https://drive.google.com/open?id=0B-I-uEVGJPKoUVRFSHdWa3pkeVlaNzdTOWF1VHlPUEI1SUln
EDUCATIONAL TECHNOLOGY REFLECTION #6
Educational Technology and Exceptional students
Technology can be the great equalizer in a classroom with diverse learners. Whereas teachers can find it difficult to differentiate instruction for 30+ students in one class, all with different needs and abilities, “assistive technology” (devices and software to assist students with disabilities) can often help teachers personalize lessons and skills enhancement to each child. Children with learning disabilities often have better technology skills than their teachers and are drawn to computers and other gadgets, so using them in the classroom make perfect sense. For children with physical disabilities, technology can give access to learning opportunities previously closed to them. E-readers help students turn book pages without applying dexterity, and voice adaptive software can help students answer questions without needing to write. Computers are engaging and more advanced than the typical modified lesson allows. The widely-used teacher education textbook Educating Exceptional Children has a special section in each chapter focused on assistive technology explaining how it is used with exceptionalities ranging from giftedness to autism. Assistive technology is not always just for students with disabilities; it can be used to help any student with motivation, academic skills, and social development.
Reference Link: http://www.learnnc.org/lp/pages/6917
Communities of Practice
Communities of Practice can be defined, in part, as a process of social learning that occurs when people who have a common interest in a subject or area collaborate over an extended period of time, sharing ideas and strategies, determine solutions, and build innovations. Wenger gives a simple definition: “Communities of practice are groups of people who share a concern or a passion for something they do and learn how to do it better as they interact regularly.” Note that this allows for, but does not require intentionality. Learning can be, and often is, an incidental outcome that accompanies these social processes.
Reference Link: https://www.learning-theories.com/communities-of-practice-lave-and-wenger.html
Distance Education
Distance education on the other hand is less a philosophy and more a method of education. Students can study in their own time, at the place of their choice (home, work or learning centre), and without face-to-face contact with a teacher. Technology is a critical element of distance education.
However, distance education programs may not be open. That is certainly the case at the University of British Columbia (UBC). Students who wish to take distance courses and receive a UBC degree must meet UBC’s admission requirements (which are set very high), and take the necessary course pre-requisites. For undergraduate education, at least half the program must be done ‘in residence’, that is, by taking face-to-face classes on campus. Thus in practice students who live out of province or in foreign countries cannot obtain a UBC undergraduate degree wholly at a distance.
If an institution is deliberately selective in its students, it has more flexibility with regard to choice of technology for distance education. It can for instance require all students who wish to take a distance education program to have their own computer. It cannot do that if its mandate is to be open to all students.
Distance is more likely to be psychological or social, rather than geographical, in most cases. For instance, the vast majority of UBC undergraduate distance education students are not truly distant. The majority (83 per cent) lives in the Greater Vancouver Region, and almost half within the City of Vancouver. Only six per cent of the undergraduate enrolments in 1999/2000 were from outside the province (because of the residential requirement). On the other hand, two thirds of UBC’s distance students (67 per cent) were working. The main reason for most UBC students taking distance courses is the flexibility they provide, given the work and family commitments of students and the difficulty caused by timetable conflicts for face-to-face classes. Only 17 per cent gave reasons to do with distance or travel (UBC Distance Education and Technology, 2001).
Reference Link: https://www.tonybates.ca/2008/07/07/what-is-distance-education/
EDUCATIONAL TECHNOLOGY REFLECTION #5
Technology in Assessment
Modern technology offers educators a variety of new tools that can be used in the classroom. Technology can help teachers track and assess their students’ — as well as their own — performance in the classroom. It can also be used to facilitate communication between students and teachers and to create digital records of student growth and development that can easily be passed along from grade to grade. Teachers can use technology to make their own work more productive — teachers can use spreadsheets to track student work and also track their teaching plans. If a group of students is performing poorly in a particular area, this kind of record keeping can highlight areas that the teacher needs to focus on in their own teaching.
Reference Link: http://www.thirteen.org/edonline/concept2class/assessment/explor_sub4.html
Technology for Diagnosis
A wide variety of technologies and tools are involved in the diagnostic process but the primary focus of the chapter is on health information technology (health IT) tools. Health IT covers a broad range of technologies used in health care, including electronic health records (EHRs), clinical decision support, patient engagement tools, computerized provider order entry, laboratory and medical imaging information systems, health information exchanges, and medical devices. Health IT plays key roles in various aspects of the diagnostic process: capturing information about a patient that informs the diagnostic process, including the clinical history and interview, physical exam, and diagnostic testing results; shaping a clinician’s workflow and decision making in the diagnostic process; and facilitating information exchange.
