Month: July 2017

In a tier I school, the focus when talking about technology is how the teacher can use technology to make his or her job easier. These things may include grades, communication, lesson plans, attendance, and discipline; basic things that a teacher needs.
When I think of technology in the classroom I think of assistive technology used for special needs students and not necessarily what everyone else thinks of as technology. Most people when they hear technology think of computers or electronic devices; however, I think of a gripper, a birdie, or a slanted board to help students that have difficulty writing, that will allow the student to write more legibly.
In the realm of special education, I use many computer or electronic devices as well but the main devices I use are less electronic and more functional. We use pecs which are communication devices that allows a nonverbal student the ability to communicate through picture cards. We use speech to text for assistive writing for those students that can speak but not necessarily write. We use electronic books that will read to students that struggle to read.
Here are a few cites that can further give information if you are looking for your child or a student that you may service to help you decide what assistive device is best for you to use.
http://www.readingrockets.org/article/assistive-technology-kids-learning-disabilities-overview

Assistive technology for kids with LD: An overview

Assistive Technology in the Classroom

https://www.understood.org/en/school-learning/assistive-technology/assistive-technologies-basics

5 Assistive Technology Tools That Are Making a Difference

5 Examples of Assistive Technology in the Classroom

https://www.edutopia.org/article/empowering-special-education-students-technology-kathryn-nieves

By Genay Mitchell

As you probably already know, we are in the midst of a technology and educational shift. Our society is not only dependent on the resources and tools provided by today’s technology but ultimately self-proclaimed to not be able to live without it. So it is important that we as educators are uploaded on the most current trends in technology so that we can utilize them in our own classrooms.

Many school districts have begun to implement new technology programs that are developed to analyze each student using diagnostic testing and then use that data to instruct the student along a technology curriculum based on their needs. In the beginning of the year many schools perform the online diagnostic tests of each student let’s say in math and reading as core subjects. The teacher then uses the data to help drive instruction moving forward. The student then is given time daily or weekly to work on skills and curriculum set up by the program to increase proficiency while learning new skills.

The benefit of these programs is that the student receives a personalized targeted instruction. The online lessons are “highly engaging and provide a thoroughly immersive experience, giving students exposure to high quality texts that guide them on their path to becoming thorough and analytical thinkers”( Curriculum Associates, 2017). It also monitors student progress and gives them praise for correct answers. The teachers can upload and view the progress of the students as well.

The setbacks are few but can be impacting if they are not taken into consideration. Although the teachers have access to the data of each student and their progress, many teachers may not use the information to drive instruction. The data is often used only when required by administration or if the student is receiving interventions for other reasons. The reasons for this could be that they are not taught specifically how to read and analyze this information or they do not have the allotted time to take specific skills and develop them into activities for their students.

The solution for the setbacks can be to give more training opportunites for those teachers that do not feel as confident in reading and utilizing the reports and data. The teams and administration can be a part in making sure that the whole school is aware of each component of these technology tools because they have been proven effective and will help the teacher to not have to recreate lessons and skill strategies that have already been provided through the technology.

www.curriculumassociates.com

 

 

I use analogies all the time.  As I am reading about how technology can be a distraction to my teaching, I ask how can I compete?  How can I go up against the newest killer app?  Then my analogy mindset kicked in and I asked myself if my classroom were my technology (tablet) then my lesson and teaching strategies could be considered my apps.  What’s my killer app, what’s the best thing I do to engage my students?

Unlike 20^th century students, kids today have grown up connected to the internet, which means they have had immediate access to information in multiple formats.  Why is that important?  Kids that are used to getting what they want in seconds via technology.  Accessing five different things at the same time seems common place for this generation.  I am in competition with a device that can give provide this continuous stimulation.  I see it almost every month a new app comes out and the kids are hooked.  I feel great when the students remember my lesson the next day and yet they have memorized all the new moves or sequences to the newest app they just downloaded.   An article in the Boston Globe states, “Smartphone apps eliminate the wait for a cab, a date, or a table at a hot restaurant. Movies and TV shows begin streaming in seconds. But experts caution that instant gratification comes at a price: It’s making us less patient.  The Pew Research Center’s Internet & American Life Project sums up a recent study about people under the age of 35 and the dangers of their hyperconnected lives with what sounds like a prescription drug warning: ‘Negative effects include a need for instant gratification and loss of patience.’”  School age children require constant engagement.  What chance does my worksheet have today?

