Final Reflection

As I near completion of Supporting Information Literacy and Online Inquiry in the Classroom EDUC – 6712, I cannot help thinking about the many ways my teaching ability will be enhanced because of this class. I learned about social bookmarking, how to evaluate web sites, the importance of essential questions and how they can guide student projects, collaboration with other schools using e-pals, the pros and cons of schools filtering the Internet, that there are other search engines my students could use instead of Google, and that information literacy is so important today.

The most striking revelation that the course taught me about the new literacy skills is that students are asked to find information, decipher if it is right or wrong, and synthesize information from many places. This is much more difficult that going to a text and finding "correct" information easily. Alvin Toffler stated that "the illiterate of the 21st century will not be those who can read and write, but those who cannot learn, unlearn, and relearn" (Jukes & Macdonald, 2007). This statement really sums up where education is and where it needs to be headed. The staff at my school is teaching students how to read and write but are we giving students the skills to learn, unlearn, and relearn?

The knowledge and skills I have learned in this course will be incorporated into my curriculum. One way is that I will not allow my students to use Google for Internet searches. They will need to use www.sweetsearch.com or www.boolify.org. I will use diigo to list all the sites we are going to use in the classroom versus having students type in URL’s. I will incorporate the REAL method to test the validity of websites. REAL stands for:
R – Read the URL (what is the extension?)
E – Examine the content (is it a hoax?)
A – Ask about the author/owner (use www.easywhois.com to locate the owner)
L – Links (examine)

By using the REAL method, my students should be able to decipher whether a website is legitimate or a hoax. I will introduce my students to www.computertan.com and will see if they can apply the REAL method and figure out if it is valid or not. Finally, when I assign students projects, such as the Canadian Provinces/Territory wikis, I will have checkpoints for assessment. "Although it is important to be able to evaluate what students have learned at the end of an inquiry unit, even more important for Guided Inquiry is consideration of formative assessment along the way" (Kuhlthau, Maniotes, & Caspari, 2007). In the past, I would only assess the final project and there were really no way of knowing if my students were getting it or not. If they were started completing the project the wrong way, there was really no way of knowing it unless they asked questions or if I caught it when patrolling the computer lab. This will give me a greater chance to assess skills along the way and evaluate the creativity of the final project presentation.

One profession developmental goal I would like to pursue that builds upon the knowledge from this course and develops my information literacy skills is to increase my student’s awareness that everything that they read on the Internet is not true. I want my students to improve their ability when finding information. Starting day one, we learn and practice Internet skills. First, we will search will without using Google. Next, we use the REAL method for every website. Finally, we will work on synthesizing information. It is an important skill that is not easy to master but if we use work on it from day one there will be tremendous improvement when my students move to seventh grade.

If I were to sum up this course in one word I would say valuable. Its content will play an important part of my teaching practice. It has given me tools to help prepare my students with 21st century skills that they will use throughout their education.


References:

Jukes, I. (2007). 21st century fluency skills: Attributes of a 21st century learner. Retrieved from http://www.committedsardine.com/handouts/twca.pdf

Kuhlthau, C. C., Maniotes, L. K., & Caspari, A. K. (2007). Guided inquiry: Learning in the 21st century. Westport: Libraries Unlimited.

Final Reflection

For my final blog post for Bridging Learning Theory, Instruction, and Technology, I want to look back at week one and defining my personal theory of learning. In week one, I stated how all my students see lessons in different ways and to reach my I need to understand how they think during the learning process. I need to learn my students’ strengths and weaknesses so I can plan engaging lessons. It is my goal to create lessons that immerse the learner as described by Dr. Michael Orey (Laureate, 2009a). I try to plan most of my lessons based on Howard Gardner’s Multiple Intelligences Theory that we all have multiple intelligences but there is one or two of those intelligences that makes of learning unique (Lever-Duffy & Macdonald, 2008, p.24). I want to set my students up for success and by learning how they learn best and allowing them to use this in lessons, I feel that I am giving them a great opportunity to learn from each other. I have learned to modify my instruction so that my students are actively engaged and create artifacts to show there mastery of content. According to Dr. Michael Orey, "Social Learning is the act of being actively engaged in constructing artifacts and conversations with others. Conversations that help them understand and learn from others." (Laureate Inc., 2009b) I want my students to learn the content from each other and rely less on teacher led instruction.

This caused some adjustments to my instructional practice. Throughout my education at Walden University I learned about using Web 2.0 tools in the classroom and I am continually impressed by the amount and quality of content. Web 2.0 tools allow a small-town school to create podcasts, videos, manage photos, create slideshows, comics, animation, wikis, concept maps, musical and graphical tools, and many others for no cost. In an era of school budget restraints, Web 2.0 tools allow my students a chance to experience 21st skills in practice. In this course we learned about VoiceThreads and I will implement them into my curriculum. VoiceThreads allow students to collaborate and build knowledge together by using their voices (with a microphone) or by typing. This is great because it allows students who are reluctant to participate in discussion, a chance to become involved in discussion that they would normally would not. Another tools that I want to incorporate into my curriculum is virtual field trips. A Virtual Field Trip is a web based tool that "provides a student the opportunity to go where they physically cannot" (Laureate Education, Inc., 2007c). For example, virtual field trips instantly allow my students in Reedsville, WI to visit and learn about the tropical rainforests in Brazil and store that information into long-term memory. The trip would include many sights, sounds, and excellent information that would allow for my students to make connections with prior knowledge and enter their episodic memory. Using technology and experiencing a virtual fieldtrip is a much more effective way for my students to experience the Amazon Rainforest rather than looking in a boring textbook.

