Let them construct something!

When you are teaching students in a classroom there will always be a few tapping their pencils, rummaging through their pencil box, or swaying their chair back and forth. Many students get antsy when they are sitting in a chair and are forced to listen quietly and have no discussions. Constructionism is the theory of learning; As stated by Dr. Orey, “people learn best when they build an external artifact or something they can share with others” (Laureate Education, 2009). When students are given the opportunity to explore a concept by manipulating, building, or creating something, it will increase interest and help them retain the information better compared to simply reading about it.

Pitler et al. (2007) explain that students who are given the opportunity to use technology to learn a new concept or build knowledge of an old concept, it allows students to gain a deeper understanding and requires them to use critical thinking skills. Spreadsheets for example are a great tool to use for teaching hypothesis in mathematics and science. Students can make predictions, collect data, analyze the data for patterns, and create and revise their hypothesis.

“Using data collection tools enables students to see the bigger picture and recognize patterns” (Pitler et al., 2007,p. 210). One science class compared pH levels of water in their community with others to see if their city gets acid rainfall (Pitler, et al., 2007). Other tools that students and teachers should use are web resources and gaming software. In gaming software (think Oregon Trail or Battle Ship Online) it allows students to use what they already know, make decisions, and see the outcome of their actions and predictions. “Simulation software also can provide incredibly engaging learning environments, resulting in increased motivation and retention in learning” (Pitler, et al., 2007, p. 213).

Giving students problems without the solution is a great way for them to learn. It is up to them and their peers to come up with a list of solutions and try to solve the problem. This could be using in content areas (math, science, language arts) or real-life situations. Allowing students to create a hypothesis and giving them tools to discover the solution is helping prepare them for the future; in life and in their career.



References:


Laureate Education, Inc. (Executive Producer). (2008). “Cognitive learning theories” [Educational video].

Pitler, H., Hubbell, E., Kuhn, M., & Malenoski, K.(2007). Using Technology with Classroom Instruction that Works. Alexandria, VA: ASCD

Web sites to visit:
http://office.microsoft.com (spreadsheet templates, help, and how-to’s)
www.globalschoolnet.org or http://collaboratory.nunet.net (collaborate project website)
www.making-history.com (WWII strategy game)
http://davidmcdivitt.wordpress.com (Mr.McDivitt’s blog about gaming and his student’s experience)
www.smogcity.com (weather/population/emissions interactive website)
www.pbs.org/wgbh/buildingbig (learn about bridges, domes, skyscrapers, dams, and tunnels)
www.ciconline.org/windward (game about weather/wind patterns)
http://meted.ucar.edu/hurrican/strike/index.htm (Simulation of hurricanes)

HEMET: High school uses texting, Facebook to teach | Hemet-San Jacinto | PE.com | Southern California News | News for Inland Southern California

HEMET: High school uses texting, Facebook to teach | Hemet-San Jacinto | PE.com | Southern California News | News for Inland Southern California

Memorizing vs. Understanding: Using Technology to Help Students Retain and Understand Information

As a college graduate, I have many experiences in classes where I simply memorized information for a test or quiz, and shortly after….the information magically disappeared from my brain. By cramming for a test or simply memorizing information instead of understanding it, I was storing information in the short-term memory part of my brain. So as a teacher, how can we get our students to store important information in their long term memory so they are getting the full understanding of the concept?

The Cognitive theory is a learning theory of psychology that attempts to explain human behavior by understanding the thought processes. Allen Paivio’s “dual code theory” he states that people process visual and verbal information differently. Dr. Orey (Laureate Education, 2009) discusses how Paivio believes that people store images, labels, and smells. So if you saw a picture of Abraham Lincoln or heard a speech you would store this information better than simply reading it. The “Elaboration Theory” states that the primary mechanism for storing information in the long term memory. By making connections and associations with the information being learned, it will be stored in the long term memory. One example that Dr. Orey (Laureate Education, 2009)discusses is if you are learning about the Civil War and need to know the name of the general from the south, you can make a connection to remember General Lee’s name. You could think of Lee jeans or a friend named Lee and make that connection; you will most likely remember it.

