5364+Teaching+with+Technology

“True knowledge exists in knowing that you know nothing." Quote by Socrates (BookRags, 2001)  Before this class, I thought I knew a bit about technology. I have thus decided that I know very little. Collaborating with my teammates, listening and viewing what they have done, I been educated in so many different ways. The videos are where I gained much of my knowledge. I have learned about Connectivism and Constructionism. (Sprague, 1999) My teaching follows along with both of these theories. I think gaming and Constructionism are similar. Children love to play games, so it only makes sense to put games into school. I have been letting my students help me build my web site. One they would like to us eats home and I know that they will be learning at the same time. Creating a UDL lesson plan and using the book builder was a wonderful experience. (Edutopia, 2008) I love teaching that way, so now that I know there is such a thing as an e-book book builder, I am looking forward to using that with my second graders.  My team chose to do our assignment on the Civil War. I was completely unfamiliar with this subject. I did not think I could do this, but working and collaborating with my teammates, I soon learned that I could do this and think in a high level of Blooms Taxonomy. We collaborated by using a Google Doc like a wiki, along with e-mail and texting. Jason was our leader and did an excellent job. He also helped me come up an idea to do my lesson on. The lesson plan was the easy part, for I had been doing that a long time and the UDL is not much different from what I was doing. The part that I enjoyed doing was creating the timeline and building the book. I believe I did a fine job doing this. I learned about voice thread from my teammates. This is something my second graders can do and would enjoy it.  As a lifelong learner, I think the most important lesson I learned from the entire course was the ability to collaborate with other people in different parts of the US. It is very important to have collaboration amongst teachers, administration, and the community. We, as a team, utilized each other’s strengths. This was an important lesson for me. I hope that I can help bring my school into the 21st Century. **References **: BookRags, Media.(2001). //Brainyquote//. Retrieved fromhttp:www.brainyquote.com/quotes/keywords/knowledge_2.html#ixzz1Hu9UqXnG Sprague, D. & Dede,C. //(1999). If I teach this way, am I doing my job: Constructivism in the classroom//. Leading and Learning, 27(1). Retrieved January 28, 2011 from the International Society for Technology in Education at http:imet.csus.edu/imet9/280/docs/dede_constructivisim.pdf Edutopia.org. (2008,August 13). //Big Thinkers - James Paul Gee on Grading with Games.//  Retrieved fromhttp:www.edutopia.org/digital-generation-james-gee-video Southwest Educational Development Laboratory, (1999). //Learning as a personal event: A brief// //introduction to constructivism. // Retrieved on February 27, 2011 from http:www.sedl.org/pubs/tec26/intro2c.html Pitler, H., Hubbell,E., Kuhn, M., & Malenoski, K. (2007). //Using technology with classroom// //<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;"> instruction that works //<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">. Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;"> Development.
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 150%;">Reflection for Teaching with Technology **

=<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 115%;">APA Format =

**__Learning’s from week 1__** **After viewing the videos and reading the text for the week, I learned quite a lot. I found that I relate to the Constructionism theory of teaching. My classroom environment is more on this style because I want my kids to ask, search and look for the answer. As I said in the discussion, my classroom almost always has several learning activities going on. I do incorporate the computer as much as I can. Of course sometimes, there are is a “speaking head” at the front of the room, but even then the children always have a part in the discussion. Learning new concepts that the children have never heard of have to have this. Connectivism along with Constructionism is the way of the future, I believe. The Cyborg theory, in my mind, is a scary one. I had no idea that they had already gone that far. It sounds like a Star Trek movie where the Cyborgs take over the humans.**

