ISTE 2 Module
Collaboration and Communication

As a new teacher just starting out, the idea of incorporating technology is somewhat daunting.  The idea of creating lesson plans and supporting students in their use of digital tools and media options to engage with, produce original works, or solve problems seems a large undertaking. It requires teachers to first be aware of and proficient with the digital tools themselves in order to facilitate the students learning. To further this learning into communication and collaboration with learners of other cultures, makes it even more daunting. This line of thinking brought me to my personal trigger question: What platforms and projects are available to middle school Language Arts classrooms for communication and collaboration with other distant classrooms? Knowing what apps and platforms are out there and how other teachers are already using these, was my guiding thought. In my search for information, I came across many articles and blogs that had comprehensive lists of available resources. The written feedback for some of these was just as useful as the list, as these are people/teachers sharing what they have used. Check out my mind map area: Great list of technology tools to view a few of these.

In my search, I found this article, Collaborative Learning Spaces: Classrooms That Connect to the World by Jennifer Williams on the Edutopia website. My draw to this article was that it not only listed some of the apps/platforms available as a starting place for me to look into, but it also illustrated how a future digital-friendly classroom might look and function. ISTE 2 Standard deals in students doing more than just collaborating with teachers and classmates, they are to  expand their global  awareness and engagement with other cultures. This article was an example of how this “globally interactive” classroom might work. The article discussed how classrooms might be arranged to promote a technology based learning environment. Unlike traditional classrooms there is no “front” of the classroom and students can have a variety of seating options because students are connected digitally. Classrooms would consist of collaboration stations instead of traditional desk or tables. According to Williams, these stations are where “physical spaces can be connected to virtual spaces” resulting in “international learning teams with students of the world.” ( 2015). I found this to be an interesting concept, but very applicable as that is the way businesses are structured more and more. Current and future job skills require the ability to use technology to interact with other businesses/people all over the world.

As to my question of platforms and projects that I could use in a middle school Language Arts classroom. A few mentioned apps in this article were Nearpod, Padlet, Kahoot, Google Drive, Periscope, Google Hangouts, Skype in the Classroom, so I used this as a starting point as was suggested by a classmate. Padlet was a highly recommended tool. It provides “Walls” that can be themed where students can post. One example for a posted “wall” question was, “Read or write a poem about where you were born.” In a setting that includes other cultures these responses could be powerful learning. Students could also share or post links for information. Periscope, a free smartphone app “allows users to broadcast a live video stream to public or private audiences. Throughout broadcasts, followers join in and view the video in real time from anywhere in the world. The chatbox feature allows viewers to interact by adding comments or questions” (Siracusa, 2015). Periscope had some great project ideas, such as, virtual field trips and expert speakers. Both of these offer great lesson ideas.

Overall, this article showed how classrooms and technology can be used to support interactive global learning. Technology has bridged distances and students are now communicate and collaborate on a global scale. A key idea of ISTE Standard 2 is creating cultural awareness in students. This article showed how this might be achieved with students working together to bridge cultural gaps and expand each others experiences..

References

Siracusa, F. (2015, December 28). Periscope: Connecting Classrooms to the World. Retrieved January 27, 2017, from https://www.edutopia.org/blog/periscope-connecting-classrooms-to-world-fran-siracusa-jennifer-williams

Williams, J. (2015, October 16). Collaborative Learning Spaces: Classrooms That Connect to the World. Retrieved January 27, 2017, from https://www.edutopia.org/blog/collaborative-learning-spaces-connect-to-world-jennifer-williams-fran-siracusa

ISTE Standard 1

ISTE Standard 1

Creativity and Innovation

“The ISTE Standards describe the skills and knowledge they [students] need to learn effectively and live productively in an increasingly global and digital society. (ISTE).” Standard 1 focuses on student’s creativity and innovation. This standard sets forth that students will: 1.) Apply existing knowledge to generate new ideas, products, or processes, 2.) Create original works as a means of personal or group expression, 3.) Use models and simulations to explore complex systems and issues (i.e. equitable access to technology), and 4.) Identify trends and forecast possibilities. From a teacher standpoint, this means incorporating technology with pedagogy and subject knowledge to facilitate learning experiences where students can explore and collaborate on topics or questions using their own creative and innovative thinking. This results in learning through the process of discovery with technology as a tool. An example of this type of learning is digital storytelling. "Digital storytelling allows computer users [students] to become creative storytellers through the traditional process of selecting a topic, conducting some research, writing a script, and developing an interesting story. This material is then combined with various types of multimedia , including computer-based graphics, recorded audio... so that it can played on a computer, uploaded to a web site or burned on a DVD. (Robin)". 

This idea would be great in a perfect learning environment but as many teachers know technology is not always available. This dilemma leads to my trigger question, “Are students hindered by having limited access to technology?” The answer to this is much debated and has created a need for a need new framework to accurately measure the effectiveness technology has in learning. Therefore, the search for answers lead me not so much to a definitive answer but to more of an understanding of factors. Implementing and providing technology within a school district is met by many obstacles. First there is the always present budget concern, combined with what type of technology devices to use, developing a strategic plan to implement technology, educating the teachers for the use of and teaching with the technology, and the continued maintenance needed for the technology. Several of the articles on my mind map discuss these obstacles.

