How effective were your actions in helping you meet your goals? I've turned to a commonly known site, Brain Pop to help my 4th graders begin to understand digital citizenship and safety. This site offers easy to comprehend information in these areas and offers fun summarizing activities.
What have you learned so far that you can apply in your instructional practice? I'm still in the process of learning to take more time with having students practice using technology effectively than simply using it as a tool to search for unnecessary information. I desire for them to be aware that the Internet is a resource just like a magazine, an encyclopedia, a book, etc. Plus, that it can only be effective for instruction when utilized correctly. This will take some time as students practice digital citizenship activities before they can connect with students of other communities.
What do you still have to learn? What new questions have arisen? I still must learn rules and regulations regarding my students' Internet usage. I am at a place of concern as to what I can and cannot teach them when it comes to Internet products, and how they can legally access what they need to produce outcomes. Is there a site I can go to that explains this in layman's terms? Something I can print off and keep with my lesson plans?
How will you adjust your plan to fit your current needs? In adjusting the plan to fit current needs, I will begin with scaffolding the activities to fit students' learning needs. Not all of our students come to us with an understanding of what the Internet is and frequently they do not have it in their homes. Therefore, they require scaffolds to reach higher levels of understanding and performance than would be possible without them (Ertmer & Simons, 2006).
Ertmer, P., & Simons, K. (Spring 2006). Jumping the PBL implementation hurdle: Supporting the efforts of K-12 teachers. The Interdisciplinary Journal of Problem-Based Learning, 1(1), 40-54.
Tuesday, March 30, 2010
Tuesday, March 23, 2010
GAME plan revision:
- Resources I need: online discussions with other educators who've taught this and were successful; additional courses on digital citizenship; keeping up-to-date with revisions to Internet laws, regulations, etc.
- Modify the action plan: Focus on teaching digital citizenship at this time. Students need to understand and practice Internet "manners" before they can reach out and learn from other communities and cultures.
- What have I learned so far? I'm learning not to rush into this. The prospect of knowing what students can learn from using the Internet is exciting, but can be overwhelming. I need to thoroughly understand digital citizenship before I can effectively teach it. This would include students being aware of those websites that are bias and/or bogus. Additionally, they need to know how to properly cite Internet sources they use for reports; plus verify author, date, and information authenticity.
- Do I have new questions? Is there a reliable website on digital citizenship? What is appropriate for 4th graders to know? How much should they know right now?
Tuesday, March 16, 2010
Resources needed to carry out the plan:
- sustained cultural awareness, effective Internet service, experts in the field, time to implement, additional courses, funding
- additional information needed:
- students' family and cultural backgrounds
- Steps obtained thus far:
- attending technology and cultural awareness courses through Walden University
- collaborating with other educators
Wednesday, March 10, 2010
4. Promote and Model Digital Citizenship and Responsibility: d: develop and model cultural understanding and global awareness by engaging with colleagues and students of other cultures using digital-age communication and collaboration tools.
5. Engage in Professional Growth and Leadership: a: participate in local and global communities to explore creative applications of technology to improve student learning.
Goals: attend additional professional learning courses to improve modeling digital citizenship and responsibility; collaborate with colleagues in house and through the web for communication resources with other communities and cultures; set time aside for practice and application before presenting this to my students. Internet safety for students is crucial; therefore, a major goal is to be sure students have the necessary tools to navigate safely on the web. Along with this, students must understand that the information on the web isn't their's and they will know how to give credit to sources on the Internet.
Action: The information I will need to meet these goals are cultural awareness for other teachers and students of differing geographies around the globe. Further, effective instruction and guidance provided by a digital communication specialist in the above areas is essential for my learning in this field. Also, I plan to search the Internet for valid resources of specific content related to my state's curriculum standards.
Monitor: I would like to monitor these goals through the use of blogging with colleagues and taking personal notes along the way. Also, I would like to begin this process with a small activity to determine its outcome-perhaps engage in communicating with an online source such as epals.com.
Evaluate and extend: to determine if I have met these goals, if the initial activity of communicating with epals is effective, I will transfer to a specific technological strategy focusing on content area. For this to be successful, small steps must be taken before I can plan a larger, more involved project.
Many of the other standards I observed from NETS-S offered technological instruction indicators that I would like to begin now, such as designing and developing digital age learning experiences and assessments. However, I chose the two above because I believe they offer background specifics for utilizing the Internet and the reasons for its application. So often, students have selfish motives for gathering information from the web, and they need to understand how to give credit for this information, understand how other students learn through technology, and how we can learn so much from each other through our combined efforts.
