A Picture is worth...

So, what is it worth? A picture, that is? Descriptive interpretation of complex images requires higher levels of cognition than just "watching" something. With the enormous amounts of imagry now available in digital format, we must find good methods to utilize them to teach higher thinking skills. An image like the one at the left could easily be used to start a student discussion about a variety of topics including...patterns in nature, mathematical equations of curves or fractals, mineral formations, rates of crystallization, or even artist interpretations.

The method in which images can be used is important, for they can help us to make important connections between concepts. Through comparison with other images, students can sharpen their observation and descriptive skills. For example, students could compare the image above with the following one:

Then, with a set of criteria, students could explore how similar processes govern both rock formation and clouds on planets such as Jupiter. Through asking students to make such connections through imagry, the concepts can take on a much more real meaning. In this case, it is especially relevant--for even though agate slices may be present in the class, students will not be able to venture to Jupiter, so high quality images can be used to substitute for the "real mccoy". This is an important consideration with any activity involving imagry--to insure that the use of imagry is of paramount importance for developing the concept.

Similarly, students must be able to make inferences from the images, so they must be rich and complex enough to allow students to form deep understandings of the nuances of each image. Consider the following image:

What types of questions should be asked of students to insure that they will explore the image fully? Open ended questions are more useful, however, there must also be an overall goal in the questions developed.

In this image, one could ask: What does this image show? Do you think it contains a fossil? What evidence might you give for this? What additional information might be helpful in deciding whether your initial hypothesis is correct? To follow up, one could provide an additional image:

Now, does this image provide any additional information? If so, then how? Is it "real" data? How do you know? How could it be considered "false"?

Again, this type of questioning MUST accompany digital imagry for it to be most effective in teaching. Just showing the images is not enough, they must be used to elicit greater and deeper understandings of all of our students. The meta-cognitive component is also essential...is it real?

What types of visual cues in the image might be used to make inferences about the "reality" of such an image? What types of scientific principles could be used to support your inferences?

Again, we must give students something that will engage their minds and utilize the image to maximize learning.

Finally, digital images can be used to teach in ways that are only possible with today's high tech cameras... what is this? Why does it do this? Can you describe what happened before this? Can you describe what will happen after? What processes are at work?..

This type of "stop motion" image or others like it can be very useful in teaching...they are a single snapshot of a complex and ongoing process. Through examining one aspect in great detail and inferring how it fits within the whole process, one can gain even greater knowledge about the manner in which that process works...

Digital images can be used in many ways to teach lessons. I've only scratched the surface here, but you too can join this revolution. Get out your camera, snap a few shots, but remember to truly make your pictures worth a thousand words, you must frame them within the context of deep questions. Say "cheese"...Kodachrome...gives us the nice colors...now, lets' think about them....

Podcasting for auditory meaning

Have you ever herard:


"Can you hear me now?"...a popular commercial inquiry regarding both radio and auditory signals providing the opportunity to elaborate all that's "fit to broadcast" out to the wide world on every square centimeter of planet Earth (albeit by cell phone)...yet what types of auditory content do we really need-- and is an endless "calibration check" the most interesting expected outcome of these sorts of auditory technologies?


The use of podcasts in education, although a fairly recent addition to the educator's toolkit, however, may hold some important cards in the education hand dealt out to students today. The podcast is essentially a miniature stored audio program that can be accessed easily at any time and replayed as often as one would like. So, what can an educator do with this?

Announcements, assignments, audio communications, and other types of teacher to student interactions could be "podcast" out to students. In turn, students could do the same and provide assignments, responses, interactions, and other types of audio feedback via podcasts. Discussions from class or important short "reports" of various types that will be beneficial to other students would seem to be especially relevant uses of podcasts in this context.

In addition, some uses of podcasts could extend to science in areas such as exchanges of audio information. Examples could be insect or other animal sounds, beating hearts of various types of mammals, sound experiments with musical instruments or household items, and unusual phenomena that produce noise. Noise pollution itself could be monitored and podcast on a frequent basis from spots around various metropolitan areas.