Reference Link: https://www.nap.edu/read/21794/chapter/7
Technology based Interventions
The term is broadly defined as “the practical application of knowledge” or “the specialized aspects of a particular field of endeavor” (Merriam-Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary, 1994, p. 1210). This broad definition encompasses virtually any information or object that has been used in application to a field of study. For example, the application of stimulus control is technology to a behavioral clinician. A more specific use of the term refers to use of mechanical or electromechanical processes that often increase productivity and reduce or eliminate manual operations or operations done by older technologies. In the twenty-first century, technology commonly denotes a variety of popular electromechanical devices such as cell phones, video recording equipment, and hand-held, desktop, and laptop personal computers. It is the use of these tools with children with autism that will be the subject of this review paper.
Reference Link: https://wiki.inf.ed.ac.uk/twiki/pub/ECHOES/RelevantPapers/GL2004.pd
Educational technology continuum in the Jamaican education system
As a developing nation, Jamaica continues to experience economic challenges that have far-reaching implications for all sectors of the society. Education For All (EFA) is a concept that Jamaica has tried to embrace for more than two decades. One of the nation’s goals for the 21st century is to raise the quality of education for all its citizens, thus equipping them to be productive contributors to societal growth. Recently, Jamaica turned its attention to information technology (IT), with particular attention to the education sector, because it saw its introduction as a proverbial “Black Starliner;” a means by which the country’s economic prospects could be changed. In the early 1990s, the Jamaica Computer Society Education Foundation (JCSEF) launched an initiative to facilitate the establishment of computer laboratories in secondary schools. These laboratories were to be used to train students to use computers in the workplace, and to prepare them to sit external examinations that were internationally accredited. As a result of this initiative, 90% of the island’s secondary schools were equipped with computer laboratories which facilitated students doing the Caribbean Examinations Council’s (CXC) IT examination. The impact of this project enabled the focus on computerization to be expanded to include primary schools, enabling them to be equipped with computers and to have their teachers trained to use them to aid learning.
Reference Link: http://unesdoc.unesco.org/images/0013/001364/136465e.pdf
EDUCATIONAL TECHNOLOGY REFLECTION #4
WEB 2.0 TECHNOLOGIES
Google: Originally known as BackRub, Google is a search engine that started development in 1996 by Sergey Brin and Larry Page as a research project at Stanford University to find files on the Internet. Larry and Sergey later decided the name of their search engine needed to change and decide upon Google, which is inspired from the term googol.
YouTube is a free video sharing website that makes it easy to watch online videos. You can even create and upload your own videos to share with others. Originally created in 2005, YouTube is now one of the most popular sites on the Web, with visitors watching around 6 billion hours of video every month.
A wiki (sometimes spelled “Wiki”) is a server program that allows users to collaborate in forming the content of a Web site. The term comes from the word “wikiwiki,” which means “fast” in the Hawaiian language.
Social networking is the practice of expanding the number of one’s business and/or social contacts by making connections through individuals, often through social media sites such as Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and Google+.
Web design is the process of creating websites. It encompasses several different aspects, including webpage layout, content production, and graphic design. While the terms web design and web developments are often used interchangeably, web design is technically a subset of the broader category of web development.
A blog (short for weblog) is a personal online journal that is frequently updated and intended for general public consumption. Blogs are defined by their format: a series of entries posted to a single page in reverse-chronological order.Blogs generally represent the personality of the author or reflect the purpose of the Web site that hosts the blog. Topics sometimes include brief philosophical musings, commentary on Internet and other social issues, and links to other sites the author favors, especially those that support a point being made on a post.
A Web Quest is an inquiry-oriented activity in which some or all of the information that learners interact with comes from resources on the internet, optionally supplemented with videoconferencing.
REFERENCES:
http://academics.smcvt.edu/cbauer-ramazani/TESOL/NNETESOL/WebQuests/definition.htm
http://www.computerhope.com/jargon/g/google.htm
https://www.gcflearnfree.org/youtube/what-is-youtube/1/
http://searchmicroservices.techtarget.com/definition/wiki
http://whatis.techtarget.com/definition/social-networking
https://techterms.com/definition/web_design
http://searchwindevelopment.techtarget.com/definition/blog
EDUCATIONAL TECHNOLOGY REFLECTION #3
INSTRUCTIONAL SOFTWARE:
This is computer software used for the primary purpose of teaching and self-instruction. Categories of Instructional Software are:
• Drill and practice
• Tutorial
• Simulation
• Instructional games
• Problem-solving
Desktop publishing is a term coined after the development of a specific type of software. It’s about using that software to combine and rearrange text and images and creating digital files.
