There have been a lot of "firsts" so far in this EDU 504: Teaching with Technology class. I can now consider myself a blogger, and what's more is that I begun following other bloggers: EduBloggers.
When reading through the endless list of educators who are blogging, I was first struck by the shear number of individuals who are expressing themselves, sharing frustrations, triumphs, and insights via their blogs. The range of topics span from classroom management techniques to amusing vignettes, hilarious situations to tear-inducing tragedies. It is also wonderful to see that these writings are not simply drafted, posted, and lost to the black hole that can be internet, like shouting into darkness. Rather, educators are supporting one another through comments, supportive insights, and the generation of dialogue. When first seeing this, I thought to myself, "Wow. I'm stepping into a pretty great profession." I've thought that countless times before but never in the context of the internet or blogging.
One of the EduBloggers I found has a blog entitle Practical Theory: A View from the Schoolhouse. This title caught my interest as I appreciate greatly the efforts necessary to implement theory into practice, something much easier said than done. Those, like this blogger, who try will certainly have developed some wisdom along the way. I ended up reading one of the blogs within this site entitled "How does your school deal with student trauma?" The title struck me as it immediately resonated with my current student teaching situation. Although I recognize that all schools have students who have gone through some serious trauma, I would argue that where I am placed—an adult alternative educational center—has a uniquely high number of students with trauma. Each day I try to teach students Biology but end up helping students talk through issues they are going through, lending support, showing students that people care for them, or pointing them to resources they desperately need. What I have learned so far in my placement is the importance of building relationships with students as the first step before effective or meaningful learning can take place.
This EduBlogger simply reflected upon how inhibiting traumatic events can be to learning in the classroom. He encouraged his viewers to reflect upon the way in which they think of their students, communicate with them, and the focus of their teachings. He urged his viewers to remember that we are teaching students / people a subject matter. We are not just math, english, or biology teachers; we are teaching people first.
It was inspiring to see that conversations are being discussed on this pervasive topic of trauma. I am encouraged by the fact that teachers are taking it seriously, and I look forward to joining in this dialogue. Conversation such as this, as I see it, can only result in positive change in teaching practices, school climates, and in the lives of individual students.
Here is the link to Chris Lehmann's blog Practical Theory: http://practicaltheory.org/blog/
Wednesday, November 19, 2014
Musings on Prezi | Tech-Tools in Use
Recently, several of my colleagues gave a presentation on the cloud-based, potentially motion-sickness inducing (sorry if that's you), new presentation software that is known simply as Prezi.
Chris Anderson, CEO of TED (not one of my colleagues) stated that Prezi is,"...helping to reinvent the art of presentation." Bold statement. Short sighted, maybe? Regardless, Mr. TED's statement does reflect the apparent reason why Prezi got its start, which, according to my colleagues, was because people thought Prezi's older relative, Power Point, was, well, old and boring.
Prezi was designed to allow individuals to personalize presentations or to collaboratively develop creative ones. Instead of the sequentially predictable functioning of power point slides, Prezi utilizes motion to "captivate" the audience as you zoom through the story. For some viewers, this is a fun plus, but for others, it may send them running back to the steady and stomach-safe transitions of power point. My favorite aspect of Prezi, however, is the multidimensional and meaningful way in which Prezi allows you to visually explain conceptual relationships between topics.
Unlike power point, which simply moves you along from one slide to the next allowing little thought of connectivity between idea, the zooming capacity of Prezi allows its viewers to see concept connections spatially. This feature allows presenters to organize their thoughts in a very different way, and, wonderfully, it allows the viewers to follow along on the potentially crazy ride. Concept comprehension may be supported greatly by this application.
Although I am big supporter of Prezi's capacity to allow spatial organization of concepts, there are a few drawbacks that make me hesitant to encourage my students to utilize it. First, the immense potential for creativity that Prezi supports could also be its Achilles heel, at least in terms of the potential for students to become lost in the distracting world of templates, colors, and formats. If students can efficiently select the myriad options presented to them and actually get to the content, we might be in business. That is, of course, dependent upon the technological resources that are available to students. Where I am currently teaching, the school does not have the technologies necessary to support the demanding Prezi software. This limitation, if present, prevents the Prezi-plane from even getting off the ground.
