Final Project Paper

While drafting this final project all the content of this course came together seamlessly. I came to see a clear connection between the standards, NETS for both student and teacher, and the curriculum. The most important realization I had was that in order to fulfill any of them, everyone teacher must have a deep understanding on how to integrate all the different pieces to the curriculum.

 I really liked the idea the article mentioned of having an inventory of all the technological resource available to teachers at the school. This is something that I will most definitely be doing when I get a permanent teaching position because it will come in very handing while planning activities and writing lesson plans. If there is a technology teacher or specialist in the building, he or she would be of great help. Once all that data has been compiled, it is only a matter of filing it for easy access.

I selected a lesson plan for 9th grade Spanish on the climate that I had previously worked with in another class. Students would learn the vocabulary in Spanish to have a simple conversation about the weather. They would learn to say, for example, that the day is rainy, cloudy, cold, hot, sunny, etc. The first step was to create a Power Point presentation to introduce the new vocabulary to students and a brief simulated conversation about the weather between two Spanish speakers. Shortly after this, student would pair up for a written exercise and to practice pronunciation. I would then show them on Youtube a clip on a weather report in Spanish. They would use this model to create their own weather report in groups of three. After they organized their ideas and wrote the report, they would share it with the class. The homework was going to be to actually film the report and email it to the teacher.

The core curriculum standards were already listed in my previous lesson plan so I placed those in my first column. I then went in the website to look at NETS for Students to include in the first column as well. After that, I made an inventory of the strategies I had already listed for the lesson and placed them on column number two. That's when I realized that the majority of my strategies were teacher centered and that put students in a passive role. I think that this was particularly important because in order to be proficient in the use of technology, students have to actually do hands-on work rather than just see technology at work. Whereas I had parts of the lesson structured so that students were in touch with technology, they were merely being viewing technology rather than actively using it.

I chose to modify this flaw by having students produce a weather report of their own, present it to the class and later film the report as part of their homework. Looking at the NETS for both students and teachers made me constantly question if more could be done with the lesson to foster critical thinking, creativity and student's involvement with technology. I think all educators should be self reflective professionals and this activity helped me take a second look at a lesson plan I had already written and question how I could make better use of technology and also how to have the students play a more active role in their own learning.

After having the first two columns done, I just had to list all the technologies I would use to execute my lesson. There would be a computer and a Power Point presentation to open the lesson. I also put down a smart board because it would be helpful to organize the new vocabulary in a chart with images to display for students while they work on their assignments. If computers were available in the classroom, I would use those to have students type up their weather reports rather than hand writing them. Via internet, they would also have access to translators during the drafting process. To film the video for homework they would use either a camera phone, or a video recorder. Once they get the filming part done, they would just need email access to send the file to the teacher.

Overall, I had a really good experience working on this project. It put all the content of the course into action and perspective for me. I only had a bit of a technical problem adding the Spreadsheet to the blog. It took me forever to figure out how to do it! Once I finally figure it out, I felt so accomplished! 

Final Project

Reaction 

NetStorage

Most of us know that MSU offers NetDrive to all its students. You can save your files and open them up on any computer from the labs on campus. This is very useful, but most of us do our homework from our own computers and not from the labs on campus and need constant access to all our data.

I recently discovered that MSU also offers NetDrive to students. You can upload your files from home and open them from any computer with internet. I see a lot of students all the time with their flash drives at the labs printing their papers and other documents. I think NetDrive is a great way to store documents and to keep everything in one place. I spent almost one entire semester without a computer last year and this service would have helped me a lot, had I known it was available. Since everything is electronically stored, losing your flash drive or having your computer crash in the middle of the semester does not mean you will loose all your work.I am not sure if any middle schools or high schools offer this service, but it is the perfect for preventing loosing all your data.

For those of you who are not familiar with the service, here is a short video on How to access NetDrive.

