Reflections on EdTech

Well, our 336 course is quickly coming to an end. I thought I would take this time to reflect on what we have accomplished in this course and on how it has helped me to grow as a connected educator. I think the three most important things I have gained from this class are an understanding of the resources available, confidence using twitter, and a new curiosity for using EdTech in the classroom, and so I’ll discuss each one of those below.

1. Web-based resources: We have discussed an insane amount of resources in this class, some of which I have attempted to categorize in a previous post. Although it’s impossible for me to remember every single website or other form of technology that was mentioned in this course, I think it has really given me an understanding of what’s out there. Now when someone mentions a web resource I am able to nod my head in understanding instead of giving them a blank stare. I don’t have to use every single resource, but at least the names will be familiar to me.
2. Twitter: Before this course if you had asked me to use twitter I probably would have run away screaming. I thought it was stupid, filled with inane posts of what celebrities ate for breakfast that day and how so-and-so hated being stuck in traffic. Honestly, how could you have an important conversation in less than 140 characters? Now, three months later all I can say is wow, I was wrong. Twitter is an amazing resource for educators. It’s a place to share links to inspiring blogs, articles or photos. I’m also able to follow many people that I otherwise would not have the chance to connect with in everyday life. I follow local principals, BC superintendents, and other teachers around the country and the world. Most teacher education students do not get the chance to talk to any of these people, yet I can glimpse into all of their schools through twitter! I’ve also watched teachers live-tweeting from Pro-D conferences. They are sharing knowledge with me that I would normally have to wait another few years to have access to. In my last post, I discussed how twitter is fueling the development of the new BC education plan. I’m also hoping that twitter will become a resource for me as I seek out jobs, allowing me to present a professional version of myself online but in a friendly, collaborative manner.
3. Finally, this course has made me infinitely more curious when it comes to technology. Over the summer I comfortably used the same cell phone I had had for the past two years, went on the same websites using the same computer to do the same things. I was honestly a little scared to check out new websites. I felt I was spending enough time online and didn’t want to overwhelm myself or  become addicted to the computer by introducing something new. Now, I have no fear in using a new device, like the iPad I purchased in August, or in checking out a new website or app just to see what it does. I feel like I spend the same amount of time online as I did last year, but it is infinitely more productive. Now, I am not reading every single article on my five favourite websites. Instead, I am spending time connecting with other educators, exploring apps and resources, and staying up to date on what’s out there.

Guest Speaker

Today Dave Shortreed came to speak to our class. He’s the coordinator of EdTech for SD61. I really enjoyed hearing his perspective on education technology. I often feel isolated up here at UVic – we spend so much time discussing theories and potential lessons and hypothetical ways of dealing with situations, so I loved listening to someone who works with real kids and in real classrooms on a daily basis. He seems like a great resource for teachers and I know that if I eventually get hired in SD61 I will be asking for his help a lot! He discussed several key trends in EdTech as well as what he is doing in his position to promote technology use in local classrooms. Dave’s mandate is to get every teacher changing their practice and innovating in their classrooms.

Dave discussed how social media is fueling the development of the new BC Education Plan. Teachers and parents are discussing the changes on twitter using #bccurric, and the people behind the BC Education plan twitter account are actually responding. I actually tweeted them a few months ago and got a response back! To me, the idea of being involved in curriculum development seems totally natural. We will be the ones teaching this curriculum, so why shouldn’t we have some input in developing it? However, Dave let us know that this is revolutionary for many teachers. In the past, the IRPs were developed by a select group of teachers sitting in a closed room somewhere, who then handed down their curriculum to everyday classroom teachers once it was completely finished. Twitter also allows teachers to see examples of how personalized learning is already at work in real classrooms. This conversation is no longer hypothetical, it is happening in real classrooms with real students, and I think that is great.

He also discussed one classroom that had removed their desks in favour of an open concept layout, allowing kids to work wherever they were comfortable: on the floor, standing at a table, sitting on a stool, whatever. This idea excites but also intimidates me. What on earth would my principal say if I told him or her that I was getting rid of my desks? What would the parents say? How would I create any sense of order in my classroom? However, I think the idea is really cool. It empowers students to get work done however they need to – if they need to fidget or move around to help them concentrate, then let them. In this setup, the focus becomes the learning that is happening in the classroom rather than the method by which they learn.

Dave also talked about the types of technology he is helping to bring into SD61, including iPads, smartboards, projectors, Apple TV, document cameras and more. Overall, his talk was very inspiring for me. I can’t wait to get into a classroom during practicum and actually put some of his ideas into practice!