Student stories or short "radio" type plays could be created as assignments along with student audio "commercials" that utilize student audio creativity in their design and creation. Students with vocal or instrumental music talent could create podcasts of their latest song ideas or vocalization practices for music teachers and others to provide feedback.

Interviews of various experts in fields could be podcast much as they are on radio stations. These could be conducted by students and then shared with other interested students and a wider public.

In short, a podcast is another way to share audio (and some video) information across the digitally connected world of today. So, now, if a tree falls in the forest and nobody is there to hear it...just download its podcast and all of your philosophical problems are solved...well, maybe not that easy, but it does offer some very interesting options for shared audio files.

My only concern is that someday I will discover a podcast that someone has made of me snoring...hopefully not during my class, however. I wonder if someone has made a podcast of Dolphins "talking"? Manatees or whales "singing"? Leaves rustling? A stream burbling? Bees buzzing? Birds chirping? Ships creaking (or stairs)? The sound cars make when traveling over a bridge? A tornado? A hard rock song played backwards? Hmmmm....perhaps one of these hides secret clues to the meaning of life. A light bulb turning on...Gotta go...I have some podcasting to do--no telling what I might "catch" with my latest "cast".

Smiles.

Powerful Points of Contention

What's the point?

A question often asked by many students and teachers when working with the myriad of technological tools available to "enhance" their teaching or learning. There are many that have infiltrated the educational system with promises of greater student achievement, higher test scores, or making learning "fun". Perhaps no other has elicited as much praise and scorn as that ever ubiquitous and often overindulged of presentation tools...the all knowing, all powerful...Powerpoint!

It slices, it dices, it juliannes...(Is it made by Ronco?)

Its flashy, exciting, and "fun"...(Is it a carnival ride?)

It slides, transitions, uncovers, plays multi-media in multiple-modes...certainly, something like this will undoubtedly serve as a wonderful tool to enlighten and inspire the next generation to think greater thoughts...or will it?

Now, to come clean up front, I must admit that I use presentation software like Powerpoint often, but I also cringe a bit each time I use it and ask myself a few questions. What am I really trying to teach with this "presentation" or Powerpoint project? What do I want students to really learn by creating something using it? What is the point?

Perhaps we should begin by examining what these types of software do well: They can present multiple forms of media in a concise and easily accessible format for the audience/class; they can serve as a platform for organization of presentation portions of projects for students; they can provide a sequential interactive experience for a learner as well as a possibility to create a "web" of sorts of information screens (like a web site) with content that is enhanced with layers of (hopefully) useful information and data. Truly, this software does have some powerful features.

However, in a recent article in Learning and Leading with Technology, "Is Powerpoint Crippling our Students?", a comparison between two educators and their uses of Powerpoint software sheds some new light on this debate. One educator bemoans how she may be the distributor of "mindless media" through use of this software, while the other touts the software's ability to motivate and bring together students for greater collaborative learning. Both views have merit, yet both are also colored by the USER of the software and how well the TOOL is being utilized to empower students into positive COGNITIVE growth patterns. Years ago, a hero of mine, George Lucas, when asked about his ground-breaking special effects in Star Wars, responded as follows...(paraphrased) A special effect is just a means for telling a good story--without a good story, a special effect by itself, is a very poor thing indeed. His comment seems to resonate especially well in the light of the Powerpoint "moon." Mr. Lucas pointed out, that the STORY was what broke box office records...not just the special effects...I would place Powerpoint in the same light. It is a "special effect." It provides many "bells and whistles", but unless these special effects are used appropriately to tell a good "story" and elicit higher levels of student learning and involvement, they are just another form of "eye candy"...

