What works for me?

I have to admit my mind has been running since the start of this course.  This is due in part to the nature and content of the course and the fact that it has made me try to project out into my future classroom.  You see, right now, I do not have any computers in my classroom, so I have to make some assumptions about what will and won’t work for my students and me.  Add to this the fact that 3 weeks ago we were informed that the 1:1 devices that were supposed to make it to my grade next fall might not be happening and you can see why my head has been spinning.  The good news for me is that I am an eternal optimist and last week I got official word that 1:1 would be in my classes next year and so my envisioning of the future Mrs. L. Smith’s Classroom continues.  

So to the question of what works for me? I think two of the most powerful tools I have received in this class were the SAMR model and the Technology Integration Matrix.  Since I was introduced to them they have really helped me to look at technology and learning in a new way and I think they will help to guide me as I develop curriculum and integrate technology next year.  I feel very comfortable with the concepts of blogging, web 2.0 tools and even online assessments, but really looking at technology for more than just technology’s sake can be difficult for me.  I mean, I love to have kids on the computer, but was I making their learning anymore authentic or meaningful?  Now I have the tools to help me evaluate just this question.  

I’m not sure yet what will be hard to incorporate.  I know that sounds like a copout, but it really isn’t.  Again, because I am an optimist I sort of go in to things believing they could work until I see that for me and my situation they can’t.  As of today, I don’t really feel that way about anything we have studied in class.  The only thing I think that may be  issues are the programs that we have explored that have an associated cost.  For instance I LOVE the idea of VoiceThread, but it looks like to use it the way it was described in our exploration would cost money and money is going to be something that we won’t have a lot of.  So that will be the hard to incorporate part, but there is so much out there that is free I think I can find a workaround.

Camtasia in The Classroom

I began flipping my Advanced 7^th Grade Science Classes this fall when I learned that the class time was going to be cut in half, but the goal was to still try and cover the same amount of material.  “YIKES”!!!!, was my first response, but then I began doing some research on flipping and that seemed to be a possible solution.  I began using TechSmith’s Camtasia software to record my lessons.  It does cost and I know there are free alternatives, but the ease of use and editing made the purchase well worth it. 

Students watch a short (2-10 minute video) each evening and come prepared to work on labs or class assignments.  It’s amazing to me how something that might have taken 30 minutes of class time can be accomplished in 10 minutes or less in a video.  The students that need to pause and rewind can without making the rest of the class wait.  The feedback from the students and parents has been very positive and I certainly have been able to come much closer to meeting the goal of teaching the same number of standards in half the time.

I have all of my videos uploaded to youtube and then link them to my Weebly site scienceisfun.org.  Students can watch them anytime and anywhere as long as they have access to the internet via a computer, iPad or phone.

As our school moves to 1:1 fully next year, I see a number of additional uses for screen capture software both from the teacher perspective and from the students’ perspective.  As with all things technology, I am continuing to learn the best way to use these tools, but I see some great merit in flipping in order to have more class time for labs and other hands on experiences.

Technology Integration Matrix

Let me begin by saying that I really love the Technology Integration Matrix.  It reminds me a great deal of the Inquiry Matrix that we use when planning and evaluating inquiry in science lessons.  I also really appreciated the videos that could give you a visual real world snapshot of what each level looked like.  That being said I have to give a disclaimer.  I currently teach in a classroom with a smartboard, a teacher computer and 7 slow (and let me emphasize slow) old computers with limited software.  Because of this I am limited on what I can do as it relates to technology integration at this point.  But next year my students will have either netbooks or iPads and that is why I am working hard to prepare to use these awesome tools to their full potential.

On the following Characteristics of the Learning Environment (Active, Collaborative, Constructive, and Authentic) I would rate myself in the Adoption Level. I do use my technology all the time.  However, I would say that when I looked at the Transformation videos I am not far from allowing the freedom to choose, collaborate and control learning that each of these environments potentially have with the addition of technology.  We currently use guided to open inquiry and students do direct a great deal of their learning, their research, their problem solving and their final projects.  They are just currently old school (posters, some powerpoints or prezis), but the transition with our current curriculum next year should not be too difficult to move towards transformation.

In the area of Goal Directed, I am a little closer to entry level and think I will find this one harder to move from.  I say this because I am still struggling with how to allow students freedom to set goals while still meeting all the standards necessary for their grade level.  However, I currently do have the students do a great deal of reflection with their work and this along with additional training to move in the transformation direction will help me get there as well.  Ultimately I do want to do what’s best for the kids.  

Role of Blended/Online Learning in K-12 Education

When the concept of online learning first came into popularity it was for college students.  It made perfect sense to me as many college students, particularly graduate students, couldn’t make it to a “brick and mortar” classroom due to jobs, distance, and other circumstances.  I then began to hear of K-12 experiences and remember the fight that went on in the state house in Indiana over whether schools could be 100% online or what percentage online was appropriate.  I had very mixed feelings about this and still do.

The typical student that I felt would benefit from an all online school setting was the at-risk student who had been unsuccessful in the traditional classroom due to behavioral issues, bullying, pacing (too fast or too slow), family transience, and other special circumstances.  I thought, “Wow, if these kids could be taught from home, online how great would that be?”  Then about two years ago I began to get students back from the main blended school in this area.  They had failed miserably due in part to the same factors that I thought would have made the online school a perfect fit for them.  Parents wanted to have an easy out from traditional school and instead found that their participation in the process was much greater in the blended environment.  They became the one responsible for making sure their child was doing schoolwork and not playing online games.  Cyberbullying happened just like old fashioned bullying and sometime the bullying was even worse. 

After this experience I began to question how completely online learning would work for students.  I certainly believe that there is a place for distance learning and that the 21^st Century Student is a natural for this type of instruction.  I also believe education would be remiss not to teach students how to work in this environment as they will be required to use these technologies in college and in the workplace.  I just feel that there must be a discussion about how to best do this to enrich students’ learning experience.