Google Docs is also a very way to keep all your files together and prevent from losing them if anything happens to your computer.

The Advantages of Using Technology in Second Language Education

This week, while browsing through some applications of technology in the classroom, I came across this very interesting article. Read article here. Foreign language classrooms have undergone an extraordinary transformation as a result of technologies developed in the last century. This article goes over research studies done on the matter and briefly analyses the results. Television, radio, voice recording devices, and the internet have brought the target culture much closer to all foreign language learners. Students can watch foreign movies, browse works in foreign languages, and even make friends with native speakers in other countries. 

Recently programs like Rosetta Stone have given great result in language acquisition and made a lot of researchers re-evaluate their approach to foreign language instruction. In the middle of all this, foreign language teachers must look for meaningful and innovate ways to use technology to immerse students in the target language. One of the most interesting parts of the article stated that "technology integration in foreign language teaching demonstrates the shift in educational paradigms from a behavioral to a constructivist learning approach. Language is a living thing, so the best way to learn a language is in interactive, authentic environments.” Foreign language instruction has changed to emphasize communication. From this point of view, technology becomes a tool to enable that communication to happen. There is a human factor to language learning that I think it is not likely to be removed from the classrooms any time soon. 

The most amazing PowerPoint ever!

During my methods class, the professor demonstrated a brief lesson on the names of animals in Spanish to illustrate methodology and use of technology. This was a pretty basic topic, but we were talking about how to introduce vocabulary to students in innovative ways. A lot of us had agreed that using a PowerPoint presentation would be a good way to accomplish this but came up with similar and not so exciting presentations.
Before that day I would have said I considered to be pretty well versed in Microsoft Office. But then I saw the PowerPoint my professor had created. She presented the vocabulary in three different ways: the image of the animal, the actual word in bold and bright colors, and the sound of the animal in a little clip. I immediately wondered, how did she do that?? She had inserted a brief clip on how the animals sound! We were all amazed, which is very funny because it was so simple! One of the activities to check knowledge at the end of the brief lesson was to simply listen to the sound of the animals and identify which one it was. I thought this would be perfect for young children, but also very fun for older students.
I realized that in that moment that there are many simple ways to make learning fun with a lot of the programs and tools that we currently use, such as PowerPoint. At the end of the lesson I approached my professor and she showed me how to find and add the little clips to the PowerPoint. I had seen videos in PowerPoint, but never little clips like that. I think they can be very useful and they appeal to auditory learners.

Interactivity #5

I chose to interview a Spanish teacher from a charter school in the district of Newark. She teaches Spanish II, III and IV at high school level. I got the chance to do the interview after school and in person. I had observed her several times during the semester and her lessons were well rounded.  I had observed this teacher use PowerPoint to introduce new vocabulary and assign students small research projects in Spanish so it surprised me very much when Mrs. X stated that she was not too familiar with NETS for Students or for Teachers. She had heard them being mentioned before, of course, but could not give me a straight definition or description of what exactly it was.

She stated that the integrations of technology in her daily lessons came from the standards for World Languages. I found this response very strange because I had not seen many integrations of technology embedded in the standards. For my methods course at MSU I had to work very closely with the standards and I felt comfortably familiar with them. I did a little research and found few standards deal with technology and the one that do are very broad and superficial. In the intermediate low level, for example, which coincides with her Spanish III class, only the following standard make any reference to technology: 7.1.IL.B.1: Use digital tools to participate in short conversations and to exchange information related to targeted themes and 7.1.IL.C.1: Use knowledge about cultural products and cultural practices to create a multimedia-rich presentation on targeted themes to be shared virtually with a target language audience.

She mentioned her supervisors were starting to request that the teachers use technology available in the building for her lessons. She had to hand in her lessons for approval in advance to her supervisor, so they were actively being looked at for this. I think she might have been a little confused as far as the requirements of the standards themselves and NETS for students and teachers.

