What is TPACK?

1. Describe a class room where “technology integration” takes place.

In Mrs. Gray’s eighth grade classroom at First Flight Middle School, technology has been seamlessly integrated into her classroom to help facilitate a functional and progressive learning environment. Once a week, on scienceThursdays, her students use a digital video camera to record and perform a short science demonstration which is then presented over the digital projectors to the entire school for part of the morning announcements. Once her class begins, every day starts with a few warm up questions to review the latest material over PowerPoint slides.   Each day’s instruction varies, but they often have research to conduct before they begin a lab experiment. The class is broken into small groups. A typical class has 21-29 students in it. There are only 2 desktop computers in her classroom. Two of the groups use the desktops for their research. The other groups are allowed to use their smartphones. Not every student has a smartphone (because these are personal devices from home) but each group has at least one and there are generally three within the group. Anytime the students are broken into groups, they know the drill, pullout their phones and get right to work. Mrs. Gray also has the students use free science apps on their phoneslike goREACT, and Bill Nye the Science Guy app. The class also uses practical and relative technology for the class like a combo pH and EC meter for certain lab experiments. All of these devices help to create a student centered learning environment and helps the students achieve a complete understanding of the curriculum and prepare them for the future.

2. In your discipline area, what are the essential components in a classroom where "technology integration" is appropriately utilized? Why?

My subject area is Health and Physical Education. Technology integration is rarely used in the gym for physical education class except when we play a work out video over the digital projector for the class to follow along to. Technology is however very much integrated into the health classroom. All of the health lessons are put into PowerPoint and Prezi presentations that are embedded with relevant health videos and other links to graphs, charts, factsheets, nutrition labels and current news reportings. I only have one desktop computer in my classroom so I often allow them to use their smartphones in small groups to complete an assignment or work on a project. One example of a project they complete with their smartphones is writing their own ideal food consumption guidelines for one week. After a brief introduction on nutritional foods, they are to use their smartphones to formulate a dietary guideline for one week that is healthy in relation to their weight, calorie, protein, carbohydrates, fats, vitamins, minerals,and water consumption. They also use their smartphones to record surveys conducted during and outside of school with people about the related healthtopic of the week. They are to condense their recordings, and then analyze their findings and we discuss them as a class. This type of technology integration helps me to keep the health class informative and in sync with curriculum standards, while also relevant to the health aspects that affect them the most.

3. What instructional outcomes are possible when embedding technology in classroom instruction?

When technological, pedagogical,and content knowledge are properly combined to integrate technology seamlessly within the classroom, an open-ended student centered dynamic learning environment is created. The standard classroom material is covered while teaching other useful skills like problem solving, thinking outside the box, working well with others, and practical technology use. The best possible outcome is seamless integration where “students are not only using technology daily, but have access to a variety of tools that match the task at hand and provide them the opportunity to build a deeper understanding of content” ("What is successful," 2007). This deeper understanding allows students to retain the information for a much longer period of time and use the information accordingly outside of school to become more well-rounded, intelligent and productive people.

Bibliography:

1. Whatis successful technology integration? (2007, 11 05). Retrieved from https://blackboard.ecu.edu/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab_group=courses&url=%2Fwebapps%2Fblackboard%2Fcontent%2FcontentWrapper.jsp?content_id%3D_6760799_1%26displayName%3DLinked%2BFile%26course_id%3D_371398_1%26navItem%3Dcontent%26attachment%3Dtrue%26href%3Dhttp%253A%252F%252Fwww.edutopia.org%252Ftechnology-integration-guide-description

EDTC 5010 Chapter 5

1.  How can I get my students to ask questions about the research they are conducting?

To often when students are conducting research, they simply find the information they are looking for and transform it slightly into their own work without truly understanding the information they have been tasked to find.  As educators, it is an essential goal that students learn, understand, and retain the class content and curriculum. The coupling of self-regulation, generative strategies, and Think Sheets can help accomplish this goal.  "Self-regulation is a cyclical process"  ( Morrison & Lowther, 2010) that cycles through the three stages of forethought, performance control, and self-reflection.  This process should be conducted within a student-centered inquiry approach to foster an appropriate research environment.  " Students may still need help in developing and refining their reading, research, and questioning skills. Self-regulation provides us with a means for helping students develop these skills within the context of their problem." ( Morrison & Lowther, 2010) Generative strategies allow students to become "active learners who seek to relate new and unfamiliar information to what they already know by generating new ideas, concepts, and principles"   ( Morrison & Lowther, 2010) through the use of strategies such as recall, integration, organization, and elaboration.  Think Sheets require the student to use their inquiry skills to understand the material.  "By combining our knowledge of self regulation and generative strategies, we can create a variety of Think Sheets that will help our students develop an understanding of the information they discover through their inquiries."  ( Morrison & Lowther, 2010) The use of these three strategies will create active and independent learners who will look to absorb and understand new material by engaging themselves in the process or researching and learning.