A long-term goal I would like to make to my instructional practice are giving my students different choices using technology to meet lesson objectives (a leap of faith for me). For example, if we are learning about Canadian provinces, in which I would normally have students create a poster, I would give them a chance to create an Imovie, slideshow, podcast, or the chance to use any Web 2.0 tools. As long a the students can satisfy the rubric for the assignment, they can use technology to learn in different ways, hopefully using their strengths. Another goal I will incorporate is using IPod touches in my classroom that I ordered last week. Students can surf the Internet, reinforce skills, use dictionaries and encyclopedias, or use any of the over 10,000 educational apps. My students are really excited for this opportunity and this will engage my students with even less teacher-led instruction. IPods, VoiceThreads, virtual field trips, and other Web 2.0 tools make being a teacher wanting to incorporate technology into the curriculum exciting and will definitely improve student achievement.

References
Laureate Education, Inc. (Executive Producer). (2009a). Program 8. Bridging learning theory, instruction, and technology. Baltimore: Author.

Laureate Education, Inc. (Executive Producer). (2009b). Program 3. Instructional theory vs. learning theory. [Educational video]. Baltimore: Author.

Laureate Education, Inc. (Executive Producer). (2009c). Program 5. Spotlight on technology – virtual field trips. [Educational video]. Baltimore: Author.

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

My Voicethread

Blogging is blocked at my school. How can I convince administration to change this policy and use blogging as an educational tool??

Here is the link to my Voicethread.


http://voicethread.com/share/1040157/

Mr. D

Connectivism and Social Learning in Practice

The learning strategy in Using Technology with Classroom Instruction that Works that we studied this week was cooperation and that goes hand and hand with Connectivism and Social Learning Theory. In our DVD presentation, Dr. Orey (Laureate Education, Inc., 2009) maintains that the social learning theory is the idea that “students actively engage in constructing artifacts and conversing with others.” By completing group projects (cooperation) students are practicing the social learning theory. Through technology and web 2.0 tools students can experience collaboration and group skills at a distance. Wikis, Google Docs, WebQuests, blogs, and many other technological means are beginning to revolutionize collaborative education. “Technology can plan a unique and vital role in cooperative learning by facilitating group collaboration, providing structure for group tasks, and allowing members to communicate even if they are not working face to face.” (Pitler, et. al., 2007, p. 140). This is awesome for both teachers and students. This can eliminate the “strong willed” student who takes over a group project with their influence. Conversely, a quiet/shy student may be more aggressive or participate more because they are not face to face with other group members.

Another collaboration tool I explored was some of the web resources in our text. Pitler, et al. discussed web collaboration, keypals, web-enabled multiplayer simulation games, and communication software, such as blogs and wikis. The great part about these sources is that they all allow for group learning and facilitate collaboration. Collaboration is not limited to groups in one classroom, technology allows for cooperative learning from anywhere on Earth there is computers and the Internet. Students from Reedsville, WI where I teach can learn from students in Japan or England. I could have my students working on a wiki about the novel Number the Stars and students from throughout the world could make changes and learn from my students. It would be great to hear from some Jewish students, students from Germany or Denmark. The technology makes studying novels more engaging and the ability to converse with students from throughout the world makes wikis a great educational tool that correlates with the social learning theory. Some of the simulation games such as Revolution and Civilization III allow students to interact with players throughout the world. Students learn by participating in actual historic events. The ability to learn while playing a game with authentic historical events while interacting with historical figures is an awesome way to learn about history and a way I wish I could have experienced in school.





Laureate Education, Inc. (Executive Producer). (2009). Program 8. Social Learning Theory. [Educational video]. Baltimore: Author

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

Constructivism in Practice

Constructionism suggests that learners are particularly likely to create new ideas when they are actively engaged in making external artifacts that they can reflect upon and share with others, for example, helping them create their own video games, robots, and simulations (Thurmond, 1999). My students simply enjoy using technology to learn, they prefer wikis, podcasts, PowerPoints over textbooks, worksheets, and rote learning. I recently surveyed my sixth grade students about incorporating technology in our classroom and found that over 90% would rather create a podcast or an iMovie instead of a research paper. This data suggested that I should change my curriculum to accommodate my student’s desire to learn using technology.

