Final Reflection

As I reviewed my “Personal Theory of Learning”, I realized that it has not really changed throughout this course. I still believe that a student’s personal experiences and environment influence how new concepts are interpreted and applied. I will continue to consider multiple intelligences and learning styles as I plan and implement lessons. Technology makes differentiation easier and also provides a greater variety of assessment methods than the traditional paper and pencil work. Each year of experience increases my understanding of how my students think and learn. As I become more adept at identifying the differences in my students, I will be able to modify the lessons so that each student has the opportunity to develop a deeper understanding of the content.

This course has also helped me understand the differences between using technology as an instructional tool and using technology as a learning tool. I try to avoid treating my Promethean board as a glorified overhead projector. However, I could do a much better job of creating interactive, student-centered lessons and activities that will utilize the full functionality of this tool. One of the new technology tools that I have used in this course is VoiceThread. Since one of my goals is to give my students more opportunities to experience the “outside” world, VoiceThread could be the right tool for the job. District guidelines on instant messaging and time zone differences make it almost impossible to provide live communication with students in distant places. VoiceThread would provide that audio/visual contact without requiring a live connection. To connect with students in another state or country, I have also set up a class profile on ePals. This site provides the ability to collaborate with students around the world. Together, these two tools will allow my students to connect, communicate, and collaborate with students they would otherwise never meet. These interactions will help them grow as citizens of a global community. These tools will also make implementing a collaborative online project much easier!

Finally, the two long-term goals I have set regarding technology integration in the classroom are as follows: 1) Increase my students' media literacy and 2) focus more on student-centered activities, so that I use technology for learning, instead of just instruction.

"Media literacy is the ability to sift through and analyze the messages that inform, entertain and sell to us every day. It's the ability to bring critical thinking skills to bear on all media— from music videos and Web environments to product placement in films and virtual displays on NHL hockey boards. It's about asking pertinent questions about what's there, and noticing what's not there. And it's the instinct to question what lies behind media productions— the motives, the money, the values and the ownership— and to be aware of how these factors influence content. Media education encourages a probing approach to the world of media: Who is this message intended for? Who wants to reach this audience, and why? From whose perspective is this story told? Whose voices are heard, and whose are absent? What strategies does this message use to get my attention and make me feel included? In our world of multi-tasking, commercialism, globalization and interactivity, media education isn't about having the right answers—it's about asking the right questions. The result is lifelong empowerment of the learner and citizen."

(Source: Jane Tallim, Education Specialist, The Provincial Centre of Excellence for Child and Youth Mental Health Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario)

Secondly, by creating more student-centered activities, technology becomes a learning tool, rather than just an instructional tool. As students take more responsibility for their own learning, they also develop a deeper sense of ownership of the educational process. When learning is real, relevant, and engaging, students find more worth in completing assignments and accomplishing goals. Without their "buy-in", we are just spinning our wheels in the classroom.

Voice Thread

Check out my first voice thread. This is a completely new technology for me, but I can definitely see the possibilities it offers.

http://voicethread.com/share/529657/

Social Learning

Our school is in a small, rural community in South Carolina. Our student population is fairly homogeneous. With limited resources, many of our students rarely travel far from home. Opportunities to meet and learn from students in other states and other countries are virtually nonexistent. However, the Internet provides a way to create these opportunities...virtually. In my personal mission statement, I acknowledge my responsibility to help my students become responsible, ethical citizens of their school, their community, and their world. One way to accomplish that is to provide opportunities to participate in distance learning with students around the world.

Web resources are a wonderful addition to the instructional tools available to teachers today. Our text lists resources such as webquests, wikis, email pen pals, and collaborative organizing through calendar services (Pitler, H., Hubbell, E., Kuhn, M., & Malenoski, K, 2007). This week, I was notified that a cooperative learning project I proposed has been funded. In this project, my students will investigate issues related to the availability of clean, safe drinking water. As they research and test local water sources, I would like for them to collaborate on this project with students in a distant location. Our text mentioned email pen pal services as a way to make the necessary contacts. Another resource that is highly recommended is the Flat Classroom Project (http://www.flatclassroomproject.org/ ).

Cooperative learning projects are an important part of our curriculum, yet the opportunities for exposure to new or different ideas are limited. My hope is that virtual collaborative projects such as this will make global issues more real and relevant to students who have little knowledge of the world outside of their county or state. Social learning will then be a much more powerful experience for these students.


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

Constructivism in Practice

The more that I can integrate technology into my lessons, the more my students enjoy it. Of course, I also enjoy them more! Working with math concepts can become tedious at times. Imagine being given a set of data and told to calculate mean, median, and mode. Once those are done, you must create a graph that fits certain requirements. The majority of work involved is just that...work. There isn't much thought or analysis involved. The data sets involved tend to be smaller since the students would otherwise become frustrated. Now, imagine being given a slightly different set of data, for which you must do the same calculations and then analyze the differences between the two data sets. Put middle school students in this situation and it will result in moans and groans, along with whining and complaining.

