Continuing my GAME plan

Last week, we developed our GAME plan for improving our confidence and proficiency in two standards.  Looking at my GAME plan, I have to find ways to increase student collaboration.  If I perform this task without the use of technology, there is no equipment that I need.  I just need to be disciplined enough to follow through on my plan.  If I do require students to participate in a blog, or other social media sites such as Edmodo, I will need students to be able to access these sites.  That means that students will need computer and internet access.  Participating at school would be helpful, but we are not ready for the one-to-one environment yet.  We would need to reserve the computer room.  However, that would mean I would teach every day in the computer room.  That, obviously, is not feasible as there are other teachers desiring to use the computer labs.  I think the better way to start out is having students collaborate in class without the use of technology.  Then, outside of class (for homework), students could participate in collaborating with other students using technology.  An issue potentially arises if a student does not have a computer at home, or internet access at home.  In my school, that usually is not a problem as most students can access the internet at home.  If there is a problem, these students have several options.  They can use the computer lab or library (which also contains computers) after school.  There are computers in my classroom that work, even though they are slow.  Other science labs have computers that work well.  Students also have access to the public library for free.  In addition, many local business make wifi available for customers.  If there are exceptional circumstances where the student still can not complete his work, he should see me to work out a solution to his situation.  I have been able to incorporate more discussion in each of my classes.  I think this collaboration has helped a great deal.  I have not been able to incorporate the increase in collaboration with technology.  However, during the week this week, I will lay out the Edmodo page for my AP Physics class for next year.  We’ll get a jump on that now instead of waiting for the school year to begin.

The other areas where I am seeking to improve is in the use of formative tests and how their results can improve my instruction.  The resource I will need more than anything else is time.  This will allow me to develop different assessments so students can have a greater opportunity to express to me their acquired knowledge.  With one week left before final exams, it becomes quite difficult to start something new.  I would like to develop (or find on the internet) some online quiz where students can input their answer to questions.  I would also like to become more fluent in screencasts.  When I had jury duty this past week, I made  3 screencasts for my students to watch.  The ones who actually watched the screencasts said they understood the material better.  The others still had questions about how to solve these questions. 

Tim Trotta

My GAME Plan

My GAME plan

As I reflect upon the ISTE NETS for Teachers, I find myself struggling in multiple categories.  Two indicators that I need to work on in particular are 1c and 2d (International Society for Technology in Education, 2008).  Indicator 1c states that teachers should promote student collaboration when reflecting so as to ensure student understanding of the concepts.  This reflection should also ensure students’ abilities thinking, planning, and creative processes are at a satisfactory level.  Indicator 2d has to do with how students are assessed and how I, as a teacher, used the information collected through assessments to enhance learning in the classroom.

My Goals for improving my instruction to meet the ISTE NETS standards are twofold.  First, I would like there to be some collaboration during each one of my classes, each time we meet.  This could be done with or without technology.  Student collaboration will enhance their learning.  A second step to that goal would be for students to make a post to a blog or social media site such as Edmodo.  In this post, they will synthesize their understanding.  Students would have to reply to one post each day.  This could be done by having students select who they respond to, or I could use a random number generator to assign students.  My second goal would be to include some form of formative assessment each time I give a test.  I could make that a percentage of the test grade.  By doing this, I will be able to see the areas where students may be lacking in understanding.

After setting my goals, I will need to take Action.  For my first goal, I must ensure that I allow time in my classes for collaboration.  I usually try to, but sometimes the class does not go as planned.  I must prepare for each class knowing that I will include collaboration, even if it means starting class that way to review homework or the previous class.  Having students collaborate in the middle of the lesson would also benefit students as they would be able to fill in holes they missed during the presentation of the new material.  Requiring blog posts and responses may be difficult  due to establishing new routines with only two weeks left of school.  However, I can lay groundwork for next year as all of next year’s AP Physics students are in my honors physics class this year.  The actions for my second goals would involve preparing the formative assessments and determining how they will be graded.  I will also need to establish a routine so that I can use the information from the formative assessments in future classes.

