Ed 6711 Final Reflection

My personal learning theory I developed in week 1 of this course has modified slightly as I have progressed through this class. I now have a better understanding of the nine instructional strategies and the learning theories. Dr. Marzano states the nine strategies are: identifying similarities and differences, summarizing and note taking, reinforcing effort and providing recognition, assigning homework and practice, creating nonlinguistic representations, using cooperative learning, setting objectives and providing feedback, generating and testing hypotheses, and using cues, questions, and advanced organizers (Laureate Education Inc., 2011a). I have a better understanding of how instructional strategies support learning theories. I believe that students do learn better through social learning and I need to give students more opportunities to work collaboratively. In social learning, students are actively engaged in constructing artifacts and conversing with others (Laureate Education Inc., 2011b). I still feel that when students have a personal involvement in their learning, they will more actively participate in their education. I realize that this also can be addressed through social learning. When students produce an artifact to share, they are more motivated to learn. There is a small place for behaviorism in a classroom in order to teach students what is expected of them in class. No class should be only focused on student behavior; student learning is the more important factor in education.

I have learned several things throughout this course that will cause me to make adjustments to my teaching. One immediate adjustment I will make in my teaching is to give students more options when completing a project. In the past, I gave students only one or two options for their assignment. I know that some students are going to do better if they have more options to choose from. One size does not fit all. There is no reason to limit the choices a student has unless there is only one way the assignment can be completed. Another adjustment that I am going to make is to utilize concept maps and advanced organizers more often. I am also going to give the students an opportunity for them to create their own instead of me giving them the organizer or map. I think if the students create their own, it will be more meaningful for them and more purposeful.

There are two technology tools that I would like to use with my students in the new school year. The first tool I plan to utilize is to create advanced organizers using Google Drive. I have used Google’s presentation software for a project this year. I was not aware of its capability to create graphic organizers and concept maps. I am actually going to a two day training this summer on using Goggle Apps for Education. I think this training along with what I learned in this class will be helpful in utilizing Google as a learning tool for the students. By creating concept maps and graphic organizers, students will be able to visually see the connections between the material they are learning. Another technology tool that I want to use with my students is virtual field trips. I was aware of virtual field trips but did not know much about them. With a lack of funding, real field trips are very difficult to get approved. Since I cannot take my students to the zoo or a medical school, I can use virtual field trips to take my students there.

   There are two long term goals that I would like to accomplish integrating technology in my instruction. The first goal I have for myself is to increase the amount of technology I use in my classroom. I only do two or three assignments over the course of the year that requires students to utilize technology. I want to increase this to at least two a quarter over the next couple of years. The lack of technology has been an issue at my school and has prevented me from being able to use learning technology tools with my students. One way I am working to help this situation is by being involved with the leadership team and being a representative for my school for the district technology committee. Next year my school is also going to have a technology committee and I will volunteer for that too. I also will be completing my degree next year and will continue to learn new strategies I can use to bring technology into my classroom. The second goal I have for myself is to increase the usage of learning tools in my classroom. . A learning tool is technology used by students to actively learn (Laureate Education Inc., 2011c). Most of the technology I have used in my classroom has been for instruction not learning. I realize technology is an important factor in education. I cannot just teach differently, I need to have students learn differently. In order to accomplish this goal, I am going to attend any training the district offers such as the Google Apps training I am attending this summer. I am also going to actively search for training I can attend and have my school pay for. By utilizing learning tools, I am giving my students better opportunities to learn the curriculum and become successful science students. I am also trying to prepare them to be successful in the global community as well. I know I can only do so much but the better prepared I can make my students, the better they are going to do as they progress through their education.

