Access Through Technology

Access Through Technology” got my attention immediately. The author states that Census 2000 statistics revealed that “more than 19 percent of the U.S. population aged five and older are people with disabilities.” In my opinion, this is a huge number. Since the beginning of the American with Disabilities Act (ADA) of 1990, libraries have made major advances to accommodate people with disabilities. Adaptive or assistive technology (AT) helps individuals compensate for their disabilities. The author talks about the library having the primary responsibility to meet the needs of students with disabilities, but I would have liked to have heard how the individual classroom handles these requirements. A fourth grader with very low eyesight attended my school last year. What best accommodations could be presented to him when a teacher writes material on the board? I enlarged the student’s music and noticed he struggled with very large print.

Differentiated Instruction and Implications for UDL Implementation

Differentiated instruction is described by Hall, Strangman, and Meyer as teaching students of “differing abilities in the same class.” Teaching should be concept and goal motivated, but the “degree of complexity should be adjusted to suit diverse learners.” The authors discuss flexible grouping and students working together in small groups. I felt this reading was excellent. I have found myself using differentiated instruction in instrumental music for grades 1-4. I have many levels of ability in my classes. When some students have learned a piano or recorder piece, they work in groups and help others learn the musical pieces. If all students kept working on the same music, some would become bored if the music was too easy for them. The article mentions students having “choices in their learning.” I feel if the student is given a choice, that student will take more ownership of the activity. Hall, Strangman, and Meyer also talk about using digital resources when implementing the Universal Design of Learning (UDL) theory. This digital equipment has the flexibility to modify the needs of individual learners, and this is very valuable asset, especially for people with special needs. The article mentioned providing students with “multiple media and formats” for learning. I believe teaching with multiple formats and media is important when considering the diverse skills, backgrounds, and personalities that are found in a classroom.

Engage Me or Enrage Me

Author Marc Pensky states that there are three types of students: 1) The pupils that are “self motivated”, 2) the children who “go through the motions”, and 3) the pupils who “tune us out” and are not listening. The author mentions that students today are engaged by something, whether it is the internet, video games, sports, music, etc. Yesterday’s education techniques are not working for all of today’s students. I agree with the author. Yesterday’s teacher centered lectures do not work with all students. Some of the old style lectures do not work even with me, a grown adult. I took a graduate class two years ago and the professor lectured dryly from the podium. After about fifteen minutes of this, I became bored. Later, I asked her if she could show some visuals. With the visuals, I felt I could become more engaged. Today’s youth need to be engaged too. The author believes digitally based lessons can engage more students. I agree with the author, but I would like to expand the subject of engaging to other mediums. An excited, enthusiastic teacher can also engage students. The fine arts can also engage children. Imagine using a skit to enhance a history lesson. I took a week long class on Gardner’s seven multiple intelligences and I found that some students are visual learners, some are logical-mathematical learners, some are musical-rhythmic learners, etc. If a lesson plan is presented in as many styles as possible, I believe more children can become engaged. There is an excellent website that describes Gardner’s multiple intelligences and states that a variety of multimedia can satisfy the learning styles that students personify http://www.tecweb.org/styles/gardner.html. Lastly, I feel there should be professional development on using digital games to support the 21^st century curriculum. This may be a challenge, however, with professional development being concentrated on passing standardized testing.

The Partnership for 21st Century Skills

This is an excellent website. The Partnership for 21^st (P21) Century Skills is a national group that “advocates for 21^st century readiness” for children. Currently fourteen states comprise the partnership. The global economy is very competitive and demands originality. In order to compete in this fast changing technological world, the three Rs must be fused with the four Cs (critical thinking and problem solving, collaboration, communication, and creativity and innovation). P21 offers online resources, state initiatives, and events and news. The website for P21 is http://www.p21.org/.

Educational Leadership: Teaching for the 21st Century: What Would Socrates Say?

Cookson feels that the current educational system needs to adapt to an ever evolving society. He states that four fundamentals should be the foundation for a new focus for education.

· Critical Thinking-know the difference between reality and fantasy. According to Cookson the media has strengthened our imaginary minds.

· Empirical Reasoning

· Collective Reasoning-Both Cookson and Siemens believe that knowledge is social and there are great advantages to teamwork. In my opinion, many minds are better than one. Brainstorming is a great way to inspire new ideas and jointly organize your thoughts.

Metacognition- This is a higher level skill. In past textbooks I was told it meant “Thinking about thinking.”

Cookson mentions the current system is not succeeding and needs to take the philosophy of Socrates. Socrates believed the classroom was everywhere and purposeful general questions need to be asked.

