Jon's Reading Response Log for EDT 548

Class 13 Readings

2006-11-11T17:43:00.000-07:00

Critical Issue: Using Technology to Improve Student Achievement

http://www.ncrel.org/sdrs/areas/issues/methods/technlgy/te800.htm

I found a few very interesting aspects to this article. As I have posted before, I am taking a few points from this article and highlighting them here. Please feel free to respond.

Interestingly, "some argue that today's students, surrounded by digital technology since infancy, are fundamentally different from previous generations (McHale, 2005) and are no longer the people our educational system was designed to teach (Prensky, 2001)."
As a result, a widening gap has formed between the knowledge and skills students are acquiring in schools and the knowledge and skills needed to succeed in the increasingly global, technology infused 21st century workplace (Partnership for 21st Century Skills, 2005b). This part of the article really got my attention. It makes me really question my own teaching practice and wonder if I am really preparing my students for success.

So do I rely on technology as a stand-alone teaching tool? Does it, or should it replace the teacher? I think the article does a good job of summarizing the role technology can have in education. According to the article, "Students can learn "from" computers—where technology used essentially as tutors and serves to increase students basic skills and knowledge; and can learn "with" computers—where technology is used a tool that can be applied to a variety of goals in the learning process and can serve as a resource to help develop higher order thinking, creativity and research skills (Reeves, 1998; Ringstaff & Kelley, 2002)."

So why should I use technology as part of my instruction? The article provides clear evidence that the use of technology can "engage children in exploring, thinking, reading, writing, researching, inventing, problem-solving, and experiencing the world."

One thing that really brought encouragement to my own teaching practice was that the article pointed out that there is "strong evidence that educational technology "complements what a great teacher does naturally," extending their reach and broadening their students' experience beyond the classroom.

I found the following information very useful when determining the three key principles or guidelines for UDL:
Presenting information in multiple formats and multiple media.
Offering students with multiple ways to express and demonstrate what they have learned.
Providing multiple entry points to engage student interest and motivate learning.

Another point I wish to emphasize is the following:
"Technology has a vital role to play in enabling data-driven decision-making. Web-based test data reporting systems provide an interface to the state and city testing results by organizing raw data into information that is aligned with state standards and mobile computing devices, such as handhelds, provide teachers with a platform to administer and analyze the data of classroom-based assessments." A comment I have about this is that it would be nice to see school district not only provide these systems, as I am sure many do, but more importantly effectively train its teachers on how to use these system.

Class 11 Readings

2006-10-26T19:17:00.000-07:00

Critical Issue: Using Technology to Improve Student Achievement

http://www.ncrel.org/sdrs/areas/issues/methods/technlgy/te800.htm

In my opinion the statistics at the beginning of this article are amazing. To think that just in the past 10 years or so, schools in America have made so much growth in the area of technological infrastructure is quite impressive. For example, in a five year period from 1998 to 2003, "the student-to-connected-computer ratio went from 12-to-1 to 4.4-to-1." I am excited to think what the future may bring with regards to this ratio and am hopeful that it can continue to improve to 1:1 in all schools regardless of Socio-economic status.

Further along in this article, the following point really impressed me. It said, "some argue that today's students, surrounded by digital technology since infancy, are fundamentally different from previous generations (McHale, 2005) and are no longer the people our educational system was designed to teach (Prensky, 2001)." For me this not only gets me to analyze what I have been doing to meet this need of my students, but also strengthens my desire to incorporate technology into my daily instruction. I see it has both meeting the students where they are at as well as preparing them for their future by expanding their critical thinking skills through the use of the technology.

ommunicate Effectively: Students must have a range of skills to express themselves not only through paper and pencil, but also audio, video, animation, design software as well as a host of new environments (e-mail, Web sites, message boards, blogs, streaming media, etc.).

The following list of skills were interesting to see as the most critical skills students need to employ when they enter the workforce.

Analyze and Interpret Data: Students must have the ability to crunch, compare, and choose among the glut of data now available Web-based and other electronic formats.

