OK. So as the PD challenge at my school is coming a close, I must take a moment to reflect on the new things I have learned and tried. There are two areas that I have found myself growing and wanting to continue my own personal growth. 1) Peer observations and being transparent in practice. 2) Technology in the classroom.
Peer Observations
I failed to get into every teacher’s classroom in my department. That is more due to the fact that some unforeseen circumstances popped up which consumed the time I had available to complete these.
However, the simplicity of observing other teachers has created a different culture and environment in my department. We now talk about strategies. We highlight each other’s successes. It has become routine to highlight the strategies we are trying and using in our classrooms. People who were once silent are no longer silent about their practice. Honestly, it is the greatest thing ever. The challenge I have for myself personally is to pick this idea back up in the fall. I hope that this momentum carries through.
This process has allowed us to be more transparent in our practice. We’ve also had some other events in our department that have illustrated the need to be transparent in our practice. We can grow by being vulnerable. We can also be each other’s support systems in the cases of the unexpected if we’re familiar with their practice.
Therefore, I think it is essential, not only for teacher growth in practice but in support of one another to be familiar with each other’s practices. We should be able to have a familiarity with our colleague’s styles and fundamental beliefs as teachers. It builds the idea of peer to peer support amongst colleagues…. and peer to peer support is the strongest support for growth.
To Tech or Not to Tech?
OK— So this whole issue is a can of worms. Technology has been a push in education as long as technology has been a thing in education. There’s a push for STEM…. T=Technology. There’s a push for technology literacy. There’s a push for students to know how to use technology as a tool. There’s a push for “paperless” classrooms.
I have a love-hate relationship with technology in the classroom. I believe there is a place and a purpose. However, I think that purpose is not clearly defined. I have played around with tech tools during this challenge that I both love and others that seem awesome on the surface but need some refining to be powerful.
First – Edulastic —- I personally like Edulastic as a way to collect data. It’s awesome for right or wrong answers. It’s great for efficient grading. However, what I found with this platform is that I missed seeing student work. I had no way of truly identifying student misconceptions. I also found, student scores tanked for my assessments when I started giving them electronically. Could it be that students weren’t completing their work? Does the technology encourage students to do complicated math in their head? I don’t know. Could there be a time and a place for Edulastic? Yes. Do I know what that is for me yet? No. Perhaps I use it for summatives? Perhaps I need to unlock the features of the paid version? Perhaps I need to use it for shorter assessments so that I can actually pay attention to student responses? Using edulastic as a formative assessment isn’t working for me. I can’t identify the misconceptions as easily as I can with good old fashioned paper and pencil. Students don’t have a way to show their work.
Second – EdPuzzle —- I love the idea of EdPuzzle. I love that I can imbed formative checks in EdPuzzle to encourage students to better pay attention. I can see myself using EdPuzzle to flip some units next year. The first hurdle will need to be setting up the expectation that students will use EdPuzzle as a homework platform rather than a classwork platform. I also would need to set up “notes” as a secondary support for this. I think I can do some stuff with EdPuzzle because it seems an enhancement of what I’m doing already rather than a replacement for something.
Third – FlipGrid —- OK. I kind of really really love this platform. I don’t know how to use it effectively yet. However, one area of growth that has been in the back of my mind all year is around homework. I have mixed feelings about homework. There seems to be this conflict in the world of math around practice. The idea of ‘drill and kill’ to become proficient. Yet, there is also a find balance of proficiency with skills and understanding of the skills we teach. I’ve also been toying around with the idea of “a choice grid”. I’m thinking I need to think outside the box for homework and flip grid is there. I recently assigned a task where students had to explain their thinking and their questions using a flip grid video. I think this would be a good way to mix up homework from the traditional practice practice practice of procedures and skills.
I think technology should be used as an enhancement and not a replacement. It is easy to be wowed by the latest and greatest. Therefore, moving forward in my own practice, I need to set up my own requirements for technology. I need to answer the following questions before moving forward:
- What is my intent for using that particular technology? Is it to make my life easier or to encourage student learning?
- Is the technology going to replace something I do or enhance something I do? In what ways?
- In what ways will this particular technology tool enhance learning? What outcome am I expecting out of it? What would i need to do to guarantee that this is the case?
Summary:
Like I said. I have a love-hate relationship with technology. Perhaps it is because I was raised in an era where education was very traditional and technology was not prevalent. Cell phones were not in the hands of every student and laptops were a novelty that college students needed as a requirement for their classes/homework. Now, technology has saturated every aspect of our lives and I’m not sold that is a good thing. I believe there is a time and a place. I’m still learning which are the appropriate times and places. … and platforms.
Ormberg Teaching 