Technology in the Classroom
How to incorporate relevant technologies for students and in teaching content.
How in the world can a teacher make English prevalent once again? Students walk into classrooms with white walls and white board lessons and are immediately disengaged from the learning process. How can I flip that around to create a classroom where students are just as excited about learning as I am about teaching?
Insert the powerful and wonderful tools of technology. Suddenly a boring classroom is turned into a world of possibilities in which the student has the power to choose the mode of learning and the mode of showcasing knowledge. Technology in the classroom is a creative way to engage students in with technologies they may not have engaged with in an educational setting previous to your classroom! Let’s look at a few examples of what technologies can be used in a classroom, specifically with student activities and how these activities can turn learning into a transformative and personal experience for students. ______________________________________________________________________________ Twitter: have students create twitters for characters in a novel: allow students to pick their character and create a twitter for the character – the more creative the better! Have students tweet as the character throughout the reading assignments. As a teacher these tweets will serve as a reading check, a character analysis check, and a great anticipatory set for class discussion days. Facebook: Have students create a facebook page for a sentence structure of their choosing. Students will fill out the bio with the dates of when the sentence structure was first created, and other fun facts about the structure. The student will post pictures of the sentence structure performing different actions: for example, multiple actions (eating, running, laughing can be placed into the sentence structure—students will upload images of these activities with a sentence in the correct structure as the caption.) This allows for a teacher to check for understanding of the sentence structure and allows students to learn a lot of information about the grammar of the language in an interesting and creative way. Video blogs: Have students respond to a lecture or lesson by creating a video blog. Allow a lot of leigh way in what the students speak about in these blogs: allow students to comment on how the material was presented, what the biggest take away was, favorite part, least favorite part, and an application. This will allow students to internalize their learning while providing an outlet for feedback on teacher’s style and allowing their personality to shine through. Check out this neat Vlog in response to Pride and Prejudice! ______________________________________________________________________________ Now let’s explore a few ways a teacher can use technology when presenting materials. Flipped Classroom: Have students complete the lecture outside of class: whether it’s a power point with voice over, a Ted Talks video with a worksheet or a flipbook students will complete the content portion outside of class. When students enter into the classroom they will participate in discussions that apply the content they viewed outside of class, they can work on projects (see above) that allow them to personalize and cement their learning of the content. Prezzi: a unique way to present information during a lecture beyond power point. This tech tool is self-explanatory and is best understood through use: check out this link to see Prezzi in action! Course sites, or Blackboard: this tool allows teachers to create an online classroom: assignments, tests, lectures, and supplementary materials can be stored on the classroom page: this allows a central location for both content and assignments in a classroom. This allows for better organization and an interesting classroom sounding board. It adds a fun element to your classroom dynamic and will make your classroom different than other classrooms. ______________________________________________________________________________ Through the use of the technology tools presented in this quick blurb on tech in classrooms, learning is transformed from the traditional student listen teacher lecture form of classroom learning. Instead students are asked to engage their creativity and personality on assignments. Additionally, content is given in a variety of ways which is proven to cement learning and solidify content. Student choice, which is a key aspect of student retention, is also a key aspect of technology in the classroom. ______________________________________________________________________________ Stay tuned for many other tech tools ranging from sticky note discussion boards to website creation as a collection of work for a class. (see below for some more links to technologies :))
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
R. Ashley HegartyEnglish Education 7-12
Categories |