Annotated Bibliography #3 - Integrating Technology: More Than Just Having Computers

Citation
Starr, L. (2011, June 12). Integrating technology in the classroom: it takes more than just having computers. Retrieved from http://www.educationworld.com/a_tech/tech/tech146.shtml

Summary
     This article begins by stating the importance of integrating technology as part of your core curriculum instead of just an occasional add-in or project. It recognizes the difficulties this can produce for teachers who lack experience. The article gives nineteen steps and almost fifty websites to help teachers integrate technology easily into daily classroom routines, such as weather forecasts, online math problems, weekly science experiments, and logic games.

Critical Response
     I began reading this article with enthusiasm as it seemed to provide so many resources and neat activity ideas for students. Some of the activities did seem really interesting and fitting for my students. For example, the weather forecast might be a fun thing to include to predict the weather at recess time and graph to check for accuracy.  Other ideas seemed like great resources for myself, like the Steve Spangler science newsletter. Our science curriculum is not very hands-on and I am always looking for related resources that are active and student-centered.  Many other links were for upper elementary, middle, and even high school students which are too advanced for my second grade classroom, but might be worthwhile for another teacher.
     However, a few of the links did not work, like the reading comprehension and fluency link. I also had a difficult time understanding how some of these activities fully integrate technology effectively. The logic games would be a fun game for students to play who finish early or if we have a few extra minutes after a lesson, but I fail to see how it would enhance the actual teaching and learning of a lesson. I fear that, if these were the only ideas a teacher incorporated in their classroom, there would still be a large gap between fully integrating learning and technology in a best practice manner.

Digital Natives & Digital Immigrants

         When I read Prensky’s idea of digital natives and digital immigrants, I initially thought “of course, this all makes complete sense”! The examples of digital immigrants as people who print emails and bring people to computers to see a neat website resonated with me (Prensky, 2001). A fellow young teacher and I were laughing in the workroom just this week as another email from a teacher who has taught for over thirty years was printing out. We both mentioned how we would never even consider doing this and did not understand why they do it at all. As digital natives, or people who grew up with television, computers, internet, and cell phones, we did not understand the principles or thoughts behind a tool we would never use in this manner because we grew up making folders and storing important messages in our inbox.

As I continued to read Prensky’s article and began reading articles by other authors on the subject, I began to see flaws in Prensky’s writing, specifically his terminology and chosen analogies. For example, I agree that there is a generational gap caused by the rapid increase in technology that does fit the majority of people who then fall into the two categories of either digital native (someone born into something) or  digital immigrant (someone who may learn customs and language, but will never be born into that something). However, as Bayne and Ross note, natives and immigrants have a very real negative tone that rings close to home in a world struggling with many immigration issues. I agree that these assumptions need to be considered to prevent us from becoming fixed in any negative thought patterns (Bayne and Ross, 2007).

When I consider digital natives and digital immigrants, I prefer to see it as a spectrum where an individual may fall at any certain spot. Taking myself as an example, I was born into a world with multiple modes of technology, but my household did not have a computer or a video game system. We rarely watched television as my mother did not like the noise all day long. I did not own a computer or cell phone until my college years. Until then, my access was very limited to school, library, and the homes of friends. Therefore, I spent much of my time doing outdoor physical activities, playing imaginative indoor games, or reading which does not fit Prensky’s view as a digital native. However, my cell phone and laptop are now vital tools in my everyday life. As my earlier comment states, I find many of the practices of classic digital immigrants unnecessary. I do not consider myself as a fit for either one position, but closer to digital native on a spectrum between the two categories.

This falls in line with what VanSlyke says about another flaw in Prensky’s beliefs. He states that several questions need to be considered before classifying an individual as a native or an immigrant of technology besides birth year, including the extent of exposure to technology (VanSlyke, 2003). I do not think classifying a human being is as easy as picking a year of birth.

I do agree with Prensky on the notion that we must consider that our students today are different from those in the past. After noting that students may be more or less native depending on their exposure and other considerations, a difference amongst the majority of our student population cannot be denied. As he states in ­Do They Really Think Differently,, students today do seem to “crave interactivity – an immediate response to their each and every action” (Prensky, 2001).