= Web Conference February 26, 2011 = = Web Conferences are always interesting and sometimes confusing. I did learn a few new things during the web conference, but mostly the conferences are very confusing. There was one conference that was a typed version of it the recorded one. Dr. Abernathy had typed the answers to each question. = = Learning’s from week 2 = = The readings have been very informative. __Technology-Enriched Classrooms__ provided studies that showed that technology in the classroom had proved to be beneficial. I did find the article __The Impact of Education Technology on Student Achievement__ showed both positives and negatives of studies. The videos on the __Diversity of Learners__ were also very informative. It said that “one size fits all needs to change” is very true. So many tests have shown how technology has made worthy gains in retaining knowledge. The assignment brainstorming has been very educational too. I have learned many new things I hope to take back into the classroom. = =<span style="color: #215868; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 8pt; line-height: 115%; margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">References: = = Page, M. S. (2002). Technology-Enriched Classroom: Effects on students of Low Socioeconomic Status. Journal of Research on Technology in Education, 34(4), 389-409. Retrieved October 5, 2009 from International Society of Education at [] = || = Diversity of Learners. (n.d.). Retrieved March 5, 2011, from CAST UDL Lesson Builder:Watch Videos: [] = =Week 3 learnings= <span style="color: #000000; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; margin: 0in 0in 10pt; tab-stops: 337.9pt; tabstops: 337.9pt;">This week’s learning has been very interesting. I enjoyed learning about the UDL Book Builder and the UDL Lesson Plan. I will be showing my second graders how to create a book. I could see how it would be useful to teach students of all different ages. They can construct a hand drawn picture to a publisher picture and upload it to the e-book to show gained knowledge of a subject, book report… I really liked the coaches and the response area. I can see my students enjoying creating a character to talk. They also like to “play” teacher and create many questions for me to respond too. The book builder is not a hard thing to teach and I think the students could use this in many ways. I would love to teach the class how to summarize. I loved working with my team members. They are all upper level education. They have been very helpful and understanding of my elementary level. Cast.com. (1999-2001). //About UDL//. Wakefield, MA. Retrieved March 10,2011. []
 * =<span style="color: #215868; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 8pt; line-height: 115%; margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">Schacter, J. (1999). //The impact of education technology on student achievement: What the most current research has to say.// Santa Monica, CA: Milken Exchange on Education Technology. Retrieved from http://www.mff.org/pubs/ME161.pdf. =

=UDL Lesson Plan.= =Civil War Interactive Lesson Plan= []

=UDL Book Builder= =**__Sailing Through Time: A Trip Back to the Civil War__**=

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= **__ Learning’s from Week 4 __** = The videos and readings were exceptionally interesting. I, on several occasions, viewed a few of the other videos that were related to the assigned ones. The video on Collaborative Classrooms, discusses emotional learners and teams of teachers working together to create project based curriculum. I love the idea of project-based curriculum. I, however, think that in the elementary classroom, you still need to teach the basics. If the elementary students have the basics, the upper level students will be able to learn by a project-based curriculum. In addition, at the younger levels, self-management skills could be taught. My favorite video and several others were by Vicki Davis’. She has a very interesting way of teaching and I loved learning about her classroom. I plan on learning more from her web site and her blogs. An important thing that I did know that she stressed was that teachers do not need to know everything to teach it. I really want to learn how to integrate technology in the elementary classrooms and I believe she is one of the people that I need to ask. Edutopia,. (2008, October 08). //The collaborative classroom: an interview with linda darling-hammond//. Retrieved from [] Edutopia, Initials. (2009, May 27). Harness your students' digital smarts. Retrieved from []

= Team Project Google Site = []

**__ Week 5 learnings __** <span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; margin: 0in 0in 10pt; tab-stops: 337.9pt; tabstops: 337.9pt;">This week’s videos were very motivating. The Big Thinkers video by James Paul Gee about grading with games was a big eye opening. Collaborating to solve real world problems is what the real world does. It said that manuals for games are references like textbooks are a reference for the classroom. It also said that by teaching with video games, you seize the students’ attention and they can have so many more experiences that they could not have at their age. Students always want to participate and produce an outcome. With games, they get immediate feedback and retry until they accomplish the task. I think that assessing with games is a great idea. I do think the world will be tougher to sway. <span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; margin: 0in 0in 10pt; tab-stops: 337.9pt; tabstops: 337.9pt;">The Big Thinkers video by Sasha Barab on New Media Engagement was also on gaming. He explained that the games have a purpose. You have to learn a lot about different things to accomplish a task. Failure is the motivation. I agree with him, that we need teachers and administration on board for new media. “If teachers stay out of the game - we are going to miss an opportunity to transforms schools. We may see a dropout rate go up”. I am not sure about the dropout rate, but I do think he is right about missing this opportunity. <span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 9pt; line-height: 115%; margin: 0in 0in 10pt; tab-stops: 337.9pt; tabstops: 337.9pt;">References: <span style="font-size: 9pt; line-height: 115%; margin: 0in 0in 10pt; tab-stops: 337.9pt; tabstops: 337.9pt;"> Edutopia.org. (2008, August 13). //Big Thinkers - James Paul Gee on Grading with Games//. Retrieved from [] <span style="font-size: 9pt; line-height: 115%; margin: 0in 0in 10pt; tab-stops: 337.9pt; tabstops: 337.9pt;"> Edutopia.org. (2009, May 27). //Big Thinkers – Sasha Barab on New Media Engagement.// Retrieved from [] = =