Lynette Vega

Reflection from course 6714

noreply@blogger.com (Lynette Vega) — Tue, 17 Aug 2010 13:05:00 +0000

Lynette’s Reflection from course 6714

WOW! I have a repertoire filled with ideas on how to Differentiated Instruction (DI) using technology while using Universal Design for Learning (UDL) model. I have acquired the knowledge on how to use a Voice Thread, how to use a glog, collaborating on a social network, and how to use multi-media. Most importantly knowing and understanding how our brains are wired, helps me to plan lessons for the diverse learners in my classroom. The brain is one big network, broken down into three networks, 1) Recognition (“what” of learning) 2) Strategic (“how” of learning) 3) Affective (“why” of learning) (Laureate Education, 2009c). How do I teach students with different needs? I use the three types of flexibility the Center for Applied Special Technology (CAST) has matched with the three brain networks. They are, 1) Recognition, multiple means of representatives 2) Strategic, multiple means to express themselves 3) Affective, multiple means of engagement (Laureate Education, 2009c). Every student has unique means in learning and understanding, which leads to Multiple Intelligence (MI). There are seven main MI’s in students, 1) Linguistic (words) 2) Logical-Mathematical (reasoning) 3) Spatial (images and pictures) 4) Bodily-Kinesthetic (sensations) 5) Musical (rhythms and melodies) 6) Interpersonal (ideas and leading) 7) Intrapersonal (time alone), all seven intelligences interact with each other (Multiple Intelligence Worksheets) Everyone has all the intelligences, but each person has a unique combination (Hampton, 2009). Therefore, there is more than one way for students to learn.

In our Differentiation Station Social Network, I was getting many sources from my colleges. I would open the sources to view, and then I would save to my delicious bookmark. Then I tagged my sources using at least three different tags, in case I forgot the name of one of the tags I would have two other tags I could use to find my source. How I am going to use this information to implement the principles of UDL and DI is viewing my delicious tags before I plan a lesson and at the end of the day, after a lesson. Before the lesson, I will be looking for ways to meet the needs of my diverse learners. Tomlinson (Laureate Education, 2009b) explains it is important to plan and organize DI for it is the key to orchestrating students. To not have a plan complicates trying to DI for diverse learners in the classroom. After the lesson, if something did not work I will look at my delicious tags for ways to enhance the learning for my students the following day. I will be looking at my students’ readiness, interest, and learning profile when I am planning my DI and then I will integrate technology into each.

The immediate change I will make in my instructional practice is planning ahead to implement technology for all diverse learners. Knowing students have a combination of MI’s I can use a variety of methods using technology. A resource from, Tech Connections, http://www.everythingdi.net/mitech/techconnect.htm , gives various ideas using technology in a diverse classroom. Technology easily modifies and customizes learning (Laureate Education, 2009a). It is the most effective way to engage students while they are learning the content.

As a learner in this course, I was engaged. I can only imagine becoming a partner with my students in their quest for learning while implementing technology into their learning. With the combination of what I have acquired about the use of technology in the classroom and the combination of what my students know about technology is going to take both of us farther beyond our expectations. Let the learning begin!

Take Care,
Lynette

Reference List
Laureate Education, Inc. (Producer). (2009a) Differentiating instructional elements[Motion picture]. Reaching and Engaging all Learners Through Technology. Baltimore:Author.

Laureate Education, Inc. (Producer). (2009b) Managing the differentiated classroom.[Motion picture]. Reaching and Engaging all Learners Through Technology. Baltimore:Author.

Laureate Education, Inc. (Producer). (2009c) Brain research and UDL [Motion picture].Reachingand Engaging all Learners Through Technology. Baltimore: Author.