Digital storytelling refers to a variety of emergent new forms of digital narratives, e.g. web-based stories, interactive stories, hypertexts, narrative computer games (such as Never winter Nights), audio and video podcasts, etc.
Podcast is a digital audio or video file or recording, usually part of a themed series, that can be downloaded from a website to a media player or computer.
REFERENCES:
Howard Bear, J. (2017). What is Desktop publishing? Retrieved April 26, 2017 from https://www.thoughtco.com/what-is-desktop-publishing-1073862
Sparks, T. (2017). Instructional Software. Retrieved April 26, 2017 from https://www.slideshare.net/tdsparks3/instructional-software-presentation
http://edutechwiki.unige.ch/en/Digital_storytelling
http://www.dictionary.com/browse/podcast
EDUCATIONAL TECHNOLOGY REFLECTION #2
Instructional Systems Design (ISD)
Instructional Systems Design involves a systematic process for the assessment and development of training solutions, designed specifically for the purpose of formal training delivery. There are two widely recognized instructional design models in use today by both educational institutions and corporate training functions. The most traditional is the ADDIE model, of which there are several variations. The second is the Agile model, whereby there are several variations, including Rapid Application Development, Rapid Content Development, and the Successive Approximation Model.
ADDIE Model
The ADDIE model is the generic process traditionally used by instructional designers and training developers. The five phases—Analysis, Design, Development, Implementation, and Evaluation—represent a dynamic, flexible guideline for building effective training and performance support tools. While perhaps the most common design model, there are a number of weaknesses to the ADDIE model which have led to a number of spin-offs or variations.
It is an Instructional Systems Design (ISD) model. Most of the current instructional design models are spin-offs or variations of the ADDIE model; other models include the Dick & Carey and Kemp ISD models. One commonly accepted improvement to this model is the use of rapid prototyping. This is the idea of receiving continual or formative feedback while instructional materials are being created. This model attempts to save time and money by catching problems while they are still easy to fix.
Instructional theories also play an important role in the design of instructional materials. Theories such as behaviorism, constructivism, social learning and cognitivism help shape and define the outcome of instructional materials.
REFERENCES:
Instructional Design. (2017). ADDIE Model. Retrieved April 26, 2017 from http://www.instructionaldesign.org/models/addie.html
Training Industry. (2017). Instructional Systems Design. Retrieved April 26, 2017 from https://www.trainingindustry.com/taxonomy/i/instructional-system-design.aspx
EDUCATIONAL TECHNOLOGY REFLECTION #1
INTERNATIONAL SOCIETY FOR TECHNOLOGY IN EDUCATION (ISTE)
The International Society for Technology in Education is a not-for –profit organization that provides standards and criteria for what teachers need to teach and what students need to learn, as well as what content needs to be provided by a professional development program in relation to educational technology.
ISTE STANDARDS FOR STUDENTS:
As educators, students are at the center of everything we do. Our foremost goal is to prepare them for their future. The student standards describe the skills and knowledge they need to thrive, grow and contribute in a global, interconnected and constantly changing society.
ISTE STANDARDS FOR TEACHERS:
Teachers have always held the key to student success. But their role is changing. The ISTE Standards for Teachers define the digital age skills and pedagogical insights educators need to teach, work and learn.
TECHNOLOGY INTEGRATION:
The term means that technology is not taught as a separate class, but integrated into the classroom. It also means that students use technology to learn content and show their understanding of content, not just their expertise with a tool.
TECHNOLOGY LITERACY:
Technology literacy is the ability of an individual, working independently and with others, to responsibly, appropriately and effectively use technology tools to access, manage, integrate, evaluate, create and communicate information.
SKILLS REQUIRED FOR TECHNOLOGY LITERACY
According to the International Society for Technology in Education, technology literacy requires students to demonstrate skills in several areas, including:
Creativity and innovation: Students use technology to demonstrate creative thinking, problem solving and knowledge construction
Communication and collaboration: Students use technology to communicate and collaborate in order to enhance their learning or the learning of others
Research and information fluency: Students use technology to find and use accurate, up-to-date information
Digital citizenship: Students understand what it means to be a citizen in the digital world and practice ethical behavior when they use technology
Technology operations and concepts: Students illustrate an understanding of technological systems and concepts
WHY IS TECHNOLOGICAL LITERACY IMPORTANT?
