A copy of the blog posts will be supportive documentation for
the Collegial Circle.
After reading an article/s, please respond to the following questions:
1. What are some of the central ideas discussed in the articles? What issues or ideas do the authors explore? Are they personal, sociological, global, political, economic, spiritual, medical, or scientific?
2. Do the issues affect your life? How so—directly, on a daily basis, or more generally? Now or sometime in the future?
3. What are the implications for the future? Are there long- or short-term consequences to the issues raised in the article? Are they positive or negative...affirming or frightening?
4. What solutions do the authors propose? Are the authors recommendations concrete, sensible, doable? Who would implement those solutions?
VERY IMPORTANT!:
After participating in the Collegial Circle, please respond to the following “final outcome” questions. Your feedback will help in submitting the Final Outcome statement for PD approval. These are the questions the RCSD requires to approve individual hours:
1. How did your work within this Collegial Learning Circle impact teaching/learning? Include implementation samples; student work samples, lesson plans, observations, peer reviews, etc.
2.Provide evidence that as a result of this professional learning you have improved/enhanced your practice and more effectively addressed student learning.
3. Provide evidence that this experience has had an impact on student learning and achievement has increased.
The article "Accommodations, Modifications and Intervention at a distance" accurately describes the issues faced during this present crisis. I hear from my colleagues in special education who struggle to provide the services their students need. I have to deal with it as well (how do I provide a scribe for an online AP exam?). As this continues until the end of the year and potentially through summer school and even next year what we do will need to be adjusted to the situation. Students have a need for these accommodations. They have a right to them. Implementing them is the issue. The biggest take away from the article in my mind is flexibility of the educator in implementing the accommodations etc. due to the present situation. In the future, when writing IEPs and 504 plans the issue of distance learning need to be taken into account. As we (teachers and students) adapt, the accommodations need to adapt as well.
ReplyDeleteEvan Wilson
1. What is the central idea discussed in the article? What issues or ideas does the author explore? Are they personal, sociological, global, political, economic, spiritual, medical, or scientific
ReplyDeletea. To formulate a plan to effectively teach students with an IEP, during distance learning.
b. The role of the teacher, parent, and student
c. Scientific
2. Do the issues affect your life? How so—directly, on a daily basis, or more generally? Now or sometime in the future?
a. Yes
b. I teach students
c. Now and in the future
3. What are the implications for the future? Are there long- or short-term consequences to the issues raised in the article? Are they positive or negative...affirming or frightening?
a. Yes
b. Both
c. Both
4. What solutions does the author propose? Are the author's recommendations concrete, sensible, doable? Who would implement those solutions
a. Working with parents
b. Yes, in a perfect world
c. The teacher
What Would Socrates Say?
ReplyDelete1. What is the central idea discussed in the article? What issues or ideas does the author explore? Are they personal, sociological, global, political, economic, spiritual, medical, or scientific
a. How do we learn in a modern world
b. The role electronics and understanding
c. Scientific
2. Do the issues affect your life? How so—directly, on a daily basis, or more generally? Now or sometime in the future?
a. Yes
b. I teach students
c. Now and in the future
3. What are the implications for the future? Are there long- or short-term consequences to the issues raised in the article? Are they positive or negative...affirming or frightening?
a. yes because the world is changing
b. Both
c. Both
4. What solutions does the author propose? Are the author's recommendations concrete, sensible, doable? Who would implement those solutions
a. Overhaul the school system
b. Yes, in a perfect world
c. society
Cell phone addiction and psychological and physiological health in adolescents
ReplyDelete1. What is the central idea discussed in the article? What issues or ideas does the author explore? Are they personal, sociological, global, political, economic, spiritual, medical, or scientific
a. Cell phone addiction
b. The role electronics
c. Scientific
2. Do the issues affect your life? How so—directly, on a daily basis, or more generally? Now or sometime in the future?
a. Yes
b. I teach students
c. Now and in the future
3. What are the implications for the future? Are there long- or short-term consequences to the issues raised in the article? Are they positive or negative...affirming or frightening?
a. Interesting, because the article is now outdated, in the time of covid we are actually forcing students to use the internet more.
b. Both
c. Both
4. What solutions does the author propose? Are the author's recommendations concrete, sensible, doable? Who would implement those solutions
a. More studies, less phone use
b. Yes, in a perfect world
c. society
Your child’s brain on technology: cell phones
ReplyDelete1. What is the central idea discussed in the article? What issues or ideas does the author explore? Are they personal, sociological, global, political, economic, spiritual, medical, or scientific
a. Cell phone addiction, radiation risk
b. The role electronics
c. Scientific
2. Do the issues affect your life? How so—directly, on a daily basis, or more generally? Now or sometime in the future?
a. Yes
b. I teach students
c. Now and in the future
3. What are the implications for the future? Are there long- or short-term consequences to the issues raised in the article? Are they positive or negative...affirming or frightening?
a. Interesting, because the article is now outdated, in the time of covid we are actually forcing students to use the internet more.
b. Both
c. Both
4. What solutions does the author propose? Are the author's recommendations concrete, sensible, doable? Who would implement those solutions
a. More studies, less phone use
b. Yes, in a perfect world
c. society
How Do Smartphones Affect Childhood Psychology?
