Week 6 Reading Responses

I chose a few of the big shifts

Big Shift 1: Open Content

I like the idea of open content as opposed to more “closed” textbook based learning. Richardson (2010) talks about teachers and students using the Internet to create their own textbooks (p. 148). I think this would be great strategy to integrate into my classroom. This activity would build students researching and collaboration skills.

Big Shift 2: Many, Many Teachers and 24/7 Learning

I have found that teachers often share ideas and materials that work in the same school together. Collaboration with other teachers is a great way to find new and creative tools to use in the classroom (Richardson, 2010, p. 150). The idea of there being hundreds of teachers on the Internet to share ideas with is very exciting. I think all teachers should take advantage of the opportunity to share ideas with other instructors to help improve their instruction. I think that teachers can learn a lot by sharing ideas and I will definitely take advantage of this when I become a teacher.

Big Shift 3: The Social, Collaborative Construction of Meaningful Knowledge

I think it is very beneficial to have students share their completed work with a bigger audience then the teacher or classmates. This will make the work more meaningful for them. I could definitely use this in my future classroom. My students could share their work on a classroom website or a blog.

Big Shift 4: Teaching Is Conversation, Not Lecture

Richardson (2010) explains how having students publish their work can be empowering to students because it allows them to see that their ideas matter (p. 151). I agree that it is important to get students active in their own learning in order to motivate them. I think this will be one of the hardest parts of the big shift. I will need to find tasks that keep students engaged and places they can publish their work where they will receive positive feedback.

Big Shift 10: Contribution, Not Completion, As the Ultimate Goal

Richardson (2010) explains how using the Internet to share student work gives them more of a sense of purpose in what they do (p. 153). Rather then just finishing their work and handing it students are able to contribute what they have done to a larger audience. I think that this is a great way to motivate students.

Overall, I feel that the big shift is a great way to actively engage students in their learning. I think that it will be a lot of work for teachers to find ways to balance the new shifts with the academic curriculum, but it is worth the time.

Richardson, Will. (2010). Blogs, wikis, podcasts, and other powerful web tools for classrooms (3rd ed.). Thousand Oaks, California: Corwin.

Final Technology Integration Project

Ms. Butler's Classroom Wiki

• Do you plan on using your classroom blog/wiki in your future classroom? If so, what types of modifications do you envision? Please explain.

I could use a wiki in my future classroom. I feel that it would be difficult for some students to edit the wiki, but could be helpful for parents. I would use my students as my target audience for a classroom wiki. It would be a useful tool to help keep them informed about what their students are doing on a daily basis.

• Do you plan on having your students create their own blogs/wikis in your future classroom? If so, please explain.

As a special education teacher, I do not plan on having my students create their own wikis in my future classroom. I think that it would be to difficult and time consuming for my students.

• Discussion of how your view of instructional technology has or has not changed over the semester.

I have learned how important it is to incorporate technology into the classroom. I have learned new ways to use technology with my students and how it can be used to collaborate with others outside of the classroom.

• Discuss the quality and appropriateness of what you have learned and created this semester.

I think that there was a lot of information in a ver short period of time. I would have like to spend a little more time on ways to use the smart board in the classroom or learning about assistive technology.

• Evaluation of your comfort moving forward with technology

I am more comfortable with using my MacBook and the programs it has.

Video Editing Project Reflection

• What would you do differently if you could do it all over again? Are these changes based on feedback that you may have received from friends, peers, family members, etc?

The only thing I would have done differently if I did it all over again would be to have more time to add to it. I would like to add some more video effects and another voice over to the video, but I did not have enough time to do so.

• What is your reaction to the video recording/editing process? Please discuss any positive and negative reactions.

I had a lot of fun with this project. This is my first time recording and editing a video. I have never used imovie before. I found the program to be very easy to navigate and I would use it again.

• Do you think it would be possible to have students in your current/future classroom create a movie? Do you (will you) have the resources, time, and skills necessary to include such a project in your classroom? Please explain.

I would definitely have my students create a movie in class. I think that it might be difficult for them to edit the video, so I would probably have to do most of the editing.

• Did you learn anything new from the video editing/recording process? Please explain.

The entire process was new for me. This was the first time that I have ever used a flip camera or imovie. I feel confident in using the program and feel like I will utilize it in the future.

PowerPoint Presentation Project Reflection

The lesson presented in the PowerPoint presentation is a model for reading multisyllabic words. This lesson allows multiple opportunities for students to participate and practice of synthesizing and analyzing words that contain more than one syllable. This lesson focuses on two syllable words with a consonant -le syllable. This lesson focuses one type of syllable but can be applied to many other contexts.

