Final Reflection on Integrating Technology in the Content Area

I am nearing the end of the final week of my final class through Walden University for my Graduate Certificate in Integrating Technology in the Content Areas. I have been exposed to technology and different ways to incorporate them into my daily teaching. I have created a Wiki, wrote a blog, and created Voicethreads, among many other things. I was aware of many of these resources before I took the classes, but I never had the time to sit down and figure out how to use them effectively. Taking these classes forced me to set aside blocks of time and figure it all out, and for that reason, I am very glad that I decided to take these courses. For this final course, I developed a personal GAME plan for increasing technology use in my classroom. This plan had me set goals for what I wanted my students to learn and then take action to make my goals happen. Along the way, I had to monitor my progress and evaluate whether I needed to make any modifications. My first goal was to integrate more collaboration and social networking into my class. My GAME lesson plan that I developed for my students to teach them about the endangered animals of Pennsylvania did just that. Through E-pals, I was able to locate teachers from other areas of the country and the world that would like to exchange ideas about how students can help with habitat conservation. I have other ideas that I will implement when the school year begins. I would like to find professionals that will Skype or e-mail with my students so that they can be used as a primary resource for research. My other goal was to encourage my fellow teachers to incorporate technology into their teaching on a regular basis. I have a Powerpoint of resources and ideas and I have asked my Superintendent if I could present at a future professional development. Because we have not yet started the school year, he could not give me a definitive date, but he said that I would be able to share my ideas with my peers near the beginning of the school year. I plan to continue the implementation of my personal GAME plan when the school year begins. I also plan to share the process with my students so that they can make personal GAME plans for themselves, whether their goal is to complete more homework, get a certain grade in a class, or complete an online class in a timely manner. I am also looking forward to incorporating technology into my content area enrichment units. I plan on implementing more problem-based learning so that the projects are more meaningful , authentic, and self-directed, all things that a Gifted student should be working on to enrich their intellectual gifts. I also look forward to collaborating with other teachers through Skype and the Epals website to which I have become a member. I also look forward to incorporating digital story-telling by having my students create movie trailers of their favorite books, write stories on their endangered animals, and collaborate with a Holocaust survivor to create a story that tells of their experience during the Holocaust. There are so many things to look forward to in this upcoming school year now that I am armed with all of these new ideas about integrating technology!

Reflections on the Progress of My GAME Plan...

I am taking a moment to reflect on my GAME plan that I created to assist me in my goal of integrating more technology into my teaching and the teaching of my colleagues in my school district. As a reminder, my Goals were: A. Model collaborative knowledge construction by engaging in learning with students, colleagues, and others in face-to-face and virtual environments B. Exhibit leadership by demonstrating a vision of technology infusion, participating in shared decision-making and community building, and developing the leadership and technology skills of others. For my first Goal, I have been looking for virtual field trips that would correlate with the enrichment units that I teach. I did locate one that I really like about Ellis Island that is through Scholastic and that would extend a Unit that we do on studying a country of the students’ ethnic origin. I found it at http://teacher.scholastic.com/activities/immigration/tour/ and have started to think of how exactly it would work in the unit. I have also been looking at http://www.internet4classrooms.com/vft.htm , a site that links to many other resources for Virtual Field trips. I am interested in the interactive trip into the Amazon Rainforest that is offered through http:// homeworkspot.com . For my second goal, I have started to put together a Powerpoint of some of the sites and resources that I have gained through my graduate classes and peers so that I can present it to my colleagues when we return to school in the fall. At this point, I do not have to modify my GAME plan. Some of the things could not be accomplished until the school year begins, and I have begun to implement the parts of the plan that I am able to do at home for preparation for the upcoming school year. I have learned that there are more virtual field trips and resources out there than I could have imagined. I have not used any previously, and I am glad that this is something that I have added to my teaching repertoire because I really think the students will gain a lot of knowledge from viewing them. As far as the Powerpoint of resources for my colleagues, I am trying to do some of the legwork and figuring out of sites so that I can present that information as well. I know that when I am told of a site, but then I go on and it is overwhelming and difficult to navigate, often I will tell myself that I will figure it out later, but I never do. I am trying to make it so that the resources are quick and easy to understand for my colleagues so that they are more likely to implement them. The part of my plan that I need to work on more is figuring out how I can effectively connect to teachers in other countries and states that would like to participate in a collaborative project. Do any of my Walden colleagues have any good sites or resources to share?

Here is How My GAME Plan is Coming Along...