Monitoring my progress is the next step in my GAME plan.  I need to ensure that I follow the actions that I layed out.  It will be easy for me to see if I do not follow the plans as these actions involve qualitative measures.  I will have to police myself to make sure I allow time for collaboration.  The same things is true for my use of formative assessments. 

The last step in this process is the Evaluation step.  Ultimately, my students should reap the benefits of this GAME plan, even if they do not realize it at the time.  While I must ensure I follow the steps, students will be the ones to let me know how it is working.  Students may not like to performs certain tasks, but they usually confess to which actions benefit them in their understanding of the concepts.  I should also receive feedback from the quality of the collaboration (in class or online) and the results of the formative assessments.  Ultimately, after a year or two, I would hope to see an increase in AP Exam scores. 

References

International Society for Technology in Education. (2008). National education standards for teachers (NETS-T). Retrieved from http://www.iste.org/Libraries/PDFs/NETS_for_Teachers_2008_EN.sflb.ashx

Course Reflection - EDUC 6711

            During the last seven weeks, we studied several different learning theories and had the opportunity to grow as an educator.  In addition, we studied how integrating technology into these various learning theories can enhance student learning.  I have always felt that, since students learn in different ways, we must learn to incorporate different instructional strategies in our classes.  Having studied the various instructional tools throughout this course, I feel I have a broader range of tools to use in my classroom.  I also feel I have a better grasp on why certain students respond differently to the same instruction.  Trying to reach all learners is a challenge.  As educators, we must constantly evolve so we can continue to offer our students the best opportunity to grow in our classrooms.
            In week one of this course, we developed a personal theory of learning.  In it, I stated that all students have an innate desire to learn.  Students lose focus and motivation when the challenges become too great for them to handle.  Once students have the confidence that they can achieve in the classroom, they are more willing to work hard to battle challenging topics.  In my theory of learning, I also stated that students learn in different ways.  As teachers, we need to vary our instruction so all students can be successful.
            I would like to make some modifications of my personal theory of learning.  I still think students want to learn.  I still think instruction needs to vary to help students.  However, my focus before this class centered on how I delivered instruction to students.  Studying constructionism and connectivism allowed me to understand the power of learning strategies where students learned the concepts on their own with me being more of a facilitator.  Let the kids build a roller coaster to develop an understanding of energy and its conservation.  Let students work together and learn from each other as opposed to everyone learning my way.  With the many technological tools available, the possibilities are endless.  I may be able to learn from students in the same way they learn from me.  If I can learn to let students take on greater responsibility, students will be able to better understand the concepts I am trying to teach them.
            Two tools I would like to incorporate into my classes are Voice Thread and One Note.  I see an extremely high value in using Voice Thread when I know I am going to be out.  Instead of students working out of their textbooks, I could develop a Voice Thread lesson plan to instruct them.  Students would be able to collaborate using Voice Thread to achieve a particular learning goal.  One Note is a tool that I feel also has great potential.  One Note allows for collaborative work, especially in the one-to-one environment.  Even if we do not go to the one-to-one environment, One Note can still be used to have students work cooperatively.  There are many other tools I have learned about during this course.  However, I am a believer that one cannot learn and implement many tools at once.  As I continue to develop my repertoire of instructional skills, I will be able to include more tools into my classroom.
            One long-term goal change I would like to make is to institute a more regular lab/student-centered learning activity using technology.  While I use some of these activities throughout the year, I feel like I can incorporate more.  If I planned out more and preset the dates,  I would be more inclined to do more.  Oftentimes, I get caught up in how much of the curriculum I have covered.  I then have to decide to spend time on a lab or to move on to another topic.  Sometimes, due to time constraints, I choose the latter.  I need to make a better effort to incorporate these activities on a regular basis.
            Another long-term goal I would like to change is to use more collaborative work.  Many students have their own laptops in class.  We are looking to implement a one-to-one program where each student has his own laptop.  Many schools who have already implemented such a program use One Note regularly.  By learning how to use One Note, will be in a position to better incorporate this application in a classroom setting.  By doing this, students will be able to collaborate much easier.  Until we do that, I will have to find other ways of students collaborating.  By having students work together, they can learn from each other.
            There are still many ideas that I would like to implement.  These take time to complete.  However, I am making progress on that front.  In addition, I am a member of the technology committee.  I need to continue bringing ideas to the committee to enhance the learning environment of the school, not just my classroom.  As I develop my skill level in this area, other teachers will be able to do so as well.  This will give our students a better chance of success in the classroom.

