Technology Integration Plan

Link to a Screencastify of my "model" eBook that I will be using to teach skills to the class. 

Purpose, Format and Main Goals of the Plan

            One of my goals from my needs assessment was that I wanted my students to be active designers of technology, not just passive users. Learning technology by design will allow for this creativity and freedom. By allowing the students freedom to design their own nonfiction text, they will be active users of technology. It is important to use tech that “supports students’ learning, participation and deep comprehension” and not to use is in a way in which students are passive observers (Pollock, 2016, p. 41). The students will be expressing their expertise using multiple modes of representation and designing them in a way to teach others. 

           Another goal that I had was to integrate the Technological Pedagogical Content Knowledge (TCPK) model (Mishra and Koehler, 2006). In order to do that, I would need to integrate the ISTE standards. For this unit, there are multiple ISTE standards that would apply but I chose two to focus on. I want students to work towards being Knowledge Constructors and Creative Communicators. As their teacher, to be faithful to the TCPK model, it will be my job to support them in their individual research by being knowledgeable in their scientific content, my instruction, and the technology tools that they are using. With this balance, I will be scaffolding students to conduct their own research and design their findings in their own way. 

Content Standards:

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.4.2 Write informative/explanatory texts to examine a topic and convey ideas and information clearly. 

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.4.7 Conduct short research projects that build knowledge through investigation

 of different aspects of a topic.

ISTE:

ISTE.3. Knowledge Constructor: Students critically curate a variety of resources using digital tools to 

construct knowledge, produce creative artifacts and make meaningful learning experiences for themselves and others. 

3b: Students evaluate the accuracy, perspective, credibility and relevance of information, media, data or 

     other resources. 

ISTE.6. Creative Communicator: Students communicate clearly and express themselves creatively for a    variety of purposes using the platforms, tools, styles, formats and digital media appropriate to their goals.

 6c: Students communicate complex ideas clearly and effectively by creating or using a variety of digital objects such as visualizations, models or simulations. 

Technology-Integration: What are the tech tools? How will you integrate and assess them?

Equity/Assistive Technology: 

The goal is that students with IEPs, students that are low-income, and minority students are all an expert in a topic and share their expertise with other. In order to do this, some students may require assistive technology. Students that need the support will have headphones and a microphone to allow them to access the online text and write their eBook. Some other forms of assistive technology that can be used to support students are Thinking Maps, highlighting tools, word prediction, etc. 

Research: 

Students will begin by just using eBooks. Our school has access to MyOn, Epic, World Book,True Flix, and many more online programs. 

Creation of eBook 

Mishra and Koehler (2006), described that, “learning technology by design affords students the opportunity to transcend the passive learner role and to take control of their learning” (p. 1035). In my opinion, Google Slides provides more opportunity for students to design each page however it best suits their teaching goal for their eBook. 

Teacher Use of Technology

I will be using Google Classroom to share necessary information with my authors. I will share articles, the rubric, and other expectations through Google Classroom. We will have a Google Slideshow as a class that we will work on so I can model some of the tools that they can access. I also utilized ForAllRubrics in order to make the rubric for their final eBook. 

Justification of design/Assessment Choices

               I chose to have my students create an eBook rather than a paper book because it will allow for multimodality which is so crucial as a 21st century skill. Dalton (2012) discusses how multimodality has changed how we communicate. We now have an interactive experience when we communicate using text, images, videos, and more. “We live in a multimodal world where being an effective communicator involves composing with media” (p. 336). The eBooks will allow students to express their knowledge using text, images, videos, graphics, and more. This project also lends itself to equality and Universal Design for Learning through these multimodalities. 

        For the final assessment, students will each open their Chromebook to their eBook. We will have a gallery walk around the room so the students can read their peers’ finished products. After they finish reading, they will write on a sticky note one thing that they think their peer did well on by referencing the rubric. They will leave the note for the author to read. After this, I will also have my rubric and will be evaluating all of the books. I will take into consideration the peer feedback, as well.