The basic features I used in powerpoint were an already made background template. I also used a variety of two-dimensinal and three-deminsinal transitions between the slides. I used a combination of clipart and google images throughout the presentation. I used the entrance effect to incorporate custom animation into two of my slides. My hyperlinks were to a site that offers suggestions for differentiated instruction and for a site related to the Connecticut state content standards. I also used a variety of slide layouts that I felt best fit the content of each particular slide. Lastly, I added word art to one of my slides.

I used several of the challenge features throughout the presentation. I added a table to one of my slides. The table was a useful tool to help in explain how the teacher could set up the lesson. I also added SmartArt to show the breakdown of the lesson.

I have never really used PowerPoint on a Mac before, I have only used PowerPoint in windows. I learned how to navigate PowerPoint using the Mac software.

A lesson can be enhanced through PowerPoint by the use of visuals. The table feature of PowerPoint was very useful for this particular lesson.

Week 5 T2P Hypotheses

Excellent response here. You've done a great job synthesizing Jeff's key principle of critical literacy and SDT. I'm going to challenge you to know make this real for you. Provide at least one concrete example of how you would incorporate theses principles into your own pedagogical practices. Also, where do the students who are decidedly "won't do" (vs. can't do) fit into your practice?

An example of how I could use cultural literacy in the classroom to intrinsically motivate my students is through the use of music. As a special education teacher I will be working with struggling readers. Simple early reading task such as rhyming can be very difficult for struggling readers. Many current songs have examples of rhymes embedded in the lyrics. I could identify which songs my students are listening to and find examples of rhyming patterns within these songs. The students will be more likely to become actively engaged in an activity that is culturally relevant to them. I would use this technique to scaffold the use of reading strategies throughout the academic curriculum.

If teachers follow a step by step heuristic approach for attending to teacher and learner dilemmas then the teacher will be able to produce productive solutions because this approach provides a clear process for solving a dilemma across many different contexts using evidence based verifiable data. As a teacher our heuristic approach should consist of three stages. During the initial stage the teacher can gather data about a certain conflict. Concrete data can include observation of students and school policy. Self study data can be used as a way for teachers to identify personal connections or biases. The middle stage is where the teacher needs to categorize the problem as being ill of well defined. The teacher can then use this data to generate specific "profiles." These profiles can be linked to relevant theories and research. Lastly, the teacher needs to identify the goals and needs of everyone involved in the conflict. The final stage is where the analysis can be applied to the specific situation. It is important for the teachers and students to talk out hypothetical solutions to the problem and decide on a plan of action. The solution then needs to be tested and the outcomes reflected upon. It is important for the teacher to collect new data and revise their plan of action. This process can be applied across many situations. For example in the case study of Elizabeth Rhodes she could use this process to solve the problem of her students lack of calibration in group work.

Week 5 T2P Hypotheses

If student’s basic needs are not being met outside of school, and they are worried about their family’s financial situations, then they more likely to focus on getting a job and helping their families then focusing on their schoolwork. For example in the video “Is anybody listening” Victoria explains her struggle “At the moment I am the only one that can support my family…I am really scared I will have to put off school for another year.” Maritssa talks about how she can see her mom struggling and there is nothing she can do about it. She explains, “I want to help her but she just wants me to focus on school. But I can’t focus on school when I know she is struggling and it is really hard.” According to Maslow’s Hierarchy of needs if a person’s basic physiological and safety needs are not being met they will not be able to reach the esteem and self-actualization stages. Both Victoria and Maritssa are worried about the financial security of their families. When a student’s basic needs are not being met and they are worried about having a place to live and food to eat they cannot be expected to come to school ready to learn. Eric a 9th grade student from the video “Youth Voices” expressed the same ideas. Eric’s father is an illegal immigrant who cannot find work because he is hurt. Eric explains “All I worry about right now is getting my job so I can help my dad.” As a teacher I must realize what is going on in my student’s lives outside of school. If my students come to school everyday worried about whether or not their family is going to have food to eat or a place to live, I can not expect them to reach their full potential. As a teacher I need to do my best to provide a classroom environment where all my students feel safe and have their basic needs met. I know that as a teacher I cannot always control what happens outside of the classroom, but I can control what happens inside my classroom. With this in mind I need to have an understanding of the different needs of my students and provide them with a safe environment where they feel open to sharing their concerns with me.

