Fall 2022
Instructor: Susan Hennessey
Final Grade: A
Course Description from Syllabus:
This online course explores learning-theory research and its application toward technology-enriched standards-based units of study. Students will study different theories such as constructivism, multiple intelligences, brain-based learning and other research related to how people learn. Participants will learn how technology applications can be used to create learning environments that strengthen 21st century problem-solving skills, and encourage communication, collaboration, and reflection. Using the instructional design strategies explored in this course, participants will develop a standards-based unit of study that strategically integrates technology and meets 21st century skills along with national and state educational technology standards and assessments.
Course Assignments:
Course Reflection/ Impact:
Note: I took this course while UVM was using BlackBoard. I do not have access to class materials and relying on notes and class assignments I saved.
This was the second class that I took on my journey to completing my graduate degree. This was also my second class that I took within the educational technology course offerings. I felt like this course would be a good first step into my graduate work because it felt the most relevant to me as a second year teacher. I wanted to take a deep dive into different styles of learning design and different ways in which I could effectively integrate technology into my lessons, as we were just emerging out of the COVID-19 style of teaching.
In the beginning of the course, we focused heavily on different types of learning theories. We did an overview on behaviorism, cognitive constructivism, and social constructivism. We learned about their views of knowledge, learning, and motivation as well as what the benefits are of each approach. We also learned about the neuroscience of learning. We looked at how it is important for students to have a moderate level of stress since that leads to the best learning because multiple zones of the brain are working together (Learning: Theory and research, n.d.). It is also important for students to get an adequate amount of sleep, a balanced diet, and exercise in order to be able to retain more information. In my first learning essay, I took a deeper dive into each of the theories and how they were integrated within my classroom. This allowed me to take a deep dive into my teaching strategies I was using at the time and help come up with ideas in which I could better support my students moving forward.
We then focused on the technological pedagogical and content knowledge (TPAK) framework. This framework was founded by Runya Mishra and Matthew Koehler from Michigan State. This framework is centered around connecting teachers understandings of content, pedagogy, and technology in order to fuse them together to create effective and interactive lessons (Koehler et al., 2013). We kept this framework in mind throughout the course when thinking of different ways to integrate technology into our own practices. In class, we looked at different online tools such as Flipgrid, Padlet, Mote, and Edpuzzles. We also looked at universal design of learning (UDL) through reading UDL Now! by Katie Novak. UDL is focused on creating lessons and units that are designed for all types of learners. It allows for teachers to create lessons and units that account for individual student needs while making the material accessible for all and allowing everyone to have an equal opportunity to learn. This includes having multiple ways in which students can explain or show their thinking and learning as well as allowing students to engage in their learning through different methods, such as different technological tools (Novak, 2022). Since this class, my knowledge on the TPAK framework and UDL has been super important within my career. In staff meetings, we often talk about how we can incorporate UDL topics into our classrooms, and I often draw from the knowledge I learned from Novak's book. This is a topic that we often circle back to as teachers and it is important to go back and revisit lessons and units to find new ways to be more inclusive for all learners.
My big project for this class was to revisit a unit that I teach and update it in regards to the TPAK framework as well as UDL. I revisited my unit on linear systems and equations, as that is one of the biggest standards for eighth grade math classes. Within redesigning this unit, I integrated technology through using a program called DESMOS. Through DESMOS, students could use the online graphing calculator or have different interactive lessons through DESMOS Classroom activities. I also had to look into different ways in which I would assess students learning and how my lessons met different UDL and differentiation criteria. For example, for a summative assessment, students would have to create and solve a multistep system of equations problem that was based on a topic that applied to their lives. They would then present their findings through whatever mode they felt the most comfortable and creative with. This could be on paper, video, google slides presentation, etc.
This class was a really good starting point for me within my graduate career, but also as a new teacher. It made me reflect on how I was teaching my lessons. This course made me want to go back and find ways in which I could incorporate more technology, as well as review lessons that I have made and find ways that I could differentiate them more. Since taking this class, I always keep the UDL framework in the back of my mind when I am refreshing units to make them better for my future classes. I also keep in mind the different ways in which students learn and think about which approach I am taking when teaching different material.
References:
Learning: Theory and Research. (n.d.). https://gsi.berkeley.edu/media/Learning-Theory-and-Research.pdf
Koehler, M. J., Mishra, P., Kereluik, K., Shin, T. S., & Graham, C. R. (2013). The Technological Pedagogical Content Knowledge Framework. Handbook of Research on Educational Communications and Technology, 101–111. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-3185-5_9
Novak, K. (2022). UDL now! : a teacher’s guide to applying universal design for learning in today’s classrooms. Cast Professional Publishing.