CEP 812 Wicked Problem Project

Wicked Problem: Lack of immediate feedback to students.
Solution: Edmodo Social Network

TP- Edmodo allows for constant communication and daily assessment using many of it features and tools.

TC- Using Edmodo I can provide immediate feedback to students through the use of polls, surveys, daily discussions, etc. Thus allowing for formative assessment. I can reteach areas of struggle.

PC- Edmodo creates a well organized, collaborative work environment and in turn becomes a management and resource tool for students and teachers.

CEP 811: Final Reflection

Technology integration in the 21st century is at the foundation of education in America. Since taking CEP 810, 811, and 812 I have learned about so many new technologies that I probably would have never heard of or experimented with if I had not taken these courses.

The most important thing I believe I have learned as a result of these classes has been the importance of collaboration and sharing in education. I didn't realize how one sided my classroom was. There was only communication between the students and myself. With the new tools that I have learned about (blogs, wiki's, social networks for education, Google Docs, etc.) I will be able to foster a collaborative environment in my classroom.

Learning about the TPACK was also very beneficial for me. Constantly, teachers are being bombarded with new technologies and ideas for integration. The TPACK is such a great tool to use to evaluate your lessons to see if they hit that "sweet spot." I really feel like the TPACK provides the technological foundation of lessons. It gives meaning to technology being implemented.

I was really impressed with the StAIR project we were required to complete. I was unaware of what this was. It was a benefit for me to learn about this and then to create one myself. I was very impressed with my StAIR. I plan on using it this year in my classes.

I believe I have met many of my personal goals. When thinking back to CEP 810 I had two goals in mind for my personal goals statement. The first being to learn more about Web 2.0 tools and the second being increasing my skill in technology. These two very generic goals of mine have definitely been met. I have learned more over this summer about technology than I probably have in my entire life.

As far as the future, I would like to learn about more technology tools to use in the classroom. I would like to take what I have learned and share these benefits with my colleagues. I would like to possible create a technology committee at my school that would oversee technology integration in the classroom. The technology committee would be a major resource for teachers who need assistance with technology. I have been admitted to the MAET program at MSU and look forward to the classes I will be taking. I will also definitely continue on building my personal learning network as this has been a very important tool for me as an educator since beginning the certificate courses. No longer do I have to feel isolated as the sole technology teacher in my building.

CEP 812 Group Project

Our group chose to use Movie Maker to deliver the PD tutorial. When we originally worked on our separate assigned areas we used slide presentations to create our individual sections and collaborated within a Google Doc. Using Movie Maker we were able to import all of the slides that we created individually. After we imported the slide we were then able to lay an audio track. It actually turned out pretty cool. I've never actually used Movie Maker before.

During the development process of the final project I learned how important it is to have group members that are willing to bring something to the table. All of my group members had something different they could offer; a new perspective. We were able to brainstorm and work together in a cohesive unit. It's great to be working with people who are able to provide you with feedback when you need it.

I think the only thing I would do differently is organize group meetings a little bit better. After our initial meeting using Skype and the live chat room, we primarily stayed in touch using email. It's easier for me because it goes straight to my phone. We constantly communicated this way and after awhile I had extra emails in my inbox. It would've been easier to set up specific meeting check points throughout the development process of our project.

To access a copy of our final project please click here.

CEP 812 Professional Learning Plan

Professional Learning Plan on Prezi

CEP 812: Mobile Learning Lab

I really enjoyed working through this lab. There are so many cool tools that are out their that are mobile. I really feel like learning can be much more beneficial to students when they can learn anywhere, not just in school. Mobile devices allow this to happen. Lets face it, technology is not going to go away. As educators we need to learn to embrace it and figure out best practices for implementation into the classroom.

There is a lot of beneficial information in the Classroom 2.0 site. I enjoyed rummaging through and reading all of the different ideas people had. So many tips! There are also many features available for self enrichment too. Here is a screenshot of something I posted related to cell phones in class:

I also used Poll Everywhere to create a short survey of some things that I may ask students on the first day of school just to get an idea of technology in their lives outside of the classroom. Here is the link to that survey.