An article in the Guardian, How Technology Gets Us Hooked states, “Bennett Foddy, who teaches game design at New York University’s Game Center… ”When your mouse cursor moves over a particular box, text will pop up, or a sound will play. Designers use this sort of micro-feedback to keep players more engaged and more hooked in.” A game must obey these microscopic rules, because gamers are likely to stop playing a game that doesn’t deliver a steady dose of small rewards that make sense given the game’s rules.”  The most popular games and apps have tapped into this generations need for immediate feedback.  I see the bells and whistles going off every other second; mini games on top of mini games inside the apps as rewards for progression.  The kids are constantly engaged with something from the app in various ways, sound, images and even in some cases vibrations.  Have I tapped into this seemingly simple concept?  Can I make my lessons have consistent feedback and use multiple formats to explain my message?  Can I be as engaging as the killer apps?

Most of my lessons follow the archaic techniques used on me in school. I do, however, have one technique – one killer app – I can confidently say rivals apps when it comes to garnering engaging my students.  My killer app is one of the ways I check for understanding at the end of a class. It works using popsicle sticks each labeled with a student’s name. The popsicle sticks ensure I call on all students but there is lots of built in engagement.  In this activity, there is lots of things going on at once.  Students stand to answer, others move to select students, others move to mark a board, some students keep time, some are designated cheerers and I am putting visuals or audio to supplement the questions.  It appears as organized chaos but it is one of my most productive and enjoyable times of the class for everyone.  I am struggling to make all my apps (lessons) something my own kids would download (enjoy) but I believe I see hope in some of my lesson tactics.  Do you know what lessons are your killer apps?  Do you know why it works?  Can you replicate it?

Change is inevitable.  Have your lessons changed?  Something to think about.

References:

Muther, C. (2013,February 02) Instant gratification is making us perpetually impatient |BostonGlobe.com.  Retrieved July 9, 2017 from https://www.bostonglobe.com/lifestyle/style/2013/02/01/the-growing-culture-impatience-where-instant-gratification-makes-crave-more-instant-gratification/q8tWDNGeJB2mm45fQxtTQP/story.html

Alter, A. (2017, February 28) How Technology Gets Us Hooked | theguardian.com. Retrieved July 9, 2017 from https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2017/feb/28/how-technology-gets-us-hooked

 

Technology is a beautiful asset to the education world. Many teachers use this as a resource in their classroom and it is truly engaging to the students. As technology has come a long way, so has education. However, school districts may not be able to keep up with the evolving technology as things are constantly being upgraded, improved and changed on a daily basis. Schools cannot keep up with the constant change on a regular basis, but they are surely trying.

As I read the article by US News, 3 Tips on Integrating Technology in the Classroom, it states “Integrating technology into a high school classroom is not a one-step process.” This is extremely true because you cannot just hand a student a laptop and think that everything will flow smoothly from there. Technology has to be integrated into the classroom on a daily basis in order for students to understand that this will become apart of the curriculum and it also has to be taught to the students. Rules need to be set by the teacher and followed 100% by the students to ensure everyone’s safety. Teachers should only use technology to enhance his or her lesson, not base the entire lesson around the technology. There are times when malfunctions occur and then the lesson does not get completed because the teacher does not have a back-up plan. This is not acceptable it is has to be used as a supplement and/or resource. It truly is an amazing asset in the classroom.

https://www.usnews.com/education/blogs/high-school-notes/2012/01/25/3-tips-on-integrating-technology-in-the-classroom

 

“Whenever I go to class, I have to power down,” said a student. This loosely translated means the child must slow down their information intake to a crawl. It is highly probable that before they entered the doors for the class that day they digested their twitter feed, read the lyrics to their favorite songs, snap chatted a chronological story of how their morning went, and checked the scores and stats of last night’s Marlins game. Information is flowing relentlessly at them like a fire hose at full blast, and as they cross the threshold into school, we reduce this knowledge capacity down to a trickle.

Technology is transforming life as we once knew it in almost every way. It is not uncommon for me to have goods and services delivered digitally in a way that I want to consume them. From groceries to pants and everything in between, I use a digital platform to source, order, and receive both goods and information. We all do this. It is instant and gratifying to have most anything we want a mere click away.

And yet, with all the technological learning capacity and resources we have at our disposal the educational delivery to our students is still caught for the most part in a time machine of the Industrial Age, not the Information Age. Assembly line instruction is still the normal method in how we produce and prepare students for society.