Last week I posted a GAME plan that I have constructed that will assist me in integrating technology efficiently and effectively into my daily lessons. As a reminder, I made two Goals for myself for the upcoming school year: Goals: A. Model collaborative knowledge construction by engaging in learning with students, colleagues, and others in face-to-face and virtual environments B. Exhibit leadership by demonstrating a vision of technology infusion, participating in shared decision-making and community building, and developing the leadership and technology skills of others. I am thinking ahead to the resources and tools that I will need to help carry out my plan. For my first goal, I will need to find a reliable effective website that connects teachers that want to collaborate online. I will need to locate one that has an option of connecting with students in the United States, and I would like to find someone from another country that reads, writes, and speaks English. As far as the field trips go, there are plenty of resources out there, I just need to take the time to go through all of them to find one that correlates with my curriculum. For my second goal, I will need to collaborate with my colleagues that are on our Technology team at school so that I am sure that I am not duplicating something that they were already planning to present to us. I will also need to collaborate with my Administration to make sure that they find my ideas educationally acceptable for our district. I will also need to go through all of my resources and notes from my classes at Walden to make sure that I have an accurate compilation of resources. As far as the timeline of my goals, I made a target date for the end of the first nine weeks. I had said that I would have a virtual field trip planned, a teacher contact made, and a professional development session in the works. This is still my goal. I am currently searching the Web for virtual filed trips and for sites that connect teachers with teachers. I am also going through my notes so that I can stay on track with my Powerpoint presentation. If anyone has any resources that would prove helpful, pass it on…

My Personal GAME Plan for Increasing Technology Use and Student Engagement in my Classroom

I am taking my final class through Walden University in order to earn a Certificate in Integrating Technology in the Content Areas. Our text book for this course, Technology Integration for Meaningful Classroom Use: A Standards-Based Approach, was written by Katherine Cennamo, John Ross, and Peggy Ertmer. They discuss a strategy for teachers that challenges them to develop a GAME plan for integrating technology into their standards-based lessons. They challenge teachers to: 1. Set personal Goals 2. Take Action to meet the goals 3. Monitor progress toward achieving the goals and 4. Evaluate whether the goals were achieved and Extend the learning to new situations I looked at the National Education Standards for Teachers (NETS-T) that were developed by the International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE). You can view these standards at their website: http://www.iste.org/standards.aspx There are numerous indicators of the direction that teachers need to take in order to be preparing our students to be self-directed, critical thinkers in today’s economy and workplace. I have prepared my own GAME plan for improving my confidence and proficiency in two of the indicators. Here is my own personal GAME plan: 1. Goals: A. Model collaborative knowledge construction by engaging in learning with students, colleagues, and others in face-to-face and virtual environments B. Exhibit leadership by demonstrating a vision of technology infusion, participating in shared decision-making and community building, and developing the leadership and technology skills of others. 2. Action Plan: A. I try to encourage my students to locate primary sources whenever possible when they are conducting research, but I want to take this a step further by assisting my students in becoming aware of how they are able to locate a live person in another country or state that can give a first-hand account. I also want to encourage the use of virtual field trips. They are cost-effective, timely ways to give students a concrete first-hand account of a place or event. B. After taking these courses, I want to be the person in my district that encourages the use of technology, shares resources and ideas through trainings, and promotes the importance of integrating technology to increase student engagement. I will make a Powerpoint presentation on the resources and ideas that I have gained through taking these courses at Walden. I will ask my Administration if I can conduct a Professional Development training for our staff. 3. Monitoring my progress: A. At this point, I do not have any outside personal connections or sources that I have my students use as a reference. At the end of the first quarter of the 2012-2013 school year, I will have a minimum of 2 outside sources that have been used by my students to collaborate on a project. I am hoping to be able to locate an outside source that will we will be able to keep an ongoing relationship with. I will also incorporate a minimum of 1 virtual field trip to be used in the first quarter. B. By the end of the first quarter of the 2012-2013 school year, I will have conducted a Professional Development session for the staff at my school where I share some of the resources andideas that I have learned by getting this Technology Certificate from Walden. 4. Evaluating my progress and Extending my learning to new situations: A. If I have made 2 connections to outside sources that have assisted my students in collaborating on a project or obtaining information and I have incorporated a minimum of one virtual field trip by the end of the first quarter of next school year, I will consider this goal met. I can take it a step further by sharing the connections with other teachers, or by at least sharing the process that I followed that made my connection successful. B. If I have conducted a Professional Development session and a teacher has used the information that I shared to implement in his/her classroom, I will consider this goal met. I can take it a step further by sharing the Powerpoint that I created with teachers that I know in other districts. Wish me luck on my journey to implement my personal GAME plan and increase student engagement and technology use in my classroom! References: Cennamo, K., Ross, J. & Ertmer, P. (2009). Technology integration for meaningful classroom use: A standards-based approach. (Laureate Education, Inc., Custom ed.). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth, Cengage Learning. International Society for Technology in Education. National Education Teaching Standards for Teachers (NETS). Retrieved 3 July 2012 from: http://www.iste.org/standards.aspx.