There are a few different ways I plan on implementing mobile technology into my classes this coming year. First, I am using a social networking site called Edmodo. I chose Edmodo because it has great features, but also because it has a mobile app available. If students are not able to download the mobile app to their phone they can still access it using the mobile site. I am going to incorporate Poll Everywhere into my presentations as well. It's a great tool to use as a check for understanding. I realize that it uses cell phones and many schools forbid it, but personally I feel like it would be a missed opportunity. The human race wouldn't have come this far if the rules weren't bent just a little every now and then, right? In reality, I will probably talk with my principal to see if I can get cell phones approved maybe for just that purpose; possibly inviting her down to watch a lesson where the technology is used. Many of my students also have MP3 players or iPods or their phone can play media files. I am planning on creating podcasts of our class lectures so they may be downloaded by students and posted to our Edmodo site.

CEP 812 Part D: Findings and Implications

The initial problem that I chose to address for my Wicked Project was providing immediate feedback to students as a way to promote achievement. As a solution to this problem I decided that one way to address the issue of immediate feedback in the classroom is to use social networking tools. Social networks allow teachers to create a collaborative work environment so the teacher and the students can provide immediate feedback to one another. I decided to use the technology tool Edmodo. With Edmodo I am able to create classes, form discussions; post projects and resources, post polls and surveys, and allow students to turn in work. This allows me to stay in constant communication with my students. Using Edmodo in the classroom not only allows me to provide instant feedback to my students, but it allows students to provide instant feedback to one another.

I know that this will be successful because the Edmodo social network for the classroom will be embedded into my curriculum. Students are going to have daily assignments that will require them to access the Edmodo social network to complete specific tasks. Students will also be utilizing blogs in my classroom. I am going to have students use the Edmodo site to share their blogs with one another. For example, students will have daily bell work. The bell work will be a discussion question for the day (relating to a recently covered concept). Students will be required to log into their blogs and respond to the discussion board question. When they finish, they will be responsible for posting the link to their blog entry into a daily discussion forum on the Edmodo site so other students and I can access and provide feedback on their entries. I will consider my solution a success once I am able to see students and myself successfully collaborating with one another on the Edmodo site. Successfully collaborating would be responding to each other questions and blog entries in a constructive and meaningful manner, sharing ideas, responding to polls and surveys and other short assessments, and using the site as a homework portal.

I think using Edmodo to create a social network for my classes will be extremely beneficial for all. We will be in constant communication with other providing feedback on all concepts that will be covered. I think this will be a great way for students to work together collaboratively. This will also be a wonderful way to give and receive immediate feedback as a teacher and as a student. 

CEP 811: Online Learning

     Since I teach in a computer lab all of the activities that are listed in the MMC companion guide would be beneficial to my students. I could use them to cover a variety of things like computer history, the Internet and the World Wide Web, document processing, cyber bullying, etc. I especially like using web quests in my class. A lot of content can be covered and the students seem to enjoy completing them. I am going to incorporate blogging much more heavily this year. Students will be using their personal blog to blog about different things that are covered in class along with discussion questions that will be posted daily. They will be expected to comment on each others blog postings as well. I'm also incorporating Edmodo into my classes this year. I think having a classroom social network will be extremely beneficial because it aids in collaboration, creativity, and feedback among students and the teacher. I would like to try to have a virtual conference with another computer class, possibly in a different country. I think that the students would really benefit from that diversity and outside collaboration.
     Whenever I introduce a new technology to my students I always use a video clip to spark interest. Then, we use the program to create something whether it is a document, presentation, etc. I always have a volunteer who sits at my desk and uses my computer that is connected to a starboard. I will read a set of steps divided into numbered tasks. We go step by step. As I read each step individually, my volunteer, whom I call my spokes-model, completes the task so the students can see it on the board. This way of teaching has worked well for my classes because the students are working on the computers (hands on), hearing me read the instructions aloud (auditory), and can watch the step being completed on the starboard (visual). I use a spokes-model because they generally complete the steps slower than I would on the computer. This is important because it helps set the pace for the class. It also allows me to move more freely around the room so I can help students and manage when needed. After we complete a project together using this method of guided practice, the students generally have an independent project to work on or problem to solve.
      I think that using a learning management system with my students may be difficult because my school doesn't have a district wide lms available. I think it might be a lot of work to get one up and running. I think it might be beneficial to use but I don't know much about them. I know that Moodle is available as a free resource, but at this point I've never used it before.