In the book Inevitable: Mass Customized Learning, the authors make the case that our educational institutions must move in the direction of teaching in a manner that is motivational to students of today. We as educators must provide instruction that is vibrant, dynamic, interesting, and specific to the student’s style of learning, skill level and abilities. Educational curriculum is not a one size fits all proposition. Technology has the power to transform how our students learn in a way that is both engaging and challenging. Lecture style teaching is the past and we have the ability to create an interactive learning experience to create an interactive learning experience that has the potential to fully envelope the student’s learning experience.

Mass customized learning has the ability to personalize learning by understanding a student’s specific needs in a content area and deliver the curriculum in a way that will bridge the gap most effectively base on learning preferences. This is a very exciting propositions for teachers, that will allow them to cultivate a student to a more full potential. While some might bemoan this as the beginning of the end for the teaching profession, when technology is used to supplement an already highly effective teacher, the benefits to the entire learning community are boundless.

While technology cannot cure all the social ills of society nor answer philosophical questions such as, what is success,  we can leverage educational technology in a way that creates some small liberty for its users to define this answer for themselves. After all, life is one generation standing upon the shoulders of another.

 

Schwahn, C. J., & McGarvey, B. (2012). Inevitable: mass customized learning: learning in the age of empowerment. San Bernadino, CA: Chuck Schwahn & Bea McGarvey.

Stansbury, M. (2012, February 21). Mass customized learning: the key to education reform? Retrieved from https://www.eschoolnews.com/2012/02/21/mass-customized-learning-the-key-to-education-reform/

 

Schools are judged by their retention rates – this is especially true at the college level.  The school’s reputation, funding, and effectiveness tie retention rates.  Unfortunately, reduced retention rates are getting worse every year.  According to The National Student Clearinghouse, only 55 percent of first-time undergraduates who enrolled in Fall 2008 finished a degree within six years (TD Staff, 2016).

Those in higher education know that retention is a major concern, and there are several old fashioned strategies that can be used, but implementing new approaches with technology creates new and interesting ways to revive retention rates.

Students in today’s world is extremely tech-savvy. And rather getting information through strictly an academic advisor’s office, students are able to log on to an information student portal. Additionally, with the use of technology, students and educators are able to communicate via the portal. Students are able to post assignments, review grading, and etc. By having these portals, allows other educational resources to be feed up for more complex needs. Essentially, technology in higher education is making the old ways more accessible and quicker to use.

Online learning accounts for nearly three-quarters of higher education’s enrollment increases. Therefore, solving retention issues by implementing videoconferencing and mobile access are excellent tools to use. Moreover, apps and websites such as LiveText, iTunesU, Turnitin.com, iBooks, Inspiration, Kahoot!, Notability, and etc. keeps students engaged and organized with learning.

Technology also assists with student intervention strategies. Student Success Centers are popping up across the United States in all types of college and university campuses. To ensure retention rates are increasing, the focus on assisting students, especially at-risk students, is more crucial than ever before. These centers use technology constantly throughout the day to monitor and communicate with the school’s student body. From data collected, at-risk students would benefit from immediate interventions at points throughout the semester.

Some schools have even implemented a text messaging system, where staff members are informing students of their classroom tardiness, school closings, meeting updates, and etc. It’s important to find and use effective solutions to problems before it’s too late. Therefore, by using alert systems that show students are at-risk, staff members are able to reach out to the students and provide resources early enough that the intervention can actually be effective.

Lynn University’s president, Kevin Ross, stated, “ If we can help students continue some of the great behaviors that they learned in high school – like attending class – until the moment they graduate and eventually become employed, then we’re doing our job.”

Fortunately, there are a number of technological strategies that schools are currently using to improve retention. However, it’s important that the school institution is using strategies that are most effective for the school culture and environment.

Do you know of any technological strategies being used at your institution to improve retention rates?

 

 

References

Kelly, R. (2015, March 9). Lynn University To Track Student Attendance by iPad Location. Retrieved July 09, 2017, from https://campustechnology.com/articles/2015/03/09/lynn-university-to-track-student-attendance-by-ipad-location.aspx

TD Staff. (2016, October 12). How Technology Can Help Drive Student Retention in Higher Ed. Retrieved July 09, 2017, from https://techdecisions.co/mobility/how-technology-can-help-drive-student-retention-in-higher-ed/#

https://campustechnology.com/articles/2015/03/09/lynn-university-to-track-student-attendance-by-ipad-location.aspx

https://campustechnology.com/articles/2015/03/09/lynn-university-to-track-student-attendance-by-ipad-location.aspx

July 9, 2017// Lynn University- Grad Student

Keeping Kids Social in An Anti-Social World! 

