Personal Reflection

Lesson Plan for TPACK integration

Application
Describe an instructional activity (e.g. part of a lesson plan) where you can incorporate this technology. Consider an activity that can be conducted in 10-15 minutes.

First, provide some details regarding:

• Learners: Who are your learners? What learner/age group should this activity be designed for?
• Learning outcomes: What will learners gain through this activity? Be specific regarding the focus of content. You should be able state something like: “At the end of this activity, students will be able to…”
• Assessment: How would you know that students acquire the learning outcomes? How would you know that your activity is effective?

Second, break down your activity into a timeline of planned events and procedures. Here you should describe what students and the teacher will be doing chronologically during the activity. Below is one of the good examples from previous reflections:

• The lesson would begin with introducing the students to the webquest on their already created Edmodos. This would only take a minute or two because at this point the students will already be acquainted with the concept of Edmodo and webquests.
• The students would then spend the next 10 minutes exploring ways to solve algebraic equations that they had already been working with in class.
• Following this exploration the students would be given 5 minutes to complete the individual assessment.
• Then, while waiting on the other students to finish, the students that had already completed all of the assignment would then post on the class Edmodo site what new techniques they have learned about navigating the Internet and solving algebraic equations in order to help other students in the class.

Reflection
Considering your learning activity described above, write two paragraphs or three for each section below addressing the questions. It may be helpful to keep in mind the followings when reflecting:

1. How well the use of this technology may support your teaching strategies in this activity.
1. For the teaching of the body squat I used several visual and interactive methods. The technology used helped me do this by giving the students the opportunity to interpret the information themselves. The students were given the opportunity to answer questions before given the information and allowed to discuss the correct answer. The technology could have been used better and more focused on to further teach the students. However, there were a few different types used. The smart board was one use for this as I used its abilities to allow students to draw the posture of the spine. This gave them the opportunity to visualize what is being learned, especially after seeing the correct sketch. Youtube was used to display a video to the students of exactly what they were to understand and eventually perform. After breaking down the video into a short explanation of scenes within it the students could then be assessed. Overall, I believe I did a poor job at taking advantage of all the technology available to me. 
2. How effectively the use of this technology may enhance students' understanding of and learning from your particular content in this activity.
1. What technology I did use I believe ended up successful for the amount of time used. I think that after being able to see the correct posture of the spine it helped, at least some, students understand what they were trying to maintain while squatting. The video was probably the most helpful because I was able to reach my audience with the content and apply it to the knowledge they were to absorb. Because the technology was not used at its full potential I think that it did not do as well of a job teaching the students the squat as the participation did. 

--Pedagogical-Content:

Your pedagogical content knowledge refers to your understanding of teaching strategies that are specific to a content area. That is the knowledge about choosing appropriate pedagogies for teaching a particular content Example: Using drill-and-practice to teach math problem solving. This strategy however may not necessarily be effective for other content areas.

Now, forget about the technology for a while…..Just tells us about your teaching strategies that you employ in your activity (e.g., analogies, demonstrations, illustrations, examples, explanations, group work, drill-practice, simulations, role-play, lecturing, self-guided learning, inquiry-based learning, problem based learning or etc). Specifically:

• What are your strategies and why do you think your strategies are appropriate to teaching this specific content?  What makes you believe it would help your students comprehend this particular content? Give specific examples from your described activity.
• My  main strategy for teaching this content are to apply to the average person's everyday life before continuing into the critical information. Afterwards I try to obtain as much prior knowledge from the class as possible in order to apply their vocabulary into the lecture and make it more understandable, which I think is significant when interpreting your audience. When I learn how to communicate with the class I then translate my knowledge of the content into a way they may better understand it. I do this by continuing to ask questions and inspire discussion. After all material is laid out for the students and it is discussed I get them physically involved to provide a personal perspective on the topic. At the same time I encourage constructional criticism to help students learn from the others. I think that these techniques give the students every opportunity to learn the subject matter in a very simple way. 
• What would be some conceptions and pre-conceptions that students of different ages and backgrounds bring with them when learning this particular content? What would you be concerned about students' prior knowledge, experiences, motivation? Again focus on the content and your teaching strategy, not the technology!
• For this particular content different backgrounds bring a variety of experiences, stories, terminology, and questions. In this case there would be very little concern for their previous knowledge in a negative manner. For example, in my session it was asked what was important of learning the squat. One stated it was to avoid hurting one's back. Another student stated it was to get a "nice butt".  Obviously there are different backgrounds but both statements allowed for discussion and information that were pertinent to the content. I was then able to discuss the importance of maintaining a neutral spine as well as the muscles involved which related to both students. 