So, should you abandon the use of Powerpoint in your class? Not so fast...For presenting images or certain types of multi-media, it can be a very useful and powerful tool. However, proceed with caution, for one should note that the traditional "lecture" is quickly disappearing from the realm of proper educational practice, and thus any use of technological tools in this same realm will similarly fall short of producing the high levels of cognitive growth intended. The old set of "snooze graphs" from the overhead projector moved over to the powerpoint screen will serve only to encourage more of your students' eyelids to close...Instead, it would be better to use this software tool as a way for students to generate and share their own interactive content (like games), or to provide a digital platform for showcasing their own original artistic or imaginative content. Indeed, many conversations with colleagues over the years have included discussions about how students get "stuck" in the "box" of such software and have a much greater difficulty in creative or imaginative thinking because of being "Powerpointed" in mis-directions. What is the teacher to do?

THINK! BE CREATIVE...HAVE A DEFINITE objective that will be better met through the use of this software as a COGNITIVE tool.

Don't let your students touch the software until they have GOOD CONTENT and a PLAN on how they will use the software to meet specific learning goals.

Ask yourself this: If we did not have ____software to use, could students still accomplish the learning goals in other ways? If the answer is "yes", then most likely, you need to re-think your use of the software.

Don't get "powerpointed" in the wrong direction. Remember, you and your students should be in control of your own destiny and feel the actual "power" that comes from being "pointed" in a positive direction for growth. The "force" is with YOU...stay "on target".

Spiders on the web

I've recently been thinking a lot about how the "web" (WWW 2.0) is used as a cognitive tool...naturally, I decided to spin my tale from a spiders perspective to gain some insight...so consider my allegorical tale...

A spider starts with an intrinsic plan, some would argue pre-programmed, that it uses to create its web as a tool for its own work. It creates this web by meticulously leaving a small trail of protein fiber, spider silk, behind as it weaves its pattern in and out. Then, after a few finishing touches, the web is ready to use. The spider then prepares a place to hang around and monitor the results of its web to see what might get caught in it. Anything of "interest" that will be of use to the spider (i.e. food), is quickly dealt with and preserved, while those annoying things that get caught up in the web (leaves, sticks, etc.) are often dealt with when time allows. A stiff breeze does not bother the web...it just sways and moves in tandem with it (spider silk is very strong stuff). However, if a larger creature (human) comes by with malicious intentions, it may destroy the web, meaning that all of the work of the spider must be repeated again. Yet, the spider goes on and survives. It uses its web as a tool, even as a source of protection at times, but it never gets caught in its own web...(think about that for a minute...)

So, how is the World Wide Web similar to one created by our spider? We use it for our own improvement, connect a myriad of people and resources through its structures, find all kinds of interesting and beneficial things within it, and sometimes find lots of "junk" in it too. It is fragile and robust at the same time, strong in its linkages and ability to absorb many types of wear and tear and still can be largely taken out of service by childish efforts of a few destructive individuals. It is tended by meticulous "spider" type agents, repaired by technicians, supported by all types of external structures, and still retains a bit of elegance and appreciative beauty if one cares to look at it closely. Truly it is a human construct that we can be proud of...yet, only if we can use it to our own benefit.

Which brings me to cognitive uses. What the WWW 2.0 does well is deliver data, connect people to data and each other, and provide a platform for interactive multi-media content that can serve as a learning tool. A recent article by Thomas Reeves outlines many of the potential uses of the web as a cognitive tool. Reeves bases much of his outline for cognitive uses on the work of John Carroll's model of school learning, which connects aptitudes and academic achievement through a mediation of opportunities, ability of understanding, quality of instruction, and perseverence. Reeves WWW-based learning builds on this to incorporate inputs, processes, and outcomes, mirroring in many ways the structure of an actual computer system itself. This model is a good starting point for considering the best practices of use for web technologies in instruction.

