Category/subcategory: Formal session/ Model Classroom

General Information

Session Title: From Integrate? to InteGREAT!

Session Description: Do you train teachers? Quick and Easy technology integration lessons using multiple tools - best practice, hands-on strategies that translate directly to the classroom.  

Theme and Strand: Professional Learning - Professional Development

Keywords: Technology Coach, professional development,

Primary URL:

Audience Type: Staff Developers, Teacher Educators, Technology Integration Specialists, Teachers

Audience Level:

Audience Skill: Beginner

NETS: T-2, 5;

Strategic Objectives: Advance the art and science of teaching through research, development, professional learning offerings etc.

Proposal Summary

Purpose and Objectives:

This session demonstrates to teacher leaders how they can expand the idea of technology integration in their school buildings. Research tells us that the new breed of teacher (digital natives) are coming to us knowing how to use software applications and peripheral tools (MP-3 players) for personal productivity and recreation but do not know how to integrate the technology into daily instruction. Many use it for their own productivity or to deliver instruction but not to immerse the students in it or facilitate engaging student learning activities.

The project was born out of a request for Instructional Technology and Media Services to provide a technology in-service during the division wide school improvement kickoff meeting. The original request was to simply explain to teachers how they could increase school improvement efforts and academic achievement using technology.  Given an audience of building leaders and teachers, our department seized the opportunity to ignite our participants in much the same way that we hoped they would captivate their students on return to the classroom.  Understanding that teachers would need to experience the use of the technology to believe how quick and easy technology integration can be, we turned what would have been a 30 minute lecture into a hands-on exploration of technology for 250+ educators. 

As teacher trainers our “classroom” has a wide variety of learners in it.  We wanted this lesson to meet three objectives:

·         Deliver quality professional development that makes an impact in the classroom,  and offers lessons that can easily be replicated.

·          Show teachers how to increase their level of technology integration by using technology applications that are somewhat familiar and close at hand. 

·         Model effective classroom technology integration practices for participants.

Participant groups use the digital voice recorders, digital cameras, flip video cameras and cell phones to complete 4 activities that are easy, fun and yet standards based. The workshop will provide you with two distinct and valuable projects: (1) the lesson we will complete as a group – a 30 minute presentation that can be used with groups of teachers to introduce the concept of technology integration as a means to drive school improvement efforts and increased achievement, and (2) complete documentation for four activities that can be used  across grade levels and content areas.

Outline:

10 min – Introductions

• Presenters and their background

• Descriptive setting of Portsmouth Public Schools including demographics, school climate etc.

• Lesson Backdrop

  • large scale professional development

  • introducing quick technology applications that can be used in a classroom to an audience with a varied skillset

30 min – Lesson

• Discuss the need to move technology usage from an activity that one might be unsure of to an activity that can be executed with precision.

• introduce tasks & task cards (participants at each table will complete the same four tasks)

  • Text - Phone Call: Using Polleverywhere.com participants will be asked to choose their favorite dessert from Cake, ice cream, brownies, pie. This task will be correlated to science as the discussion takes place on use fo the bar graph generated.

  • Digital Voice Recorder task: This task requires one person to interview two others on what they know about how Martin Luther King Jr. and George Washington defended american principles.

  • Digital Still Cameras:  a pair of participants will take pictures that represent 4 math terms. Photos from the cameras can then be loaded into big Huge Labs and represent a number of mathematical concepts.

  • Flip Cam Task - one participant will video tape another completing an language arts word sort task.

• discuss with teachers other ways in which they could use these technologies and activities - such as alternative assessment portfolios. 

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10 min – Closing

• Results from our session 

  • requests for the resources shared

  • requests for additional technology tools

     

Supporting Research

http://www.ncrel.org/sdrs/areas/issues/methods/technlgy/te1000.htm

http://www.staffdevelop.org/articles.html

http://www.unc.edu/~salemi/Papers/Clickenomics%20JEE%20Revision%206_2008.pdf

http://www.ncrel.org/sdrs/areas/issues/methods/technlgy/te800.htm