6711: Final Reflection

My personal theory of learning in technology is to establish grade level skills, having every year build upon the previous one. While I establish essential skills, I continue to take great strides in encouraging exploration and developing skills beyond what I formally teach, in that respect my personal theory of learning has not changed. What has changed is a deeper understanding of different learning styles and how technology can aid in engaging all learners. “Individuals all have preferences as to how they best receive information. Each of us has a preferred sensory gateway, that is, the sense that is most effective for receiving and decoding information” (Lever-Duffy & McDonald, 2008, p. 13). When presented with a number of key theorists and their theories, an educator can select one, or pieces of some, but in the end our main focus is to provide the best possible learning environment for each student. That may sound like a monumental task, but as we get to know our students, we learn what method of delivery works best for each one of them. For me, that means incorporating text, images, movement, music, and nature into as many interpersonal and intrapersonal projects as possible, allowing students freedom within the structure of a lesson.

Expanding my repertoire, with the use of Spiderscribe.net, wikis and blogs gave my students in grades third through sixth a taste of local collaboration. It also gave me a taste of collaboration and lit, in me, a desire to take it further than just local, as I believe students will benefit from this first step into global awareness and collaboration. “To find out the skills students need, look, for example, at the work of the Partnership for 21^st Century Skills, which highlights such areas as computer and technology skills, critical thinking and problem solving, teamwork and collaboration, ethics and responsibility, and global awareness” (Prensky, 2008).  

My first long-term goal is to continue to explore, learn and teach technology-integrated lessons, and to give classroom teachers skills, building their confidence in technology integration. To accomplish this, I will be exploring Lynda.com this summer, and beyond, learning new software, such as Final Cut and Flash and brushing up my skills in a number of other applications, such as Photoshop and Dreamweaver.

My second long-term goal is to prepare students, to the best of my ability, for a future that is not yet on our radar. Though unsure of what the future may old, I can instill confidence, curiosity, skills and an understanding of the technology devices that are available now. Using that information will hopefully allow my students ease, as they continue through life surrounded by technology and the gifts and challenges that come with technology.

References

Lever-Duffy, J., & McDonald, J. (2008). Theoretical foundations (Laureate Education, Inc., custom ed.). Boston, MA: Pearson Education, Inc.

Prensky, M. (2008, March). Turning on the lights. Educational Leadership, 65(6), 40–45.

Voice Thread Link

The following link is to my first Voice Thread.

https://voicethread.com/share/4656695/

Connectivism and Social Learning in Practice

As educators, we look to our PLCs, grade level meetings, in services and conferences to gain new knowledge, often sharing with our colleagues as we disseminate the new knowledge and plan for its implementation. Through cooperative learning, "students can reflect on newly acquired knowledge, process what they are learning by talking with and actively listening to their peers, and develop common understanding about topics" (Pitler, Hubbell, & Kuhn, 2012, p.73). How often do we bounce ideas off one another? We look to peers, colleagues and friends for social learning and understanding, taking that into the classroom is a natural extension of what goes on throughout our lives. 

Building these collaborative opportunities into our classroom structure not only benefits the students in school but it also prepares students for "the fast-paced, virtual workplace that they will someday inherit"  (Pitler et al., 2012, p. 74). Using technology tools, such as blogs, wikis and online collaborative graphic organizers this year, I have seen increased engagement in students. Getting over the initial confusion of collaborating without talking, they became fully engrossed in the process of building an artifact "together, but separate" as one of my fourth graders said.

Reading through the different ideas, software, programs and websites mad my head spin with ideas. I found the possibility of creating a WebQuest with a group of students from another school, a great way to collaborate on a problem or subject. Extending that to another country through the use of ePals or The Teacher's Corner, would allow the opportunity to learn about other cultures and traditions wrapped up into the inquiry based activity. Collaborating with classmates taking notes and summarizing information through the use of Type with Me, is a great resource for group studying without being in the same room, as is Skype. Watching my own children, a few years ago, utilize Skype with classmates to study for an upcoming test, reminded me of the power of the Internet. Incorporating social learning theories into the classroom environment has become more seamless and natural, and if there is any question as to how to operate a program, navigate a website, or apply an app to a situation, we need to look no further than the students in the classroom; they usually have already figured it out.

References

Pitler, H., Hubbell, E. R., & Kuhn, M. (2012). Using technology with classroom instruction that works (2^nd ed.). Alexandria, VA: ASCD

Any advice, warning and/or ideas...

Hey all,

I am, excitedly, leaping into a new adventure this summer. I will be leaving my school of 17 years and moving to a private K-8 school as technology specialist, launching one to one laptops in grades 6-8 and iPads in grades 2-3. I am looking for any knowledge, sources, lessons, etc. regarding iPad usage in classrooms. We had a very limited pilot program of iPads in one first grade classroom and I would love to hear from others who may have had experiences with iPads.

I would also love to hear experiences from any and all regarding laptops usage in classrooms, what worked, what didn't.

If you know of someone outside of Walden that you think might benefit from the information shared, please forward this blog. I would like to open this up to anyone and everyone.

Thank you for any and all information you are willing to share.