Rethinking Computers and Instruction

 2007 report released by ISTE (International Society for Technology in Education).  Indicates ALL students, regardless of career path, require these skills to succeed in work, school and life.  Although most educators agree that students should have these skills, the concern is ‘how’ to integrate them.

 Knowledge of core subjects: English, reading, math etc.  21 st Century Themes: global awareness, financial, economic, business and entrepreneurial literacy, civic and health literacy.  Learning and Innovation Skills: creativity and innovation skills, critical thinking and problem-solving skills, communication and collaboration skills.  Information, Media, and Technology Skills: information literacy, media literacy, and ICT (information and communication technology) literacy.  Life and Career Skills: flexibility and adaptability, initiative and self-direction, social and cross-cultural skills, productivity and accountability, and leadership and responsibility.

 Emphasizes understanding one’s world rather than memorizing the content  Understand the difference between what they know and what they observe  They use other students to better understand and learn (collaboration)

 The emphasis on increasing student achievement within a context of school reform has resulted in an increased use of standardized achievement tests to assess student progress.  How do teachers improve student achievement as measured on a specific test.  Teacher centered- focus on memorization of facts, formulas, dates, names etc.  Student centered- focus on authentic intellectual work. Requires students to formulate problems, collect information and data, organize and manipulate the information and data, and then formulate an answer.  This debate between teacher and student centered approaches is fueled by the accountability required by No Child Left Behind.

 Observed standardized scores for 5,000 students  Uses of high-quality assignments (those involving authentic intellectual activities)  20% greater gains than national average  Memorization focused classrooms had 25% less in reading and 22% less in math  Study suggests that combining computer technology as a tool to emphasize problem solving and reflection increases student achievement

 Focus is on the learner  Allows learner to make decisions about what information is needed and what approach to take to solving the problem  Teacher becomes facilitator and tutor  Student gain a better understanding of material through contact with information, data collection, and data manipulation  Greater responsibility on the learner to solve problem

 Inquiry-Based Learning: Inquiry strategies start with a question and then engage students in problem- solving activities. As students explore, gather data, and analyze their data, they create new knowledge. Teacher is facilitator and provides information.  Problem-Based Learning: Loosely structured problems are introduced and provide the learner with a broad area of exploration. Teacher is facilitator but does not provide information to learner.  Project-Based Learning: Well structured problems are provided and learners are provided specifications for the end project. Teacher is more like a coach who provides feedback and guidance.

Collaborative GroupsTraditional Learning Groups HeterogeneousHomogeneous Social skills emphasizedSocial skills assumed Task and group performance emphasized Only task emphasized Teacher observes and facilitatesTeacher ignores group functioning Shared leadership and responsibilityOne leader and self-responsibility InterdependentNo interdependence

 iNtegrating Technology for inQuiry  System for integrating computer technology into your classroom in an effort to achieve the goals of teaching students how to use the computer as a tool to learn at a higher level of thinking (Bloom’s Taxonomy)

 Teacher (technologically competent; assumes role of designer; facilitators; not simply providers of facts)  Student (assumes role of researcher and gaining technological competence; active participant in learning process)  Computer (enhances learning through the use of real-world data; support; tool)  Lesson (student-centered; problem-based; authentic; and technology is an integral component)  Environment (resource-rich; multidimensional)

 Must address all national, state, and local standard’s  Each teacher must translate the standards into an instructional objective that provides meaningful content  NETS standards (

 Lecture-5%  Reading-10%  Audio-visual-20%  Demonstration-30%  Practice by doing-75%  Teach others-90%  Humor increases learning by 15%-30%

 Remembering(simply memorizing facts)  Understanding(demonstrate, illustrate etc.)  Application (learner uses knowledge)  Analysis (compare and contrast)  Evaluating (critique, justify, assess etc.)  Creating(hypothesize, formulate, produce, explain, develop etc.)