EDLD+5364+Teaching+With+Technology

EDLD 5364 Teaching With Technology Reflections

​Week 5

The readings from this week have inspired me to try something new with my students. I have always given a grade for effort, but I was pleased to see a spreadsheet that each child can make for him or her self to track their effort and grades. Students do not always understand the value of "effort", nor do they always realize how much or how little effort they put forth. It is up to the teacher to reinforce the fact that effort may not make them become an "A" student, but effort will help them improve their grades.

If the students use the spreadsheet and rubric in the way that it is intended, it will be a valuable tool for the student. He or she can see their weekly progress. They can reflect on the weekly results to chart their improvement and understand what happens when they become lax in their work. I think it is a great way to get a student involved in their learning. The spreadsheet and rubric does have some limitations however. No matter how hard a student works, it is just a fact that all students are not created "equal" (which is one reason we have differentiated instruction!) so not all students will be straight "A" students. Not all students are college material.

Students must be **taught** that effort on their part will pave the path for their future success. Many students living in single-parent, low income households, do not believe that they will ever be able to do any better than their current situations. They can fill out and use hundreds of graphs and rubrics, but that does not ensure that they will be magna cum at M.I.T or Princeton. It will, however, give them an opportunity to attain measureable success. Hopefully, that will raise their self-esteem, and they will become better employees and employers.

In any event, it is important to bolster self-esteem and continually impress upon the student the value of effort!

Week 4

As I read Chapter 5 of __Web 2.0, new tools, new schools,__ by Gwen Solomon and Lynne Schrum, I reflected on the many Professional Development hours that have been wasted because the inservice was ineffectively implemented. Presenters show up after school, oftentimes insufficiently prepared, to make a presentation to an already tired faculty. The information is usually presented via power point which the presenter reads word for word while the faculty follows along (or not!) on their hard copy of the presentation. As Schrum and Solomon pointed out, variations on that type of "chalk and talk" inservice is basically ineffective, and there is very little evidence that they make much difference in the way the teachers teach when they return to their classrooms. Fullan and Stiegelbauer (1991) summarized this by saying, "Nothing has promised so much and has been so frustratingly wasteful as the thousands of workshops and conferences that led to no significant change in practice when the teachers returned to their classrooms" (p. 315).

Solomon and Schrum further suggest a better way to implement technology training is to build learning communities through social networking. They should have regular meeting times and agendas, and they should foster group collaboration and have common goals. I have tried to do this at my school with only minimal success. I set up a school wiki that was visited by 4 or 5 people. Some visited only once or twice so it was almost impossible to have meaningful dialogue. The reason given by the teachers is TIME. With so many deadlines and non-negotiable items required by the district, there is little time to participate in, "just one more thing..."

In my opinion, until administrators, from the district level to the building level, support the teachers by providing time and opportunity for collaboration, it will most likely be unsuccessful.

Week 3

This week's readings and videos have really been eye openers for me. I am surprised to have learned so much new information! I know that I am a digital immigrant and not a digital native, but I had no idea of the depth and breadth of things that I never, before this week, knew existed.

I was especially impressed with 11 year old Cameron Murray, an obvious "digital native." He created his own "green screen" and taught himself how to create, edit, and produce digital movies. At his tender age of 11, his role reversed from "student" to "teacher" as he taught and assisted his teacher with technology in his classroom. I believe this child to be truly gifted, but I also think that many of the students know as much or more than their teachers when it comes to technology.

I was equally surprised to find out that iPods can be used as learning tools in the classroom! I have the "original" iPod that came out seven or eight years ago (first generation iPod technology) that I use for music and audiobooks. Until I read about how it can be used as a "language lab" for English as a Second Language and English Language Learners classrooms, I did not know it had such a wide range of capabilities. When I read that Christy, one of my online classmates, uses them for testing purposes, I was all ears. I WILL be looking into that idea for my classroom!

It is imperative that teachers learn as much as they can about using the technology they have available to them. We as teachers, must be willing to learn along with, and from, our students. It would be a disservice to the students to withhold the use of technology just because the teacher did not have the knowledge or desire to utilize it. If we are to prepare our students for lifelong success, we must all be aware of, use, and provide innovative technology. If if means moving out of one's comfort zone, then so be it. It is up to us, as future administrators and technologists, to ensure quality professional development and a solid infrastructure that will support superior technology use by both teachers and students in the learning environment.

Week 2

From this weeks' readings, I must say that I am not surprised that all the reseach from the last thrity years reflects the value of technology in the classroom. The technology in and of itself is not as useful as it could be, however, unless it is used as a tool used to complete a task rather than a "course." Teachers need to incorporate the use of technology in their lessons, and students should have the technological resources at their fingertips for completing the lessons and projects their teachers assign.

According to Schacter, (1999) students who had access to technology in their classrooms scored higher on standardized tests, learned more in less time, and experienced positive effects on achievement in the content areas. Michael Page's studies, (2002), of the effects on students of low socioeconomic backgrounds when placed in technology-enriched classrooms reflects an increase in math scores and a significant increase in the student's self-esteem. Further readings discuss the positive impact of technology on at-risk and special needs students.

These readings have caused me to look for more recent research on the effectiveness of technology in the classroom. I would like to find something within the last two to three years to compare with the older studies. (In fact, at some point, I may do my own research on the subject!)

I know from personal experience that at-risk and special needs students can excel and make marvelous strides in their educational program through the use of technology. A case in point: a second grade student in my after-school learning program had his medicine to wear off before the class was over. In frustration, I asked him what he liked to do. He quickly responded that he liked "anything on the computer." I sat him down at the computer, and before I could direct him to the school website he had changed the font, the background, and was already on the BrainPop site! He was eager and engaged with the learning process. What more could I ask?

Page, M.S. (2002). Technology-enriched classrooms: Effects on students of low socioeconomic status. //Journal of Research on Technology in Education,// 34(4), 389-409.

Schacter, J. (1999). //The impact of education technology on student achievement:What the most current research has to say.// Santa Monica, CA: Milken Exchange on Education Technology.

Week 1

As I think about this week's readings, I remember reading Buck Rogers comic books as a child. The author was truly a forward thinker. I relate this to the Cyborg learning theory discussed by Kevin Warwick on YouTube. I know that such a thing is possible, but the thought of it makes me uncomfortable. To think that Cyborgs will replace "regular" humans in the human race goes against everything that I value. I can, however, also see the positive effects. If the technology can improve the quality of life for persons who have lost the use of a limb, that would be a worthwhile effort. I know that this may be the way of the future, but it is still very scary for me to think about.

As I look at the constructivism and connectivism theories of learning, I find that I fall into the constructivism model. Perhaps it is because I am a digital immigrant rather than a digital native, but in order to learn something, I need a base on which to build my knowledge. When I learned to email messages, I thought of it as a faster, easier, and cheaper way to send mail. My connection was made from letter writing to sending mail electronically. When I began using a wiki in my graduate courses, I began by equating them to faculty meetings held in a central location with each person providing the input for the meeting.