 

Class Presentations

I really enjoyed watching everyone present their technology lesson plans in class today. It was great to see the variety of tech that people used, the different subjects that were covered, and even the different ways in which the same type of tech was used for different lessons. For example, although many groups used the smartboard in their lessons, no one used them in the same way. This class inspired me to see the many ways that I can incorporate tech into every subject I will teach.

I’d like to mention a few lessons in particular that I really liked:

Dylan, Meg, Laura, Kim and Heather’s Grade 3 Plant Growth unit – I am definitely stealing this in the future. I love looking at plant growth with kids and letting them see how a small seed can grow into a whole plant. However, I find lessons like this usually wind down without a great culminating activity – the children watch a plant grow, bring it home once it gets too big for the class, and then often forget to water it and let it die. This group suggested using the stop motion app to capture the plant’s growth from day to day and then create a movie with it. This idea is so cool since it lets the students reflect on how their plant has progressed during the unit, something that is hard to do without the visual reminder. Plus, watching and making stop motion movies is just really fun!

Both lessons on fractions (from Romaine, Emily, Meghan B, Joanna and Matt’s group and from Jenny, Melanie, Kyra, Naomi and Melissa’s group). I’ve really been worried about the idea of teaching fractions. I find them boring to teach and confusing to explain, so all the ways these groups brought technology into their fraction lessons really inspired me. Kyra used the document camera to display some fraction manipulatives her group had made, and Romaine’s group did a great job using some smart board presentations to teach a few different fraction concepts. Both ideas were really cool and I’d love to integrate them into my lessons in the future.

I learned a lot from watching these presentations, great job everyone!

Digital Citizenship

Digital citizenship can be defined as the norms of appropriate, responsible behavior with regard to technology use. – Mike Ribble, 2013

Given how our society is becoming more and more technologically connected every day, I feel that Digital Citizenship is one of the most important skills we can teach are students. During our discussion of this subject in class, many people wondered at what age we should start to teach this skill. Some teachers wait until middle or high school, when students are really using technology every day. A few months ago, I might have thought the same. However, I attended a workshop a few days ago on Education Technology put on by Valerie Irvine that totally shifted my view. I now believe that we should start teaching digital citizenship from the moment students step into our kindergarten classrooms. She suggested that it is important to teach digital citizenship along with other social and personal care skills. We teach most of these skills while students are still young enough to respect and value the opinions of the adults in their lives. Once students move into middle and high school, they tend to disregard adult opinions in favour of those of their peers. So, if we want students to learn digital citizenship from us rather than from their peers (which I believe most of us do), then it is important to start early.

Students today are so saturated with technology in every aspect of their lives. Knowing this, why would we want to create an environment within out classrooms that does not look like the rest of their world? Ohler (2010) asks: Should we consider students to have two separate lives – a relatively digitally unplugged life at school and a digitally saturated life away from school – or should we consider them to have one life that integrates their lives as students and digital citizens? I firmly believe the right choice is the latter. How will students learn responsible internet use if we do not teach them?

So, knowing that we need to teach digital citizenship, here are some great resources to help:

2Learn.ca and LBPSB Digital Citizenship both have lesson plans and resources for digital citizenship lessons, and the second site even has resources in French!

Webonauts is an interactive game that teaches children concepts such as keeping their password safe and only believing information from trusted, verifiable websites.

Generation Z?

What is this idea of Generation Z? We spent a long time in class today discussing this concept and what it means for how we teach. Here are a few statistics that shocked me:

1. These kids have no idea what life was like with no internet. Like, none. How weird is that? I use the internet every day, but I can definitely imagine living without it if I had to. How different would my worldview be if I saw internet as something that was as expected as electricity or running water?
2. They spend more time playing video games than they do in school (Over 10,000 hours vs less than 9,000 on average). This really shouldn’t be a surprise to me since every kid I know plays video games whenever they are given a chance. Still, I’m going to need to find ways to manage their love for video games, or maybe incorporate them into my lessons.
3. They are connected most of the time. This is more applicable to older students, but most have a cell phone and are online connecting with people for a large part of their days. Many teachers force their students to be “unplugged” while in the classroom, but what if we could find ways to teach being connected responsibly (ie not texting while someone is talking to you) instead?

Although today’s generation presents a lot of challenges for us as teachers, I think the opportunities available are also amazing. There are so many possibilities for research and connecting to our world that weren’t available when the only available resources to students were found in the school library and when others were reachable only by phone or snail mail. I’m excited to see how these possibilities could play out in my classroom.

Sources:

Click to access Prensky%20-%20Digital%20Natives,%20Digital%20Immigrants%20-%20Part1.pdf

http://www.wikia.com/Generation_Z:_A_Look_at_the_Technology_and_Media_Habits_of_Today%E2%80%99s_Teens