ReplyDelete1. What is the central idea discussed in the article? What issues or ideas does the author explore? Are they personal, sociological, global, political, economic, spiritual, medical, or scientific
a. Cell phone addiction, children need face to face to learn
b. The role electronics
c. Scientific
2. Do the issues affect your life? How so—directly, on a daily basis, or more generally? Now or sometime in the future?
a. Yes
b. I teach students
c. Now and in the future
3. What are the implications for the future? Are there long- or short-term consequences to the issues raised in the article? Are they positive or negative...affirming or frightening?
a. Interesting, because the article is now outdated, in the time of covid we are actually forcing students to use the internet more.
b. Both
c. Both
4. What solutions does the author propose? Are the author's recommendations concrete, sensible, doable? Who would implement those solutions
a. More studies, less phone use
b. Yes, in a perfect world
c. Society
5. Not addressed in the questions, but one of the recommendations is to” Limit screen use to one or two hours a day. This includes smartphones, TV, computers, etc”, not happening for the last 9 weeks
TECHNOLOGY AND STUDENT DISTRACTION
ReplyDelete1. What is the central idea discussed in the article? What issues or ideas does the author explore? Are they personal, sociological, global, political, economic, spiritual, medical, or scientific
a. Technology and student distraction- a joke today
b. The role electronics
c. Scientific
2. Do the issues affect your life? How so—directly, on a daily basis, or more generally? Now or sometime in the future?
a. Yes
b. I teach students
c. Now and in the future
3. What are the implications for the future? Are there long- or short-term consequences to the issues raised in the article? Are they positive or negative...affirming or frightening?
a. Interesting, because the article is now outdated, in the time of covid we are actually forcing students to use the internet more.
b. Both
c. Both
4. What solutions does the author propose? Are the author's recommendations concrete, sensible, doable? Who would implement those solutions
a. Use the technology more effectively
b. Yes, in a perfect world
c. Society
Dealing with digital distraction
ReplyDelete1. What is the central idea discussed in the article? What issues or ideas does the author explore? Are they personal, sociological, global, political, economic, spiritual, medical, or scientific
a. Technology and student distraction- a joke today
b. The role electronics
c. Scientific
2. Do the issues affect your life? How so—directly, on a daily basis, or more generally? Now or sometime in the future?
a. Yes
b. I teach students
c. Now and in the future
3. What are the implications for the future? Are there long- or short-term consequences to the issues raised in the article? Are they positive or negative...affirming or frightening?
a. Interesting, because the article is now outdated, in the time of covid we are actually forcing students to use the internet more.
b. Both
c. Both
4. What solutions does the author propose? Are the author's recommendations concrete, sensible, doable? Who would implement those solutions
a. Use the technology more effectively
b. Yes, in a perfect world
c. Society
CELL PHONES IN THE CLASSROOM: LEARNING TOOL OR DISTRACTION
ReplyDelete1. What is the central idea discussed in the article? What issues or ideas does the author explore? Are they personal, sociological, global, political, economic, spiritual, medical, or scientific
a. Technology and student distraction- (not relevant, from Canada-not a real country)
b. The role cell phones in the classroom
c. Scientific
2. Do the issues affect your life? How so—directly, on a daily basis, or more generally? Now or sometime in the future?
a. Yes
b. I teach students
c. Now and in the future
3. What are the implications for the future? Are there long- or short-term consequences to the issues raised in the article? Are they positive or negative...affirming or frightening?
a. Interesting, because the article is now outdated, in the time of covid we are actually forcing students to use the internet more.
b. Both
c. Both
4. What solutions does the author propose? Are the author's recommendations concrete, sensible, doable? Who would implement those solutions
a. No easy answers
b. Yes, in a perfect world
c. Society
Schools Say No to Cellphones in Class. But Is It a Smart Move?
ReplyDelete1. What is the central idea discussed in the article? What issues or ideas does the author explore? Are they personal, sociological, global, political, economic, spiritual, medical, or scientific
a. Technology and student distraction- is it smart to an them
b. The role cell phones in the classroom
c. Scientific
2. Do the issues affect your life? How so—directly, on a daily basis, or more generally? Now or sometime in the future?
a. Yes
b. I teach students
c. Now and in the future
3. What are the implications for the future? Are there long- or short-term consequences to the issues raised in the article? Are they positive or negative...affirming or frightening?
a. Interesting, because the article is now outdated, in the time of covid we are actually forcing students to use the internet more.
b. Both
c. Both
4. What solutions does the author propose? Are the author's recommendations concrete, sensible, doable? Who would implement those solutions
a. No easy answers
b. Yes, in a perfect world
c. Society
Teaching Through a Pandemic: A Mindset for This Moment
ReplyDelete1. What is the central idea discussed in the article? What issues or ideas does the author explore? Are they personal, sociological, global, political, economic, spiritual, medical, or scientific
a. Finally a relevant article- teaching in a pandemic
b. How do we do this
c. sociological
2. Do the issues affect your life? How so—directly, on a daily basis, or more generally? Now or sometime in the future?
a. Yes
b. I teach students
c. Now and in the future
3. What are the implications for the future? Are there long- or short-term consequences to the issues raised in the article? Are they positive or negative...affirming or frightening?
