- Reflect on the “Personal Theory of Learning” you developed in Week 1. Summarize any modifications to your personal theory of learning you have made as a result of your learning in this course.
- Describe any immediate adjustments you will make to your instructional practice regarding technology integration as a result of your learning in this course. Identify two technology tools you would like to use with your students and how the tools will support or enhance your students’ learning.
- List two long-term goal changes you would like to make to your instructional practice regarding technology integration and outline a strategy for achieving them.
Learning About Learning
As I look back on my, “Personal Theory of Learning,” assignment from Week 1, I do not think I could have gotten any more basic in my personal views of teaching and instructional strategies than stating,
Differentiating instruction and student centered learning quickly replaced the no nonsense ideas of the [teacher centered ideas of the] teacher instructing, setting the pace of the classroom, and the students learning all the information, all at the same pace, at a level at or above proficiency. (Clausen, 2010, p. 3)I continue to have a strong belief that a student centered classroom is a positive learning environment where students of varying developmental, cognitive, and learning styles can come together to learn and educate one’s self and others. I have begun to have a greater understanding of how to implement instructional strategies to help students learn new information and build a better understanding of existing information. I also have a better grasp on how to use technology to enhance student learning in both the role of instructional tools and learning tools (Laureate Education, Inc., 2009b).
Throughout this course, I have gained more insight on the importance placed on understanding how one’s brain works in relationship to learning, memory, etc. In my, “Personal Theory of Learning,” I mentioned brain research and the need for teachers to have a basic understanding the physiological and psychological aspects of learning. However, I did not fully grasp the importance of brain research until the subject was further addressed throughout this course. Now that I have a better understanding of the importance of learning styles and students’ retention of information, I realize that there is much more I can do in my classroom in relationship to memory, recall, the dual coding process, elaboration, and the other cognitive tools Dr. Orey referenced when discussing the, “Information Processing Model,” of the Cognitive Learning Theory (Laureate Education, Inc., 2009a).
Along with emphasizing the importance of how students learn and how individual students learn best, I have realized that the students in my classroom have to be the driving force behind the educational process in my classroom. Even when I think I am allowing my students to guide their own learning, I tend to take on the role as instructor rather than facilitator. One of my classmates helped me to see this when he suggested that rather than supplying my students with a VoiceThread to comment on, “The next step to the way you are describing the VoiceThread project would be to have the students create their own versions of the VoiceThread and have other students comment on their use of visuals” (Wybrant, 2010, February 20).
One immediate adjustment that will be made in how I utilize technology in my instructional practices is, having my students use the technology that is available at MHS as learning tools rather than having the students observe the use of the technology through classroom instruction (Laureate Education, Inc., 2009b). Within the next two weeks, my psychology students will be creating VoiceThreads as learning tools. The students will be using knowledge gained through class discussion, blogging, etc., and constructing a VoiceThread to share the information each student learned. Then the students will ask questions of one another, comment on the resources used, and add information to existing VoiceThreads through comments. I am fairly certain the students will find other ways to use the VoiceThreads to teach and learn from one another.
A second immediate adjustment that I will make in how I integrate technology into my classroom is, having my American History II students use the history textbook’s website as a learning tool of technology, to access both the digital textbook, as well as, the companion site that has a plethora of review activities, quizzes, skills tutor, etc. The American History II students will then be given the freedom to explore the content and spend time on topics of personal interest. The textbook resources can also be utilized as a learning tool of technology in relationship to the homework and practice instructional strategy as defined by Pitler, Hubbell, Kuhn, & Malenoski (2007).
In all honesty, it has been within the last two weeks that I have really began to grasp exactly how to integrate technology into the classroom as teaching and learning tools, rather than allowing the technology to overshadow the content being taught. There is a lot more that I have to work through in my understanding of technology as a tool and, in turn, how to apply these teaching and learning tools in my classroom (Laureate Education, Inc., 2009b). The idea that, “Technology is best viewed as a robust set of instructional tools that help you to accomplish the objectives of the teaching-learning process. Technology is a means to an instructional end, not an end in itself” (Lever-Duffy & McDonald, 2008, p. 11).
One long term goal I would like to make in relationship to my instructional practices regarding technology integration is to incorporate the instructional strategies of reinforcing effort and providing recognition (Pitler et al., 2007). After having students create a list of positive behaviors during activities such as, class discussion, cooperative groups, in-class work time, etc. This list can be reformatted into a survey using Survey Monkey or a rubric to be filled out by students daily. Having students provide feedback and comments reguarding classroom climate through Survey Monkey will create a visual representation of the positives and negative aspects of student behavior (Pitler et al., 2007).
If the information were put into RubriStar then rubrics could be printed out for the students to have easy access to throughout class and then the information could be put on a spreadsheet. With either option, students will be able to see what types of behaviors are occurring most often whether that be positive or negative. With this data, the students can then decide what types of rules, policies, or recognitions could be installed to change or correct the negative behaviors in the classroom (Pitler et al., 2007). If the students in each class spent thirty minutes brainstorming items to add to the behavior rubric and a few students were put in charge of collecting the rubrics and doing the data entry, only ten to fifteen minutes every other week could be used for a class discussion about the data. This time can also be set aside to recognize the class with the most improvement in areas of group work, class discussion, effective use of work time, etc. Creating a space on the bulletin board or wall where results can be posted may also help fuel the fires of competition and it will serve as a constant reminder of the appropriate behaviors for the classroom. Reserving a spot on the class wiki and/or blog for recognition may also be an advantageous way to encourage student participation, especially if the students have to visit the class calendar or assignment page to check on class-standings (Pitler at el, 2007).
A second long term goal I would like to make in relationship to my instructional practices regarding technology integration is being more active in classroom discussions on the general psychology blog, as well as, providing more feedback to students’ comments, questions, or ideas Pitler et al., 2007). I do not provide nearly enough feedback to my students even though I understand the importance of reinforcing positive behaviors, posing questions for the students to think about, and guiding student conversations to challenge the students to use higher level thinking skills. Just as I ask my students to be mindful in their posting of ideas and constructive in their comments, I too need to be doing this as well.
If I were to comment on students’ work on a regular basis I would be giving individuals feedback, but I would also be modeling how to construct a response, question, or a piece of constructive criticism in a thoughtful and respectful manor. Perhaps, I will have to have my students create a rubric to complete when I make comments to their posts and the same for when they post to other students. In the past I have not created rubrics to help guide the grading of the class blogs, but in doing so both my students and I would be holding one another accountable for quality posts. Although this plan in its entirety may not be realistic for this semester, this is a plan I hope to have ready to implement with students in the fall.
References:
Clausen, C. (2010, January 10). Application 1: Understanding Learning.
Laureate Education, Inc. (Producer). (2009a). Program five. Cognitive Learning Theory [Motion picture]. Bridging learning theory, instruction and technology. Baltimore: Author.
Laureate Education, Inc. (Producer). (2009b). Program thirteen. Technology: Instructional Tool vs. Learning Tool [Motion picture]. Bridging learning theory, instruction and technology. Baltimore: Author.
Lever-Duffy, J. & McDonald, J. (2008). Theoretical Foundations (Laureate Education, Inc., custom ed.). Boston, MA: Pearson Education, Inc.
Pitler, H., Hubbell, E., Kuhn, M., & Malenoski, K. (2007). Using technology with classroom instruction that works. Alexandria, VA: ASCD.
Wybrant, S. (2010, February 20). Technology for Instruction, Learning, and Assessment. Message posted to EDUC 6711 discussion board, Week 7.
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