During my examination of the National Education
Standards for Teachers (NETS-T), I realized that I have many strengths regarding
the use of technology in my profession. For example, I design learning activities
that incorporate digital resources, communicate with my students and their
parents through my blog and PowerSchool, model lifelong learning through my
quest for my master’s degree, engage in professional development opportunities,
and “use information resources to support research and learning” in my
classroom (International Society for Technology in Education , 2012). While I
would consider myself to be proficient in this area, I know that I have more to
learn and could be integrating technology in other ways.
It is important to me to have the ability to use all of the
technology that is available to me in my school. This year, I finally received
a SmartBoard in my classroom. Aside from a computer, television, DVD player, and
a computer projector, I do not have any other technology in my classroom. My
students are quite familiar with the SmartBoard because they grew up using them
in their elementary school classrooms. However, I have never used one before
and would like to learn about everything it has to offer. Therefore, my first
goal is to learn how to use the SmartBoard so that I can incorporate it into my
lessons; doing so would exhibit “fluency in technology systems and the transfer
of current knowledge to new technologies and situations” (ISTE, 2012). The
actions I will take to achieve this goal include consulting my colleagues for
help and suggestions in addition to locating a tutorial on the Internet. These
actions should show me both how to use the SmartBoard and how to incorporate it
into my existing lessons. I will monitor my progress through the use of a
timeline. First, I will give myself several weeks to learn how to use the
SmartBoard. Ordinarily, I do not think it would take this long, but because the
school year has just started, I am quite busy preparing lessons and planning
for a course that I have not taught in four years. Then, I will begin including
it in my plans by designing a lesson that incorporates the SmartBoard at least
once a week. My students can also help me monitor my progress by giving me
feedback about our utilization of this technology tool. Once I feel comfortable
using it, it will be time to evaluate my learning and decide how it could be
advanced. For example, I might choose to research more ways that the SmartBoard
could be utilized in class. If anyone has any suggestions for me, please let me
know!
Next, a second weakness I have is in relation to the addition
of nonfiction texts in the curriculum. Often, my students and I are so focused
on the text at hand that I forget how I should be providing students with
nonfiction articles and encouraging them to research related events taking
place in the world today. This year, I am willing to work harder to “engage
students in exploring real-world issues and solving authentic problems using
digital tools and resources” (ISTE, 2012). I know that it is essential to
create authentic learning activities that are relevant and interesting for
students; therefore, my goal is to help my students tackle current topics with
my help. In order to accomplish this, I will introduce more nonfiction into the
curriculum and ensure that I have included at least one authentic learning activity
in each unit. I will help my students to discover important and relevant
real-word issues through the utilization of technology, such as Internet
research and blogs. I will monitor my progress by taking notes and reflecting
upon my notes and lesson plans as I design or review my plans each week. Again,
I could seek advice from my colleagues about authentic learning activities with
which they have provided their students. It is difficult to determine how I
will evaluate and extend my learning at this time. If the exploration of
real-world issues during one unit does not go as planned, I will reflect on my
lessons and decided how to approach the topic in the future.
References
Nets for teachers. (2012). Retrieved September 11,
2013, from International
Society for Technology in Education website: https://www.iste.org/standards/nets-for-
teachers
Rena,
ReplyDeleteI agree that learning the ropes of the Smartboard can take time. Sometimes I feel like turning it on and orienting the screen uses more time than I am willing to give up at the beginning of the period. One thing that I have found helpful with the Smartboard is the ability to save your board notes for future classes. You can also save drafts of projected notes. For example, in a Langauge Arts classroom, you may want to teach students editing techniques. You could have neatly written sentences saved as a Smartboard page and the students could use the "markers" to edit them. Erasing their marks but saving your original sentences saves you from rewriting the activity for each section of students. Notes can also be saved and used year after year. I hope this helps a bit!
Heather
Heather,
DeleteThanks for your ideas. Since I teach lower levels of freshman and sophomore students, I will be spending a lot of time on grammar and mechanics this year. The editing activity you mentioned sounds like something I would like to use very soon in my classroom. Thank you!
-Rena
I know the feeling both getting used to technology like the SMARTBoard you mentioned and the hectic nature of the beginning of the school year. This is the first year where I only have two preps instead of three (seventh grade US history and 9th grade Global history), and I am feeling quite overwhelmed. There are barely enough hours in the day to teach let alone find time to meet with the school technology team to get some training on the new technology we have acquired over the summer! Having experience without having a SMARTBoard and then having one, I must say that just its’ presence in the room served as an initial motivating factor. Many students live the kinesthetic aspect of getting up, moving around, and getting to use the technology as a part of the lesson; even if it is as simple as sharing a response and getting to record it on the board.
ReplyDeleteAs far as making the content you teach relevant- I like your idea about current event articles. I have found success incorporating their use in my social studies classes, once I expanded my thinking on the content I was teaching. For example- when teaching the American Reovlution, I focused on themes or ideas like fighting for your beliefs or the act of rebelling against an unfair government. I challenged students to then find current events related to those themes and create a written response that relates the current event to the content learning.
Megan R.
Megan,
DeleteI agree with what you said about the hands-on aspect of the Smartboard. I love incorporating activities where students are able to move around the room. It sounds like we have the same ideas in mind regarding relevant and current information in the curriculum. It is essential for students to make connections between the past and present and between the literature they are reading and their own lives. Thanks for your thoughts!
-Rena
Rena,
ReplyDeleteI completely agree with you when it comes to Smartboards! I was very fortunate to have one in my classroom, though I often find myself arguing with it! Having the option to save notes on the board is really helpful as well.You can also look for Smartboard lessons online that make give you some wonderful ideas to help your students. Here is the company's website that also offers many resources: http://exchange.smarttech.com/#tab=0
Megan,
DeleteI was not previously aware of the Smartboard website. Thank you for that information!
-Rena