The Bridge of Technology

 

      I have always admired those who can integrate technology into their classroom.  What does technology look like?  Is it accessible?  Can I do this? 

      In my Six Technology Goals, I have included an over-arching goal that I have viewed as essential to learning: the establishment of positive relationships.  I will partner with technology to achieve this.  By applying technology, I will be setting down a foundation for myself, my students, and their families.  Once those connections are made, I cannot wait to see what unfolds.

  

 Building Relationships: 

Six Technology Goals 

    1.  Establish a weekly e-newsletter which can be blasted to all of my classroom families.  This newsletter would help in establishing a relationship between me and my families as we serve all students.  This would take the place of "Friday Folders" or other paper-based notifications.  It would include:

         a.  Subject themes to be addressed that week, such as character  

 studies  in ELA, fractions in math, California missions in social  studies.  I  expect that more than one subject area will be addressed, and most likely tied together as a unit.

         b.  Classroom news such as new students, a change in students' classroom duties, upcoming field trips, conference scheduling.

         c.   School news such as holidays, school-wide events such as Back-to-School Night.

         d.   My own personal reflection of the class and the journey we are all taking together through this year together.

         e.   Invitations and opportunities for family involvement in the classroom.

*  All students will become proficient at accessing on-line correspondence in a routine manner.

 

 

2.     Create a Facebook page for our specific class for that specific year.  A page of this type would serve as a reminder that the classroom is its own unit or family and that communication through this page supports this theme.  This page would provide:

         a.  A daily reflection by me of the day's activities:  goals met, challenges, achievements.

         b.  Daily homework assignment posts.  Especially helpful for those students who are ill, or those who may have forgotten to write assignments into their agendas.

         c.  Provide students with a safe, classroom specific setting for sharing with classmates such things as questions or the relay of information regarding projects or other collaborative assignments.  Facebook page would act as the base for these interactions.

*  All students will become familiar with a discussion board format, as well as safe and respectful discussion board etiquette.  Students will have an additional source of information that promotes responsibility for their own learning.

 

3.  Provide students and families with access to me through cell phone:  Google Voice account.  This type of access allows for a safe and private means of accessing me regarding any issue that cannot be discussed face-to-face.  The means of access empowers students and families.  A positive classroom experience will rely on the ability to ask questions in a safe and respectful context.  For some students this initial exchange might be started over a text.  The cell phone is not meant to replace a face-to-face exchange, but rather to provide a starting point for some students.

*  All students will be able to assume responsibility for their own learning through teacher access.  This form of access will be a tool toward building a collaborative relationship with teacher.

 

 4.   Create student blogs.  I see this as more of an extension of journaling.  The goal here is less a posting of a perfect essay, but rather the honest reflection on a specific topic.  I'm not entirely sure about having this accessible to other students, but rather between the student and teacher.  The sharing and feedback between teacher and student could allow for a deeper probing of topics and can be the launching point for further exploration by the student.  My goal is for allowing students the freedom of expression with the safety of a secure format.

*  All students will utilize blog writing as a means for deeper sharing on a wide variety of topics.  Students will experience self-worth and personal pride through the publication of their views.

 

5.  Skype.  I would love to be able to extend lessons into places and with people that will connect with my students.  Skype is a facilitator, or a tool, which can make this possible.  

*  All students will be able to use this medium as an invitation to seek supplemental sources for learning.  Students will be able to view Skype as a means to transport and share information.

6.  Collaborations utilizing video capabilities, such as an iPod touch.  Now, if our goals are allowed to have perfect funding, I would include a hand-held piece of technology which would allow for full expression through visuals and sound.  Imagine handing a piece of equipment to students and challenging them to show you something new.  Expression and creativity would benefit from the power provided by technology.
 

*  All students will view technology as tools for collaboration.  Video capabilities allow for meeting the diverse needs of learners.

     

Dare to Teach?  Dare to Blog!

     The "Tour of the Blogoshpere" sampling of sites was a great introduction to educational blogs.  I found that the three that were listed offered a variety of voices.  I have to say, I was drawn to coolcatteacher.blogspot.com.  I found her anecdotes relatable as a student and as a future educator.  Her honest expression of conveying the goal of a lesson to students was funny and disarming at the same time.  Imagine saying to a clas:  "This is what will get you into (college name), so pay attention."  She seems to be able to reveal the differences between true teaching/learning, and how to check a course off of a list of requirements.  

