Week+3+Reflection



__December 6, 2009__

We are now in week 3 of Teaching with Technology and the group project is progressing nicely. Using the GoogleDoc to collaborate with other team members is very useful and all the team members are doing their part.

Two of our assignments this week focused on using the CAST UDL websites for creating interactive and technology-rich lessons using the Universal Design for Learning described in last week's reflection. For one assignment, we were to build a lesson using the Lesson Builder Website, making sure to incorporate activities that address all 3 strategies the brain uses for learning (recognition, affective, and strategic). The template used and examples provided helped guide us through the process. In another assignment, we had to create a 3-page book using Book Builder and reflect on the process on our group website. These activities will be great for our culminating group project and also for creating future lessons in our own subjects as well.

As part of the the videos for this week, we were introduced to Luis and Cameron--two students who come from differing backgrounds who both love and used technology extensively in almost everything they do. Luis is a Hispanic high school student who uses technology ifor everything from helping teach his non-English speaking parents pay the bills to teaching younger students how to create and program their own robots. Cameron is a middle-school Caucasian boy who loves exploring with special effects, creating movies, and even helping his teachers learn about technology. The enthusiasm these two young men have for using and teaching others about all the benefits of today's technology is encouraging to teachers. We know what we need to do to get young people interested and engaged in education--USE MORE TECHNOLOGY!!

Finally, the readings this week focused on various instruments of technology and how they can be applied in all subjects across the curriculum. Some of these instruments include blogging, wikis, email, digital storytelling, and podcasting. The readings from this week also focused on the importance of giving constructive and timely feedback to students using some of the same tools. In addition to some of the given tools, the readings mention the use of clicker systems and grading software to help students receive almost immediate feedback.

We are reminded that technology is a great and essential tool for helping students become engaged and motivated to learn, as long as teachers effectively plan on how it can best be used to ensure student achievement.

Lesson Builder: Introduction to Transformations [] Book Builder: Geometric Transformations []