Achieving technology literacy helps students function in the world they live in. Not only is technology necessary in education and work arenas, it also helps students learn to become better decision-makers. Learning how to use technology enables students to access reliable and pertinent information regarding their health, safety and attainment of life goals. Students must understand not only how and where to look for information, but also how to discern whether sources are reliable or exhibit bias.
Moreover, ability to access and use technology helps to decrease the digital divide, with students better able to access information. Without technological literacy, students will be unable to compete with those who have similar qualifications or skill sets.
REFERENCES:
http://www.igi-global.com/dictionary/iste/41001
https://www.iste.org/standards/standards
https://www.edutopia.org/blog/meaning-tech-integration-elementary-mary-beth-hertz
TANIQUE’S WIKI WEBSITE
ASSURE MODEL LESSON PLAN
Names: Krishunna Williams and Tanique Peart
Subject: Science
Duration: 60 minutes
Grade: 5
Topic: Nutrition
Subtopic: Nutrients
Focus Questions: What are food nutrients and why are they important to us?
Analyze Learners: This lesson is prepared for a group of grade 5 students at the Mount Osborn Primary School. This class has a population of 30 students. There are 16 girls and 14 boys ranging from age 10-11 years. The learning style of the students varies in the class. In order to get students attention the different learning styles will be targeted.
Entry Competencies: Students should be able to identify the different types of food nutrients and state what each nutrient supplies the body.
Learning Style: Students learning styles vary from auditory to visual and also kinesthetic learners. In pursuit of ensuring that students actually learn, each style must be taken into consideration. Here activities have been incorporated that will cater to each learning style.
Objectives:
Students should be able to:
- Define the term nutrients.
- Identify the seven types of food nutrients.
- Analyze meals to determine which has the widest range of nutrients.
- Work cooperatively in groups to complete a work sheet.
Selected Media, Materials and Methods.
White Board: the white board will be used to record students, response during opening discussion.
Multi-media / Overhead Projector: The teacher will use the multimedia projector to allow the students to view video showing the different types of nutrients present in food.
Speakers: With the aid of speakers the students will be able to hear the video about the types of nutrients present in food. The speaker will enhance their learning experience by been able to hear clearly what is being played in the video.
Work Sheet: The work sheet will be given to each group with different dishes. Students will identify the different nutrients in each food.
Computer: A computer will be used to aid the use of the multi-media projector to show a power point with an interactive game known as jeopardy.
Discussion: Discussion will take place as a way to promote students prior knowledge and get them involved in the lesson, securing their undivided attention.
Questioning: This was a form used to activate students’ prior knowledge, to get then to think about the topic in a way that ties to the lesson, getting them involved in the lesson.
Clarification: Clarification will be done in order to clarify students misunderstanding or misconception.
Utilize Media and Materials
Preview the Materials
The teacher will listen to the clip ensuring that the video is working and the audio is clear to ensure that they are working properly and effective for the execution of the lesson. The teacher will also ensure that the speakers are working as well. The teacher will test the overhead or multi-media projector and the computer ensuring their compatibility.
Prepare the Materials
The teacher will print worksheets for class. The teacher will also setup the computer and overhead or multi-media projector before the class. These pieces of equipment will then be turned on and tested to ensure they are in working condition before the lesson begins.
Prepare the Environment
The teacher will check to ensure the room is properly ventilated, comfortable and conducive for learning. The seating will be arranged so that all students will have a clear view of the projection. The speaker will be placed in an area where all students will be able to hear the video presentation clearly.
Prepare the Learners
The teacher will inform the students of the activities planned before the class. The students will also be informed of the evaluation exercises that they will be given at the end of the class.
Provide the Learning Experience
The teaching strategy that will be used is the Discovery Approach. The teacher will begin the lesson by engaging the students in a discussion. The discussion will focus around asking students about food which the teacher will then help the students making a connection to nutrition. The students will watch a video pertaining to the different food nutrients. After the video students and teacher will be engaged in a question and answer session after the video. Students will be asked to give the definition of nutrients and state the different types of nutrients. The students’ responses will be recorded on the white board.
Require Learner Participation
Students will be placed in groups of five. Each group will be given a work sheet with different food items. Students will be asked identify the different food nutrients present in each food. The leader from each group will stand and tell the different nutrients present in the food that they have on their worksheet.
