K-12 Leaders worried About Tech. Costs of Common-core Testing.

This is the title of an article published by Sean Cavanagh on December 18, 2012 on Education Week. . As we can notice, the issue is money.  Spending Money! Who is not worried about that today? This is why this article seems relevant to me. But, when it comes to school - Public schools-, it becomes more and more relevant. Sean Cavanagh, in fact, points out concerns that face Hamilton county, Ten, Home to Chattanooga. It mentions how schools officials are worried about the price of meeting the state’s commitments to move to computer-based testing. I know meeting such standard will be very soon a requirement for any State, so New Jersey too.  What gives me another reason to read this article! I like this article because it actually helps us to reflect on the relationship between education and “Decision makers “and   teacher’s role as educational partner in making decision in school. Educating our children in the digital area is very challenging. Finding a way to meet all students’ needs is also challenging.  It is not really wrong when we think about economic problems our nation face today to ask questions such how decision will affect students? Who is the real “beneficiary “of those changes?  This is just a question. Maybe, we need to step back and reflect on choices and decision together- all educational partners. As future educator and parent, we really need to be informed about decisions since they will affect us in the future.

It is clear that moving toward implementing new tests to align with common core State Standards seems to be more important than ever. No one can complain about the move. However, the concern remains the same: “who’s going to pay for the new technology?” Do we ever think about that?.

Increasing student understanding 

Final Project technology Integrating Plan

My lesson plan for this final project covers goals and topics such as new vocabulary concerning common destination, student’s ability to say various ways to get to different places as well as mastering grammatical point like the “near future” of verb and personal pronouns. Students will have also to demonstrate cultural awareness of francophone countries overall and elaborate as final project a“reportage” on brochure utilizing information learned throughout the lesson.

The integrating Matrix is ordered in a way that columns and rows are aligned to show efficiency and effectiveness of the lesson integrating technology. The first row of the matrix presents access of the lesson and how students will learn and retain new information .It is considered as the first step in lesson due to active teacher’s role in finding way to make students grasp information. In this lesson, teacher will begin by a PowerPoint presentation on smart board to present a scenario with new vocabulary. Then, he/she will check for understanding by asking students questions on different types of transportation they might be purchased and where they are going to go with it. This activity aligns with standard 7.1.NH.A. 4 and with the strategies and technologies because students will be able to use electronic sources effectively and productively to access information as recommended by NETS-S.

The second row of the matrix is called Analyze because it is the part in the lesson where students will be engaged in thinking critically and solving problem. They will use what they have learned at the beginning of the lesson and apply knowledge from previous lesson regarding the grammatical point of verb” near future”.  In order to make sure that students understand new vocabulary and the use of the verb, teacher will use Q/A, after  he/she will ask students to fill the KwL chart to write country names and indicate country they will like to know in French. Students will have to share their work through the projector or smart board. This activity covers the standard 7.1.NH.B.4 in which students will ask and respond questions, express preferences in various social situations; the NETS-S is also covered because students will think critically to solve problems.

The third row of the matrix is where teacher evaluates and assesses the students.  At this level, teacher review activity by showing once again the PowerPoint and use A/Q about different countries. After that, Students will work in pairs or groups to discover French names of different countries by applying knowledge of geographic locations, to read a French world map on smart board. Here, Students will gather information that they will use to elaborate their “reportage- brochure”. They will also ask to evaluate each other while sharing findings. The task will be done in group, but each member of the group will have to present orally a part of the” reportage- brochure” in French.

The fourth row covers the production part. This part is where students will use the computer to work in groups and elaborate the final project assignment. Students will also include in their brochure a paragraph in which they will tell about cultural practices and products of the country chosen. Here, the standard 7.1.NH.C.5   is applied. According to this standard, students will tell or write about cultural product of the target language. NETS-S is also considered because students are critically thinking and making decisions in order to solve problems. As noticed, group collaboration is essential to use in order to meet the standard and the NETS-S which requires creativity and innovation ability to use technology effectively and productively.                                   

Lastly, the fifth row covers the communication of the final project. Students, after creating the “reportage-brochure”, will present and share their work to the audience. Based on States standard 7.1NH.C.1. Students will recombine basic information related to self and targeted themes to create a multimedia product-rich presentation. Students will use computer to print their product. At this level, students will have the option to present their brochure and share it through projector or smart Board in front of the class or to create a voice thread and /or avirtual presentation of their brochure. Teacher will have an active role by asking question to students, and students will participate in listening, viewing groups works and individual work. As a world language lesson, the main goal is to communicate in the target language using technology in an effective and productive way. Students were asked to apply knowledge while using their creativity in an innovative way to show what they have learned.

