Technology, I learned, provides a way to promote, support, and model creative
and innovative thinking and inventiveness. Creative and innovative thinking is unbelievably important, that is what our future will use to problem solve and survive. Technology naturally scaffolds a lot of this creative process. It shows us different creative ideas with just a Google search, it supports our ideas with facts for us to utilize, and, if used correctly, teachers can use technology to model this thinking. We can show our creative thinking process through a SMART board, or look up different videos of others demonstrating their creative process. It is through knowing the world that we get our ideas and technology connects us to that. I learned how technology can engage students in exploring
real-world issues and solving authentic problems using digital tools and
resources. One such example was when Shadow had us explore the real-world issue of how we would set-up our future classroom. We used much of our own knowledge, but could have searched the internet for ideas as well, and showed our final understanding in a Google document.
We used technology to figure out our problem, just as students can if given the chance. Another important part of the creative process is reflect. Teachers can promote student reflection using
collaborative tools to reveal and clarify students' conceptual understanding
and thinking, planning, and creative processes. We did this all the time for Shadow, just look at this blog! I think it definitely helped me to visualize what I was learning. When I had to engage in activities with other students (such as the drawing above), the collaborative work helped me to understand what I was learning even more. Shadow also helped me learn by modeling collaborative knowledge
construction by engaging in learning with students, colleagues, and others in
face-to-face and virtual environments. Even as we came up with ideas he was learning, just as I think all teachers should.
In a perfect world, I could create an environment like the one Shadow had with our class! He utilized technology to help us be creative. He fostered our creative process just as I'd want to with my class. I think I can successfully do this though with a project approach. By letting students choose how they want to represent their learning, I am differentiating the lesson for them and allowing their creative process. Even if I narrowed that down and asked them to use technology to present to the class, I'd still be giving them room for creativity. Technology is perfect for creativity because it gives students so many options and so many wonderful ways to show their learning. There is very little limit on what students can represent with technology. Through technology, I can also have my students engage with the real-world. Nothing is more important in teaching than making learning relevant for students, and technology allows us to do just that. I can have them go beyond pen pals and connect with groups from around the world via the internet. I don't have to limit student ideas because so much more is accessable now! Technology can be incorporated into any lesson to allow for creativity.
I have definitely seen an improvement on my ability to design and develop relevant learning
experiences that meaningfully incorporate digital tools and resources to promote student
learning and creativity. I felt I incorporated relevant technology the students would know how to use and it was a different way than I was used to. I'd used Powerpoint and SMART board, but never used Pixie, Kidspiration, or Google docs as vehicles for learning. I was especially proud of my last lesson, my the Historical Facebook lesson, that I created.
This used Google docs but in a Facebook format that students would understand and connect to. It left them room to be creative but also had them learning about their historical figure. I feel this also demonstrated my ability to customize and personalize learning
activities to address students' diverse learning styles, working strategies,
and abilities using digital tools and resources. Digital resources allow so much in the way of differentiating a lesson and I believe I truly appreciate that now. I explored how to create lesson plans, but also assessments. I learned many ways to assess through technology projects which shows a much more authentic mode of learning. Students can present digital presentations, submit work via Google docs, work on projects through technology (such as SMART boards or tablets), etc. I became very comfortable with the Taskstream rubric-making tool to help me assess students. I feel all of this helped me to be able to provide students with multiple formats of formative and summative assessments that can still align with content and technology standards. The resulting knowledge would work as any good assessment does and help to inform my teaching.
Enough of what I've learned though! What's more important is understanding how I can use it. The biggest thing for me is that all of the new knowledge will help me to provide technology-enriched learning environments for my students. I'm aware of the creative power of technology and knowing this will help me create an environment that enables all students to pursue their individual curiosities and become active participants in setting their own educational goals, managing their own learning, and assessing their own progress. Many of these beliefs were important to me before, but now I see the role that technology can play. I will definitely have technology-based centers that help students to learn in new ways. I will incorporate technology into my lesson plans and assessments as well. I want to give my students many different ways to learn, as well as giving them foundational skills in technology that they will use as they get older. This is a technology-crazed time, so why not use it for student learning? They're already comfortable with it and it gives them a creative outlet. I will use the knowledge and incorporate technology to make learning more relevant.