--Technological-Pedagogical:

Your technological pedagogical knowledge refers to your understanding of technologies for particular learning tasks, your ability to choose technologies based on its fitness, your knowledge of pedagogical strategies, and your ability to apply those strategies for use of technologies Example: Selecting Edmodo/facebook for facilitating student generated debate. Edmodo here is the technology that supports the main pedagogy-group discussion/debate.

In the previous section, you talked about your instructional strategies. Keeping these strategies you stated in mind, now tell us how the technology is used in your activity.  Specifically:

• What main instructional strategies would this technology use serve in your activity? How would using the technology support the way you teach this activity? Please give examples and be specific to your described activity. Think about your main teaching strategies that this technology would support. 
• Relating to my invitation of all discussion, I was able to use the technology to get each students thoughts a a specific piece of information being taught (drawing on the smartboard). I teach the activity through discussion, visualization, and participation. Unfortunately, I was unable to use technology for the participation part. Still, I used a video to show the students what was being discussed and what was later to be performed. Many students began talking about how great of form there was in the video which tells me they learned from what I had discussed prior to the video and that my use of technology supported my teachings. 
• What different classroom management strategies you might need to consider when using this technology in the activity? Give examples and be specific to your described activity.
• Depending on the students in the class I may need to consider organizing the order in which people used the smartboard to avoid complications. I may also need to pair the students myself so that there is no problems between them. In some situations, including my most recent session, I would need to consider  those who may not be comfortable in front of others or sharing an incorrect answer. These problems are easily bypassed with a a large class though. It is possible that I would also need to adjust student positioning as well as the lighting of the room. 

--Technological Pedagogical Content:

Your technological pedagogical content knowledge refers to your understanding of how teaching and learning from content may change when technology used and is our knowledge about selecting technologies that suits, support, and enhances teaching strategies and learning activities in your particular content area. It is your understanding of teaching strategies to effectively teach the particular content and help student conceptual difficulties in this content by meaningfully incorporating technologies. Example: Using a flash card app on iPad as a means to aid students memorize words and definitions in language learning. iPad app is here chosen as a tool to support the pedagogy around instant feedback, quick repetition, and individualized learning. These are some of the strategies used in language learning content area.

Now, let’s focus on the content you’re teaching in your activity. Think about your decisions to incorporate this technology and the teaching strategies in relation to your particular content area. Tell us specifically about:

• How would using this technology enhance the way the content is represented in your activity (e.g. demonstrations, explanations, examples, illustrations, analogies, and etc.)? That is why you think the selection and the pedagogical use of this technology may enhance what you teach (the content in your activity). Give specific examples from your activity to support your answer and keep in mind the learning objectives that you stated previously. 
• In what different ways students practice or understand the content in your activity that would otherwise not be possible without the use of the technology? In addition to motivational benefits, what else can students do with this technology as they are learning the content?

3D Printers' Articles Reviews

Smithsonian:
The availability of a 3D printer to students in grades K-12 provides amazing opportunity. This is greatly explained in the Smithsonian educators article. The teachers sharing in this article tell us of how the students have the chances to design useless museum items or their own creations. More importantly they are able to analyze the data needed and used while creating these things. Some of the students mentioned in the article state that it was so much easier for them to understand something that was directly in front of them rather than simply reading about it in a text book. I believe a 3D printer used in such ways can completely open up a students mind and allow them to reach their full potential in several areas.
Thingiverse Lesson Plan:
A lesson plan based off of a 3D object called "Speedy Architect Project" allows students to use their creativity, analyzing, and engineering in this lesson. The 3D printer and designing program is used to create pieces that are able to connect straws in several directions. These pieces and the straws are used by the students, who are divided into groups, to make building-like structures. The students are given two 15 minute periods to make two separate buildings. In the third section of the lesson the students' buildings are examined and tested for height and strength. I think that this use of the 3D printer technology is exceptional in increasing the students imagination and engineering skills. Also, the lessons learned can be applied to a more realistic form of architecture and engineering.
3D Printers in Schools:
This article discusses the use of 3D Printers to further the teaching of science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM). There were several areas in which this technology helped students learn. Firstly, being able to take part in a personal creation helps motivate students. Aside from that the students are able to learn a lot during the designing process. A majority of the learning, in this situation, come from the computer aided design (CAD) programs. These programs allow the students to visualize what they are studying or creating. At the same time they are required to calculate and break down code used for the items. All in all, I think the entire process helps students in each area of STEM.

