Final Project

Technology Integration Matrix

The lesson plan that I used to incorporate in my Final Project was from my CURR 310 course. I had to apply modifications for a child with Autism in a lesson plan for 8^th and 9^th graders regarding point of view. The assignment was to complete a worksheet about Points of View, using specific stories such as To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee and a story entitled, “The True Story of the Three Little Pigs” by Jon Scieszka. While the Point of View worksheet would be very beneficial and helpful to the students, this lesson plan’s lack of opportunities for the use of technology is disconcerting, especially since the lesson plan states that this will be one entire unit. While I did incorporate the worksheet in my matrix, I decided to add more assignments to make it a more substantial and technology filled unit.

For the point of view worksheet, I applied it under the first standard listed in my matrix, regarding the ability to citing textual evidence. According to the lesson plan, I, as the teacher, would begin my reading “The True Story of the Three Little Pigs”. After, I would begin my discussion of point of view and its importance in the literary community. The first thing I would do is present a Powerpoint presentation explaining the definitions of the different types of point of view, such as first person, second person, third person omniscient, third person objective, amongst others. I would continue to discuss this with the specific protagonist in the short story, which in this case, is the wolf. I would have the students read aloud certain passages, and discuss in groups of two or three about the differences between the wolf’s point of view and the story that they were told growing up by using graphic organizers with the sections marked “Wolf”, “Pigs”, and “Same”. Then we would come together as a class and discuss all together what was written on their graphic organizers. The point of view worksheet would be assigned for homework.

The next day I would have them get into groups in order to delve more into the lesson on point of view. I would have them choose passages that they feel best demonstrates Scout’s point of view in To Kill a Mockingbird, and create the same scene in the point of view of another character. I would then have them note the differences of perception, outcomes, and discriminations based on which character they decided to replace Scout with. I will specify that it does not have to be a character that was in that particular scene. It would be interesting to read about her father’s point of view during a scene with Scout and her brother. After the new stories are created, I will set up an activity that involves one person from each group alternating groups in order to share their new creative stories and observations. After that activity, I would have the class come together for a class discussion involving a couple of volunteers to read their stories aloud, and to play YouTube clips of various recordings of the novel in order for the students to get a better idea of what the tone and theme of the book is. Their homework assignment would be to write a reflection on that day’s class, including their stories and how they worked with their group, and what they observed about various points of view.

Later in the unit, I will assign a group project on racism. Point of view is tied in because I will want them to use Scout’s point of view of racism throughout the novel and compare it to other characters, including her father. This project must include direct quotes from the text with page numbers, and using their creativity to create new perceptions of characters, giving a purpose to the new points of view activity from earlier in the unit. They will do research on several sites that discuss racism and apply their new knowledge to the novel’s characters and plots, and how it is a crucial theme in this novel. I would also suggest to them that YouTube is a great way to see clips of various documentaries regarding racism and inspirational speeches such as Martin Luther King’s “I Have a Dream” Speech. This project will give them a wide variety of technological opportunities while applying the theme of racism to what they know about the novel. These assignments and activities include the usage of technology in order for the students to produce a vast knowledge of what is going to be an essential part of their academic and personal lives.

Reasons for Bringing Technology into Schools

This website caught my attention because it explicitly mentions the reasons that technology is so important to have in schools. The reasons they list are:

1. Support Thinking Processes

2. Stimulate Motivation and Self-Esteem

3. Promote Equity

4. Prepare Students for the Future*

5. Support Changes in School Structure

6. Explore Technology Capabilities

*I cannot help but feel that this reason is the most important. The whole idea of a successful teacher is preparing their students for the future. And, as we all know, Technology is our present AND future, so we must embrace it!

Reasons for Bringing Technology into Schools

Chaucer Technology School

I happened to stumble across the Chaucer Technology School in England. My first thought was about the irony of that name, considering Chaucer lived and wrote during the Middle Ages. But I read about their work and found it interesting.

Based on what I read on their website, they are a charter school who accepts adolescent students with high level academic achievements. They have artwork that is displayed on the website that I found quite remarkable.

See for yourself!

