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Reflections
Throughout my
time at Walden University, each course has left me reflecting on my current
practices and what ways I can incorporate the information I learned in to my
teaching repertoire. It has been a
challenging yet exciting adventure, and one that has already benefited my
students. When I began this course, I had to establish my own “personal theory
of learning”. In my thirteen years as an educator, I have always felt that
students learn best when they are motivated and/or connected to the topic being
taught in some way. Based on that idea, I began this course with the belief
that all learning theories play a role in my classroom and understanding things
like learning styles, preferences, intelligences and abilities is a key factor
when teaching my students. However, I felt that my philosophy of learning was
most closely related to constructivist/constructionist principles, which states
individuals actively construct their own meaning based on several factors (Laureate
Education, Inc., 2011d).
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After reflecting on what I have
learned through this course and my initial thoughts on how students learn, I
believe there is more of a balance in relation to all learning theories. What I
mean by this is I initially thought all learning theories played a role in how
students learn, but I leaned heavily toward the ideas behind the
constructionist learning theory. Now, I believe there is a more of a balance where
all theories play a vital role in the learning process. In terms of behaviorist
principles, students do need drill and practice to help reinforce skills
taught. Feedback is also a very important part of learning because students
need to be able to adjust or revise their thinking (Laureate Education, Inc.,
2011c). Cognitive learning theory discusses how information is processed and
stored in to long-term memory (Laureate Education, Inc., 2011b). Obviously,
this is important for teachers because we want our students to be able to store
and recall the information we teach them. Constructionist theorists believe
students learn best when they are able to build something they can share with
others (Laureate Education, Inc., 2011d). Building upon constructionist
learning theory, social learning theorists say students learn best when they
work together with others to create an artifact or discussing ideas with their
peers (Laureate Education, Inc., 2011a).
Technology can be used to aid the
learning process especially because all of the learning theories have one main
principle in common – students need to be actively engaged in the learning
process (Laureate Education, Inc., 2011e). Furthermore, Orey (Laureate
Education, Inc., 2011e) said all learning theories allow for technology to be
used as a learning tool. When we allow students to be responsible for their
learning, they become more engaged and motivated to learn. Technology can
assist in this process because it can be used in numerous ways – to provide
feedback (behaviorist thinking),
create networks of information (cognitivist
thinking), build artifacts or explore problems (constructionist thinking), or work together collaboratively (social learning). Not only does
technology allow teachers to tap in to the various ways students learn content,
it also helps prepare them for the 21st century work environment.
In all of my previous blog posts, I
talked about how I already have and would begin to integrate technology in to
my classroom. Blogs and wiki pages are currently being used for writing
projects, while online badge makers are used to provide effort and recognition
to the students for their blog posts. Concept Maps (via MindMeister.com) and
Virtual Field Trips were used to help students connect prior knowledge to new
information when researching a person of historical significance. Various
technology tools like Google Docs and VoiceThread have been (and will be) used
for students to work together to complete a project. Obviously, I have almost
instantaneously made adjustments to my instructional practices based on what I
have learned in this course and in previous courses. However, the biggest
adjustment I have made is to use technology to allow students to work together
collaboratively.
In the past, I have had students
write research papers on a person of historical significance. For the most
part, this project was done individually with some peer review/group work at
the end of the research project. While I have mentioned this numerous times
throughout this course, it warrants being repeated again – the project will now
be done through a wiki page. Students will work with partners from different
classes to create a wiki page that outlines their notes and allows students to
interact to create a biographical page on their person. I never imagined
completing a project like this with students working together on a final
product. A wiki page is a great technological tool that allows “groups to
collaborate by contributing and easily accessing information on a given topic”
(Pitler, Hubbell, & Kuhn, 2012, p. 51). Throughout this course, I found the
social aspect of learning most intriguing because I feel it is an area of great
need for my students. In the future, we will all have to work with other people
in some way or form in the workplace. Too many times, schools are only focused
of the individual aspect of learning and so collaborative and communication
skills are often put on the back burner. Finding ways to allow students to
collaborate with one another and to communicate their ideas effectively is
definitely an adjustment that I have made and will continue to make to my
instructional practices.
