Tara’s Blog

My personal theory on learning did not change alot during this course. I have always used constructivisim and socialism a tremendous amount in my classrooms. Even if I didn’t have a name or title for the theory being expressed it was always present. Now have a deeper appreciation for the styles I use. I am also more aware of how important they are for the students long-term success.

Some immediate adjustments I will make to my instruction for this current school year include using technology for a learning tool rather than a teaching tool. I was surprised to find out how many times I used technology to present information to my students rather than allowing them to use it to learn from. I am going to introduce projects that use Voice Thread and Webspiriation for the students to create products they can learn with and present information to the rest of the class. My goal is to make using technology second nature. I want to be able to consider the technology element in my lessons as obvious as using a book.

The two technology tools I am going to incorporate into my teaching this year include Voice Thread and Virtual Field Trips. The Voice Thread activity is a wonderful way to incourage peer assessment and digital literacy. I will also increase enthusiasim for multi-media presentation. The Virtual Field Trip activity allows students to have an experience they would not be able to otherwise have. My district has have several budget cuts this year. We have been told that the possibility for field trips is very slim. The first thing that popped into my head was “Virtual Field Trips”! My students will definately benefit from this online opportunity.

The biggest goal I have is to learn as much about educational technology available to educators and students. My working towards my MS in Educational Technology I believe I have made a huge step towards achieving my goal. I also hope to be able to polish my skills enough to educate my co-workers about different technological teaching tools.

http://voicethread.com/share/573311/

Social learning theories tell us many things;  Students learn best when they are actively engaged in creating a finished product while socialising with other students, Context and culture are necessary for students to understand and make meaning out of what is going on around them, and Collaborative and cooperative learning is necessary for students’ academic success. 

There are a couple of instructional strategies outlined in chapter seven of Using Technology with Classroom Instruction that Works in which I have had first had experience with.  I have used keypals and webquests in my teaching experience.  Both of these strategies demonstrate collaboration and cooperative learning.  Students worked together to create partnerships and solve problems together.  Because of the different areas students are communicating from, they need to be especially aware of the vocabulary they are using.  Students from different areas have different terminology for the same things.  This, in and of itself, is a learning experience. 

Two strategies I have not had the experience to use as teaching tools are wikis and blogs.  These tools I feel would be extremely beneficial for my students.  They would allow my students to communicate and work with other students on the same topic from several different areas.  This just seems like common sense.  Aren’t two minds better than one?  Just imagine more than two?

The idea that one learns best when they have an artifact or model they can share with others is not new.  Neither is the idea that everyone learns differently.  These are factors educators have been considering for years.  This is why we are constantly modifying our curriculum and lessons.  We want to do our best to reach every student in the most effective way possible.

This week we were exposed to several different learning tools.  Tools that will allow students to have massive amounts of control over how much they learn and how far they will go with their project.  If students are given the opportunity to complete learning projects they will increase their academic achievement, retention of information, critical thinking skills, communication skills, and collaboration skills.  These  are all vital skills for 21st century learners.  These are all necessary skills for today’s students to become functioning adults.  Educators need to get the big picture and realize this is the goal.  I think too many times we are concerned with the “grade” and not the purpose of the assignment.

The advantages of using these online cognitive tools far outweighs the disadvantages.  These tools allow students to connect new information with existing knowledge and revise their understanding of material.  This is proven to increase retention.  It also improves their questioning ability.  Students who have increased questioning ability perform at a higher educational level.  The third benefit of cognitive tools is motivation.  Students tend to perform better on assignments if they are the creator of the final project.

We are all too familiar with the disadvantages of these tools.  Cost, training, assessment, and curriculum boundaries are just a few obstacles we all face when it comes to technology.  Unfortunately there is not one easy answer for these.  Perseverance and dedication is the only thing I can come up with in my situation.  I have become proactive at my school and begun to write grants and request funds from the PTO.  My baby steps have been productive so far.  For now I’ll just keep plugging away.  

Dr. Orey outlined cognitive learning theory very well.  He explained the short term memory works best with 7+/-2 pieces of information.  Elaboration is the primary mechanism for storing information in long term memory.  Images are one of the most powerful tools for storing information.  It is crucial to provide experiences for our students to make educational connections. 

By using cues, questions, and organizers, teachers strengthen student’s ability to remember information.  Organizers help students stay on topic and organize their information.  Cues from the teacher help students pay attention to important information they are about to be exposed to.  Questions are used to help the students remember similar experiences they may have had.  After the teacher uses these strategies to evaluate what the students may or may not know about a certain subject,  it is then time to use various theories to fill in the gaps.  Where a student is lacking in experiences, we provide experience with virtual field trips, actual field trips, guest speakers, and other various resources.  If the student is lacking in vocabulary we will use images to enhance their learning.  Students could also use several varieties of graphic organizers to elaborate on a topic.  These are all ways student can gather connections to things they already know, thus, expanding on their knowledge.

