Reflections

Changes in Personal Learning Theory:
I don't think my theory about learning has changed very much. What has changed is how well I understand the theories that are out there. The more I read and learned about the different learning theories the more the information reinforced what I have already learned from my experiences with students. I would still say that I could best be described as a cognitive-constructionist, but that I understand more about what that means.

Adjustments and New Tools:
The immediate adjustment that I think I have to make is simply to make it a priority to get my students access to computers and technology. At my school it is a hassle (and sometimes impossible) to get access to the computer lab, but if I am going to effectively integrate technology into my teaching I'm going to have to go the extra mile to get in there.

The first new technology I'd like to make use of is wikis. I think this would really enhance the students' learning experience by putting them in charge of a website and making them responsible for the content of that site. Having them create their own resource to find information about what they are studying would be a great way to put them in control of their own learning. The second technology I'd like to have them use is a podcast. I think a podcast could be a good alternative to having the students do an oral report in front of the class. It would allow students that really don't like to talk in front of people an option they might be more comfortable with as well as teach them valuable technology skills.

Technology Goals:
~My first goal is to get my students into the computer lab twice a month.
My strategy for achieving this goal is pretty simple. I need to make it a priority and work with the other teachers that have school sanctioned computer time to get my students access to the lab. Right now I am probably only in the computer lab a bout 5 days a year and that is mostly doing research. Getting the students in there twice a month using various different tools would add spice to my class and increase the students abilities with technology.

~My second technology goal is to make sure the students are using the technology to learn and its not only being used to teach.
My strategy to implement this goal is to make sure that at least one in three uses of technology of any kind asks the students to use the technology to create or discover something, not to simply look up information. I will periodically look back at my lesson plans and see if this goal is being met.

Voice Thread

One issue facing teachers today is the importance of standardized testing. Teachers, in general, feel there is too much importance placed on testing to the detriment of certain areas of education (the arts, critical thought, etc.). My voice thread deals with that.

http://voicethread.com/share/530818/

Facebook Learning

The idea behind social learning is that the students construct meaning not only from the information they are getting, but who they are getting the information from and how they receive the information. So in this week's resources there were several ideas presented on how to reach students this way.

Kids love playing on MySpace and Facebook type sites and do much of their communication with each other outside of school with these type of social networking sites. To take advantage of that fact the idea is to use similar technologies (like web quests or multiplayer simulation games) to teach them. These teaching strategies go right along with the priniples of social learing because the students are learning from their peers in a social setting, not simply absorbing information being presented by the teacher.

Technology and Hypotheses

I think the most important thing about the different strategies and technologies mentioned in this weeks resources is that the new technologies "allow students to spend more time interpreting the data rather than gathering the data." Students still need to be a part of the data gathering process, but the more important part of the process (especially from a constructivist point of view)is the problem solving/invention/etc. portion. The suggested strategies of spreadsheets, data collection tools, and data websites are only useful as they accomplish the generating and testing of a chosen hypothesis.

So the ways that these technologies correspond with constructionist learning theories is the way that they make the student think and work while connecting what they are doing with prior knowledge and the situation in which they are learning the material.

Cognitivism

One of the ideas behind cognitivism is that the process the mind goes through to learn can be changed and improved. The learning techniques suggested in the reading this week address this idea. The use of various different advance organizers provides a mental layout for students to follow in their learning. At first they are guided and shown exactly how to draw and fill in the graphic organizer. Eventually though the graphic organizer provides a pattern that the students can fill out on their own to help them organize their thoughts, or maybe some students don't even need the physical organizer anymore but the form has enabled them to organize their thoughts in a logical manner. The same idea applies for the many different summarizing and note taking strategies. You start out with a pattern for the student to copy so that when the pattern is taken away the mind has been trained to process information in an organized manner.

Behaviorism in Practice

I really liked the idea of tracking effort from this weeks reading. Showing students that effort equals success in a concrete manner like that would seem to be a very effective teaching strategy. It is also a very behaviorist strategy. It is showing students that this behavior leads to this result. Good grades result (for most students) in rewards and poor grades result in consequences. The author suggests setting up a spreadsheet to track this, which I guess you could do, but it seems like just trying to shoehorn technology into the process. I guess if you have a class set of computers that you have easy access to that would work well, but for how much time getting a class to the computer lab takes use a sheet of paper would be just as effective.