Prezi was designed to allow individuals to personalize presentations or to collaboratively develop creative ones. Instead of the sequentially predictable functioning of power point slides, Prezi utilizes motion to "captivate" the audience as you zoom through the story. For some viewers, this is a fun plus, but for others, it may send them running back to the steady and stomach-safe transitions of power point. My favorite aspect of Prezi, however, is the multidimensional and meaningful way in which Prezi allows you to visually explain conceptual relationships between topics.
Unlike power point, which simply moves you along from one slide to the next allowing little thought of connectivity between idea, the zooming capacity of Prezi allows its viewers to see concept connections spatially. This feature allows presenters to organize their thoughts in a very different way, and, wonderfully, it allows the viewers to follow along on the potentially crazy ride. Concept comprehension may be supported greatly by this application.
Although I am big supporter of Prezi's capacity to allow spatial organization of concepts, there are a few drawbacks that make me hesitant to encourage my students to utilize it. First, the immense potential for creativity that Prezi supports could also be its Achilles heel, at least in terms of the potential for students to become lost in the distracting world of templates, colors, and formats. If students can efficiently select the myriad options presented to them and actually get to the content, we might be in business. That is, of course, dependent upon the technological resources that are available to students. Where I am currently teaching, the school does not have the technologies necessary to support the demanding Prezi software. This limitation, if present, prevents the Prezi-plane from even getting off the ground.
Monday, October 27, 2014
Quotes to teach by — David Thuene, guest speaker
On September 25, an English teacher from Spring Lake High School gave a presentation to my Teaching with Technology class at the University of Michigan. His name was David Thuene.
As he spoke, his passion for education became evident, and the stories and lessons he shared with our class have impacted my development as a teacher.
Below are some wisdom-stuffed quotes from his presentation.
I bet you won't find a-one that you cannot apply to your teaching or to yourself as a learner.
I double-dog dare you.
1. "Teaching is so fun. I get to be the inspiration, not the information."
2. "If [students] don't care about a topic, it seems to encourage plagiarism."
3. "Art is never finished, only abandoned. If we're going to fail, which is OK, let's fail forwards."
4. "If teaching really is the greatest form of learning, than have your students do it."
5. "I have to think in non-Googleable terms."
6. "Only engagement can produce mastery."
7. From Penny Kittle: "Teaching is about honor and goodness and mercy."
8. From Kelly Gallagher: "Confusion is the place where learning occurs."
...I bet I won.
As he spoke, his passion for education became evident, and the stories and lessons he shared with our class have impacted my development as a teacher.
Below are some wisdom-stuffed quotes from his presentation.
I bet you won't find a-one that you cannot apply to your teaching or to yourself as a learner.
I double-dog dare you.
1. "Teaching is so fun. I get to be the inspiration, not the information."
2. "If [students] don't care about a topic, it seems to encourage plagiarism."
3. "Art is never finished, only abandoned. If we're going to fail, which is OK, let's fail forwards."
4. "If teaching really is the greatest form of learning, than have your students do it."
5. "I have to think in non-Googleable terms."
6. "Only engagement can produce mastery."
7. From Penny Kittle: "Teaching is about honor and goodness and mercy."
8. From Kelly Gallagher: "Confusion is the place where learning occurs."
...I bet I won.
Tech in My Placement
This blog post is essentially a reflection upon an assignment given in my Teaching with Technology class. The assignment was simply to conduct a survey on the technological that existed in the school where I am currently student teaching. There are numerous schools represented in my class, and this survey, being conducted at each placement, made very apparent the wide range of technological assets between these schools. These differences stimulated a very interesting discussion regarding the impact of technology in schools and the potential limitations that arise at underserved or technology-poor schools. Additionally, this survey caused me to observe closely what technologies were available at my placement and get to know who maintained the technological.
First, let me describe the types of technologies available at my placement school. To be frank, the list is short. There are two computer labs in the school filled with old Dell computers. These computers are problematic and often inhibit student work as they are slow and tend to inexplicably malfunction. The poor functioning of these computers cause obvious frustrations within both the students and the teachers. When a computer fails, rather than move to a different computer, students will either use it as an excuse to leave or whip out their cell phones and disengage. These computers could be an amazing resource for the students, but more times than not, they actually result in the inhibition of learning.
The available technology in my actual classroom is even more sparse. Though the old chalk and stone (blackboard) is as dependable as technology comes, it obviously pails in comparison to the technological advancements to date that are utilized in many schools around the nation (and in many of my fellow classmates' placements). But hold on to your seats, there's more! We also have an overhead projector and wet erase markers! This at least allows us to bring some color into our note taking, and it allows me to make neat transparent pages on the school's copy machine.
