Constructionism in the Classroom

Constructionism is a hands-on method of teaching where students are involved in either assimilating or accommodating new information.  Dr. Orey explains that humans appreciate equilibrium and when there is disequilibration there are two choices, to accommodate the new information or assimilate it (Laureate Education, Inc, 2011). 

Having students generate and test their own hypotheses creates a learner-centered classroom.  The students in Mr. McDevitt’s class were involved in a simulation of World War II (Pitler, et al, 2007).  A constructivist classroom is one where the students are being challenged to either assimilate or accommodate new content (Laureate Education, Inc., 2011).  The students were able to test what would happen in their decisions by participating in the simulation.  This makes the students more responsible for their learning.  They are not able to read and memorize facts.  It requires higher level thinking in Bloom’s Taxonomy because they are applying what they learned to make hypotheses and then testing it.

http://space.jpl.nasa.gov/ is a great resource to use with students who are studying constellations.  There are several variables that students are able to input and see the outcome.  In order to teach using constructionism in the classroom, the instructor must anticipate the direction the learners will be going.  They need to pre-assess the class’ skills and be prepared to make changes as necessary.  The instruction will be student-centered.  They will be encouraged to ask the questions and find the answers. 

References

Laureate Education, Inc. (Producer). (2011). Program seven: Constructionist and constructivist learning theories [Video webcast]. Bridging learning theory, instruction and technology. Retrieved from http://laureate.ecollege.com/ec/crs/default.learn?CourseID=5700267&CPURL=laureate.ecollege.com&Survey=1&47=2594577&ClientNodeID=984650&coursenav=0&bhcp=1

Orey, M. (Ed.). (2001). Emerging perspectives on learning, teaching, and technology. Retrieved from http://projects.coe.uga.edu/epltt/index.php?title=Main_Page 

Pitler, H., Hubbell, E., Kuhn, M., & Malenoski, K. (2007). Using technology with classroom instruction that works. Alexandria, VA: ASCD.

Connecting to the Content

Teachers are able to teach for understanding when they use instructional strategies that enable students to create multiple connections to the content.  According to Dr. Orey, one way to make these connections is to use dual coding.  This is when students see an image and a label.  When teaching, technology can be utilized to show and information about the image.  The brain can only take in about seven pieces of information at a time.  Images are a way to help the information go in multiple places.

In my classroom, I often use Brainpop.com to introduce a new skill and create meaningful connections to the learning.  There are activity pages linked to the videos where students can complete an organizer while they watch the clip.  Tim and Moby are engaging to students and offer strategies for students to use in the classroom.  Giving students a skeleton organizer prior to a lesson, allows them to take meaningful and organized notes during the class.  Kidspiration offers many templates for note taking with students.  These templates are a great way to chunk information for students.  Dr. Orey reminds teachers that students are only able to process about 7 pieces of information at a time.  

Another strategy to help students recall information is to create episodic memories.  These are memories of an event.  Virtual field trips are one way to create these memories.  Students can use a concept mapping tool to answer an essential question as they go on a field trip without every leaving the classroom.  This type of activity is powerful and keeps the learner engaged.  A Google search for virtual field trips will turn up multiple sites.  I found that the best place to start looking for guided field trips is http://questgarden.com/search/.

Resources

Laureate Education, Inc. (Producer). (2011). Program five: Cognitive learning theory [Video webcast]. Bridging learning theory, instruction and technology. Retrieved from http://laureate.ecollege.com/ec/crs/default.learn?CourseID=5700267&CPURL=laureate.ecollege.com&Survey=1&47=2594577&ClientNodeID=984650&coursenav=0&bhcp=1

Laureate Education, Inc. (Producer). (2011). Program six: Spotlight on technology: Virtual field trips [Video webcast]. Bridging learning theory, instruction and technology. Retrieved from http://laureate.ecollege.com/ec/crs/default.learn?CourseID=5700267&CPURL=laureate.ecollege.com&Survey=1&47=2594577&ClientNodeID=984650&coursenav=0&bhcp=1

Novak, J. D., & Cañas, A. J. (2008). The theory underlying concept maps and how to construct and use them, Technical Report IHMC CmapTools 2006-01 Rev 01-2008. Retrieved from the Institute for Human and Machine Cognition Web site: http://cmap.ihmc.us/Publications/ResearchPapers/
TheoryUnderlyingConceptMaps.pdf

Pitler, H., Hubbell, E., Kuhn, M., & Malenoski, K. (2007). Using technology with classroom instruction that works. Alexandria, VA: ASCD.

Behaviorism in the Classroom

Teachers use behaviorism in the classroom on a daily basis.  Homework is a great example of a behaviorist teaching strategy.  Students practice a skill until they have mastered it.  According to Pitler, Hubbell, Kuhn, and Malenoski, "students need about 24 practice sessions with a skill in order to achieve 80 percent competency" (Pitler et al., 2007, p. 188).  During these practice sessions, teachers need to give timely feedback to reinforce the skill.  It is essential that teachers recognize errors early in the process so students are not practicing the wrong thing.


Many students need to be instructed on how their effort correlates to their performance in class.  This is another form of reinforcement.  Teachers are able to have students track their effort using a rubric.  They can graph their effort with their quiz grades to see the positive correlation.  This correlation is another type of reinforcement for the student.  If they are not putting in the effort, they will see the impact on their grade.  


Once a skill has been taught to students, teachers are able to use technology to reinforce that skill.  I have found that games a wonderful way to engage my students and have them practice  a skill that I have taught in class.  Math games are one way that I have my students reinforce their learning.  http://www.coolmath.com/ is a great website for a variety of skills.  




