EDIT 2000

There are so many things to know about teaching in the K-12 environment. Consider how each of you comes from a different background, has different interests, and possess different motivations for learning. It makes sense, then, that your students will, too.

Are you up for a challenge? Do you think you have what it takes to learn all you can about how to understand and incorporate learner differences into your teaching techniques? In groups of 4-5, take the EduChallenge and see how many categories you can review before the end of class. Don't forget to submit the EduChallenge Response Form for each category. The team completing the most pages by the end of class will earn GooJ passes for each member. If you missed class, you’ll need to complete at least 3 of the 5 categories and submit the form for each on your own.

For Thursday

1. Read Chapter 2 in your text and complete the reading guide.
2. Post a thought or phrase to describe an effective application of technology to support learning.
   

Extra Credit Opportunity!

Dr. Curtis Bonk, a world renowned scholar from Indiana University, is speaking on campus tomorrow about Stretching the Edges of Technology-Enhanced Training. He has authored a number of popular books, including The World is Open and Empowering Online Learning. EPIT's LDT program and the Center for Teaching and Learning are co-sponsoring his talk in MLC 214 from 3:00-4:30 on Wednesday afternoon. Attend the talk and check in with me to get 1 extra credit point on your final grade.

Content Standards

State Standards

As teachers, we have far more control over how we teach rather than what we teach. Content is generally mandated at the local, state, and national levels. In the state of Georgia, curriculum standards are called “Georgia Performance Standards” and are written for every grade level (K-12) and most subject areas. You can view the standards for your subject area on the left navigation of their website. If you don’t see your subject area listed (subjects such as health, family and consumer science, character education, and a few others), view the the "QCC Materials." If you are interested in speech therapy or special education, consider looking at the "IEP Goals & Objectives Bank." Let me know if you’re having trouble choosing a subject or can’t find the standards for your subject.

National Standards

When we look at standards for teaching, we have to consider that there are national educational technology standards (NETS) for K-12. Generally speaking, these standards focus on good teaching and learning; not just technology use. The textbook for this class is based on these national standards and contains a chapter that addresses the first four standards (we’ll talk about 5 and 6 all semester):

1. Creativity and Innovation
2. Communication and Collaboration
3. Research and Information Fluency
4. Critical thinking, Problem Solving, and Decision Making
5. Digital Citizenship
6. Technology Operations and Concepts

Creating a Learning Environment

Once you've gotten a better understanding of who you're teaching and what you're going to teach, you can focus on creating a learning environment to bring it all together. What should the physical environment of your future classroom look like? To do this, we'll use a tool called Floorplanner we’ll need to get a graphic of your classroom up onto a new page in your portfolio called, “Creating a Learning Environment”. We’ll use a tool called Floorplanner (you are welcome to use another tool if you have one available) to sketch what our ideal learning environment [classroom] will look like. Once you've created an account, complete the 12-step tutorial to help you learn more about how to use the tool. Keep in mind that the free version of the tool will only allow you to create ONE floorplan. After creating your ideal learning environment, use create a screen shot of the image and insert it into your portfolio. Create a new page called “Creating a Learning Environment" that includes both the image and a paragraph that describes why you chose the design, identifies highlights of the room, and establishes how the design reflects the needs of the learners and of the curriculum. Give a sense of what it would be like to spend time in your classroom. Be sure to include a description of your students and yourself (their teacher). The page should be 3-4 paragraphs in length. For an example of this assignment, see Sarah's Portfolio.

For Tuesday

1. In the Google Doc you created on Tuesday, add the questions below and your responses.
1. What grade level/subject area did you choose? Why did you select it?
2. What are the main topics taught in this grade/subject?
3. What are some topics that surprised you? What topic is missing that you thought would be taught?
4. How will digital natives fare in this subject area? What particular topics will interest them?
2. Complete your classroom layout using Floorplanner and the "Creating a Learning Environment" page of your portfolio.

How Do You Learn?

For Tuesday's class, write a story about a time that you learned how to do something. Perhaps it was when you learned how to ride a bike or learned how to cook your favorite dish.

As a class, we’ll share what we learned and how we learned it.

1. Did your motivation to learn the skill affect how quickly you learned it?
2. Did you utilize some type of learning tool to acquire the skill?
3. Do you still possess the skill?
4. If you were to teach someone this same skill – would you teach them the same way?
5. What does any of this have to do with technology in your life and in your future classroom?

This is a class participation* activity.

* Class participation is 15% of your grade in this course and it is not based solely on attendance. Just showing up for class isn’t enough. We will discuss what participation should look like, including what gets in the way of participating, how class can be structured so that it’s easy to participate, how participation is viewed differently from a teacher/student perspective, and why this matters in a technology course.