Spotlight on Emerging Technology: Online Learning in K-12 Schools

Raising student (MEAP) test scores is a great pressure felt by the teachers in my school, we are constantly searching for tools and learning strategies to help students be prepared for the Math and Reading sections of these tests.Creating an online learning resource, like Moodle, would a great way to develop supplemental lessons, quizzes and links to help student success and relieve some of the pressure felt by teachers when "test time" comes along. The following is a "prezi" I created to increase my staff's awareness level about the educational benefits of Moodle.

Moodle in the Elementary Classoom

Course Reflection

Differentiated Instruction and Universal Design for Learning can be an intimidating concept for educators. Teachers see those educational terms and assume they involve exhaustive planning, hours of developing individualized lesson plans, and frustrating sessions learning complicated technologies. But incorporating DI and UDL in the classroom, as I have learned from this course, is far from it.

At the beginning of this course, I saw DI and UDL as concepts that were foreign to my art classroom and would be difficult to apply to my curriculum. But when researching DI and UDL for my group's "Differentiation Station social network" I learned that many of the tools and techniques I already use in my classroom, help me engage all of my students. Simple technologies like using my digital projector and document camera allow me to differentiate instruction daily. I also learned about a variety of learning technologies that will help me develop differentiated learning opportunities for my students, web-based art applications on art museum websites like The Getty Institute (http://www.getty.edu/gettygames/) and Mr. Picasso Head (http://www.picassohead.com/).

Along with researching learning technologies to differentiate instruction I also learned about technologies to help me learn about my students' interests and learning profiles which can help me develop lessons that will be engaging to all learners. By taking the time to have my students fill out learning profile and interest surveys, I can create a more comprehensive picture of who my students are and how they learn.

Differentiating instruction, student learning profiles, and integrating technology are all ways great ways to customize a classroom to reach all learners but it is important to remember that differentiating a classroom or a curriculum doesn't happen over night. Teachers can take "baby steps" when it comes to incorporating technology into the classroom. The first steps I am going to take with in my own classroom is to start providing students more opportunities to use technology as a creative tool and as a way to assess my students' progress and readiness.

This course has taught me a lot about DI and UDL but it has also giving to opportunity to use a technology I had no experience with, Google Groups. It was a great way to collaborate with group members and I can see myself using this technology in my own school and district to work together on curriculum and educational resource development.

GAME Plan Reflection

For this course I created a GAME plan to assist me in my goals to:

1.Learn more about integrating online collaborative (global) art projects with in my curriculum and seek out professional development about educational technologies like Web 2.0.
2. Continue to develop my Art classroom blog as a way to inform parents and community about my classroom, curriculum, and student art gallery.

The GAME plan model was a great way to help me not stay focused and organized but also helped me monitor my process to accomplish my goals.

During the “Action” part of the GAME plan, while researching art classroom blogs, I found some inspiring blogs, great art lessons, and learned about a new educational presentation tool called Prezi. I was so impressed with Prezi, that I have started using it as part of my instructional practice. I also discovered a great resource for student global projects.

Now that I have learned and developed art lessons that include online collaboration, educational networking, and digital storytelling, I feel more confident to include these learning strategies as part of my curriculum.

Using the GAME Plan Process with Students

After using the GAME plan to help accomplish my own NETS-T goals and researching the NETS-S, I can see how beneficial using the GAME model would be with my own students. Within both the student and teacher NETS, is the goal of using technology for creativity and innovation. This was one of my own goals for this assignment and I think this would be an appropriate goal for my students to work with and create a GAME plan for.
In the Art classroom, there are a variety of technologies that help students be more creative and to develop critical thinking, from graphics programs to digital storytelling. VoiceThread is a educational tool I am beginning to very comfortable using and would love my 3rd grade students to create their own VoiceThread post about their artwork. For years I have do a "create your own superhero" drawing assignment. This would be a perfect lesson to incorporate VoiceThread and a GAME plan. It might look something like this:
GOAL
To create new superhero. Post drawing and narrative on VoiceThread
ACTION
Create a graphic organizer with Kidspiration to develop details of superhero (what does the outfit look like, super powers, name, arch nemisis, environment, etc)
Create drawing of superhero.
Photograph artwork, upload to VoiceThread and record narrative about artwork
MONITOR
Does my final drawing of my superhero show all the details. Have I done a complete drawing? Have I created a narrative that tells my audience about my superhero?
EVALUATE
Is my superhero original? Does my artwork show my best effort? Have I reviewed and commented my classmates artwork on VoiceThread?

The GAME plan model is a great way to keep students not only on task but motivated to accomplish their goals.

Revising the GAME Plan

As I mentioned in the previous post, the GAME plan process has been a great learning experience and I have found a lot of great resources, lesson ideas, and educational tools that can easily be integrated into my classroom. As for my two original goals to:

1.Learn more about about integrating online collaborative (global) art projects with in my curriculum and seek out professional development about educational technologies like Web 2.0.

2.Continue to develop my Art classroom blog as a way to inform parents and community about my classroom, curriculum, and student art gallery. ,

I am still in the middle of the learning process. I have decided to do a global art project with my fifth graders next month and I am starting to document my art lessons and photograph student artwork to add to my classroom blog.

For my next NETS-T goal, I would like research more educational technologies that involve students using computer software to create digital art. During this GAME plan I also discovered a great presentation software called Prezi that I want to start incorporating more into my classroom.

I really enjoyed using the GAME plan approach to help me stay on task and have my final goal in mind, I will probably use a similar strategy to help me accomplish my next goals.

Evaluating my GAME Plan Progress

So far I feel that my GAME plan progess is going well. I have learned a lot about global arts projects and recieved some great advice about keeping a classroom blog. While researching Art classroom blogs I discovered some great project ideas, classroom management and organization tools, and a technology tool, called prezi, that I have already utilized in my classroom. I also recieved some great advice and encouragement from my fellow classmates, including the advice that it is okay to pace myself and that my entire curriculum doesn't have to change to integrate more technology into my classroom. I really like that my GAME plan has allowed me to stay focused and makes me accountable for my goal. I still would like to research more classroom blogs and talk more with teachers who have more experience doing global arts projects in their classrooms.

Monitoring GAME Plan Progress

As the research for my GAME plan is continuing, I haven't come across many road blocks preventing me from accomplishing my goals of:

1.Learn more about about integrating online collaborative (global) art projects with in my curriculum and seek out professional development about educational technologies like Web 2.0.

2.Continue to develop my Art classroom blog as a way to inform parents and community about my classroom, curriculum, and student art gallery.

So far the I contacted three teachers (two in my own district) who are thrilled at the idea of doing a collaborative art project with my classes. We have discussed many lesson ideas including the following:
1. Have the students "skype" each other to share information they learned about Vincent Van Gogh

2. Do an art materials exchange challenge (where two schools switch art materials and students have to create art using the switches materials)

3. Take part in the gobal Art Trading Cards program

Now my only problem is pacing myself and not doing too many global projects at once!

As for my classroom blog, I have spoken with my the technology experts in my district and my adminstrators about posting photographs of students. In our district we have a parent permission slip that goes home to all students that addresses student privacy and covers yearbook, newspaper, and websites.

Overall things have gone very smoothly in achieving my goals and I feel I have recieved great support from my district and my collegues.