One article I found not only addressed my question but served as an example for how students are hindered and how the school district went about meeting their technology needs. In this article, “InMississippi schools, access to technology lacking, uneven”, the school district explained how their students were hindered as to the skills and knowledge they needed to succeed in the digital age. They found graduated students were struggling to find jobs and continue education. The lack of access to the Internet and technology was seen as a major obstacle in students accessing “scholarship information, job applications, and educational resources like study guides and practice tests.” (Mader), as well as, having the skills and experience of using technology. 21st century skills, as these are commonly referred to, are a part of preparing students for the real world.  Through much planning this example school district was able to implement a successful technology program, the results of which extended beyond just learning. The school district reported many positive changes like increased enrollment and a drop in suspensions and referrals, all seen as brought about by the addition of technology. A key point from this article was that technology was not a replacement for teaching but a tool that made learning more exciting and engaging for the students.

In reflection, “Are students hindered by having limited access to technology?” My discovered answer would be yes, but not in the sense of subject specific knowledge. After all teachers, have been teaching students to read, write, and add for many years without today’s technology. But in regards to students being prepared for life after graduation, technology skills are a necessity and school is not only the logical place for this learning but in some cases the only place students have the access. As to how limited access relates to Standard 1, creativity often comes when we have a problem. Then we use resources that are familiar to us to solve the problem. Today’s society is technology based so, it is only logical for students to use technology in some fashion to help solve a problem; in this way students obtain and explore new ideas, products and processes. For that to happen students need access to technology.

References

ISTE Standards. (n.d.). Retrieved January 14, 2017, from http://www.iste.org/standards/standards/iste-standards

Mader, J. (2014, September 15). In Mississippi schools, access to technology lacking, uneven. Retrieved January 08, 2017, from http://hechingerreport.org/mississippi-schools-access-technology-lacking-uneven/

Robin, B. (n.d.). Digital Storytelling: A Powerful Technology Tool for the ... Retrieved January 14, 2017, from http://www.bing.com/cr?IG=675F7CBFA56F4DF7A91BACCB3DE927D9&CID=2157CD6420B565733B64C76E21846499&rd=1&h=8OxdwPMR5s9lJ2qNurwaYEWL7tg8BkVrFWVy0RAE2e4&v=1&r=http%3a%2f%2fdigitalstorytellingclass.pbworks.com%2ff%2fDigital%2bStorytelling%2bA%2bPowerful.pdf&p=DevEx,5084.1

Differentiation

Standard 3.1- Demonstrating Knowledge of Students

In the book “The First Days of School”, Harry and Rosemary Wong maintain that “effective teaching is all about teacher-student relationships” (pg. 68). Standard 3.1- Demonstrating Knowledge of Students is a perfect platform for this statement. This standard not only shows the importance of knowing your students as individuals but also the importance of the teacher recognizing students’ knowledge, skills and abilities. Differentiating student work and teaching strategies to ensure effective student learning.

In my 6^th grade Language Arts classroom, I have two groups of students that need consideration when lesson planning, Special Education students and Talented and Gifted students. To effectively support these opposite groups of learners, I use a number of strategies the most common being collaborative groups. “Working collaboratively with peers is an excellent way to challenge every student in your class…You can provide scaffolds like question prompts and sentence starters for lower-level students, and they’ll learn from the modeling provided by their peers as well. Higher-level students often enjoy sharing their knowledge, and they’ll enjoy the challenge of trying to impress their peers with well-structured and thought-out responses.” (Davies, 2015).  

In the provided lesson plan you can see evidence of differentiation for both Special Ed. students and Talented students. The first is the provided sentence starters for Special Ed students. This support is given to the students with writing accommodations, as well as, to one student who is prone to not engage if lengthy responses are required.  The sentence starters allow these students to quickly engage in the daily warm-up activity.

Collaborative group activities are another means of differentiation. Groups are assembled with consideration of the desired learning outcome. For this particular lesson, groups were a mixture of levels with each group having a higher-level student leader to guide responses and act as a peer mentor.  The breaking up of the comprehension questions into stations is a great way to keep students engaged. “Brain research tells us that students can actively listen to their teachers for as many minutes as their age. That means, for a middle school student, 15 minutes is about the longest time they will sit still and listen before they need to get up and move.” (Campbell, 2014). The combination of peer mentors and movement serve to keep students on task and engaged. Revisiting the day’s Learning Target (LT), either as an Exit Ticket or oral discussion, gives the students a voice and myself (the teacher) a system of formative assessment for future planning.

As a new teacher, the concept of successful differentiation is overwhelming. Factoring in and adjusting for the wide range of student abilities and levels seems an all-consuming task. In this area, I feel dedication and experience will be beneficial, as well as, taking advantage of advice and guidance from veteran teachers.

References

Campbell, K. (2014, March). Get Your Students Moving. Retrieved January 01, 2017, from https://www.amle.org/BrowsebyTopic/WhatsNew/WNDet/TabId/270/ArtMID/888/ArticleID/390/Get-Your-Students-Moving.aspx

Davies, E. (2015, March 02). 6 Steps to Differentiated Instruction. Retrieved January 01, 2017, from https://blog.remind.com/6-steps-to-differentiated-instruction/

Wong, H. K. & Wong, R. T. (2009). The first days of school: how to be an effective teacher. Mountain View, CA: Harry K. Wong Publications, Inc.