EDLD+5364

Teaching with Technology - Week One Update

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Week One involved reading about and discussing three different learning theories: Constructivism, Connectivism, and Cyborg. The required articles provided a glimpse into each theory, and additional youtube videos added more illustration. Constructivism, developed by Russian psychologist Vygotski, asserts that learners add information from a variety of sources to their personal knowledge base to create new knowledge. This new knowledge is unique to each leaner because every person builds on their individual experiences, which differ according to background and other factors. Connectivism, developed by George Siemens, is based on the theory that learning occurs in a variety of ways based on the connection of different information sources. An important element of this theory is that learners must know where to find knowledge in order to connect it to other knowledge and previously learned knowledge. Cyborg, the newest learning theory, was developed by Kevin Warwick and asserts that interactions between humans and machines will change (and have changed) the way humans learn and the abilities they possess. Cyborg theory is being heavily researched and studied, and the field is expected to rapidly progress over the next century.====== 

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After studying each theory, I find that I lean more toward the Constructivism ideals. As a teacher, the main goal of each of my language arts lessons is to make the content relevant to my students. Because they come from such diverse backgrounds (all over the United States) and do not have many positive experiences with school, it is imperative that I connect their learning to prior experiences so that they can create new learning in their own minds, as it relates to them. Students struggle when teachers introduce new content that does not seem relevant to their lives; constructivism demonstrates this fact by asserting that no meaning is constructed if people don't have prior/background knowledge to build on. I do also agree that Connectivism is a valid learning theory because I see how social interaction plays such a huge role in our learning. But to me, constructivism is the most prevalent theory because I see it in action every day.======

= = =Teaching with Technology - Week Two Update =

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Week Two introduced me to a learning theory I've never heard of, Universal Design. After perusing the CAST website, I've developed a minimal understanding of this theory, and I really like what I've read. To paraphrase the lecture, UD is a blueprint designed to accommodate the variety of learning styles apparent in a regular classroom. For example, because all brains learn differently, teachers using UD provide many different avenues to learn the same content, to express learning of that content, and to assess overall understanding of that content. Teachers use many different media, methods, and technological tools to achieve this challenge, but all students, no matter their level or learning style, are able to learn.======

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The videos we watched pertaining to Universal Design establish three clear "networks" of the brain: Recognition, Strategic, and Affective. Recognition networks are the "what" of learning; these networks enable us to establish facts and identify and categorize information. Strategic networks are the "how" of learning; these networks involve the planning and performing tasks of the brain, and pertain to how we organize and express ideas. Affective networks are the "why" of learning; these networks are based on learner engagement, motivation, and level of challenge. I can personally see how all of these networks combine to help us create new knowledge, and thus share that knowledge with others. I am eager to learn how I can apply UD within my own classroom. The task at hand seems daunting; the thought of providing individualized instruction to each of my students literally seems impossible.======

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Teaching with Technology - Week Three Update
= = ​UDL Lesson - Ecosystem OrganizationMy lesson objective is for 6th grade students to understand the organization of an ecosystem with an emphasis on the oxygen, carbon, and nitrogen cycles. I enjoyed creating a lesson out of my subject area, and I like how many different manipulatives are available for Science classes. I included several different representations of the information in order to meet the Recognition Networks of my students. We began by reviewing the background vocabulary needed to understand the cycles, which is displayed in a game of Jeopardy on Quia. This activity will keep kids engaged and help them understand what they'll be learning. I included activities such as observing the terrarium, observing a local lake's ecosystem, and charting predictions and observations of each. These activities meet the Strategic and Affective Networks of the UDL process. One thing I added to the lesson, after collaborating with my class group, is the emphasis on Brazilian ecosystems and the habitats of jaguars. This is in conjunction with Bryan's lesson on the book //Jaguar,// and I feel it is a great way to provide cross-curricular objectives for our students (and thus contribute to the "multiple means of representation" facet of UDL). I believe UDL lessons will go a long way for helping teachers determine how to meet the needs of every student, and I like this lesson plan better than the one our district currently uses. The Universal Design for Learning focuses on the three networks for learning: Recognition, Strategic, and Affective. Our readings illustrated different stategies for meeting the needs of diverse learning networks, and I appreciate how they are charted in an easy-to-reference manner. I have been to many workshops on differentiated instruction, but these readings encompassed more than the workshops because they actually explain why certain instructional techniques are effective, and how to achieve these. I kept these techniques in mind as I designed my UDL lesson for this class, and also as I designed my lesson plans for next week. For example, we have just finished up a unit on short stories in my 8th grade ELA class. Instead of having all students write journal entries for the characters or make a poster of a story like teachers often do, I designed eight different projects for students to choose from. I offered choices for content, materials, and tools in order to meet diverse affective networks. I modeled different projects for them and offered several examples in order to meet the diverse recognition networks. I also continuously gave feedback as students worked, and showed them ways to elaborate and improve their work.
 * UDL Process**