The strategies suggested in the next chapter are more project-based ideas. The use of word processing, spreadsheets, multimedia software, etc fits better into the constructivist theory since the students would be associating the learning with the way that they learned it, not just the stimulus-response pattern of behaviorist theory.

Reflection

In what ways has this course helped you to develop your own technology skills as a professional teacher?

During this course I have learned how to create several technologies that I have only made use of from the user end. I have frequently used podcasts, blogs, Wikipedia, etc, but this course taught me how to make those things and knowing how to create them makes them far more effective teaching tools.

In what ways have you deepened your knowledge of the teaching and learning process?

The biggest way is by changing the way I view my students. I knew that they grew up on technology, but the concept of them as digital natives is an interesting one because it changes how the students learn and, as a result, it should change how a teacher teaches.

In what ways have you changed your perspective from being teacher-centered to learner-centered?

I don’t know that I have changed from being teacher-centered, because I think I always have been learner-centered. The way you teach has to be based on the way your students learn if you are going to be a really effective teacher and I have always tried to be that way.

In what ways can you continue to expand your knowledge of learning, teaching, and leading with technology with the aim of increasing student achievement?

Well, obviously I am going to continue my course work with Walden which will expand my knowledge in this area. I am also going to continue learning technology by using it myself. The way that I have gained much of my technical knowledge is by giving it a try and seeing what I like and what I don’t like.

Set two long-term goals (within two years) for transforming your classroom environment by which you may have to overcome institutional or systemic obstacles in order to achieve them. How do you plan to accomplish these goals?

1. Students will spend at least one day every two weeks in the computer lab.

- Seeing as I have very little access to computers with my students I plan on writing a grant for a wireless computer lab that I and my students can make use of.

2. Students will complete two projects per year that require them to make extensive use of technology to complete.

- I know for certain that there will be one project due right before Christmas break that will require the students to create a wiki. The other project I would like to have due at the end of the year and while I am not certain on the specifics I think it is going to be designing an earthquake proof building and then somehow virtually testing it.

Pod-tastic

Enjoy my first foray into the world of podcasting...

http://www.gcast.com/u/b_harreld/main

P21

The P21 website is fairly interesting in the way that it clearly lays out a plan and policy for learning 21st century technology skills. The importance of students knowing these skills is clearly emphasized. There are a lot of different tools and standards to explore. In particular the tools and resources link contains everything from online tools, to relevant articles, to information on professional development.

The part of the website that surprised me the most was the backing this organization has received from many big businesses. Apple, Adobe, Dell, and many others are companies that are signing up to back this program. I guess it goes shows that those companies are trying to help train their future workforce and realize the importance of students gaining the new skills that they need.

I agree with the organizations goal of students gaining a deep understanding of material rather than shallow knowledge. There is too much emphasis on students knowing the bare facts necessary to pass achievement tests and little time left over for teaching skills like critical thinking, or maybe even some art or music.

The implications for educators and students are that there seems to be a growing sentiment out there that achievement tests are not the be all and end all of student learning. There has to be a balance between skills and knowledge. This organization and these companies seem to think that and are trying to help educators learn to help their students survive in the rapidly changing digital world.

Blog Idea

Currently as an opportunity for extra credit I have my students turn in a science related article from a newspaper or magazine with a summary. It can be done every Friday to help their grade out a little.

I was thinking with this I could post a link to an article or a video and have the students write their response in the comments section. This could be done in place of the science article extra credit.
______________________________________________________________________

I teach 7th grade science. I feel that a blog would be a great tool to enrich and supplement the topics I am covering at school. I would feel hesitant to make it a requirement because I teach in a district where many students cannot afford and do not have computers at home. I do believe it can be an effective teaching tool though, because students love using the internet and many would check the blog just for something to do. Hopefully, while they are doing it they will be learning in a manner that is different than what they are presented in class.

because I like USA soccer and I wanted to post something...