5.1 Discussion

Organizing Data:

For this assignment I decided to utilize Google Spreadsheet.  After many years of using Excel I found this tool to be very tedious and spare in resources.  The changes that needed to be made took too much time because things needed to be done one column or row at a time.  This to me makes for a very frustrating situation.  The strengths of this tool is that I can easily share it with those needing to see it and multiple people can use the data.  The collaborative aspects do allow for people to work together. Because it is a free program it is more widely accessible and because it is attached to FORMS could be used to create self-grading assessments.
Color coding the incorrect answers helped to see how many were wrong for each student and the whole class.  Also color coding the groups made it easier to identify how/why the students were grouped together. There is also the option to see which students got the same answer(s) right or wrong and then regroup that way if need be.
This is where Google FORMS comes in.  Because the data collected in FORMS is available in spreadsheet format, it is possible to collect many different types of data from value-based assessments to multiple choice or even paragraph written responses.  This information can be quickly analyzed through spreadsheets to produce rapid feedback for students.

I found that many different formatting strategies were used when doing this assignment.  It really makes you think about what all you can do.  It also lets us know that were are all not cookie-cutter thinkers.  There were many different ideas that I noticed that seemed to work however for me there were others that were filled with too much navigation.  I may have just become accustomed with people wanting everything in one place.  I think that there are things that we all will do to fit in the format of what teachers are asking for or what we are comfortable with and feel we can educate them on as well.

Activity 5.2
Student Data Chart

This spreadsheet was set up based on the idea that the teacher needed to be able to see which standards were well understood and where students may have fallen short with information.  Based on the information that was provided from the spreadsheet it was noticeable that there are three standards that are at risk: M:02:GM:6.6 (S), M:03:FA:6.1 (S), M:01:NO:6.4 (S).  These standards scored at 50% or below.  The average score on the standards was a 7.2 and the average score for the students themselves was a 5.83. There are formulas input for this information that will change to reflect the new data that is input into the spreadsheet.  This will allow for easier data viewing and upkeep.

There are other ways that this spreadsheet can help the teacher.  There is a desire to make small groups of students to reteach some of the skills.  This spreadsheet will help in that it can provide information for what students may be able to help with peer teaching.  Sometimes students learn better from each other.  This will offer a great opportunity for a teaching moment from the students and also give the teacher a chance to assist in all the groups one at a time.  Doing this allows for students to be reviewing and consistently working with each other and asking questions rather than doing quiet work at their desk after the teacher is done with their group.

There are several programs that could offer help with some of these standards.  As the Technology Integrator I would offer help to research some tools that I feel would be most beneficial.  Just looking at one set of test scores does not offer all the information needed to be able to find the right or adequate tools.  I would suggest taking the time to provide more testing information and look at the spreadsheet for self-reflection and see if there are any noticeable trends that the teacher could rework and try different teaching methods.  Sometimes there are just a few students that need a little extra and maybe what it would take is a different teaching method or attention to their learning style.  However, there are several tools that could be used not just to provide data about students but to provide better learning experiences for the students and be able to relate to real world situations/scenarios.  

Discussion 4.1

Building Relationships

• Reflect upon your professional experiences.  (This can be about your teaching experiences or your professional career if you are not a teacher yet).  Compare and contrast strategies that, as a co-creator and collaborator, could be used to build relationships with an individual or group who is already competent but may not be incorporating newer ideas or methodologies.  Share at least one strategy that you believed worked and one that did not.  Then, compare your experiences with those of your classmates.

Years ago while working at a local bank, I was in charge of the book of business.  Many of my coworkers were timid about working with it and said that they didn't understand because they did not want to work with the data profiles.  I pointed out other things that they did like to work with and the fact that when they first started working with those tools they were uncomfortable.  So I spent time with each and we talked about the techniques they used to become familiar with the other aspects of their job. This allowed them to recognize that although intimidated they can become comfortable learn how to work the tool the way they successfully utilized other technologies. 

Techniques that did not work were implemented by my supervisors, who barked "Figure it out!" without offering any real guidance or support.  As a result people became resistant to learning new tools and methods.  They were aggravated, frustrated, resentful and tasks did not get accomplished.  People would try to reach out to each other and those that did learn become overwhelmed and stressed  because the remainder of the work fell into their lap.  This created division in the team and damaged the effectiveness of the branch, which lead to more barking from management.  Quickly, a dangerous cycle of resentment was built instead of a collaborative atmosphere.

Discussion 3.1

Collaboration:


 • Scenario One: Upon walking into the classroom of a new eighth grade English
language arts (ELA) teacher, the teacher informs you that she will be teaching a
lesson on fate versus free will the following week. She plans on using excerpts from
Oedipus Rex and Dante’s Inferno. She has not put the lesson plan together yet but
intends to have the students present examples from the readings to support their
case through a persuasive essay.