In order to continue to find
collaborative opportunities for my students, I want to continue to explore the
use of VoiceThread in my classroom. It can be used for just about any sort of
project-based learning or problem-based inquiry. I am planning on using it for
our final essay project where the students can share their key essay ideas on
the presentation. The audio feature helps students focus on the communication
aspect of learning in that they must clearly present their ideas to their
classmates. The comment feature allows students to obtain feedback from others
while also giving them the recognition that their thoughts and ideas are worthy
of having a voice. Pitler et al. (2012) believe students need to be recognized
for their effort and achievement and that it “can actually influence intrinsic
motivation” (p. 63). This in turn can increase student engagement and decrease
behavioral problems, which are important aspects of establishing a healthy
learning environment where a child can experience success.
Another technology tool I would like
to continue to experiment with is the Nearpod iPad application (Nearpod.com).
Nearpod is a wonderful interactive tool that can be used to engage students in
the learning process while also providing instant feedback. I have used Nearpod
in the past when introducing a persuasive writing unit, and the kids were very
motivated to use this tool. They enjoyed being able to post their ideas, have
their thoughts shared with classmates in real time, and receive immediate
feedback to adjust their thinking. I believe Nearpod would be a great tool to
use when providing drill and practice opportunities. Instead of having students
use boring worksheets or even the semi-exciting online games (i.e. Study
Island), students can now practice skills and concepts with a hands-on
interactive approach. Specifically, I would use this tool to have students
practice common core standards, similar to the questions they would find on
Study Island. The use of an interactive approach to practice basic skills while
allowing students to process their ideas collaboratively while receiving
immediate feedback makes the standard drill and practice more engaging and will
(hopefully) lead to deeper understanding of content knowledge.
(Side Note: Last week, I was actually
able to incorporate an activity using the Nearpod application for our final
class application assignment. I created a presentation about common grammar
mistakes and had the students first practice sample standardized test
questions. After the students selected an answer to a multiple-choice question,
they then were given immediate feedback and were asked to draw a picture to
show the difference between a homonym or homograph. Below you will see some
screen shots of the Nearpod presentation as well as student work.)
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| Student drawing showing the difference between threw and through |
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| Screen shot of sample standardized test question, taken and adapted from Study Island |
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| Student drawing showing the difference between accept and except |
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| Screen shot of sample standardized test question, taken and adapted from Study Island |
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| Student drawing showing the difference between peace and piece |
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| Screen shot of a survey created through Surveymonkey.com to gain feedback about the activity from my students |
Goals for the Future
In our course text, Pitler et al.
(2012) stressed the importance of providing feedback to students. As a writing
teacher, I feel this is an area I need to improve upon. Because it takes so
long to grade students’ written work, I want to find ways to speed up the
process so students can reflect upon their ideas and make adjustments to their
writing appropriately. With this in mind, I requested (and was granted) a
purchase order for Vantage Learning’s MY Access! software. Pitler et al. (2012)
discussed the software’s benefits by sharing a documented case where teachers
found “an improvement in student writing and an increase in how much time
students devoted to the writing process” (p. 45). With that in mind, I have
developed, a goal related to the program.
Goal
#1: Implement and utilize MY Access! writing program software to help students
improve their writing skills.
This goal focuses on the instructional
strategy of setting objectives and
providing feedback. Since the MY Access! software scores essays almost
instantaneously, students can receive that all-important feedback to make
revisions and corrections to their work while it is fresh in their minds. This
is an important skill for my students. In March, my students took the Measure
of Academic Progress (MAP) assessment, which is a computerized adapted test
that adjusts the difficulty of each question based on how well a student
answers previous questions. On the assessment, almost all of my learning
support students scored below grade level on revising and editing. Therefore,
utilizing a technological tool like MY Access! can help improve students’
skills in these areas.