Science Teacher "Testimony time": So, how have I used this WWW 2.0? I have found the WWW to be most useful with students in such activites as sharing and communicating scientific data/experiments with others (such as the GLOBE project; online weather station data analysis from local, national, and global areas; science fair project ideas and research; and pairing with other schools as web "buddies"); utilizing online JAVA applets or simulations that allow students to "experiment" with tools not available in the classroom (GIZMOS, atom models, earthquake simulators, etc.); a resource for online multimedia to enhance understanding and provide important imagery/content for student projects (Youtube videos, digital images, research databases, etc.); and as a communication tool between students and "experts" in many scientific fields (University professors, professional scientists, engineers, etc.) to get new and innovative perspectives on current scientific topics of interest. Most of these "applications" would just not be possible without the robust structure and depth of connectivity provided through WWW 2.0. The trick is not to get "caught" in the web, but instead remain cool and calm above it, like the spider does, and survey things with discrimination and wisdom. We must not only support cognitive, interactive, and thought-provoking functions of the WWW 2.0, but also be especially meta-cognitive in how the web is used for our own benefit. When is it BEST to use WWW 2.0 as a tool? How will it really benefit students to use it?

I doubt a spider understands its own role as a type of director for its own web, but the analogy of a spider web to the WWW provides a good comparison. For example, when you pull on any one strand of a spider web, you affect every other part of the web as well. We all affect the WWW 2.0 as much as it affects us. We are re-weaving the WWW all of the time, just as Ms. Spider does every day. The patterns in it are complex, and can be both beneficial and dangerous. We all have to be very careful spiders to "surf" our own web and benefit from it as much as possible, pulling out the "good bits" of stuff, and not getting "tied down" by all of the other "stuff", that gets stuck in the web. Thomas Friedman has often pointed out how the WWW 2.0 has made the world "flat" for many in its offering of seemingly limitless opportunities. As teachers, we must find ways to now build on this new cleared "flat" ground, so that the next generation of "spiders" may come along and add new twists and even more interesting patterns to our own.

Inspirational Concepts

Inspiration...we all seem to want it, but are not really sure how or even when to know that we have it. Yet, now we have a great technological tool to aid us in communicating our own ideas, and fortuitously it is also appropriately named for what it often gives us: Inspiration.

The idea of "concept mapping" has been around for many years. Indeed, I have been using it with my classes going back even prior to the beginning of the Inspiration software company. Such great innovators as Bill Hammond, Bob Samples, Nancy Margulies, and Joyce Wycoff have contributed much to this idea of "doodling with a purpose". This process has gone by many terms including semantic mapping, mindmapping, concept mapping, and webbing. Integrating the artistic and visual-spatial components into the learning and concept development process is especially effective for some learners. I will outline just a few of its uses below:

The Inspiration software can be used for:
1. Linear visual representations--outlines, flow charts. It is especially helpful in translating linear concepts from a written outline into a visual format and back. Through the flow chart tools, it also is very well suited for writing procedures and processes in science. I have used it extensively in both of these formats to help students develop skills in outlining/note taking/summarizing as well as creating visual representations of their detailed procedures for science experiments.

2. Semantic webbing--connecting ideas with words and concepts--the so-called "concept mapping", as well as diagramming sentences and illustrating relationships visually between various concepts. I used to provide a significant tutorial on Inspiration to my students called "Making Connections". I would often give them a topic/concept and a rubric of terms, definitions, or linking ideas, and ask them to create a map showing the inter-connectedness of all of these ideas. I also encouraged them to share their maps with the class, work on them cooperatively, and to include their own pictures and ideas that will help them to remember the connections between the concepts. This is especially effective for learners and concepts that are more visual in nature. "A picture is worth a thousand words here."

3. Summarization--within a single page, analysis and synthesis (Higher levels of Bloom's taxonomy), notepads/data streamed organization. As students work on either individual or group discussions or data collection, Inspiration can be used to provide a summary of the notes for the class to remember and then saved to one location for all to access. This is especially effective when you limit what students may put onto their concept maps. Then, they are forced to only include the most important information, images, or video that will help them remember the concepts and its relationships.