Multiple Intelligence Worksheets. (nd). The seven multiple intelligence in children. Retrieved August 15, 2010, from http://www.spannj.org/BasicRights/appendix_b.htm#test

Hampton, R. (2009, June 15). Multiple Intelligences Theory. Multiple Intelligence. Retrieved July 6, 2010, from http://lth3.k12.il.us/rhampton/mi/mi.html

Reflection on Class Course

noreply@blogger.com (Lynette Vega) — Mon, 19 Apr 2010 20:34:00 +0000

As I reflect on my GAME plan, I feel I accomplished some of my goals. For instance, one of my goals was to be on our school district technology committee. I did succeed in that goal. Another goal was to obtain the same software the GT (gifted and talented) teacher uses with her GT students and to take note if my students learning increased. I did discuss some ideas with our GT teacher. She told me from the time school started and until the end of the school year; she does the stock market with her students using a software program. Personally, I was not interested in teaching my students the stock market. I teach reading and I feel my students could benefit from other software programs besides the stock market. Instead, I found web sites to enhance my instructions. The web sites I do try to find are interactive and visual for my students. I have learned there are different goals set by teachers and it is my choice of how I will cover the content my students will learn. The GT teacher had a goal for the students to learn about the stock market. My goal is for my students to improve their learning by incorporating technology into their learning of the content.

I am definitely on the hunt for a grant for iPods in my classroom for next year. The value of having access to the internet on a daily basis is important for 21st century skills. Currently, I have one student computer in my class and a computer lab we are assigned to weekly. I want my students to have access to a computer on a daily basis. Purchasing iPods would be cheaper then purchasing Lap Tops for my class. Another teacher at my school wants to be involved with me in writing a grant for the iPods; she too wants access to computers for her students on a daily basis. If my students had access to a computer on a daily basis, the sky would be the limit on instructional practice using technology.

Take Care,
Lynette

Using GAME plan and NETS-S with students

noreply@blogger.com (Lynette Vega) — Wed, 14 Apr 2010 12:25:00 +0000

The NETS-S and the NET-T are inter-related. A couple of the standards for teachers are teaching students to be creative, teaching students about digital citizenship, and giving students learning experiences, such as collaboration. Those same standards are for the students, to demonstrate creativity, to know about digital citizenship, and to collaborate. Within the ISTE’S Educational Technology Standards, several teacher and student standards inter-relate with one another.

Using the GAME plan process with students would benefit the students. They would be able to see how to set a goal and how to manage a goal. I might use the GAME plan process for my last lesson in my PBL. It would be a great opportunity for me to reinforce what is expected of my students in the lesson. In my lesson, I have my students collaborate on ePal with another student from another country. I would need to teach my students the GAME plan before the lesson in order for my students to go through the GAME plan individually. Therefore, I would need to do a GAME plan as a whole class for my students to be able to see how it works, and then they could do their own GAME plan. Having my students do their own GAME plan I feel would develop their proficiency in the technology standards.

Lynette

Revising GAME Plan

noreply@blogger.com (Lynette Vega) — Thu, 08 Apr 2010 02:57:00 +0000

I am not ready to set new learning goals for myself. I feel I need to elaborate on what I have learned, in order to better myself as a 21st century educator. One of my previous goals was to explore creative applications of technology to improve student learning. As I mentioned in my evaluation blog, the students enjoyed the jeopardy game and the students were learning their vocabulary. To extend my goal, I want to find more interactive web sites for my students learning. Our school district has a technology newsletter that comes out once a month with great web sites to explore. I kept those web sites and I plan to explore the web sites to see if I can use the web sites for my students learning.

My second previous goal was to exhibit leadership ability with my colleagues by demonstrating a vision for technology in the classroom. I have not accomplished that goal yet. I plan to share this coming week during our staff meeting the information I received from the technology committee meeting I participated in with educators throughout the school district.

I feel comfortable with the gains I am making. There is only so much time during the day for accomplishments. That is why time management is an important skill to acquire.