Cennamo, Ross, & Ertmer. (2009). Technology Integration for Meaningful Classroom Use. Mason, OH. Cengage Learning.
http://www.iste.org/Content/NavigationMenu/NETS/ForTeachers/2008Standards/NETS_T_Standards_Final.pdf
5. Engage in Professional Growth and Leadership: a: participate in local and global communities to explore creative applications of technology to improve student learning.
Goals: attend additional professional learning courses to improve modeling digital citizenship and responsibility; collaborate with colleagues in house and through the web for communication resources with other communities and cultures; set time aside for practice and application before presenting this to my students. Internet safety for students is crucial; therefore, a major goal is to be sure students have the necessary tools to navigate safely on the web. Along with this, students must understand that the information on the web isn't their's and they will know how to give credit to sources on the Internet.
Action: The information I will need to meet these goals are cultural awareness for other teachers and students of differing geographies around the globe. Further, effective instruction and guidance provided by a digital communication specialist in the above areas is essential for my learning in this field. Also, I plan to search the Internet for valid resources of specific content related to my state's curriculum standards.
Monitor: I would like to monitor these goals through the use of blogging with colleagues and taking personal notes along the way. Also, I would like to begin this process with a small activity to determine its outcome-perhaps engage in communicating with an online source such as epals.com.
Evaluate and extend: to determine if I have met these goals, if the initial activity of communicating with epals is effective, I will transfer to a specific technological strategy focusing on content area. For this to be successful, small steps must be taken before I can plan a larger, more involved project.
Many of the other standards I observed from NETS-S offered technological instruction indicators that I would like to begin now, such as designing and developing digital age learning experiences and assessments. However, I chose the two above because I believe they offer background specifics for utilizing the Internet and the reasons for its application. So often, students have selfish motives for gathering information from the web, and they need to understand how to give credit for this information, understand how other students learn through technology, and how we can learn so much from each other through our combined efforts.
Cennamo, Ross, & Ertmer. (2009). Technology Integration for Meaningful Classroom Use. Mason, OH. Cengage Learning.
http://www.iste.org/Content/NavigationMenu/NETS/ForTeachers/2008Standards/NETS_T_Standards_Final.pdf
Saturday, February 27, 2010
When I began this course and saw the text, Reading the Web, I thought to myself, "I know how to read the web. You just google what you want and go there." Wow, was I ever wrong! I didn't realize this involved more than just "going there." Often, I would get so overwhelmed with "going there" and viewing a sea of sites that I really didn't need, that I would give up. This course on new literacy development and online inquiry in the classroom has given me a whole new outlook (sorry for the cliche) on how to read web URL's, and how to distinguish between sites that are educationally sound, and those that aren't.
One particular area that really stood out for me, and actually it didn't occur until later in the course, is the fact that so many students are using the web for whatever they choose. Now, this in and of itself is not a big revelation. They have been doing this now for quite a while; but what is is the fact that if school districts do not get deeply involved in the new literacies education of our students, they (students) will continue to utilize the web without proper supervision and guidance. Often we take for granted that just because our child or our students are sitting in front of computers, they are safe because they're not on the road riding with a drunk driver. However, we have all learned that online predators are very savvy and just as dangerous. It would be very beneficial if our district offered a PLU class for teachers and parents on the benefits and risks of using the Internet.
Because of what I've gained from this course, in my future instruction of students using the Internet as a resource for their work, I will first teach them how to read the web effectively before they begin an online project. This will include step by step procedures with guided practice. As students are able to establish methods for achieving this, they will spend less time searching and will spend quality time reading, using, and publishing only what they need.
A professional goal I'm looking forward to in the near future is to enroll in an upcoming new literacies course. At this time one isn't offered, but I will take an additional course on this essential area as it becomes available. To maintain current knowledge in this field I will spend more time in our resources discovering new and different ways to teach my students new literacy skills. Throughout my learning adventure thus far, it has been very evident that all of our resources were prepared with forethought by educational professionals. Further, teachers are able to utilize them at any time for the betterment of their students.
One particular area that really stood out for me, and actually it didn't occur until later in the course, is the fact that so many students are using the web for whatever they choose. Now, this in and of itself is not a big revelation. They have been doing this now for quite a while; but what is is the fact that if school districts do not get deeply involved in the new literacies education of our students, they (students) will continue to utilize the web without proper supervision and guidance. Often we take for granted that just because our child or our students are sitting in front of computers, they are safe because they're not on the road riding with a drunk driver. However, we have all learned that online predators are very savvy and just as dangerous. It would be very beneficial if our district offered a PLU class for teachers and parents on the benefits and risks of using the Internet.
