Palo: A Technology Guru In the Making

Reflection

2011-04-24T22:30:00.000-07:00

Assessing for Learning Reflection

Throughout this course, I have been challenged, intrigued, enlightened, and thoroughly educated about the importance of differentiated instruction (DI) in the classroom. The role of DI in the classroom is an integral part of the learning process and challenges teachers to educate and reach every diverse student in order to achieve a set of attainable goals (Laureate, 2009b). This course has taught me to truly think outside of the box to reach all of the diverse learners in the classroom because as educators, we owe it to our students to provide the best possible learning environment. Furthermore, I have learned that technology is a great asset to differentiated instruction. Using technology is a great motivator for students to do or try something different. It caters to a variety of learning styles in the classroom and utilizing technology is an excellent resource that needs to be part of the lesson planning process (Laureate, 2009b). Because of this course, I now realize the significance and importance of integrating technology into the classroom and as a result, I feel that I have much work to do this summer to plan and integrate differentiated instruction in my classroom.

First of all, I realize that immediate changes need to happen in my own classroom. I am fortunate that the summer is right around the corner because I will use this time to figure out how differentiated instruction will work in my classroom. One aspect I know that needs to change is truly knowing my students. I realize that part of differentiated instruction is being able to identify student interests and learning styles as well as creating a learning environment that is inviting and accepting to all students. This will definitely increase the productivity of the teacher/student relationship and also connect students with other students, which is vital to differentiated instruction (Laureate, 2009a). Although I will not know until prior to the beginning of the fall semester which students are in my class, I can definitely use this time to create and edit student learning profiles and interest surveys. Teachers need to accept student diversity in the classroom and see it as a positive. We can structure the learning environment for finding appropriate learning zones for students, flexible grouping of students together based on interests, learning needs, or learning profiles, and finding different supports and varied methods of instruction that strengthens the relationship between teachers and students and students with other students (Laureate, 2009b).

Secondly, I need to find ways to offer a variety of choices of assessment that integrates technology. This will engage students, motivate them, and challenge them to learn to their own ability while giving the freedom of choice to decide their own course of learning and education (Rose & Meyer, 2002).Teachers need to realize the changing dynamics and demographics of our classrooms and find new ways to reach all children from the gifted all the way to severe learning disabilities. The use of technology is one way to bridge the gap and offer the needed challenge for gifted students while assisting low level learners that need another medium of information (Bray, Brown, & Green, 2004). With all of the resources discussed and exchanged with my fellow colleagues during this course, I am extremely confident to provide my students with a variety of options in order for them to choose what the best fit is for them.

Finally, I need to focus every portion of my curriculum to include some kind of technological component. Differentiated instruction challenges students to find their interests, passions, and utilize them to figure out how they learn best. Not only does this give students a chance to meet the needs of a variety of students, but DI also allows for greater accountability and responsibility for their own learning (Davidson, 2011). I have come to the conclusion that education needs to be an opportunity for students to showcase what they have learned and what they know. I realize that students are bright, and I need to give them more opportunities to engage in technology and the course content. In fact, I need to let my students make their own choices about their education. I will be there to guide them and offer choices for how to display their knowledge, but I want my students to want to learn. Integrating technology with differentiated instruction is one way to accomplish this. I realize the road is challenging, but I simply need to step aside and allow my students to make choices and learn on their own.

In close, this course and this program has definitely revitalized my views on the education profession. I believe that I have the tools and knowledge to implement differentiated instruction into my classroom along with combining the use of technology in order to facilitate learning in the classroom. I realize that I need to accept the diversity in learning styles and abilities to find methods of instruction that reaches all of the needs of my students. Technology is a great way to motivate students, keep things fresh in the classroom, and allow students to showcase their knowledge while utilizing their own talents, abilities, and interests. This has been a long journey, and although I am sad to see it come to an end, I firmly believe that I will become a better educator because of it.

References:

Bray, M., Brown, A., & Green, T. (2004). Technology and the Diverse Learner: A Guide to Classroom Practice. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press.

Davidson, L. (2011). What Parents Need to Know About Differentiated Instruction. Hub Pages. Retrieved April 6, 2011, from hubpages.com/hub/What_Parents_Need_to_Know_About_Differentiated_Instruction

Laureate Education, Inc. (Executive Producer). (2009a). Program 7: Introduction to differentiated instruction. [DVD]. Reaching and engaging all learners through technology. Baltimore, MD.

Laureate Education, Inc. (Executive Producer). (2009b). Program 8: What is differentiated instruction?. [DVD]. Reaching and engaging all learners through technology. Baltimore, MD.