She also stated that at the beginning of the year they had a brief workshop on the technological resources available on the school. This of course does not include any practical application of those resources to different subject areas. They simply reminded all teachers of what they have at their disposition, for example, computer labs, televisions, projectors, etc.

I think at this point the transition in her particular school is coming down from the administration down and teachers may not be completely clear about their role in the transition. She is integrating technology in her classroom but she is receiving no support or feedback. After our brief interview I provided her with the websites for NETS for Students and Teachers so that she could educate herself a little more in the matter. She thanked me and promised she would look them over. I think she was a bit surprised by my questions but tried to answer as best as she could. As a future educator, I think it is very important that all educators realize the importance of NETS, its purpose and role in their curriculum. They foster critical thinking and creativity as well as prepare students for challenges they may encounter in the real world. The best way to accomplish this is to talk about it! Seasoned and new teachers as well as administrators need to have discussions about the role that technology has in their classroom and any potential room for improvement.


Here is the new version of my spreadsheet

Professional Development

Professional development is key to staying competitive in today's job market. Doctors, engineers, managers, and many other professionals undergo constant training to keep their skills up to date and brush up some skills they already have. I work at a bank part time and this is something all employees do periodically.

During the readings for this course it has been pointed out that it is important for teachers to keep up with the fast moving world of technology and all of the resources available for instruction. Why is it then that teachers are not given the time, tools and support needed to reflect on how can they use technology in innovative and creative ways to support their curriculum? Not one of the teachers that I have observed on known has received any training on how to make technology meaningful and integrate it with the curriculum. I think this is a conundrum because teachers are expected to use skills that they never formally acquired in many cases.

Unfortunately, many teachers who are interested in professional development end up paying big bucks out of pocket to attend workshops like this one. For a convenient fee of $595, teachers can walk out of there with many ways to enhance their every day instruction. Many students can potentially benefit of having more knowledgeable teachers and a one day seminar or workshop can often do that. I think that schools districts need to make time for teacher's professional development, specially in the area of technology. In addition, I also think it is important to make this training relevant to your particular subject area! That is one of the things that caught my eye about that seminar: it was focused on use of technology on foreign language. I think very often broad generalizations about the use of technology can be vague.
This might of course be entirely too much to ask for, but everyone expects a lot out of teachers.

Apps for Spanish Education

Working on Interactivity #3 was a very enriching experience because it brought a lot of resources to my attention that I did not even imagine could ever exist, but that was only the beginning.
I am currently tutoring a few Spanish students and suggested that they look for apps in their phones and/or tablets to help them learn and review "on the go." I thought it would be a good way to take learning outside of the classroom and also make it a little fun. When asked what apps would I recommend, I could honestly not give a straight answer. I did not know any!!
That's when I decided to research the available foreign language learning apps on the market. I came across this very interesting blog that has compiled and categorized a great list based on the feedback on their readers! Take a look at the page here. I liked it a lot because they were all for teaching Spanish and designed with cultural context, which is extremely important while teaching any language. I already checked some of the apps out and will definitively be sharing them with my students and their parents soon.
In addition to providing a great inventory of apps, the article also briefly discusses the problems with increased technology settings as more schools are fostering the permanent integration of technology in the classrooms. The presence of technology in the classroom does not immediately guarantee meaningful and authentic learning, but it can make it more interactive and fun.

Interactivity #4

Lesson Plan
Spreadsheet

I picked this particular lesson plan because I thought it was well structured and it used authentic material (the video clip) to work with the topic. It is very important that students be exposed to authentic material in foreign language classrooms because they reflect real world language experiences. The video and students comprehension of it was essential for the lesson. The overall objectives of the lesson were very clear and the worksheets was not merely generic information. Both worksheets pertained to personal student information that they could share in their small groups and with the entire class. Students had to be able to tell the time, but also to use it and recognize it on every day conversations. In order to perform the tasks assigned, students had to work in groups and this fosters cooperative learning. I thought it was a very solid lesson plan and I would only change one thing. I would have a very brief PowerPoint at the beginning of the lesson with the information in the “Viewing Guide.” A couple of oral review exercises would be great before embarking in this lesson and a way to catch student’s attention. Perhaps having a map of Latin America and Spain at the end of the PowerPoint and telling what time it is in different major cities would be ideal. If a smartboard is available, that could also be a great quick and concise way to review the previous material.

