August 26, 2019 - September 1, 2019

This week in ED 307 we have been covering Module 1: 21st Century Skills. We defined "21st century skills" and figured how it relates to education. We read Partnership for 21st Century Skills and described their role in K-12 education. We read the report Are They Really Ready to Work? and interpreted the key findings listed in it. This week we were to create a 21st Century Infographic that identified our findings.

Click here to view my infographic.

I found that the Partnership for 21st Century Learning (P21) learning skills are very important. The skills are:

• Life and Career Skills
• Learning and Innovation Skills (Critical Thinking, Communication, Collaboration, and Creativity)
• Information, Technology, and Media Skills

There are many reasons that these skills are important to education. One example is that students should be prepared for increasingly complex work environments.

In the Are They Really Ready to Work report, the top five rank of skills in terms of their importance in the workplace are listed. They are as follows:

• Professionalism
• Teamwork
• Oral Communication
• Ethics and Social Responsibility
• Reading Comprehension

Educators should have a complete understanding of what 21st Century Skills are and why they are important. I feel confident in knowing what these skills are. I believe they are important because we live in a technology and media-driven environment and it is going to continue to increase. Our 21st Century skills will better prepare us for the innovating changes to technology in education.

September 2, 2019 - September 8, 2019

This week in ED 307 we have been covering Module 2: The Flipped Classroom. We learned what the flipped classroom approach is and how it is transforming education. We also identified some common misconceptions of the flipped classroom approach. I will be honest... before this module, I misconceived the flipped classroom approach. For some reason, I believed that it was just an activity. I thought the students and teachers flipped roles and the students taught the class a topic that they researched. I am so glad that this module taught me what a flipped classroom really is.

I learned that the flipped classroom is an approach that transforms traditional teaching methods. Basically, students watch instruction videos online at home, then homework is moved into the classroom. This approach allows students to learn at their own pace. They are able to rewind or fast forward the videos when needed. They are given the opportunities to practice and learn on their own at their own speed. With homework being moved into the classroom, this provides students with a support system. Teachers are there, walking around, answering questions, and providing assistance for the students who need it. Students are also given the opportunity to collaborate and work with their peers. This approach is wonderful for the students who do not have much help or support with their homework at home. Of course, I do not believe that every lesson should be conducted in this way. However, I do believe that it is an efficient tool for both teachers and students.

I read that research shows valid results for flipped classrooms. Before the flip, over 50% of freshmen failed English and 44% of freshmen failed math. There was also 736 discipline cases in one semester. After the flip, only 19% of students failed English and 13% failed math. Only 249 discipline cases took place in one semester. This information proves that flipped classrooms are working. They are doing what they are intended to do. This study was conducted by Knewton.

I created an animated video that discusses the flipped classroom approach. You can click here to view it!

We were required to conduct three peer reviews in this lesson. It was interesting to see the different animated videos created by my classmates. I learned information from their videos that I should have included in mine!

After completing this module, it has taught me that the flipped classroom is an approach that I might possibly integrate one day. As mentioned before, it is not appropriate for every lesson, but it is a very efficient tool. I believe many students can and will benefit from this approach. It gives me the desire to find a way to put this information out there for more teachers to see and learn. More teachers need to know about the flipped classroom approach!

September 9, 2019 - September 22, 2019

Module 3 in ED 307 covers the topic of Constructivism. The term "constructivism" is not a new one. During my first semester at Athens State I quickly learned what the term meant. However, this module enhanced my understanding of the constructivist approach and allowed me to learn the theorists behind it, the different types of constructivism, how constructivist classrooms differ from from traditional ideas, and how it benefits both teachers and learners. Constructivism is definitely an approach I see myself integrating in my future classroom. While conducting the research for this assignment, I realized how efficient the approach is and how teachers need to depart traditional teaching approaches.

Constructivism is a meaning-making theory. During constructivist learning, learners make meaning of things by constructing connections between ideas, concepts, and prior knowledge. We all have previous learning and previous experiences, and that is how we construct new information into meaning. Learning is an active process. Constructivism states that learners construct meaning only through active engagement with the world, such as experiments or real-world problem solving.

The assignment for this module involved creating a Zentation presentation that answers questions about constructivism and the PAR Model. We were to explain what constructivism is, who the foundational theorists behind constructivism were, and how constructivism differs from traditional ideas about teaching and learning when it comes to curriculum, how students are viewed, how students work, the teacher's role, and assessment. We were also to identify the PAR Model and explain each of its components.

The PAR Model stands for Present, Apply, and Review. Teachers use the PAR Model to plan their lessons efficiently. During the present phase, teachers present the learning goals and new material. During the apply phase, students are required to apply the knowledge, theories, skills, etc. that have been presented. Following, the review phase is where what was learned is summarized and clarified. Students could create a poster or mindmap showing their learning, or any type of formative assessment would be appropriate in the review phase.

During this module I was introduced to Zentation. It is a website that mirrors Tegrity, except it is free. It was very easy to use. The only problem I faced was trying to get it to work on the computers in the Kares Library. Other than that, I liked it. I recorded myself using my phone, uploaded it to YouTube, then attached the video to the Zentation website. I then attached my PowerPoint slides. Zentation was fun and easy to use. It would be great for distance learning courses.

If you would like to view my Zentation presentation, click here.

September 23, 2019 - October 13, 2019

For the past few weeks, our main focus has been on Marc Prensky's book Teaching Digital Natives. We were each placed into a group and were required to summarize each chapter of the text including the introduction, conclusion, and our personal thoughts. I was placed in Group 1 and had phenomenal group members. I am so proud of our wiki and am thankful for hardworking group members who contributed greatly.