References

Laureate Education, Inc. (Producer). (2011a). Program eleven: Instructional strategies, Part one [Video webcast]. Bridging learning theory, instruction and technology. Retrieved from http://laureate.ecollege.com/ec/crs/default.learn?CourseID=5700267&CPURL=laureate.ecollege.com&Survey=1&47=2594577&ClientNodeID=984650&coursenav=0&bhcp=1

Laureate Education, Inc. (Producer). (2011b). Program eight: Social learning theories [Video webcast]. Bridging learning theory, instruction and technology. Retrieved from http://laureate.ecollege.com/ec/crs/default.learn?CourseID=5700267&CPURL=laureate.ecollege.com&Survey=1&47=2594577&ClientNodeID=984650&coursenav=0&bhcp=1

Laureate Education, Inc. (Producer). (2011c). Program thirteen: Technology: Instructional tool vs. learning tool [Video webcast]. Bridging learning theory, instruction and technology. Retrieved from http://laureate.ecollege.com/ec/crs/default.learn?CourseID=5700267&CPURL=laureate.ecollege.com&Survey=1&47=2594577&ClientNodeID=984650&coursenav=0&bhcp=1

Social learning in the classroom

Social learning is when students actively engage in constructing artifacts and conversing with others (Laureate Education Inc., 2011). Cooperative learning is one instructional strategy that utilizes the beliefs of social learning.  Cooperative learning focuses on having students interact with each other in groups in ways to enhance their learning (Pitler, Hubbell, & Kuhn, 2012). Students work together to reach a goal that was given to them by the teacher.  The purpose of cooperative learning is to actively involve students in the learning process by requiring them to discover to discover knowledge (Orey, 2001). 

Cooperative learning allows students to learn in a way that does not feel to them like it is learning. In many students’ minds, learning is something that is boring. Since most students enjoy working in groups, they do not think of it as boring. There are two basic components of cooperative learning; positive interdependence and individual and group accountability (Pitler et al, 2012). Cooperative learning motivates many students because they feel obligated to complete their work because the grade for the group is dependent on everyone completing their part. Also, because they are creating something they are sharing with the class, they take pride in their work because other students will see it.  

There are many social network and collaborative tools that would aide a teacher in creating an environment where social learning occurs. Google Drive can be utilized by a group to work on a project. All students have access to the assignment and can add their information anywhere at any time. This allows students to be in different locations but are still able to work together. Students could also use Facetime or Skype to talk to each other in real time to work together. Students could be in two different countries and still be able to work together.  Another tool that can be utilized is Webquests. Webquests are inquiry-oriented activities that allow students from multiple locations to work together to learn about a particular subject or create a project (Pitler et al. 2012). Webquests put all the information together in one pace so students are learning rather than trying to find the information. The focus is on thinking and analysis. Webquests allow students to utilize their higher thinking skills instead of getting frustrated trying to find the information by Googling it.

Social learning seems to be one way that helps students learn. Students enjoy working with a group of their peers. Most students try harder when they are in a group because they know the group is depending on them. The teacher also plays an important role in cooperative learning. The teacher must be the motivator and continually check up on the groups to make sure they are on task and completing their work. There are many technologies that are available for teachers and students to utilize for social learning. Some sites include Facebook, Edmodo, Instagram, and second life. All these sites allow students to communicate and collaborate with each other. As technology and society changes, education must also change in order to stay up with the times. The time of the teacher standing in front of the room lecturing for an hour every day is gone. The teacher must now be a facilitator of learning instead of an imparter of knowledge.

Helpful Sites

For more information on webQuests:

 http://www.internet4classrooms.com/using_quest.htm

Useful tips for using collaborative learning

http://www.teachthought.com/learning/20-collaborative-learning-tips-and-strategies/

References

Laureate Education, Inc. (Producer). (2011). Program eight: Social learning theories [Video webcast]. Bridging learning theory, instruction and technology. Retrieved from http://laureate.ecollege.com/ec/crs/default.learn?CourseID=5700267&CPURL=laureate.ecollege.com&Survey=1&47=2594577&ClientNodeID=984650&coursenav=0&bhcp=1

Orey, M. (Ed.). (2001). Emerging perspectives on learning, teaching, and technology. Retrieved from http://projects.coe.uga.edu/epltt/index.php?title=Main_Page

Pitler, H., Hubbell, E. R., & Kuhn, M. (2012). Using technology with classroom instruction that works (2nd ed.). Alexandria, VA: ASCD.

Voice Thread

I created a voice thread on a genetics collaborative group project to determine what the average middle school student looks like. Please find it at https://voicethread.com/share/5821819/