How to Use Technology in the Classroom

Ennovy PachecoKenterra HaynesMegan FitzParickMelba ValdresNadeen Brown

July 15, 2013RDG/555

Jessica Carloni

Importance of Implementing Evidence-Based Technology

Ennovy:

Teenbiz 3000 is a new program is part of Achieve 3000

Program specifically geared to Middle school grades.

This program allows teachers to do an initial test on the

students to determine their reading capabilities. It also

selects stories that are specific to each students reading

level. The program is interactive in nature, and begins

with a poll question that then gives them an article for

them to further understand their poll quest. Then they

also have to respond in an email which goes to an email

directly to the teacher. This allows us to grasp whether

or not the student comprehend what they

read. TeenBiz3000 delivers differentiated instruction in

language arts, writing and technology (Newswire, 2004).

The site offers thousands of articles all leveled to their

reading capabilities. The questions and format allow

students to get into what they read and find a relevance

to it and as a result the students are motivated to read.

The system builds as they keep responding and teacher

have access to their performances and can schedule

assessment as they see fit.

Packaged curriculum Efficient use of available and/or limited resources Funders requesting use of EBIsCan be aligned with district policy requirements & health standards Can be used by facilitators with different skill levels Consistency and awareness of what teachers are teaching Familiarity with using evidence-based models

Kenterra’s

Melba’s

Check & Connect – is an

evidence-based intervention

designed to maintain school

engagement and reduce behavior

problem of middle and high

school students with learning,

emotional, and behavioral

disabilities.

Evidence-based practices or

interventions make “implementers

feel confident that the methods

they used will bring the desired,

positive outcomes for consumers”

(Cheney, et al, 2009), in this case,

the students.

“Evidence-based approaches

provide evidence for school-wide

change” (Cheney, et al, 2009).

Nadeen’sEvidence based interventions are actions that

have been proven successful through

outcome evaluations. Evidence based

interventions are intended to transport us

beyond our preconception and to improve the

effectiveness of what is done, how it is done,

and for whom it is designed.

In education the greatest problem that faces

adolescents have to do with comprehension

and literacy. Researchers have over time

discussed interventions that can be used to

address this issue. One such evidence based

intervention that has been used is the

Cooperative Integrated Reading and

Composition (CIRC) ("Institute Of Education

Sciences", 2010). The CIRC combines reading

and writing component and is designed for

students in grades 2 through 6. The main

characteristics of the CIRC are story-related

activities, direct instruction in reading

comprehension, and integrated language

arts/writing. This intervention program can

be used for either collaborative or small

group instruction.

Megan’s

Evidence-based interventions are varied and can be used

at any grade level. The process includes teaching and

reinforcing new skills for appropriate behavior – typically

in the elementary setting, my district calls these “teach-to”

moments. Actively teaching students social and

behavioral skills that are appropriate for that grade level

can make a huge difference. As educators, we have the

opportunity to provide moments that reinforces positive

behavior and work habits.

Modify classroom learning environment to decrease

problem behavior – look seriously at how your classroom

is set up, how students handle transition and whether or

not it can be done with minimal fuss. If any problem

behaviors continue, as educators we need to look at the

atmosphere our classroom is providing for the students.

Examples of Technology to Motivate and Engage Students

Ennovy: Digital portfolios have much to say about the changing nature of literacy"(Hicks, 2007), we are

constantly changing the way we teach because the information we use is in constant flux as well. In order

to be effective teachers we need to go with the times because otherwise we lose our students. I think that

eportfolios just modernize what we have been doing all along. We can evaluate by treating eportfolios like

a final draft. There should be no errors, thoughts should be clear and complete, ideas should transition

well into one another, and because I'm a visual learner pictures must correlate with journal topics.

KenterraMyon Reader is a technology based to that has a literacy solution that reinvents student reading. It

allows the student access thousands of award-winning digital books. Most of the readings are based on the students' interest and at their own levels. This technology based has content that offers word audio

that models fluency, sentence highlighting to allow the students to keep up with tracking, and has embedded dictionaries for every book to allow the students to find the meaning of words they do not

understand. Periodically, there are Lexile assessments where the teacher can evaluate the student growth. It measure the students' time on task reading the books, number of books read, and reading

growth. In my classroom this technology based tool is used to motivate my children during center time where the

students are able to read books based on a specific topic such as butterflies or Washington D.C. The students love also to use this on their spare time to just practice reading, and also to see how well they

do on the 5-10 question assessment at the end of the story. It allows the children to work on their comprehension skills. I use it for a RTI approach whole group with a graphic organizer and my children

really enjoy doing this.

Step Up to Writing ProgramThis approach to writing involves technology and writing. This program, though not computer based, allows for students to use a computer to write using multiple strategies for each phase of the writing process. The program is available for grades K-12 and in different content areas, not just in English.Assessment can be used for the class as a whole or for individual students. The program can be differentiated for each student in a classroom if necessary.

Write:OutLoud. Students with reading difficulties need interventions to prevent future reading failure. According to Gunning (2010), “computers are becoming literacy tools. Through adaptive technology, computers can be used to compensate for difficulties in reading and writing”(p.544). Write:OutLoud can assist students who are struggling in reading and writing. This easy-to-use tool has grammar and spell check features which allow students to catch and correct their mistakes. Students are able to hear what they wrote and identify components that are missed. Students become more enthusiastic about writing because this tool has characteristics that help them become successful in writing task.