a. Too soon to tell.
b. Both
c. Both
4. What solutions does the author propose? Are the author's recommendations concrete, sensible, doable? Who would implement those solutions
a. No easy answers
b. Yes, in a perfect world
c. Society
How schools are missing a chance to try something new during the pandemic
ReplyDelete1. What is the central idea discussed in the article? What issues or ideas does the author explore? Are they personal, sociological, global, political, economic, spiritual, medical, or scientific
a. Finally a relevant article- teaching in a pandemic
b. New roles, allow teachers to teach
c. sociological
2. Do the issues affect your life? How so—directly, on a daily basis, or more generally? Now or sometime in the future?
a. Yes
b. I teach students
c. Now and in the future
3. What are the implications for the future? Are there long- or short-term consequences to the issues raised in the article? Are they positive or negative...affirming or frightening?
a. Too soon to tell.
b. Both
c. Both
4. What solutions does the author propose? Are the author's recommendations concrete, sensible, doable? Who would implement those solutions
a. Trust teachers
b. Yes, in a perfect world
c. Society
On the Use of Cell Phones and Other Electronic Devices in the Classroom: Evidence From a Survey of Faculty and Students
ReplyDelete1. What is the central idea discussed in the article? What issues or ideas does the author explore? Are they personal, sociological, global, political, economic, spiritual, medical, or scientific
a. An incredibly long article-students and teachers have different goals
b. Outdated information
c. sociological
2. Do the issues affect your life? How so—directly, on a daily basis, or more generally? Now or sometime in the future?
a. Yes
b. I teach students
c. Now and in the future
3. What are the implications for the future? Are there long- or short-term consequences to the issues raised in the article? Are they positive or negative...affirming or frightening?
a. Too soon to tell.
b. Both
c. Both
4. What solutions does the author propose? Are the author's recommendations concrete, sensible, doable? Who would implement those solutions
a. Ten years ago, teachers and students viewed cellphone usage differently
b. Not relevant
c. Society
Accommodations, Modifications, and Intervention at a Distance:
ReplyDeleteMissing the interactions that are key x factor to learning and I am not seeing many things that are addressing this point.
What Would Socrates say :
“They assume that disorganized, radically democratized data lead to useful information and thus to real knowledge through some process of collective, randomized, constant connectivity. This argument rests on the premise that we learn best through data collection without the burdens of judgment and discernment. From an epistemological point of view, this is a highly questionable hypothesis. Learning requires stable, flexible cognitive frameworks and consistent forms of adaptive assessment.
In opposition are the skeptics, such as Mark Bauerlein, who argues in his book The Dumbest Generation (Penguin, 2008) that this incessant communication is really a complex manifestation of miscommunication that does not lead to intellectual growth, but rather to a stunting of genuine intellectual development.”
I think this is the key dichotomy that exists, information is great, people don’t know what to do with the information. They don't know how to parse and source the information.
Cell phone addiction and psychological and physiological health in adolescents
We have seen this research before, but with ANY new tech there simply hasnt been enough time passed for it to normalize and make a long term study,
Brian Gallagher
DeleteCell phone addiction and psychological and physiological health in adolescents
ReplyDeleteAddiction? I wonder if that word is being thrown around to freely. Sure there are aspects of it that look like addiction but in most cases I am not sure ir rises to harmful to self behavior.
Your child’s brain on technology: cell phones
Distracted driving is a real problem but is is vastly different than the distractions of the past. A curfew is a good idea for some down time, but again I question the use of the word addiction. The radiation section of this article makes me question the entire article. There is very little hard science that the radiation from cell phones is harmful. People also thought that electricity was harmful when it was invented as well.
How Do Smartphones Affect Childhood Psychology?
This raises good points about the development of language and learning. Again the radiation discussion with NO hard science. The discussion of radiation with no link followed by a paragraph about the frontal lobe is misleading at best.
TECHNOLOGY AND STUDENT DISTRACTION
Technology is distracting if the students would otherwise be distracted. Does it make it easier to be distracted? Maybe, but attention is not magicly shifted away from schoolwork once a electronic is used, it is a question of motivation.
--Brian Gallagher
Dealing with digital distraction
ReplyDeleteI have always liked the idea of tech breaks. I think of it as a snack break. It gives the student a block of focus time because they do not have to be thinking of checking their tech, they know when the check happens. I am not sure this is a solution for teens.
CELL PHONES IN THE CLASSROOM: LEARNING TOOL OR DISTRACTION
With all the cons listed here and with no real control of the device, there can be no expectation for the students being on task. When I use chromebooks, I lock them down to only what the students need. THey are on task because they can’t wander from the task.
Schools Say No to Cellphones in Class. But Is It a Smart Move?