Pitler, Hubbell, Kuhn and Malenoski stated in Using Technology with Classroom Instruction that Works in Chapter 11 (Generating and Testing Hypothesis) that when students generate and test hypotheses, they are engaging in complex mental processes, applying content knowledge like facts and vocabulary, and enhancing their overall understanding of the content. I love the idea of using game software and simulations to teach content. My students would jump at the idea of playing an online simulation such as the Calm and the Storm, a World War II simulation where students take on the role of leaders of several different countries. They make economic, diplomatic, and military decisions to achieve their country’s goals.
http://www.gamespot.com/pc/strategy/makinghistorythecalmandthestorm/index.html
High School history teacher Dave McDivitt used the game to teach World War II and also taught it the traditional way. After testing both groups, he found that the students using the simulation software scored significantly higher than those who learned the material the traditional way (Pitler, et. al., 2007, pp. 214). This is significant because using simulation software (learning in a way that my students love) will be more effective than the normal, boring school lessons that I experienced when I attended school. By implementing technology, my students will be engaged, apply new content that is introduced in the simulation, and enhance their understanding.


Resources:

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

Thurmond, A. (1999). Seymour Papert & Constructionism. March 24, 2009 from http://online.sfsu.edu/~foreman/itec800/finalprojects/annmariethurmond/home.html

Using Cognitive Tools to Enhance Learning

In our text this week, we learned how using cognitive tools can enhance the learning experience. As a teacher, I want to use technology along with strategies to enhance learning. Pitler, Hubbell, Kuhn and Malenoski stated in Using Technology with Classroom Instruction that Works in Chapter 4 (Cues, Questions, and Advance Organizers) that cues, questions, and advanced organizers help students’ ability to retrieve, use and organize information about a topic. An example they use that I want to use with my students is advanced organizers. Advanced Organizers are easy to use, are free, can include clipart and multimedia, and help students organize information and access prior knowledge. In the video section of the course resources this week, Dr. Orey talked about Pavio’s dual coding hypothesis from the video (Laureate Education, Inc., 2009). The power of advanced organizers is that if students can associate a picture with a meaning and information is stored as images and text, the understanding will improve their ability to recall the information. Ideally, I would create organizers for my social studies units that include clipart from the countries we are studying and the students would absorb the information.

In Chapter 6 (Summarizing and Note taking) Pitler, Hubbell, Kuhn and Malenoski state that note taking and summarizing strategies should focus on the students’ ability to synthesize information and distill it into a new form. The strategy that I found useful was using a word processor to take notes. Our text suggested using the graphic representation of an upside-down T (Pitler et al., 2007, p.121). On the top left of the T students would record notes, on the top right side of the T students would draw illustrations, and underneath the T students would create a two sentence summary. This would be an ideal way to introduce new concepts in social studies and character descriptions in language arts. For example for South America, they would list the countries on the left, copy and paste a map on the right, and write a two sentence description under the line.

The new technological strategies I learned I want to incorporate into future lessons because they help students make connections and organize information in ways that they can easily understand. By making connections to prior knowledge and concepts they are familiar with, students will achieve more.

Resources
Laureate Education, Inc. (Executive Producer). (2007). Program 5. Cognitive Learning Theories. [Educational video]. Baltimore: Author.

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

Behaviorism in Practice

In Using Technology with Classroom Instruction That Works I explored many strategies that embed technology and relate to the behaviorist learning theory. Pitler, Hubbell, Kuhn, and Malenoski (2007) gave the example of using www.survey monkey.com to collect data that you could use to encourage students to try harder. The objective of the survey was to connect effort with achievement (p.162). With some inspiration from our text, I used www.surveymonkey.com to create a survey similar to Figures 8.6 and 8.7 (p.163) on place a link on my wiki. I discussed with my students both before and after the survey that they are responsible for their learning. I wanted my students to think about taking more responsibility and after reviewing the data of the survey, clearly they do not feel this way. The almost immediate feedback from this survey gave me some ideas on helping students become more responsible students. At the beginning of each quarter of the school year, I will set goals with my students in every class I teach (change my student’s behavior). I need to spend more time teaching my students study skills, testing taking skills, and constantly practice to acquire skills.

Another example of a strategy that uses technology and relates to the behaviorist learning theory is web resources. The text list many sites that give students the opportunity to learn through repetition. I played “Wizards and Pigs” www.cogcon.org/gamegoo/games/wiznpigs/wizpigs.html and found out that this game neatly teaches students alliteration, rhyming, and free verse (p.197). I played this game and found behaviorism throughout the course of this game. The more skills you master the more you are rewarded with keys and potions. The game features some animation and great speech synthesis. The ability to learn some difficult concepts and have fun is the best part of this site. I will definitely use this as part of my poetry unit next year.

In our text both chapter eight, “Reinforcing Effort” and in chapter ten, “Homework and Practice” the authors give some great strategies that show behaviorism in practice with technology. I learned that free survey tools can really help me help my students improve their ability to improve themselves as students. I also found some new ways to give my students activities that help reinforce their skills with the reward of having fun while learning. Behaviorism may be described as the “red headed step-child” of the learning theories by Dr. Orey (Laureate Education, Inc., 2009) but it is alive and well thanks to technology being integrated in to education.

Laureate Education, Inc. (Executive Producer). (2009). Program 4. Behaviorist learning theory. [Educational video]. Baltimore: Author.

Orey, M.(Ed.). (2001). Emerging perspectives on learning, teaching, and technology. Retrieved from http://projects.coe.uga.edu/epltt/

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