Monday, September 3, 2012

Chapter 3: Developing Lessons with Technology



Focus Question: What is meant by “lesson development using technology”?

Lesson development refers to all the activities that teachers do as they create, teach, and evaluate lessons with students.

Academic content (what to teach): a vast array of academic content can be collected online by internet searches, electronic databases, online encyclopedias, blogs, wikis, and other tech tools.

Teaching Goals, Methods, and Procedures (how to teach): curriculum can be presented in a multitude of different ways using technology like presentation software, visual thinking software, web-based diagram making tools, teacher-developed websites, and threaded discussions and emails.

Learning Assessments (knowing what student have learned): technology tools that support the assessment and evaluation include electronic tests and quizzes, digital portfolios, personal response systems, online surveys, and online evaluation rubrics.


Tech Tool: Online Resources for Lesson Planning
http://thinkfinity.org/welcome
This webpage has changed since the screen caption in the book. If you go to the right to “thinkfinity resources” you can input a key word or select your state standards, grade, and subject area. It will pull up a bunch of lesson plans, videos, games, activities and prepared questions to ask. This is extremely helpful for new teachers ha ving to start everything from scratch, and it’s excellent for seasoned teachers who are trying to find a way to mix up the curriculum they already have set. You can also join in forum chats with other teachers (though it is a bit hard to navigate).

 This one is similar... start by selecting the grade, subject, and then narrow down the filter.

I love this video that I found about STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics). It speaks to me in many ways. Here was a boy who thought that all of his potential lead up to being a bus driver, but given the opportunity he has now excelled into becoming a teacher, a scientist, a photographer, and much more. He is an inspiration to his students.


see the full video here: http://www.pbs.org/teachers/stem/

This site fell short on impressing me. Having taken drafting classes for 4 years I am greatly disappointed when I come across “floor plan” applications that have one MAJOR flaw, you cannot input the dimensions! If you’re looking for something that’s accurate and you’re just a hobbyist, then look into Google’s free SketchUp program.

As far as the features for creating Venn Diagrams, flowcharts, and the like… you’re better off using Microsoft’s publisher. It could be a great resource for someone who does not have Microsoft, but really what teacher doesn’t?


Chapter Summary & Connection

It is very obvious to me that I’m going to have to follow strict state and national guidelines when it comes to building a curriculum for the classroom. However, the creativity and where I choose to go is all up to me. I am already an avid researching when it comes to learning new topics, I can easily get lost in the World Wide Web. Hopefully with my master googling skills I will be able to form exceptional academic content for my students. Microsoft publisher and powerpoint are great presentational tools that I have used for many years. I hope my next adventure will be interactive websites that I develop for my students and parents. I believe it’s vital for parents to know what’s going on in the classroom; the internet has provided the perfect tool for that, though too many teachers do not take advantage of it. I am still stumped as to where I will go with assessing my students, I believe this is only something that can be said through actual experience and practice of what does and does not work on a whole.

With approaches to lesson planning I can fully see myself as writing up student learning objectives. It is so clear and with my need for clarity and organization there is no mistake on my who, what, when. The understanding by design approach reminds me of what teachers put into syllabuses for parents to read, it always comes across as ambiguous and a little confusing.

Despite the great debate if it is good or bad for students, I will have to embrace standardized testing. There are negative side effects on teachers as well because of these tests. A teacher should not be afraid and only teaching what is on the tests… they are doing a disservice to themselves and their students. It is all too easy now-a-days to teach blended lessons. Math and science, and history and English can easily go hand-in-hand. Go out there and do your research when it’s all at our fingertips!!! It is all too unfair to shock your students with a standardized test that they have had no practice what-so-ever in taking, but it is also unfair to your students to not challenge their minds in other forms of assessments. Have your students create and you both will reap the benefits. 

1 comment:

M Coleman said...

Excellent commentary on all counts - imagine this class is going to be right up your alley. I hope you continue to 'stretch' beyond the text and class activities as it sounds like you have already 'been there, done that.' You can share your knowledge and enthusiasm by helping others who are not as far along in the class, if you want! :)