Rose, D., & Meyer, A. (2002). Teaching every student in the digital age: Universal design for learning. Retrieved from http://www.cast.org/teachingeverystudent/ideas/tes/

Reflecting on the GAME Plan Part 1

2010-12-26T22:24:00.000-08:00

Throughout this eight week course, I must say that I have learned a great deal about how to implement and utilize technology in my classroom while learning how to create meaningful projects that address content standards. The next step is taking what I have learned to create lessons and projects that my students will be responsible for doing in the upcoming semester. Although I wish the timing of this class would have been at a different time because of my focus on finishing grading, creating final exams, and planning review sessions for my students. I feel that my time could have been better managed to focus on my GAME plan goals, but life happens.

At the beginning of the course, I set two goals for myself. First, I wanted to facilitate and inspire student learning and creativity by utilizing what I have learned from this course to promote, support, and model creative and innovative thinking through technology. Part of this goal will be achieved when the dynamic of the classroom changes. For example, no matter what the lesson, teachers and educators have to change the perspective of education. In order to achieve this, teachers must be able to facilitate self-directed learning where students want to learn. By creating meaningful and content based projects while utilizing technology, this can hopefully be achieved. We have to continue to set goals for our own education and also teach goal-setting to our students as well (Cennamo, Ross, & Ertmer, 2009).

However, all educators know that there are other students that contain these creative skills, talents, and abilities and perhaps might not know what they are or know and might not care. But, creative thinking in the classroom truly defines ownership when it comes to learning in the classroom. Students learn about themselves and the process of learning rather than just from the content (Laureate, 2010a). Creative learners think outside of the box, formulate problem solving skills, and find ways to display their knowledge while using a variety of technology, such as the use of music, film, video, music, or any type of art (Laureate, 2010). This relates to the classroom simply because this type of learner needs an outlet to express what they have learned and usually do so in a manner that is very unique and creative.

The use of technology in the classroom is huge. Since I began this Master’s Program, I was always interested in finding ways to become a better teacher in the classroom and integrating technology is definitely a step in the right direction. Integrating technology in the classroom is important because it promotes authentic learning (Cennamo, Ross, & Ertmer, 2009). By giving students a choice of how to display their information for a project, technology is almost always being used. Whether they are creating a blog, a wiki, social networking, using technological devices such as smart phones or lap tops, students will also be more inclined to complete the project if there is an element of technology simply because they will find it more appealing to their individual learning style (Cennamo, Ross, & Ertmer, 2009). Students could also find other uses of technology to help teachers integrate the content or communicate with students all contributing to the education process.

My second goal for my GAME Plan is similar to my first goal but focuses more on creating assessments and projects, utilizing technology, and integrating solid content into the learning for my students. The content of any project is the most important. What do we want our students to learn? This is the plan of action or the goals we want to create for our students, which coincides with the curriculum and the standards (Cennamo, Ross, & Ertmer, 2009). By utilizing creativity and combining that with technology and the content, the project will be a success and may have more of an impact on the learning of a student. For instance, a student will take the content of the research and find ways to creatively display those ideas. Again, this allows students to learn 21^st century skills, an opportunity to share their creativity, and find success in the classroom by learning the content. Although I feel that I have done a great deal of work to achieve this goal, this is going to be an ongoing process.

Reflecting on the GAME Plan Part 2

2010-12-26T22:20:00.000-08:00

What I have learned from this course is the simple fact that all teachers trying to implement and utilize technology in the classroom are all in the same boat. We are like sponges trying to soak up all of this information and learn as much as possible because we all want to become better educators. While I have set goals for myself, I feel that they are going to be ongoing goals that will always be a work in progress. For instance, I have learned that using Nings, blogs, wikis, and other technologies in the classroom will take time to implement. I first have to master the skills necessary in order to be able to teach these skills to my students. Furthermore, change in the classroom is a necessary component of utilizing these new technologies in the classroom. For instance, by the beginning of the second semester, I want to have all of my classroom lectures recorded as podcasts. It seems that every student nowadays has an iPod or some sort of MP3 player, and I would like to utilize this technology by providing my students with an opportunity to go back and review the class lecture/discussion in case they missed something or because they might have been absent (The Consortium for School Networking, 2006). Because of this course, I now have the confidence and the education to make this goal a reality in my classroom.