Compared to the computer labs, the blackboard, and the over head projector, the most useful and ubiquitous technology that exists in the classroom and throughout the school are the cell phones that belong to our students. These little computers represent a huge window to the outside world and an opportunity for students to learn, but they unfortunately are more cause for distraction than a source of academic aid. Teachers throughout the school must constantly manage the (mis)use of cell phones during class. Asking students to put their phones away becomes both tiresome and frustrating. There are, of course, many explanations and variables impacting this current class management issue around cell phones—school policy, adherence and respect for school and teacher rules, lesson plan design, student motivation and level of engagement to name a few—but I want to simply emphasize the point that these great technological resources are not being used to their potential effectiveness in the classroom.
Based on the observations presented by my fellow classmates on the technologies found at their placements, it became apparent that several placements were similar to mine while numerous were not. Some schools are dealing with similar technological frustrations—cell phone management, out-dated and failing computer labs—while others were using their technologies to great effect. It seems as though technology can both impede learning (misuse of cell phones/computers/laptops, faulty computers) or facilitate learning (functioning computers, smart boards, individual laptops).
This assignment was helpful in continuing the conversation regarding the impacts of technology on the ability of students to learn. It seems, as can be said for many things in life, that technology must be utilized strategically and with directed purpose otherwise it can be a have a negative impact on learning. However, the availability of effective technologies in the school remains the primary issue in many schools such as mine.
First, let me describe the types of technologies available at my placement school. To be frank, the list is short. There are two computer labs in the school filled with old Dell computers. These computers are problematic and often inhibit student work as they are slow and tend to inexplicably malfunction. The poor functioning of these computers cause obvious frustrations within both the students and the teachers. When a computer fails, rather than move to a different computer, students will either use it as an excuse to leave or whip out their cell phones and disengage. These computers could be an amazing resource for the students, but more times than not, they actually result in the inhibition of learning.
The available technology in my actual classroom is even more sparse. Though the old chalk and stone (blackboard) is as dependable as technology comes, it obviously pails in comparison to the technological advancements to date that are utilized in many schools around the nation (and in many of my fellow classmates' placements). But hold on to your seats, there's more! We also have an overhead projector and wet erase markers! This at least allows us to bring some color into our note taking, and it allows me to make neat transparent pages on the school's copy machine.
Compared to the computer labs, the blackboard, and the over head projector, the most useful and ubiquitous technology that exists in the classroom and throughout the school are the cell phones that belong to our students. These little computers represent a huge window to the outside world and an opportunity for students to learn, but they unfortunately are more cause for distraction than a source of academic aid. Teachers throughout the school must constantly manage the (mis)use of cell phones during class. Asking students to put their phones away becomes both tiresome and frustrating. There are, of course, many explanations and variables impacting this current class management issue around cell phones—school policy, adherence and respect for school and teacher rules, lesson plan design, student motivation and level of engagement to name a few—but I want to simply emphasize the point that these great technological resources are not being used to their potential effectiveness in the classroom.
Based on the observations presented by my fellow classmates on the technologies found at their placements, it became apparent that several placements were similar to mine while numerous were not. Some schools are dealing with similar technological frustrations—cell phone management, out-dated and failing computer labs—while others were using their technologies to great effect. It seems as though technology can both impede learning (misuse of cell phones/computers/laptops, faulty computers) or facilitate learning (functioning computers, smart boards, individual laptops).
This assignment was helpful in continuing the conversation regarding the impacts of technology on the ability of students to learn. It seems, as can be said for many things in life, that technology must be utilized strategically and with directed purpose otherwise it can be a have a negative impact on learning. However, the availability of effective technologies in the school remains the primary issue in many schools such as mine.
Monday, September 8, 2014
Connections Across Disciplines - Technology Debate, AP Spanish
This post is written in response to a lesson plan developed by fellow colleagues Anna, Rebecca, Naomi, and Betsy—all Spanish teachers. This project was assigned as part of our EDUC 504 Teaching With Technology class, and as part of the assignment, we were directed to review a lesson plan pertaining to a different subject matter than we will personally be teaching in the future. This post is such a review.