Again, with no controls that a school can place on a student’s phone a ban is really the only way to make sure that the distraction (or bullying) from phone use does not take place.
Teaching Through a Pandemic: A Mindset for This Moment
Transfering what we do to online is not the end of the job. Since we are working at home, we are never not at work. It is difficult to find a balance because the physical seperation no longer exists.
How schools are missing a chance to try something new during the pandemic
I am REALLY skeptical of the cult of the new and the phrase “new normal.” THat being said if changes are teacher lead focused on improvement and not budget things could improve. I think the reality is that many students are not participating in online learning.
--Brian Gallagher
Jung
ReplyDeleteWe take for granted that school is the ‘same’ for all students. Even when students are able to learn in the physical school building we know that this isn’t true. The current state of school closure only widens the gap for all learners, but especially for those students needing interventions. The Jung article highlights essential questions that educators need to be asking during this unprecedented time, such as “How do we provide special services to students, not just for a few days, but for weeks and months.”
The answer may lie in the distinction in remote learning versus online school. While online school poses that the education only occurs within the internet, remote learning opens the the constraints of the web to include more interpersonal connection. Examples of which are videoconferencing, phone calls, etc.
The complexities of remote learning are vast and deepens the achievement gap as well. In my own teaching I have tried to encourage students to keep their camera on, however I can’t presume to know what their household situation is and it could be more conducive to learning with the camera off for that particular child.
Within all the modifications currently under the teacher’s control, at this point relationships, communication and understanding are some of our best assets. My son is 6 and the teacher has been doing class zooms with the full class. The zooms take about an hour, they don’t engage him much as students are asked to do a show and share about a toy. These are tough for him to sit through. It would likely be better with just a small group of students, perhaps 3 and 4 that yield more relationship building.
Jung emphasizes that at this time to focus on what is most important. This is not the time to force curriculum down throats but that the time to understand, connect, be consistently open, and think outside the box on how to serve all students.
-Elana Herman
Cookson
ReplyDeleteGoogle is most arguably the most frequented base of knowledge for anyone in today’s world. When you want the answer to a particular issue or problem, one may ask google in the matter of seconds, without even having to open a browser.
While this access may be a useful tool, it should not replace thinking. Knowledge is more than trivia and requires work, questioning and more than mere memorization.
Even further, the article suggests that Google may be detrimental to individualism. While Google exists on the web in a social sphere, individual discovery may be left out of the learning equation. The author, Cookson uses the quote from Socrates to connect this idea at the onset of the piece, “I know nothing except that fact of my own ignorance”.
The accepting of what Google tells one as a fact or absolute truth is flawed, yet so many of us do this everyday without question. The need for empirical knowledge still exists to yield context and understanding, and experts are in short supply. Gov. Cuomo demonstrated this at a recent press conference where he enlisted the expertise of Samir Bhatt to help analyze data to assist in NY’s re-opening process. This type of necessary expertise is essential to our lives given the current crisis, and certainly is not something that one could simply “Google”.
The idea of what is fact or true also is driven by the fast paced digital world in a false narrative. Short articles or video clips, scrolling headlines are fragments of information that do not exist on a peer reviewed platform. One cannot simply accept all data as it bombards us from every direction, rather the need for a collection of different facts, experiments and opinions are a more fruitful approach.
-Elana Herman
Shoukat
ReplyDeleteThe article “Cell Phone Addiction and psychological and physiological health in Adolescents” by Sehar Shoukout is a wake up call concerning teens and cellphones. Of course, many schools of thought have connected the dots between cell phone addiction and negative mental/physical health issues, as any teacher or parent (hopefully general human) will be able to tell you that too much cell phone usage is a bad thing.
While I found this article to be a bit dated, the need for the ongoing study and caution of the implications of cell phones and teens is in great need. Further, there should be conversations surrounding balance and positive habits in managing usage. While this particular article was focused on cell phones/mobile devices, the larger issue should include screen usage as a whole. Society is dependent on screens as entertainment, socialization, education to name a few, is it any wonder we are addicted?
From a teaching standpoint, there has been a huge difference once students began turning in their phones. As a collector, I have seen the attitude of students handing on their phones be akin to a bell curve—there were outliers on both ends of the spectrum, with most student attitudes in the middle. Some students were consistently belligerent, but not many. Some students were happy to be rid of the burden, and gladly turned over their phone, and as previously mentioned most students were neutral in their attitude. We can use this as a sample population that there is hope for change from the negative affects of screen usage when limitations are put in place. In my classroom, removing the distraction of the cell phone has had undoubtably a positive outcome on classroom focus, and I commend the administration for taking this step in assisting both students and teachers.
Shoukout’s article brings up some good points although my personal opinion is that you don’t need numerous research studies to know that cell phones are a trigger for kids.
-Elana Herman
1. What are some of the central ideas discussed in the articles? What issues or ideas do the authors explore? Are they personal, sociological, global, political, economic, spiritual, medical, or scientific?