The article "Beyond Powerpoint" also points out some specific uses:

1. "Store Front"--click on each and get sound/graphics, etc. This technique is useful in presentations for the class either by the teacher or students. This can be similar to a home page for a website.

2. Gradual Reveal--incremental content--process, timelines, problem solving. Teacher or student directed, this type of use is helpful when content or problems have multiple steps or connections. A Smart board is also a very useful tool for this technique.

3. "Notepads" feature--develop as class progresses--add content, data, etc. to share conclusions of an inquiry process. This works where mixed media are often helpful or needed to explain a topic. Having a set of images available to place into Inspiration is helpful as well as some pre-designed content ideas. Then, as students generate data/information, the appropriate visual or written content can be added and notes given from the class live. Again, a Smart board along with Inspiration can work quite well here.

4. Hyperlinking--Site maps, parts linked to main map, subtopics need development, sequential organizer of content and information. This is useful as a type of "site map" for organizing content that has depth through URL addresses. Providing additional web pages or sites that can be quickly accessed through the visual icons on Inspiration can help to explain complex structures in more detail for some learners. For example, a cell image with terms mapped via Inspiration where each term is linked to a web page of additional information, images, and videos to explain the function or purpose of each cell organelle or structure in more detail.

Ultimately, the greatest benefit comes from having students use Inspiration where it works best--as a tool for visually connecting content. In science, many processes are cycles or connected to other processes: Rock cycle, water cycle, ecosystems, atomic structure, matter and energy, nitrogen cycle, air cycle, and many others. Providing students with a structured rubric in which they can create their own versions of these will be a great tool for their increased understanding. In this way, they truly will be more "inspired."

Cognitive Spreadsheet learning

Is sorting candy and graphing on Excel a good use of technology as a "cognitive tool"?

Well, probably not. Even though the "handout" given for this activity specified some higher levels of thinking in trying to place additional data into the correct place and then interpret the resulting graph, it was not really the best use overall of engagement with technology.

To learn "with" technology we should be using the computer's capabilities of data processing to help enhance our own thinking abilities in completing a lesson or assignment.

So, how to fix this? Well, the overall assignment needs to be focused more on using a spreadsheet to not only interpret results, but also to make predictions and place these predictions in the context of a larger meaningful construct. Using Excel to organize the data and to make the graphs is good, however it would be better to leave the TYPE of graph used to best illustrate the trends in the colors of M and M's up to the learners and have them JUSTIFY their choices based on the current data. To move up into higher levels of Bloom's taxonomy, we should encourage application, analysis, evaluation, synthesis and creativity. In this way, the "handout" has in some cases TOO many specific instructions and in other ways NOT ENOUGH open-ended or "Understand" type of questions to focus the learning on guiding principles.

Our recent reading on cognitive process and technology use seems to support using both the computer capabilities and the learner's capabilities in tandem to synthesize something greater that would not be possible without both fully engaged to their best capabilities.

So, to improve this activity, we may want to first convey a larger and meaningful context--for example, should the candy factory keep the current proportion of colors/flavors given the popularity of a certain mix or cost of production of a certain color/flavor? Providing some information on popularity of various candy types/colors/flavors or some information on the cost or variation in the costs would provide some meaningful context to the whole exercise. The learner could use this information at his/her own discretion when constructing the graph and decide what will have the most impact on his/her project.

Second, we may be asked to argue a case for elimination or addition of a color/flavor based on our research findings. Thus, each group must not only collect the data, but also decide what data to include or exclude, how to display the data, and how to explain what it means in order to convince his/her peers of a particular decision or point of view. Again, this focus will provide more cognitive impetus for learners to want to think about each of their decisions rather than following a "recipe" on a paper.