As teachers, we must consider the idea that their brains may be altered due to their experiences and change our teaching accordingly. However, as VanSlyke suggests, I feel the best outcome might occur as a cultural assimilation, or a mutual process of combining two cultures. In my classroom, I have met the challenges of teaching digital natives by incorporating learning based games on our computers as Prensky suggests. I have also used visuals to introduce and teach key terms and ideas. My classroom is largely structured around fast-paced mini-lessons and quick small group activities. However, I continue to encourage my students to read books and build their reading stamina inside and outside of school hours. I continue to include activities of reflection, communication, and discussion with modeling and practice. I truly believe a balance between these two worlds can work best in the education of children in this new generation.

 

Works Cited
Bayne, S., & Ross, J. (2007, December). The 'digital native' and 'digital immigrant': a dangerous opposition. Retrieved from http://www.malts.ed.ac.uk/staff/sian/natives_final.pdf
Prensky, M. (2001, October). Digital natives, digital immigrants. Retrieved from http://www.marcprensky.com/writing/Prensky%20-%20Digital%20Natives,%20Digital%20Immigrants%20-%20Part1.pdf

Prensky, M. (2001, December). Do they really think differently?. Retrieved from http://www.marcprensky.com/writing/Prensky%20-%20Digital%20Natives,%20Digital%20Immigrants%20-%20Part2.pdf

VanSlyke, T. (2003, May/June). Digital native, digital immigrants: some thoughts from the generation gap. Retrieved from http://depd.wisc.edu/html/TSarticles/Digital%20Natives.htm

Annotated Bibliography #2 - Literacy Instruction with Digital & Media Technologies

Citation 

Barone, D. & Wright, T. E. (2008 , December). Literacy instruction with digital and media technologies. Reading Rockets, Retrieved from http://www.readingrockets.org/article/29126/

Summary

     This article describes how Todd Wright, a fourth-grade teacher from Fernley Elementary School in Nevada, incorporates technology and new literacies into his daily literacy instruction through the eyes of one of his students. The article provides a brief background on what new literacies are and what teachers need to consider before bringing them into their classrooms. Readers are also provided with an inside look on how Wright and his principal were able to help bring digital and media technology into other classrooms in the school as well through professional support and preparation.

Critical Response

     I enjoyed this article as it gave me a clearer picture of what bringing new literacies into a classroom might look like. I enjoyed reading about what the teacher would do as well as what the student would experience during a lesson. The article provided clear points to ponder before you begin incorporating these types of technology into your classroom, such as how will you provide the resources and support. I liked how Wright and his principal provided many items through grants and Apple. This is something I will definitely be looking into in the future since my school does not have much money to spend on technology. The idea of a one-to-one classroom sounds like an unreachable goal for our small school! I was also intrigued by the fear of how students would perform on traditional assessments. I have heard this argument before, but with many tests, like the ISTEP+, becoming an online assessment, this argument seems mute and the case for the need to teach new literacies even more valid. The only question I have is how does Wright and other teachers trying to implement these types of activities within their classrooms ensure that all students are messaging and staying on topic and not just passing virtual notes that are distracting them from the lesson. I wonder if this is a behavior problem that would need to be dealt with.

Evolution of Literacy

After reading multiple articles on new literacies, I feel my eyes have been opened to a world that has existed around me for a large portion of my life yet I was unaware that I should be considering its existence. My perceptions of literacy have dramatically broadened.

            While none of the articles had an exact definition of what new literacies meant, they discussed new literacies as all of the new ways in which texts are incorporated into our lives outside of common printed text and the skills and strategies needed to comprehend and successfully use this new information. New literacies may involve television, Internet, video game technologies, search engines, web pages, etc. However, these new literacies change as new technologies are designed, improved, and implemented in society. Therefore, a more precise definition would change often too.

            These literacies are considered new because reading has changed dramatically throughout history. I had never before put thought into the idea that printed material dominated our culture for hundreds of years and was even a large part of the foundation of our country. Then, with the emergence of television and the Internet, culture shifted due to the availability of instant information. This idea was fascinating to me especially as I began to make a log of my reading and writing practices.

            I have always considered myself a reader. I love to read as often as I can. Prior to reading these articles, I thought of ‘reading’ as reading books, magazines, and newspapers (printed materials). When I read the articles and began to keep a log of all the things I read and write in a day, I realized my view of reading and writing was incredibly small and the actual amount of reading and writing that I did was tremendous. In one day alone, I read three children’s books to my class, an article in an educational journal, several emails from parents and colleagues which I then responded to, a couple webpages with lesson plan ideas and grants for schools, data reports for my students, the writing and work my students produced in class that day, directions for an online math game we were playing as a class, several text messages which I responded to, billboards and signs during my drive home, a newspaper, my mail, TV commercials, even more emails, instant messages, and statuses from family and friends which I again responded to, a couple blogs I stay current on, directions to put together a grill, and my nightly devotional.  Wow! Information is truly at our fingertips! I was not surprised then when I read the statistic that the amount of time people spend reading has almost tripled since 1980. How could it not with the prevalence of text messaging and Internet on cell phones we carry with us wherever we go?