ReplyDeleteThe articles touch on personal, sociological, global, economic, medical and scientific topics. The central ideas all have to do with learning and technology and the pros and cons. They touch on the mental health of students and teachers. There are anecdotes and suggestions from teachers in other countries who have been doing distant, remote and online learning longer. There are the economic inequalities that families are facing. The medical and scientific data on how technology can challenge mental health and overall general health.
2. Do the issues affect your life? How so—directly, on a daily basis, or more generally? Now or sometime in the future?
These issues affect our daily life due to the shift in how teaching and learning occurs now and in the future.
3. What are the implications for the future? Are there long- or short-term consequences to the issues raised in the article? Are they positive or negative...affirming or frightening?
There are pros and cons to the use of technology and remote learning. The negative long term effects on students' mental health are frightening.
4. What solutions do the authors propose? Are the authors recommendations concrete, sensible, doable? Who would implement those solutions?
I like the idea of limiting screen time and carving out time and really dedicating time to be present and undistracted. I also like the idea of creating boundaries so that work doesn’t engulf your entire day and evening creating burnout.
1. How did your work within this Collegial Learning Circle impact teaching/learning? Include implementation samples; student work samples, lesson plans, observations, peer reviews, etc.
It has really made me be mindful of how we need to be more patient and flexible with instruction and how teaching and learning is changing.
2.Provide evidence that as a result of this professional learning you have improved/enhanced your practice and more effectively addressed student learning.
It has helped me to remember to not just focus on the work that has to be accomplished but also how we are all doing and navigating this big shift in the landscape of teaching and learning.
3. Provide evidence that this experience has had an impact on student learning and achievement has increased.
Students have the ability to complete assignments when it works best for them. Students who were struggling with peer interactions have found accomplishing assignments less stressful because they don’t have peer distraction. I have some students really explore sculptural interests and flourish exploring techniques and materials we wouldn’t have had as much time to focus on during traditional school.
1. What are some of the central ideas discussed in the articles? What issues or ideas do the authors explore? Are they personal, sociological, global, political, economic, spiritual, medical, or scientific?
ReplyDeleteThe articles touch on personal, sociological, global, economic, medical and scientific topics. The central ideas all have to do with learning and technology and the pros and cons. They touch on the mental health of students and teachers. There are anecdotes and suggestions from teachers in other countries who have been doing distant, remote and online learning longer. There are the economic inequalities that families are facing. The medical and scientific data on how technology can challenge mental health and overall general health.
2. Do the issues affect your life? How so—directly, on a daily basis, or more generally? Now or sometime in the future?
These issues affect our daily life due to the shift in how teaching and learning occurs now and in the future.
3. What are the implications for the future? Are there long- or short-term consequences to the issues raised in the article? Are they positive or negative...affirming or frightening?
There are pros and cons to the use of technology and remote learning. The negative long term effects on students' mental health are frightening.
4. What solutions do the authors propose? Are the authors recommendations concrete, sensible, doable? Who would implement those solutions?
I like the idea of limiting screen time and carving out time and really dedicating time to be present and undistracted. I also like the idea of creating boundaries so that work doesn’t engulf your entire day and evening creating burnout.
1. How did your work within this Collegial Learning Circle impact teaching/learning? Include implementation samples; student work samples, lesson plans, observations, peer reviews, etc.
It has really made me be mindful of how we need to be more patient and flexible with instruction and how teaching and learning is changing.
2.Provide evidence that as a result of this professional learning you have improved/enhanced your practice and more effectively addressed student learning.
It has helped me to remember to not just focus on the work that has to be accomplished but also how we are all doing and navigating this big shift in the landscape of teaching and learning.
3. Provide evidence that this experience has had an impact on student learning and achievement has increased.
Students have the ability to complete assignments when it works best for them. Students who were struggling with peer interactions have found accomplishing assignments less stressful because they don’t have peer distraction. I have some students really explore sculptural interests and flourish exploring techniques and materials we wouldn’t have had as much time to focus on during traditional school.- Kae Lim Willams
Merrill
ReplyDeleteEntering the space of this sudden shift to remote learning requires a shift in the mindset of teaching. Teachers tout themselves on being flexible, displaying a myriad of approaches and differentiation yet this is different. This brings a new meaning to holistic teaching—mind, body, spirit and space.
Merill offers a realistic pragmatic approach peppered in with small precedents of advice set from teachers across the world in China and Italy that have been a few more weeks in than us. Themes that this is bigger than us, there is no formula of what will or can work and expect errors as the accepted path are helpful when broaching online learning. There is no one measure of success for student or teacher-although a key piece is relationship, contact and communication paramount, even above curriculum.
In my transition to remote learning I am banking on several factors, one of which has proven to be most useful. The relationship with the family that I had prior to school closure. Investing in families while we were in school and building relationships has been keeping many of my students afloat. They can see me as someone who works with families and embraces the difficult situation and that propels us forward in some way. I am also able to celebrate the small victories in online learning. One 7th grader had her instrument so out of tune and through a zoom session I was able to explain and be there while I gave the student direction on what needed be done. It felt great to be able to help a student not only for her but for myself as well. There have been office hours where maybe only a few students show up and these small victories make the disappointments all the more bearable.