Finally, there are several changes that I will definitely make in the beginning of the second semester in terms of integrating technology in the classroom. First of all, I will make it a goal of mine to assign a project with every unit we are studying in class. In these projects, they will be standard based and utilize some type of technology. In the past, I have not done this for my World History students because I felt that the projects I assigned were not rich enough in content. This class has taught me how to develop meaningful lesson plans, projects, and assessments in order to promote critical thinking, self-directed learning, and creativity while still focusing on the content standards. I will also use technology on a daily basis in all of my classes. Whether it is creating a short digital story to introduce a topic, using video clips found online, or simply referring to something on my blog, I will make technology part of my daily routine. I will encourage students to use technology whenever possible in my classroom, even if that means using their cell phones that have Internet access. I want to create an environment that encourages the use of technology but also strive to teach content rich material at the same time.

In close, I feel this course has definitely opened my eyes to the endless possibilities of technology in the classroom. Through constant collaboration with colleagues, I feel that I have a great start to truly change the dynamic of my classroom that focuses on utilizing technology to increase student learning in my classes. Also, I feel that my classes in the future will have students engaged in the material by using their own creativity and self-directed learning to think outside of the box and engage in their own personal educational journey.

References:

Cennamo, K., Ross, J. & Ertmer, P. (2009). Technology Integration for Meaningful Classroom Use: A Standards-Based Approach. (Laureate Education, Inc., Custom ed.). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth, Cengage Learning.

Laureate Education, Inc. (Executive Producer). (2010a). Program One: Promoting
self-directed learning with technology. Integrating technology across the content areas. Baltimore, MD.

The Consortium for School Networking. (2006, August). Hot technologies for education: What’s happening now and later? Middle Ground, 9(4), 12–15.

Using the GAME Plan

2010-12-19T19:41:00.000-08:00

Throughout the last couple of weeks, I have noticed that I have not had the opportunity to really reflect and take measures to achieve my goals. I, like all teachers during this time, have been focusing on final exams, finishing old grading, and planning review sessions with my students. So as you can see, I have not had that much time to reflect on my goals or work towards achieving them.

All in all, I must say that I have come along way in addressing my goals of finding new projects and new technologies to incorporate into my classroom. Throughout various resources from this course, discussing ideas with colleagues and peers, and simply through trying out some of the things that I have read and viewed during the video resources, I feel that I have a great deal of work ahead of me. Let's face it. There really is no such thing as time off for teachers. Even during our breaks, we are continually looking for ways to improve our classrooms. That's the professionalism in all of us, and we owe it to our students to find ways to become better educators.

For the upcoming semester, I realize that many of the ideas that I have will take valuable class time to explain because these will be new skills for many students. Although similar to teaching a new concept in the classroom, by implementing technology, these new concepts will also require new technological skills. For instance, teaching to the standards for World War I using basic and traditional methods of direct instruction will also require the teaching of these technological skills. I have ideas about using digital storytelling in my classroom and in order for students to succeed in grasping the content, they will have to learn the content and the skills necessary to complete the projects using newly learned technological skills. Though this may seem to be a challenge, it is a necessary evil considering that many of these skills are needed by today's 21st century students.

I have much work to do, but I am confident that I will achieve my goals and achieve success.

Revising The GAME Plan

2010-12-12T20:20:00.000-08:00

This week has definitely been a struggle for me. Not only am I wrapping up the first semester, trying to complete some long overdue grading, and working to complete my final exams, but I am also wrapping up my government students' first service learning project. I must admit, I have not slept much this week, and I think I am getting sick. No matter, I will push through as many educators do on a daily, weekly, monthly, and yearly basis.

As I review my GAME plan, I am continuing to work towards achieving my goals. One thing I have realized this week and is something that I am always struggling with is the notion that organization reduces stress. With a million things going on at once, it seems difficult for me to prioritize and focus on achieving one thing at a time. Again, part of my GAME plan is to find ways to organize myself, which in the end will make me a better educator. Also, I am finding ways to branch out and make connections in order to find meaningful, project based assessments in my class. Through various resources, I have learned about Nings. This interesting social networking tool can provide a daily exposure to technology for my students. Hopefully this is something that I will continue to gain experience with and one day implement into my classroom.

As for now, I really do not see setting more goals for right now. I want to continue to utilize the resources I have learned, gain experience in using these technologies, and find appropriate ways to implement them into my classroom. The resources for this course have helped tremendously by giving me examples of technologies to use for project based assessment, social, and educational networking. However, part of my problem is instead of focusing on simply one concept, I tend to want to try and work on all of them. I need to understand this is a learning process and like my students, I need to take the time to master the concepts in order to fully understand how and if these technologies will fit in my classroom.

I think I will take a week off to focus on finishing up the first semester. Although I have so much to do, I am sure that I will continue to contemplate and think of ways to achieve these goals.

