Just because a teacher uses technology, doesn't mean they know how to teach with technology. Good teaching practices are embedded in an established pedagogy with an aim to transfer the skills and knowledge laid out in curriculum documents. * PowToons is an easy-to-use software to create animations. I use this tool with my Grade 8 students quite frequently.
This is a difficult question for any person to answer, as reading comprehension is an invisible process for the most part. A struggling reader cannot see the reading comprehension strategies a strong reader uses when reading. Struggling readers can’t see their classmates re-read, make personal connections, visualize, or make inferences. As a teacher, it is important to make such processes visible in the classroom. Educators must model reading strategies, allow collaborative discussions about reading, and provide opportunities for repeated practice of making meaning of texts.
Recently I read Kylene Beers’ text “When Kids Can’t Read: What Teachers Can Do - A Guide for Teachers 6-12” in an attempt to better my teaching practices surrounding reading.
Beers lists practical, easy to integrate pre-reading, during reading, and after-reading strategies that educators can implement in their own classroom. She draws on over 20 years of personal experience as both a teacher and reading specialist to share what she has learned and shows teachers how to help struggling readers with:
comprehension
vocabulary
fluency
word recognition
student motivation
See the following Google Doc for my detailed notes on this textbook.
The Horizon Report is a decade-long comprehensive research project designed to identify and describe emerging technologies likely to have an impact on learning, teaching, and creative inquiry. This report is the result of a joint venture between The New Media Consortium (a globally focused not-for-profit consortium dedicated to the exploration and use of new media and new technologies) and The ELI (a community of higher education institutions and organizations committed to advancing learning through information technology innovation).
The following are my synthesized points of learning from the 2011, 2012 and 2013 editions of the report, outlining the contemporary key trends and critical challenges of emerging technologies.
Key Trends
1. The abundance of resources and relationships made easily accessible via the Internet is increasingly challenging us to revisit our roles as educators.
sense-making and the ability to assess the credibility of information are paramount - teach research skills, not knowledge
media/digital literacy for students to be able to navigate the internet
2. Technologies we use are increasingly based not on school servers, but in the cloud.
browser-based software that is device-independent
notions of privacy and control (where is the line?)
significant cost savings (bring your own device)
3. Technology continues to profoundly affect the way we work, collaborate, communicate, and succeed.
The digital divide, once seen as a factor of wealth, is now seen as a factor of education
evolving occupations, multiple careers, and an increasingly mobile workforce (prepare students for jobs which don’t exist yet)
4. People expect to be able to work, learn, and study whenever and wherever they want to.
logistical challenges in a busy, fast-paced world (should we also be sure to unplug?)
the implications for informal learning are profound - social networks
“just-in-time” learning and “found” learning: maximizing the impact of learning by ensuring it is timely and efficient
5. The perceived value of innovation and creativity is increasing.
“Innovation is valued at the highest levels of business and must be embraced in schools if students are to succeed beyond their formal education. The ways we design learning experiences must reflect the growing importance of innovation and creativity as professional skills.”
Mid-term horizon (within 2-3 years): augmented reality and game-based learning
Far-term horizon (4-5 years):gesture-based computing and learning analytics
Critical Challenges
1. Digital media literacy continues its rise in importance as a key skill in every discipline and profession.
despite widespread agreement on its importance, training in digital literacy skills and techniques is rare
the lack of formal training is being offset through professional development or informal learning, but we are far from seeing digital media literacy as a norm
digital literacy is less about tools and more about thinking, thus skills and standards based on tools and platforms have proven to be somewhat ephemeral (short-lived)
2. Economic pressures and new models of education are presenting unprecedented competition to traditional models of schools.
ways to control costs with growing number of students, and fewer resources and staff than before
simply capitalizing on new technology is not enough; new models must engage students
3. The demand for personalized learning is not adequately supported by current technology or practices.
more learner choice and control (differentiated instruction)
“It has become clear that one-size-fits-all teaching methods are neither effective nor acceptable for today’s diverse students” - has one-size-fits-all teaching ever been an effective way to teach??
4. The fundamental structure of the K-12 education establishment — aka “the system.”
“As long as maintaining the basic elements of the existing system remains the focus of efforts to support education, there will be resistance to any profound change in practice.”