            As a teacher, I have always felt that the ability to read and write fluently was important for my students to have in order to achieve their goals and become productive members of our society. I now realize that this is even more important than I ever recognized. Students will not be able to function efficiently in our society if they cannot read and comprehend text, think about it critically, and respond to use that information appropriately and with relative ease.

            In truth, I had never heard of the No Child Left Behind mandate that every student be technology literate by eighth grade or even that every state has technology standards. This especially stuck out to me when I read that often economically challenged districts, like the one I teach in, do not worry about technology or the new literacies since test scores are our focus and accountability to the state. This makes me sad for my students who are missing out on opportunities that children from wealthier districts are receiving. This fact, in addition to the importance and prevalence of new literacy my literacy log brought to my attention, motivates me to be more intentional in incorporating technology and lessons on comprehending, analyzing, and responding to new literacies into my classroom lessons. However, I will need to research and really think about effective ways to do this with the lack of technology in our school.

            Many of the articles I read focused attention on the importance of new literacies in upper grades, especially middle school. I enjoyed the article by Rachel Karchmer because it focused in on elementary teachers and how the Internet influences their instruction. One idea I will use from this article is publishing student writing on our classroom website. In the past, my students have typed their writing and used clip art to help illustrate the text, but I had not considered publishing it on the website as a way to broaden their audience and allow other family members and friends to read it outside of our classroom and their home. I look forward to finding and creating even more ways for my students to become more comfortable with online reading, writing, and responding.

Annotated Bibliography #1 - Using E-storybooks

Citation

    Moody, A. (2010). Using electronic books in the classroom to enhance emergent literacy skills in young children. Journal of Literacy and Technology, 11(4), 22-52. Retrieved from http://www.literacyandtechnology.org/volume_11_4/JLT_V11_4_2_Moody.pdf

Summary

The article Using Electronic Books in the Classroom to Enhance Emergent Literacy Skills in Young Children examines research on the use of e-storybooks with young emergent readers and offers a list of items teachers should consider before implementing e-storybooks in the classroom. The article examines various research done on students ranging from preschool to third grade. Findings show that e-storybooks can be most beneficial when used with emergent readers from lower socio-economic status and second language learners. Moody sites the benefits of using e-storybooks with students as increased independent reading engagement, encouraged repeated readings, and the ability to scaffold and differentiate through help features like word pronunciation, read-aloud options, and decoding.. Evidence suggested that to maximize the benefits for students, teachers should first: check for developmentally appropriate leveled books, target specific skills (like vocabulary development, plot comprehension, etc.), pair e-storybooks with adult instruction time, apply clear rules and models for use, and watch out for non-supportive features, such as unnecessary animations and games. To ensure best practice, teachers should only use e-storybooks in addition to traditional print books within the classroom. The article also suggested the need for additional long-term studies of this trend to ensure accurate results.

Critical Response

 This article caught my attention due to the large number of emergent readers I have in my classroom this year as well as a wide range of reading levels. I am looking for effective activities for my students to be engaged in while I am working with my guided reading and strategy small groups. I was intrigued to see what research showed about the benefits and considerations of using electronic storybooks in the classroom instead of books on CD. While some of the findings just reiterated my current beliefs, other results did give me good reminders and new ideas to implement. I am now more aware of the pitfalls of non-supportive features, like animations, and will be more conscientious about  previewing electronic books for those. I am also interested in incorporating more adult instruction with the electronic book instead of a making that a completely independent station. I was reminded of how beneficial the decoding help, character voices, and definitions can be to emergent readers. I would be interested in further research specifically targeted at special needs students or students with attention struggles.

Teaching Areas & Interests

Current Teaching Area: 2nd Grade General Education Classroom including:

• 6 above grade level readers, 3 on-level readers, and 13 below/far-below level

• 5 students with IEPs in the areas of Autism, Attention Deficit Disorder, Emotional Disability, Specific Learning Disabilities, and Speech.

Teaching Interests

-Best Practices in Reading, Writing, & Math

-Incorporating Technology Effectively

-Differentiating for Students of Various Learning Levels & Needs

-Increasing Student Engagement, Independence, and Higher Level Thinking