Chaucer Technology School

iPads in the School System

When I was completing the internet portion of Interactivity 5, I noted that the teacher mentioned that iPads were going to be incorporated into the curriculum. I will admit, I was a little dumbfounded, due to the expense of such a piece of technology, especially to provide them to the students. Besides financial concerns, there were concerns of student responsibility. What if a student breaks it due to misbehavior, or even simply by accident?

Additionally, but I am not entirely sure how many students are knowledgeable in using iPads in an educational manner. They know plenty about Facebook and Twitter, but do they know anything about DragonSpeak (educational voice recorder) or SlideShark (post and share Powerpoints)? Hopefully, they can learn in a timely fashion, specifically before they are distributed.

What do you guys think?

Twitter and Literature

Here is an interesting article from September 2012 that I found interesting about Twitter being considered a place for creative literary minds to express themselves. Enjoy!

Twitter and Literature: Unlikely bedfellows?

Beware....Another Shakespeare Post!

So while perusing different sources for my Shakespeare term paper, I discovered my personal heaven in an iPad. That's right, folks: a Shakespeare app!

It is probably the most wonderful thing I have ever discovered. It has his complete works and sonnets with a concordance! AND, if you want to upgrade to pro, you get some kind of "Shakespeare Around the World" option and a section full of quotes said by the Bard.

In each play, there is the Dramatis Personae which is all of the characters with explicit information about every one of them, from their role in the piece to their hair color. Also, they have scene breakdowns that you can refer to if you need help.

Discovering this beautiful thing was fantastic, not just because of my love of Shakespeare, but it really did help get the characters straight in my paper, thanks to the Dramatis Personae. So, if you are a Shakespeare lover or class taker, I would get this app. It's available for iPhone and iPad!

Educators Work Better to Incorporate Technology into the Classrooms

While Internet surfing, I found an article that was very interesting about college students not being educated enough in the incorporation of technology in the classroom. It shocked me to know how much of a problem it was to even have computers in schools. Hope you enjoy and get something out of this!

Educators Work To Better Integrate Technology Into The Classroom

Interactivity #5

Pedagogical Use of Technology

For this activity, I interviewed a 9^th grade English teacher from Parsippany High School in the Parsippany-Troy Hills District. This school has already been on its way to using technology for all aspects of education. Although the teacher was not familiar with the specific NETS Standards, when I gave him a copy to peruse, he did say that a lot of these elements are incorporated into their lessons. He informed me of the weekly meetings he has with his colleagues and supervisors and their discussions about different ways to use technology in their classrooms. These technology-filled lessons make the students’ learning experience a more beneficial one through the use of technologies such as smartboards, iPads, Wikis, and Emailing.

The teacher I interviewed gave me substantial answers as to what types of technologies they use and how it will assist their students. They use laptops in computer labs, have teacher-teacher, teacher-student, and student-student interaction through email, and they use smartboards. The smartboards are beneficial for the teachers as much as the students because they can display their already-created lesson without wasting precious class time writing it on the board. He also mentioned that next year, they will attempt to incorporate the use of iPads into the curriculum. According to the teacher, the reason why technology is so important in school is because they can give students real world information in real time. They can provide them with news articles, archive information, and YouTube clips. In fact, he gave me a specific example: the day after I interviewed him, he was planning on showing a clip of Martin Luther King Jr.’s “I Have a Dream” speech. I remember, in my high school class, we read the speech, but now technology permits the speech to be watched as if they were present during the event.

I was surprised to hear about the idea of iPads being provided for students in class. They are an expensive mode of technology; needless to say, the school would need a large budget in order to afford the amount of tablets needed for the students to use during class. Also, it surprised me to find out that he plans to explore Wikis for next year. The Wiki will have the required assignments for the students, and they will be required to submit these assignments on the Wiki instead of a hardcopy. I was shocked because of the major changes technology has had on the school system since I graduated from high school four years ago. The teacher said himself that the teachers are online this year; next year, it will be the students’ turn.

By the time I become an educator and hired by a school district, I hope that technology will already be a vast portion of the curriculum. If not, I would express to my colleagues the importance of such tools for the students’ learning and for the convenience of the teachers. Ideas I got from my interviewed teacher such as Wikis, iPads, and YouTube clips are great ideas for me to use in the future and share with my colleagues.