2. How can I teach my students to solve problems?

       The NTeQ problem-solving process coupled with Bloom's Taxonomy and different levels of learning is a great way to teach students to solve problems.   Each step of the model is aligned with a Bloom's Taxonomy level that requires an appropriate student action to fulfill that level.  The steps are as follows:

1. Define the problem.
2. Identify  what is know about the problem.                                        
3. Identify what needs to be know to solve the problem.
4. Identify data that needs to be collected to solve the problem.
5. Determine how the data needs to be manipulated to solve the problem.
6. Generate possible solutions.
7. Determine how to evaluate each solution.
8. Select the best solution.
9. Present the findings.
 ( Morrison & Lowther, 2010)

Each of the nine steps fulfills one or more of the five highest levels of Bloom's Taxonomy of learning objectives from comprehension to evaluation. "Bloom's Taxonomy  of learning objectives is used to define how well a skill or competency is learned or mastered." (McNeill) Using these problem solving steps with these learning objectives is an effective and efficient way to solve any problem while fully comprehending the use and knowledge of the content needed to solve that problem.

3.  I've never used an inquiry-based approach, much less computers- so how is a teacher supposed to do both of these at one time?

The initial integration of technology into ones lesson plans can be time consuming but once the lessons are integrated, they can later be quickly used again and/or adapted accordingly.  The creation of technology integrated lesson plans within a open-ended learning environment does take longer because " problem-based learning involves anticipating learning needs rather than directing learning activities." (Goktas) Problem-based learning, requires a teacher to take a facilitative role, while managing learning activities and supporting self directed learning.  Technology resources are the best way to allow teachers to take this role as a facilitator.  Students can use the computer or other devices to help define the problem, research the problem, solve and present the problem all while the teacher interjects only pertinent information to facilitate their completion of the required tasks while providing feedback at each step.  Problem-based learning, inquiry based learning, and project-based learning are all similar methods used to created an open-ended learning environment and " these three strategies provide a means to integrate computer technology into the classroom through the use of authentic problems that are of interest to your students." ( Morrison & Lowther, 2010)

Technology and Inquiry Based Learning Video



Bibliography:


1. Morrison, G., & Lowther, D. (2010). Integrating computer technology into the classroom: skills for the 21st century . (4th Edition ed., p. 30). Pearson.

2. McNeill. (n.d.). Activities at various cognitive levels of learning. Retrieved from http://enpub.fulton.asu.edu/mcneill/blooms.htm

3. Goktas, Y. (n.d.). Facilitating technology-enhanced problem-based learning (pbl) in the middle school classroom: An examination of how and why teachers adapt. Retrieved from http://www.academia.edu/364194/Facilitating_Technology-Enhanced_Problem-based_Learning_PBL_in_the_Middle_School_Classroom_An_Examination_of_How_and_Why_Teachers_Adapt

EDTC 5010 Chapter 2

1. How do I plan an integrated lesson that will work with my students?

To plan an integrated lesson it is best to follow the ten steps of the "NTeQ model"(Morrison & Lowther, 2010).  The first step in this process is to state the objectives which should cover the entire instruction for that lesson.  The next step is to pair the objectives with appropriate computer functions.  Then you must identify the problem that students will be working on throughout the instruction.  The problem should be relatable to the students real world so they may connect and "relate to them in a meaningful manner"(Morrison & Lowther, 2010).  Next determine how the students will gather the needed data and what data will be given to them to solve the problem.  Plan on how much help the students will receive in collecting this data.  Then decide what the students will do before their computer usage as well as what they will be using on the computer and how they will be producing their work to display their knowledge of the of the content material and the solving of the problem.  Students will then need to interpret their computer work so they may explain the results through the desired medium.  Students will also need support activities (that do not involve a computer) that are related to the lesson and material that they can complete anytime throughout the lesson.  Lastly, decide on a meaningful and appropriate assessment for the lesson.  Following these steps to create an integrated lesson will surely help to create a student-centered learning environment that will facilitate the learning and understanding of the desired concepts and materials.