Villardia Shepherd

 

 

We live in a day in age where meaningful relationship and times spent together is slowly becoming extinct like the dinosaurs. Now a day instead of picking up the phone to call a friend it has turned into a text message or DM (direct message) in their social media inbox. In the past writing a good old fashion “Dear John Letter” or writing to a “Pen-Pal” and placing it in the mailbox to be mailed out has changed into an electronic e-mail where just hit the “send” key to deliver it. Instead of meeting up with friends at the park or a restaurant to hang out and catch up on life, kids are having virtual rendezvous on WhatsApp, Hangout, GroupMe, Skype, or some other type of social media app. To keep up with friends and family and beware of what is taking place in their personal lives we look to Facebook posting and status, pictures uploaded on Instagram (IG), or quick 10 second videos or Snaps strategically (showing a fun time) placed on Snap Chat that will expire in 24 hours or when the owner removes it. As humans, we live for “likes” and “views” on social media instead of personal and physical connections.  So, how can we continue to keep or kid’s social in a world that quickly becoming more anti-social as every second ticks away?

Let me first say, that I am not against social media, but I am for limiting the amount of time and interaction our kids spend on it. I understand we live in a world, where technology is incorporated in just about everything we do, but it should not be a reason why people are making the decision to interact less with one another in the physical sense. I believe that technology used for school related purposes are very beneficial, because it brings the world to students at the stroke of a key. It allows students to discover different countries and places. Students get watch videos on specific topic, tutorials, and view information about a particular country, but I don’t agree with using the social media part unless it’s for an educational purpose.  In the article, “10 Reasons Why Social Media is a Negative Influence” there third reason is Lack of Socialization. In the article it states, “People today are interacting less and less with other people unless it is through a cell phone or other technological device” (Bensen, 2016). Social Media has helped to increase cyber bulling, increase in mental/psychological disorders, obesity, and a plethora of other things, but I will not focus on those aspects of why I feel social media should be limited.  I feel that too much time on social media is turning or kids into Robots. Robots do not worry or care about personal connections and relationships, but more concerned with doing what they were programmed to do which is a specific task. We don’t want our kids to develop the mindset that communicating and interactions is a “task” they should do, because that what is expected. If, students are using the different type of apps for educational purposes (homework/project), then I understand, but as a way to maintain a relationship with friends then I’m against it.

Here are some ways as a classroom teacher and parent that I feel we can increase interactions amongst students, family, and friends while still using technology as an aide:

 

• Pen Pals with a Twist- Partner up with a friend that may be a teacher at another school and have students write Pen-Pals letters back in forth to one another. This will require students to be taught how to properly address a letter and envelope. Must inform the parents of course and set some ground rules about personal information (address and phone numbers) being shared. Students can type out the letter, but they will still be required to mail it the old fashion way.
• Group Projects- Have students complete a Science Project or for another subject working in groups of 2-4. Require that students to create a power-point slide presentation or another form or presentation using technology. An app being used to communicate for a school project is understandable then.
• Research Projects-Require students to research a topic, but they have to use actual books, newspapers, or magazines articles. If, they do use a search engine, it must be a verified site and not just Wikepedia.
• Family Trips/Vacations/Reunions-I truly believe that family trips, vacations, and reunions is a great way to learn about the family. Parents and kids should partake in these activates as much as possible to continue to build bonds and personal connections. Students cand document it and share it on a site like Prezi. This allows students to still be social and incorporate technology.
• Classroom Blog/Site- Allows students to express their thoughts and share ideas. This is a great form of communication from teacher to student and student to student as well. This requires students to write in standard English and short hand or text talk is not permitted during this time. Teachers can create a classroom Blog where students can share and interact with one another. Example of a great page would be Edmodo.

So, before I log out, I will stress it is important to limit the amount of time students spend on social media apps and find ways to increase person to person interactions. We are raising humans and not robots, and want them to successful members of society. If, kids are interacting with technology for educational purposes, then I understand, but just as a way to connect with friends, then this needs to be limited. Technology used for educational purposes exposes our kids to different worlds in a matter of seconds, but certain types of apps should be monitored if it will not truly benefit the student educationally. Technology should be used to help expose or students to different things, but not to shelter them from others.