Understand Computational Modeling: Students must posses an understanding of the power, limitations, and underlying assumptions of various data representation systems, such as computational models and simulations, which are increasingly driving a wide-range of disciplines.

Manage and Prioritize Tasks: Students must be able to mange the multi-tasking, selection, and prioritizing across technology applications that allow them to move fluidly among teams, assignments and communities of practice.

Engage in Problem Solving: Students must have an understanding of how to apply what they know and can do to new situations.

Ensure Security and Safety: Students must know and use strategies to acknowledge, identify, and negotiate 21^st century risks.

One final piont this article made that I am interested in hearing opinions on is the following: "Schools serving students living in poverty tend to use technology for more traditional memory-based and remedial activities, while schools serving wealthier communities are more likely to focus on communication and expression.A nationwide study examining the relationship between socioeconomic status and teaching practices around technology found that teaching in low-SES schools correlated most strongly with using technology for "reinforcement of skills" and "remediation of skills," while teaching in higher-SES schools correlated most with "analyzing information" and "presenting information to an audience" (Becker, 2000b)." This really puts into question my own practices and ways in which I incorporate technology into my teaching practice. I realize that I may be doing a real dis-service to some of the students who are part of the lower SES sector.

Interesting article.

Class 9 Readings

2006-10-15T16:58:00.000-07:00

Does it Compute? The Relationship Between Educational Technology and Student Achievement in Mathematics
http://caret.iste.org/index.cfm?StudyID=337&fuseaction=studySummary

I really liked the question and answer format of this article. This provided the reader with a clear understanding of some issues involved in the relationship between Ed. Tech and student achievement in math. This article provided great analysis of a variety of research on the topic.

I found the review of the research to be quite pertinent to educators and extensive enough to convince someone who may not see the benefits of the use of technology to find ways to incorporate technology into their instruction. This article provided sound evidence supporting the use of technology in a variety of areas. It would be an excellent resource to show a new or experienced teacher weighing the benefits of incorporating technology into their classroom.

Critical Issue:Locating, Using, and Integrating Internet-Based Mathematics Materials
http://www.ncrel.org/sdrs/areas/issues/content/cntareas/math/ma200.htm

Because this article was produced in 1995, I felt like I was stepping back in time. I really appreciate the knowledge I was able to glean from this article, but some of the information seemed quite outdated. Many of the links did not work and I found it interesting that this was before the time of the major search engines such as Google or Yahoo which makes finding information different from what it was like when this article was written.This article makes a number of good points despite some of its outdated material. One point that was made very well was the importance of using the internet to expose students from various backgrounds to a large variety of resources. I find it amazing the amount of places a student can experiences through the use of internet resources. Although a student may have not physically visited many places in their life, the internet can provide learning opportunities that they may never be able to experience in their life.

Week 7 Course Readings

2006-10-02T19:49:00.000-07:00

Mapping a path for the 3D Web

http://news.com.com/Mapping+a+path+for+the+3D+Web/2100-1025_3-6069459.html?tag=cd.top

As I read this article I could not help but imagine what effect this will have on the world as we know it. It seems that in 10 or 20 years we may look back in history to this correct time period and think: "How did we live like that?" I am both fascinated by the concept of 3D online worlds as well as quite skeptical towards the whole idea.

To gain a better perspective to what the digital world may look like in the future I have selected the following excerpt from the article:

Soon our 2D+ (geospatial, augmented reality, etc.) and 3D online worlds will
become as visually and data rich as the physical world. We are also gaining the
ability to talk to our computers (as well as type) in increasingly natural human
language. These developments will produce profound new individual and collective
abilities, as well as new risks to be mitigated.

While reading about this 3D online world on the Metaverse Road Map web page (http://metaverseroadmap.org/roadmap_3.html)
I encountered and interesting graph of information dealing with fastest wired data transmission speeds from the years 1820 to 2000. It concluded that from 1940 to 1980 the average doubling time was three years (24% annual growth) and from 1980 to 2000 was one year (72% annual growth). This statistic was very intriguing to me. It raises the question to me about the future of information and how it is transmitted as well as the impact something like a 3D web with have on people who have access to it as opposed to people in the world without access.

