I believe in the ideal classroom, the teacher would use a variety of instructional strategies. Studies have shown that it is not the media or technology that facilitates learning, but the instructional strategies. As children learn in different ways, this teacher should use demonstration, cooperative learning, presentation, simulation, problem solving, discovery, tutorial, and a little drill and practice.
Thematic Instruction is being used by many teachers today. They organize their instruction around themes or topics. To be a good theme it must get and hold a student's attention, support interdisciplinary activities, provide problem solving experiences, and include a variety of media and technology.
Student-centered activities are wonderful learning tools in technology and the media. These also allow teachers time to spend consulting with individual students, correcting and diagnosing student problems and teaching in small groups.
As we are told in our text- "Students are no longer limited to the confines of the classroom. Through the school media center and computer networks such as the Internet, the world becomes each student's classroom."
Information taken from our text-"Instructional Technology and Media for Learning".
Sunday, January 30, 2011
Sunday, January 23, 2011
"How People Learn", The IRIS Modules
Learner centered instruction should:
1. Contain subject-related problems or challenges.
2. Ask for students thoughts and ideas about how to solve the problem.
3. Ask students to explain reasons behind their thinking.
At Easter Seals/UCP Cape Fear Children's Center, I work in the infant room. Their ages are from 6 weeks to 1 year. A Learner centered activity I use with them is, "Find the Animal". I will show them one of the small soft plastic animals we have and say over and over to them, the name of that animal. Then I will put it on the carpet and lay a recieving blanket over it and ask them, "Where is the (example) dog?" I will pick up the blanket and say, "There is the dog". After a few month's of doing this with different animals, I will see one of the children take the blanket off of the animal and try to say the name of the animal or say something like, "Der is".
Elements that knowledge-centered instruction should contain is:
1. Subject matter aligned with relevant standards.
2. Organized around ideas that matter to students.
3. Focused on information and activities that help learners develop an understanding of a subject or discipline.
4. It promotes learning about available resources and how to use them.
5. It produces knowledge and skills that are organized and connected.
Two types of assessments that should be included in assessment centered instruction is formative assessment and summative assessment. Formative assessment measures learning progress in order to encourage reflection and revision. Summative assessment is designed to measure the results of learning.
Community centeredness is important to student learning because it fosters values and norms that promote lifelong learning and it contributes to the aligning of students and instructors course expectations.
A community centered activity I've been involved in the past was the Cumberland Oratorio Singers. Often, the music we performed was in another language. We performed in the community.
Once a year the Educational Coordinator of our center evaluates the teachers. She will discuss with us at length about our evaluation. Throughout the year she guides us and comments on our instruction. The children I care for are not old enough to become self evaluative. I can assess their skills by observing them and writing the observations down. I put them in the Creative Curriculum online and I make new goals for them based on the observations.
Much of my information for my blog was found in our IRIS modules.
1. Contain subject-related problems or challenges.
2. Ask for students thoughts and ideas about how to solve the problem.
3. Ask students to explain reasons behind their thinking.
At Easter Seals/UCP Cape Fear Children's Center, I work in the infant room. Their ages are from 6 weeks to 1 year. A Learner centered activity I use with them is, "Find the Animal". I will show them one of the small soft plastic animals we have and say over and over to them, the name of that animal. Then I will put it on the carpet and lay a recieving blanket over it and ask them, "Where is the (example) dog?" I will pick up the blanket and say, "There is the dog". After a few month's of doing this with different animals, I will see one of the children take the blanket off of the animal and try to say the name of the animal or say something like, "Der is".
Elements that knowledge-centered instruction should contain is:
1. Subject matter aligned with relevant standards.
2. Organized around ideas that matter to students.
3. Focused on information and activities that help learners develop an understanding of a subject or discipline.
4. It promotes learning about available resources and how to use them.
5. It produces knowledge and skills that are organized and connected.
Two types of assessments that should be included in assessment centered instruction is formative assessment and summative assessment. Formative assessment measures learning progress in order to encourage reflection and revision. Summative assessment is designed to measure the results of learning.
Community centeredness is important to student learning because it fosters values and norms that promote lifelong learning and it contributes to the aligning of students and instructors course expectations.
A community centered activity I've been involved in the past was the Cumberland Oratorio Singers. Often, the music we performed was in another language. We performed in the community.
Once a year the Educational Coordinator of our center evaluates the teachers. She will discuss with us at length about our evaluation. Throughout the year she guides us and comments on our instruction. The children I care for are not old enough to become self evaluative. I can assess their skills by observing them and writing the observations down. I put them in the Creative Curriculum online and I make new goals for them based on the observations.
Much of my information for my blog was found in our IRIS modules.
Sunday, January 16, 2011
Blog 1
Maybe I did it this time! "By George I think I've got it!" It's a miracle, I created a blog! or a monster! One of the two I'm sure.
Ah yes, my goals for this course would be to learn what podcasts, i-pods, i-pads, twitter and some other terms mean. I need to learn to copy and paste with ease, and learn to put pictures from a digital camera onto the computer. Most of all, I need to learn all I can about technology to better teach children.
This will be quite a challenge for me because I have avoided newer technology most of my life. I can basically use a cell phone, but have never text anyone. I have taken a few online courses, but some of the experiences made me want to throw the computer out of the window. (That's normal right?)
My first impressions for this course are that I'm a little overwhelmed and can see that this will be quite a challenge for me.
Ah yes, my goals for this course would be to learn what podcasts, i-pods, i-pads, twitter and some other terms mean. I need to learn to copy and paste with ease, and learn to put pictures from a digital camera onto the computer. Most of all, I need to learn all I can about technology to better teach children.
This will be quite a challenge for me because I have avoided newer technology most of my life. I can basically use a cell phone, but have never text anyone. I have taken a few online courses, but some of the experiences made me want to throw the computer out of the window. (That's normal right?)
My first impressions for this course are that I'm a little overwhelmed and can see that this will be quite a challenge for me.
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