This lesson plan was developed for an AP Spanish class in which the students would be debating on the use of technology in second language acquisitions—online dictionaries and web-based translators, for example. The objective of the assignment was for students to analytically construct arguments around an selected issue and be able to effectively communicate their reasonings to the class. The lesson plan was designed to span a day and a half, where the topic and assignment would be introduced on day one, associated homework would be given, and the debate would require the allotted time on day two.
Having taken Spanish as a minor in undergrad, I am well aware of the allure, fallacies, and frustrations that online dictionaries and translators present. Online translators can have a tendency to butcher anything longer than a few words, there is no recognition for cultural influences and slang, and if you utilize them verbatim for an assignment, you're teacher will not be pleased. On the flip-side however, they have served me well in the past as a resource for learning new words and comprehending short sayings.
Ha. It seems as though I'd have a thing or two to say in this debate, but I would have to freshen up on my Spanish before I could articulately communicate my thoughts in this language. And this is where I think this lesson plan has some serious merit: the debate.
Debates are difficult and stressful even in your native language, but for students learning to master Spanish, a debate could be equally stressful but no less rewarding. The use of debate to practice Spanish requires students to practice listening, thinking on their feet, and responding effectively, all of which, of course, in Spanish. Additionally, practicing debates in high school will likely serve them well in college, future jobs, and careers.
A final component of this lesson plan that I greatly appreciated was the integration of the class's derived social norms—a collaboratively written and agreed-upon set of norms that serve to support a rich and safe learning environment. Before the debate begins, the lesson plan states that students would be given time to write down an established classroom norm that may be helpful in the coming debate. I think it is great that the social norms could be brought into daily class activities, especially a debate which necessitates higher levels of student interaction. If I were to add to the planned closing/assessment, as described in the lesson plan, I would think about having students also discuss how the adherence or lack-there-of to the social norms aided or detracted from the process of the debate. This may provide an effective "book-end" to the lesson, one that again facilitates intention reflection on the social norms and potentially their application to future debates and interactions the students may have outside of class.
This lesson plan was developed for an AP Spanish class in which the students would be debating on the use of technology in second language acquisitions—online dictionaries and web-based translators, for example. The objective of the assignment was for students to analytically construct arguments around an selected issue and be able to effectively communicate their reasonings to the class. The lesson plan was designed to span a day and a half, where the topic and assignment would be introduced on day one, associated homework would be given, and the debate would require the allotted time on day two.
Having taken Spanish as a minor in undergrad, I am well aware of the allure, fallacies, and frustrations that online dictionaries and translators present. Online translators can have a tendency to butcher anything longer than a few words, there is no recognition for cultural influences and slang, and if you utilize them verbatim for an assignment, you're teacher will not be pleased. On the flip-side however, they have served me well in the past as a resource for learning new words and comprehending short sayings.
Ha. It seems as though I'd have a thing or two to say in this debate, but I would have to freshen up on my Spanish before I could articulately communicate my thoughts in this language. And this is where I think this lesson plan has some serious merit: the debate.
Debates are difficult and stressful even in your native language, but for students learning to master Spanish, a debate could be equally stressful but no less rewarding. The use of debate to practice Spanish requires students to practice listening, thinking on their feet, and responding effectively, all of which, of course, in Spanish. Additionally, practicing debates in high school will likely serve them well in college, future jobs, and careers.
A final component of this lesson plan that I greatly appreciated was the integration of the class's derived social norms—a collaboratively written and agreed-upon set of norms that serve to support a rich and safe learning environment. Before the debate begins, the lesson plan states that students would be given time to write down an established classroom norm that may be helpful in the coming debate. I think it is great that the social norms could be brought into daily class activities, especially a debate which necessitates higher levels of student interaction. If I were to add to the planned closing/assessment, as described in the lesson plan, I would think about having students also discuss how the adherence or lack-there-of to the social norms aided or detracted from the process of the debate. This may provide an effective "book-end" to the lesson, one that again facilitates intention reflection on the social norms and potentially their application to future debates and interactions the students may have outside of class.
Tuesday, July 22, 2014
Blendspace | a golden nugget from the interwebs
The mighty interwebs have a bevy of information and resources for the internet-surfing individual and teachers alike. Anyone who has been introduced to Google search is cognizant of this, but not everything one may find is useful or exciting. This "Organize Your Online Life" assignment given in my Education and Technology class dropped in my lap something I was blown away by: Blendspace.