2.  Why do I need objectives to help with my panning and lesson development?

Objectives are needed for lesson plans to outline the content covered, materials needed, and the environment the lesson will be conducted in.   "They provide students with information about what they are going to be learning while giving them an indication of how their learning will be measured" (Kelly, 2011).  Specifying good objectives is vital to the creation of the rest of a well designed integrated lesson plan.

3.  How can I encourage my students to engage in the processing of information?

It is best to lead my example and the teacher should have a complete understanding of the curriculum.  New material should be taught in small chunks that take no longer than ten minutes so students can maintain their focus and digest the information.  Most importantly, "to engage students, the teacher must do more than lecture. While teaching the concepts and skills, the teacher must help students draw on their own experiences to build a "scaffold" on which they can "hang" new ideas. When students are actively engaged, they focus on what is being taught and better process new information"(Lorain).  Lessons should also include processing activities.  " A processing activity is an activity that causes students to pose questions, manipulate information, and relate the new learning to what they already know. Such engagements reinforce the learning and help move the learning to the long-term memory banks" (Lorain).  Teaching students in a way that they do remember material long term is truly educating a student.

 

4. Do I have to use a different lesson plan when I want my students to use computers?

Old lesson plans from the past that did not incorporate computers can easily be adapted to include them.  In fact, " it will not take as long to adapt an existing lesson plan to an integrated computer unit as it does to design such a plan from scratch" ( Morrison & Lowther, 2010).  Once these lesson plans are adapted to an integrated lesson, they may later be tweaked and modified accordingly year after year to remain relevant to the students as well as the technology. 

5.  What is the relationship between objectives and computer functions?

The objectives of an integrated lesson must match at least one or more computer functions.  "Computer functions are tasks that computer software can assist with or perform" (Morrison & Lowther, 2010).  It is imperative to choose appropriate computer functions that will easily help the completion of the stated objectives.  Some objectives may utilize the combination of several different computer functions.  

6.  Can you use a computer for every objective or lesson?

If you truly wanted to use a computer for every objective or lesson, you could certainly find a way but it is not always necessary for every single lesson.  It is however important that technology be integrated into the majority of the objectives and lessons to foster open-ended and student-centered learning environments that will challenge them and prepare them for the digital world.  It is more important to make sure that when a computer is used for a lesson, the computer functions are used and matched appropriately so the understanding of the curriculum may occur.  


Bibliography:

1.   Morrison, G., & Lowther, D. (2010). Integrating computer technology into the classroom: skills for the 21st century . (4th Edition ed., p. 30). Pearson.

 

2.  Kelly, M. (2011, 11 29). The importance of learning objectives. Retrieved from http://712educators.about.com/b/2011/11/29/the-importance-of-learning-objectives.htm

 

3.  Lorain, P. (n.d.). Teaching tha emphazizes active engagement. Retrieved from http://www.nea.org/tools/16708.htm

Technology vs Story Telling

When I sit and think back to all the favorite teachers I had and what I learned from them, one always stands out in my mind.  Billy Brown, who was  ''probably best known for being an eighth-grade history teacher who had a gift for teaching more from experience than from a textbook.''  Mr. Brown was an artist, a photographer, an author who wrote Mullet Roar, a hunting and fishing legend in Eastern North Carolina, and a proud Vietnam veteran.

 He brought history to life through vivid and detailed stories about our surroundings as well as far away lands such as Vietnam.  He told us first hand what war was truly like, holding back only the goriest of details.  90% of his class consisted of sitting and listening to his stories, but I guarantee no student was ever bored or dared to interrupt him.  There was none to very little use of technology in his classroom but I feel that I learned more history ( that I remember to this day) than I ever did from any other history teacher who used presentations, videos, and other visual aids and technology.  Obviously every teacher could not and should not conduct their classroom in this manner but I feel it does have validity within the educational system.  Story telling is an art as old as time and as each generation becomes more and more dependent on technology, I feel traditional social customs, such as story telling, are becoming obsolete.  How do you feel about a class structured in this manner?