Technology Integration Matrix
Increasing student understanding of the contributions of African
Americans in history and how their efforts have changed the present.
The lesson plan I adapted for an English Language Learner dealt with Black
History Month and the contributions that African Americans had towards the
United States of America. The lesson plan was created by Susan P. Genesi and is
entitled "A Walk Through History - In Honor of Black Americans."
Essentially the main goal of the lesson plan is to have students understand the
past contributions of African Americans and how they affect us today. The students
are to understand the contributions of African Americans, choose a prominent
African American, research their efforts and then create a monument of sorts to
present to the class. When I adapted this lesson plan for an English Language
Learner I found that much of the changes I made were actually technological
additions to the lesson, in efforts to make the learning targets more easily
attainable.
For the first row, the teacher would primarily teach the class some
background regarding the Civil Rights movements, Black History Month and other
African American contributions. In this row, one could see that at this stage,
students are now "accessing" the information beforehand to help them
out with the assessments later in the lesson. The teacher would conduct the
lesson with a lecture, but to accommodate the English Language Learner, the
teacher would also use a projector for pictures, handouts, video, or PowerPoint
presentation. As a result, the information is presented in a more visual way rather
than oral, as the English Language Learner may have trouble keeping up.
This portion of the lesson plans involves a lot of teacher participation as it
is vital for them to get the content across as best as possible for the English
Language Learner, as well as the rest of the class.
The second row has the teacher once again will review information however
there would be more student participation at this stage. After the teacher goes
over the content, the class will be open for class discussion. The class
discussion will be a result of the information they saw on the teachers PowerPoint
presentation. However the presentation, as mentioned above, would be used to
spark critical thinking and discussion.
The third row will switch the roles of from having the students be more
engaging rather than the teacher. After the teacher has taught the content, it
would now be up for the students to collectively brainstorm before they begin
researching. They will use online resources such as JSTOR or other academic
databases to help them in their findings. This will not act as a mere addition
to the lesson, but will help enrich their understanding of the learning
targets, as it pushes them to research effectively using primary sources. As
the students begin to create their report and presentation there will be
editing, both self-editing and peer editing. Microsoft Word is an example of a
program that would greatly aid the students with this. Both the peer editing
and Microsoft Word editing would help the English Language Learner in editing
their work if they having any trouble doing so. As a teacher, I would pair a
student who is very proficient in researching and writing to help the English
Language Learner with their project.
The fourth row would feature the participation of both the teacher and
students. At this point, the students would ask questions if they have any
concerns or confusions and the teacher would aid them in any way they can.
Using email, Twitter, Google+ or any other form of digital messaging application
would greatly help in the communication between the student and teacher. This
stage of the lesson plan would depend heavily on the collaboration between
students and their peers, and teachers. Students will once again be using the
computer to create their project and could easily edit it after any
recommendations from the teacher.
The fifth row explains the presentation portion of the lesson plan. The
assessment piece of the lesson is the presentation that the students have
created regarding contributions that a particular African American has done in
American history. This stage deals heavily on student participation and teacher
assessment. The students would be able to take advantage of many technologies
such as presentation tools (Prezi, PowerPoint), video and other multimedia for
their presentation.
As mentioned above, the technologies listed contribute greatly to the lesson
plan. Though the NJ standards are the main focus of the lesson plan, the
technologies definitely help a great deal in enriching their understanding of
the content. Rather than just sitting through a lecture, students can be
proactive and research to better understand what they are learning.
Wednesday, May 2, 2012
Tuesday, May 1, 2012
Twitter is a great tool to send out messages to many people at one time. Unlike an email, it is part of a feed provided you subscribe or "follow" the twitter account. For a teacher this could be very beneficial because it can have them remind their students of homework assignments instantly. Also, it could serve as a reminder for students regarding the upcoming class on what supplies or textbooks they need to bring. Twitter could also serve as a Q&A forum if any students have questions. Students could also follow news sources to help them relate the past with the present. While researching Twitter accounts with historical content, I found a Twitter account in which it chronicles WWII events in real time. I thought this was interesting and could certainly lead to more accounts of a similar nature, but that cover different time periods. Following this particular Twitter account could once again relate the past to the present in my students.
Microsoft OneNote 2010
I found a great video explaining the benefits of the OneNote 2010 Microsoft application. The program is essentially a library of "notebooks" that you create and edit. It allows for text, video, pictures and other multimedia to be cataloged in the notebooks. One of the very useful features of OneNote is the search function, which allows you to quickly search for any bit of information that are in your notebooks. I find OneNote to be extremely helpful because as students update their virtual notebooks, it would slowly grow to be a giant study guide for them. Sharing is also an added feature which allows them to share info with their fellow classmates. All in all, OneNote greatly helps teachers and students with content management, productivity and time and for this I would use it in my classroom.
Wikispaces
Wikispaces are an extremely helpful online tool both for learning
and organization. For project based purposes, the teacher can begin the
wikispace by posting some learning content and then ask the class to add more.
