Bridging Learning Theory, Instruction, and Technology Reflection

After rereading my personal theory of learning from the first week of this course, I realize my personal theory of learning has not changed drastically. I have just refined what I now think. I still believe students bring a wealth of knowledge and prior experiences into my fourth grade classroom. It is through their own discoveries and the background knowledge they have that students can make connections and learn the concepts we are studying. This theory of learning most closely aligns with the constructivist view of learning. I have amended my personal theory of learning to also include the theory of social learning. After consideration of this theory I realize that students, as well as teachers, do learn socially. Social learning expands the constructivist point of view to say that students learn and construct meaning through their interactions with others. In addition, I still believe the behaviorist theory works best when dealing with student behaviors and not student learning.

One immediate adjustment I will make in my instructional practice is to start using technology as more of a student learning tool rather than an instructional tool. I use PowerPoint regularly as an instructional tool and I want to now use it as a learning tool. I am going to start having my students construct PowerPoints to illustrate what they are learning. Another technology I want to immediately start using is Voice Thread. It is very user friendly and can be incorporated into lessons rather easily. It will allow students to collaborate through text and spoken comments about a variety of projects, whether the projects are written, video, or audio. There are also a couple of other technologies I want to incorporate into my lessons. My students are already familiar with constructing concept webs and now I want to introduce them to programs such as Webspiration. Webspiration can only enhance what we are doing now and will allow the students to connect the information in both written form and visually through the inclusion of illustrations or pictures. I also want to start including virtual field trips in my lessons. I already try to include video clips from Discovery Streaming into my PowerPoint notes for my students, but I want to start including more visuals to drive home what we are studying. Also, although many of my students have traveled due to their parents being military, they still have not been exposed to many of the wonderful places I can expose them to. These are just some of the great technologies from this class I want to start incorporating into my classroom and lessons. I believe that using these technologies will help turn my classroom into an even more student centered place.

One of my long term goals is to become better at using the ACTIVboard in my classroom. This board, when used "correctly" can be a great way to integrate some of the technology tools we have learned about in this class. Students can create a concept map on the board using Webspiration and it would be a great way for the students to collaborate. I know one of the things that keeps me from using the board as much as I would like is the fact it is on wheels and not mounted in my classroom. When we change classrooms next summer, I am going to ask that it be mounted in whatever room I end up in. That way it is not such a chore to have to get the board situated to use and then move it out of the way again. Another long term goal I have is to have students create some type of multimedia project each nine weeks. According to Ptiler, Hubbell, Kuhn, and Malenoski, "Student-created multimedia is a natural environment for cooperative learning" (2007, p. 141). I have never actually had the students create anything technology related from their research projects, it has always been a visual like a poster. However, when we return from Christmas break, my students will be researching the planets and creating a PowerPoint to share with the class. Each group of three will conduct individual research and then work collaboratively to create a PowerPoint that tells all about their planet. My goal is to have students create, not only PowerPoints, but pod casts and wikis too. I want my students to be so immersed in technology, it is second nature to them.

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

Cafeteria Solution

My Voice Thread deals with improving the atmosphere of our cafeteria.


http://voicethread.com/share/785696/

Connectivism and Social Learning in Practice

"Learning is a social process. It occurs when people are engaged in social activities," (Orey, 2001). These statements sum up the theory behind social constructivism. Students learn when they are actively working with others to solve a problem or create an artifact. There are several approaches to social constructivism. Teachers who employ cooperative learning in their classrooms are demonstrating social constructivism. In cooperative learning groups, students are required to work together to solve a problem or produce an artifact. In Using Technology with Classroom Instruction that Works the authors give several ways to incorporate technology into cooperative learning. These include using multimedia, web resources, and communication software.

"Student-created multimedia is a natural environment for cooperative learning," (Pitler, Hubbell, Kuhn, & Malenoski, 2007, p. 141). Students must each take on a role in completing the multimedia project all the while working with the others in the group to ensure a successful outcome. Multimedia projects, like cooperative groups, must be well-planned and organized to be successful. It is helpful if the teacher provides the students with a rubric at the beginning so students are knowledgeable about how they will be graded.

Other ways technology can play a role in social constructivism and cooperative learning are through keypals, webquests, web site creation, and collaborative organization tools. Although many students use social networking sites such as Facebook and MySpace outside of school, the school system where I work has those sites blocked on our server. However, being a user of Facebook myself, I personally do not see how it could be used in an educational setting. That being said there are other forms of networking, like blogs, that I believe do have a valid place in education.

Orey, M.(Ed.). (2001). Emerging perspectives on learning, teaching, and technology.
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Pitler, H., Hubbell, E., Kuhn, M., &; Malenoski, K. (2007). Using technology with classroom instruction that works. Alexandria, VA: ASCD.