Reflecting on My Personal Theory of Learning

The second class that I am taking through Walden University in order to earn my Graduate Certificate in Integrating Technology in the Classroom is called Bridging Learning Theory, Instruction, and Technology . This class was a review of the textbook learning theories and required me to take a look at what my own personal theory of learning was and how I use technology to implement it in my classroom. On Week One, we had to define our Personal Theory of Learning and describe our current level of technology integration. Now, at the end of the course on Week 7, I am reflecting on my Personal Learning Theory and making some minor adjustments to the way that I think that students learn best and the technologies that I can use to support that learning.

Regarding my own learning theory, I had said that I believed that an eclectic approach is best; that there are effective elements in all of the learning theories, and that you need to tailor your approach to the situation and the lesson and your anticipated learning outcome. I had also stated that, when examining my own teaching and practice, I find that I primarily follow the Constructivist perspective, both Cognitive and Social, with underlying strains of Behaviorism. At the end of the course, my personal learning theory really has not changed. I still believe that a teacher should tap into prior knowledge and use that as a foundation upon which new learning can be built, where the learner takes ownership for constructing their own knowledge. Because the learner is active in the learning process from the very beginning, it makes the learning authentic and more easily retained. With a firm foundation activated and an interest in a topic with which they have some familiarity, students participate in an educational atmosphere where inquiry-based learning and social interaction combine to produce a unique learning experience for each learner as a result of the educational environment and the result of his/her own cognitive process. Within this environment, instruction needs to be individualized based on student need. Furthermore, learning is collaborative and assessment is simultaneous to provide immediate feedback.

Really, my personal theory of learning has not changed, although this course has made me aware of the technological tools that I can use to support my (Social) Constructivist views. A lot of the time, the problem that I have with the younger grades is getting access to computers to use for a lesson. I have been looking into grants and talking with our state’s Department of Energy to see if I can get some computers donated. I had never heard of a Voicethread before, and it is one of my favorite things that I have learned how to use because it is user-friendly, even for my younger students and their sometimes technologically challenged parents. I plan to use the Voicethread as a way that students can compile and share their knowledge, both with each other, and with their parents at home. I also had a chance to explore some great Virtual Field Trips. I was aware of their existence, but it was one of those things where you just can not find the time to sit down and go through all of the resources unless you are forced to do so. I plan on integrating more Virtual Field Trips into my Gifted curriculum because they are a great primary resource, they are highly engaging and interactive, and they are cost effective. I am also looking forward to implementing a class Wiki, creating podcasts, and doing some concept mapping.

I have made myself some promises and I have set some personal goals for myself in regards to integrating technology. I vow to always try my best to keep up with the technology advancements that are made, even after I don’t have to do it for a class, so that my students will always benefit from being in my class. One obstacle will always be the funding available and the willingness of our technology department to help implement or install different programs. I have set two goals:

Number 1: I will continue to utilize the information that I get from following the technology for teaching blogs to which I subscribe. We teachers are our own best resource, because only we can understand what our students truly need and what truly works. www.freetech4teachers.com has so many FREE resources that I can personally use in my classroom, or that I can pass on to my students, their parents, or other teachers to use. Seeing as cost is not an issue, the technology department will be more willing to help me to install any necessary software.

Number 2: We have a technology committee at school that functions as an intermediary between the teachers and the technology department and the administration. I have joined this committee so that I can advocate for the teachers who are trying to use “controversial” social media to teach. Through this committee, I will continue to push for more technology in every classroom. This committee also writes grants to request additional funding for technology. I will continue to seek out and apply for any grants that will help our school obtain more technology.

I have a week off, and then I will be taking a course titled Supporting Information Literacy and Online Inquiry in the Classroom. I am going to use the week off in between my classes to look at some of my past lessons and think about how I can make them more engaging, challenging, and student-centered. I need to look at what my Personal Learning Theory is and then look to see if my lessons are supporting that high level of engagement. Effective teachers are consistently modifying their lessons and approach to meet the needs of all of the learners in their classrooms.