Evaluate and Revise
Students will be engaged in a class activity. The teachers will ask the students to make a table on the computer using the different types of nutrients as their headings. They will be asked to find as many examples as they can for the types of nutrients and put in under the correct column. After the activity the teachers will go around the class to check the students work.
REFLECTION ON LEARNING THEORIES AND TECHNOLOGY INTEGRATION
Behaviorism is a worldview that assumes a learner is essentially passive, responding to environmental stimuli. The learner starts off as a clean slate and behavior is shaped through positive reinforcement or negative reinforcement[2. Both positive reinforcement and negative reinforcement increase the probability that the antecedent behavior will happen again. In contrast, punishment (both positive and negative) decreases the likelihood that the antecedent behavior will happen again. Positive indicates the application of a stimulus; Negative indicates the withholding of a stimulus. Learning is therefore defined as a change in behavior in the learner. Lots of (early) behaviorist work was done with animals (e.g. Pavlov’s dogs) and generalized to humans[3]. Behaviorism precedes the cognitivist worldview. It rejects structuralism and is an extension of Logical Positivism
Cognitivism is “the psychology of learning which emphasizes human cognition or intelligence as a special endowment enabling man to form hypotheses and develop intellectually” (Cognitivism) and is also known as cognitive development. The underlying concepts of cognitivism involve how we think and gain knowledge. Cognitivism involves examining learning, memory, problem solving skills, and intelligence. Cognitive theorists may want to understand how problem solving changes throughout childhood, how cultural differences affect the way we view our own academic achievements, language development, and much more. (Feldman, Cognitivism)
Constructivism is a learning theory found in psychology which explains how people might acquire knowledge and learn. It therefore has direct application to education. The theory suggests that humans construct knowledge and meaning from their experiences. Constructivism is not a specific pedagogy. Piaget’s theory of Constructivist learning has had wide ranging impact on learning theories and teaching methods in education and is an underlying theme of many education reform movements. Research support for constructivist teaching techniques has been mixed, with some research supporting these techniques and other research contradicting those results
Engagement Theory: The fundamental idea underlying engagement theory is that students must be meaningfully engaged in learning activities through interaction with others and worthwhile tasks. While in principle, such engagement could occur without the use of technology, we believe that technology can facilitate engagement in ways which are difficult to achieve otherwise. So engagement theory is intended to be a conceptual framework for technology-based learning and teaching.
Situated cognition is a theory which emphasizes that people’s knowledge is constructed within and linked to the activity, context, and culture in which it was learned. Learning is social and not isolated, as people learn while interacting with each other through shared activities and through language, as they discuss, share knowledge, and problem-solve during these tasks.
Distributed learning is a general term used to describe a multi-media method of instructional delivery that includes a mix of Web-based instruction, streaming video conferencing, face-to-face classroom time, distance learning through television or video, or other combinations of electronic and traditional educational models. Although distributed learning can be executed in a variety of ways, it is consistent in that it always accommodates a separation of geographical locations for part (or all) of the instruction, and focuses on learner-to-learner as well as instructor-to-learner interaction. Corporations and universities are using and promoting distributed learning for staff development, technical training, and advanced-degree coursework.
REFERENCES
Whatis.com. (2017). Distributed Learning. Retrieved March 27, 2017 from http://whatis.techtarget.com/definition/distributed-learning
Brown, Collins, & Duguid. (2017). Situated Cognition. Retrieved March 27, 2017 from https://www.learning-theories.com/situated-cognition-brown-collins-duguid.html
The University of Syndney. (2017). Constructivism. Retrieved March 27, 2017 from http://sydney.edu.au/education_social_work/learning_teaching/ict/theory/constructivism.shtml
Watson, J. et al.(2005). Learning Theories. Retrieved March 27, 2017 from https://www.learning-theories.com/behaviorism.html
Brandi. (2011). Cognitivism. Retrieved March 27, 2017 from http://teachinglearningresources.pbworks.com/w/page/31012664/Cognitivism
Kearsley, G & Shneiderman, B. (2017). Engagement Theory. Retrieved March 27, 2017 from 3.ort.org.il/APPS/Public/GetFile.aspx?inline=yes&f=Files/ba3c28fc-8c3e-46d9-b4f3-effda4c7e27b/2a3cd87c-fcdd-4edc-8279-d967fc824a34/3a35cbf4-6fd2-4314-ad99-8e2101acf3b9/5c2319a3-c2ba-4b1d-be29-d2cdc6ff9ede.htm
Tanique Peart 