Take Care,
Lynette Vega

Evaluation of GAME

noreply@blogger.com (Lynette Vega) — Wed, 31 Mar 2010 12:22:00 +0000

My goal for my GAME plan is to improve student learning by using technology and to discuss technology with colleagues. For student learning I used a jeopardy game on my Smart board to reinforce vocabulary words they are studying for a literature they will be reading soon. They worked in teams and were able to use their list of vocabulary words they wrote. Having the students use their list held them accountable for finishing their list before the jeopardy game. The game definitely was a motivator for my students. They enjoyed the challenge among the other teams. The jeopardy game was easy to set up and it was not a PowerPoint. The site I used was http://jeopardylabs.com I do feel the jeopardy game did enhance my students learning of their vocabulary content. It forced them to use their vocabulary in a fun situation. I also used a couple PowerPoint's already made on the internet for Anne Frank. I feel those PowerPoint’s enhanced my students learning. My students were able to see what Anne Frank looked like and they were able to see where she went into hiding. It gave them background information before they start to read The Diary of Anne Frank. I continue to take action in locating technology to use to enhance my student learning.

For my second goal, discussing technology with colleagues, I continue to do as well. In our school district, we have an Apple representative. I emailed our representative about prices of a classroom set of iPods and the other nessacary equipment to go with the iPods. He emailed me back and I was blown away by the price. For an Apple iPod Learning Lab, which is, a PowerSync Cart and 20 iPod touch 8GB, is $5,999. The price does not include an Apple laptop. It also is an educator discount price. The grant I was looking at would not cover the iPod Learning Lab. I was discouraged for a day and now I am back looking at grants again.

I did have success on talking with a colleague about hand held devices she uses for her students. She uses Senteo for assessments. It allows the educator to quickly evaluate if the students are learning the content and it instantly gives a grade. She told me all I need is the software to download on my computer and then I can use her hand held devices. I emailed my school district technology department to download the software on my computer. It is only a matter of time now.

Overall, I am making progress despite a few bumps along the way.

Take Care,
Lynette Vega

GAME Plan Progress

noreply@blogger.com (Lynette Vega) — Wed, 24 Mar 2010 12:45:00 +0000

I attended my first technology committee meeting this past Monday. The meeting was to revise the district technology standards in order to turn it into the state by July 1, 2010. We broke up into three groups, according to the goals. The group I am in is the Instructional Integration.It happens to be my goal for my GAME plan, integrating technology to improve student learning and to discuss technology with colleagues. We only began revising the plan, therefore there are going to be many more meetings. The committee members are mainly teachers. One of the teachers got a grant for iPods. I talked with her about the iPods vs. iPhones. She told me that she does not think the district would okay the I phones, since it is a phone and the iPods are cheaper than the iphones. The iPods do not have a video camera; therefore, I would need to get Flip cameras also. She also mentioned to get an Apple lab top to synchronize the iPods. On a PC, I can only synchronize one iPod at a time; on an Apple, I can synchronize all 30 at the same time. Now, I need to start my grant writing. I also, find out when writing a grant it is a good idea to include standards from the state. It was exciting to be in a room with educators with the same interest, which is wanting technology in the classroom.

Today will be the first time I have used a technology game for studying vocabulary words. It is a jeopardy game. It will be interesting to see if it will help with student learning. I have briefly discussed with my GT teacher technology lessons she has used in her classroom. I need to get concrete ideas from her in order to try it in my classroom, so I can compare my results with her.

I am developing a supportive learning committee at my school, in my district and on the internet. I joined edutopia http://www.edutopia.org/ It is a web site for educators from all over the world to discuss their area of interest. I have only begun to investigate the site.

Overall, I feel I am making progress. There are areas I mentioned I need to implement and areas I am currently evaluating. It is an exciting journey, a learning curve for me to improve my teaching strategies’.