References

Dalton, B. (2012). Multimodal Composition and The Common Core State Standards. The Reading Teacher, 66(4), 333-339.

ISTE Standards for Students. (2017). Retrieved March 12, 2017, from http://www.iste.org/ standards/standards/standards-for-students

Mishra, P., & Koehler, M. J. (2006). Technological pedagogical content knowledge: A framework for teacher knowledge. Teachers college record, 1017-1048.

Pollock, M. (2016). Smart Tech Use for Equity. The Education Digest, 81(8), 39-41.

Inquiry and Technology

Where do you want to go today? Inquiry-based learning and technology integration is a theoretical article exploring the benefits and drawbacks of inquiry-based learning and technology integration. The article found and described positive results of inquiry-based learning and technology integration in two different programs. The programs included over 100 7-15 year old urban students. The Extra Edge was a five week summer reading program for students struggling in English language arts. The second program was an after school inquiry program. It was a collaboration between a university and local social services agency. The conclusion of this article offers advice for the implementation of the programs described. Owens, Hester, and Teale (2002) explained that in inquiry-based learning, students select a topic of interest to research, they produce questions about the topic, gather and synthesize research findings, and at the very end they do something with their findings. Technology is used in all parts of inquiry-based learning.

Technology supports students in inquiry based learning environments not only to help them gather resources and in research but also in their final product. It was found that, “different forms of technology created a ‘polished finish’ to the projects that, for the students, generated an unexpected sense of pride in their work and impressed the audience” (Owens et al., 2002, p. 622). The projects found that struggling and unmotivated students were successful and motivated when allowed to choose their own topic, within a theme, and use technology to explore it.

Some of the important advice that Owens et al. (2002) provided for teachers interested in incorporating inquiry-based learning with technology was to model enthusiasm for inquiry, be careful about students getting off track while surfing the web, and to read all online articles with a critical eye. They also recommended keeping a close eye on websites that students are visiting, promote mulitmodal research with text, images and videos, and lastly to not be intimidated by the project.

This article connects very closely to my own action research question because I am researching inquiry-based learning within a theme, as well. I have been researching how inquiry-based learning can motivate and increase engagement in science and math. The findings of this article reveal more evidence that inquiry-based learning is an effective pedagogy to increase engagement.

I am excited to incorporate technology into my action research project. My students will be conducting research for our class garden. Since my students have one-to-one Chromebooks, they can utilize technology throughout their research to collect resources, track data on their plants, and present their findings. I also plan to use technology from a researcher's perspective to conduct surveys with my students for qualitative data. Digital surveys using Google Forms will allow me to organize the findings efficiently and allow students to remain anonymous.

References

Owens, R. F., Hester, J. L., & Teale, W. H. (2002). Where do you want to go today?

Inquiry-based learning and technology integration. The Reading Teacher, 55(7), 616-625

Equity and Technology

I believe using technology to guide dialogue has helped many of my students engage in collaborative conversations. In response to my Padlet digital tech tool, Briana Ronan asked, “have you noticed any changes in the kinds of notes your students take with padlet versus when they took notes on sticky pads?”. My answer is yes, many changes! Not only does it increase the volume of writing but the content is more rich and the spelling and grammar has improved.

I can see how equity can be challenged using Padlet. As stated by Tawfik, Reeves, and Stich (2016), “minority students perceived less social presence in online learning compared with their non-minority peers”.  Although students have increasing opportunities with technology, minorities can be fearful or lack confidence while posting in an online community. I believe the ability to add images, videos and links to a Padlet helps to combat this fear because their writing is supported in multiple modes.

One of the largest impacts that I experience in my class regarding equity, technology, and “opportunities to learn” is the amount of exposure my students come in with and their ability to use technology. I aim to treat technology as though my students have never seen it but, when given a task, my students that have had more opportunities with it are producing more, inputted unique designs, and can transform their work more than what it expected. I see my students that have not had the opportunity or practice with technology wanting to do the same and it takes them much longer. I do not believe that any of my students feel that there is a gap but rather they are excited to learn from their peers.

