SHOWCASE
As I began to look through what I have created in the Master of Arts in Educational Technology (MAET) program, I noticed two common themes: active participation in learning and student engagement. Even my earliest examples of work include glimpses of using technology to increase student engagement and ultimately a greater understanding of academic content. As I progressed through the program, I was able to discover the aspects of educational technology that support student learning. I was also able to identify obstacles that hinder my ability to provide this support to students.
Below you will find examples of my work with educational technology with an emphasis on student engagement in the classroom.
Below you will find examples of my work with educational technology with an emphasis on student engagement in the classroom.
Student Centered Technology
In this lesson, I infused the use of technology to both strengthen comprehension of a literary text and increase student collaboration. Second grade students were asked to read a text from the Reading Street curriculum and then use Google Slides to practice retelling the story as a group. Normally, the curriculum would have students simply write the retelling in their journals. I chose to integrate technology into the lesson to increase the students' engagement with the text.
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This lesson is meant to be used after students have demonstrated proficiency with the technology in the 21st Century Lesson Plan. In the Reading Street curriculum, second graders are required to read a story each week and retell it using six transition words. This lesson adds a new component to the retelling - students must use the MakeyMakey to progress their presentation on Google Slides. In this lesson, students are actively involved in the retelling, but must also successfully work together in order to add the MakeyMakey portion of the lesson.
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Once I discovered the value of incorporating technology in the classroom, I was able to find ways to more effectively use it to support student learning. This learning management system includes instruction, practice, and assessment for the mathematical concept of order of operations. This style of learning is student centered, as students can work at their own pace until they have mastered the material.
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Student Engagement
This vision statement describes what I believe education should look like. Ultimately, I believe that students should be active participants in their learning to fully engage with the content and improve understanding. In this vision statement, I discuss how technology can be used to accomplish improved student engagement through technology-based formative assessments, project based learning, and the Maker Movement.
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With student engagement still being a primary focus, this white paper outlines a research plan to determine technology's impact on engagement and academic success. Researching the topics of intrinsic motivation and meaningful learning were the largest contributors toward my own methodology and plan for research.
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This video that I created explains the passion quotient (PQ) and curiosity quotient (CQ). If these two things are as important as the intelligence quotient (IQ) in the classroom, how can we instill this passion and curiosity in students? This video provides examples on how to use PQ and CQ to increase student engagement in the classroom.
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Identifying Obstacles in Education
In my own school, I distributed a technology survey to better understand how educators were utilizing technology in their professional practice. In this analysis, I identify that all respondents felt that technology integration was important in the classroom. I also identify specific obstacles for educators that prevent them from utilizing technology in the classroom more often and more effectively.
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This collaborative paper focuses on the idea of failure and how current models of education do not allow for failure to be a necessary component of the learning process. We discuss how the use of a standards based grading scale enable students to focus on their growth. The use of technology, such as a learning management system, allows students to learn at their own pace. Therefore, students are experiencing failure in a safe environment with multiple opportunities to try again until they experience success.
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Image Sources:
Pearl and Wagner Image: http://goo.gl/R5vH1L
Bad Dog Dodger Image: https://goo.gl/s4VdPZ
Vision Statement Image: https://goo.gl/f8kP2E
Research in Action Image: https://goo.gl/Y6Znju
Wicked Problem of Practice Image: https://goo.gl/XTLeQi
Pearl and Wagner Image: http://goo.gl/R5vH1L
Bad Dog Dodger Image: https://goo.gl/s4VdPZ
Vision Statement Image: https://goo.gl/f8kP2E
Research in Action Image: https://goo.gl/Y6Znju
Wicked Problem of Practice Image: https://goo.gl/XTLeQi