Megan

Melba

EBooks- According to Vacca, Vacca, and Gove (2003) “eBooks are unlike any other electronical software. They are books that have been published in digital form. These books consist of text, images or both and are made readable on computers or other electronic devices. These books are described as containing “conventions associated with books such as table of contents, pages and even bookmarks.”EBooks’ are convenient in motivating and evaluating- content is visually presented to students.Easily manipulated assist in students engagement in readingeBooks are equipped with features that allow “strategies for decoding, fluency, and comprehension” (Castek, 2006).Learning Station- program designed to “Create and promote a balancedAssessment Program for the entire District with LearningStation Insight Assessment System. The LS Insight platform enables District administrators, specialists and even teachers across the District to develop and deliver standards-aligned Benchmark and Classroom Assessments to students, and then identify achievement gaps and monitor progress.”

Nadeen’s

Best Practices in Our Classroom

Ennovy’sAccelerated Reader –students check

out books of their liking and take a test after reading.

Teenbiz3000- students get to read articles on subjects that they like to

build their reading and comprehension skills. The site itself offers incentives to

the students from time to time. Discovery Education is an online source with a plethora of information that can be used for multiple purpose as notes,

introduction to a lesson, and reinforcement of a lesson.

Digital portfolios is a great way for students to use their technology skills

and reflect upon their work on a modern day level.

Kenterra’sDigital Games: use rules, goals & objectives,

outcomes & feedback, conflict/ competition/challenge/opposition,

interaction, and representation of story (Prenksy, 2001) or more simply, “Purposeful,

goal-oriented, rule-based activity that the players perceive as fun” (Klopfer, 2008).

They are distinguished by two key elements: (1) an interactive virtual playing

environment, and (2) the struggle of the player against some kind of opposition. Simulations: analogies] of a real world

situation*s+” (Prensky, 2001, p. 128), as they recreate a modeled or modified version of a

real world situation.Social Networking: allow the user to do it

all: post a profile, photos, videos, chat, blog, and connect with their peers through

individual bulletin boards, private groups and forums.(Klopfer, 2008)

MelbaTechnology should be used to supplement instruction and enhance and reinforce learning. Selection of educational software and hardware should be aligned to the learning

objectives ("Center for Instructional Development and Distance Education", 2010).

MeganModeration – everything in moderation. There can be a balance between

using technology to instruct and assess and still interacting with and guiding students into the learning process. Technology should not be in the place of

actual teaching but should be used to enhance it.Variety – there is a variety of applications, resources and technological

gadgets. This variety allows for an educator to reach more students than ever before. It allows for students to not only interact with the teacher but

also to see what they are working on (i.e. Smartboards). With the integration of technology we have the opportunity to appeal to many

learning styles and not just one at a time.

• Pair technology and assessment for learning within the group.•conduct an extensive needs analysis to inform content selection. •Identify and collect appropriate learning resources and initiate a web-presence for the course.•Design site to provide teacher /students with feedback on their learning (DeLuca, C., & McEwen, L. A. (2010)

Nadeen’s

References

Achieve3000 wins national software award for its differentiated instruction programs. (2004, Aug 23). PR Newswire. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/docview/451659782?accountid=458

Ash, K. (2011). E-portfolios Evolve Thanks to Web 2.0 Tools. Education Week, 4(3), 42-44. Retrieved from http://www.edweek.org/dd/articles/2011/06/15/03e-portfolio.h04.html

Barrett, H. (2005). White Paper: Researching Electronic Portfolios and Learner Engagement. Retrieved from http://electronicportfolios.org/reflect/whitepaper.pdf

Castek, J. (2006). Reading adventures online: Five ways to introduce the new literacies of the Internet through children's literature. Reading Teacher, 59(7), 714. doi:10.1598/RT.59.7.12

Center for Instructional Development and Distance Education. (2010). Retrieved from http://www.cidde.pitt.edu/ta-handbook/teaching-technology-1

Cheney, D., Stage, S., Hawken, L., et al (2009). A 2-Year Outcome Study of the Check, Connect, and Expect Intervention for Students At Risk for Severe Behavior Problems. Journal of Emotional and Behavioral Disorders .17(4). 226-243.

Cooperative Integrated Reading and Composition (2010). Retrieved from http://ies.ed.gov/ncee/wwc

DeLuca, C., & McEwen, L. A. (2010). Leveraging Technology to Promote Assessment for Learning in Higher Education. International Journal of Information Communication Technologies and Human Development (IJICTHD), 2(4), 42-54. doi:10.4018/jicthd.2010100104

Hicks, T., Russo, A., Autrey, T., Gardner, R., & al, e. (2007). Rethinking the purposes and processes for designing digital portfolios. Journal of Adolescent & Adult Literacy, 50(6), 450-458. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/docview/216917235?accountid=458

Implementing Project-Based Learning and E-Portfolio Assessment In an Undergraduate Course. (2006, Spring). Journal of Research on Technology in Education, 38(3), 309-327. Retrieved from http://elearning.qataracademy.wikispaces.net/file/view/57.pdf

LearningStation is K12 Formative Assessment and Testing." LearningStation is K12 Formative Assessment and Testing. N.p., n.d. Web. 13 July 2013. <http://www.learningstation.com/>.

Rodgers, W. Technology in the Classroom, http://www.shelbyed.k12.al.us/schools/rms/faculty/wrodgers/technology%20int/students.html

Using the Technology of Today, In the Classroom Today. (2009). The Education Arcade, (), . http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3

Vacca, J. l., Vacca, R. T., & Gove, M. K. (2003). Reading and learning to read (5th ed.). Boston, NY: Pearson Education

What Works Clearing House. (N.D.). Retrieved from http://ies.ed.gov/ncee/wwc/interventionreport.aspx?sid=11

What Works Clearinghouse. (2008). Reducing Behavior Problems in the Elementary Classroom. Retrieved from http://ies.ed.gov/ncee/wwc/PracticeGuide.aspx?sid=4