 

References

Bensen, Samantha. “10 Reasons Whey Social Media Is a Negative Influence”.  Retrieved on July 9, 2017 from: https://www.theodysseyonline.com/10-reasons-social-media-negative-influence

Imagine what your world would be like if you couldn’t take out your phone and look up and information you needed to know, get directions to anywhere, or even listen to music. This is a very real situation for millions of students across the country. How do we fix it or do we need to go back to the skills we were taught?

There are tons of articles on how connected our youth are to technology. A quick Google search brings up how our kids are becoming more programed and desensitized with every hour of use of the internet. Our school models are becoming more and more standardized with the use of computer programs that are used to determine whether a student is showing enough growth in their classes. But, what happens when a student can’t carry on his or her learning at home because they don’t have internet access or a computer?

This is a very real issue for kids in Tier 1 or highest poverty schools which are often in rural areas. These kids come to school and have to fit their entire day plus any extra computer based work into 7 1/2 hours. And with the push of people like Dallas Dance, these children will be left behind. Find out more about Mr. Dance from this link.

So, what do we do to accommodate the kids who go home and can’t finish their work? How do we meet their educational needs when the funding for school districts keep getting cut? And although there are programs designed to give children without computers or internet access, they’re often utilizing a list or lottery system which could end up not reaching the most needed students in enough time.

Im not sure where we went wrong with education but, I know that technology is moving so fast that certain areas of the country can’t keep up. I’d also like to say that the cookie cutter approach to technological learning is benefiting our students but again, certain groups are being excluded for reasons beyond there control. I hope that more people become aware of this issue and take notice. As we become a more globalized society our students need to be able to keep up with the technological demands both inside and outside of our classrooms. As for now, we wait.

 

 

Before technology became such a focus in our lives, our go-to for everything and our ultimate dependence; we actually had to look things up. Like in the library, in encyclopedias and in real life news papers. While technology has made all of that easier for us, has it made us smarter? We literally have all the information in the world at our fingertips through our iPhone, tablet or whichever device we have closest to us. “Does this make our children smarter than we are based on the ability to find information? I know plenty of children that are faster at technology, more efficient and more comfortable with technology than the adults in their lives. This is only because they were born with it.

“Humans today are like most smartphones and tablets – their ability to solve problems depends not on the knowledge they can store but on their capacity to connect to a place where they can retrieve the answer to find a solution. This is what some have labelled the “hyper-link” economy… the only knowledge we need to have is the knowledge of where to find stuff.”- Tomas Chamorro-Premuzic Ph.D

Type any phrase or question into a Google Search engine and it can almost guess exactly what you are trying to request. Then thousands and thousands of possible responses pop right up for you to review. Now, this does take some skill and knowledge about how to find credible sources. Not everything you read on the internet is true. Children have not fully realized that or have the experiences to be able to differentiate that.

“Technology is making us shallower thinkers, multi-tasking, unable to digest speeches, even songs, perpetually flicking”. In response, he says what we need now is creativity and innovation. “We need to think eclectically and daringly,” he says. “The big issue is how to teach creativity. We don’t need to learn facts, to remember stuff is less important, so the nature of professions are shifting; teachers should bear this is mind. As stated by Andrew Keen author of The Internet is Not the Answer.

Now, does this access to information bring us more knowledge to keep, ponder and elaborate on? Or does it merely provide access whenever we need it? Students in my class, with computers at their fingertips, are likely to google the assignment before they attempt it. I have seen it happen. We go over a lesson, we discuss, we review, all the good classroom stuff. I feel like they get it. There is good conversation. Wow, I feel like a great teacher today. Boom, they sit down at the computers and some of them will just search for the assignment online to see if the answers are there or if someone else has posted them. Some would say it is just laziness. Some would just say it is their go-to method of finding out information. I have experienced students spend their entire work time looking for the answers online and they are likely to know the answers easily if they just did it. Being aware of their methods of understanding is a role that education is looking at and changing to meet these new learners needs. I, for one, am excited to be apart of that change.

 

Roberts, G. (2015, July 16). Google Effect: is technology making us stupid? Retrieved July 07, 2017, from http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/gadgets-and-tech/features/google-effect-is-technology-making-us-stupid-10391564.html

 

Is Technology Making Us Stupid (and Smarter)? (2013, May 07). Retrieved July 07, 2017, from https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/mr-personality/201305/is-technology-making-us-stupid-and-smarter