Third, and perhaps most important, the class could analyze each groups recommendation and then make suggestions about whether to approve it or not. In essence, the data collection and graphing would be used in such a way to invoke higher cognitive processing in the learner by reducing the time necessary to produce a changing graphical picture with new data or a new focus. Evaluation of others work may elicit a rubric to determine whether the candy should be changed based on each group's presentation.

Finally, students may be asked to create their own type of candy and construct a graph to show the distribution of variations of candy within a package based on their own set of criteria--cost, color, availability of ingredients, etc. By indicating that this will be the "final product" of the entire exercise at the beginning, students may be more motivated to learn the details in order to apply them to their own candy creations in the future.

Further note: Spreadsheets are a remarkably useful tool in analysis of data and graphical displays especially in the sciences (my field), however they are not a panacea. They are a time-saver and sometimes an error-finder for complex data sets. They can quickly display patterns, trends, and help to make predictions, but the research question or proposed idea is where the cognitive processing occurs. Without context and meaning to the data, they are just well-arranged numbers, colored bars/lines, or pictures. The context and relationships they illustrate for the user make them powerful and real.

Instructional Technology Continuum

Hi Technology Educators,

I've been working on a continuum of Instructional Technology.

I think that I may be somewhere in the middle--leaning more towards the constructivist side. Although, I do like to learn visually for some things.

I think that the interaction and constructivism has to be meaningful to the learner and since all learners are different, then the "ideal" place may not be possible on the continuum-only the place for each individual.

I do think that interactive technologies and constructivist learning do tend to go with higher levels of Bloom's taxonomy (Analysis, Evaluation, and Creativity). However, interaction alone does not do it. The technology should be meaningful and provide greater opportunities to learn

in new ways than before.

Tim

Final Thoughts on Pedagogy

Hi,

Just a few final thoughts on "Pedagogy" as it pertains to Technology instruction:

1. Pedagogy encompasses instructional methods, learner needs and preferences, and
the learning environment. It is complex and fascinating. It always involves some types
of technology...even back to the "old days" of only using media such as books or scrolls for
information or teaching resources.

2. Technology can be utilized in many methods as part of pedagogical approaches to
learning, the question is how is it BEST utilized for the learner, content, and intended
learning goals/outcomes. This varies depending on availability, complexity, developmental
appropriateness, philosophy, individual learning style, and of course time and money/resources
required for implementation. To assess this, a resources vs. outcome assessment has to be
made including all of the options available and how well they will improve instruction or
align with the pedagogical approach.

3. The matrix format is quite helpful in evaluating and assessing the technological use in
any one area. However, I urge caution in that ultimately the "flow" should go from:
Educational Philosophy/Values to Pedagogical practices to Technological instructional choice...
The major source of angst in teachers, administration, students, and parents seems to happen
when this flow is disrupted or placed "out of order". So, I suggest a hierarchy: Start with your
roots (Philosophy/Mission), follow up the tree (Pedagogy), and select the branches and leaves
(technologies and instructional strategies) that will ultimately produce the most blooms (student learning) and eventually bear the best fruit (greater achievement). In this way, the education
"tree" grows at the proper rate and acts to disseminate resources at the sites that will best
allow it to flourish and grow in the future. Nuture your tree and respect it, technology may
only be the latest form of "fertilizer" to aid in acceleration of growth or greater proliferation
of larger fruit.

Like my allegorical technology metaphor?

Enjoy.

Tim

Teaching with Technology

Hiya,

I've been reading the Hooper and Rieber article "Teaching with Technology" and thinking about how technology is used in teaching.

I like the philosophical learning continuum of behavioral to cognitive with instructive and constructive learning at either ends. Deeper cognitive processing is important (aka. Bloom's taxonomy) in learning and utilizing technology effectively will help to elicit this deeper cognitive gain.