Tim Trotta

VoiceThread

http://voicethread.com/share/2510339/

Here is the link to my VoiceThread.  I was very dissappointed in the user interface.  I felt it was not very user friendly.  Maybe it takes a few times to get a better feel for the interface.

Tim Trotta

Connectivism and Social Learning in Practice

Social Learning Theory states that students learn from interacting with each other to build artifacts (Laureate Education, Inc, 2010).  Students sitting idly at their desks listening to lectures are not benefitting them.  Student must be actively engaged in the learning process by interacting with each other.  Students learn a great deal from each other during this interaction.

In Using technology with classroom instruction that works, we learn about cooperative learning.  Cooperative learning does not help students at all unless the strategy is used to enhance student learning.  Using cooperative learning just for the sake of doing so will not provide for the best learning environment.  However, when used effectively, students will learn a great deal.  Technology should be incorporated whenever possible.  Using multimedia, such as creating a video, requires students to work together.  Students may not feel thrilled about the subject material in the class, but having a student be the director of a film could be his forte.  Videos cannot be made without working together. 

Another strategy that is often used is referred to as the jigsaw strategy.  Here, students are responsible for teaching other members of the class who are researching a different topic (Laureate Education, Inc., 2010).  Students form groups with a similar topic and research that topic.  This research can be done in a way that students work together.  Even after the research is complete, the group must form an outline of material they will teach to others.  Then members of this group return to their original groups and teach the rest of the class what they discovered.  This is effective because if forces every single student to teach a topic to somebody else.  I have always felt that teaching a topic to someone else is a great way to understand the topic yourself.

Tim Trotta

Laureate Education, Inc. (Producer). (2010). Social Learning Theories [DVD]. Baltimore, MD:

Author.

Pitler, H., Hubbell, E., Kuhn, M., & Malenoski, K. (2007). Using technology with classroom instruction 
             that works. Alexandria, VA: ASCD.

Constructionism

Constructionist view learning as an internal process that occurs when students build external artifacts (Laureate Education Inc., 2010).  Students build an object (an artifact) in the learning process.  While they are building, they assimilate and accommodate their schemas so they can move toward equilibration (Laureate Education, Inc., 2010).  In doing this, students are active in the learning process.  The teacher will only act as a facilitator.

Technology can be a tremendous advantage to this type of learning.  As we saw in Ch 11 of Using Technology with Classroom Instruction that Works, Mrs. Omar’s 5^th grade class learned about investing money and which model works best.  They did not have to spend a great deal of time working out high school math problems in the process.  The spreadsheet she had her students use computed the numbers for them.  This allowed them to accomplish the teacher’s objectives without getting bogged down in mathematical computations.

Using data collection tools is another use of technology to accomplish learning in Constructionism.  Using sensors and data collection probes, allows students to find data, and be able to plot the data accurately and quickly.  This allows students more time to analyze the data.  From here, the teacher can expand the lesson to include additional thought-provoking questions.

In my physics classes, we use Vernier’s LabPros and data collection equipment.  Students like it because it allows them to analyze the data without worrying about drawing the graphs.  The graphs are already drawn.  When students look at the graphs and various points on the graph, they usually are able to identify what it is I want them to see.  One example is a walking activity.  Students can see how velocity and acceleration work together.  This also helps them to see what is meant by negative velocity and/or negative acceleration.  This is a topic that many students find difficult to overcome.

Many of the problem-based learning classes can get caught up in “little issues”.  An example would be the graphs mentioned earlier.  When these “little issues” are resolved, students can focus on the real task at hand. 

Tim Trotta

Laureate Education, Inc. (Producer). (2004). Constructionist vs. Constructivist Learning Theories [DVD]. Baltimore, MD: Author.

Pitler, H., Hubbell, E., Kuhn, M., & Malenoski, K. (2007). Using technology with classroom instruction that works. Alexandria, VA: ASCD.

