Supporting Information Literacy and Online Inquiry in the Classroom Final Reflection

The most striking revelation I had in this class was the sheer amount of literacy skills we need to be teaching students. I do not believe my school is doing a good enough job of teaching our students these skills. Other than the gifted teacher, I do not know of another teacher that has students creating products using technology. In fact, most of the teachers only use the computer lab to take tests. We have to step it up, especially considering I live in Huntsville, Alabama, a city that has scores of technology related industries.

I have learned so much from this class. The part of this class I got the most out of was the readings and resources on effectively searching for information. I have always wanted a better way to teach students how to search and evaluate potential web sites, and this class provided me with those tools. I also realized how critical it is for me to teach students how to evaluate web sites. There are many misleading sites out there and students will be tempted to use the first one they come across instead of taking the time to make sure it is a reputable site. I feel I am much better prepared for next year when I start talking to my students about searching the web for information. Based on the things I learned in this class, I will be starting my year out teaching my students how to effectively search for information. This will help me down the line when we start working on inquiry projects.

I would like to learn more about using programs such as Skype to communicate with classrooms around the world. I hope to set up epals for my students next year. This will be my first step in having my students communicate with other classrooms. I would like to take a professional development class in using Skype if one is ever offered around my district. After having my students communicate via epals, I would like to take that next step of video communication. The media specialist at my school has shown us how to use Skype once, so I will seek out her knowledge to help get an account set up and figure out the logistics of using my classroom. Hopefully by the end of the first semester of next school year my class will be involved in working on a project with a classroom in another part of the country or even world.

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.
Retrieved from http://projects.coe.uga.edu/epltt/index.php?title=Main_Page

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

Constructivist/Constructionist Learning Theories

This week's resources provided several strategies and suggestions that are complementary to the constructivist/constructionist theories of learning. In constructionism, students are focused on answering a question and producing an artifact to demonstrate their knowledge of the subject. This is supported by the instructional strategy of "Generating and Testing Hypothesis" as described by Pitler, Hubbell, Kuhn, and Malenoski. According to Pitler, Hubbell, Kuhn, and Malenoski, "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" (2007, pg. 202). These ideas are ultimately what most teachers want for their students. By having students use technology such as spreadsheets, teachers can have students focus on evaluating their hypotheses rather than worry about making a mistake with tedious calculations.

Other resources that were mentioned this week also help teachers who wish to teach from the constructionist perspective. One handy tool is WebQuests. Through WebQuests students must explore a series of web sites to find information to answer a specific question. There is usually some type of finished product that must be produced to demonstrate knowledge of the information. The beauty of WebQuests is that there are so many out there a teacher only has to have time to search for an appropriate one on the topic of her choice. Another resource I am going to use soon is the Astroventure web site. We are getting ready to study space in science, and this web site poses some interesting questions for the students. I especially like the interactive part where students can design their own planet. I know my students will find this interesting and will continue trying until they can design a planet that will be viable.

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

Cognitive Learning Theories and Technology

According to Dr. Orey, cognitive learning theories are based upon the idea that individuals receive information via their senses, store it in short-term memory, and then, with enough exposure, move it to long-term memory. Dr. Orey also talked about students being able to make connections better when provided with an image and text versus just text. This has several implications for teaching and learning. Pitler, Hubbell, Kuhn, and Malenoski talk about using summarizing and note taking as effective learning strategies. So, when providing students with notes, it is very helpful to also use images that relate to the notes. There are also several technologies that can help students with summarizing and note taking. Teachers can create a note template in Word for students to complete or various types of templates using programs like Inspiration or Kidspiration. This also leads into another strategy discussed by Pitler, Hubbell, Kuhn, and Malenoski, cues, questions, and advance organizers. By using probing questions, teachers can elicit deeper thinking from their students. The authors also make the point that teachers should not use elusive clues when prompting students. Again, teachers can use software to provide students with advance organizers to complete throughout a lesson. Using multimedia clips are an excellent advance organizer for students. This taps into the visual side of the cognitive theory to help students use dual coding to remember information.

The cognitive theory lends itself to using technology. The more students can see information organized and manipulate the information, the greater the chance the knowledge is moved into long-term memory.

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

Behaviorism

When a person practices behaviorism, he/she uses a system of rewards and punishments to achieve a desired behavior. Educators use behaviorist techniques almost daily in the classroom. Most of the time it is through the use of our behavior management plans, but sometimes it is evident in instructional techniques as well. The two strategies we read about this week, "reinforcing effort" and "homework and practice" both rely on a bit of behaviorism to make them work.

The first strategy, "reinforcing effort" talks about using spreadsheets and surveys to help students understand the correlation between the amount of effort put in and the grade received. "The instructional strategy of reinforcing effort enhances students' understanding of the relationship between effort and achievement by addressing their attitudes and beliefs about learning" (Pitler, Hubbell, Kuhn, & Malenoski, 2007, p. 155). Students see that by increasing effort they are rewarded with good grades. On the flip side, if effort is not put forth, the grades suffer. This directly correlates with the behaviorist theory.

The other strategy we read about was "homework and practice." We all know how important it is for students to practice what they are learning. The ideas given for using technology to assist with homework and practice align somewhat with the behaviorist theory. By using web-based tutorials and games, students are receiving positive reinforcement for correct answers and must redo exercises that are not completed successfully. In this lies rewards and punishments. The reward is getting to move on in the game, and the punishment is having to redo a level.

I have gained some valuable suggestions from both these strategies that I would like to try in my own classroom. However, one hurdle to using technology in homework assignments is the lack of Internet access in every child's home. Hopefully this will not be an issue in the next few years as more and more school systems are moving toward computer based textbooks and the goal of providing laptops for all students.

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