 

Reinforcing Effort  – Homework and Practice:  How do these relate to behaviorist learning theory?

I feel as though reinforcing effort directly relates to the behaviorist learning theory.  In every example given in the text book, students were given the opportunity to see the relationship between their effort and their grade.  Students sometimes received automatic feedback which is also very rewarding.  As long as the reinforcement is positive and not used in negative ways it is a very powerful tool that proves to be effective with every age group.

Homework & Practice does not seem to be as directly related to behaviorist learning theory however, it still relates.  “Technology facilitates homework and practice by providing a wealth of resources for learning outside of the classroom, making it easy for students to work on a collaborative homework assignments and providing “drill and practice” resources that help students refine their skills.” (Pitler, Hubbell, Kuhn, Malenoski pg.189)  This quote brought to mind several nights during my jr. high and high school years.  I will never forget the agony of doing my homework or studying for a test and having a missing piece of information.  If my mom or dad couldn’t help me and my friends couldn’t come to the phone, I was out of luck.  I stop and think now about the wealth of information at our fingertips and I am blown away.  I wonder how much more students today know and understand compared to students of my generation.  I would definitely give this credit to technology.

This course has helped me to develop my own technology skills in several ways.  In this short 8 week time period I have developed my own personal blog, joined several wikis, and created my very own podcast.  These are skills I have wanted to learn for a very long time.  I just need a little extra guidance and the added incentive a due date. 

My knowledge of the teaching and learning process has deepened tremendously.  I am now familiar with the skill for 21^st century learning.   Before taking this course I was somewhat aware of these 21^st century skills.  After being exposed to all of our learning resources and being involved in our meaningful classroom discussions I fully understand how crucial these skills for all of our learners today.  I will also do everything I can to make sure I teach these skills, encourage my colleagues to use these skills, and practice these skills myself.

I have always had a very learner-centered classroom.  I enjoy letting the students fly with their information.  I just tug on the kite string slightly to guide them and real them back in.  The one area on the checklist I found I needed the most improvement in was allowing students to evaluate and explore new technology and discover how they can be used in real world situations.  I am going to end each lesson by encouraging the students to find ways they can use the information in the real world.  In our last DVD selection Mr. Kolset used the example of how almost every boy loves video games.  It takes hundreds of people to create one game.  They need someone to write the script, design the buildings, develop the characters, and the list goes on and on.  Students need to be informed about the connections learning has to the real world.

I am going to expand my knowledge of the wonderful use of technology by mastering several of the tasks this course introduced me to.  I am going to practice and play with my new found tools and get them ready to introduce to other teachers as well as students.    I am going to use this opportunity to challenge myself to master the importance of 21^st century learning skills, enough to create professional development over the subject.  Teachers everywhere need to be made aware of its importance.

This assignment has just about driven me crazy!  Did anyone else have to download software to convert their sound file to mp3 format?  Anyway…  here is my podcast.  http://www.gcast.com/u/tarabrooks/main

I had several reactions to the website Partnership for 21st Century Skills.  I found most of this information extremely powerful.  I think think the word that can describe how I feel the best is overwhelmed.  We have so much to teach our students as it is.  Now, more than ever, it is crucial for our children to be taught the essential skills for the 21st century as well as the other essential skills such as Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math.

The information most surprising to me was the idea there are people opposed to the 21st Century Skills.  I understand how people are concerned about Reading, Writing, and Arithmetic.  There never seems to be enough time to teach students all the things necessary.  I believe if some teachers really look at what they are teaching and how they are teaching it they could possible eliminate certain unnecessary practices that waste valuable time.  (i.e. seat work / worksheets)  I disagree with most of the points made by the opposition for P21.  I do agree with “World Class Knowledge and World Class Skill”

As a contemporary educator I am going to incorporate Dr. Thornberg’s 13 skills for 21st Century  Education into my classroom.  I am also going to do everything I can to pass this information along to my fellow educators.  I feel it is my mission to inform teachers, parents and administrators how crucial it is for our students to have these essential tools for the future.

 

I could use blogs several ways in my library.  The most obvious would be to advertise new books in the library.  I could also allow the students to book talk the new books and help promote the new arrivals to their peers.  This would also work with an oldie but goodie that has been forgotten.  Blogging would be an outstanding opportunity for students to share their ideas in a book club or literature circle format.  Reaching out to students outside of their school and finding students with similar reading preferences may help some struggling readers as well.