Now imagine that you have an interactive online tool that lets you manipulate data at will. You can add or delete outliers, change the scale or intervals of a graph, or even switch to a different type of graphical representation at the click of a mouse. The tedious tasks are gone and you can immediately see the results of any change in the data. You can now concentrate on what happens when data is added, deleted, or modified. You can see the difference that changes in scale and interval make in the appearance, and perhaps interpretation, of the graph.

Which option is more appealing to you? The same one that is more appealing to our students. When students are allowed to use technology to investigate data and create an artifact depicting what they have learned, they are more engaged in the process. More engagement leads to a deeper understanding of the concept. Instead of spending all of their time on the individual calculations, the students can spend their time manipulating data and analyzing how that changes the result.

Today's students have grown up with technology. The tools that are available in the classroom have the potential to give students more time to explore higher-order thinking and analytical problem-solving. To deprive them of these skills is to fail to prepare them for a 21st century world.

Cognitive Tools and Enhanced Learning

There is no doubt that educational technology can enhance learning for students. Cognitive tools serve several purposes in the instructional process. Information seeking tools such as Internet search engines and online databases allow students to access more information in a shorter amount of time. As they find the answers to their original questions, many times they also find extended information that deepens their understanding of the material. Presentation tools such as Word and PowerPoint allow the students to display their creative ideas through unique multimedia projects. Technologies such as spreadsheets and notebook tools aid the students in organizing information and defining relationships. Knowledge integration is enhanced using mapping tools and simulations. These technologies allow students to connect their prior knowledge with the newly acquired information (Orey, 2001).

Study skills such as summarizing and note taking can be demonstrated using some of these cognitive tools. Simply using the mark-up feature in Word is a very effective way for the teacher to model summarizing. Students’ note-taking skills improve when they are taught to use graphic organizers. For class discussions or small group projects, these notes can be shared online through the use of wikis and blogs (Pitler, 2007).

Concept mapping and virtual field trips are cognitive tools that are new to me, but I can definitely see the value of these tools. Class trips across the country or around the world are not feasible. With virtual field trips, any student can visit our nation’s capitol, go on a safari, or explore the rainforests. As school budgets tighten even more, these virtual field trips may be all that we can afford. Concept mapping tools can be used to enhance the student’s ability to organize information and define relationships. Even so, we must be sure that our students “work with computer technology, instead of being controlled by it” (Orey, 2001).


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

Reward and Punishment

There is no doubt that operant conditioning is still widely used in our schools. There are many professionals who will debate the value of intrinsic motivation over extrinisic motivation. In theory, students should find satisfaction in a job well done or in a goal achieved. In reality, these same students may not have their basic needs met. There is a consensus among our middle school teachers that punishments such as lunch and after-school detention, or in-school and out-of-school suspension do not have the desired effect. This is based on the observation that the same students receive these consequences time after time. If a negative reinforcement does not deter the undesirable behavior, then it has no value.

On the other hand, middle school students respond readily to rewards. I often tease my students that I am going to give them t-shirts printed with the phrase, "Will work for food". At their ages, they are very self-absorbed. If success is rewarded by fulfilling a personal desire, then they will give their best effort. The reward could be something edible, or it might be a chance to have class outside. The reward might be an opportunity to play computer games or just put together a jigsaw puzzle. As long as the reward is something that they value, they will stay focused until the assignment is completed.

Although many modern professionals may not label themselves as behaviorists, the idea of reward and punishment is still a major part of classroom procedure. The extent to which strategies such as reinforcing effort or homework and practice actually increase students' understanding of the course material depends on how the strategies are applied. Regardless of the instructional strategy or educational theory used in the classroom, the content must be real and relevant to the student. Without a student's "buy-in", even the best laid plans will fail.

Test Time!

It's that time of year again. The 'official' state testing of our students begins this week. One test...on one day...for each subject...will be used to determine how well we have taught our students the grade-level standards this year. Of course, we don't get the results until late summer, which does absolutely nothing to help this year's students. Money and jobs are dependent on good test scores. It's a system that makes absolutely no sense to me. My personal feeling is that if I have helped my students develop a love for learning and a desire to make a positive impact on the world around them, then I don't care what they score on a standardized multiple-choice test. Life does not present its problems with potential answers labelled A, B, C, or D. Life presents problems which require independent thinking, creative problem-solving techniques, and no single right answer. If one of my students becomes an auto mechanic and someone brings in a car that is not operating properly, there will be no printout which states: A) the PCV valve is defective, B) the fuel filter may be clogged, C) possible vacuum leak, or D) faulty sensor.

I have not heard or read a single reason that supports the heavy emphasis that is placed on mandated testing. Imagine what would happen if any of the highly-compensated professional athletes had their future contracts determined by a single performance at the end of the season. What if they were told that it doesn't matter what they did all year...that because they failed to excel during a single game, they would not have a job the following season. What an uproar that would cause! It would be the leading story for every news venue. Yet, that is what we are telling our students and our teachers. This one test...on this one day...is an accurate measure of the success of the entire school year. How can anyone continue to support this type of testing?