Evaluating Progress

2010-12-05T14:01:00.000-08:00

I realize this is late, but the work still needs to be done. I have found myself in a position currently that has really opened up my eyes as to how to achieve my goals. First of all, I feel that educators, as one of my colleagues pointed out, need to listen to their students' ideas. I must say that I have learned a great deal from my students but until this past week, it never dawned on me to use their input for my own problem solving and goal achieving. First of all, my first goal was to create new, content rich, project based assessments while implementing technology. Since this was our first week back from Thanksgiving, I realized that we have much to be thankful for. Sometimes the most insignificant thing to us could mean the world to somebody else. This is why my government students are currently working on a service learning project that is devoted to using technology and students' ideas. On our campus, my students and I are currently planning a letter writing campaign by sending personal notes and letters to our soldiers in harm's way. Through Operation Gratitude (http://www.opgratitude.com/), my students will be collecting letters to soldiers written by our students and staff. Students will have to find ways to promote the event (creating digital images and flyers), use problem solving and critical thinking skills, presentation, and technology (create PowerPoint or Movie) for the presentation. For the most part, this is a student driven assignment, and I am just trying to find ways to assess my students. They are required to have daily blog posts, attendance will be figured in some way, student presentations, and a final reflection post. I am still looking for ways to improve this, but this is the first time I have implemented anything like this in my class.

Monitoring the GAME Plan

2010-11-24T21:33:00.000-08:00

As I reflect upon my goals for this week, I must say that I am a little behind. I guess my excuse is that I have a week off to finally catch up on my sleep and all of my grading that I have put off until this point. No matter, I will answer the following questions to the best of my ability.

For the most part, I have had a good start on finding some resources available that I can utilize in my classroom. Since I am on break, I do have an opportunity to email some of my colleagues and pick their brains for technological resources they utilize in the classroom. Also, I have received some good ideas and information by collaborating with my colleagues in this class.

Secondly, I do not think I need to modify my plan of action, but I do need to spend more time on my goals and the necessary actions to complete them. This modification could come further down the road, but for now, I need to just simply put some more time and effort into coming up with reasonable resources to use in my classroom.

Thirdly, I have learned that many of my colleagues are in the same boat as me. Many are trying to figure out ways to really improve the use of technology within their own classrooms for the benefit of their students. Again, I think that I simply need to spend more time on "picking" the brains of my colleagues to develop reasonable technological resources that can be used in my own classroom.

Finally, I do not have any new questions as of right now simply because I have not done a ton of work on completing these goals. I realize that this is the point of this class, and I will be honest, I need to do a better job of finding resources to use in my classroom.

I am open to any suggestions that you might have and will welcome your ideas with an open mind. Thanks.

Implementing the GAME Plan

2010-11-17T21:40:00.000-08:00

As I read through my colleagues' suggestions concerning my GAME plan, I was quite eager to begin working on this portion of the course because I had some great suggestions. But then again, life seems to happen. It has been a few days, but for the most part, I think I am already on my way to achieving my first goal. I assigned an individual project for my government students based on three criteria: topic has to be related to government or politics; you must use either technology and or physically create something whether it is original art, music, or a literary piece. I also told my students I would create something as well, which I have worked on for several hours trying to create a movie on Windows Movie Maker using current topics of discussion throughout the year. It turned out to be seven minutes long, and I still have some polishing and editing to do to complete it.

Goal 1: Facilitate and Inspire Student Learning and Creativity - Teachers use their knowledge of subject matter, teaching and learning, and technology to facilitate experiences that advance student learning, creativity, and innovation in both face-to-face and virtual environments.

Teachers: a. promote, support, and model creative and innovative thinking and inventiveness
Although I feel that I have already begun my action plan concerning this goal by improving my own creative thinking, but it will be imperative for me to consult with my colleagues within my department about how they implement technology in the classroom. I know my fellow teachers within the social science department use technology, and I hope to use my collaboration time tomorrow morning asking what sorts of technology or technology based learning they implement in their classroom. I know our department chair is truly proficient on the website Edmodo.com. Similar to a blog, you can post documents and/or other links on this similar to a blog. I know my colleagues have some great project ideas; I just simply need to ask. We are supposed to reach out this week, then I need your help as well. What websites or project based learning sites have you been successful implementing in your classroom? Open to all ideas.

Goal 2: Design and Develop Digital-Age Learning Experiences and Assessments - Teachers design, develop, and evaluate authentic learning experiences and assessments incorporating contemporary tools and resources to maximize content learning in context and to develop the knowledge, skills, and attitudes identified in the NETS•S.

Teachers: d. provide students with multiple and varied formative and summative assessments aligned with content and technology standards and use resulting data to inform learning and teaching.