Merill does not add to the litany of techniques, opinions or approaches best suited to online learning. Instead of preaching answers, he lets the issue sit. He gives it the space and reflection it deserves and leads the reader to hypothesize for him/herself. We will write the future of this through time, trial and error, with -- as Merrill puts hidden in the subtext—many, many errors before we get it right.
-Elana Herman
Mandel
ReplyDeleteBethany Mandel’s piece “Distance Learning isn’t working” Goes against her own thoughts of what distance learning should be. Mandel is essentially on a mom rant of what I’m not really sure since she contradicts herself right from the title. Mandel herself, is a homeschool mother who has in her recent weeks been “giving pep talks to girlfriends”. I can’t speak to the effectiveness of her pep talks to said girlfriends, however if this is a pep talk it’s lost on me. Mandel herself has home schooled her children, and has even taken the step reaping the benefits of ‘...reading about educational theory and philosophy and best practices” because we all know that it’s best to read about this without the benefit of experience or real world implementation.
Mandel seems to think of school as dishing out curriculum and knowledge that prepares kids for life, yet she misses out on what many homeschool parents (I’ve had experience with a few) seem to forget. That is, schools provide socialization. Schools have an inherent social structure embedded in the hallways and relationships. Mandel states “…baking can teach math, science and home economics. Sitting on the couch reading Charlottes Web to kids…counts as school”. If this counts as school, it counts as the most basic, bare bones model of what a school community is. It makes me wonder, did she (Mandel) ever have a special bond with a teacher? Was she ever inspired by a teacher to reach for her dreams? Sitting on the couch reading Charlotte’s Web is all well and good but it does not make those key connections.
-Elana Herman
In addition to the summaries I posted above, these are the direct answers to the questions posted.
ReplyDelete1.The central themes are related to how technology affects people. Some of the arguments are science based and some are not. The issue as I see it is a disagreement over the severity of the problems that people are having with technology usage. Some people think that it can be managed and some believe it rises to the level of addiction. It seems the research says that the conclusion is written yet as not enough data is available.
2.I am affected both personally and professionally. As a teacher, students’ attention can be drawn away by technology. It is easy to use and gain access to entertainment whenever they want to. It also allows for easy communication with people, even ones not in the room. Competition with technology can be difficult. Personally, I have my own children that struggle to limit their technology use. They need guidance and clear set boundaries of how much time is good and what activities are useful and not time wasters.
3.This is where my skeptic side takes over. There are more than a few articles that are pretty alarmist and call for a total ban in school and even some that view use as an addiction. The scientific articles are more cautious about making that conclusion.
4.Most of the authors recommend a technology limit. They have a range from total ban to technology breaks throughout the day. Implementing these usually require everyone to be involved.
-Brian Gallagher
Delete1. What are some of the central ideas discussed in the articles? What issues or ideas do the authors explore? Are they personal, sociological, global, political, economic, spiritual, medical, or scientific?
ReplyDeleteThe central ideas of the articles is how technology is affecting the lives of individuals and how we are in trying to figure out how to respond to changes in the 21st century. It is a mix of these aspects.
2. Do the issues affect your life? How so—directly, on a daily basis, or more generally? Now or sometime in the future?
These issues do affect my life because I feel like my generation was in the middle of the transition of technology being used in our childhood. I did not get a smart phone until I was in college, but it was the main way I connected with my family and friends. Reading these articles makes me think about a child’s development if a parent/guardian is using technology as a substitute for playing, learning and failing. Are they learning the social norms of how to wait quietly for their turn? Adults do the same thing, we get on our phones when we are waiting instead of engaging in conversation. In my friend group, we created a phrase “Disconnect to connect” to remind each other to get off our phones. I can relate to one of the articles where a child who was disconnected from a device felt better and freer. I experienced this in my summer job of being a camp director, I am constantly on my phone and connect. When I return home, I barely touch my phone because it was a source of anxiety and stress. A teen might have the same feeling because the internet connects everything and they don’t want to feel like they “missed”. It has to come with accepting and realizing why you are using your phone so much and changing the behavior if you want less stress.
3. What are the implications for the future? Are there long- or short-term consequences to the issues raised in the article? Are they positive or negative...affirming or frightening?
I am not surprised by the issues that the articles bring up because the world of the internet is fake. We create a persona that we want others to see. I am reading a book Trick Mirror by Jia Tolentio that addresses these realities. The author is a little older than me takes you through their experience of the internet. The stress and anxiety the student feel is trying to keep up or connected to their internet persona.
In the articles “How Do Smartphones Affect Childhood Psychology?, Williams (2018) points out how there is a lack of interaction between parents/guardians and their children because they communicate through device. This is a big issue because both parties lose the opportunity to communicate in person so you are already affecting your mental health in that aspect. Plus, there is some much lost in communication through a text, you can’t read a person’s behavior. In our zoom meetings, most are tired because we are trying to read and interpret behavior. In the classroom that is what we do. So as a society, family unit, friend group or community, we need to create, find a balance to teach appropriate times to use technology.
