I indicated in
week one that my personal learning theory was eclectic. I don’t believe that one theory fits
all. It is like a $5.99 set of pajamas
that says one size fits all. The pajamas would size much different on my
daughter who is 5’6” and 115 pounds than it would on me at 6’3” and 210
pounds. One size does not fill all and
one learning theory does not fit all students all of the time. I continue to believe that all of the
learning theories have merit. This course has forced me to learn in depth about
each of the key theories including behaviorism, co
nstructivism, cognitivism, multiple intelligences, social learning, and learning styles. This class has made me more aware of the learning theories and the impact that they have on my students’ learning. I have had thought provoking discussions with my colleagues about the learning theories. In theory, this class has not just had an impact on me, but my colleagues as well.
As a result of
this course I have made some immediate adjustments to how I use technology in
my classroom. I have used my
SMART Board as
a tool to lecture in the past. Now I
look at my SMART Board for all the possibilities it holds to create engaging instruction
and learning. Dr. Orey spoke to the use
of SMART Boards and how they tend to lead to teacher centered instruction. Orey goes on to say that lecturing while using
presentation software and a SMART Board is one of the worst things you can do
with technology (Laureate Education,
Inc., 2011b). I am not sure I totally
agree with Dr. Orey, but I do believe that teachers can find better ways to use
the technology when delivering a lesson. Let’s face it, Dr. Orey is delivering
his message in the same way that he was decrying. Some may say that it is the only way he can
deliver his message. That may be so,
which is my point. Teachers may have to
use the lecture method at times because it is the only way to get the message
across for the material that needs to be delivered. Based on Orey’s remarks, I
have looked at other ways to deliver instruction besides lecturing with
technology. I will try to occasionally use
just visuals as Obey suggests (Laureate Education, Inc., 2011b). Two technology
tools that I plan to use in my classroom, which I have not used extensively,
are VoiceThread and Virtual Field Trips.
I would use VoiceThread to deliver flipped
lessons. Students would be encouraged to
leave feedback and questions about the mini-lessons. That way I would not have to wait until the
next day to know what students did not understand. I could address the issues right away. The
second technology tool I will incorporate into my class is virtual tours. Dr.
Orey sees virtual field trips as a powerful way to inspire students and provide
episodic memory (Laureate Education, Inc., 2011a). For our virtual field trip
assignment I used a Tahj Mahal virtual field trip with my class. I was impressed with the quality of the field
trip and the excitement it generated with my students. Next year I will select a virtual field trip
for Mt. Everest because I have my students read the first book of Gordon
Korman’s Everest Series. Before
the students begin the book, we will
create a KWL chart on Mt. Everest using
the SMART Board. Then we will take a
virtual field trip of Mt. Everest. After
the virtual field trip, we will complete the KWL chart. If there are any questions still unanswered,
we will use the Chromebooks for find the answers. I am not sure my repertoire
has expanded greatly, but how I will use the technology, which I explained
earlier, has changed. Technology is integrated into all of my lessons in some
way. According to Lever-Duffy and
McDonald (2008), educational technologies should be used to augment and support
instruction and learning. |
| SMART Boards should be interactive. |
One of the two long-term goals for change that I will work to achieve is to use Google Forms to receive and provide immediate feedback to formatively assess my students. I feel providing immediate feedback to my students is an area that I could improve on. I will begin by
My second goal for
change is to make my SMART Board lessons more interactive and student centered.
I will achieve this by creating lessons where the students are doing and
creating. Instead of using the lecture
method, I will create interactive lessons.
If I am i
ntroducing vocabulary, instead of using PowerPoint, I will create a concentration game or a drag and drop activity. I will use virtual field trips on the SMART Board and have students come to the board and manipulate the trip. I will know that I achieved my goal by evaluating and reflecting upon my practices. I should see lessons where kids are using the SMART Board as a learning tool.
In conclusion,
this class has provided me with insight regarding learning theories, technology
tools, and learning strategies. It has
changed the way I now plan my lessons. It has also inspired me to challenge my
colleagues to be reflective practitioners. I believe I am a better teacher now
than I was seven weeks ago.
Resources
Laureate Education, Inc. (Producer). (2011a).
Program six: Spotlight on technology: Virtual field trips [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 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
Lever-Duffy, J., & McDonald, J.
(2008). Theoretical foundations (Laureate Education, Inc.,
custom ed.). Boston, MA: Pearson Education, Inc.
No comments:
Post a Comment