5364 - Week 4 Part 1

The quote that got may attention in this week’s reading was:  “To be prepared for the fast-paced, virtual workplace that they will inherit, today’s students need to be able to learn and produce cooperatively” (Pitler, Hubbell, Kuhn & Malenoski, 2007). Working cooperatively is something that I am constantly trying to improve in my 4^th grade class. The students are learning to be good group members and tot trust each other as a group, believing that the work will get done and done well. As the students continue in their education, as well as entering the work force, they have no choice but to be a team player and work with people. It is a little bit of a challenge for some students and others seem to do well with it as some like working together while others prefer to work alone. It is a skill that must be practiced and rehearsed in order to learn to do it well. Personally I do not like group work because my past experiences have left me feeling like I am carrying my group and that I do most of the work while others skate by on my grade however, I have found that the groups at Lamar University have all had professionals in them who do their part, a welcome change.

Pitler, H., Hubbell, E. R., Kuhn, M., & Malenoski, K. (2007). Using technology with classroom instruction that works. (p. 139). Alexandria, VA: ASCD

5364 - Week 3 Part 3

Week 3 Part 3

Creating a book using the Book Builder was not difficult. I felt like I could have added a lot more content and made a much more interesting book that would allow students to feel like they are learning The Writing Process, if only I had more time. I am encouraged to see how easy it was to make and that there are so many more features that I could have used and built a great book with. In the future I could see using this to make learning easier for some students, and even allowing students to build books for each other. I think a place like this has a lot of potential and I would like to have more time to use it, maybe after I graduate....

My Book

5364 - Week 3 Part 1

Week 3 Part 1

In the weeks past we have had some terrific readings and videos to watch, this week is not different. The reading consisted of: 

• “Teaching Every Student in the Digital Age: Universal Design for Learning”
• “Center for Applied Special Technology: UDL Book Builder”
• “Center for Applied Special Technology: Model UDL Lessons”
• “Web 2.0: New Tools, New Schools”
• “Using Technology with Classroom Instruction That Works”

In the reading "Using Technology With Classroom Instruction That Works", the quote that stuck out to me was "we cannot overemphasize the wisdom of using rubrics to provide feedback on student attainment of the objectives set.  Because rubrics provide detailed descriptions, they help teachers meet the classroom recommendation of giving feedback that’s specific to a criterion as opposed to giving a simple grade or score.” (Pitler, Hubbell, Kuhn & Malenoski, 2007). Makes so much sense. Without the detailed descriptions that are provided by rubrics, a lot of students will be asking a lot more questions that the rubrics could simply answer. Also, students will know exactly what is expected of them and exactly what the grading will look like. Students, especially in the 4th grade, are learning to become more independent and require guidelines to follow. If they have a rubric to which they can refer, they will be able to know where to look, what to do and this enables them to begin to build their independence. I have learned that using rubrics could be a great thing to implement and in the future I think more teachers just may use them, even in lower grades.

Pitler, H., Hubbell, E., Kuhn, M., & Malenoski, K. (2007). Using technology with classroom instruction that works. Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development, 41-58, 217-225. 

5364 - Web Conference #2

The web conference started a little rocky, the sound was not working. I thought it was me at first but the rest of the class stated that they could not hear either so Dr. Borel took a "Time Out" to try to fix it. She got sound to us but we had a bad feed back so she worked on it some more. The conference began with a slight echo so Dr. Borel ended up typing as well as talking to us. Dr. Borel told us to check the setting of our email on Blackboard in order to not have to check our MyLamar email. She asked us about what we knew as far as the main google site, the field supervisor.
She then went on about this weeks assignment. She asked if there were any questions. We were still having trouble so she tried another computer to see if it was any better. She was not too happy and stated that this was the worse web conference she had ever done. I think we all understand, things happen and sometimes they are just out of our control.
We ended up doing it through chat since the sound did not work. It was a little confusing and Dr. Borel tried really hard to answer questions. I ended up turning off my camera and speakers and just reading what was going on, I left soon after that. Dr. B apologized but you know how it it...stuff happens.

5364 - Week 2 Reflection

Week 2 also brought with it some wonderful reading and videos.

• "Using Technology With Classroom Instruction That Works"
• "Technology-Enriched Classrooms: Effects on Students of Low Socioeconomic Status”
• “The Impact of Education Technology on Student Achievement: What the Most Recent Research Tells Us”
• “Teaching Every Student in the Digital Age: Universal Design for Learning”

 I found most of the reading interesting and full of great ideas as well as things to think about. I really liked the article "Teaching every student in the digital age: Universal design for learning" by Rose and Meyer. 

This article, as well as many others, brings to light the fact that there are so many chances for students to learn with technology. Technology can be used to focus in on the different learning styles and learning disabilities that inhibit learning in some students. Using different kinds of media, to either use in initial teach or student created, can only help support what is being taught in a classroom. I know that we are all looking into the future and expecting student to have more access and more experience with technology, so it is up to us to be able to offer what is needed and use it to our/their advantage. We can’t’ stop it so, as they say, if you can’t beat it, join it! I guess that would be a great reason many of us are getting our Master’s in Educational Technology, to join them.

Rose, D., & Meyer, A. (2002). Teaching every student in the digital age: Universal design for learning. Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development. Available online at the Center for Applied Special Technology Web site. Chapter 1. Retrieved from http://www.cast.org/teachingeverystudent/ideas/tes/