Can Technology Be a Bad Thing?

In 2011, almost 2012, why is technology still a class kids go to to learn to use a tool and not an integrated part of the lessons we teach? 
In my K-4 Elementary Building I feel teachers try to incorporate technology in authentic and meaningful ways as much as possible but that the technology may become a "tool" for several different reasons:
1.  Teacher training time is limited.  Teachers may have gained a limited comfort level with the technology available and have not had the time to explore how they could use the tools in a more in-depth nature.  As technology changes are unlimited & rapid while teachers' "free" time is limited it makes it hard to keep an equal balance. 
2.  Emphasis on state assessments and indicators have become a driving force for instruction.  This often limits time for much else...especially using technology in a more open-ended, creative format.  I will be interested to see how the new Core Standards affect instruction and the use of technology as many of the new indicators are more open-ended, collaborative, interpretive, etc.  The new standards could be a window of opportunity. 

Effective Instruction

After reading the two articles presented "A Model of Effective Instruction" and "Principles of effective instruction: general standards for teachers and instructional designers", I found these to offer very similar views.  Both stressed adapting goals and instructional methods based on the needs of the students and subject matter.  To do this you must first assess the prior knowledge of the students and connect it to the new learning.  The articles felt that quality instruction was motivating, well paced, and purpose driven.  Pacing and feedback were common denominators mentioned in both articles. 

"A Model of Effective Instruction" went deeper in stressing the  QAIT characteristics:  quality, appropriateness, incentive, and time.  Teachers must exhibit enthusiasm for subject matter.  Cooperative learning opportunities should be incorporated for quality instruction and time split between "allocated" (teacher led) and "engaged" (student work).  

It is important for LMS to have the capabilities to deliver quality instruction as they:
*  see all students in the building
*  have a limited amount of time so must give immediate feedback
*  have indicators that are cross-curricular
*  teach indicators that directly affect the students in other categories and curriculum, such as research and study skills
*  can teach academic honesty indicators
*  stress reading and writing which flows across all curriculum

A LMS role in helping other staff members deliver effective instruction includes:
*  supporting their curriculum
*  collaborating with all staff
*  purchasing and providing professional development resources (and training if needed)
*  using the common expectations and school-wide rules, goals, behaviors, etc.
*  passing on copyright information

Effective Instruction Mind Map

active appropriateness choices classroom-management collaborative community-base cooperative-learning cross-curricular differentiated feedback goal-driven incentive meaningful motivation organized pacing peer-led prior-knowledge purposeful quality rapport real-world-problem-solving reflection scaffold sequential student-ownership technology time-on-task

created at TagCrowd.com

Presentation Design

"This week we began studying presentation design.  I had no idea..."

Ideas:

*  Set yourself apart

*  Killer title and opening slide

*  Rotate text

*  CRAP-contrast   repetition  alignment  proximity 

 Questions:
*  Check out skitch.com (for screen shots)
*  Check out compfight.com (for visuals--may be free?)

*  How do I ensure the hi-res images?

Concerns:

*  Good presentations take hours of prep---not usually that feasible when working full time and planning multiple lessons per day

*  Video sites to borrow from other than youtube that are kid friendly and meet curriculum needs?

*  When using "unexpected photos" or videos it can sometimes be hard to find some that relate and totally don't set the kids off task. 

Digital Natives & Digital Immigrants

1.  Are you a digital native or digital immigrant?  I am a digital immigrant.  Our first home computer had floppy disks--and we were pretty advanced at the time only because my dad worked for IBM.  My first cell phone was in a bag that had to be plugged into the car to work.  To this day I have to print out emails, documents, etc. and hand write my questions/responses before I type them in....I can't seem to transition to composing on the computer.  Probably the biggest blow to my "native" friends is that I DISLIKE texting! 

2.  How are you equipped to teach digital natives in your classroom?   This has been a long process.  I try to attend any workshops my district provides in the field of technology and have had technology as a professional development goal for the past several years.  This current masters program is helping me further my skills and comfort level.  I try to make my lessons interactive and as "digital" as possible by using lots of graphics, yotube, e-instruction, etc.  I also try to chunk my hour lessons into 15 minute sections to help accommodate for the "natives'" new style of learning. 