Blendspace is a web platform from which teachers can access resources and develop lesson plans in short order. This free site allows teachers to blend their classroom with digital content. Through this site, teachers can create lessons, share them with his or her students, track student learning through online quizzes and student feedback, and provide differentiated lessons that integrate text, video, images and web resources. The process of developing a lesson plan is intuitive and fast. All you need is 5 minutes and topic to search, and boom, there it is.
After exploring this site for more time than I had, I began to develop a handout—one that could appropriately represent and introduce this useful site—for my fellow teachers-to-be. Developing a handout was a new experience for me, in a way. Having spent some time digging into the site, this handout challenged me to change my perspective from which I understood and viewed it. I realized I had to ask myself, "If I knew nothing about this site, what would I need to know and what info-packaging style would be the most transparent?" These are good questions, I think, for teachers who, likely being the most knowledgeable individuals in their classrooms, will have to translate and repackage information in a way that students will be able to effectively digest it. This is the perspective through which I developed my hand out.
Clever assignment, professors. Clever assignment. I see what you did there.
In composing this two-sided handout, I focused on aesthetic design (I can't help it) and the ever present balance between text and image. I kept hearing a previous professor's voice in my head saying, "Less text! More images!" And so, like all I-want-an-A-in-this-class students, I obliged. You see, it is more aesthetic to the viewer to see more image than text, but the pressure to convey the meaning of the image then weighs more heavily upon the speaker. Another trick to this assignment: giving a fulfilling presentation that connects and makes sense of the images. Now, my handout was not solely images as tasteful and directive text made the cut. After all, handouts should be able to explain the Blendspace site to any viewer who does not have me there to provided deeper understanding.
This assignment introduced me to an extremely effective and user-friendly web platform that I believe will become a common resource for me as I begin me journey into teacherdom.
Blendspace is a web platform from which teachers can access resources and develop lesson plans in short order. This free site allows teachers to blend their classroom with digital content. Through this site, teachers can create lessons, share them with his or her students, track student learning through online quizzes and student feedback, and provide differentiated lessons that integrate text, video, images and web resources. The process of developing a lesson plan is intuitive and fast. All you need is 5 minutes and topic to search, and boom, there it is.
After exploring this site for more time than I had, I began to develop a handout—one that could appropriately represent and introduce this useful site—for my fellow teachers-to-be. Developing a handout was a new experience for me, in a way. Having spent some time digging into the site, this handout challenged me to change my perspective from which I understood and viewed it. I realized I had to ask myself, "If I knew nothing about this site, what would I need to know and what info-packaging style would be the most transparent?" These are good questions, I think, for teachers who, likely being the most knowledgeable individuals in their classrooms, will have to translate and repackage information in a way that students will be able to effectively digest it. This is the perspective through which I developed my hand out.
Clever assignment, professors. Clever assignment. I see what you did there.
In composing this two-sided handout, I focused on aesthetic design (I can't help it) and the ever present balance between text and image. I kept hearing a previous professor's voice in my head saying, "Less text! More images!" And so, like all I-want-an-A-in-this-class students, I obliged. You see, it is more aesthetic to the viewer to see more image than text, but the pressure to convey the meaning of the image then weighs more heavily upon the speaker. Another trick to this assignment: giving a fulfilling presentation that connects and makes sense of the images. Now, my handout was not solely images as tasteful and directive text made the cut. After all, handouts should be able to explain the Blendspace site to any viewer who does not have me there to provided deeper understanding.
This assignment introduced me to an extremely effective and user-friendly web platform that I believe will become a common resource for me as I begin me journey into teacherdom.
Sunday, July 20, 2014
The Implicit Nature of the Natural & the Virtual World
I grew up in the woods. The trees were my castles and the lake was the endless sea. Sticks became swords, branches became the support beams of my fort, raspberries and black berries made meals fit for a king. My imagination was cultivated by my natural surroundings, but advancements in technology are allowing kids today to enter a very different type of world: the world of video games. Both worlds can stimulate the mind, but I fear something has been lost in the shift towards digitized adventure.
Regardless, technology is booming, and its prevalence has made it almost common-place in the lives of children, adults, and students today. Being such, schools today may be changing their tactics to more effectively address their tech-savvy students. As a child, my natural world—with a healthy dose of imagination—presented me with challenges and problems to solve, but James Paul Gee, Professor of Literacy Studies at Arizona State University, noted something similar in an interview on the use of video games for learning. He stated, "(Video games) put you in a world where you have to solve problems....All a video game really is is an assessment." Gee believes that video games can provide a unique avenue by which students can learn, collaborate, and problem solve.