Technology Tools That Support Cooperative/Collaborative Learning

Are teachers truly preparing students for a future in a global economy? Our classrooms are the perfect environment to model collaboration and cooperation in order to achieve a larger, defined goal. Technology tools have provided ways that students can collaborate and learn from each other within their own classroom or with someone in another classroom halfway around the world. Pitler, Hubbell, Kuhn, and Malenoski list five basic components that must be considered when designed a collaborative activity:

1. Positive interdependence (sink or swim together)
2. Face-to-face, promotive interaction (Helping each other to learn, applauding efforts and successes)
3. Individual and group accountability (each of us has to contribute to the group achieving its goal)
4. Interpersonal and small-group skills (communication, trust, leadership, decision making, conflict resolution)
5. Group processing (reflecting on how well the team is functioning and how to function even better)

Technology can aid in the creation of group projects that meet these requirements and that facilitate a social learning environment. One type of project is the multi-media project. Differentiation can be achieved with the flexibility in assigning the roles. Students are able to be assessed while completing the portion of the project that plays to their interests or strengths. Social learning comes into play when a student can take on a role in which they are the expert, and the group can learn from each other.

Another useful technology tool is the Webquest, a task where students are required to use their knowledge instead of just researching to find it. An interesting site to look at is San Diego State University’s Webquest, the original Webquest. You can find it at: http://webquest.org . The site lists many helpful exemplars if you are thinking of creating one for a class.

The last thing that I will share is the idea of having your students collaboratively create a Voicethread. This week, our assignment was to create a Voicethread that could be used in our classroom. The video that I watched had a drawing that a boy had posted with his description. People had left comments and you could listen to the comments when you were viewing the picture. It gave me the idea for a Voicethread that I could use at the beginning of a Civil Right’s unit that I teach in which the comments that the students left would help all of students to learn from each other and would give me an idea of what their frame of reference was before starting the unit. You can view my Voicethread here:
http://voicethread.com/share/2908312/

A Constuctionist Approach to Utilizing Technology in the Classroom

This week, my class concentrated on the benefits of utilizing a Constructionist approach to learning in the classroom. The theory is that a student’s understanding of a concept is unique, molded by his/her past experiences and perceptions. The theory states that people learn best when they build an external artifact or something to share with others (Laureate Ed. Inc., 2010). Because the student has constructed their own meaning, they are better able to retain the knowledge. New understanding takes place when there is an imbalance that the student must resolve between their personal belief system and presented external realities (Laureate Ed. Inc., 2010). Pitler, Hubbell, Kuhn, and Malenoski made recommendations on how this approach lends itself to the process of generating and testing hypothesis with the aid of technology because the technology allows the students to spend more time analyzing the data instead of on the tedious task of data entry.

One use of technology is the Spreadsheet. Most people are familiar with Excel, maybe not how to use it necessarily, but aware of its existence as a tool. By creating an interactive spreadsheet with the data already entered, students are able to make a hypothesis about the effect of a change in data. By actually making that change, they are able to receive immediate feedback, thus enabling an adjustment to their hypothesis for a further test. By receiving immediate feedback, students are able to accommodate the new knowledge and construct a firm basis of knowledge in the subject.

Other tools include the data collection tools, such as nonlinguistic representation where students represent their findings in charts and graphs, digital probes, and digital microscopes. One interesting use of a digital microscope that was suggested by Pitler et al was to use the digital microscope to conduct a detailed analysis of a historical piece that would lend insight into a culture of study. For example, students could form a hypothesis about what type of tools or eating utensils a culture used based on the time period. They then could collect data to support or contradict that hypothesis during an online archaeological dig. Students could then share their findings and note similarities and differences in order to construct a class archive of archaeological findings.

Another use of technology in the construction of knowledge is the ever valuable Web resources. Students are able to make predictions and then conduct research using interactive and virtual sites that provide the necessary data for determining the accuracy of their hypothesis. Because of the hands-on, interactive nature of these sites, all learning modalities are reached and students are engaged and able to retain information that they themselves discovered. My class does a United Nations simulation every year. They are assigned a country and they take on the role of an Ambassador. They must make predictions on what their country’s stance would be on current issues such as nuclear proliferation, healthcare for their indigenous people, and women’s rights. They then need to conduct research after which they present their findings at a local college with students from all over the County, all of them taking on the role of different countries. At the Model United Nations Simulation, they must take on the persona of Ambassador for their country and create a resolution with their political allies. See more information on how this is approached at the National level at colleges at: http://nmun.org/

In summary, there are many digital tools available that would reinforce a constructionist approach to learning and teaching. By the use of spreadsheets, data collection tools, and web resources and simulations, students are actively engaged in creating a hypothesis, determining and manipulating data to test their hypothesis, and building their conclusion. This student-centered approach places the responsibility for the learning on the student.

References:
Laureate Education, Inc. (Producer). (2010). Constructionist and Constructivist Learning Theories [Video webcast]. Retrieved from http://sylvan.live.ecollege.com/ec/crs/default.learn?CourseID=6489406&Survey=1&47=9645911&ClientNodeID=984650&coursenav=1&bhcp=1

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