Reflection

At the completion of this course, I have learned a lot and am looking forward to implementing many new ideas in my classroom in the fall. In week one, I described that the learning theory which was closely aligned to my beliefs was the constructivist approach. I can say that I still believe this theory is the closest aligned to my beliefs, but I do feel that the other theories are sprinkled in as well. There is not one theory that I can say fulfills all my beliefs, but a combination of them all is more appropriate.

The cognitive theory of learning is definitely an addition to my personal learning theory. In learning about this theory, I can agree that all of our ideas and learning are linked together and learning new ideas will only “stick” if a connection can be made. In addition, I agree with the visual idea of this approach. Students can learn a lot by making a visual connection with something. If I am doing a presentation, my students will remember the pictures I included more than the text. I need to start taking my picture choice into greater consideration and be sure they support the learning that I am targeting.

This course has provided me with many new ideas and many new tools that I am looking forward to using in my classroom. The first tool that I will incorporate is Edmodo. I plan on exploring this site more over the summer and introduce it to my 8th graders in the fall. I have high hopes for using this in the classroom. I feel that the students will be intrigued by the site since it is very similar to Facebook (something they know all too well) and the minimal learning curve involved in using it. I foresee this being a place to hold out of classroom discussions, post interesting links and homework assignments. I am anxious to see how the students accept this addition and how I can incorporate it into my classroom.

The second tool that I will be using from the beginning of the year will be Voice Thread. This site is incredible; it is just what I have been looking for in the recent years. I truly enjoy how I can include videos (that would be blocked by our firewall, but still school appropriate) and the personal touches that I can make. I am also looking forward to the students using this program to make presentations and comments on Voice Threads of their own. I am going to be purchasing webcams and microphones for the computers in my room so the commenting and production of the Voice Threads will be easier and more seamless.

In the long term, I would like to plan more real-life projects that mirror situations that my students might experience as they get older. I plan to do this through virtual field trips and webquests, along with cooperative groups. I plan to complete a project each quarter so I can focus on 4 big projects a year and not get too overwhelmed by planning them. I will take this summer to identify 4 main topics that will be aligned with the topics for 8th grade math and hopefully identify some appropriate online sites and field trips using resources from this course.

In addition to more real-life projects, I also want to escape from the mundane smartboard lessons that I have been using the past couple of years. I need to focus on making my technology use more exciting and more relevant to the students. I will try to do this with making a change in the classroom activities and homework. I am going to do attempt to do more online work and escape from the paper and pencil that we are used to. The students will need to find some time to use computers on their own, but hopefully that is a hurdle we can overcome.

At the completion of this course, I feel revived with fresh ideas and am looking forward to the fall to implement them!