I have already told you what much of my childhood consisted of, but when it rained, or when it was too cold or dark outside, or when I was sick, I admit that I sometime picked up the controller. I entered the world of video games, or game, rather. There was only one game that could occupy my attention, and it did so for one year, the amount of time it took me to beat it. The game was...da da-da-da:
The Legend of the Dragoon. A single player, four disc adventure game consisting of dragoon warriors, spells, weaponry, and diverse characters. Civil unrest and resentment for past wars are threatening the current tranquility and harmony throughout the land. Harnessing the spiritual powers of the dragon, my band of characters travel through their world to maintain the peace. This game presented challenge after challenge and required me to manage resources, make decisions, effectively utilize the skills and abilities of my allies, and problem solve. At one point in this game, all of my merry men died in a battle. Believing that I had just lost months on effort and that I would have to start back at the beginning, I broke down into tears. No one had told me what "Save Game" actually meant...good thing I had still been doing that all along. Hearing my outburst, my mom directed me outside. I stood in the rain until I cooled down. Anyway, I digress. The challenges in this game, in addition to the characters and general fantastical awesomeness, was what secured my attention till I beat it.
My exploits with The Legend of the Dragoon allow me to believe that the use of video games, particularly problem solving games, in schools as a learning strategy is not only possible but that it could be very effective. Although this game may not be directly applicable to Biology—the subject I will soon teach—it does implicitly teach management of resources, strategy, the ramifications of one's actions, and endurance. These lessons can be applied to every aspect of one's life. Video games, much like my stomping grounds as a kid, can develop patterns of thought and perspective that serve to mold a young child's mind and influence behaviors.
Regardless, technology is booming, and its prevalence has made it almost common-place in the lives of children, adults, and students today. Being such, schools today may be changing their tactics to more effectively address their tech-savvy students. As a child, my natural world—with a healthy dose of imagination—presented me with challenges and problems to solve, but James Paul Gee, Professor of Literacy Studies at Arizona State University, noted something similar in an interview on the use of video games for learning. He stated, "(Video games) put you in a world where you have to solve problems....All a video game really is is an assessment." Gee believes that video games can provide a unique avenue by which students can learn, collaborate, and problem solve.
I have already told you what much of my childhood consisted of, but when it rained, or when it was too cold or dark outside, or when I was sick, I admit that I sometime picked up the controller. I entered the world of video games, or game, rather. There was only one game that could occupy my attention, and it did so for one year, the amount of time it took me to beat it. The game was...da da-da-da:
The Legend of the Dragoon. A single player, four disc adventure game consisting of dragoon warriors, spells, weaponry, and diverse characters. Civil unrest and resentment for past wars are threatening the current tranquility and harmony throughout the land. Harnessing the spiritual powers of the dragon, my band of characters travel through their world to maintain the peace. This game presented challenge after challenge and required me to manage resources, make decisions, effectively utilize the skills and abilities of my allies, and problem solve. At one point in this game, all of my merry men died in a battle. Believing that I had just lost months on effort and that I would have to start back at the beginning, I broke down into tears. No one had told me what "Save Game" actually meant...good thing I had still been doing that all along. Hearing my outburst, my mom directed me outside. I stood in the rain until I cooled down. Anyway, I digress. The challenges in this game, in addition to the characters and general fantastical awesomeness, was what secured my attention till I beat it.
My exploits with The Legend of the Dragoon allow me to believe that the use of video games, particularly problem solving games, in schools as a learning strategy is not only possible but that it could be very effective. Although this game may not be directly applicable to Biology—the subject I will soon teach—it does implicitly teach management of resources, strategy, the ramifications of one's actions, and endurance. These lessons can be applied to every aspect of one's life. Video games, much like my stomping grounds as a kid, can develop patterns of thought and perspective that serve to mold a young child's mind and influence behaviors.
Dissonance: Computerized Standard Tests and Talking to the Text
The use of computers in today's school systems is increasing, edging out the traditional use of paper. Speaking for myself as a graduate student at the University of Michigan, digital journal articles, documents, worksheets, and writing assignments are being utilized more than their paper forms. This shift in technology is not confined, however, to graduate school; my younger cousins, still in K-12, have been given laptops and tablets be the school to use in class. At that time in my life, computers were utilized in class, but the main technology that I used was a pencil! Just as the use of the computer and new-age technologies is rising in class, they are also becoming more common technologies for assessments such as the standardized, pre-college SAT and ACT tests. Could this shift be negatively impacting a student's ability to take these tests?