Dante's Inferno is not just an allegory of Hell and its torments.  Dante was writing about the sins of upper-class Italian society.  Many of the people and places in the book were real and definable.  Using the World of Dante students can analyze the text of the Inferno and gain an understanding of the people and places in addition to learning about fate vs. free will.  They can then use a Lit trip or GoogleMaps to visualize Dante's Italy.  Afterward, they can use this Lit trip to construct a persuasive essay that is hyperlinked to their source information and detailed images and descriptions of their evidence.  I am actively searching for a comparable resource for Oedipus Rex that will enable students to construct a parallel map and hyperlink resources for this text.

• Scenario Two: A high school science teacher is presenting a unit on astronomy,
specifically on how Polaris is no longer the central point of the northern sky. The
teacher is confident that he can teach it out of a book but is anxious to give the
students a better experience from the lesson. He is hoping that the technology
integration specialist will be able to help make a more authentic study for the
students.

Stellarium is an open source planetarium program that works on Windows, MAC, Linux and Mobile computers.  It creates a fully functioning computerized planetarium that can be used to track star movement over time.  With the use of a projector placed at extreme distance from a ceiling or wall Stellarium can be used to create a large-scale accurate and usable stellar map.  On other devices the program would enable students to track stars through time and create computer simulations of stellar movement for use in experiments in class.

• Scenario Three: In a fourth grade social studies class, the class is discussing the
role of landscape and surroundings on early natives—what type of food they ate, the
type of dwellings they built, and of course defensive systems or escape routes. Many
of the students have never traveled out of their own state and are not familiar with
alternate surroundings. The social studies teacher has requested that the technology
integrator help her create a new lesson.

With each gmail account students get access to GoogleMaps and one of the functions of GoogleMaps is the my map button which allows the user to set specific pins and draw lines on maps that can be saved to the user's account.  The pin tags have editable descriptions which can include images, paragraph text or video. If students use computers for research to explore the different native societies they can organize maps with pinned images and videos.  They can also include descriptors about city architecture or even include food ways and recipes specific to cultural areas.

• Scenario Four: According to the math teacher, math is everywhere. The teacher is
concentrating on a geometry unit discussing area and volume. The teacher is hoping
to have the students design a home consisting of 1500 square feet of living space
with three bedrooms, two bathrooms, a family room, and a kitchen. A playroom or
dining room are nice to have but are not needed. In the past, the teacher has asked
the students to draw it out with paper and pencil; however, this proved to be a poor
choice for reasons he has not given. The teacher is currently thinking of using craft
sticks and glue to have the students build models, but this does not fall within the
budget. The teacher is turning to the technology integrator for help.

Floorplanner for Google Drive is a great tool to create multiple level 3 dimensional plans.  There are several different options to choose from. This is a great tool for awesome visuals and image manipulation.  The teacher could allow the students to use this tool to design the geometric constructions to assemble a home and to be able to measure out floor spacing and whatever design is needed to meet the 1500 sqft requirement of the lesson.

Discussion 2.5

• Review the resources provide in the Module Resources folder.  Use these and any additional supporting, scholarly documents as evidence to illustrate what you see as the best strategies for motivating teachers to collaborate and modify their lesson plans to incorporate technology.

When one teacher does amazing things you get two reactions.  One, everyone wants to follow him/her whether they know how to or not.  Two, people ignore him/her and pass off the amazing feats as silliness, ridiculousness or "my students couldn't do that".  This creates two possible reactions from the teacher who did the amazing thing.  He can either share it openly and try to pass on that great teaching moment onto others.  Or he can ignore the resentment and continue to do amazing things by himself.  For so many years teacher's lesson plans were their guarded secrets.  People were afraid that if you shared your lesson plan that someone else would get the credit for it.  But to my knowledge teaching has never been a job in which you got a raise for being a great teacher.  We all get paid on the same scale.  Fundamentally, teaching is not about teachers and their accolades, it's about kids learning in whatever method works best for them.  



