In reviewing the NETS-T (standards for teachers), there are two areas in which I would like to become more proficient.
The first area is standard 1b-"engage students in exploring real-world issues and solving authentic problems using digital tools and resources." To address this goal, I plan to research collaborative student projects. During the last course I found many great ideas such as epals, digital storytelling, participating in a science data collection project, and a folklore project. These types of projects promote global citizenship and prepare students for real world work experiences. Once I find a project that seems like a good fit for my class I will plan activities to provide prequisite knowledge, establish rules and procedures, and build in regular class time to devote to the project. I will monitor the engagement and progress of my students, and provide support as needed. After the project is completed I will evaluate the effectiveness of the activity and share results with colleagues. My hope is to encourage colleagues to branch out and try collaborative projects as well.
The second area I would like to improve is standard 4a-"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." During the last course I realized that there is so much more to using technology with students than introducing them to new programs. As more technology is being used in the classroom, teachers are responsible for teaching a much broader tech curriculum. While carefully citing sources in my own school work, I have not required my students to do this yet. To address this goal I am spending much more time incorporating tools to help students keep track of sites they visit and using a two-column journal adapted from Eagleton and Dobler (Reading the Web, 2007), in which students record sites (or texts) visited, key facts, and their personal response to the facts. By introducing third graders to this type of note taking, I hope to establish the ethical use of resources. To monitor progress in meeting this goal, I plan to have students complete a two-column journal for each unit in social studies this year. To extend this goal I will demonstrate how to properly cite sources used and encourage students to include a reference page with each project. I also hope to work with the media specialist to encourage safe, legal, and ethical use to all staff and students.
Eagleton, M. B., & Dobler, E. (2007). Reading the Web: Strategies for Internet inquiry. New York: The Guilford Press.
International Society for Technology in Education. (2008). National Education Standards for Teachers (NETS-T). Retrieved from http://www.iste.org/Content/NavigationMenu/NETS/ForTeachers/
2008Standards/NETS_T_Standards_Final.pdf
Christina,
ReplyDeleteYou have some excellent ideas for your classroom. I am inspired by the use of epals in the classroom. I believe through the epals students will learn to discuss with one another, find out about different communities or even counties, and how the use of technology can bring people together all over the world. Have you used epals before or do you know which websites are most beneficial for students to use?
Megan
Christina:
ReplyDeleteI think technology is great!! With so many new programs that are being offered its hard to keep up with today’s up to date technology. I also agree with you when you described many great things you learned in your previous Walden classes that you can incorporate into your own classroom. I have as well incorporated different skills I have learned into my curriculum. The thing that I have found with older teachers in my building, they are just used to their old traditional ways. They are not expanding their knowledge in workshops especially when it comes to technology. Its unfortunate, but some teachers feel that they have been there so long that it works well with them. “If it isn’t broke don’t fix it” But I also like how you incorporated the two column journal. That’s a great way for students to learn this type of note taking. I think when it comes to citing everyone is usually a little hesitant if they cited the resource correctly. I hope you can convince your colleagues to work on collaborative projects with you. It’s always hard getting other teachers to jump on board when they have different teaching philosophies.
Mike Benson
Megan,
ReplyDeleteI have not used epals before and was reluctant to try it because I thought it would be difficult to find another class or collaborate with another teacher from afar. However, I was so excited by the flat classroom projects and ideas we researched in the last course that I would like to try it. Since we are all of a similar mindset regarding technology use in the classroom, it might be fun to start an epal exchange with others in this program. It seems many of us cover similar units of study.
Christina
Mike,
ReplyDeleteThanks for your comment. I agree with your statement about some teachers hanging on to traditional ways but I think there are many factors that get in the way of technology integration. Our computer cart is very difficult to use this year. I do not know why everything seems to be acting up, but even I do not enjoy taking the cart and I believe in using more technology. It just seems to be such a waste of instructional time to troubleshoot the entire time we have the lap tops.
As for the two-column journal, I do think it is important to get kids used to citing sources but even more importantly, I think they need to get accustomed to personally responding to the information they find. Hopefully this type of note-taking will address the cut-and-paste issue of web research and help students synthesize their new knowledge.
Christina
I really like the idea of students keeping a journal about sites that they have explored and writing facts about the site.
ReplyDeleteI too have not had any experience with epals but would love to start something like that when I return from maternity leave.
I have plenty of teachers at my school that are reluctant to the changes that are coming with technology. The teachers need to keep up with the times so that we are providing lessons that are relevant to the students.
Christina,
ReplyDeleteI think your first goal of focusing on collaborative student projects will be very beneficial for your students. Are you going to use the Internet to research such projects? I like how you thought about incorporating activities to include prerequisite knowledge and rules/procedures. This will ensure that your projects should run smoothly. I also think it’s great that you plan to share with and encourage your colleagues. Do you work with teachers who will jump on board? I also want to share my successes with colleagues.
Hi Sarah,
ReplyDeleteI am going to use the internet to research project ideas. In the last course I found many different ways my students could participate in collaborative projects. One of my favorite was to contribute scientific findings to a larger research group. We learn about samples and populations in math which would tie in well to this type of real world project. It would be a great way for me to get my feet wet in collaborative activities as well because someone else has already set up the parameters. I think some of my colleagues will jump on board, especially if they see the benefit outweighs the effort. Do you work with teachers who are willing to try new technologies and projects if you lead the way?
Kim,
ReplyDeleteHow do you handle computer learning in your building? Do you have a tech teacher and a computer lab or are you responsible for teaching technology? We used to have a tech teacher and computer lab in each elementary school. Due to space issues, we did away with our lab and have lap tops on carts, and due to budget constraints, we did away with tech teachers at the elementary level. I think teachers were more willing to try new things when there was a knowledgeable person on site to help. As tech coordinator, I try to support staff with questions, but this year most of the problems are hardware or software related, not how to incorporate technology. It is hard to encourage others to keep up with the times when the machines seem like they are working against you.
Hello again,
ReplyDeleteI work with quite a few teachers who I think would appreciate my input and be willing to try new technologies. However, I also work with teachers who are fearful of trying new things, especially when it comes to technology.