I feel a little like I'm repeating myself, but the resources from this last week really started me thinking. I am going to be in serious trouble if I try to do everything from the reading that sounds like a good idea.

The activities and projects from the reading appeal to me because they shift the center of the activity from me to the students. As they work together, they are becoming responsible for the teaching, becoming the "more knowledgeable other". When it comes to some of the computer based activities like the creation of a multimedia project, I can often learn something from some of my students. Students must also become more responsible, as they create whatever the artifact will be, for analyzing, synthesizing, and evaluating the material.

VoiceThread problem link

Still trying to resolve the issues regarding the link not working. Hope that this link works... it is a little different than the one before. I noticed that I am not the only one that is having this problem... If yours is working can you tell those of us that have it wrong what you did?

http://voicethread.com/#q.b571022.i0.k0

Constructionist Learning Theory

I really enjoyed reading about constructionist approaches to teaching and learning this last week. I thought a lot about how I could incorporate project-, problem-, and inquiry-based methodologies into the way that I run my classroom. The greatest benefit that I see is that this kind of approach provides for real-life connections between the things that I am asked to teach and the everyday lives of my students. I often hear the question, “Why do we need to know this?” With this approach, the question is answered.

I think students can also see the “forest for the trees” when they are presented with the material in this way. I often get caught up in the minutia of what we are doing, and that can obscure the big picture from my students’ view.

A constructionist approach also encourages students to be involved and motivated. I know that my students enjoy coming to class more when we are doing this kind of activity. I think that students also go deeper into the meaning and learning when they must apply what they are learning to solving a problem or creating a project.
A few years ago I moved from 6th grade to 8th grade. Last year I had some students from my last year in 6th grade. We were talking about government and one of them said that it was like when we did this simulation in sixth grade. They were right, and I was actually amazed that this particular student remembered anything from my class two years earlier. The simulation had attracted the attention of this generally unmotivated student and he learned something that he was able to apply quite a bit later.

Finally, I thought this quote expressed the practical nature of Constructionist learning theory in a nutshell.

"This is the way that mathematics started. It started not as this beautiful, pure product of the abstract mind. It started as a way of controlling the water of the Nile, building the pyramids, sailing a ship. And gradually it got richer and richer." Seymour Papert (MIT)

Cognitivism in Practice

I do not remember exactly where I read this, and I did not find it when I went looking. The general idea was that when we are learning something new, it must have some connection to what was already known in order for it to really stick. This is a key for me as a teacher. Where students need, I must help to provide those links to prior knowledge. Using concept mapping or rubrics helps students create a framework to manage new material. It makes it easier to “interact with information in order to acquire, synthesize, create, and share new knowledge,” Robertson, B., Elliot, L., & Robinson, D. (2007).

I hate technology sometimes

I am having some serious troubles accessing the Walden site. My computers all updated automatically and now I get "waiting" messages but nothing more. The time spent trying to figure it out on my own and then with tech support... Sometimes it seems easier just to not have the headache.

Behaviorist Learning and Behavior based Technology

The resource that I was most intrigued by from this week’s resources was the site English Grammar 101. The activities provided for immediate feedback on a plethora of grammar concepts. When students have responded with the answer that they believe is the correct one, they can click on a button that will check the answer and provide either a confirmation that it is correct or tell what the correct answer was. Often times it will be a few days before my students receive some idea of how they did on an assignment. If they struggled with the concept, they often will continue with that struggle because they don’t even know that their thinking is wrong. When they can check as they go along, they can correct their thinking right away. I was also impressed by the number of opportunities that students had to practice each activity. With the direct instruction related to a new concept, there would be adequate opportunity to use this site as a guided or additional practice.

Back on the West Coast

It is so good to be back home after nearly a month on the road. It was a great family trip and we saw a lot of the country. Now comes the work of settling in and catching up on things not done while away... like sleep, and bills, and homework. Not sure which to do first. Bills and homework are more pressing, but my mind is not worth much without the sleep. I guess it will all get done eventually... one step at a time.