The Prensky text focuses on partnering in education. Prior to this book, I was not familiar with partnering. Now, I have learned what it is, how it helps, and why it is important. Breaking down each chapter into summaries really allowed me and my group members to explore Prensky's ideas and become enlightened about partnering. I already knew that changes were needed in the classroom due to our ever-changing society. The partnering pedagogy addresses the needs of 21st century learners.

It is important to realize what today's students want. They do not want to be lectured to, they want to be respected, trusted, and valued, and they want to be creative and follow their own interests and passions. Educators must be a partner. Students today know that their world consists of technology. It is a teachers' job to coach and guide the use of technology for effective learning. They must comply with 2st century learning and give students what they deserve.

I learned that in the 21st century, the road to engagement has changed. The best way for educational experts and teachers to engage students is through their passions and interests. Prensky states, "Passion drives people to learn (and perform) far beyond their, and our, expectations," and I could not agree more. I have completed assignments where I was given the topic and assignments where I was able to pick something I am passionate about. It is safe to say that I was more engaged and learned more from researching the topic I was passionate about. Young students are the same way. They want (and need) topics that spark their interests. It should be every teacher's goal to discover each individual student's passion. The teacher can then provide a learning path that is maximally beneficial for each student. Today's students live in a world that changes on a daily basis, and teachers must teach with the future in mind. If they fail to do so, they will be selling their students short.

Prensky prefers the term partnering because it emphasizes that the roles of each group, teachers and students, are different, but equal. It is the means of drawing upon strengths to improve the learning process as a whole. He goes on to say he likes what partnering has to say about the role of technology: that it is the job of the students, and not the teacher, to use it, and the job of the teacher to assess the quality of that use.

The book identifies the key role of technology in today's learning, calms teacher's fears of technology, and offers ways to deal with the availability or lack of availability in the school or classroom. However, Prensky makes sure to include that partnering and 21st century skills are not only about technology. So much more is required. Technology use is just a part of the new transition.

Prensky was also sure to ease teachers' fears of planning. In Chapter 5, Prensky took the tedious task of planning and broke it down for a partnering teacher. As teachers shift away from traditional planning, this can be extremely challenging for them. However, the Prensky text provides partnering teachers with tips. He explains the importance of guiding questions, how to better them, and lists some examples of them. Guiding questions are asked before the lesson and are the means of translating content into questions.

Along with the partnering and planning, acquiring technology in the school can also be a factor that slows down the progress of partnering and a shift in paradigm. In Chapter 6, Prensky identifies a strategy for partnering teachers who have no access to technology in their school. This is very important to address because it is still common that some schools do not have technology.

One thing that I really enjoyed from the text is in Chapter 8. It discusses giving students the freedom to create. There is a plethora of research available about how being creative can help improve your mental health and brain function. It is important for students to be able to use this outlet to express themselves and to show what they know. It makes their work feel authentic and gives them the ability to share, not just their knowledge, but a piece of themselves with the world. As for 21st century students, they desire to share their thoughts and ideas with the world. They desire a real audience.

I would like to mention that the Prensky text was very enlightening to me, and I believe it to be a substantial textbook for this course. It is very appropriate and applicable. The partnering pedagogy needs to be out there. It needs to be well-known. It offers so much to students and their education. I hope to be a teacher who exemplifies the partnering pedagogy and then spread it like a virus. It's a virus that needs to spread QUICK!

November 2, 2019 - November 10, 2019

Throughout the past few weeks, our main focus has been on Field Experience. However, it was great to jump back into our partnering pedagogies lesson. In Module 5, we became an investigative reporter on the partnering pedagogy that we were assigned. My partnering pedagogy is inquiry-based learning.

The main goal of inquiry-based learning is for students to ask questions and find answers themselves. We, as educators, should be done with spoon-feeding information to our students. Students need to rely on themselves and become self-directed learners. Inquiry-based learning is experimentation. It’s an approach that allows students to work more at their own pace. Inquiry-based learning was a core idea of both John Dewey and Maria Montessori’s ideas on student-centered learning.

Children are constantly asking questions and trying to make meaning of the world around them. In the inquiry-based learning process, that’s what learners will be doing. They will be thinking to make meaning. Inquiry-based learning generally always starts with a question. These questions are presented to the students, and the job of the students is to find the answers. This is different from traditional teaching in that students are not sitting passively, listening as the teacher lectures. Students are actively engaged and become investigators, scientists, mathematicians, and independent learners.

The teacher’s role when implementing inquiry-based learning is to ask questions, serve as a facilitator and guide, and provide an appropriate and welcoming environment for students. Teachers should be experts of the content, as well as careful planners. In my opinion, this approach gives life to a classroom. It changes how students view learning. They are excited to go to school, and they are engaged more than ever because of the hands-on opportunities.

According to WNET Education, cooperative and collaborative learning bring positive results in students, such as a deeper understanding of content, increased overall achievement in grades, improved self-esteem, and higher motivation to remain on task.

Three Levels of Inquiry

There are 3 levels of inquiry: structured, guided, and open. In the structured approach, the teacher mainly directs the inquiry. He or she provides questions to the investigators and then provide step by step instructions that will help enable the students to discover the answers.

In the guided approach, the teacher generally chooses the questions, but the students take more responsibility for establishing the directions and methods of their inquiry. The teacher plays an important role in guiding the inquiry. This could be through feedback or posing further questions that help lead the students in the right direction.

In an open inquiry, the students take the lead in establishing the questions and methods, while the teacher takes on a supportive role. Having students guide their own investigations is the key to open inquiry and requires higher-order thinking.

I believe inquiry-based learning is far worth the implementation. I will leave you with this familiar quote...