Why are we still educating in the same manner we did before computers were invented? Why is education not the number one priority to our society? Capitalist mentality: no personal gain from education system
5. Many activities related to learning and education take place outside the walls of the classroom and thus are not part of our learning metrics.
social networks: difficult to tie back to the classroom, as they tend to happen serendipitously and in response to an immediate need for knowledge, rather than being related to topics currently being studied in school
I made the switch. After a year of flip flopping between various formats and learning platforms in an attempt to distribute materials in the most effective way to my students, I transitioned to Google Drive. I started using Google Docs about 3 years ago. In my past teaching, I have created lessons on Docs when working with other teachers and had students use them when collaborating on group projects. However, the lack of technology in my past school did not allow the foundation of my teaching to be in the Google cloud. Now that I teach at a one-to-one laptop equipped school, I feel very fortunate that this is even an option for me. Perhaps it was the Google Apps for Education Summit I attended last June that pushed me over the edge. Learning about many new Google Apps, made me think that Drive could be an equivocal solution to compiling all my lessons and resources in one place.
Recently, I ran a professional development workshop aimed at familiarizing teachers with the key features of Google Drive. See my presentation with links to further resources to get you started if you are new to Google tools.
I am a strong believer that students should play an active role in their education. I also agree with the pragmatic understanding that there are no absolute or eternal ideas in the world, but rather concepts which can be altered over time through experience. Similar to existentialist thinking, it is my opinion that people continuously make choices which define who they are. Thus, an education system which employs the idea of individual freedom and curriculum consisting of experience-based activities would be beneficial to students in finding a personal identity.
Students collaboratively created their own classification systems for various leaves.
My time spent in my first practicum placement solidified many of my education beliefs I have developed over the past five years spent in the concurrent program. I implemented my concept of experimental learning through hands-on work and exploratory projects which enable my students to construct their own knowledge. I strived to implement the process of gradual release, coupled with tiered lessons to scaffold individual students’ understanding. Collaborative learning and group work was also very prevalent in my classroom, as I believe humans learn best in a social setting. Furthermore, a strong emphasis on problem-solving and inquiry was a major focus when lesson planning, as well as student-centred learning to ensure an equity-based learning environment. As I do not feel memorization necessarily ensures understanding, I attempted to move away from rote learning and the regurgitatation of facts by giving students the opportunity to construct their own meaning. Through project-based culminating tasks, I encouraged students to link new information with their existing knowledge in meaningful ways.
Students applied their new knowledge of classification systems to create a whole-class taxonomy of the animal kingdom.
For the most part, my lessons included a de-emphasis on textbooks in favour of varied learning resources. The use of math manipulatives, visual mind mapping, educational technologies, and kinesthetic activities aided students in problem-solving and inquiry in the classroom beyond what traditional texts could offer. I was fortunate enough to have a SMARTboard installed in my class, which enabled me to easily integrate a plethora of learning tools and software into my lessons, and provide students with an interactive digital tool to collaborate with their classmates. However, despite being equipped with the professional knowledge of child-centred learning, I did find myself reverting back to a teacher-directed teaching style at first. My inexperience implementing my education theory in an actual classroom led me to teach the way I was once taught. In my future practice, I must be conscious of this pattern, and try my best to not slip into this comfort zone. Although I do recognize the value of explicit and direct instruction, I do not feel it should be the basis of my teaching model. Another challenge I faced during my practicum placement was related to classroom management. Since I believe students should be able to roam and explore new concepts throughout the classroom, the environment became much more complicated to govern than a traditional classroom setting. This type of cooperative learning environment also fosters an increased noise level, which seemed to be bothersome to some of the students. I will be better prepared to navigate such dilemmas in the future, to best suit the needs of my students. Classroom management, specifically the idea of management versus discipline will be key areas of focus for me in my upcoming placement.
I need to always remember that my personal ideals, beliefs, and personality are who I am, and will come out in my teaching. I need to be aware of and eliminate my biases and stereotypes, to provide an inclusive schooling environment for my students. Furthermore, just as I bring personal baggage into the classroom, I must consider that my students will also bring with them experiences and opinions of their own. I will attempt to constantly challenge and alter my worldview of teaching to best aid my students. Following the misinterpretation of his earlier work on progressive education, John Dewey wrote that educators need to think in terms of education itself, and not an ‘ism about education, even one such as ‘progressivism.’ For any movement which holds itself to any particular ‘ism becomes controlled by them (Experience and Education, 1938). I want to adapt educational theories and concepts to my own style, and not let one particular idea be my absolute guideline in the classroom. I hope to constantly question my approach to teaching as well as the common practices found within the education system.
Through ongoing reflection, I hope to solidified my values and intentions as a teacher to inform and refine my professional practice.
“Of all the teacher knowledge need to draw on, self-knowledge
is most important (and least attended to)” (Ayers, 2001)
Collaborating with other educators is becoming increasingly simple thanks to new Web 2.0 tools aimed to facilitate information sharing, interperability, and collaboration. The internet has exceptionally expanded accessibility to teacher resources and lesson sharing, and has made working in a group much more convenient.