Access to Technology

Until I got to high school I had little experience with technology in the classroom. There was one computer laboratory for the entire school. Computer class would take place once a week. It was very exciting to walk into the room and get to play with the computer for a period. There were no projectors, computers, or any fancy gadget in my classrooms...just chalk and a blackboard.
Nowadays this is very different. Most schools are equipped with multiple computer laboratories and some even have at least one computer on each classroom for the teacher to use. Projectors are at the disposition of the teacher and the traditional blackboard has started to be replaced with the fancy smart-board. In a matter of a couple of years the presence of technology in the classroom and in the lives of children seems to be ubiquitous. This has many benefits, of course, but let's not forget that technology is, after all, a commodity and that it can be very expensive. What happens if you are teaching in an urban, low income area where not all of your students have access to a computer and internet from home? Some students feel self conscious and might not even tell the teacher about their situation. They continually show up to class without certain research assignments done and you start wondering why. Some parents even attempt to limit the amount of exposure their children have to technology by cutting down on television and computer time. Technology is everywhere, but we have to remember that it may not accessible to everyone the same way.

I think in order to make myself aware of individual student’s situation and know what tools they can access, I would simply give a short survey at the beginning of term to find out if all students have access to a computer, the internet, a printer, etc. Based on the results I would know if certain students need accommodations to be made and what kind of help they would need from me, if any.

Interactivity#3

Incorporating technology into the curriculum is going to be one of the main tasks of the modern teacher and doing so in a meaningful way can present a challenge, especially for those teachers that receive little to no training on the subject. Researching technologies on my content area and putting together the inventory definitely helped to raise my awareness on different tools that can be innovative and revolutionary in foreign language classrooms. On other education classes I'm being asked to write lesson plans that must include use of technology in an authentic and meaningful way. I can use this inventory as a reference guide. It will be very helpful. On another hand, this project also made me realize how little previous knowledge I had about all these tools as a student and also as a future teacher. In an ever more globalised and competitive world, it is important for teachers to keep up with the times and utilize technology in an innovate way in the classrooms.

Technology Today's Classrooms

I came across this video today and I really liked it. I think it gives technology its righteous importance in and out of the classroom but it does not ignore its negative side effects. It includes the good, the bad and the ugly. Everything from increased participation and inclusion in the classroom to cyber bullying through social media and the techno-cheating. Over the past two decades classrooms have been transformed by the presence of computers and the Internet but what many people fail to realize is that computers are not a magical pill that will make every student learn. We still have many teachers in the classrooms that are not as well versed in technology as they should be, or that may not know how to best use the technological resources they do have to the best of its potential. Teachers are expected to use technology in the classrooms but few are even given proper training or workshops.
In the readings for interactivity #2 it was mentioned that the technology fever that came across the education field upon the invention of the television and the radio. Teachers were encouraged to use the devices in their classrooms (even if it was with no intrinsic educational value). The people making decisions about what would be present in the classroom were not teachers and had no idea how these devices could be used in a classroom.
I feel like nowadays we are all racing to see who has the latest technology, but don't really question to often what is being done with it in the classrooms. All the teachers in the video seemed expert at using all these devices and had very interesting applications going on. In all my years of education, I’ve never had a teacher use technology in a purposeful and unconventional way. I wonder what kind of impact that would have had in my learning. It also makes me think about what kind of technologies I can bring to the classroom that could benefit my students in a meaningful way.

Interactivity #2