If students are use to immediate responses and multitasking due to the use of technology in their daily lives, then learning that incorporates the use of technology and quick responses will keep students engaged in their learning. In the video “Youth, Technology, and Learning: Opportunities for Educators” A group of freshman girls talk about the importance of technology and communication in relation to the school environment. Sarah talks about how most teachers use lecturing as their main form of instruction. She goes on to talk about how “it kind of really sucks cause you’re used to doing ten things at once. Its like slow.” Duncan Andrade idea that students learn when there is an engaging empowering curriculum that is culturally relevant can be applied to the use of technology in the classroom. As a teacher we must realize the current culture of our students in order to relate to them. By using instructional materials that our students are interested in they are more likely to take an active role in their learning. For example Morgan explains how texting is a great educational tool because you can “text Google to look up words (and) you can always read it over and over again cause it’s right here in your hand.” Duncan Andrade encourages educators to become culturally aware of their students. As a teacher I must become familiar with the type of technology my students are using and find ways to incorporate it into my curriculum. This will also give my students a sense of purpose in what they are learning because they will be able to apply it to their own lives. According to Daniel Pink people become intrinsically motivated if they have a sense of purpose in what they are doing. In order to create a meaningful learning experience for my students I need to find ways in which their learning can stem from intrinsic motivation.

If adolescents who do not feel safe or accepted in a specific environment and they find a group of other who share some of the same feelings as them, then they are more likely to have a higher self-esteem. In the video “Who We Be” young women talk about their constant struggle of being discriminated against by men. They describe an environment where they do not fee safe to learn. For example Maria describes how a “guy named Joe unzipped the back of my pants…he really pissed me off.” Another student named Shelia talks about how she felt uncomfortable when a teacher touched her inappropriately. In both of these situations two young women were put into situations where they did not feel safe. According to Maslow’s Hierarchy of needs if a person does not feel safe they cannot reach self-actualization. Therefore, as teacher’s we must realize that if our students do not feel safe we cannot expect them to learn. Raelene explains “that’s why we have this group of young women of color to build skills, leadership, and power.” The girls have formed this group as a safety net in the school environment. With the help of others who feel the same as them they feel safe and are able to reach Maslow’s hierarchy of belonging. In the video “Gay Youth: Helping Youth Feel Safe and Supported” show how gay and lesbian youth struggle to feel supported and safe throughout their daily lives. Camp Firefly allows gay and lesbian youth to come together in a way that makes them feel safe and allows them to see that they can achieve great things. Kaitlyn Hatch talks about the camp having “a sense of community. I have a lot of friends and they are really supportive, but I don’t have a lot of gay ones.” As a teacher it is important to understand how certain students are feeling in my classroom and provide ways for them to feel safe and supported so they can get their needs met and focus on learning.

Voices of Youth Today

Week 5 Reading Responses

According to November (2010) there are many benefits to online learning for a wide range of learners (p. 84). Schools can use online resources to help students of all different types. The use of the Internet amongst our society continues to grow and cannot be avoided. Therefore, it is important for teachers to use online activities in traditional classroom settings. Online activities provide students with the ability to share their thoughts and ideas that they might not otherwise share in a traditional classroom (November, 2010, p. 89). For some students sharing their ideas and thoughts feels safer online. The online environment allows for a more anonymous nonjudgmental sharing of ideas and opinions. Students are also able to share these thoughts and ideas with their peers in a less formal setting. Teachers can also form meaningful relationships with their students through online activities (November, 2010, p.89). It can be easier for teachers to give and for students to receive corrective feedback online. This provides a less confrontational approach for teachers to give corrective feedback to their students.

According to Richardson (2010) “all roads now point to a Web where little is done in isolation and all things are collaborative and social in nature” (p.85). With sites such as facebook and twitter our students’ are constantly exposed to all types of social networking. As teacher’s we can use these tools to create rich learning environments rooted in social interactions and networking. I can see students working on projects with other students from around the world. Students will also be using social networks to educate themselves with topics of interest found outside of the traditional classroom (Richardson, 2010, p.131). Teacher’s can also use these social networks as a way to share instructional ideas and practices with teachers from other classrooms. The 21^st century learning environment will be based around students and teachers building collaborative relationships with each other and with others outside of the traditional classroom.

Resources

November, Alan. (2010). Empowering students with technology (2nd ed.). Thousand Oaks, California: Corwin.

Richardson, Will. (2010). Blogs, wikis, podcasts, and other powerful web tools for classrooms (3rd ed.). Thousand Oaks, California: Corwin.