My idea for the Audio project so far

My idea for the Audio project is to review the long and short vowel sounds then have the kids listen to a series of words and choose which vowels are being used in the words and if it is the long or short version of that vowel.

Chapter 7 Reflection

Chapter 7 looks at how technology and digital media can be used to assist ELL students in transitioning to using the English language comfortably.  The idea was that students that are not comfortable with using the English language will feel less comfortable talking and conversing with someone who is in the room with them.  If they communicate with someone virtually through the computer, even if the other person is in the school building they do not feel like they are being judged for the mistakes that they make and they are more willing to try and make mistakes.  There are several different types of media that are useful to ELL students including writing blogs, using speaking applications where they can practice their verbal skills, Facebook to work on their social skills to name a few.  There are certain goals and standards that ELL students should work towards to help integrate them into the rest of the English speaking population and all of these goals can in one way or more be fulfilled by using virtual/ digital technology.

I don’t know how I feel about the fact that ELL students are being allowed to hide behind a digital screen while they are learning English.  I think physical contact, response, and becoming comfortable with speaking to a person directly is a very important part of learning English.  I fear that allowing these students to hide will give them a confidence in seclusion but create a fear of social settings.  While this is helpful if all ELL learners are planning to live in a box and communicate on a computer, but if they hope to become a part of society they will need to work on their social skills. 

I do think that using digital media is a great way to supplement language learning skills including listening to someone else correctly pronunciate words, watching social settings in a movie or on TV to see how people interact, or to read other peoples casual slang.  These are all important skills that they will need to use to interact with English speaking friends efficiently, but these things should not become their only means of learning.  I do believe that these things can also fill a gap in schools where trained ELL teachers are not employed.  These activities can help to answer questions and help students better understand when the teacher cannot help.

Chapter 5 Reflection

This chapter looks at what can be considered new media and digital media, and how the youth of today interact with these media. New media is merely something that is different and newly introduced into a setting. At one point the markerboard was considered new media. Today new media would include Smartboards, iPads, skyping, etc. digital media just means that the idea of technology is developed into the media.  While many of these media are new to the classroom they are not new to the students that are using the media. Students have been using email, iPads, computers since they were small and already know how to use them. The secret is that the teacher help instruct them how to use this media in a way that will help in classroom learning. Another important thing for teachers to realize is that students will use technology in a different way then how teachers think it should be used. While teachers may want a long detailed post on a discussion board the students may prefer to do short posts back and forth creating almost a conversational atmosphere. 

One thing I notice in working in several schools throughout Oklahoma, is that not all schools have the same new media. Some schools are equipped with wonderful technology and enough for each teacher to have their fair share. Other schools may not even have markerboards and are using computers that cannot support the software for learning. A teacher must not become so adjusted to the new digital media that they do not know how to teach without it. The ability for teachers and students to unplug is still incredibly important. This lack of media in many rooms also makes it hard for schools across the nation in general to change their way of teaching cumulatively because not everyone is to that point. 

Chapter 4 Reflection

This chapter really started to look at who is responsible for different roles in the classroom now that the way we are learning is changing.  In the past the teacher had the superior knowledge on everything and now we are getting to a point where in some cases the student may have more knowledge then the teacher does, especially regarding technology.  It is also important that parents still take an active role in their child’s learning and with technology this is made easier as parents can watch videos instead of reading papers.  The chapter also looks at how students can take a more active role in the creation of their assignments and defining the parameters instead of being told what to do.  This is useful for those students that do not like school or have not achieved in the past with a standard classroom format.  Using technology and a medium that they understand more will help spark interest in doing work.