My equity vision for my students is that all “students are heard” (Pollock, 2016, p. 41). I often notice that my low-income and minority students lack the confidence to share their thinking in the classroom. I do not visualize a computer app creating this equity where everyone is working independently, looking at a screen. I picture technology being the building blocks for collaborating, creating and sharing designs and ideas. It is my hope that students are learning technology early enough in the classroom that there would not be as much of an opportunity gap in the future.

Technology that I foresee supporting my equity vision include some apps that I use today. The Google Apps for education allow for students to easily collaborate on projects through sharing, commenting and suggesting. Also, Tawfik, Reeves, and Stich (2016) described online professional development for teachers that, “removes geographic barriers”. I want to remove this barrier for my students. I believe collaborating with classes across the country and sharing work universally would allow all of my students to feel important and valued.

References

Pollock, M. (2016). Smart Tech Use for Equity. The Education Digest, 81(8), 39-41.

Tawfik, A. A., Reeves, T. D., & Stich, A. (2016). Intended and Unintended

Consequences of Educational Technology on Social Inequality. TechTrends,

60(6), 598-605.

Awesome Digital Tech Tool: Padlet

Imagine...no more sticky notes! Countless times I have gotten home with a sticky note stuck to my shoe with a student’s hard work written on it. If only there was an easy way to discuss an idea on a common topic where students and teachers can quickly scan the thinking of the entire class. Wait...there is! It’s called Padlet!

Padlet is an online application that allows users with a specific link to post virtual sticky notes on a “wall” to discuss a specific topic. Not only can students post their thinking but they can also attach images, websites, documents, video, etc. I have used this application with adults at professional development trainings and with students in my classroom. There are premium packages for schools and businesses but the free version works great. This application is compatible with laptops, chromebooks, mobile devices and iPads.

This digital tool allows for many opportunities to enhance student learning. The second ISTE Student Standard (2017) is, “students use digital media to communicate and work collaboratively”. This learning tool allows students to share their thinking and comment on their peers’ ideas. When conducting research projects in my classroom, Padlet has been a great tool to share resources and findings. Doug Belshaw (2012) believes, when structuring lessons to  integrate digital technology into a class, it is important to equally focus on individual interests and important issues. Padlet provides an outlet where students can interact and be social while communicating about important topics.

Dalton (2012) discusses how multimodality has changed how we communicate. We now have an interactive experience when we communicate using text, images, videos, and more. Padlet allows students to not only share their thinking using words but to also include other modalities. Multimodality not only increases engagement but also student understanding when reading their peers’ posts. Ryan, Scott, and Walsh (2010) described that when students used technology in a multimodal context it was, “intrinsically motivating and they felt very much at home with it” (p. 481). Some of my students that are more hesitant to take notes in their journal are quick to write a response in a Padlet.

Padlet is a strong resource to use in the classroom. Students work hard on their posts because they want their peers to see their best work. Students can cite their work by adding links or add to their work by including images, documents, videos and sound. The collaboration is key to students learning more and practicing constructive conversations that the Common Core State Standards expect. There are a couple of recommendations I would give to Padlet if they were hoping to improve their program. One thing that would be very helpful is to allow students to search for images directly though Padlet, similar to Google Apps. Instead students must paste a link to the image which can get confusing. Also, the submit button is very easy to select. Often times, my students submit early and need to go back to edit. This is a problem because their peers see the unfinished post and believe they are done. This leads to them responding to work that is not complete. The last function I would add is the ability to alter the font. When writing the instructions at the top and any post, it is nice to have access to bold, italics, and different sizes.

Do not allow these recommendations to deter you from trying this digital learning tool. The video below will give you a tour of Padlet’s easy to use interface.