These standardized tests do not allow test takers to utilize numerous reading and comprehensive strategies such as "talking to the text". Aside from being able to type in assigned boxes and click a button labeled A-D, there is little interactive ability with these computerized tests. The reading strategies of highlighting, underlining and annotation aid me greatly in comprehending an essay or story problem. Yet these strategies cannot be utilized on computerized tests. Now students can learn to adjust their test taking strategies to those better suiting the non-interactive, computerized tests, and I hope that they are. Personally, I never was taught them. I wonder if the gains (grading and organizational convenience) outweigh some of the potential costs (student scores) in this shift to computerized testing.
Wednesday, July 16, 2014
School representing real life: A reflection on John Dewey's "My Pedagogic Creed"
School, according to American philosopher, educational reformer, and psychologist John Dewey, is primarily a social institution. Rather than having a focus on the individual and the process of preparation for some future lifestyle and occupation, Dewey states in My Pedagogic Creed that education is rather a process of living, one that is dependent upon and identified as part of a greater community. Being such, school extends beyond the four walls of the conventional "classroom" to include, in a foundational manner, the home. The concept of school as a community of living is, in my opinion, an admirable perspective, and although I agree with Dewey whole heartedly on this point, I fear that it is a perspective that contrasts the current stasis of the American education system in general.
Reflecting on my own past academic experiences, I feel that my school system (K-12) recognized the inherent relationship between home and school and worked to solidify and nurture that connection. This was achieved through parental involvement, school sporting events, community outreach programs, relationship building activities, and a general self-awareness and life perspective that was focused outwardly. This, however, may not be the norm. Regardless, I was blessed to have gone through an education system that intentionally supported relationships between the home and the school and developed a sense of school community.
Although not explicitly stated in this document, Dewey seems to recognize the important relationship between the school and the real lives of the students. He believes that there should be some continuity, some over lap between the real world and what is being taught and lived inside the classroom. Dewey stated, "I believe that the school must represent present life - life as real and vital to the child as that which carries on in the home, in the neighborhood, or on the play-ground." I wonder how well the current American education system represents this perspective.
Lastly, Dewey states that in order for education to be effective and applicable, it must represent real life. He wrote, “I believe that education which does not occur through forms of life…is always a poor substitute for the genuine reality and tends to cramp and to deaden.” To cramp and to deaden—terms that are usually not associated with effective schooling. Without a direct connection or applicability to the real lives of students, the learning that does occur in school may produce the exact opposite of its intentions: the deadening of a child and his/her learning. Dewey emphatically encourages the idea that students, from adults to children, learn both in and out of the classroom. Real life represents the common denominator between these two seemingly compartmentalized components. It just needs to be recognized and utilized, and Dewey believes that the education will become far more effective at developing competent and empathetic citizens.
Reflecting on my own past academic experiences, I feel that my school system (K-12) recognized the inherent relationship between home and school and worked to solidify and nurture that connection. This was achieved through parental involvement, school sporting events, community outreach programs, relationship building activities, and a general self-awareness and life perspective that was focused outwardly. This, however, may not be the norm. Regardless, I was blessed to have gone through an education system that intentionally supported relationships between the home and the school and developed a sense of school community.
Although not explicitly stated in this document, Dewey seems to recognize the important relationship between the school and the real lives of the students. He believes that there should be some continuity, some over lap between the real world and what is being taught and lived inside the classroom. Dewey stated, "I believe that the school must represent present life - life as real and vital to the child as that which carries on in the home, in the neighborhood, or on the play-ground." I wonder how well the current American education system represents this perspective.
Lastly, Dewey states that in order for education to be effective and applicable, it must represent real life. He wrote, “I believe that education which does not occur through forms of life…is always a poor substitute for the genuine reality and tends to cramp and to deaden.” To cramp and to deaden—terms that are usually not associated with effective schooling. Without a direct connection or applicability to the real lives of students, the learning that does occur in school may produce the exact opposite of its intentions: the deadening of a child and his/her learning. Dewey emphatically encourages the idea that students, from adults to children, learn both in and out of the classroom. Real life represents the common denominator between these two seemingly compartmentalized components. It just needs to be recognized and utilized, and Dewey believes that the education will become far more effective at developing competent and empathetic citizens.
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