A Vision Of Technology Integration

When I first began my journey into the field of education I had a preconceived idea of what a classroom looks like. It had been many years since I had stepped foot in a public school classrooms and I still envisioned them to be the traditional classrooms I received my education in. Students sitting at desks as teachers taught their lessons as students followed along in textbooks and notes were written on the chalkboard.

I still thought of computers as a tool in the classroom children were allowed to take turns using to play approved games. Most adults my age will have fond memories of Oregon Trail, but using a computer or any type of technology as a tool for learning in the classroom did not cross my mind. Recognizing the potential of technology as a teaching tool can be found as far back as the 1960's. After Seymour Papert a professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology collaborated with Swill psychologist Jean Piaget he developed the Logo programming language and began introducing it to children. This program was designed to be simple enough for those who do not yet have sophisticated mathematical understanding. With minimal instruction students were able to write programs that controlled the movements of a turtle robot. Since the 1960's to today nearly every public school in the United States has been connected to the Internet making it possible for students to now connect with the world (Boss 2014). 

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Just having computers in the classroom does not mean you have integrated technology into your classroom. As I walked into a elementary school last week in Concord NH I was shocked to learn each student had the use of iPads on a 1:1 bases and each teacher as well. Every student in the school was using an iPad! Not only did students have access to theses tool but they were using them in their every day learning. In a report done for the foundation Cable in the Classroom James Marshall found that technology “complements what a teacher does naturally…With ever expanding contents and technology choices, from videos to multimedia to the Internet, there’s an unprecedented needed to understand the recipe for success, which involves the learner, the teacher, the content, and the environment in which technology is used” (Boss 2014). Fourth graders were researching Birds of Prey and making Picture Collages, Second Graders were practicing spelling writing their spelling words, and there was everything in between. It really was an amazing thing to observe. In November 2010 the latest National Education Technology Plan was released by the Department of Education entitled Transforming American Education: Learning Powered by Technology. This plan outlines a vision to “leverage the learning sciences and modern technology to create engaging, relevant, and personalized learning experiences for all learning that mirror students daily lives and the reality of their futures. In contrast to traditional classroom instruction this requires that we put students at the center an empower them to take control of their own learning by providing flexibility on several dimensions.” The plan also calls for “connected teaching” in which educators connect to “resources and expertise that improve their own instructional practices and guide them in becoming facilitators and collaborators in their students increasingly self directed learning” (Boss 2014). Teachers were truly providing their students with an opportunity to work with tools that will only become more important and necessary and they turn into adults and enter the work force. The use of this type of technology will only be more a part of the work force for them then we can imagine and it is important we give these students the opportunity to truly be able to understand everything you are able to use them for; writing, researching, programming and so much more.

Work Cited:

Boss, Suzie "Technology integration: a short history" April 13, 2014  www.edutopia.org/technology-integration-history 

WW

Week 2 Literature Review # 1

Article Overview:

Can incorporating an iPad or tablet as a teaching teaching tool improve a students ability to learn a subject or topic? In an article written for National Geographic entitled iPads Improve Classroom Learning, Study Finds the author Brian Handwerk digs into this question. Handwerk discusses a study done by physicist Matthew Schneps at the Harvard Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics in Massachusetts. Many schools are using iPads and tablets as a way to cut back on the cost of text books and are using these tools as a way to deliver the same textbook material. In Schneps study he used iPads to actually allow students to simulate things they couldn't otherwise experience using traditional teaching tools such as text books or just reading the material and having it accompanied by a traditional photograph or picture. Schneps wanted to see if using these tools to simulate a 3-D experience of a topic would this improve the learning experience for students?

The topic example used in this article was the Solar System and the study was done with high school students in Bedford, Massachusetts. The high school used the Solar Walk simulation from Vito Technology to explore a 3-D, pinch to zoom display in two different ways. The first display depicted the solar system as it would commonly be seen in text books with the features of each planet not to size and unrealistic. The second display used a true to scale mode that actually allowed students to see how small planets are compared to their orbits and showed viewers just how vast the Solar System is. After using the 3-D system students showed learning gains in as little as 20 minutes. As an end result the students were able to  show improvement using both modes although the true to scale mode was effective in not only learning but also clearing up the scale misconception of the Solar System. The research suggests that tablets could aid in the study of many scientific concepts that are difficult to grasp such as the Solar System as well as other large scale subjects, distance and time.

Personal Connection:

As I was reading this article it brought me back to when I was working in a child care center helping a Kindergarten teacher. She had been teaching a unit about whales and on this day they were discussing size. They discussed the size of different types of whales and how the size of a whale compared to humans and other animals. To reinforce size she had brought her students into the hall way and using tape on the floor they measured out the size of different whales as well as other animals in an effort to demonstrate the vast size of a whale. This was probably close to ten years ago and while there were computers in the classroom there was no Internet so they used books to look at pictures and photographs to look at whales. While I still think this hands on approach was extremely effective I feel being able to view on a screen an actual 3-D whale as well as other animals to compare size could have been extremely engaging and beneficial to this unit. A 3-D image on a screen would allow a student to really connect the size that they couldn't experience looking at pictures.

Reflection:

Curious about the Solar Walk simulation from Vito Technology I searched for it online. It is an app you can purchase for download for .99. The app has won several awards; featured in Best Apps 3 years in a row, won gold with the National Parenting Publications Award in Educational Tools for Parents and Children category, and has amazing customer reviews. http://www.vitotechnology.com

I found this article interesting. Using technology as the "new tool" for teaching is everywhere these days. Although this article did demonstrate that these students were able to learn this topic using this tool it confirmed they were also able to learn this same material using traditional teaching. I think the reason why technology is so important is not because it can teach a subject better then traditional methods it just teaches it in another way. Classrooms are made up of all different types of students who all learn different ways and technology is a great tool to use to give an engaging hands on experience of a subject an educator is trying to teach. I don't believe technology should replace traditional teaching but is an incredible tool to be used to help reach more students in your classroom and really connect them to a topic.

Learning Outcomes:

# 1 - Demonstrate the understanding of how technologies can effectively promote student learning

# 7 - Demonstrate an understanding of the use of adaptive technologies and other and other digital resources to personalize and differentiate learning activities for every student