Padlet Tutorial by Haley Kennedy

References

Belshaw, Doug [Tedx Talks]. (2012 March 22). The Essential Elements of Digital Literacies.

[Video File]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A8yQPoTcZ78.

Dalton, B. (2012). Multimodal Composition and The Common Core State Standards. The Reading

Teacher, 66(4), 333-339.

ISTE Standards for Students. (2017). Retrieved February 3, 2017, from http://www.iste.org/

standards/standards/standards-for-students

Ryan, J., Scott, A., Walsh, M. (2010). Pedagogy in the multimodal classroom: an analysis of the challenges and opportunities for teachers. Teachers and Teaching: Theory & Practice, 16(4), 477-489.

Computers in the Classroom 

In 1993 Larry Cuban wrote an article that identifies three possible scenarios that describe the use of technology in future classrooms. The first and least likely scenario was called the “technophile scenario”. In short, this scenario described a student getting scanned upon entering a classroom. After a computer reads the scan, it greets the child, determines areas of mastery and need then provides curriculum that would support those needs. The second scenario is the “Preservationist Scenario”. This scenario maintains a normal classroom setting but incorporates technology as a tool to increase productivity. The last scenario is the “Cautious Optimist Scenario”. This scenario describes a slow integration of technology in the classroom that will allow for a hybrid of teacher-centered and student-centered learning to occur. The teachers act as coaches to the student’s learning.  Slowly weaving the computers into the instruction will allow for efficient learning to occur without losing the teacher-student relationship.
I believe the “Preservationist Scenario” and the “Cautious Optimist Scenario” have prevailed in the past 20 years. Although we have the technology that could allow the “Technophile Scenario” to occur, according to Cuban (1993), “technophiles minimize the power of traditions and practices that have endured for centuries and perform important functions in society,” (p.10). Incorporating technology into the classroom should be a slow process in order to maintain the authenticity of the classroom.

While watching B.F. Skinner's original “Teaching Machine” video, I was weighing the cost/benefits between having no peer interaction or discussion about the learning versus the  benefit of differentiation and immediate feedback. Although the machine seems fun and exciting to use, I believe the magic would go away quickly and the students would be become very bored. The educator in the video seemed subordinate. Besides helping an occasional student, the teacher was actually more of an overseer to ensure students were using the machines properly. In the second video that compared the “Teaching Machine” to current day iPads, I found that they were almost the same device! The difference is that the iPads have more features and would be more engaging. They still encourage differentiation and immediate feedback but take away from authentic classroom discussions.

I am a huge advocate for the utilization of technology in education. I have 1:1 chromebooks in my classroom and my students are very efficient with them. The chromebooks allow my students to be hard at work while I meet with small groups. My students are independent with tasks on the Chromebooks. Technology keeps me from using as much paper thus reducing our classroom’s ecological footprint. Students are very engaged while on the the Chromebooks. They allow for timely feedback and help me monitor their work quickly.

Although I love technology and its use in the classroom, there is a time for technology and there is a time to put it away. While on a field trip this week, I looked around and each student in my small group had their phone up taking a picture. Although I love that they wanted to remember the moment, I feel that they were not actually in the moment and enjoying the artwork because they were hiding behind the cameras. Technology is not going anywhere so we need to teach kids the difference between wanting to use it and needing to use it.

One technology dream that I would love to see incorporated into my classroom is a system that would utilize the results of tests in order to create small strategy groups and reteaching topics for each of the small groups. It is something that teachers do on their own but would be more efficient and possibly more accurate with the use of computers.

References

Bonaiuti Giovanni. (2011, December 20). B.F Skinner. Teaching Machine and Programmed Learning. Retrieved from: https://youtu.be/jTH3ob1IRFo

Cuban, L. (1993). Computers meet classroom: Classroom wins. Teachers College Record, 95(2), 185.

Ensemblemedia’s Channel (2013, April 9). B.F. Skinner and the Teaching Machine, Tablet Edition. Retrieved from: https://youtu.be/jm9VMdQaAQQ