Reflecting Blogging Assignment #2

1. How can a teacher find balance during this transition from more traditional knowledge-based content standards and more process-oriented skills? 

I think there is a deep gap between the traditional knowledge-based content standard and the process-oriented skills. It is not easy for teachers to adjust their teaching during the transition, especially for some science related subjects.

In my opinion, there are two main difficulties for teachers. The first one is new lesson plans. For the process-oriented skills, teachers need to give up their old lesson plans and organize something new to fit the new teaching style. The new inquiry-based learning style is very efficient to higher students’ talents and skills, but it also needs teachers to pay more attentions and energies in their teaching. They need arrange their class in a new way and prepare more than just lecture their students. The second difficulty is that the new inquiry-based learning has a different class schedule comparing to the traditional knowledge-based learning which fit the existing standards very well. The new teaching style may need more time and it may lead problem of not finishing the standards in time.

As far as I am concerned, the way to find the balance during this transition includes a few steps. First of all, teachers need to spend a lot of time to organize new lesson plans which are the inquiry-based learning style.  In the new style, teachers become facilitators rather than instructors, so they have a come up with more strategies to attract students and lead them to a right direction in the learning process. The second step is checking the standards. The traditional standards are not useless, they are very important in teaching and learning. Standards are designed to make sure all students can get equal and good education. So teachers can regard the content standards as a “Checklist” in order to make sure the new inquiry-based learning doesn’t miss any important information.  The third step is evaluating and improving lesson plans along with teaching. The new teaching plans may have some weaknesses in the very beginning teachers need to evaluate their lesson plans after class and keep improving them.

I think if most schools are transited to the inquiry-based learning, we be new standards need to be created to fit the process-oriented skills.

 2. What are key factors that help improve the success of inquiry-based lessons?

             In my mind, three main factors to improve the success of inquiry-based lessons are the teachers’ efforts, students’ interests, and a good evaluation system.

The success of a teaching method is decided by how well the lesson is designed by instructors. Inquiry-based lessons will not make teaching easier, in contrary teaching is harder than it used to be. Teachers need to spend more efforts in preparing to have a success lesson.   

Interest is the best teacher. If students are interested in the lesson, the lesson will has more opportunities to be a successful lesson.

            The inquiry-based learning is different from the traditional teaching style. It is hard to be measured, and its teaching result is even harder to be tested. So a good evaluation system is very necessary to test whether the inquiry-based learning has a similar or a better result comparing to the traditional way of teaching. It is one of the factors to improve the success of the new teaching style.  

 3. What role can technology play in assisting those factors? Give specific examples.

            Technology can make teaching more efficiently.

            Technology can help teachers to prepare their lesson plans. For examples, teaching could communicate with other teachers in the same district by “curriculum mapping”. This software can track students’ learning records and teachers’ teaching contents.  Teachers could learn from other teachers’ successful experiences and avoid the negative influences. It can save teachers time, and their lessons will be well prepared.

            Students are interested in technology.  For example, the games designed for education purposes. Teaching with technology will attract students’ attentions, and students will interest in the content taught by the new technology.

            Technology can measure assessment very well.  The way of assessment by technology can be vary. Students may even not notice they are being tested, and the test can be standard, accurate and fun.

Reflective Blogging Post #1

1. What were some of the factors that played a role in ensuring positive results when technology was integrated in the classroom?

There are three factors to keep positive results of using technology in class.

First, the technology used in the classroom has to fit the goal of the class.  In Besnoy and Clarke’s article, we find that students enjoyed reading by using technology. If the content of the class is “increasing students’ interests in reading” then it is a very positive result of using PDA. However, if the goal of this class is “improving students’ reading ability” then it is not successful.  When teachers choose a new technology, the technology has to fit the goal of this class.

Second, appropriate monitoring is necessary. Students like using technology, and many of them are good at technology. However, they are get use to using technology for chatting and playing games online. For this reason, teachers have to make sure that students are using technology to study rather than playing games.

Third, teachers’ regular training. Technology updates every day. In order to keep positive results when technology is used in the classroom, teachers have to get regular training. It can make sure teachers get all updated information of new useful technology, and it will help teachers to use technology in a more effective way.

2. What are ways that you can, in your own setting (or for those not currently in a classroom, in your future setting), ensure that these factors are present or absent? (Be specific to your situation; do not make general statements.)

I’m not currently in a classroom, but I’m sure I will use technology in my future settings.

First, I think I will design a lesson plan to set some specific goals of my lesson. Then I will try to find a kind technology could be used which fit my teaching purpose most. For example, if I’m going to teach writing, I probably chose to use “Blog” in teaching. I could use it as a strategy to help students get peer responses.

Second, I think I will try to get supports from the technology department in my school. I will ask for their help to limit students’ using of technology in class. Students will freely use the technology which related to the lesson, but the function of chatting and palying games will be limited.

Third, I hope the school I’m going to work for will have regular training for me. If there are no supports from school, I think plenty of useful resources could be found online to help me keep my teaching technology updated.

3. How would you go about evaluating the success of a unit, lesson, etc., that involved the integration of new technology?

I think the evaluation of success integration of new technology could include three aspects:

First, a good technology should be easy-to-use. Time for lecture is limited. The time supposed to be spent on content teaching will be occupied by technology instruction, if the technology is very hard to use. This is a kind of waste of time.

Second, whether a new technology is successful, should be evaluated by students. If students are interested in the new technology they will pay more attention to the class, and that is what teachers want. If a new technology is even boring than traditional teaching it is better to be gave up.

Third, a good new technology has to be very useful which is evaluated by teachers. If the technology fit the lesson content and teachers could teach easily by using the technology. It would be a successful technology.

4. Finally, what could you do to disseminate successes and failures to your colleagues, administrators, and school board members? 

I think most schools have routine conferences, and these conferences could be a nice chance to share these successful and failure experiences with all colleagues. I also think sending emails to colleagues when some urgent failures happen are necessary. In a school district, creating a “group” online by Skype or other software would be helpful, especially for new teachers. All teachers could be categorized by the programs they are teaching.  Teachers could share interesting teaching experiences, and searching successful strategies from their colleagues in the group.