Take Care,
Lynette

GAME Plan Begun!

noreply@blogger.com (Lynette Vega) — Wed, 17 Mar 2010 13:03:00 +0000

I have begun my GAME plan. I emailed my school district technology committee to ask if I can be on the committee. They were excited and signed me up. Our first meeting is March 22. It should be interesting since I am only beginning to understand technology terms. I am hoping being on the committee will help build my confidence in order for me to teach a mini-lesson to my colleagues using technology. I talked with my GT teacher; she also is on the technology committee. There are about 15 members from the school district. The GT teacher informed me she was trying to find a grant to get iPhones for the students. She gave me reasons why she wants the iPhones. For instance, the students can use the internet on the iPhones without having extra charge for internet use at the school. They are cheaper than a laptop and more convenient to use outdoors. She gave me an idea to find a grant to get iPhones for my students. It would be an awesome, cheap way for the students to use the internet on a daily basis and that is what I want for my students, access to the internet daily. I am looking at grants right now. I also found an interactive PowerPoint that will be of assistance for my students to study Holocaust vocabulary words. I am putting that together this week. I still need to discuss with my GT teacher some of the tech software she has used with her students that she feels benefited her students.

I feel I have made gains and still making gains on my GAME plan. I will be and am adventuring into areas of the unknown, which is exciting and liberating. Lucius Ammaeus Seneca, “The mind that is anxious about the future is miserable.”

Take Care,
Lynette Vega

Developing A Personal GAME Plan

noreply@blogger.com (Lynette Vega) — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 13:04:00 +0000

An area I need to strengthen my confidence is discussing technology terms with colleagues as well as teaching colleagues technology skills. I also need to strengthen my confidence to reach out to those colleagues that use technology in the classroom and discuss their creative applications to improve students’ learning. The following is the standard and the two achievement indicators I will incorporate into my GAME plan to build my confidence in technology.

NETS-T 5. Engage in Professional Growth and Leadership
Teachers continuously improve their professional practice, model lifelong learning, and exhibit leadership in their school and professional community by promoting and demonstrating the effective use of digital tools and resources. Teachers:
a. participate in local and global learning communities to explore creative applications of technology to improve student learning
b. exhibit leadership by demonstrating a vision of technology infusion, participating in shared decision making and community building, and developing the leadership and technology skills of others

My GAME plan is as follows:
Strengthen my confidence in Technology
Set Goals- Learn about the aspects of technology to improve student learning and discuss technology with colleagues.

Take Action- discuss with our GT teacher about what she has observed using technology to improve student learning. E-mail our district head tech to ask if I can be on the technology committee.

Monitor- Make a list of advantages and disadvantages for the programs the GT teacher uses. Am I finding the information I need as well as my students understanding the information and mastering the skills in the content? Can I have an intelligent conversation with those on the tech committee? Can I understand what they tech committee is discussing?

Evaluate and Extend- Using the same software as the GT teacher, compare results. Did my lesson work? If not, do I need to modify my instructional strategies? What will I do differently in the future? Can I give instructions at my school to my colleagues about a software program?

Both indicators is an area I need to strengthen. I am in need of any suggestions or ideas to achieve my GAME plan.

Take Care,
Lynette Vega

Reflection on Supporting Information Literacy and Online Inquiry in the Classroom

noreply@blogger.com (Lynette Vega) — Tue, 22 Dec 2009 14:09:00 +0000

I was surprised to read how similar new literacy skills are similar to literacy skills. For instance, in the article 21st Century Fluency Skills has listed reading and writing skills along with personal skills (Jukes, 2007). The article also has media and technology skills. After reading the skills for 21st Century Skills it is evident that the new literacy skills and literacy skills overlap one another. I stress to my students when they are on the computer navigating web sites they are reading. They are shocked when they hear me tell them they are reading. Parents and teachers alike do not view computer time as reading time. Instead it is viewed as wasting time. I had a student ask me to write him a note for his mother about reading on the computer, because she did not believe him!