Using Technology to Reach Unreachable Students

I usually hear question regarding technology misused in the classroom or by students. However, I was not more surprised to read this article post on Ben Johnson  Blog, Edutopia entitled:”Using technology to reach unreachable students”. It is interesting and valuable to learn that with technology we can “reach the unreachable students”. What could be more exciting than that for teacher! To hear our “challenging student affirms:”teach me more”…!

I agree with the author it could be “a great story” but I go further by adding it could be more productive if every single student in difficult area had been lucky enough to possess an iPad and the most important thing is to be able to use it in a proper way. I was curious to know how iPad had changed student’s way of learning. It is a helpful tool to students according to this article. It states: “In a study done in England at the ACS Cobham School, 65 first- and second-graders were given iPads to use and, after the newness of the device wore off, they evaluated the students on three categories: engagement, collaboration, and perseverance (Harrold, 2012).  I guess this can be said not only for first and second grader but for those in higher grade too. This article reminds us that “In general, however, students are using the iPads the right way, on the right things because the teachers have given them a reason to use them”.

This is an inspiring story to share with students and teachers who are really serious about students learning in the digital era. Most importantly, I wish that mobile devices use in classroom continue to motivate, engage students in the process to become more literate or educated.

Story bird, story jumper

 

I was researching on the net and found an interesting post that I think might be helpful to teacher. I do not know how you plan to deal with your career but I do know that willing to try any new tips will be a ‘’PLUS’ in your teaching. Story bird, story jumper will allow teacher to build story by uploading graphics, or using the graphics provided by the site. You have the possibility to choose the images and then write the story. It allows also for collaborative editing as it states in the post:”a neat way to bring in the older students as editors for younger students, or to allow for simple peer editing”.  Anyone will agree with me that if something can make learning interesting and fun for students, it pays to try it. Is not it?

 

Interactivity #5

In this activity, our task was to interview a teacher in order to assess whether the teacher and the school district in which they work are successfully implementing the NETS- S or simply are familiar with the NETS-T.

I have the opportunity to interview a formal student of Montclair State University, a female teacher newly graduate in my content area. She is currently working as a French foreign language teacher- in west Orange High school district a school located in Essex County, New Jersey. According to her, she is using instructional technology in her teaching during her lessons like, power-point, video, audio-recording, and Smart board. She is quite so confident when sharing her experiences about the way she is integrating technology into her lessons.

However, I could not be more surprised to find out that she was not familiar with the National Educational Technology Standard for Students (NETS-S) or the National Educational Technology Standard for Teachers (NETS-T) even after she affirms having an idea about it. We had to research the net to find out about NETS-S and NETS-T. In fact, The National Educational Technology Standard for Students is created by the International Society for Technology Education (ISTE) to “evaluate skills and knowledge students need to learn to live in the global society.” For, applying the NETS-S requires digital skills and aptitudes such as: creativity and innovation, critical thinking, problem solving, research and information fluency etc…

Throughout of her responses, I notice that she feels very unfortunate that she is unable to apply these standards. The lack of information and knowledge of her school district about it is very impressive. Another interesting element noticed is that her colleagues seem not to be knowledgeable of the standards either. Moreover, it doesn’t seem that her school district has started to implement NETS-S and NETS-T as far as she knows. This does not eliminate the fact that her schools district, in particular her school, use technology such: as laptop, projector, video, over head projector with lap tops, individual laptops and computers in the classroom and labs in effort to increase student’s proficiency and media literacy. She also shares with me that the needs to use instructional technology in the classroom is essential for teachers in the process to enhance media literacy among students and she is willing to take the step that will help her to meet such standard.

I had to confide that I was chocked at first to hear that she was unfamiliar about the National Educational Standard, being a formal student from MSU graduated recently it seems strange. But, when she told me that she has an idea about it and her colleagues seem not being informed, I was not surprised.  Like them, I was ignorant about this before that activity. I realize that it is helpful to have knowledge about such standard because it is mandatory to use them when we are planning lessons in order to meet national and international standard.

Definitely, as a future teacher, I envision using these educational standards in my career. This will allow me to build better lesson where instructional technology is embedded. I assume, based on my interview, that not every teacher is very well informed about NETS-T and NETS-S as national standard to teach in digital era.  I feel responsible to share this knowledge with colleagues that I will meet during my career. As educator, be opened and ready to change is the most important tool we need to be successful in a classroom where learning is taking place.

