Brett+Cassidy



Hello, my name is Brett. I am working toward a license in Middle Childhood Education (Math/SS) and eventually a Master's. This is my last quarter before I am eligible for my license, so hopefully I will find a job and be teaching full time this coming fall. Previous to this pursuit, I spent nearly a decade in Marketing, working for a few small firms here in town after graduating from Miami University in 1999. I worked in market research and new product development. Some days it was a lot of fun to work in a collaborative environment, but overall it wasn't for me. That's why I decided to switch gears and go into education.

On a personal note, I live in Mt. Washington with my wife Kelly, our daughter Kayla (turns 1 on April 10th) and our dog Baxter. I enjoy using technology and do my best to stay up to speed with the latest. However, I also really enjoy unplugging from Facebook, Twitter, email and my cell phone from time to time to spend time relaxing with my family.

If you want to know just how random my thoughts can be, check them out on my Twitter feed...

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My stab at a rubric for a math lesson I am teaching soon.

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 * Reflective Blog #1**

I found Jonassen's article to be downright confusing, written much more in a clinical speak. Maybe I've spent too much time with 7th and 8th graders this year. Regardless, I found it difficult to decipher what he was even trying to say throughout his writing. It wasn't until I read the other article that drew some perspective from the first that I was able to understand it. Still, after reflecting on both, I better understand the two theories and their role in education.

As Cronje pointed out in the other article, the debate of Objectivism vs. Constructivism is often painted as black or white, with the two being polar opposites. I related much more to her point that there are many instances where both are present, in part because Objectivism deals with instruction while Constructivism is related to learning. In essence, they are not opposites. I believe, as Cronje argues, that you can't separate the two and say a learning event is one or the other.

My key takeaway was that its important to not become wed to any particular philosophy. As an educator, I should take into consideration my learner/s, apply sound strategy tied to extensive research and most importantly, make sure I am teaching in an authentic way that he or she can truly understand. My leanings, if I were forced to pick a side, would be constructivism. Since no one is holding a gun to my head though I will incorporate each into my own unique teaching philosophy.

In terms of an example, I can relate what I read to my student teaching this year. So far this year in my placement, I have found that I obtain greater success when I work to help my students construct understanding for a math topic in their terms. I did well in math, particularly in elementary and middle school. It has been eye opening to work with lower achieving students. I can not assume that they will "get it" if I simply tell them how to do something. With some of my students, I have covered a topic I thought would take only a week for nearly 7 weeks. I found myself circling back again and again to try and find new ways to let them explore how positive and negative numbers relate. If I didn't take a constructivist view and consider their past experiences and viewpoints, I believe I would not have seen any growth.

I think technology is a key way to relate to students. One time I used the concept of sending a text message to relate the importance of "order of operations" in math. I could tell just mentioning the term "texting" got my students interested. Just that one experience showed to me the importance of the second standard from NETS (Design and Develop Digital-Age Learning Experiences and Assessments). I think there are probably some interesting ways to use Facebook with students. Maybe it could be something like a forum for solving a problem of the week or collaborating as a study group.

Finally, in terms of a discussion question, I was thinking...

How would you describe the teaching approach/philosophy of one of your favorite teacher/professors? Do you think it matched up perfectly with your learning style?


 * Reflective Blog #2**

As I read the two articles on a one computer classroom, I kept thinking of my 4th Grade teacher's class. I don't remember how she managed her one computer classroom, but I do know that my buddy Chad and I stayed after school many times to play the Number Munchers math game. In my current field placement, we have 5 computers. Of course, we barely have room for them in the trailer, so the kids are practically on top of each other if they use the computers. The majority of the usage comes after school for extra credit. Since it is a math class, the kids mostly play math games for about 45 minutes to get extra points added to their grades. I usually stay after to help with grading homework. I have noticed that the kids spend more time switching from game to game then actually playing a game. Or they spend about 15 minutes creating their character for the basketball game or Jeopardy.

This lack of efficient and effective use of time shows that having more than 1 computer does not solve all problems. I think kids are so used to surfing the web and multi-tasking that they are not used to focusing on a particular task on the computer until it is complete. This is a challenge that teachers must be aware of so they can set up their students for success and help them develop better work habits when they have the opportunity to use a computer.

One of the ideas from the article that I thought was very practical was to borrow computers from other teachers (if they can be easily moved), or even have students go to other rooms to do work. Again, it is on the teacher's shoulders to make sure they are very clear with directions so that the student is able to stay on task and make good use of his or her time. Something that was not mentioned but that could be another solution is to have students work in pairs while on the computer. With my math classroom, the students are used to working together to solve problems. This could extend to doing work on the computer.

It all really depends on the subject and how the teacher likes to incorporate the computer into the classroom. I think the potential "bottleneck" can be a blessing in disguise and allow the teacher to stress such organization skills as time management, planning ahead, scheduling and other tactics that people have to use later on in college and in the work force.

Finally, having only one computer can make it really feel like a privilege. The teacher can possibly use computer time as an incentive that will be highly desired by students and encourage them to do really good work.

In terms of a discussion question, I would be interested to hear if anyone has any experience/ideas on how a teacher can utilize a computer lab on a consistent basis. My kids are in the computer lab at least twice a week, but I think the computer teacher just does things with them that he thinks are helpful for math and reading. I'm not even sure if my teacher has any input or not. I will have to ask her this week.