It is so important in classrooms today that teachers learn to accept their new roles.  This could include relying on students at some point to help them with technology, they may not be the “instructor” for everything but may just act as a guide for the students, to encourage collaboration and creation of projects by the students.  For teachers that have taught for years, this may be difficult to accept.  I currently am not a teacher and so I can only assume that I will teach with this new mindset since I am learning in my classes this way.  From the observations I have seen, it will be difficult for teachers to make this change due to curriculum many times as well.  The curriculum may not be written to support this type of activity without adjustment by the teacher or the administration or parents may not support these changes.  I think it falls on the teacher to try and smooth this over between students, teachers, and parents so things flow smoothly in the classroom.

Chapter 2 Reflection

The second chapter was a wonderful summary of what is wrong with our current school set up and what changes need to occur to make it better and move us into the 21^st century of education.  One of the biggest hurdles to moving forward is the old school thought brought by administration and the community on how school has worked for decades before.  There is not an understanding by these people on why it is so important to integrate technology into the classroom and to move away from the traditional rows of desk set up in a classroom.  Slowly schools in the nation are changing their layout – specialization academies are becoming more popular, large open school buildings with less restrictive walls are becoming the norm, non-traditional classroom locations are being tested, and technology is becoming standard in all classrooms on a large scale.  When the teachers, students, administrators, and parents are all on the same page with these changes; then great things are happening in these districts with test scores, graduation rates, and student enjoyment in learning.

This chapter was something that I deal with on a daily basis in designing schools.  Each time we meet with the administration at the beginning of the project, there is a decision that is made – what will this school be like?  So many times either the head designer or the administration, or both will lay out the classrooms and the schools like an old traditional school building with rows of classrooms on a corridor with lockers, a media center down the hall, and some computers in far off computer labs.  Each time these decisions are made, I sit back and wonder how a teacher in that environment can make this new attempt at the traditional more collaborative and more 21^st century, especially when she is not being given anything to work with.    Currently I am working with a Vo-Tech that is pushing the limits of what they can do with a 21^st century learning environment and they are allowing me to help them design their school this way.  Teachers are using flexible seating, smaller classrooms with break-out rooms around the perimeter, Smartboards and projectors, group collaboration technology, and other great ideas that will help the teachers and students really achieve something different in their fields.  One of the driving points behind their design is looking at what is currently being used in the fields that they are teaching, and they are trying to mimic that within their classroom instead of just teaching about it.  Students have iPads to use as their textbooks and learning tools and libraries are slowly becoming smaller and more about references then large volumes of material.  It is exciting to work in a school that is making this change and it excites me for the day when I will have my own classroom and either work for a school that is willing to make these changes or hopefully be integral in helping a school make changes. 

It takes an entire community to make the changes to our schools.  The citizens need to vote on the bond issues for buildings and technology, the administration needs to allow the change, the designers need to create a flexible space, and the teachers need to adjust their teaching styles to something new and exciting.  All of these together will help our students enjoy school more and achieve in a way we never thought possible.

Chapter 1 Reflection

The first chapter was broken down into two different parts.  The first part was just a summation of how schools of the past, today, and the future look like.  What the students are related to in terms of how they will use the knowledge that they gain in their future career paths, and to what extent the knowledge that they are learning will be relevant in the future.  Notes were made on what currently works in the classroom – group work, collaboration, field trips; and what needs to be done to help students prepare for change of the future – technology integrated into learning, investigative learning as opposed to rote learning.  The second part of the chapter goes into how the student teacher relationship must change so that these changes in the classroom can take place.  The relationship must move from an authority figure over a student to a partnership where students and teachers can learn from each other and work together to discover, create, and answer questions.

I see a huge difference in the style of classroom teaching from my undergraduate work in college and my time spent in high school to how classes are taught today – eight years later.  There is far less focus on lecturing and completing long homework assignments and more focus on handing out assignments and work together in groups through them to explore why answers are correct and how to come to the correct answer.  Technology is definitely taking on a bigger role today in my classes then in the past as well.  With using D2L and libraries.ou.edu instead of using premade copy booklets for readings and going to the library to photocopy articles for class, being able to be mobile while learning has increased significantly.  There is also more student lead teaching encouraged over the teacher doing all of the instruction.