 

Did you know about Learnist

Did You Know about Learnist?

Learnist: A Helpful Tool on the Road to Inquiry.  This is the title of an article published on Edutopia on November 12, 2012. When I saw the title during my research on the web, I was quite wondering about its content and in what extent it can be helpful to me as educator. This article confirms the idea that educators can offer students opportunity to succeed when they granted them access to knowledge through technology. It is also a way to encourage them to apply knowledge discovered to inquire about the world around them.

The author, after explaining her mission which is “enable students to become literate, self-motivated, competent, lifelong learners by providing a multi-cultural, student- centered environment,” she carefully describes how she discovered Learnist and how helpful it can be to users. It allows them to collect web resources and add them to "Learnboards" to educate an audience about a particular subject, she added. Besides of that, Learnist lets her share resources technologically, freely and easily. She affirms:” it enables me to represent myself as a lifelong learner to my peers and to my students.” She said.

The most interesting thing is how to apply “Learnist in the classroom. It allows teachers to incorporate elements of a flipped classroom in their teaching. It can be used also to teach grammar (such verb tense, passive and active voice) .Creating lessons on Learnist helped teachers make good use of their class time and facilitate success in their classroom. I was excited to discover this article and I hope that sharing it with my classmate will be another “plus” in finding way to enhance learning while integrating technology in our teaching. I don’t know if like the author you will see so many possibilities for Learnist in your classroom or   you will be excited to apply this innovation to your teaching practice like she is.  I will conclude with her words saying that “Learnist may seem like a simple tool, but for my students and their future, it is simply revolutionary”.

Interactivity #4

As a future teacher who believes in discovery, I always envision my classroom a student centered classroom. I think it is more beneficial, productive or conducive to learning than others. Consequently, the chosen lesson plan for this activity is a project student centered. Studying a foreign language provides students with opportunity to discover, inquire, compare and contrast patterns of their culture and the target language. I choose this lesson plan because it addresses standards and reflects my views on teaching foreign languages. It is a unit lesson where group project is considered. This allows students to develop team spirit and cooperation. When executing this project, student can judge, challenge, and use creative and constructive thinking. In fact, the overview of this lesson plan challenges students’ ability to be responsible for their own learning. As an example, students are asked to research, to create, present information while working collaboratively in group, but it is also required to do task that show individual responsibility.

I did not find any gap between the curriculum goals, teaching strategy and technology when analyzing this lesson plan. It is a technology –based lesson where parameters of a research module such: questioning, planning, and gathering, sorting, synthesizing, evaluating and reporting are considered. Material aids and resources such web sites, charts are provided by teachers. The projects, - create a power point slide show presentation on the “cuisine francophone”, - is created to expand upon the text –based food unit and incorporate the study of francophone culture. Computer, Internet and social media can be used in completing this project.  However, it would be interesting to see students get more involved by enhancing collaboration, participation, and large group discussions through discussion board or wiki posting. The technology is essential to the curriculum because it is the tool to use to complete the project.

Here is the link:    https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0Ar28h3w88Bf-dDR2eVBNMXZmVlJLRkNFZE1iaGF5dUE                                      

Interactivity #3

 In spite of its challenges, this activity has been really helpful to me. It reinforces the idea that, in the “new literacy era”, technology and materials are available and I need to reap the benefits of them. Moreover, in the process to become acquainted with “digital literacy”, I must have the ability to use technology collaboratively and not only adequately but also to apply it “in a principled way to the subject matter at hand”. Basically, this technology inventory allows me to discover so many tools that I would never think was available to me .I learned that , as a foreign language teacher, there are  so many ways, so many tools that can be incorporated  in my teaching to plan and organize learning to facilitate and motivate learners . And, together-learners and teachers- we have the possibility   to influence mutually teaching content.

In my other classes,-Read 411 and curr 314- I am learning to design classes and how to empower students with literacy skills using standard. So, knowing resources and the functions of different media available is essential to meet the needs of students. Planning and designing classes according to standard requires to be “web literate” and” cultural literate”.   In other words, we must have the ability to help students to be empowered with skills to discover knowledge and information through media and technology. This means that teachers have to be not only literate but “media literate”, i.e. , master skills and competencies in using technology and media; in my case, to focus on designing situations, sequences, activities conducive to learning languages. Activities are designed in a way to encourage learners to participate in collaborative efforts. Reflecting on the process of this activity has enlarged my vision on my role as a teacher to facilitate learning¸ to orchestrate the classroom by making careful and considered choices of media and technology based on outcomes expected.