We know how much a student’s educational world can change in
regards to having technology in the classroom, but we can’t expect them to
learn lessons on their own. It’s up to the teacher to deliver the necessary
lessons while integrating technology so our students are successful in their
futures. There are four different learning theories in which teachers
follow. In the “High Tech High” piece of the section, we read that an
entire school is devoted to using new technology and learning theory
constructivism in their curriculum. The constructivist approach is where a
person takes every situation and piece of information and then perceives it and
reacts in their own way. Students are able to shadow adults in real life
situations, projects in community service, and a large amount of group work.
This school does not practice tracking and I think this is an important
component of High Tech High’s curriculum. If students are instructed to work in
different groups rather than being grouped by academic ability, they are able
to learn how to work with others so they’re prepared for the “real world.” I
see many advantages from this program and I am in no shock to know that all of
the graduates go to college.
Most of us already use technology every day. We can access almost
anything from a digital device and are always checking up on the latest news,
events, and social media. As a teacher, we must be able to know how to
efficiently use the internet. When a student is given information or is
researching, we want him/her to be able to sort through and be able to decide
what’s to be used and what’s not. As stated in the text, having information
literacy will help students gather and sort through info and use credible sources.
Information literacy runs hand-in-hand with internet literacy. To be efficient
researchers, our students will need to understand the basic formats on the
internet. There are many elements to knowing internet format such as knowing
where the search bar is, what search engines are, and simply knowing not to
click on pop-ups. Being digital literate is being able to use creativity,
cognitive thinking, and social skills to attain information and deliver
projects of their own. Media literacy means that our students use social media
and entertainment to deliver information. This can be from a digital blog,
online research projects, and viewing online dictionaries. Lastly is having
visual literacy. Visual literacy is where our students use charts, pictures, videos,
and illustrations to further add to their visual presentations. Adapting to
these digital literacies is crucial to your student’s academic success. We want
our student’s to be confident in using various technologies, as they will use
it in their futures. (Maloy, et al, 2013, p.55-58)
Knowing how and when to use technology in the classroom is
important but to grasp our student’s attention, we need to be creative. To
start, we need to understand that being creative not only comes from designing,
but more so in how a child perceives information. Seymour Papert created online
environments for students to access on a computer called LOGO. LOGO is a
mathematical environment where the navigator is a turtle. The text points out
how this helps all students learn math no matter what background they come
from. Social media is another way to be creative. In my future classroom, I
could also use an online digital blog that my students can access on their own.
On my blog, I would have relevant lesson information, videos, extra help, and
even extra credit.
“Transformative learning with technology is a central goal of the
National Educational Technology Standards (NETS) and the Student Outcomes for
Learning from the Partnership for 21st Century Skills.” (Maloy, et al, 2013,
p.45) We want our students to be creative and critical thinkers. We can use
technology in such ways that let our students adapt to the advancement in
technology. I need to be creative as well using blogs, online posts, topics and
videos, and interactive research assignments.
Resources:
Alaimo, A (2015, September 19). Digital Blog Post C. Created
with https://www.powtoon.com/online-
presentation/ekn6vuzx95U/digital-blog-post-c/#/
Maloy, R.,
O'Loughlin, R., Edwards, S., & Woolf, B. (2013). Transforming
Learning with New
Technologies. 2nd Edition. Boston, MA: Pearson Education Inc.
Yay - an embedded PowToon! :) It takes a little practice to get these tools to do exactly what you want them to do but the experiential process provides building blocks for practice and eventually expertise! :) I like what you did here and know that HS students enjoy creating them, as well. Rather than a blog for your students to access information online, you might want to consider a wiki (which you will experience creating in a future assignment!) as it is also a webpage, but easier to organize. Blogs are generally considered more personal but also more difficult to find information due to chronological organization. But I'll let you make that decision later - just glad that you are thinking of increasing technology for your classroom. :)
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