Making the Most of Your Cl@ss Website

Educational Leadership / February 2011
Lemoyne S. Dunn

Class websites seem ubiquitous these days.  Dunn's article differentiates five different levels and their relative purposes.  Some purposes include disseminating new information, sharing news, provide sources related to course content, facilitate interaction, and act as a growing repository of knowledge.

Level 1: Static
Purpose: disseminate information that doesn't change
Example: Mrs. Renz's 4th Grade Class

Level 2: Semistatic
Purpose: disseminates information that changes periodically such as announcements, schedule changes, photos, etc. These sites do not regularly enhance student learning.
Example: Student Art

Level 3: Supplemental Resource
Purpose: often contain level 1 and 2 materials in addition to teacher-created and outside resources.  Communication is still largely one way.

Level 4: Integral Curricular
Purpose: focus on curriculum and student learning wherein student interaction is expected.
Good idea: teachers often post higher-order curriculum-related question every week or so and require students to post a response.
Example: Mr. Licata's Math Blog

Level 5: Pedagogical Memory
Purpose: students take a greater role in directing their own learning.
Example: these are often password protected

Platforms:

• Moodle
• Wikispaces
• Blogger
• WordPress

iTeach & iLearn: How Technology Is Changing the Way Education Happens

In the article, iTeach & iLearn, Tim Van Soelen describes the classroom as a very different place than it was a few years ago, explaining how technology has been a major contributor to this change.  He sites Marc Prensky's concepts of digital natives and immigrants which outlines the differences between those who are comfortable with the tech environment and those who are not.  The learning environment has changed for our students in three areas:

1. it is moving online (e.g. classes)
2. it is becoming more personalized (e.g. there exists individualized learning paths for students)
3. it is becoming ever more engaging (e.g. through gaming such as Angry Birds to teach physics)

In this new environment, the author states that teaching will not become obsolete; rather, teachers will have to adapt using characteristics common to good teacher--engaging, exploring, exchanging.  He states teachers should embrace the term lifelong learners and that schools should provide teachers with opportunities to learn.  This includes making technologies and technology coaches available. 

Our schools should be providing teachers with time and space to use technological tools to compose ideas; research new information; reflect on their practice; and communicate, network, and collaborate with other teachers, as well as time to create. p.22

I leave you with a final quote of a vision of a 'textbookless' future:

Imagine students reading about what happened this morning in Egypt in their social studies online textbook! p. 22

This is one of the strongest arguments for using classroom technology I have found so far as it's both engaging and current.

Select references from the article:

• 12 Education Tech Trends to Watch in 2012
• Digital Natives, Digital Immigrants

Seven misconceptions about how students learn

The Washington Post February 14, 2012
Valerie Strauss


It's always a good reminder to take a step back and examine one's practice, especially when it comes to entrenched assumptions.  Valerie Strauss, in her article, highlights seven myths in the world of teacher.

1. Basic Facts Comes Before Deep Learning: "students are most likely to achieve long-term mastery of basic facts in the context of engaging, student-directed learning."
2.  Rigorous Education Means a Teacher Talking: "The Art of a teacher is to construct ways for students to discover."  Let the talking head sit down!
3. Covering It Means Teaching It: ideas should be reinforced by student-centered activities.
4. Teaching to Student Interests Means Dumbing It Down: "teachers must relate classroom teaching to what students already know."
5. Acceleration Means Rigor: delving deeper into topics is not a bad thing.
6. A Quiet Classroom Means Good Learning: I often struggle with this one.  The voices of many students is a good thing.
7. Traditional Schooling Prepares Students for Life: key words are create, evaluate, communicate, and collaborate.

Finland's Revolutionary Education System

Good Teaching Trumps Good Tools

Educational Leadership / February 2011
William M. Ferriter

I'd recommend this very short (two pages) article to anyone thinking about incorporating technology in the classroom.

[The] all-too-common perception that success in the 21st century is dependent on specific digital tools is flawed.  Instead, those who will succeed in tomorrow's knowledge-driven workplace will be those who can solve problems creatively and think across domains.

Ferriter's main point is that educators should focus first on their instructional strategy and then the supporting technology.  The title line stands: "Good teaching trumps good tools every time."  He talks about what makes good tools including attributes such as information sharing, content sharing and collaboration, and teachable audiences.  He then points the readers to two good tools which can help within educational contexts.

VoiceThread



There are few good reasons the author suggests VoiceThread makes a good educational tool:

• students can polish their thinking before sharing ideas publicly
• students who missed class can be engaged in conversations about class materials

VoiceThread also has an iPhone app.

Diigo

Diigo is a "social bookmarking and shared annotation service."   The author uses it to motivate his students as a way of interacting with nonfiction text.

How PowerPoint is Killing Education

Educational Leadership / February 2011
Marc Isseks

For many of us, PowerPoint has likely become a very common tool in the toolkit of educational technology; it's nearly unavoidable.  And it does have some great learning affordances.  Isseks points out the uncreative and noneducational ways this tool is being used in schools.

First, Isseks points out that PowerPoint often presents a one-sided presentation with little or no room for dialogue, leaving students with little room for discussion, analysis or evaluation. [Bloom's Taxonomy]  He further notes PowerPoint 'covers' materials well though it often does not lead to the understanding of those materials.

Effective use of PowerPoint can be achieved (and I'm resisting the urge to place these ideas into bullet form) in a number of ways.  First, many of the bullet points should be removed.  Here he explained presentations should feature more questions than answers.  Second, fancy transitions and sound effects should be eliminated.  Third, keep on the classroom lights.

When Every Student Has a Computer at Home

Education Week [link]
March 15, 2012

This article points to a number benefits associated with each students having his/her own computer, and this is a reality that is not far off.

A teacher cannot, for example, assign homework requiring a computer if only 20 out of her 25 students have working computers at home.

A number of developments are about to change this.

And in classic academic style, the article ends with a note that there exists little research in this area.

Experiential Filmmaking

This is a workshop I've conducted a few times. Below is the supporting PowerPoint, which might not make too much sense without my presence, and a clip one of the workshop participants made. The end of the clip is my favourite part.

Experiential Filmmaking

View more PowerPoint from Surrey Christian School

The End of Teaching as We Know It

While not completely related to a middle school learning environment, this slideshow does have some food for thought.  It can certainly challenge my practice in some ways.

THE END OF TEACHING by @agalorda

View more presentations from Alvaro González-Alorda

Using Technology Interview

I was interviewed briefly last year for an article for the Ontario Alliance of Christian Schools (OACS).  Surprised at how strong interviewer's agenda was.  It bugged me a little.

The Practice of Using Technology

Christian Educators Journal

Vol 51 No 3 February 2012
Andrew Georgy-Embree

I recently wrote an article for the Christian Educators Journal.

Teaching the iGeneration

Educational Leadership / February 2011
Larry D. Rosen
Not too much to this article save a few key quotes.

To [the iGeneration], the smartphone, the Internet, and everything technological are not "tools" at all--they simply are.

[T]he...iGeneration...[is] defined by their technology and media use, their love of electronic communication, and their need to multitask.

The point is not to "teach with technology" but to use technology to convey content more powerfully and efficiently.

Technology is all about engagement.

It also posted a few helpful sites:

• DiscoveryEducation's Lesson Plan Library http://school.discoveryeducation.com/lessonplans
• Teachers Helping Teachers http://www.pacificnet.net/~mandel/index.html 
• TeachersFirst.com http://www.teachersfirst.com/index.cfm
• Thinkfinity http://www.thinkfinity.org/lesson-plans