Pitler, H., Hubbell, E., Kuhn, M., & Malenoski, K. (2007). Using technology with classroom instruction that works. Alexandria, VA: ASCD.

Reflection Post

This course has helped me to develop my technology skills as a teacher.  I no longer look to the computer as a source of drill and practice for skills that I have already taught.  Computers and technology can be used to teach the skills to the students independently.  I previously used math websites to drill facts.  I will be looking for new games that teach skills to the students as they play.

My knowledge of the teaching and learning process has been deepened.  I look at teaching as facilitating learning instead of giving the students information.  While I teach reading this year, I look forward to using blogs and wikis for students to respond to each other’s questions.  They can learn more from each other than they can from me.  This will incorporate 21^st century skills into their daily work.

I am constantly working towards having a student-centered classroom where I guide the class through the curriculum instead of lecture.  My math class has been a student-centered environment, but I struggle to make my reading class the same.  I look forward to posing questions and allowing the class time to answer them and collaborate with each other and perhaps students in other classrooms all over the world.

I plan to expand my learning with the goal to increase student achievement by working collaboratively with my peers.  There are great resources available in my county and many technologically savvy teachers who are willing to share their resources.

My first goal for the upcoming school-year is to incorporate voice thread into my classroom.  The school system has approved its use.  I need to take more professional development on how to implement it without frustrating the students.  My second goal for the next two years is to create a classroom wiki for the novels that we read.  The students will have a chance to develop the wiki.  I would like to use this year to describe the characters and their traits.  In the coming years, we can use these pages to identify their motives and the reason that things happen in the plot line.

During the first week of the class, I thought that I used multiple and varied opportunities for using technology tools and resources to support the learning.  However, I realize that I really do not use technology in varied ways.  I use technology after I teach the skill instead of using it to teach the actual skill.  This is a weakness of mine and I look forward to making it a strength.

21st Century Skills

The partnership for 21^st Century Skills is an organization that advocates for the integration of information and communication technologies in the classroom.  I agree with most of the information presented in this website.  As a technology liaison for my school, I work to find ways for teachers to include 21^st century skills into the core curriculum.  The partnership believes that core content should be taught using these skills. 

It was helpful to see the way that businesses incorporate these skills into jobs.  I had not realized how much jobs have changed in the past years.  Previous jobs required the worker to be skilled at one machine or task.  Now, workers need to be proficient at multi-tasking and using multiple tools.  Teachers should be collaborating with local businesses to identify the skills that need to be taught in the classroom. 

I found that this website stresses incorporating 21^st century skills into standardized testing.  I feel that standardized tests do not always represent what is taught in the classroom.  There are multiple ways for students to demonstrate an understanding of the information.  The website also stresses that the only things that are taught in a classroom is what is on a standardized test.  Good teachers, do not just teach what is on the test.  They go beyond that to include global experiences for their students. 

As a contemporary educator, I need to use 21^st century tools in my classroom and on their assessments.  Students should have daily access to technology including during assessments.  I am working towards a masters degree in technology because I believe that it is important for my students to have these skills.  As I move to the library this year, I will be using technology to teach my students how to read and think critically.

Resources:

Partnership for 21st Century Skills. (n.d.). A report and mile guide for 21st century skills. Washington DC: Author. Retrieved from http://www.p21.org/images/stories/otherdocs/p21up_Report.pdf

Trilling, B. (n.d.). The Partnership for 21st Century Skills - Home. The Partnership for 21st Century Skills - Home. Retrieved July 20, 2011, from http://www.p21.org/

Blogs in the Classroom

I hope to use blogs in my classroom as a place for students to showcase their writing and respond to each other.  This year, I will be teaching fifth grade writing and library.  I would like the students to post their work and have other students respond to help build it and make it better.  Many times, students do not know how to peer-edit because they don't know what questions to ask.  


I do not think that the students will be sharing their work with the larger community.  I worry that inviting the community in will not keep them safe on the internet.  By keeping it as just their classmates, they will be able to benefit from collaborative writing without worrying about outside safety.  My students are too young to know how to appropriately communicate with people outside of the building.  Their blogging experience would be a stepping stone to allow them to communicate with others on future assignments.


Blogging allows the students to learn how to use the internet for more than just chatting and texting.  Many fifth graders have learned how to use it for their personal use.  In older grades and in their careers, they will need to know how to respond to someone professionally.  The students will need to learn proper etiquette for their writing.  


Posting their writing assignments on a blog also allows students to feel that their work is important.  They often have to write persuasive essays.  A blog would allow others to question their arguments and have a continuing discussion to improve their ideas.  It will show a record of their writing from one assignment to the next.  Students will be able to see their progress over the course of a school-year.

Introduction

I created this blog in conjunction with a graduate class at Walden University.  The class focuses on integrating technology into the classroom.  This has been a focus of many schools lately.  I am hoping to learn ways to continue focusing on content while using technology as a tool.

Last year, I was the technology liaison alternate at my school.  This gave me a great opportunity to learn about new technologies and ways to engage the students.  I was also able to attend a MSET (a state-wide technology conference) and ISTE (an international technology conference).  Both of these conferences opened my eyes to new ways to include technology.

I have enjoyed integrating my interactive whiteboard and netbook computers into the instruction of the class.  However, many teachers at the conferences are going beyond their classroom to integrate wikis and blogs.  My concern is for keeping my students safe on the web.  I am moving to fifth grade this year where they are very tech savvy.  I would love to open our classroom and invite the public to comment on my students' work. I hope to be able to find the best ways to keep students safe while teaching them responsible computing.