This goal is going to be difficult for me to achieve. I love to have fun in the classroom, and I now realize that among my students, even the ones that are doing poorly in my class, have the potential to produce quality work if giving the right form of assessment. I will admit that I have used technology based projects in my American Government class more often than in my World History class. Part of this is because I sometimes have a great idea for an assessment, but I have difficulty aligning these projects with the standards. I have a little more freedom with my government classes because seniors do not take state exams, but again, I am struggling with connecting the standards to projects. The resource I need for this goal is simply time. It is a good thing that I have a week off next week, so I can catch up on grading and focus on surfing the web for project ideas. Again, If any of you have any specific places for me to look, then please let me know.

What Time Is It? GAME Time!

2010-11-10T23:00:00.000-08:00

Goals:

1) Facilitate and Inspire Student Learning and Creativity
Teachers use their knowledge of subject matter, teaching and learning, and technology to facilitate experiences that advance student learning, creativity, and innovation in both face-to-face and virtual environments. Teachers:
a. promote, support, and model creative and innovative thinking and inventiveness

2) Design and Develop Digital-Age Learning Experiences and Assessments
Teachers design, develop, and evaluate authentic learning experiences and assessments incorporating contemporary tools and resources to maximize content learning in context and to develop the knowledge, skills, and attitudes identified in the NETS•S. Teachers:
d. provide students with multiple and varied formative and summative assessments aligned with content and technology standards and use resulting data to inform learning and teaching.

Action:
Part of my goals for this particular class are to improve my own creative thinking in order to model this in the classroom and provide my students with relative content assessments and projects while using technology. In order to complete these two goals, I will have to utilize the resources available to me to strengthen my own technological skills by finding new ways to create meaningful and relative, content projects using technology. By the end of this eight week course, I would like to have a series (a minimum of five solid resources) of resources bookmarked on my computer that will help me create solid lessons and projects.

Monitor:
Obviously, this is going to be an ongoing project, but I feel that in order to complete these two goals, I will have to work on this course every day, even if it is only for fifteen minutes. Although the world is busy, I feel it necessary for me to maintain a high level of organization in order to complete my goals. I must remain focused on the goals, and if need be, alter either my goals or my plan of action, depending on the scenario. I will begin to write check lists and to do lists to make sure that I am completing the steps to conquer this goal.

Evaluation and Extend:
One of the struggles that I foresee having with completing these goals is simply time management. I will have to budget my time accordingly and focus on the task at hand on a daily basis.

Application 8: Reflective Essay

2010-02-28T22:05:00.000-08:00

Throughout this course, I have consistently been frustrated. I am frustrated because I have realized there are so many technologies available to teachers in order to better understand and teach the material to our students. I am frustrated because learning these new technologies has been a bit of a struggle for me. In the end, these frustrations have proven to me that I am capable of learning how to utilize these new technologies in the classroom for the benefit of my students and education in general. This course has given me new insights to technology that I never thought were capable in the classroom. In short, this course has taught me that teachers along with students will always continue to learn, and this is truly important for the educational process.

Although I was familiar with how to incorporate some technology in the classroom, I am reminded of Dr. David Thornburg saying that implementing technology in the classroom is not necessarily doing different things but doing things differently (Laureate, 2008). Using an LCD projector to project a power-point presentation is not necessarily doing different things. However, this is different than the simple writing notes on the blackboard for students to copy. But in order to dramatically change the classroom, teachers have to utilize technology in ways that not only create excitement and enthusiasm for the subject material, but teachers have to find ways to make the material meaningful to the students (Dede, 2008). Furthermore, Hall Davidson points out classrooms do not have to become radically different, but if teachers empower their students and give them the tools and training, then the skills learned will funnel into the classroom (Laureate, 2008).

This course has truly opened my eyes to the importance of technology in the classroom. With all the debate out there concerning education reform, I believe implementing technology in the classroom will not only help our students learn, but it will also prepare our students for the global work force and teach them 21st century skills, such as collaboration, critical thinking, creativity, and communication (Trilling, 2005). I have seen my skills in terms of technology increase over the past two months. What I thought was never possible, I have learned a great deal of the importance of technology and how to use simple, yet effective tools in the classroom. Even though I have used blogs in my classroom for the past two years, I have learned from this course and through the discussions with my colleagues of how to take the usage of blogs to the next level. For instance, I have noticed my students’ writing is becoming better and better week in and week out. Students are now writing for an audience, instead of writing for just the teacher, which requires them to be more attentive to their spelling, grammar, and arguments (Thornburg, 2008). Secondly, I can continue to push towards implementing more technology based assignments. For instance, I plan on utilizing the lesson plan I created for Application 6 (with many modifications per Dr. Wolsey). The use of wikis, blogs, and podcasting in the classroom will hopefully provide the “spark” students need to be accountable for their own education and create a product in which they will use the skills of technology they already have in order to create a project based assessment that is meaningful and relevant to their skills (Nussbaum-Beach, 2008). By providing these project based lessons, such as wikis, podcasts, or blogs, students can now find relevance and meaning to their own education based on the material that interests them (Keengwe, 2008). As an educator, it is my goal to find meaningful and relevant assessments that motivates my students to want to learn. All teachers realize that students need to be motivated and interested to do the work. By utilizing technology, students will have an opportunity to learn 21st century skills and apply that knowledge, which is most relevant to their lives (Keengwe, 2008).