4. What solutions do the authors propose? Are the authors recommendations concrete, sensible, doable? Who would implement those solutions?
One author shared that we need to find a balance and teach when it is appropriate to use technology. This is sensible and doable because any adult can teach a child or work community can create expectations and norms. Within the classroom, a teacher can create norms and this is through constant reinforcement and practice. Having a poster hung in the room with the norms and a picture of what the cue means to help students. We have to teach them how to use them for school because they know how to use it for nonacademic reason. So we have to bridge that knowledge with academic use. Another author stated to keep the content engaging by changing it up. But we have to remember to teach them how to use the new app or website.
-Chandler Fitzgerald
Delete1. How did your work within this Collegial Learning Circle impact teaching/learning?
ReplyDeleteThe broader issue for my lesson planning is to plan for control. I have to plan for the use of technology as a part of the lesson directly and not only as a tool that the students will use. I also put a lot of thought into directing them on the use of the technology and how I am going to be sure they use it in an educational way.
2.Provide evidence that as a result of this professional learning you have improved/enhanced your practice and more effectively addressed student learning.
In my lesson plans that include chromebook use in any way in the classroom I plan ahead for a white list (a list of websites they can go to) or a blacklist (sites they can’t visit.) This is either guided (whitelist) or explore (blacklist) learning.
3. Provide evidence that this experience has had an impact on student learning and achievement has increased.
In general the removal of cell phones has added instructional time to the beginning of the class. The time it takes to get students focused is much less as they are really only communicating with people directly around them. In terms of use of electronics during a lesson, with the proper use of controls there is more time spent on task as a result.
--Brian Gallagher
Klein
ReplyDeleteThis article “Schools say no to cellphones in class. But is it a smart move” quotes several superintendents form across the county, and even Canada, and these leaders seem to be in agreement in that they can’t agree. that cell phones should be integrated as part of everyday life. A Superintendent in PA Brian Toth, stated “Anybody who wants to ban it, is just hiding from reality” while in California and Canada legislation has recently passed allowing more regulation of cell phones in schools. That’s not even putting the parents into the equation.
What we can see here is that both sides have a valid argument, although until there is cohesive leadership, perhaps nationwide on the issue there will continue to be push back in both directions. SOTA has been successful as most (although not all) of the teachers bought in to backing the no cell phone policy. The year before cell phones were collected was a big step. This is when students were allowed to carry phones and under strict enforcement and penalty if the phones were taken out in class. The lessons learned from that year were many, as students (generally speaking) would still violate the rule, stir social media drama during the school day, etc. Reflecting back, one could make the argument that students cannot control their cell phone usage in school, much like an addiction. At the beginning of last year, the first year of the cell phone collection, I had whiny students in my first period class. I listened, and let them express their ideas, and we had a discussion. After hearing many complaints and ideas, (one of which was just to let the students who get A’s have a one!) I asked the students a simple, question, in a genuine, non-sarcastic way. That is, “Are you surprised?” The kids took a deep breath and all had a low mumble of the beginning of acceptance.
While parents, school leaders, teachers, and other stakeholders have their different opinions—all valid—as each student has their individual qualities of responsibility, at the end of the day, schools need to consider the risk/benefit analysis. Yes, I agree to an extent with Toth that kids should be taught to deal with how to use phones embedded in and out of their school day, Toth also looks like a Superintendent in his 70s that has not taught in the classroom in quite some time-I could be wrong of course. The risks of dangerous cell phone use are many, and the benefits can be substituted. In my class, I would have students use mentronomes on their phones in previous years, now I have them use their chromebooks or I will put it on the promethean board. In this teacher’s humble opinion, the benefits do not outweigh the risks.
Just like at home, parents need a plan to have a plan how to deal with over-usage of screens. No one in their right mind wants their child on it hours upon hours a day, and boundries are essential. This pandemic has raised many issues on too much screen use, and I personally have appreciated my kids’ teachers that have said, if the weather is nice, better to go out and play. My children, as well as the children at SOTA are better people when they’re enjoying fresh air and each other’s company and not looking at a screen.
Randy Laird May 27
ReplyDelete'Accommodations, Modifications, and Intervention...'
The article focuses on support of students with IEP's in a 'distance learning' situation. Teachers mindful of the central role played by family will be cautious about imposing a further burden on parents (given their heightened involvement during an already stressful time). Teaching, in this situation, is more about support than instruction - addressing the social isolation of the child and NOT trying to simply recreate classroom lessons for the home venue.
For my own distance teaching, I considered the importance of lowering the stress level for students and maintaining a more consistent contact with the parents of students who are struggling.
Considering future implications, I'm aware of the increasing need to scaffold assignments, provide students with choices, and limit the numbers assignments to a reasonable weekly 'load.'
The author's advice about highlighting the most critical element of curriculum, addressing the social isolation of the student, and supporting the family (as much as the individual student) are, at once, reasonable and a bit overwhelming.