3.  What further steps could you take to learn the "language" of multimedia? As technology is continually changing and expanding I think this process will be constant for myself as an educator too.  I will always need to stay as current as possible with technology skills and tools.  Attending workshops, taking classes, and learning from the "natives" will be imperative to successful instruction.  

4.  What steps can you take to keep students safe from youtube content?  I work in a K-4 building.  Our students do not have access to youtube when they log in as a student on the computer system. I preview videos before I put them into instruction.  The site:  http://safeshare.tv/ allows you to take the advertisements off a youtube video and save it as a safer "content" that the students could access independently. 

(TECH) Things That Make You Go Hmmmmmm...

1.  Smart boards--hear so many good things...how can I convince my administrators to find the money to get some???
2.  ebooks?  How will they affect the future of school libraries?  Will kids eventually lose the joy of holding an actual book?
3.  ipads vs. textbooks?  really cost beneficial?  Can they be updated/replaced with ever-changing technology?
4.  Penpals across the country/continents...anyone have an easy site to set that up?
5.  Always evolving technology....how are we going to afford it???
6.  Handwriting?  worth taking the time to teach anymore?
7.  Spelling?  with texting, IMing and spellcheck how long until this is nearly obsolete and a complete new language is born to go along with LOL, BTW, and ROFL?
8.  Plagiarism---does technology make it too easy?
9.  Safety for kids?  How do we really teach and instill good citizenship rules in regards to technology?  Hard to work on cause-effect when you can't "see" who/what you are hurting.
10.  Are teachers eventually going to be totally replaceable?  Do I need to be looking for an alternative occupation for later in my lifetime??

Instructional Design...has education missed the boat?

This blog entry is in response to the quote:  "Education has missed the boat, with respect to instructional design.  Teachers come up with lesson plans on the fly, with little thought to why they are presenting information or even who their audience is.  Teacher training, at the university level and during professional development, needs to focus on helping teachers become comfortable with instructional design principles."


It has been awhile since I was in a university setting to address instructional design but I must say after thinking about this quote I am saying "Go Baker University Wildcats!"  I can still recite the acronym the Introduction to Elementary Education professor (a local principal) used to teach the Madeline Hunter lesson plan design format.  I teach that lesson plan to this day which definitely puts me on the linear models Dick and Carey.  (I would say my lifestyle and personality also fall on this "systematic" format as well so that probably helps make it a good fit).  Every single one of our student teaching lessons had to be turned in with this format--stressing Bloom's Taxonomy for the objective starting with "The learner will..." 

That same professor also instructed though, that by the end of a teaching day one is so exhausted because teaching is on-the-spot decision making--this allows for us to deviate from the linear models and follow the ovals (planning/revision/formative evaluation/project management) of Morrison-Ross & Kemp.  As a "veteran" teacher (some of my kindergartners are done with college so I guess that qualifies as veteran), I can say some of my most valuable professional development opportunities have been review on instructional design.  I would be very concerned to think some of my colleagues were going "willie-nillie" while delivering lessons.  A few years ago our district brought in Dr. Marcia Tate. (http://bedford.tn.schoolwebpages.com/education/components/scrapbook/default.php?sectiondetailid=1178)
I still incorporate her 20 Brain Based strategies into my lesson design.  They are centered around learner characteristics, instructional objectives, instructional strategies & delivery, and evaluation instruments (making Morrison-Ross & Kemp proud!)  This type of quality professional development should be a key factor to all school districts. 

I cannot imagine being motivated as a teacher to lead instruction without doing some form of needs analysis...why teach the lesson well then?  why put any thought into your delivery methods?  why evaluate in the end to help you decide what the next step in problem-solving should be?  I hope this quote is not an indication of the majority--no matter which model suits your personality and curriculum, I hope all teachers are adopting an instructional design theory.