I feel much more competent in the way of being able to model digital-age work and learning. I did so much of it in this class! I feel I can now demonstrate fluency in technology
systems and the transfer of current knowledge to new technologies and
situations. So much of my current knowledge can be represented with technology, so many lesson plans can be altered to use a SMART board or document camera instead of a white board. I also feel I have a much firmer grasp on being able to collaborate with students, peers,
parents, and community members using digital tools and resources to support
student success and innovation. The amount of times I have used Google docs after this class when working with peers tells me that there are simple ways to talk to students, parents, and community members as well. I can reach out to these people and communicate relevant information and
ideas effectively using a variety of
digital-age media and formats. I was always comfortable with email, but now I feel I could send a digital newsletter to inform parents or create a classroom blog to help foster communication with all of us. Overall, I feel much more comfortable modeling and facilitating effective use
of current and emerging digital tools to locate, analyze, evaluate, and use
information resources to support research and learning. I am comfortable utilizing Google searches and can model this with my students, but now I also feel comfortable facilitating their learning. I know what to expect of them and what to tell them to expect.
There are so many ways I can use these ideas in my future classroom! I can demonstrate to students that I know how to use technology by utilizing it everywhere! I can show that I know how to use these in class by using them in my lesson plans. I can send out electronic newsletters to keep parents and peers involved. I can send out a Google doc for sign-ups for parents. I can communicate with the community using email, blogs, or the newsletter. I can allow students to use the internet, tablets/iPads, or other technology to find information for class. I can show them how to analyze, evaluate, and use this information as well as facilitate their process doing this. Any research project can utilize this process as long as I plan to incorporate it in. There's so much I can do with this newfound knowledge, as long as I know how to use it.
One of the other huge, pivotal things this class has taught me is the ability to advocate, model, and teach safe,
legal, and ethical use of digital information and technology, including respect
for copyright, intellectual property, and the appropriate documentation of sources. This is so incredibly important for students to understand! I know now that I have to model this for my students first to help them understand. I need to cite my sources and use them appropriately if I got them from the internet so that students understand: even if it is on a public site, it belongs to someone and we need to recognize them for it. Copyright is law. If
we involve the internet, we need to be able to help students understand what
they may see as well as help them to be able to analyze its accuracy. They need
help understanding what is called digital citizenship.
It is important that we
model these important ideals to them. Beyond modeling, this also means we need
to give the students opportunity in class to utilize this tool and help make it
relevant for them. Part of learner-centered strategies for teaching means
making the content meaningful to students and using their prior knowledge of
the world to understand new things. This requires taking the time to get to
know them individually and it cannot be stressed how important that is. Get to
know your students strengths, weaknesses, hopes, and dreams. Only when you know
your students can they truly succeed. Don't
be afraid to get to know the students home lives since this greatly affects
their beliefs, priorities, and values. Encourage the parents or guardians to
get involved. Connect the learning to what the students know! It's also
important to identify and dispel stereotypes. This makes community and
collaboration much easier and encourages working together (which the world
could sorely use). Integrate arts to make the curriculum more interesting and
assess in multiple ways to get accurate, well-rounded data. High expectations for all ethnically, culturally,
and linguistically diverse students is also incredibly important. Students
often do as well as they are told to believe they can. Have high expectations
and they will rise to the occasion.
The internet is perfect
for this type of learning. However, this also means that the internet needs to
be make available for all students as well. Have the technology available in
the classroom and/or school and give the students time in school to use this
since we cannot always assume students have this access at home. Through
learner-based strategies and equitable access we can connect to the larger
population and promote global awareness in our students. Have students learn
about a culture by skyping students from that culture! Promote research,
discerning what is fact and what isn't, to find new knowledge to share with the
class. The possibilities are truly endless if we allow different cultures and
different means for learning into the classroom.
This is perhaps the one that I will use most in my classroom. I would want to set aside a lesson in class to cover these ideas before we could use the internet. This would help stress how important it is for us as writers of internet content as well as an audience for other's content to know these rules. I already wrote extensively about how I can use learner-centered strategies with my students. This is important whether or not I'm using technology, as much of this information is.
Everything I have talked about in this blog is important information that I have learned from my technology class. I hope to emulate much of what Shadow has taught us and replicate this learning experience for my future classes. Thanks Shadow. :)