John Hunter motivates teachers by motivating kids.  His inspirational talk about the World Peace Game would make anyone want to become a teacher.  He spent years perfecting a single lesson plan but will readily tell you that it is the kids who play the game that are creating the lesson.  Hunter would love to make money selling this game around the country but it is so complex he is hard pressed to even write down the directions.  If you come to his classroom you are more than welcome to participate and marvel as his students do what our Congress cannot and what the UN has been attempting to do for half a century (Hunter,  2011).
When teachers work together to put their best ideas forward and when they allow their students to be co-authors of their own learning everything is more effective and engaging.  Motivation stems from engagement whether it is teachers challenging each other's ideas to build a more rigorous unit plan or lesson or whether it's learners challenging their instructors to rise to their learning potential.  Collaboration is a way that teachers can feel like they are not in the dark all by themselves (Cofino, 2010).  When teachers have the opportunity to discuss concerns, ideas and methods it makes for a more comfortable environment and allows for many different ideas to flourish.  If there are a few teachers who are tech savvy then they can serve as somewhat of a mentor for the others who may be a little slower.  This allows the Technology Integrator to have more time to research for new tools and resources that can be utilized.  I do not think that the mentors should have all the burden but help serve as a quick reference.  If teachers are more willing to ask questions, as they encourage their students to do, then more progress can be made and the technology will begin to soar through the classrooms and become second nature.

Resources:
Cofino, K. (2010).  Creating a Culture of Collaboration Through Technology Integration.  Always learning:  Teaching technology abroad.  Retrieved from:  http://kimcofino.com/blog/2010/03/20/creating-a-culture-of-collaboration-through-technology-integration/
Hunter, J.  (2011).  John hunter:  Teaching with the world peace game.  TED.  Retrieved from: http://www.ted.com/talks/john_hunter_on_the_world_peace_game.html

Discussion 2.1

Motivation

Teachers have a tendency to become overwhelmed with the idea of technology in their classroom.  One way that is somewhat soothing to the soul for them is to have them treat it as a new personal technological tool such as a new Smartphone, iPad, camera, etc.  They become truly motivated to learn all the cool gadgets that are on their new devices that they jump right in to learn everything they can and quick.  Well, that's kinda what you must do when it comes to learning the right way to implement technology into the classroom.  First, make it all about the teacher and their interests and likes.  Next, tell them to play and experiment.  The likelihood that a teacher will break a piece of technology is very low.  Web-based programs are especially immune to that digital wrecking ball of a teacher who does occasionally find a way to hay-wire a device.  After they develop skill with the technology, teachers should feel free to use this same process when teaching the technology to their students.  A rigid, systematic set of directions given to either a teacher or a student will produce redundant, boring and unengaging products of learning.  The technology will quickly become stale, ineffective and dull and teachers and students will stop using it.  When learners of all ages are given the opportunity to explore the tools freely they very often develop innovative and creative products that can surpass the original intentions of the technology or device.  Teachers often feel pressured by extrinsic motivation as if they don't master technology they will instantly be considered bad teachers.  This negative learning environment creates resentment towards the technology itself.  The intrinsic joys of discovery through play allow any learner to more easily adapt the technologies to their individual tool-kits.

Resources:
http://kimcofino.com/blog/2010/03/20/creating-a-culture-of-collaboration-through-technology-integration/

Discussion 2.2

Conrad Wolfram's Talk

• Do the point Wolfram makes relate to just math, or does the message of his talk apply across subjects?

Wolfram makes some very valid points with regard to learning and application.  I feel that his ideals are cross-discipline appropriate.  His 4 modes of mathematics process: Right question, real world, computation and math formulation apply to all subjects if computation is replaced with subject-based equivalents.  For example, in History it would be:  Right question, real world,  critical understanding and solution formulation.  Unfortunately, in other subjects the computer cannot necessarily perform the critical understanding that is derived from working with historical data the way it can calculating math.  A large part of understanding is derived directly from this third step.  Wolfram's ideal of allowing the computer to do the work of a single set of calculations, no matter how simple or complex, would save plenty of time when dealing with a single issue.  However, in an educational environment real and solid understanding of mathematical principals is derived from practicing large numbers of computational problems.

I agree that students need work that is more centered in the real world and that math is more interesting, engaging and authentically learned when students can see how the computations apply directly or indirectly to these real-world scenarios.  Wolfram argues that 80% of classwork is spent doing hand computation.  There needs to be balance between computation and application.  Students would not be able to ask "When will I ever use this" if they spent a larger percentage of class time applying their computations to authentic problems.  These issues that are connected to their actual lives would not only engage students but would secure computational knowledge by attaching the calculated math to their memories through problem-based learning.

• How could you use Wolfram's talk when working with teachers?

Teachers often spend far too much time working out of an instructionist model.  They distribute to students a fixed methodology for attaining results and grades.  The students that rise to the top are not those that are actually learning but instead those that are best at following direction.  Too often this stifles and prevents real creativity.  Wolfram's ideals of authentic learning through real-world problems foster learning through experimentation and creativity.  This type of learning is best performed under a constructionist model of education in which student-centered classrooms approach learning with an open-concept that learning takes place through innovation and creativity and allows students to create new understandings as the teacher facilitates the learning process.

Resource:
http://www.ted.com/talks/conrad_wolfram_teaching_kids_real_math_with_computers.html