In one of my faculty of ed courses, the class decided to create a handbook for first year teachers as a culminating project. Groups were formed based on interest, and what was to be included in the handbook was completely up to the students of the class. Some of the elements of the handbook included assembly organization, field trip considerations and destinations, DPA activities, classroom management, community building, and other issues deemed important by the teacher candidates. This project was a great example of how working towards a common goal can be beneficial to all involved, as the class members would be creating a truly useful and meaningful text together to aid them in the field upon graduation.
However, the real magic occurred with the integration of web-based technology. As mentioned in previous posts, LiveBinders is a website which allows users to create digital, multimedia representations of 3-ringed binders. Since I am the new unofficial spokesperson for LiveBinders (self-appointed), I was asked by the to facilitate a short workshop for my peers on the basic functions of the tool.
The results were pretty remarkable.
Instead of each of the twelve groups handing in a physical written report, a LiveBinders account was created for the class consisting of separate binder for each topic. Students took advantage of the variety of digital mediums supported by the website by uploading images, videos, audio files, PDFs, and Google Docs into their binders. Since the account could be accessed from anywhere with an internet connection, student candidates could work on the project on their own time without requiring a meeting time booked around five or six hectic schedules.
An example of a binder created by fellow teacher candidates for our class project.
At the end of the day, every member of the class gained access to an extensive digital compilation of resources specific to the context of being a new teacher in Ontario. If they would like, students could copy the binder to their own LiveBinders account and continue to add relevant information to the binders as they progress in their teaching careers. There is also the option to make the binder public to share with other Brock teacher candidates, or even new teachers from around the world. The possibilities seem endless.
After this practical application of technology for a large-scale collaboration project, I have seen first hand how simple teacher collaboration can be. None of the more than thirty students had experience with LiveBinders prior to this project. It took little effort to give a 'how to' crash course and direct them to online video tutorials. The feedback I received via anonymous online surveys stated that my peers found that the tool genuinely simplified group scheduling, and the sharing of teaching resources.
However, this integration of technology did not come free of challenges. I received many emails and questions regarding how to work certain features of the website, but in many circumstances it became a topic of conversation with those I had not socialized with all year. Also, we ran into some complications uploading Google Docs into the LiveBinders by copying and pasting their URLs, but this was resolved by linking the URL to words in a text box. In addition, there was some confusion regarding varying instructions for Mac users, as I ran the demonstration on a PC.
Finally, some of my peers appeared frustrated by the 'extra work' involved in comparison to printing out pages to hand in a physical copy. But for those, I say they missed the point. Creating a handbook for beginning teachers was not just another project to be finished and handed in then forgotten. The professor for this course aimed to make the year-long assignment meaningful and authentic for those in the class. Instead, creating LiveBinders was a way to learn and familiarize teacher candidates with a new digital tool, and collaboratively create a resource for all those in the class.
Personally, I cannot justify not taking advantage of such tools to better my professional knowledge and practice as a teacher. More importantly, I cannot justify not sharing such ideas, skills, and tech tools with other educators to simplify collaborative work for others. The information age has broadened our accessibility to information and people. As 21st century teachers, we must also change the way we communicate and share education resources.
When envisioning what a 21st century classroom would look like, I seem to get less caught up in the physicality of a room lined with the newest technologies or the aesthetic qualities of the room. Instead, my mind wonders more towards the academic content which fills a classroom. I imagine beyond the physical constraints of a traditional classroom to an environment injected with 21st century teaching and learning.
The 2011 Horizon Report suggests that the demand for personalized learning is not adequately supported by current technology or practices. The report states, “It has become clear that one-size-fits-all teaching methods are neither effective nor acceptable for today’s diverse students.” But is this idea genuinely clear when condidering the structure of today’s education system?
A truly progressive classroom requires a complete restructuring of what has been conceived as a learning environment for the past 100 years:
Through the process of creating this glog, I gained a deeper understanding of just how new technologies can be utilized to convey meaning and knowledge in a manner which best suits an individual. A glog is just one example of a way to reach those who are classified as ‘visual learners’. I have discovered through my own experiences as a student that tailoring instruction towards a visual learning style requires more than simply adding images to a slideshow (or SMARTboard!) and proceeding to lecture at students. Instead, I feel students should be engaged in the exploration of a topic. A tool such as Glogster offers a platform for learners to display their understanding using a medium which may be best suited for his or her learning preferences. Glogster gave me the opportunity to construct my knowledge in a way which works for me, and allows me to express a collection of ideas in a visually appealing manner.
