In this
paper, I will address ways the media, resources, and activities of this course
helped to develop my technology skills as a professional teacher. I will also explain how I have deepened my
knowledge of the teaching and learning process concerning integrating
technology in the classroom and what I would do to apply that knowledge to how
I facilitate the changing classroom of the 21st Century. Next, I will describe one Web 2.0 tool that I
am open to trying in my classroom and what a potential roadblock to its implementation
may be and what my plan is to overcome it. I will also explain how this tool will assist
students with 21st Century skills and the ISTE Standards for Students and
teachers. Then, I will set two long-term
SMART goals for transforming my classroom environment in order to help students
gain skills to be ready for tomorrow’s society and workplace and decide how I
plan to accomplish these goals. Finally,
I will consider how the topics and concepts covered in my courses might align
with an issue that I might want to study in my MSED program.
The media, resources, and activities of this course
helped to develop my technology skills as a professional teacher by introducing
me to a breadth of new technology that I can use in my classroom. I learned that when the blackboard was first
invented, it was a new technology that transformed teaching (Laureate
Education, 2015k). Now, I am teaching
remotely using a computer. Technology
has become part of transforming everyday teaching. I had become accustomed to the ever-changing
technologies used in education from being a student in high school when the
internet was first installed to now not being able to teach without it. It is quite amazing. This course and its information, allows me to
effectively reach my students during remote teaching to become creative and
critical thinkers of the 21st-century.
Before this course, I did not know what Web 2.0
tools were or that there were technology standards for teachers and
students. I now understand that using
these tools to facilitate students in finding unbiased information is more
beneficial than providing them with the solution (Laureate Education, 2015i). The 21st-century skills critical
thinking and problem-solving support students in “Framing, analyzing and
synthesizing information in order to solve problems and answer questions (Dean
et al. 2010).” This is especially
important right now as I am learning to navigate through Google classroom to
teach art and communicate with my students.
The lesson I created with Google Sites helped me create other lessons
that I can send to students to work on in their homes as we finish our school
year online.
Google Classroom is the Web 2.0 tool that I was not
sure about using in my classroom because I only have two computers in my
classroom. I was concerned that with the
lack of computers to student ratio, it would take too long for all students to
access the wiki site I created and self-direct through the lesson. However, it is perfect for the current
situation we are experiencing. Now the
challenge is creating lessons that students can do with art supplies they may
already have in their home instead of the abundance of unique art supplies they
have access to in my classroom. Once we
return to school, I will try to overcome the ratio obstacle by using the site
as my tool to keep all information in one location. Also, I will use it as a tool for students
that are ready to move ahead of the rest of the class or for students who might
miss a class and need to catch up. The
sites will also be an excellent tool for students who need to work through the
lesson again or at their own pace.
Using the wiki sites for my lessons meets the
following ISTE standards for students: 3a: Students plan and employ effective
research strategies to locate information and other resources for their intellectual
or creative pursuits, 4a: Students know and use a deliberate design process for
generating ideas, testing theories, creating innovative artifacts or solving
authentic problems, and 4d: Students exhibit a tolerance for ambiguity,
perseverance and the capacity to work with open-ended problems (ISTE, 2016). Using the wiki sites for my lessons meets the
following ISTE standards for teachers: 2b: Advocate for equitable access to
educational technology, digital content and learning opportunities to meet the
diverse needs of all students, 3b: Establish a learning culture that promotes
curiosity and critical examination of online resources and fosters digital
literacy and media fluency, 3c: Mentor students in safe, legal and ethical
practices with digital tools and the protection of intellectual rights and
property, 4c: Use collaborative tools to expand students' authentic, real-world
learning experiences by engaging virtually with experts, teams and students,
locally and globally, 5a: Use technology to create, adapt and personalize
learning experiences that foster independent learning and accommodate learner
differences and needs, 5b: Design authentic learning activities that align with
content area standards and use digital tools and resources to maximize active,
deep learning, 5c: Explore and apply instructional design principles to create
innovative digital learning environments that engage and support learning, 6a:
Foster a culture where students take ownership of their learning goals and
outcomes in both independent and group settings, 6b: Manage the use of
technology and student learning strategies in digital platforms, virtual
environments, hands-on makerspaces or in the field, 6c: Create learning
opportunities that challenge students to use a design process and computational
thinking to innovate and solve problems, and 6d: Model and nurture creativity
and creative expression to communicate ideas, knowledge or connections (ISTE,
2008).
I have set two long-term SMART goals for transforming
my classroom environment in order to help students gain skills to be ready for
tomorrow's society and workplace. I will
implement a wiki site for one lesson by the end of the school year of remote
teaching with 70% participation. I will
communicate with parents about art room happenings using my classroom Twitter
handle for biweekly for one school year.
The first goal will be communicated and tracked using Google Classroom. Using this tool, I can assign the lesson and
track the students who finish it. The
second goal will be a great communication tool for me to show parents what
their students are working on and give them opportunities to interact with their
students on their projects and have more of a participatory role in their students'
art-making (Lemon, 2019).
One issue I may explore in the MSED program is more
widespread use of computers at the elementary level. Our middle school and high school are 1:1
with Chromebooks, but our elementary is not.
I appreciate the quote at the beginning of Module 2 about limiting the
new invention of a pencil to just a few students to see how it goes, and if it
goes well, they will add more. Then
replace that word with "computers," and it is very eye-opening
(Papert, 1984). Why would one not give
all students the latest technology to advance every student's learning for the
better? It does not make sense. Every child deserves the best education that
can be provided to them. Therefore,
schools need to provide all students, no matter what age, the technology that
can provide the real opportunity.
In conclusion, I am thankful for this course and
others that are allowing me to be a master learner (Richardson, 2015) to bring
the best education I can to my students so that I can help prepare children for
the rest of their lives and be successful 21st-century learners
(Laureate Education, 2015h).
References
Dean, C., Ebert,
C. M. L., McGreevy-Nichols, S., Quinn, B., Sabol, F. R., Schmid, D., Shauck, R.
B., Shuler, S. C., & Partnership for 21st Century Skills. (2010). 21st
Century Skills Map: The Arts. Partnership for 21st Century Skills.
International
Society for Technology in Education (ISTE). (2016). Standards for students. Retrieved from
http://www.iste.org/standards/standards/for-students-2016
International
Society for Technology in Education (ISTE). (2008). Standards for teachers. Retrieved from
http://www.iste.org/standards/standards/standards-for-teachers
Laureate
Education (Producer). (2015k). The emergence of educational technology [Video
file]. Baltimore, MD: Author.
Laureate
Education (Producer). (2015h). The changing role of the classroom teacher:
Part 1 [Video file].
Baltimore, MD: Author.
Laureate
Education (Producer). (2015i). The
changing role of the classroom teacher: Part 2 [Video file]. Baltimore, MD: Author.
Lemon, N. (2019). Twitter in the initial teacher
education arts classroom: Embracing risk-taking to
explore making learning visible. Art, Design & Communication in
Higher Education, 18(1),
81–97. https://doi-org.ezp.waldenulibrary.org/10.1386/adch.18.1.81_1
Papert, S.
(1984). New Theories for New Learnings p. 3
Richardson, W.
(2015). From master teacher to master learner. Bloomington, IN: Solution
Tree Press.