A second area I would like to change
in terms of my instructional practices is in the area of summarizing and note taking. During this course, I realized that I
have expected my 7th and 8th grade students to just know
how to take notes. I never considered the fact that I may actually have to
teach them the skill in order for it to be worthwhile and effective. Note
taking is an important skill for my writing students, especially when I introduce
them to a specific topic that we will spend weeks reviewing and then writing
about. Note taking allows students to create a log of
important information they have learned or read by forcing them to paraphrase
the information in their own words (Pitler et al., 2012). One particular type
of note format that I would like to utilize with my students is the combination notes format, which leads in
to my second long-term goal.
Goal 2: Teach students to use the
combination notes method of note taking and create a Google Doc (or use another
technological tool) template that can be shared with students.
Pitler et al.
(2012) describe combination notes as having a strong impact on student learning
because it “employ(s) outlining, webbing, and pictographs in addition to words”
(p. 151). When reviewing the ideas behind cognitive learning theory, we learned
the importance of included images with text in order for information to be
stored in to memory. In order for this form of learning to occur, I must first
teach the students how to set-up and use combination notes. Then, I can create
a Google Doc template and share it with students so they can use it in the
introductory stages of our writing units to understand content. Even though I
have Google Docs as a primary tool to use for note-taking, I want to further
investigate some of the iPad applications listed in Using Technology with Classroom Instruction that Works (2012) to
find one that may be more effective or engaging for students to use. By using a
basic template that can be accessed through a technological application, it
saves the students the time from setting up the notes.
The
underlying theme in all of the videos, articles, and chapters in our texts is
that students need to be engaged in their own learning. Technology is the
perfect way to increase student engagement. If teachers continue to find ways
for students to use technology as a learning tool, we will be teaching them
more than content knowledge. We will be teaching them 21st century
learning skills such as communication, collaboration, creativity, and critical
thinking skills, which will hopefully lead to success in the classroom and in
the future (Partnership for 21st Century Skills, n.d.).
References
Laureate
Education, Inc. (Producer). (2011a). Program eight: Social learning theories [Video
webcast]. Bridging learning theory,
instruction and technology. Retrieved from http://laureate.ecollege.com/ec/crs/default.learn?CourseID=5700267&CPURL=laureate.ecollege.com&Survey=1&47=2594577&ClientNodeID=984650&coursenav=0&bhcp=1
Laureate
Education, Inc. (Producer). (2011b). Program five: Cognitive learning theory [Video
webcast]. Bridging learning theory,
instruction and technology. Retrieved from http://laureate.ecollege.com/ec/crs/default.learn?CourseID=5700267&CPURL=laureate.ecollege.com&Survey=1&47=2594577&ClientNodeID=984650&coursenav=0&bhcp=1
Laureate
Education, Inc. (Producer). (2011c). Program four: Behaviorist learning theory
[Video webcast]. Bridging learning
theory, instruction and technology. Retrieved from http://laureate.ecollege.com/ec/crs/default.learn?CourseID=5700267&CPURL=laureate.ecollege.com&Survey=1&47=2594577&ClientNodeID=984650&coursenav=0&bhcp=1
Laureate
Education, Inc. (Producer). (2011d). Program seven: Constructionist and
constructivist learning theories [Video webcast]. Bridging learning theory, instruction and technology. Retrieved
from http://laureate.ecollege.com/ec/crs/default.learn?CourseID=5700267&CPURL=laureate.ecollege.com&Survey=1&47=2594577&ClientNodeID=984650&coursenav=0&bhcp=1
Laureate
Education, Inc. (Producer). (2011e). Program thirteen: Technology:
Instructional tool vs. learning tool [Video webcast]. Bridging learning theory, instruction and technology. Retrieved
from http://laureate.ecollege.com/ec/crs/default.learn?CourseID=5700267&CPURL=laureate.ecollege.com&Survey=1&47=2594577&ClientNodeID=984650&coursenav=0&bhcp=1
Partnership for 21st
Century Skills. (n.d.). Framework for 21st century learning.
Retrieved from http://www.p21.org/our-work/p21-framework.
Pitler, H., Hubbell, E. R.,
& Kuhn, M. (2012). Using technology with classroom instruction that
works (2nd ed.). Alexandria, VA: ASCD.
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