Discussing Teachers and TPACK

Related to the articles:

• Future Teachers' Plans and Practices with Emerging Tools
• Technological Pedagogical Content Knowledge: A Framework for Teacher Knowledge 

     It is important to understand that a teacher must be very knowledgeable in several subjects. A teacher is expected to share with their students information in several ways so that each can learn the information. There are several ways to do this and most of which are traditionally a lecture, homework, and test. Which is very simple and the teacher could know the content very well and lecture and test over all the important information. However, this leaves only one way for the students to obtain and learn the information. A new concept termed the Technological Pedagogical Content Knowledge (TPACK)discusses how a teacher can express their subject information more efficiently. This is an option that the articles' case studies say are rarely used my current teachers. This causes a problem for those is professional school to be a teacher are not taught with TPACK which makes its use to be continually limited as those students enter the workforce as teachers. Saying this shows that many teachers are not aware of using TPACK. One article says that it is more important to have new ways of thinking about facts rather than only learning new facts. TPACK gives that option by incorporating technology into the learning. Many teachers fear the use of technology because they cannot keep up with the constant changes, the time it may take, or do not comprehend technology. Too many teachers are looking at the technology but not how it can be used in the classroom. Technology offers interactive learning tools, classroom tools, classroom programs, and web tools. These options for technology have several uses and results have shown  to improve the learning of the content. It is not always as to what TPACK is exactly so let's break it down a little. Teaching is a complex task that requires many types of knowledge and resources. The first thing a teacher needs to effectively use TPACK is to have great knowledge over the content they are teaching. It is even more important to understand that the Content and Knowledge separately will have now effect. Even with combined knowledge content the information cannot be passes on without the correct pedagogy. Pedagogy refers to the methods used when teaching the knowledge over the content. A good teacher should have effective pedagogy before entering the work force. This means knowing the different ways a student may learn and being able to share their knowledge in those ways. It also means being able to make the content comprehensible to others. Pairing those three items together provides great teaching to the student but still gives limited options and opportunities to the students. When technology is grouped into the combination there are limitless ways of sharing the content with the student. With the different technology options listed before a teacher can interpret the subject matter in a way that others have many different options of access and can see it represented differently. Not all teachers have embraced these technologies, but should. TPACK, in my opinion, can give the optimum learning experience and with constantly evolving technology can continually become even better. Why limit teaching possibilities when there are so many more options and so many students that could benefit greatly from them?

Article Reflections 1/3/17

Miracle Maker:
               Medical attention and health care is, in my opinion, where technology is the most important. It is amazing to see what Doctor Anthony Atala has done to prove that. Atala is not the only one who has noticed the shortage and difficulty of finding organs to transplant. However, unlike most of us he has done something amazing about it. We read in the article “Miracle Maker” that he has created a special type of three-dimensional printer. The ink in the ITOP produces live animal cells that allow them to transport the nutrients they need long enough to survive for longer than ever before. Tests on the success of this tissue have been successful in small animals but will they be in humans? Or should it even be tested? That is a question that really reflects my opinion of the technology. This is an astonishing and possible live saving invention in the technology world, but I see this technology as a way to belittle a human’s value as well as interrupt the cycle of life. I think this knowledge could be better used to find a way to preserve organs rather than create them.

Summon the Comfy Chair:
               What better way to put technology to use right? No, I don’t agree with that. Yes, the fact that it is possible for humans to create such impressive robots is shocking. But at what sacrifice? With technology like a chair that approaches you and a trash bin that reminds you to dispose of your garbage there is nothing to complain about. With these types of technology around I believe people would lose the most important qualities in life. These include common sense, responsibility, and work ethic. With robots constantly doing the little things in life for you it could very easily make a person not want to do anything much more difficult. Still, it is intriguing to think about these robots capabilities.

Best Inventions of 2016:
               A majority of the items I see in this article are very acceptable to me. Which is surprising to hear after reading my last two reflections. The reason for that, though, is because I see many inventions in this article that are used for reminders, safety, and energy saving rather than a piece of technology that simply does something for you that a person if very capable of. For example, the solar panels mentioned allow for energy saving in a fashionable way and in no way make a person lazy. The toothbrush simply reminds a person how long to brush for and helps keep their oral hygiene. The foldable helmet helps encourage people to keep protection on their head by making an obnoxious helmet very compact. The technology in this article includes many greats way to assist humans.

Best Inventions of 2015:
               I see in this article there are a lot of very interesting inventions and uses for technology. At the same time I see that many of them are not necessary even if they have several uses. The shoes that can be tied with one hand is a good example of something that is an interesting idea but not real necessity for the average human. In comparison to 2016 these inventions are far less important or even as impressive.