Motivation and New Technologies

My school was the first school in the county to have 21st Century technology. Most of the staff embraced the equipment however there were a few who refused to use it for anything more than a “movie theater.” This equipment is capable of so much more. Each room was equipped with projector with large screen, Interwrite Pad, and PRS clickers. The few teachers that felt like it was too much trouble to learn to use the equipment to the fullest were very close to retirement. I guess they felt that learning would be a waste of time since they only had two years left of teaching. They would not attend the workshops given to teach us how to use the equipment in the most effective ways. These teachers also would only talk about streaming video off internet and how it was nice to be able to play a video when they needed to “take a break.”
I could attempt to change their attitudes using Keller’s ARCS model in the following way.

Attention – By building on these teachers belief that this new equipment is just a glorified DVD player, provide them with educational videos that have lessons that correlate. This would get their attention because the lessons are provided and they would not have to create them on their own. They would be using the technology more effectively than just popping in a random video or the over used “Magic School Bus” video series.

Relevance- With the new evaluation instrument beginning to be implemented, teachers are expected to use the technology they have access to in an effective manner. No teacher wants to have a poor evaluation. Further more retiring teachers do not want to leave the profession that they have spent a life time in ending on a sour note which makes using the technology relevant to their goal—to be successful in what they do.

Confidence – To build confidence in these older educators in their use of technology, the instructor needs to start small and simple. The first use of technology in the classroom needs to be very specific. One example could be to have the teachers create a template in Power Point to use for morning work. They would be able to make daily changes without having start from scratch. They could also save the daily slides to print for students who have been absent. When they become confident in this technology, have them build on it by having them create a review PPT for an upcoming test. I would chose Power Point because it is simple to use and easy to build upon.

Satisfaction – I believe that when these teachers see the students’ enjoyment and success while using new technologies they will become satisfied with what they have done and will continue using new skills for the remainder of their educational career. I believe that Keller’s quote “A final and important point is that people do not look at rewards in isolation” is a perfect explanation of educational satisfaction. (Driscoll, 2005) No one activity in education will make or break a child’s success. However if effective, useful strategies are used collectively they will provide the practice and content to enable students to become successful. When educators see students succeed, especially struggling ones, they will then have satisfaction in their new skills.

Motivating Teachers for Excellence - http://www.ericdigests.org/pre-921/motivating.htm

The Effects of Student Centered, Technology Based Instruction on the Intrinsic Motivation of Secondary Students - http://pdfcast.org/pdf/the-effects-of-student-centered-technology-based-instruction-on-the-intrinsic-motivation-of-secondary-students

Motivation Matters Blog - http://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/motivation/2006/09/burnedout_teachers.html

Student Motivation -
http://www.scottgreenberg.com/student-motivation-teach-to-the-heart-as-well-as-the-brain

Module 4 Blog Assignment

The many networks that I am a member of have dramatically changed the way I learn. In my personal life, email and cell phones with texting have provided me with a quite way to communicate with friends and family. I have only recently began texting and using smart phone technology. Most recently the smart phone has allowed me the ability to check all of my personal/professional/educational communication tools. I can now stay in touch with all facets of my life. Educationally, the newly acquired knowledge of the use of wikis, blogs, GoogleDocs, and most recently Skype allow me to learn in many ways and from many different people. I have thoroughly enjoyed learning how to use these new and have gained knowledge that I would have never gained otherwise. Professionally, my colleagues and I make use of a Public Network Drive where we upload lesson plans, worksheets, activities, assessments, power points, ect… so that we can share our resources. Last year, the county began using Moodle so that educators from all the sites can submit resources to share with the entire county. Of course, email is the main source of communication between educators. Some teachers have blogs on their class website to communicate with parents and students.


My favorite tools that I use to facilitate learning are wikis and blogs. These two technologies allow for learners to collaborate on a given topic so to learn from one another. In the online environment, it is vital that learners have a place to “bounce” ideas off of one another. These are wonderful places to do just that. Blogs allow for students to post their thoughts and for others to comment to agree or to post their reason for disagreement. Both responses have value in learning.


When I need to learn new knowledge I go straight to the internet. As a matter of fact I did just that tonight. In class today we used pumpkins and their seeds to practice estimation, skip counting, and multiplication by 10. I wanted to roast the seeds to have as a snack tomorrow for the students. I have never eaten a roasted pumpkin seeds let alone roasted them. I immediately went to the Internet. Though this was not for traditional educational purposes, was for personal learning. I would do the same to learn about any new concept or content.