Because of what I've gained from this course, in my future instruction of students using the Internet as a resource for their work, I will first teach them how to read the web effectively before they begin an online project. This will include step by step procedures with guided practice. As students are able to establish methods for achieving this, they will spend less time searching and will spend quality time reading, using, and publishing only what they need.
A professional goal I'm looking forward to in the near future is to enroll in an upcoming new literacies course. At this time one isn't offered, but I will take an additional course on this essential area as it becomes available. To maintain current knowledge in this field I will spend more time in our resources discovering new and different ways to teach my students new literacy skills. Throughout my learning adventure thus far, it has been very evident that all of our resources were prepared with forethought by educational professionals. Further, teachers are able to utilize them at any time for the betterment of their students.
Tuesday, October 27, 2009
My personal learning theory hasn't changed much in relation to how students learn. There are those who understand by hearing; those by seeing, and those my doing. I have discovered, however, through all the resources we've explored, that most students enjoy the "doing" part the most. One area that is changing for me is the rate at which students learn and how to keep up or slow down with their learning needs. I have a wide-range of needs-based students in my class, with students whose reading levels range between 1st and 6th grade. Because of this, I learned early on in the year that I could not "rush" teaching. I also discovered that I had to model assignments better while also incorporating more consistency. I believe this has enabled me to reflect about what I do each day, and come up with new ideas for differentiation.
I have been thoroughly impressed with our reading resource for this course, Using Technology with Classroom Instruction that Works, because it provides immediate implications I can use now with my students. Although this seems very elementary, locating new ways to use Microsoft Word has been very helpful for me. A state standard requirement is that students learn how to effectively summarize their written assignments. Using the Auto Summary feature as a starting acquisition lesson will engage students in understanding how they can do this well. I have already displayed this to them and received possitive comments. Plus, the Comments feature of Microsoft Word will offer my students opportunities to peer edit and self edit work without messy scribbling on paper. Another technological feature I wish to utilize soon is the note-taking feature in Inspiration. I will admit that in the past students have taken notes the boring way by writing them down as I spoke them, or they copied them from a PowerPoint I created. Understanding that time isn't always the discerning factor as to whether or not I teach something, will help me better serve my students' academic needs. I realize it will take time for students to learn how to do this; but when they've learned it, it's with them. There are many other technological features I will utilize from this resource because of its practicality.
Two long-term goals I would like to achieve with my students regarding technology integration are moving away from paper and pencil writing assignments to totally computer paper assignments, from the beginning of prewriting to the final published copy. Further, I have already begun using non-linguistic approaches to coorelate with selected reading selections. This is helping my students make connections between words and pictures. A strategy I'm already implementing with the writing assignments is having students copy and paste pictures to them. Even though this is a simple task students have already been doing, fully understanding its positive consequences makes me want to have them do this more. Also, my students rotate stations (centers) at least 3 days a week, and one station is geared toward technology where they can begin prewriting for their next writing activity. As mentioned earlier, we (I) must realize students learn by hearing, seeing, and most importantly, doing. This can only be accomplished as we give students the time to learn it.
I have been thoroughly impressed with our reading resource for this course, Using Technology with Classroom Instruction that Works, because it provides immediate implications I can use now with my students. Although this seems very elementary, locating new ways to use Microsoft Word has been very helpful for me. A state standard requirement is that students learn how to effectively summarize their written assignments. Using the Auto Summary feature as a starting acquisition lesson will engage students in understanding how they can do this well. I have already displayed this to them and received possitive comments. Plus, the Comments feature of Microsoft Word will offer my students opportunities to peer edit and self edit work without messy scribbling on paper. Another technological feature I wish to utilize soon is the note-taking feature in Inspiration. I will admit that in the past students have taken notes the boring way by writing them down as I spoke them, or they copied them from a PowerPoint I created. Understanding that time isn't always the discerning factor as to whether or not I teach something, will help me better serve my students' academic needs. I realize it will take time for students to learn how to do this; but when they've learned it, it's with them. There are many other technological features I will utilize from this resource because of its practicality.
Two long-term goals I would like to achieve with my students regarding technology integration are moving away from paper and pencil writing assignments to totally computer paper assignments, from the beginning of prewriting to the final published copy. Further, I have already begun using non-linguistic approaches to coorelate with selected reading selections. This is helping my students make connections between words and pictures. A strategy I'm already implementing with the writing assignments is having students copy and paste pictures to them. Even though this is a simple task students have already been doing, fully understanding its positive consequences makes me want to have them do this more. Also, my students rotate stations (centers) at least 3 days a week, and one station is geared toward technology where they can begin prewriting for their next writing activity. As mentioned earlier, we (I) must realize students learn by hearing, seeing, and most importantly, doing. This can only be accomplished as we give students the time to learn it.
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