, today’s students need to be able to learn and produce cooperatively.” (Pitler, Hubbell, Kuhn, Malenoski, 2007, pg 139)

            As our society is evolving and our businesses increase their use of technology, it is important that our students learn how to use technology as a means of communication, collaboration, creativity and critical thinking.  When I was in college e-mail became the “latest and greatest” way to communicate with professors and classmates.  I remember thinking how cool it was that I could type a paper in my dorm room, send it to myself, and then print it in the library.  Now what I felt was revolutionary is taking a back seat to new tech tools such as Google docs, dropbox, wikispaces, and other social networking sites. 

Now more than ever students are spending time on their cell phones and on the Internet to collaborate and communicate with their peers.  The reality is that our world is changing.  What used to take us days or even months can now take an hour or two.  I believe it is now up to us to empower our students to use these tools, not just to plan a party or compete in a video game, but to reach out to other students to solve real world problems and communicate new understandings in an authentic and meaningful way. 

            In chapter 7 of the book Using Technology with Classroom Instruction That Works, the authors outline many great ways in which educators can utilize new technology to aid in students collaboration and communication.  Within this chapter Pitler, Hubbell, Kuhn, and Malenoski recognize that cooperative learning should be used in moderation within the classroom, but should be incorporated into teacher’s instructional practice due to the skills and knowledge these activities can provide. (Pitler et, al., 2007) 

            According to the Pitler, Hubbell, Kuhn, and Malenoski the Web “has become much more than an electronic reference book; today, it’s a thriving medium for collaboration in business, education, and our personal lives.”  (Pitler et, al., 2007, pg 144).  When I was in school my world and educational resources depended upon what I could experience in my daily life and what I could find in the library (using the Dewey decimal system of course).  Now students have access to a variety of sources that can aid in the active construction of new knowledge and synthesizing information.  Within my classroom I have had students e-mail various organizations asking for information on a new concept we are learning in class, participate in online discussions with a local experts, and share reactions to various current events with another middle school students on our classroom blog.  Being able to participate in discussions with people outside our classroom has heightened my students’ awareness of various global issues as well as motivated them to work on their writing skills to ensure they are communicating their ideas in a clear and effective manner. 

            Last year was the first year my students received a school e-mail account.  My district decided to utilize Google for education as our primary means of online communication and collaboration.  With each account students have access to an individual e-mail account, Google Docs, Google Calendar, Maps, Blogs and a variety of other tools.  Now that students have access to these tools, I have changed many of my assignments to incorporate a social constructivist element, in which they are asked to participate in collaborative online projects.  While I believe Google Docs is a great tool for students to use when collaborating on project, there are limitations to these tools and I still prefer for my students to use Microsoft Office software when creating a final presentation.

            Pitler, Hubbel, Kuhn, and Malenoski also encourage the use of web sites to build enriching collaborative experiences within the classroom.  They have included a list of resources that could be used in the classroom, and I look forward to exploring these sites to see the potential of using these tools as a part of my instruction.  (Pitler et, al., 2007)  In the past I have used wikispaces to have students develop collaborative projects.  I made the mistake my first year by leaving the lesson open ended and allowing students the freedom to explore the vast wonders of the internet to complete the activity.  Because I did not specify my learning objectives and expectations for group participation, I found that some students did all of the work, while others just got bogged down with too much information and online resources that the content got lost.  From this experience I learned that middle school students need more structure, limited resources (the internet was too big of a catalogue for them to sort through), clearly defined learning objectives and participation expectations.  With these changes in place I have had more success in using wikispaces as a collaborative tool in which students can work together in order to build new knowledge and understanding of critical content in the classroom.

            From my experience, as well as reading this weeks resources on social constructivism, I have learned that social interaction can lead to strong learning opportunities for students.   I look forward to continuing to use elements of the social constructivist theory in conjunction with other learning theories in my classroom to help my students attain essential skills that will aid in their success throughout their educational journey. 

References:

Pitler, H., Hubbell, E., Kuhn, M., & Malenoski, K. (2007). Using technology with classroom instruction that works. Alexandria, VA: ASCD.