There is no doubt that the students of today are learning in ways that are different than how teachers were educated. Technology is playing a major role in today’s classroom, and teachers must be aware of this on a daily basis. Along with implementing new project based assessments, as an educator, I can only see myself becoming a better teacher in the future. From what I have learned during this course, I plan on using my knowledge to create meaningful, project-based assessments that cater to the needs of this generation’s students. By implementing technology and providing simple but effective instruction on how to use that technology, my role as a teacher in the classroom will change from primary instructor to facilitator. Furthermore, I will continue to read the literature concerning technology in the classroom and its positives and negatives. I believe the positives will outweigh the negatives considering that a majority of our students spend, on average, six hours per day using some sort of technological device whether it is a computer, laptop, iPod, Internet, video games, or simply watching television (Thornburg, 2008). I will have to keep this in mind when planning for the future on how to implement technology in the classroom. Furthermore, I will also have to keep in mind that teaching today has changed because of the use of technology in the classroom; teachers have to adapt in order to meet the needs of today’s digital natives (Prensky, 2001).

In order for students and teachers to meet their expectations, it is important for students and teachers to set goals for the future. In terms of technology, I have two specific goals that I would like to see achieved within the next two years. First of all, by the beginning of the 2010-2011 school year, half of my assessments in my World History class will be technology based and project based assessments incorporating the use of blogs, wikis, podcasts, and other technology based projects. Throughout every unit of study, I plan on incorporating a technology, project based assessment, which utilizes 21st century skills of collaboration, critical thinking, communication, and computing. Each project will consist of learning opportunities for students to address the skills they already have while using technology to incorporate these skills. For example, instead of using simple paper and pencil responses to questions, students will have to create a podcast telling the importance of democracy to the Western world. These responses will be accessible online for all students to access. Also, students will implement the usage of blogging on a weekly basis. Students will have to create a blog in order to answer in depth questions concerning the material we are studying in class. I will accomplish this goal by modeling and facilitating the use of technology in the classroom by applying what I have learned through this course and extend it to my students. Very early in the school year, I will be a facilitator of technology, teach my students how to use the technologies available to them, and provide instant feedback online to my students that may need help.

My second goal is to create a virtual classroom, which consists of student led instruction through the use of wikis to develop student achievement in the classroom. By the end of the 2011 school year, every World History student of mine will contribute to a wiki page that begins on the very first day of school. Students will be required to find meaningful and interesting sources online and copy those resources on a wiki, which will incorporate every topic of study throughout the year. Not only will students be accountable for their work, but they will also post information and sources that are relevant and interesting to them. By the end of the year, each student will have an opportunity to contribute their insight and knowledge to a particular course of study. Part of education is making the information meaningful and interesting to the students. Doing this type of project based assessment, students can collaborate, communicate, and offer their own personal touch to a topic of study. Furthermore, this wiki can be used as a good review for the state tests, if the information posted is based on the standards of California, which is the information I will instruct my students to look for before posting their sources. Ultimately, this is my goal: create a virtual classroom in which students provide the sources and learning while I sit back and facilitate the learning. Will this work? I do not know; however, I will try this to see if this does have an impact on student learning and student accountability. Again, these are goals, and I will never know if I have achieved these if I do not try.

In close, I have seen the light in terms of how technology not only impacts the students but the teachers as well. Teaching 21st century skills while incorporating technology in the classroom will only have a positive effect for student achievement and learning. Teachers have to adapt to the modern era of technology and incorporate meaningful and relevant assessments in the classroom. It is up to teachers to incorporate the 21st century skills of today for the global work force of tomorrow. In order to do this, teachers and students have to be able to use technology in ways that not only foster educational growth, but also provide meaning and inspiration for the students to achieve success in the classroom. It is up to students and teachers both to make a commitment to use technologies in the classroom to not only utilize the skills of today’s learner, but to take those skills and shape them into the learner’s of tomorrow.