 * Reflective Blog #3**

One of the common thoughts I had with regard to the three articles is of teachers being less knowledgeable about technology than their students, as it was mentioned in the articles. From my personal experience with 7th and 8th graders, I do not think that is the case yet. However, our math classroom has not necessarily been set up to allow the students to show off any computer skills they may or may not have. Additionally, the school is in a lower socio-economic area, where home computers and Internet access are not as readily available.

There is probably a benefit to student self esteem if they sense that they are more adept at a certain skill or technology than their teacher. Having a teacher or professor forced to improve his or her knowledge on an important topic would not be the worst thing in the world. This scenario gives students the chance to practice elements of Digital Citizenship (NETS #5) by serving as the leader of a given technology or skill, both for the teacher and additional classmates. Of course, the student should do so in a safe and responsible manner, as the standard suggest On a different note, here is a quote from the Ikpeze & Boyd article that caught my eye:

//"The major problems associated with learning on the Internet include navigational disorientation, information overload, and distraction (Bradshaw et al., 2002). Navigational disorientation arises from infor- mation overload, where learners may be over- whelmed by the vast amount of information on the Web and lose track of their search subject or simply become fatigued." //

I believe this is an issue for both students and teachers when it comes to researching or learning about a topic on the Internet. NETS #3 deals with research and information fluency. I can personally attest that this area is a struggle for me. We know have access to so much information, that I sometimes have a hard time sorting through it all. However, I do think I can at least make some judgments to determine whether the material is credible. Whether its the best or most current piece of information is another story.

In terms of my students, a few months ago I witnessed as some of them searched for information for Black History reports. Every student used some sort of search engine, and then just picked one of the first pages suggested. There was minimal critical thinking on their part. It would have been an interesting experiment to include some totally ridiculous information to see if they could determine what was true and what was false.

Question

What are the best sources for teachers to keep up to speed on the latest technologies in the classroom or on the Internet?


 * Reflective Blog #4 **

I found the readings this week to be quite interesting. I have been listening to podcasts for a few years. I mostly just listen to old radio programs I missed or other content for entertainment. My placement this year has been very light on technology. I think that is mostly based on the environment (a cramped trailer adjacent to the school). To be honest, I would never have thought of creating a podcast or a digital video. However, I know several of the kids have MP3 players that they bring to school. I'm not sure how they download their music. More importantly, I'm not sure how likely they would be to listen to a podcast about math. It could be a pretty interesting experiment to try some different styles of recording and to see if there is any appeal.

Time is such a precious commodity for teachers, and I'm not sure how realistic it is for a teacher to record a podcast or a digital video. Looking over the standards, having the students create their own podcast or video would be a great way for students to communicate and collaborate (NETS #2), specifically to "communicate information and ideas effectively to multiple audiences using a variety of media and formats."

Again though, serving in an low income school district for this year has opened my eyes to many challenges both teachers and students must overcome. As I reflect on how to incorporate something like they suggest in the articles it feels nearly impossible. I wonder how the 4th grade math teacher that created the podcasts was able to do that. There must have been a great deal of time spent getting her kids familiar with the technology.

Question - How realistic is it to have students create their own podcast?

=** Reflective Blog #5 ** =

 The article by Armstrong et al (2005) brings up an excellent point about the way teachers use new technology. Essentially, they can fall into the trap of just adapting new technology to fit into their current methods of teaching rather than allowing the new technology to help them create a new pedagogy. In the case studies on usage of Interactive White Boards (IWB), they mention that only one of the four teachers was provided any sort of formal training with the new technology. That lack of training is a big deal. In my placement, I have found myself in front of my students "without a net" on many occasions. It is in these moments that it is most difficult to try something new. It is difficult for me to even remember some of the more basic principals of classroom management. My mentor teacher had to remind me to keep moving around the room. As I try to imagine myself in that same situation with a IWB, I bet I would not feel comfortable using it for anything more than just as a "really fancy whiteboard" and draw concepts on it.

 As a teacher, if that is the usage I modeled, my students would not be exposed to the depth of uses available through a IWB. NETS #6 suggests students should be able to transfer existing knowledge to the learning of new technologies. If they don't see examples of this they are much less likely to try something.

 Interestingly enough, I observed a 5th grade math teacher this past week. One of the things she has her students do is carry around small whiteboards and markers. She has found that medium allows for greater trial and error while working on new math concepts. It allows the kids to write bigger, erase easier and feel much less committed to their work. She said they are much more willing to try to solve problems when they have their whiteboards out versus pencil and paper. I think that is an interesting insight. Our goal as teachers should be to create an environment where kids feel comfortable to explore a concept they don't understand to increase their depth of knowledge.

 In terms of mobile devices, just the thought of each student having their own device, possibly connected to the Internet is daunting. A teacher would really need to be on his/her game to make sure students stay on task. Maybe the Digital Citizenship (NETS #5) standard could be presented in a manner that teachers let students know that staying on task and not using devices for personal or unrelated content is essential and expected of them.

One of the articles spoke of a technology being taught and used throughout a school versus just in one classroom. I have seen firsthand how kids benefit from consistency. I think it would be invaluable to new technology to be presented as a school-wide initiative. That models for the students the importance of them learning more about it and becoming familiar with learning in a new manner. Each teacher still has the ability to customize how he or she uses it with his or her content area.

 Question - Should a teacher be willing to use technology if they are uncomfortable or unsure? To what level can they model learning in front of the class? At what point does he or she lose credibility for not being tech savvy and the kids tune out?