Cognitive Learning Practices - Week 3

This week’s learning resources address how our brain processes information, and how educators can use this information to facilitate student learning.  Much of the information relates to how students can transfer information/data to their short-term memories, and then to their long-term memories.  When students make a meaningful relationship with this storage system, they will be better able to retrieve this information when needed.  As Dr. Orey states in his video, it is not that students forgot a fact; it is students forgot how to retrieve that fact.
 

Howard Pitler addresses cues, questions, and advance organizers as a strategy to help students in this endeavor of retrieving information.  Cues and questions are similar in that they attempt to trigger something in students’ memories to allow them to retrieve the needed information.  An example would be a teacher trying to help a student remember when Christopher Columbus discovered America.  The teacher might say, “Columbus sailed the ocean blue…” and let the student finish with the correct answer.  In my AP Physics class today, I helped my students memorize formulas for the moment of inertia of a rotating object.  I related a long rod rotated about one of its ends to a baseball bat. Its inertia formula is 1/3 ML².  A baseball player swings a 1/3 ML² rod.  Now when a student forgets the moment of inertia of a rod rotated about its end, I could ask him about the baseball player.  This question strategy is similar to a cue in that it will trigger the retrieval of information. 

Advance organizers help with memory as well, but in a different way.  Advance organizers can help students classify information in an attempt to keep information organized.  In this way, students can make better sense of large amounts of information.  When students can keep this information straight, and have a better understanding of the meaning of the information, there is a better chance of retrieval of this information when needed.  I have been using a graphic organizer for years in my physics classes.  Students are required to have a column for all the given information in a problem.  They are also required to have a column for the information they need to find.  They must also start solving the assigned problem with an equation.  In requiring students to use this advance organizer, they are able to stay more organized throughout their solving of the problem.  Even though students do not like to do this because they feel it is quicker to just “do the work in my head,” students will need the organization skills when solving more complex problems involving multiple unknown variables.  These problems cannot be solved in their heads as they will need to use multiple equations to solve problems with multiple unknowns.  When students have to solve a type of problem they have not seen recently, using the graphic organizer will help them stay organized and remind them of the process used.

There are many advance organizers students may use.  Many of them involve the use of technology.  Word processing and spreadsheet software allows students to take notes.  Many of my current students use these applications regularly with success.  There are also online organizers.  Kidspiration and Inspiration are two that are mentioned in our text.  While I have not used them, they appear to be easy to use and extremely helpful.  The additional benefit of using technology is that students have grown up using these tools.  Students tend to prefer using computer applications over traditional tools, such as paper and pencil.  When students use these tools, there is a better chance the information they are processing will enter both the short-term and long-term memory locations in their brains.

The other strategy in our text that we studied this week is “Summarizing and Note Taking.”  This is a skill that almost all students need to practice.  Even my “cream of the crop” students do not understand how to take notes or to summarize.  This is a skill that must be practiced.  Many students are afraid if they delete a piece of information, it will not be in their notes when they need it.  I am constantly working with students with their note-taking skills.  While I feel like some progress is being made, I feel I could use more advance organizers to allow students to take better notes.

Concept mapping is another tool presented.  Using this strategy, students are able to organize information.  The concept map allows students to rearrange various nodes of information to a format that suits each learner.  Software tools can also take the concept map and export it into an outline.  I have not used these in the past, but I certainly feel like it is something I can implement into my classes. 

Virtual field trips are another strategy used by teachers.  Field trips are valuable experienced if properly planned out.  Students can perform more hands-on tasks on a field trip.  Unfortunately, logistics prevent students from taking many field trips throughout the year.  A virtual field trip can provide many of the same benefits.  I have been taking my physics students to an amusement park at the end of the year.  While it is a fun trip, students are expected to collect data and solve physics problems as they relate to the rides.  With many students playing spring sports, it is very difficult to have everyone attend the trip.  For these students, and other students who do not wish to pay to attend the field trip, students can take a virtual field trip.  Youtube has many attractions from amusement parks all over the United States.  Virtual field trips put students in a real-life situation without actually going there.  Students tend to find these more interesting, and will make learning meaningful on these virtual field trips.  This in turn, will allow greater retrieval of information when it is needed due to the associations students are able to make.