     Too much emphasis is placed on a checklist of classes, as opposed to authentic learning.  One of my daughters took an AP Econ class as a senior, and her teacher had them watch movies two or three days a week.  Sure, having this AP class made her transcript look great, but if you were to ask her, "What did you learn last year in econ?" she could tell you very little.  It is essential for teachers to put themselves into their lessons.  Authentic learning requires connections, and these connections allow for students to become more fully engaged which then leads to a commitment to learning.  I currently have one professor who writes her lecture power points directly from the book, and then proceeds to "read" her lecture to us.  For three hours.  Every week.  What does she bring to the class?  Does she love her subject?  I have no idea.  My remaining classes embrace a project-based approach to learning, and most of these professors share their love of their respective courses.  Guess which classes I enjoy the most?  In which classes am I gaining more knowledge?

     These blogs in our "side trip" have offered me a variety of perspectives that I will be tapping into.  Ranging from the folksy to the wry, they reflect the range of personalities which can be seen in any school.  To access this experience and knowledge in such an honest and generous format is a great resource for students and teachers alike.  

 Breaking Down Walls

 

     A fifth grade company which built a bridge.  A seventh grade partnership which developed intercontinental trade.  These project based learning assignments are still memorable for my college-aged daughters.  The results from these projects touched on many points of learning:  collaboration, coordination, independent research, and accountability.  And they had fun! Imagine being encouraged to do something different and to incorporate new tools in the learning process. 

    Technology is only now beginning to be tapped as a tool for project-based learning in my school district.  Several years ago, our then superintendent stated that he wanted us to be "the technology district."  What does a “technology district” look like?  What would the new technologies be, how would they be applied, and who would have access to them?  This is where his vision derailed.  Not only could the different schools within the district not coordinate their hardware needs,  but teachers within the same grade levels at the same schools fought over which classroom would benefit first from the technology.  Collaboration and coordination did not exist. 
 
     In "Reinventing Project-Based Learning," I have thus far been most intrigued with the emphasis on the collaborating and community building among educators.  While it can be understood that a district-wide approach to project based learning and the application of technology cannot always be specific, it can at least encourage the kind of grade level coordination that is necessary for it to be successful.  


     One example of this is a project that my son's ninth grade Spanish class completed last week.  How could Spanish be applied to a topic that all kids found exciting?  Vacation!  The assignment was for pairs of students to determine what their dream vacation would be.  Then, armed with an iPod Touch, students were told to create a travelogue for their destination.  Students utilized Google Images and recorded a detailed voice-over in Spanish highlighting their destination.  The instructor then synced all of their  podcasts onto her Mac.  Now she can not only assess her student's work, but this project will now be streamed in the classroom during Open House this week. This project was developed by a friend of mine in close collaboration with the Foreign Language department at our high school.  She told me that they could not rely on a cash-strapped district to take the lead on incorporating technology in the classroom; they had to do it as a department.  They applied for grants which allowed them to purchase iPods for their department.  These new tools were used for the first time this past fall, and the staff and students love the freedom, creativity, and effective learning which has taken place since they began utilizing this technology.  Waiting for a directive from an administrator or a principal was not an option.  Taking action as a coordinated department is what made this technology integration possible. 
 
   The empowerment that comes from the technology-based project-based learning has touched both staff and students.  Students are eager to apply the technologies that they are already familiar with, and in the case of my son, offer tech support for their teachers when needed.  It began with a small group of teachers within an often fractured district, and the results have been exciting for teachers, students, and parents.

 Contact

The power of the keyboard has replaced the power of the pen.  Using communication as a key to affect change has always been critical, but the ease and speed through which communication now can be achieved has allowed for an explosion of opportunities.  While my initial reaction to the first chapter of “Here Comes Everybody” was that of empowerment squared, as I read on I began to feel as if this force of support that came from so many sources had the potential of a mob run amok.  The idea of having a social force supporting a particular cause is empowering.  Seeing how the original intent for this support began branching out into some distracting and potentially damaging causes scared me.  The evolving tools for communication are a way of “channeling existing motivation.”  Technology can only aid human connection of a “plausible promise.”  We just need to hope that these “promises” are well-intended.

Now, if we consider that the plausible promise for technology in education is to provide quality resources and interactions, then we are heading toward an amazing future.  Highly specific grouping that can result from social networking is one of the reasons why it is an exciting force for education.  A teacher can create specialized platforms for student-to-student and student-to-teacher interactions, which allows for targeted and efficient communication. The classroom environment is about sharing.  For anyone who has ever taken an on-line class (I have taken two), the component that is most missed is that of this access to communication.  True, discussion boards with mandated entries and posts attempt to fill this void, but they are too generic.  If we were to apply the social networking model to this, imagine how specific groups could be formed that could target specific topics or collaboration.  Even in a traditional classroom experience, I have to say that the access to communication tools through social networking reinforces and enriches what is started in the classroom.  It seems that, at least for the elementary school teacher, the greatest obstacle to social networking would be inconsistent school or district policy.  Like most new technologies, a greater understanding of its potential is sometimes slow.  The key will be to be prepared as an educator when that opportunity comes.