In the most recent NABE Journal of Research and Practice, Katherine O'Donnell Christoffersen points out the steady increase of immersion schools in the United States but there aren’t as many studies that focus on dual immersion schools. Some studies focus on language transfer, literacy practices, and other aspects of dual immersion, but few studies focus on the application of technology. With my driving question, what impact can student created media lessons have on student engagement in the classroom? I intend to explore the connection between the use of technology and its effect on engagement and academic improvement in a bilingual setting. I have been able to gain insight from different studies done at different levels, some at elementary schools, high schools, and also college. All of these have given different perspective on different internet or technology tools that I can borrow from. Youtube is a tool used in one of the studies I have reviewed. In Volume 6 of the Journal of College Teaching & Learning, Barbara Fralinger and Russell Owens expand on research focused on the effectiveness of digital video editing. This was a college level study but it models the use of technology by students creating tutorials on material learned in class. This type on implementation may allow for greater engagement and provide students with technology skills. In that study, most students responded positively after being asked if they had expanded their technology skills. Other studies explore the effects of virtual exchanges, allowing for students to connect with others while practicing skills necessary for the 21st century. In her study, Theresa Schenker explored the effects of participation on a 12-week electronic exchange between a high school class in Germany and a college class in the United States. Students showed high interest before and after the study. In my study, I hope to apply part of both of these studies and also look at engagement and academic impact.
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Many different thoughts resonate after watching the content videos and continuing to read from The Flat World and Education. These resources either inspired or made me question why things are like they are in our educational system. All the problems and needs presented are aspects that relate to my daily life as a teacher, but they also allow me to reflect on what I can do in my classroom and at my school. What must my school and I include in the classroom to prepare our students for the future? As I read Hammond’s view of the educational system in Finland, South Korea, and Singapore, I highlighted different key elements that stood out to me. One important detail needed for success is teacher preparation. In order to prepare students for the future we need to have prepared and qualified teachers in the classroom. That becomes a problem in our country when access to higher education is so difficult compared to these countries that see the value in providing access and support for teachers. We have a scarcity of teachers and a mentality towards them that is very different compared to these successful models. Unlike our country, these countries are investing in their educators, supporting them, and giving them the value they deserve. As a teacher, reading this reminds me of the responsibility I have to continue my learning and growth in order to support my students. Along with preparing myself as a teacher, there are other factors that are still a problem if I’m trying to help students. Proper funding for schools, the way we assess our students’ learning, and how we teach our students so they can learn, are other aspects that need to be considered. This brings me to the last part of my reflection. The way I see it, students are creators and innovators, but we need to provide the opportunities for that to take place in the classroom. In order to prepare my students for the future I need to give students the opportunities to explore, make mistakes, and learn by creating. My role is to facilitate student learning, but if becomes complicated when the model in place is not in unison with all the necessary areas for success. Technology in the Classroom: A look at how technology is implemented and used to motivate students and help them create and learn valuable skills. The nature of this case is to show how the resources we already have can be used to support students in the classroom. It’s not necessarily something new, but a way to make learning meaningful in different ways. In these videos we can observe how students are engaged in the creation of authentic work that is shared with others. In these examples, we know students are learning because they are focused and engaged in a process that helps them learn skills that will allow them to create a final product. They are producing and teaching what they learn. In the case of the video production class, students are learning how to shoot, edit, research, and write. All of these are skills that will serve them well in the future. This process is empowering and motivating students. It allows them see what they’re learning in other classes in a different way. The teacher is providing students the opportunity to share what they create; he looks for ways in which students can use their talents and bring them outside of school. The teacher has high expectations and gives all students jobs so that they can learn all skills. Compared to traditional learning, this is a model where students are learning at a different pace. Students are exploring through a process that doesn’t limit their learning with a time constraint. I would love to do something like this in my classroom, or at least try it out starting small and build up from there. As we can see in the video, it takes time to start and gather the resources needed but it also motivates teachers to use the tools that are already available to them. An Introduction to Technology Integration https://www.edutopia.org/technology-integration-introduction-video Building Career Skills in Video Production Class (Tech2Learn Series) https://www.edutopia.org/tech-to-learn-career-skills-production-video My driving question is still in progress but reviewing the IRB has brought up many other questions that are helping me narrow my thinking. My initial thoughts for my DQ were based on student engagement and finding those interests and different factors that allow students to be motivated to learn. Since our last session and sharing about our passions, I have narrowed the list down to three questions that are related to engaging students, pulling from their interests, and also empowering them as learners and owning their learning through responsibility and high expectations.
I am trying to merge the following questions and come up with one that will encompass the idea of what my plan is when working with students. Driving Questions:
After doing some research on cross-cultural and language exchange activities in the classroom and their effect on motivation, I thought it would be exciting to look more into other approaches I could implement with my students. My Goal My goal is to give students the opportunity to create short informative videos that can be used as teaching resources by other English and Spanish teachers in other countries. I hope that this will be a tool that will motivate students to learn and engage in the classroom by being able to experience teaching others across the globe. I hope to see the effects on engagement by giving students this responsibility through a creating process that they will share on a scheduled basis. I won't go into too much detail about the implementation process right now but I already have the contacts, resources, and plan on how I would be sharing with students for creating the lessons. A rubric and structure of the videos would also be given and modeled to students. What do I need to know and how will I measure my need to knows I have many need to knows about implementing this with 32 students in the classroom. I would like to know the ideal number of students I should have in the study. Could I have a focus group of students to observe? What should I use to measure engagement in the classroom? Knowing my students' needs, do I measure outcomes based on previous engagement evaluations of students or initial observations in a specific area from beginning of the year? I have many questions and I want to continue looking into this topic; I appreciate any thoughts or questions you may have. |
Jose G. CerdaArchives
May 2018
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