References:

Keengwe, J., Onchwari, G., & Wachira, P. (2008). The use of computer tools to support meaningful learning. AACE Journal, 16(1), 77–92. Database:Education Research Complete database. Accession Number: 28513453

Laureate Education, Inc. (Executive Producer). (2008). [DVD]. Understanding the Impact of Technology on Education, Work, and Society. “Transforming the Classroom with Technology: Part 1.” Baltimore, MD.

Laureate Education, Inc. (Executive Producer). (2008). [DVD]. Understanding the Impact of Technology on Education, Work, and Society. “Transforming the Classroom with Technology: Part 2.” Baltimore, MD.

Laureate Education, Inc. (Executive Producer). (2008). [DVD]. Understanding the Impact of Technology on Education, Work, and Society. “Transforming the Classroom with Technology: Part 3.” Baltimore, MD.

Laureate Education, Inc. (Executive Producer). (2008). [DVD]. “Debate: Digital Natives vs. Digital Immigrants”. Baltimore, MD.

Prensky, M. (2001). Digital natives, digital immigrants. On the Horizon, 9(5). Database: Proquest Central Database. Accession Number:1074252411.

Nussbaum-Beach, S. (2008). No limits. Technology & Learning, 28(7), 14–18. Retrieved from http://www.techlearning.com/article/8466

Trilling, B. (2005). Towards learning societies and the global challenges for learning with ICT. TechForum. Retrieved from http://www.techlearning.com/techlearning/pdf/events/techforum/ny05/Toward_Learning_Societies.pdf

Application 5 - Podcasting

2010-02-07T22:11:00.000-08:00

I must say that there are definitely ways for me to implement podcasts into my classroom. Also, I was a little overwhelmed with trying to edit and mix some of these tracks together. I think the rough nature of the podcast with the ums and ahs does have its place. This is something I will try to get better at and also try to implement into my classroom.

The following links are for Application 5. The track titled "Application 5 Podcast" is a recording of the class discussion I had last week concerning the use of technology in the classroom. The track titled "Demographics and Podcast" is the overall makeup and breakdown of the students that were involved with my class discussion.

Links to audio tracks:
http://www.archive.org/details/MichaelPaloApplication5Podcast/
http://www.archive.org/details/MichaelPaloDemographicsofPodcast/

Partnership for the 21st Century Skills

2010-01-31T18:10:00.000-08:00

http://www.21stcenturyskills.org/
My initial reaction to this website was wow! Here we are in the 21st century and this website is dedicated to teaching the necessary skills our students need to not only adapt but succeed in the global business work world. As I was looking at the overview of standards, the one that caught my eye was their focus on teaching interdisciplinary themes, especially in the core subjects. Furthermore, it was nice to see an organization that is focused on teaching critical thinking skills that emphasizes a deeper understanding of content rather than just touching the basics for recall on a state test. Secondly, I was amazed that there are already fourteen states with initiatives to incorporate these skill sets into classrooms. I was not shocked to see that California did not make the list, but hopefully this will change in the near future. Thirdly, I was surprised that this organization had ways to implement these skills into state school districts. They have the blueprints already made up and methods for implementation for a number of states already using this curriculum. I am curious to see as to which of these states on the list are applying for federal money (Race to the Top funds) for revamping their educational systems. Finally, the press releases found on this site is proof that even President Obama himself is encouraging students of today for the jobs of tomorrow to be taught the necessary skills of the 21st century. He outlined his thoughts in is State of the Union Address, and if this is not enough evidence to influence these changes, then what is? Overall, this organization is making a strong argument to pursue change in education. If it were not for this particular class, I would have opposed these changes, but the introduction of teaching technology in the classroom has opened my eyes to today's business world and has forced me to accept this gleaming realization. Finally, I was surprised to see the wide variety of corporations and groups responsible for the creation of 21st Century Skills in 2002. The US Department of Education and the National Education Association were two of the many founders. I find this fascinating considering this organization has been around for almost eight years, yet this is the first I have heard of it.

I realize the significance of the question regarding to information from this site that I disagree with, and I know why Professor Wolsey posted this question because of the fact the information from this organization seems to good to be true. The only aspect I disagree with is the notion that this organization's standards are aligned with the No Child Left Behind Act. Let me explain. As I was conducting a survey of my American Government classes this past semester in regards to their education, an overwhelming majority stated their education was based on preparing them for state standardized tests. Many concluded on a scale from 1-10, with 1 being the low, many rated their public education, especially in high school from a range of 4-6. Again, their reasons for such low marks was to the fact that their education was mainly devoted to preparing them for standardized tests. Unless state governments and education policy officials begin to change how students and schools are measured (API scores), then integrating these 21st century skills will only be a dream. School districts across the United States must fight to either change the NCLB standards to include the skill sets of the 21st century, or simply repeal the act and start over. I think the Obama Administration is making strides by implementing the Race to the Top for states to receive federal funding to overhaul their education system. Hopefully these changes will include more focus on technology, Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM), and changes in how students' intellect and education are measured.