To me, creating assignments like the ones my students are doing this week is imperative for educators if we are going to reach all students. I have a special ed student drawing a comic strip of a "superhero" character from a story, a Gifted and Talented student creating a front page newspaper for a story in Publisher, and several "normal" students creating skits and doing monologues of characters. All of these activities demonstrate their level of mastery of the content, and I designed it all with the UDL format.

Teaching with Technology - Week Four Update
High Tech High School and the other schools featured in this week's video lectures gave me a lot to think about and plan for in my own classroom and campus. I am absolutely floored by the innovation going on in these schools and the ways teachers truly collaborate to integrate content and technology. One concept that really hit home with me is "re-designing the school day," and allowing students more time in the same classroom (with more than one teacher) to fully master content and demonstrate this mastery through various styles of presentation. I feel that many times we are just scratching the surface of a lesson when the bell interrupts, and I think my students would have greater interest in a subject if they were allowed to research and learn it based on their own perspectives. I hope to sit down with my principal next summer to discuss the option of actually team-teaching several subjects to enable students to fully internalize the concepts they learn and use them in their lives.

Another aspect of this week I enjoyed involves the plethora of resources presented in the textbook readings. I have spent the past couple of hours online perusing the websites suggested in "Using Technology." One site I am excited about trying is www.moodle.com. I am attempting to blend my class next semester, so I will spend the next few weeks developing a virtual environment for my kids based on a novel we're reading. I don't feel that I have the skills I need to be overly successful right now, but I am really open to practicing this teaching strategy and gauging my students' reactions. I also like the suggestions for professional development offered in "Web 2.0." By combining Moodle and the necessary professional development concepts on my campus, teachers may be more apt to participate and learn something applicable in their classrooms. I think teachers will appreciate having information presented and modeled in new ways that they can also take back and teach to students with simply a computer and internet connection.

=Teaching with Technology - Week Five Update= This week's videos pertained to using digital gaming to educate students (and teachers!). The ideas presented in the videos are innovative for the academic environment, and would require a total overhaul of the current system. The Microsoft video mentions the fact that today's schools were designed for the early 20th century industrial age, and the system we use does not reach the 21st Century child. Today's kids need collaborative problem solving skills, yet the rote memorization and lack of application is not conducive to the world in which they'll work. The idea of video gaming corresponds with the week's readings based on assessment of students. Rather than uniform, pencil-and-paper standardized testing at the end of a unit, gaming allows students to gain instantaneous feedback on their assignments. They are able to create and problem-solve, and teachers can use the products they make as assessment measures. Instead of measuring WHAT students know, teachers will assess HOW they apply the knowledge using critical, higher-level thinking skills. Gaming captures students' attention and engages them because they are "immediately positioned with a purpose" as they learn.

I like the ideas presented in the readings and videos, but I know a major shift change must occur among administrators, teachers, and stakeholders in schools. The transition from textbooks and worksheets will need to be headed by a change in state and federal expectations and accountability from standardized testing. Major legislation changes may be involved, and I feel that it could be a long, hard process if the software and hardware needed for the change does not become available on an affordable, large scale. With today's Web 2.0 tools, this transition is possible and necessary, but the leaders of our educational system must allow for it.