Talk about a world of possibilities for educators! I'm almost scared to think of it.

Lead, Don't Lecture

http://www.edutopia.org/magazine/ed1article.php?id=Art_1451&issue=feb_06

In response to this article, I have picked out a number of quotes from the article that I found interesting or significant. I feel these quotes help both summarize the article and allow you, my reader, to understand what I feel is worthy information from this article. Please respond to a quote you especially enjoy.

"For even the best teachers, it's a constant struggle to find the balance between teaching to the whole class and coaching one-on-one."

"Web literacy -- that is, learning what is valid information and what is not valid information."

"I became the mediator for their discussion. They basically drive the content. They have some ownership in the class."

"You get that right only when they know that you are in fact in it for them, and you're on their team."

"Taking a risk with your ideas is the only way you learn something. Admitting you don't know something -- to yourself or in a more public forum -- is a really powerful way of beginning to learn, and you can't do that if you're worried about what the teacher's going to think. I try to never say to a student, "That was wrong." I'll say, "Well, that's interesting. Can we build on that?"

Week 4 Reading Responses

2006-09-18T20:57:00.000-07:00

For the week of September 11 I will respond to the following readings:

Standards for Mathematics, Science, and technology Education. http://newton.nap.edu/books/030907276X/html/17.html

At the beginning of this article a very clear history of educational standards is discussed. One interesting reference the author makes really stuck out to me. The authors says that, "In 1983, A Nation at Risk declared that 'Âthe educational foundations of our society are presently being eroded by a rising tide of mediocrity that threatens our very future as a Nation and a people." I find this quote particularly interesting because it paints a very clear picture as to why standards-based education is in such high need. I absolutely agree with the position it takes and see that it is a continuing issue even more than 20 years later.

I find it interesting that as America seems to progress with Math, Science, and Technology so do the standards. I would like to particularly point out the order in which the first math (1985), science (1989), and technology (1994) standards were established follow a very logical sequence. I think this fits into the constructivist view of learning. It seems as though learning from math was applied to science and those thoughts were then applied to technology literacy standards.

A final point that I find interesting is the fact that it seems to have taken about 15 years since the first math standards were laid out for people to begin to use them effectively and hold the educational system accountable for them. In my opinion, standards-based education is vital to the learning and success of American students and the American educational system.

Helping Your Child Reach Mathematics, Science, and Technology Standards. http://dimacs.rutgers.edu/nj_math_coalition/pguide/pguide.html

This article raises the question of, "Why doesn't every state provide a resource like this?" This article provides an excellent example of a quality made explanation of standards and what standards-based education looks like to a student and to their parents. The article provides information on what a standard is and how it should be implemented throughout the state school system.

I am interested in finding out if more states have done something similar to this. Has Arizona? Additionally, how has this letter changed since No Child Left Behind has been implemented by the federal government.

What an excellent resource to give to both parents as well as community members interested in what a standards-based system looks like!

2006-08-31T22:52:00.000-07:00

For the week of August 28th I will be responding to the following articles:

Constructivism as a Paradigm for Teaching and Learning : http://www.thirteen.org/edonline/concept2class/constructivism/

What an amazing article to gain insight on constructivism! The Concept to Classroom Workshop page at http://www.thirteen.org/edonline/concept2class/ provides a very in-depth look at the theory of constructivism. Not only is there an excellent and thorough explanation of constructivism from how it can be implemented to its history to even a discussion of critical perspectives of the theory. Additionally, the article provides excellent video examples of students working within the constructivist learning environment.

According to this article, constructivism says “that people construct their own understanding and knowledge of the world, through experiencing things and reflecting on those experiences.” In my opinion, this statement makes sense. Though I do not in any way consider myself an on teaching and learning, I can see through my own experiences that people learn this way. It has been made clear to me that when a teacher can relate a lesson or a piece of knowledge to a student’s prior knowledge, the student usually is more motivated to learn. Constructivism seems to build upon the prior knowledge of a student to allow them to build their own learning.