The knowledge and experience I have gained from this course are truly amazing. It has influenced me on how I will instruct my students in researching on the Internet. Before I took the course with Walden, I knew the basics of researching the internet, that is one or two search engines and typing in key words. Since I have completed the course, I feel confident in teaching my students how to search the internet. The QUEST model for Internet Inquiry is a wonderful model for teaching students how to research questions, understand resources, evaluate, synthesize, and transform information (Eagleton, & Dobler, 2007). I have begun to instruct my students on what is a good source and what is a bad source using Web sites and search engines. My students are finding this new information delightful. I have their full undivided attention when it comes to technology, they want to learn everything they can about technology, it is their life.

A professional goal I have after completing this course is to present the idea of every student being a digital citizen in the school district (Ribble, 2008). My first step is to discuss it with my head technologist in the school district. She encourages 21st century skills in the classroom, so I think this would be something she would be interested in. Next, it would need to be discussed with our school superintendent, then the school board. I would need to communicate clearly about digital citizenship. In order for me to communicate those ideas I would need to research evidence about the effectiveness of a digital citizen, then verbally and visually present those ideas. I also would want to involve parents with my ideas to present to the superintendent and the school board, since parents have a lot of control over school policies.

Overall my experience with this course was a full-filling, worthwhile learning experience.

Take Care,
Lynette

Eagleton, M. B., & Dobler, E. (2007). Reading the Web: Strategies for Internet inquiry. New York: The Guilford Press.
Jukes, I. (2007). 21st Century Fluencies Quotient Insta-Audit. Retrieved November 1, 2009, from http://www.committedsardine.com/handouts/tfcfia.pdf

Ribble, M. (2008, December). Passport to digital citizenship. (Danish). Learning & Leading with Technology, 36(4), 14–17.

Reflection

noreply@blogger.com (Lynette Vega) — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 12:55:00 +0000

As I reflect on what I have learned in the last eight weeks about integrating technology in the classroom it is thrilling. On a professional level, it brought about awareness of what a 21st century teacher is. One of the characteristic is being a risk taker by implementing technology in the classroom, going beyond the norm. When school begins this fall this is the characteristic I will be adopting. I will start with a lesson about online safety and invite parents, administrators and colleges to my classroom to participate with the students. Hoping this will facilitate an open communication among everyone involved.

My students know more about technology than I do. This course has given me a running start with my students. My focus is on my students, that is, how technology can be of assistance to them now and in the future. I will be the facilitator of technology in my classroom. We both will learn together.

Students need to be involved in their education. After all, this is their education. Students will be represented at staff meetings. There will be a change in my role as a teacher and there will be a change in the role of my students as learners. Technology will not drive classroom instruction; rather instruction will drive how technology is used in the classroom.

To increase student achievement I need to start with prior knowledge. Then tie it to new information, which will lead to meaningful learning for students. I will use common sense as I model for my students how to ask questions beyond the curriculum and how to locate the answer.

One goal I have for technology is learning all aspects about using the Smart Board in the classroom. I started this goal about two weeks ago by attending a class on Smart Board. This fall I will use what I learned. After I feel comfortable, I will take the advance class using the Smart Board. Another goal I have is using portable devices in the classroom. This goal will be a challenge, since teachers at my school site are told to confiscate portable devices if they see them. I will have to approach this delicately. I will write a memo to all teachers, administrators, and parents about portable devices being a learning tool. The letter will have signatures from central office, those who are supporting portable devices in the classroom. It makes me think about what Eleanor Roosevelt said, “Do what you feel in your heart to be right - for you'll be criticized anyway. You'll be damned if you do, and damned if you don't.”

The biggest change on the checklist from week 1 is being a teacher leader at my school. Up until I took this course I did not promote, participate, or seek other professionals for developing technology in the classroom. Since this course, I have decided to promote, participate and seek other professionals using technology in the classroom. In doing so, I hope to raise student achievement in academics. I wonder if I will see a rise in attendance in those students who seem to miss a lot of school. This coming school year will definitely be a learning curve for everyone involved.