By adding links, many students can contribute to the wikispace at a time and
very much like Wikipedia, it can be edited as well. An instructor could assign
certain topics to groups and have them update the page over time to see their
progress. For organizational purposes, wikispaces greatly benefit both students
and teachers. Reason being, information such as when assignments are due or
scheduling can all be posted on a wikispace. This way, class time will not be
wasted by going over what is already posted online. Also, students and teachers
could grab information such as the student handbook, handouts, guides or flyers
to events on the wikispace itself. Wikispaces certainly contribute a lot
organization to students and teachers alike, as well as include a lot of course
content for the students and for this reason I would definitely implement it
into my future classroom.
Virtual Tours
As a future History teacher I would strive to make my lesson
as interactive as possible. I recently came across Virtual Online tours hosted
by BBC.com. The website offers a wide variety of different moments in history
and presents them in an interactive tour. Some tours are comprised of 360 degree
panoramic scenes that allow students to zoom in and out and rotate by using the
keyboard or mouse. One prominent example was a WWI trench showing the
conditions that the soldiers at the time had to endure. The website also has
even more interactive tours that allow the students to navigate through a 3-D
model interpretation of articular historical sites. I feel this would be more
engaging for students to take part in because it allows them to examine details
they could not have otherwise seen through an old picture.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/interactive/virtual_tours/
http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/interactive/virtual_tours/trench_life/index_embed.shtml
iPads
The iPad has proven to be quite successful in schools,
because of how engaging and interactive it is with students. It has managed to
break down content into small parts so as to make it more manageable unlike a standard
textbook. With the addition of over 20,000 educational apps, the iPad
definitely has potential to being a mainstream educational tool. I would
certainly advocate the use of the iPad in my classroom because of the tools it
has to offer. It offers a variety of multimedia such as games and video editing
that could help students understand the learning targets. The large number of
apps and activities that the iPad could have leads to it being very versatile,
as many different subject teachers could use them to their advantage. It is
very important to note that the iPad is a supplemental tool. As mentioned in
the Edutopia article, the iPad is to be used to enrich the learning of the
curriculum and I feel this is the right way to go about it. Teaching a student
how to use an app is not very beneficial, but explaining to them how that app
incorporates into the lesson and content is very helpful.
Monday, April 30, 2012
Video Games
It seems like video games are a taboo in the world of
education. After all, the classroom is the haven of critical thinking and
enlightenment. Video games are meant for pure entertainment and have no
educational merit. While this may be the case for a majority of mainstream
games, they are some video games that break this mold. The PC game series Civilization
has players take charge of a nation and ensure its survival and growth. The
game primarily focuses in on history, but does go over some political issues.
Students can draw parallels to how their nation is doing when comparing them to
ancient civilization discussed in World History classes. By using the
videogame, history students could have fun and learn of ancient civilizations
concurrently. However, the use of videogames in the classroom has met and will
meet criticisms, and it is rightfully so in my opinion. As a future educator, I
will have to make sure that my students are learning as they engage themselves
in the game, and not just be playing it leisurely. Videogames can be used in a
wide variety of school subjects as evident of the use of the SimCity
series in classrooms. Elementary schools in Ontario, Canada have experimented
with their 3rd grade class using iPads to play Simcity to help in their
social studies classes. It has been reported that the students have a deeper
understanding of rural and urban communities and have also unintentionally, but
certainly fortunately, practiced their math skills because of the economic
aspect of the game.
http://blogs.nitle.org/2010/10/06/teaching-with-a-video-game-the-case-for-civilization/
http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/arts-and-life/life/sci_tech/simcity-educational-ontario-grade-3s-learn-social-studies-with-ipad-game--146635525.html
Camtasia
Camtasia is a recording software that allows instructors to record Microsoft
PowerPoint presentations and add voice over commentary. This is especially
beneficial to history classes that feature a lot of lecturing via PowerPoint. Mind you, this software can be used in almost any class but I would assume it is more beneficial in lecture oriented class sessions.
Though I've experienced instructors who post their PowerPoints online for their
students benefit, they can sometimes be confusing to the students. After all, PowerPoints
do not always provide all of the information that was discussed in class.
Additional bits of insight that the professor mentions are seldom explicitly
included in PowerPoint documents. With Camtasia, teachers could include voice over commentary
that includes the footnotes that they mentioned in class. This could be
especially helpful in cases when students want to go over and study for
upcoming tests. Camtasia can also be used for students who have missed a day of
class. So as a result, the student will not be as behind on their studies
because it would have been like they had never missed class. Though Camtasia
serves a simple purpose, the simple addition of recording a lecture and PowerPoint
concurrently, allows for further instruction outside of the classroom.
http://www.techsmith.com/camtasia.html
http://www.techsmith.com/camtasia.html
Webquest
I've greatly used Webquests in the past and have found them
to be every engaging and fun. A Webquest is essentially an internet scavenger
hunt that the instructor assigns their students to do. After reading the
introduction of the Webquest, the student is given a series of tasks to
accomplish. The student is also supplied the preferred resources for research
purposes. The teacher also lays down the process and steps that the students
should accomplish to finish the task. The Webquest also shows the student how
they will be evaluated and ends with a conclusion or reflection piece. Many of
these components are sequential, however it is subject to change depending on who created the particular Webquest. One of the
main benefits of Webquests is they are both very versatile and adaptable.