Now that we know how students learn best, we can begin to think of strategies we can use in the classroom to help our students succeed. “For many students, multimedia is very effective because it helps them both activate prior knowledge and develop a mental model to help them understand new information” Pitler, et al (p. 82, 2007). Using a variety of media to help students organize and store new information is one strategy teachers can use. Graphic organizers, outlines, graphs, and concept maps are a few examples. Programs like Kidspiration and Webspiration can help students organize their thoughts and information in an organized way. If you scroll down the blog page you will find an example of a concept map created at readthinkwrite.org.Other forms of media such as videos and audio can enhance students’ learning. I like the websites Brainpop.com and discoverykids.com for informational videos.

Pitler et al. (2007) explain that summarizing and note-taking is a skill that is helpful for students to learn in order to better understand and process information. By integrating various forms of technology students will be able to organize important information by summarizing and take notes effectively. Using programs such as Inspiration and PowerPoint to make notes is one strategy discussed by Pitler et al. (2007). Notestar.4teachers.org allows students to take information from the web, organize it, and automatically create citations for it.

References:

Laureate Education, Inc. (Executive Producer). (2009). Bridging learning theory, instruction, and technology. Baltimore: Author.

Pitler,H., Hubbell, E., Kuhn, M., & Malenoski, K. (2007). Using Technology with Classroom Instruction that Works. Denver, CO: McRel.

Using Technology to Motivate Student Achievement

As teachers or psychologists we have all heard of behaviorism and remember experiments done by B.F. Skinner (rat presses lever, gets food) or Ivan Pavlov (dog salivates when bell is rung). Almost every teacher I know uses behaviorism in their classroom with their students in order to keep students in control and to behave. Teachers give rewards for students who are behaving appropriately, and punish or give a consequence to those who are not behaving in the appropriate way. How can we use technology as an instructional strategy while incorporating behaviorism? In the book Using Technology with Classroom Instruction that Works (Pitler, Hubbell, Kuhn, & Malenoski, 2007) I have found several strategies that are simple and helpful for students and teachers.

The Reinforcing Effort chapter discusses using software computer programs such as Microsoft Excel to track student effort and achievement. Teachers can show students how to do this and students will see the relationship between their effort and grades. This will in turn, give students confidence because they can visually see themselves grow in a specific content area. Personally I wish I could have done this throughout high school with math in particular because I never felt confident in math, and I began to have a negative outlook on all my math classes and assignments.

Homework; it’s been a topic of controversy with students, parents, and teachers for years; should students have it, how much, and what it should look like. Pitler et al (2007) has a whole chapter dedicated to homework. “Typically students need about 24 practice sessions with a skill in order to achieve 80 percent competency” (As stated in Pitler, et al., p. 188, 2007). This tells us that students do need practice; enter- homework. Teachers and parents can work with students to help them do homework with a few tools described by Pitler et al. (2007). When a student is using a work processor, they can use tools such as research, thesaurus, definition, and auto summary to guide them to a successful paper. Also teachers can expose great educational websites to students where they can practice skills learned for the test on Friday. Some I liked were:

www.starfall.com
www.iknowthat.com
www.flashcardexchange.com
www.brainpop.com
www.bbc.co.uk/skillswise

“Technology is most effective when remediation activities are minimally incorporated” (Laureate Education, 2009). We have all heard the phrase “practice makes perfect”, and in education it does sometimes work that way. Integrating technology into the classroom is something that is not a ‘quick fix’. If students are performing lower than expected sending them to the computer lab for an hour or so to play an educational game or practice a skill will not dramatically raise their performance or test scores. Technology can however be a great tool for students and teachers to use in combination with effective teaching. In conclusion, behaviorism is connected to observing and measuring human behavior. When students put forth the effort in their classwork or homework the outcome is the grade they earned. By using graphing tools or spreadsheets, students can see their effort (hours spent studying/completing) and their outcome (grades/scores).

References:

Laureate Education, Inc. (Executive Producer). (2009). Bridging learning theory, instruction, and technology. Baltimore: Author.

Pitler, H., Hubbell, E., Kuhn, M., & Malenoski, K. (2007). Using technology with classroom instruction that works. Alexandria, VA: ASCD.