Howard Rheingold on collaboration | Video on TED.com

When thinking about if humans have an innate desire to "interact and work as a group" I have to say that I do agree with Rheingold with this statement. ( ) I have seen this in my children when playing with building toys or working with puzzles. They called on their siblings when working alone they could not figure out the correct configuration for what they are building or if the puzzle is giving them difficulty. I think that as adults we still work in this way. Individuals will likely work alone until they are unable to solve the problem on their own or if they feel that the task is too large for one to solve in the most effective way.

As a teacher, I tend to work alone on things that come easy to me, when my confidence is high. However when asked to complete a task that I have never completed I prefer to collaborate with others to complete the task or solve a problem. It is now socially acceptable for colleagues to work together, even encouraged. This is when the old saying is so true, "Two heads are better than one." this is evident in the case of Wikipedia where the collaborative knowledge is building the most up to date source of information. However, it is up to the user of Wikipedia to research further to make sure that the information being read on Wikipedia is not opinion but that it is fact.

Technology can facilitate collaboration using constructivist principles in many ways. Collaboration fits well with the idea that learning is gained through authentic experiences. Learners in different locations can be grouped (as we are Walden classes) through collaborative tools like Skpe and chat rooms to solve problems or to create projects taking advantage of all the members' knowledge.

I have found that the collaboration aspect of online learning also makes me more willing to interact with class discussions. In a traditional setting I was typically one of those students who only spoke when called on. I did not like to be put on the spot and everyone looking at me until I answered. However in the virtual learning world, I am able to think about my answers and am able to articulate my answers in a more accurate way. I believe that wait time for responses is an underlying principle of constructivism. Learning and understanding is not often quick and easy. It takes time and technology allows learner the time needed to process information and draw conclusions about what is being learned.


http://online.sfsu.edu/~foreman/itec800/finalprojects/eitankaplan/pages/principles.htm


Howard Rheingold on collaboration | Video on TED.com

Module 2 Blog Assignment

Module 2 Blog Assignment

After reading the blog entitled “_isms as a filter, not a blinker” I realized that what I was trying to articulate was true. No one theory can truly be used in isolation. One theory blends into another seamlessly at times. Stephen Downes was bold enough to say that behaviorism was “abandoned everywhere…” With that statement he suggests that behaviorism has no place in learning. As any educator of young students would know this couldn’t be farther from the truth. I think that sometimes theorists get so involved in their own projects and theories that they can not see the value of others’ work.

Education is not an inanimate object, but a living, breathing, evolving creature. It must change with the times that it is part of. My personal definition of education in its simplest form is teaching content and skills that are necessary for a successful life. Basic skills of the Industrial Age are still necessary but employers are looking for students who can do more that just read and write, that is presumed without stating. Today they are looking for employees that can think, plan, and solve problems that arise on a daily basis. It is necessary to instruct learners of basic procedures for solving problems but they must use their experiences, intuition, rational, and at times plain common sense to solve the most complex of problems. This is only compounded when they are required to collaborate with others to solve a common problem.

In conclusion, I tend to agree with Bill Kerr, “each _ism is offering something useful without any of them being complete or stand alone in their own right.”

http://billkerr2.blogspot.com/2007/01/isms-as-filter-not-blinker.html

http://karlkapp.blogspot.com/2007/01/out-and-about-discussion-on-educational.html

Module 1 Blog Assignment

1.What are your beliefs about how people learn best?

I do not believe that all instructional strategies are created equal or will work for all learners. Also I do not believe that what works best for a learner in language will also work in math. Learning is an individual task and each students' needs needs to be taken into account when an instructor is working on plans. On the flip side of that I also believe that students should be challenged to work outside of their comfort zone, being taught in various ways so that they learn to adapt to different situations. I believe this because when students enter the work force their employer will not ask them how they want to do the job they will be told how to do it. If we do not give students the opportunity to learn-perform with the method that they are not the most comfortable with, they will not have the skills to be the best employee possible. I try to instruct with the end in mind. "How is this activity, strategy, technique going to prepare my students t be the best thy can be?"


What is the purpose of learning theory in educational technology?

I believe that the purpose of learning theory in educational technology is necessary to provide a foundation and framework to instruct within. This is especially necessary since educational technology is finally creeping into mainstream education. As with anything new in education there must the research and data to backup the effectiveness of a new way of doing things. Just because someone thinks it is a good idea does not mean that it is. Learning theory provides the research and data to support why a change is needed and the possible benefits making said changes.

Below are a few sites that are great reads for trying to undestand what a learning theory is and why we need them.

http://www.infed.org/biblio/b-learn.htm

http://www.professorlindakennedy.com/PowerPoint%20Presentations/Learningtheory.ppt