As a middle school science teacher, I have lived principle #1: Learning is an ACTIVE process alright! I used to say "science is a verb", to instill in many of my students that to really understand something you must not only be able to explain it to your grandmother, but you must be able to effectively show her what you mean through a demonstration or model. To do this, you must be an active learner...not a couch potato or a limp absorbent type material (like a sponge...) I like that they point out that technologies do not in and of themselves increase activity or processing...and that the overall benefit goes back to student ability to incorporate idea technologies (not product technologies) into the learning process. The synthesis of thinking and interacting with technologies produces the most learning, I think...(did Descartes say this?) The product technologies often have titles that say they will "make learning fun", but do they really IMPROVE cognitive outcomes? (Learning is not always "fun"...as one of my favorite critics of technology use, Dr. Cliff Stoll, often points out...read his book "Silicon Snake Oil" and see what I mean...)

Principle #2 is to include multiple perspectives to increase the durability of instruction...hmmmm...cooperative learning must be MANAGED carefully to be utilized for greater learning outcomes...I like that it eventually gets to this...I can give MANY testimonies as to how hypermedia type group projects MUST have good management to produce better learning than other methods. The boundaries must be clear along with the level of depth for the connectivity of the ideas through technological use. I have concerns that too many perspectives overwhelm students and do not provide anything but a cacophony of noise that they must sift through to get to the important "stuff". This article was written in 1995, and since then the explosion of internet/cell phone use has produced a much wider technological world, but it also has made it more difficult to sometimes find what you really need. The capitalization of the internet and investment in advertising technologies has served to hamper some of the more cognitively beneficial connections through net technologies. Management is thus key here for hightest effectivity.

Principle #3: Building on student knowledge...sounds like day 1 in instruction class...the word "educate" means to be brought out, and incorporating what students already know is basic to moving them forward in cognitive learning outcomes. Technology can be very useful to change misconceptions of students by using real-time experimental responses to real environmental conditions (like digital probes). The use of familiar contexts even with technology is also a "given" for any instruction.

Adaptive virtual environments...interesting, but too much of this may "spoil" our children into believing that they can just "engineer" their own world if they don't like the real one...this strikes me as being both empowering (if they take it as a mandate to apply these ideas in the REAL world) or very frigntening (if they prefer the virtual world so much that they retreat from reality). In science, we often use models to understand things, but we always remember that WE created the models and manipulated them to see what is happening in the REAL world...(we create the "Golem" and see what it does...respect it and treat it well or it may overwhelm you! )

Well, my brain thermometer has popped up to say that I am done for today. I'm blogged out.

Tim

4 Steps to Standards

Hi bloggers,

Some reflections on 4 steps of Technology integration readings...

The 4 steps: 1. Inventory, 2. Set Curriculum goals, 3. Set Teaching Strategies, and 4. Matrix! I like the idea of a matrix to match up the available technology with the goals and available teaching strategies. It seems that it can also lead to expansion later as more technology or teaching methods are added or as curriculum goals change. The matrix provides (literally) a "framework" to springboard into a plan of action for integration of technology standards for teachers in a certain area. Frameworks are good--skeletons onto which we place flesh and form.

I also liked the mention of how the pedagogical aspects of the teaching can be incorporated as an additional part of the matrix. The student's learning styles can then be matched up with the available strategies and technologies that the teacher has in order to maximize the opportunity for student learning.--Way to go!

The matrix as an evaluation tool also sounds very intriguing. I think that a scale of sorts might be included in a matrix for evaluation of future needs in terms of curriculum, technologies to add, and where $$ can be best spent to maximize impact with the most students. It also allows the technology to be evaluated in its effectiveness as it can be used in various areas of the matrix--the technology is then a PART of the overall plan for learning and not viewed as a panacea. It is a vehicle for learning with the student and teacher as pilot and co-pilot, it is not on "auto-pilot". (you like my metaphor/allegory here?)

For my area (science), I can see places where a matrix framework and this exercise would definitely help to evaluate present and future needs in integration of standards. I enjoyed this.

Tim

1st blog

Hi,
Welcome to my blog for 505 Technology class.

Happy days.

Tim