Final Reflection on Integrating Technology into the Classroom

 At the beginning of this course, I thought I was competent in integrating technology into my classroom, but this course has opened my eyes to many tools that I never thought could be a part of my teaching. I have also learned that integrating technology is much more about the students and not myself. I plan to use my new knowledge to set some goals regarding technology in the near future for myself, my colleagues, and my community.

     Will Richardson’s (2010) book, Blogs, Wikis, Podcasts, and Other Powerful Web Tools for Classrooms has been a great starting resource for me. I had never thought of incorporating Twitter, weblogs, or podcasts into learning. Previously, I thought of those tools as fun social media that students only used in their free time to connect with other people outside of school. All of Richardson’s Big Shifts make sense to me, but the two that resonate with me the most are: “Teaching is conversation, not lecture” and “Contribution, not completion, as the ultimate goal” (2010, pp. 151-153). I believe that getting students to collaborate and talk to each other is a crucial skill that students need to learn in their 21st-century education. Dr. Thornburg (Laureate Education, 2015b) reminded me that students already live media-rich lives, and we, as teachers, need to make our lessons match. When speaking about incorporating technology into the classroom, Dr. Thornburg (Laureate Education, 2015c) again posed the question about doing things differently instead of doing different things. I realized that much of the technology that I was using was doing things differently. I am committed to learning more about technology and finding ways to do different things.

     My favorite activity from this course was creating the wiki-lesson for designing a logo using Desmos. Like Richardson (2010) said, it seems to be a chaotic design, but there are many possibilities. I am already planning for next time and realizing that I do not need to incorporate every technological tool I can think of, especially when presenting the idea for the first time. Once students understand the process and the advantages of a live document where they can collaborate and have a voice, they will begin to see the value in it.

     Before this course, I have always had a growth mindset and knew that I am learning every day and that people can acquire new knowledge throughout their lifetime. However, I appreciate Richardson’s (2015) chapter on “Qualities of Modern Teacher-Learners” (pp. 33-50). I think “Teachers as Master Learners” and “Teachers as Co-Learners” is the shift that I want to make as I continue my educator’s journey into the future (Richardson, 2015, p. 34, p. 41). I want to use the new technology tools that I am learning and allow the students to take the lead and show me how they can construct their knowledge and use me to help facilitate their learning. Dr. Chris Dede (Laureate Education, 2015a) states that the teacher’s role has changed and should now help students separate good from bad knowledge, help students find out information, and teach them how to communicate it.

     I want to try to implement podcasts or screencasts into my classroom. We are currently transitioning into distance learning, and I think this would be a way to get more face-to-face or personal interaction with my students. Students will be able to use the podcast or screencast to communicate their newly constructed knowledge and collaborate with others (International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE), 2008). As with all the technology learning, Richardson (2010) suggests that teachers do and learn for themselves first. I have been doing some Screencastify instructional video already, and I understand being uncomfortable with my voice and face on the video. I hope to help students collaborate and design their learning with the podcast (ISTE, 2016). I like the flexibility that podcasts and screencasts provide. Students do not necessarily need to show their faces in the beginning. They can start slow and only do voice recordings or screen recordings at first. Eventually, the hope is that they will begin to get their face on the video so that we can have face-to-face interaction. 

     A potential roadblock to the implementation of podcasts or screencasts could be internet access or students’ mindset. Mindset theory proposes that intelligence can be significantly changed (Li & Bates, 2020). If students come with a closed mindset, it will be more challenging to convince them that they can learn. Also, because our district is not yet one-to-one and students are entirely at home now, some may initially struggle. However, the podcast or screencast does not need to be synchronous, so I would work with a student to figure out the best way to get them access. They may come to school for short periods to complete their assignment, or they will have time to seek out access to another appropriate venue. The podcast and screencast also allow students who are not quite in the right mindset to get a second, third, fourth, or, however, many chances they need to get it right. Like Richardson (2010) says, it “can be as simple or as complex as you want it to be” (p. 117).

     Two goals that I have for myself over the next two years involve students creating knowledge for an audience besides me, the teacher, and making authentic assessments for students that show their real understanding of the concepts. I currently have students write a learning log about three to four times during each unit to self-explain the ideas we have learned that day. Journaling has been shown to help students demonstrate their learning process and reflective thinking (Fritson et al., 2013). Next trimester, I will have the students write their learning logs for themselves and require them to add their logs to a class wiki for us all to share and revise together. Each entry can be anonymous to eliminate the fear of making a public mistake, but then together, the class can modify each learning log to create a resource that students can use for their own. By the end of the trimester, we will have a class wiki with learning logs for each topic that all students can use. 80% of the students in each class will contribute to the wiki for each topic. Students will learn that the collective thoughts of many, collaboration, is a useful tool that they will develop and fine-tune, and it will help them in their future endeavors.

     My second SMART goal will involve developing an authentic assessment for our students to truly show their knowledge and ability to apply what they have learned in the real world. Beginning next trimester, once a month, I will spend a prep hour researching authentic assessments through scholarly peer-reviewed articles, weblogs, Twitter feeds, or podcasts and take notes in a journal of ideas. By the end of the school year, I will choose an idea and attempt to implement it at the end of trimester one 2021.

     One of the most prevalent issues in society today, let alone schools, is effective communication. The courses I have taken so far at Walden University have taught me that proper communication between colleagues, students, parents, administration, and the community can significantly impact society. Both the RWRCOEL Professional Dispositions (Walden University, 2010a) and Diversity Proficiencies (Walden University, 2010b) state that communication and collaboration are vital to “create equitable and inclusive practices that lead to positive social change” and “to improve student learning and advance the profession”. I think technology can aid in that communication. I have learned so much already about different avenues to get more people involved to create learning opportunities, but I look forward to continuing this journey.

     Technology is everywhere and at the fingertips of students, colleagues, parents, and the community at large. For the sake of education, teachers need to learn how to harness this power and engage students in owning their education (Walden University, 2010c). Adults need to “embrace the challenge of learning to learn in these profoundly different and challenging but profoundly exciting new ways” (Richardson, 2015, p. 63). I will continue to learn as much as I can and right alongside my students to facilitate their successes. 

References

Fritson, K. K., Nelson, D. A., Vontz, H., & Forrest, K. D. (2013). Students’ perceptions of journaling in undergraduate classes. Journal of Instructional Research, 2, 3–9.

International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE). (2008). Standards for teachers. http://www.iste.org/standards/iste-standards/standards-for-teachers 

International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE). (2016). Standards for students. https://www.iste.org/standards/for-students 

Laureate Education (Producer). (2015a). The changing role of the classroom teacher: Part 2 [Video file]. Baltimore, MD: Author.

Laureate Education (Producer). (2015b). Today's students [Video file]. Baltimore, MD: Author.

Laureate Education (Producer). (2015c). Transforming the classroom with technology: Part 1 [Video file]. Baltimore, MD: Author.

Li, Y., & Bates, T. C. (2020). Testing the association of growth mindset and grades across a challenging transition: Is growth mindset associated with grades? Intelligence, 81. 

Richardson, W. (2010). Blogs, wikis, podcasts, and other powerful web tools for classrooms (3rd ed.).

Richardson, W. (2015). From master teacher to master learner. Bloomington, IN: Solution Tree Press

Walden University (2010a). Walden's professional dispositions. Retrieved from https://class.waldenu.edu

Walden University (2010b). Walden's diversity proficiencies. Retrieved from https://class.waldenu.edu

Walden University (2010c). Walden's technology proficiencies. Retrieved from https://class.waldenu.edu