Though Webquests have some base similarities, no two are often a like.
Webquests are also usually intended to be fun and engaging, resulting in more
interested students. As mentioned before, one of the best features of a Webquest
is that they can be assigned by any instructor and can be used at any grade
level. This is primarily because they can be modified to fit any classroom setting. It's no secret that Webquests also help students strengthen their research skills when navigating through the internet. As a future teacher, I will most definitely use Webquests because it's engaging and fun qualities and its positive effects on internet research.
http://webquest.org/
Examples:
http://projects.edtech.sandi.net/kimbrough/pilgrimlife/
http://www.education.umd.edu/Depts/EDCI/edci385/webquests3/Webquest1/webquest1.html
http://projects.edtech.sandi.net/kimbrough/desert/
Google+
Though one could easily dismiss Google+ as just another social media networking site, Google+ offers many more educational uses than sites such as Facebook or Myspace do. Instructors could assign work and due dates on Google+ which would then in turn, show up on the feeds of their students' Google+ accounts. Also, the "circles" feature helps teachers and students organize their groups to avoid confusion. For example, a teacher could add circles for each of their classes. As a result, instructors could assign different rubrics and projects according to the class they belong to. The same could apply to students, as they could divide their classmates according to what classes they share and most importantly, the students could make circles for group assignments. Google+ could also act as a public forum as they could post their questions regarding an assignment or project and it would then show up on the teachers feed. Much like this class and its use of Blogger, teachers could also use Google+ to remind students of due dates, requirements and the criteria that they want met. While Google+ is most definitely a social networking site, it also acts as a classroom surrogate outside of school hours.
http://www.edutopia.org/blog/teaching-with-google-plus-terry-heick
http://www.edutopia.org/blog/teaching-with-google-plus-terry-heick
Wednesday, April 18, 2012
Prezi
I recently discovered a new multimedia presentation tool called Prezi, which offers a new alternative to Powerpoint presentations. It essentially takes a Powerpoint document and makes it more interactive and certainly more visual. As teachers, we have to remember that all students learn and take in information differently. While some are more adept at learning by listening to a lecture, others are more visual learners. The "Zoom" feature is one of the main selling points of Prezi and allows the presenter to zoom out of the presentation to show students the big picture and how all of the content connects. Prezi offers a more engaging twist to Powerpoint slides, as they can be bland and boring at times. The services are free for the basic service, but using a school email (Student/Teacher) enables even more features not included in the basic service. A critical feature of Prezi is that the presentations can be edited and shared by multiple users online in real time. I feel that Prezi allows teachers to teachers to use presentation slides in an engaging and fun matter and also presents content easier to students than a Powerpoint ever could.
The Prezi "Canvas"
The Prezi "Canvas"
Wednesday, April 11, 2012
Interactivity #5
The teacher I interviewed is a high school biology teacher in the Denville school district. The teacher has taught for about five years and teaches 9th to 12th grade. I was quickly surprised to learn that she knew what NETS was when I mentioned it at the start of the interview. She told me that her school was not implementing the standards at this point in time and has no time frame when it will. The teacher I interviewed actually knew a lot about the standards and their intentions. She also said that it wasn’t as popular in New Jersey. She said that schools generally just followed the state standards and would only change if the standards themselves changed. She contemplated whether the standards were more popular in other countries as she mentioned that the, ISTE who organized the standards, were an international organization. I was quite surprised to learn that she knew a lot about NETS because not a lot of local teachers were familiar with it according to some of my classmate’s posts. She knew a good amount of the standards and the ISTE organization.
The teacher did mention that technology was heavily integrated into their school. Every classroom had at least three desktop PC’s and a Smartboard. Students were taught basic navigation through Windows operating systems and applications. Every student created a school Gmail account which promoted file sharing and messaging to complete projects. Google docs was a very important online application in which the students used for group projects too. This correlates with my experiences at Montclair State University and this class itself, as I have recently learned how useful Google Docs is. So, to some degree the school did fulfill some of the NETS standards.
As a future educator I would speak in favor of having my school uphold the NETS standards. It encourages them to be fluent with technology and understand that it can be used as a tool to aide in research and group work. It also teaches them how to safely and responsibly use technology to avoid any legal and ethical problems. While it’s good for technology to be used as an aide for curriculum standards, I feel it should also be taught concurrently with the lesson because of its real world applications for students. After all, the NETS standards only further promotes leadership, collaboration and creativity. I would push for the standards in schools that already have a lot of technology and also use it as a reason to get more funding for schools that don’t have a lot of technology. Either, I feel there is no harm in implanting these standards.
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