A question then that stood out to me as I read the article about constructivism was, “What about students who have not had a lot of exposure to opportunities to acquire the prior knowledge needed to base the learning upon?” Thankfully this question was addressed near the end of the article. A point that helped me answer my question was listed as a benefit of constructivism. It said that, “Constructivism gives students ownership of what they learn, since learning is based on students' questions and explorations…” As an educator I can be encouraged that students are using the knowledge they are acquiring in their lives, through home and schooling experiences, to create opportunities to inquire and explore new learning. If that is happening in my classroom, I believe I am doing all that I can as an educator.

Applying Technology to Restructuring and Learning : http://www.sedl.org/work/historical/tap.html

This article summarizes findings from the Southwest Educational Development Laboratory regarding constructivist learning environments. The researchers pointed out that though no single model of constructivist learning emerged, students in these classrooms were "more active, autonomous, and highly engaged with the content under study." Additionally they concluded that professional development opportunities had a major impact on teachers' practice and that change in teachers' practice increased with "teachers' increased confidence/comfort using technology in the classroom."

In response to this article, a number of points stood out to me. Most interesting to me was the comment, "The teacher, while an integral part of the classroom, acted more as a producer rather than a director, setting up the learning situation and then allowing students to use the means necessary to arrive at a certain end." As I reflect on that sentence I think of my own classroom. What am I doing? Am I a producer or a director? I can definitely see myself falling into the director's chair too often without allowing the students own individuality to help them arrive at the end that I desire for my production.
Another point that I wish to comment on is the one made when the researchers pointed out that as teachers become more comfortable with the technology they have access to they will, in turn, use it more as part of their delivery of instruction. To me this makes sense. I have seen it in my own practice as well in that of other teachers. Seems like this is a good reason to get more technology available to teaching professionals. Don't you think?

Characteristics of Constructivist Learning & Teaching - PDF : http://www.west.asu.edu/achristie/construct/Characteristics%20of%20Constructivist%20Learning.pdf

Without close examination of each point in this article an in-service teacher could read this article and think, "This is so basic. It's obvious that humans learn best through constructivism." In my opinion this article seemed like basic teaching and learning to me. By that I mean it seems to just make sence to me. Upon further examination as I read over the points made in the article, I started to ask myself, "Am I really doing all of this in my teaching practice?" Although I would like the answer to be "yes" I would have to honestly say that it may not always be that way.

What is a WebQuest? :
http://www.west.asu.edu/achristie/675wq.html

I found this article to be a good review of my understandings of what a WebQuest really is. It has been my personal experience that WebQuests are very valuable learning tools for students. I have been using WebQuests often in my 5th grade classes for over two years and each time I incorporate one into my lesson plans I see the value of a well-developed WebQuest become more and more important to student learning and achievement. I have witnessed the powerful learning opportunities provided by these wonderful learning tools and I strongly recommend the incorporation of them into any classroom.

I have found that it is important to keep in mind a number of questions before deciding to use a particular WebQuest with students:
1. Does the information gleaned from it meet performance objectives within the curriculum?
2. Is the information reliable?
3. Is it at a level that is appropriate for the students?
4. Do all of the links work?
5. Do the links give quality information to the learner?

Based on the information included in this article I am looking forward to creating my own WebQuests in the future. Additionally, as a result of this article, I see the benefit of incorporating the use of Webquests into my current teaching assignment, a multi-age social skills classroom constisting of third, fourth, and fifth graders.

Introducing Myself

2006-08-24T19:19:00.000-07:00

Welcome to my EDT 548 blog!

Currently I am teaching Social Skills to third, fourth, and fifth graders at Calderwood School in the Pendergast District in Phoenix, Arizona. This blog will be used as a reading log for assignments in Dr. Christie's class, Using Technology in Mathematics and Science Education. Feel free to respond to any of the articles discussed within this blog.