After looking over this site thoroughly, from its mission statement, to its focus on standards and implementation of technology in the classroom, to even the press releases, I have come to realize that this is simply not a fad that will become obselete in a couple of years. The truth and reality of technology and the skills necessary to compete in the global work world will only grow, and it is up to teachers to foster that education in the right direction. Skills such as critical thinking and problem solving are imperative for educators to teach. I do my best to implement these on a daily basis, but due to time constraints, state standards, benchmark exams, and pacing guides, it is difficult to include these skills because of the demand and rigor of teachers in the classroom. We are expected to do more with less, but technology and its implementation in the classroom is one aspect of education that all teachers need to utilize in order to truly prepare our students for the "real world." On a daily basis, I need to evaluate and sometimes reevaluate my classroom lessons. Were they effective? Did my students understand the standards and expectations? In other words, did they get it? Through reflection and reevaluation, I need to evaluate the effectiveness of my lesson plans and assignments. One aspect I will include from here on out is the use of some sort of technology. For example, my government students have to respond to a question of the week (QOW), which promotes critical thinking and using technology, blogging. There are really no right or wrong answers, but students have the opportunities to address their own view points but also assess and evaluate other points of view as well. Here are some examples:

Question of the Week: Considering the current economic status of the United States, is it reasonable for the United States to continue to pour economic resources into the War in Afghanistan? Also, considering the political scenario in Afghanistan, in the long run, will the United States be doing more harm than good by trying to stabilize the country? Be sure to use complete sentences and provide specific evidence to support your arguments.

Student responses: chickenkoongoose said...
Concerning our current economic status,it is still reasonable to keep pouring economic resources into the war in afghanistan. For one reason only, we and other nations may be in danger. This is why it is very important for the United States to stabalize the Afghani Government. The United States, however, must be precise and efficient in there plans and strategies because we can not stay in the war for to much longer. Only then will it be unreasonable to use such resouces on the war. We must go in accomplish a stable Afghani Government, stop al Qaeda momentum, help build a stonger Afghan security, create in the people the right political view or knowledge of to have or want a stabilize government, and then have a moderate move out. Now knowing reality all of these wont be 100% but if every task is met to an average level the people should be used to the reconstruction and begin to keep the process going. This should last no more than 2 yrs. After this point it becomes our greatest economic problem and we will start to dramatically suffer for it.
January 14, 2010 7:24 PM

Also, I will start to implement the use of podcasts (beginning next week) for my class discussions in my government classes. Not only will these be available online to students, but these can be a valuable resource for students to go back and listen to the comments their fellow classmates made in class. Furthermore, if a student was absent, this will also give them an opportunity to catch up on what they missed. But in the end, the use of technology, critical thinking, problem solving, and collaboration are skills that our students must have in order to succeed in the global work world. Without these necessary skills, we would be doing not only ourselves, but our students a great disservice. The world of education is changing and with that change, teachers need to change as well in order to meet the needs of our students. I think that the Partnership for the 21st Century Skills is a great start for all school districts across the United States to take a look at and truly consider implementing some of these technological skills into the daily curriculum.

References:
Partnership for 21st Century Skills. www.21stcenturyskills.org.

How to use a blog in the classroom?

2010-01-13T22:55:00.001-08:00

I have used a blog in my American Government and World History classes for the past year and a half. It started out as an online calendar, designed to post in class work, homework assignments, due dates for homework, or upcoming tests or quizzes. The primary purpose was to give parents an outlet as to what we are doing in class. If their child said to them they did not have any homework in my class, then they could always check my blog online to see for themselves. After awhile, I made my Government classes create blogs, so they could post responses to questions in an online forum. This is called "Question of the Week." Every week on Monday, I post an open ended question that requires some outside reading and research for them to answer. I give them the entire week to respond to the question, and on the first day of class, they were given a rubric as to how they would be graded. Thus far, this is how I have utilized my blog, but I am always open for new ideas.

Blogging is a good instructional tool because it allows students that may be shy or passive in class an opportunity to truly display their thoughts, opinions, and feelings in written form rather than orally presented in class. This allows all students to be heard, if the blog is used correctly.

Mike Palo
HS World History/American Government

Welcome!

2010-01-10T11:39:00.000-08:00

Welcome classmates to my blog for our third class together. I look forward to collaborating with all of you in the future on how we can integrate technology in the classroom.