First Pod Cast

noreply@blogger.com (Lynette Vega) — Sat, 06 Jun 2009 04:29:00 +0000

http://lynettevega.podbean.com/mf/web/ycqak6/Podcastassignment.mp3

I interviewed four students between the ages of 5-13, asking them questions about their uses in technology. The reason I did a wide span of ages was to see who uses technology more, the younger or older student?

I clicked on the Audacity icon on my lap top and one of the students remarked by saying, “Your using Audacity?” I told her, “Yes, have you used Audacity before?” My thoughts were yea, she could show me how to cut and edit the sound bytes. She said, “Yes, only once when we had to make a commercial for a business we made at school.” I then asked her, “Do you know how to use Audacity?” “No, I forgot how to use it.” There went my hopes of having someone show me how to edit a podcast. Then the interviewing began.

The results were the younger the student, the less familiar they are with technology. Their favorite technology is using the television and playing games on the computer. The older students used several technical devices, than the younger student. They use their cell phone the most, but not for talking, for texting. They also use the computer to chat with their friends. The younger students said when they get older they too will have access to chat with friends.

The consensus is all students use more technology outside of school, than they do at school. The older the student, the more fluent they are using technical devices.

Parnership for 21st Century Skills

noreply@blogger.com (Lynette Vega) — Fri, 29 May 2009 22:17:00 +0000

While I was navigating around on the web site for Partnership for 21st Century Skills http://www.21stcenturyskills.org/ I was overwhelmed with all the information. P21 has several well renowned businesses in partnership. I noticed they had wonderful videos and great ideas. They had a video on how they built a car using all the core subjects. No where, did I find anything about how to implement those wonderful ideas into the curriculum.

P21 believes every student, every district, every school, and every classroom is unique. They have set up guidelines using technology in the classroom. It is up to educators and school districts of how to use technology in core subjects. The only guidelines I seen was for Social Studies and English, and then it was only for 4th, 8th, and 12th grade. P21 explained that the learner needs to be a master at their core subject in order to do well with technology. It was unclear of what makes a master. Is it mastering the concept at 70%, 80%, 90% or 100%? What is a master?

I need to teach my students to be critical thinkers, problem solvers and to collaborate according to P21. P21 vision is not based on how students think; instead it is all about skill. Nothing about knowledge.

P21 has wonderful ideas, but in reality I do not see any support on how to train the students to be masters and how to train students to be critical thinkers.

My Dream

noreply@blogger.com (Lynette Vega) — Thu, 14 May 2009 01:46:00 +0000

I want to create a blog for my 6th grade students to share their stories they wrote on a global aspect. The name of the blog would be Stories from Rm 16. The purpose behind the blog would be for my students to share their writing with other students around the world. In addition, parents could read their child’s stories. It would greatly benefit those parents that travel a lot or parents over in Iraq. This is one way parents could stay connected with their child’s schoolwork. My students would take blogging more serious than writing on paper, because they would know the world would see their story. This alone would enhance the lesson. They would be careful about their word choice, conventions, and organization.

Blogging is a skill a student will use through their life, either on a personal basis or for a school assignment, including college. Students need to be taught what is appropriate and what is not appropriate on a blog. I would post guidelines on the blog for my students to refer too and for the audience to have reference for what is accepted and what is not accepted.

I know I have to protect my students from the outside world. I am currently researching safety issues for my students so they can blog. I also, have to consider my safety net, my job. There is always someone in our society that spoils it for everyone. Safety is the biggest issue I perceive for blogging in the classroom.

noreply@blogger.com (Lynette Vega) — Sun, 10 May 2009 12:30:00 +0000

I thought I had everything done on my blogger account. I was missing the most important part, the comments. So here is my comment, isn't technology fun! I mean, I could stay in my comfort zone which is away from the computer. Instead, I venture out into new areas on my computer, then TRY to learn from my mistakes. Leason learned, go to bed when I am tired, inorder, to stop myself from making more mistakes.