I enjoyed this article and felt it was relevant in our digital world.

Connectivism: A Learning Theory for the Digital Age

Learning has certainly changed from years past. As the article says, “The life of knowledge was measured in decades.” I can remember when a student went to college, received a degree, and stayed in a profession for the rest of that individual’s life. I think some of the younger students in class can remember some of their grandparents working in the same profession for years. Many times that person worked for the same corporation for a lifetime. With the rapid growth of technology, knowledge is now calculated in years and even months. Many people change careers and do not work for the same company their entire lifetimes. The article states that many learners shift to dissimilar “unrelated fields” over the span of their life span. With the rapid change of technology, decisions and priorities may need to be changed. Connectivism looks at the tools that are needed in the future as more important than skills currently owned. The author, George Siemens feels the field of education has been slow to recognize the effect of learning new tools.

“Researching Electronic Portfolios and Learner Engagement: The REFLECT Initiative”

In this article the electronic portfolio is described as the “learner’s authentic voice.” The use of multimedia adds to this voice. In addition, the portfolio tells a story and students need to keep their electronic portfolio throughout their life as a valuable “professional development tool.” I was reflecting on how valuable this e-portfolio can be for a young adult graduate. This portfolio can be used throughout this young adult’s career as a valuable tool for interview and career enhancement. Since I am a digital immigrant, my career has been based on a one page resume. The article mentions that a learning portfolio can be supported by the use of blogs, which plays a big role in R503. Also, the author describes the difference between “assessment of learning” and assessment for learning.” Many portfolios have been driven by high risk state standards and focus on assessment of learning. Barrett feels that e-portfolios, besides supporting skills, should be used for “reflection and collaboration”. E-portfolios foster intrinsic motivation and is maintained on an ongoing process. Barrett’s main reason for doing the research was to provide meaningful information on implementation of e-portfolios in PK-12 schools. In my opinion, it is important to offer professional development to the teachers and administration on the use of e-portfolios. Teachers are more likely to use the technology if they are familiar with it.

“Connecting Student Learning and Technology”

According to the article, “Constructivists consider learning to be an individual and personal event.” I agree with this statement. From my past experience, the more a student can relate to a subject manner, the more engaged that student will be. When children partake in opportunities, they have a deeper awareness of that subject matter. If children go on a field trip to The Museum of Science and Industry, they may return with a deeper appreciation and interest for science. The article talks about putting children “in charge of their projects.” I feel this is very important because when students take ownership, they will become more engaged. This engagement fosters learning. I also think ownership is increased when students, with the teacher’s guidance, make their own rubrics. When students have a part in developing rubrics, they are taking ownership and can take a part in assessing their progress. The article states how computers enable students to work at their own paces and encourages them to be “self directed and independent.” I have the same opinion and believe computer technology opens many doors of learning. Students can take this knowledge and apply it to their past experiences and understanding.

Community of Inquiry

I found the journal article to be very interesting and I am looking forward to learning more about the community of inquiry in my R503 class. I had some questions on the Coding and Validity section of the article. What do “coding protocols” mean? I think it will be interesting to see how our instructor guides us through the community of inquiry process.

Jukes Video

This is a terrific video. Jukes discussed the article “Digital Natives, Digital Immigrants.” He mentioned that there was a belief for many years that a child’s intelligence was set by the age of three. This is no longer the case. Jukes said the neurons in the brain constantly reorganize themselves and are affected by 1) input and experience, and 2) the intensity and duration of the experience. Neuroplasticity is a fascinating topic. I found it very interesting that digital natives learn valuable and sophisticated thinking skills that are not measured in current test assessments. I also found it interesting that the left side of the brain is the “mind set in education” and the right side of the brain which involves patterns, intuition, and the big picture is undervalued. According to Jukes and Pink, both sides of the brain should be developed.

Digital Natives, Digital Immigrants

I thought this was an excellent article. The author suggests that digital natives (students of today) “process information” much differently than students who were not born in the digital technology world. The article states that since the digital natives have had different experiences, they have different brain structures. The author believes that today’s learning should be based on digital games and technology. I agree with the author, but I feel that children’s learning can be based on digital learning and many other ways of learning. As an elementary music teacher, I plan for many activities to engage as many students as possible. I feel the more they are engaged, the more they learn. Students learn in different ways, so I try to incorporate a variety of learning styles to teach a concept: visual, aural, rhythmic, movement, and tactile. I teach at Perley Fine Arts Academy where it is believed that fine arts integration into the curriculum stimulates a student’s capacity to learn. To summarize, I believe digital learning has a place, but educators must keep an open mind for other ways and methods that may also increase a child’s capability to learn.