I'm Still Standing!

Okay, I'm still here. I'm also still a basket case but I did not give in to the persistent recording in my brain that said "drop this course and run." Instead, I took a deep breath and tried to methodically go through every component of the WebCT. This means I have been at my computer practically 24/7 for the past week!

What have I learned? A lot, actually. Of course, I'm starting from a zero knowledge base so the only way to go is up. First of all, I successfully uploaded and submitted my assignments. I had never done anything like this before and I won't tell you how long it took me, but I did it!

Cutewriter--never heard of it but now I'm using it and I like it. This is something I can envision using again, both, personally and in the classroom.

Netiquette-knew nothing, have never chatted online before. Took the quiz before reading the chapter and got only 3 wrong. Took it again, after reading, and scored 100%.

(N)PBL-loved the tutorial. I am an advocate of Piaget's constructivist and Vygotsky's socialculteral learning theories, both of which are evident in PBL. In my capacity as a substitute teacher, I don't see enough evidence of these environments in my school. But, on the occasions I do see it (usually with younger teachers), I see happier, more engaged students. Also, certain tenets of PBL can, and should, be applied in every classroom regardless of the overall environment: students as teachers, teachers as faciltators (ZPD), an atmosphere that tolerates error and change, the understanding that there can be many different ways to arrive at an answer/solution, active learning, and student reflection on what they are doing. Incorporating technology into PBL is critical for teaching the students of today and the future. Technology is an integral part of their lives. They understand it and they like it, hence they respond to it as a learning tool. Teaching these "digital" students will require teachers who can integrate digital learning opportunities into the curriculum. It is this fact that keeps me in this class. I refuse to let my fear of technology prevent me from meeting the needs of my students. It goes against everything I teach them about taking on challenges!

Harnessing the Power of the Web was another valuable site that I will save for my future classroom. The Friendship Through Education organization is a wonderful way to incorporate technology into ELA, social studies, and character education.

Chapter 1-Teachers Discovering Computers (pp): Spent a lot of time here but came away with a lot of new knowledge. The ARCS Motivational Model (Attention, Relevance, Challenge/Confidence, Satisfaction/Success) hit home, again, about why I am in this course. "Even the best designed instructional strategy will fail if students are not motivated to learn". The constructivist theory maintains that children construct intelligence as they explore and manipulate their world. This has never been truer than it is today. Digital students demand (and need) variability, sensory stimuli, and multi media to grab their attention. They also need relevance--authentic, real life connections to what they are learning. We all know this, and most of us believe it, at least in theory. However, actually doing it seems to be another story. "It's hard work, time is limited, we only have 2 computers per classroom, we're busy "teaching to the test", I don't know enough technology"... From my observations as a substitute, all of these are true. But, I have seen some teachers following the ARCS model, in some capacity, in their classrooms--and it works! I think teachers have to start small with this, create their own (N)PBL environment for an activity/lesson and grow it from there. Also keep in mind that variability and sensory stimuli can come from many sources-not just the computer. I like to think of ways that students can hear, see, and touch the information being taught in as many ways as possible-sometimes this includes multi media and sometimes not. The key is variability! The Relevance, Challenge/Confidence, and Satisfaction/Success components of the ARCS model are key to learning success and, in my opinion, basic common sense. If anyone teaching does not practice these tenets in their classroom, they should not be teaching---end of story.
I took numerous quizzes on the WebCT this week and did remarkably well. But here's the biggie-on Who Wants to Be a Computer Genius I scored 15 out of 15 using only one life line! Me, the computer idiot. Am I now allowed to call myself the computer genius??? I also scored 100% on labeling the figures and, though no answers were provided, I feel I did very well on the T/F, Multiple Choice and Fill In tests at the end of the Teachers Discovering Computers PP.
My group's first meeting also went well. We accomplished all our objectives and it was much easier to chat on line that I expected it would be.

Until next time...