Week 5: Teaching With Technology Course Reflection

This final week of the course has not been difficult, but rather time consuming. I did learn some interesting information that I can currently use in my place of work. This week were asked to complete our text readings and view videos as we usually do, but also to reflect on everything we have learned in this course. Below, I will reflect on the text and video that I learned the most from.

Choice Video:

I really enjoyed viewing Big Thinkers: James Paul Gee on Video Games from Edutopia.org. Many of the ideas that James Paul Gee mentioned helped me to understand why both of my children are excelling academically in ways that I never did. He spoke of how he learned to play a video game by trying it out first and then referring back the manual if he had questions. He suggested that this is way that teachers should offer information to students. Use text books as references, not as a sole means of instruction (Edutopia.org, nd). Gee also proposed that “games do not separate learning and assessment” (Edutopia.org, nd). How true! If students are constantly being taught and assessed when the play video games, shouldn’t we ask educators also mimic this type of learning strategy? We no longer have lecture and then and out a written test. Allow their projects, collaboration, explorations and so on, assess their learning.

Choice Text:

The section of reading that I absorbed most this week was from Using Technology with Classroom Instruction that Works. The authors expressed that we as educators should use the instructional strategy of reinforcing effort enhances students’ understanding of the relationship between effort and achievement by addressing their attitudes and beliefs about learning (Pitler, Hubbell, Kuhn & Malenoski, 2007). They also suggested the idea of using spreadsheets to allow students to monitor their own effort and learning. I feel that this type of strategy gives our students a “wake up call” and allows them to be held responsible for their own learning. This is a concept that not only our students can use, but also us as educators. We also need to regular monitor and assess our own efforts as well.

Shawntee’ Cowan

Reference

Edutopia.org. (nd). Big Thinkers: James Paul Gee on grading with games. Retrieved on March 26, 2011 from http://www.edutopia.org/digital-generation-james-gee-video

Pitler, H., Hubbell, E., Kuhn, M., & Malenosksi, K. (2007). Using technology with classroom instruction that works. Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development.