'Socrates'
Cookson speaks to the escalating debate over the value of internet technology in the classroom - inspiring, in me, sociological and spiritual reflections. Are we raising the 'dumbest' generation? Are we minimizing 'reason' and peer tested conclusion when we reduce research to 'just google it?' And, how do we make room, in this easy access to data world, for Socrates and his ideal of asking essential questions, testing possible answers against reason and argument and face to face human responses?
The Bauerlein approach only serves to strengthen my belief that easy access to information devalues learning precisely because it's 'easy.' If learning is nothing more than data - then memorization quickly takes the place of understanding - and students become all the more dependent on gadgets.
Future implications? Teachers would do well to increase the use of face to face, dialogue-driven Socratic instruction if only to offset the extensive amount of passive, screen time students have outside the classroom.
'Cell Phones' (Shoukat)
The article addresses advantages and disadvantages of youth cell phone usage. The question of addiction is central.
For my purposes, the article puts a finer point on the usual definition of 'addiction.' I found that to be useful - in a psychological sense.
Future implications? Teachers would do well to avoid the term, 'addiction,' as it invites immediate defensive denial on the part of students. The more nuanced explanation - that 'habit' leads to 'obligation' and, finally, to 'addiction' - makes the helpful point that, as is the case with most stimuli, not every student will become addicted to gadgets. However, the great majority of students would have to acknowledge that it's a habit. That agreed-upon point can easily become the basis for a healthy and honest conversation or discussion with students.
Randy Laird
Randy Laird
ReplyDeleteCell Phones (Pellissier)
The article addresses chiefly the medical effects of cell phone usage. Reviewing current data on the amount of time adults, teens, and children devote to 'the screen' and the studies about the physical dangers of radio waves and cancer.
Personally, I'm all the more conscious about the health issues (for myself and my family) related to radio waves.
Future Implications? I will raise the unspeakable question. Are educators obligated to teach students about the physical and medical effects of the gadgets that (as suggested in the Chris Berkik article) has become, for some, an 'appendage?' Should the basic health concerns (about cell phone radio waves) be taught (as part of the science or health curriculum) in the same way that topics like drug abuse, tobacco, and human sexuality are taught? It's sensible and doable - and, certainly responsible.
'Psychology' (Amy Williams)
The article addresses the impact of increasing cell phone use on the the developing cognitive processes of children and teenagers.
A teaching style - such as mine - that emphasizes face to face discussion, find support here. If a child learns by encountering (directly) the world and the people in her/his immediate corner of the world, it follows that face to face exchanges are essential. More to the point, the article emphasizes that increased cell phone use (which is not 'direct' encounter with the world) tends to diminish (in the mind of the child) the importance of direct human encounters.
Future implications? Teachers would do well to increase the use of direct face to face exchange educational strategies the classroom - yes, even teachers who are uncomfortable or inexperienced with discussion. After all, the advocates of increased classroom 'screen time' are forever challenging their technologically inept colleagues to learn about and apply the latest gadget craze with students. Turn about is fair play - and, more to the point, in the best interest of students.
The 'positives' (for students) of cell phone usage in the classroom - quick decision-making, improved peripheral vision, enhanced visual motor skills - are completely unrelated to a child's psychological development and her/his capacity to interact directly with other human beings.
'Cell Phones- Distraction' (Derek Bok Center)
Raising, again, the debate over cell phones in the classroom, the writer gives teachers tips about how to adapt to their inevitable presence in student's pockets. It's suggested that the option of banning phones is a heavy-hand 'control' measure (and, therefore, bad). The approach here is limited by economic and sociological assumptions - that because cell phones are prevalent, they can't be banned from the classroom (any more than glasses or contact lenses).
I'm drawn all the more to the 'ban' because the suggestions offered (for teaching in this 'new' reality) are unrealistic. To keep students from accessing their phones in the classroom, the author says teachers should up their game - maximize interaction with students, use proximity and humor and variety. The teacher is expected to compete for the student's attention with nothing less than the entire world (given that the cell phone makes available every stimulus/distraction imaginable).
Future Implications? Teacher directed use of internet technology is, of course, essential. However, the cell phone is (psychologically) a gadget that students define in intensely personal terms. Banning cell phones isn't heavy-handed - and it IS doable (thought imperfectly). Banning cell-phones is, more to the point, a recognition that THAT particular gadget (for the student) is intrinsically associated the individual's personal 'sphere' to such an extent that the temptation to access it (for reasons unrelated to the lesson at hand) is almost irresistible.
Randy Laird
Randy Laird
ReplyDelete'Distraction' (Berdik)
The familiar debate continues - to ban or to adapt to what is regarded as an inevitable (and not completely unwelcome) intrusion. The article raises psychological points worth considering - teacher to teacher and teacher to student. I can imagine an engaging discussion about the 'truth' or 'myth' of multi-tasking (an activity which, as the author suggests, is the domain of the young). I could imagine challenging students to leave their phones on their desks without touching them - and, even, experimenting on different occasions (with quizzes, for instance) to determine if the visible presence of the phone impacts the student's ability to focus and be successful. I could imagine linking the 'tool or appendage?' question to other historical advances in technology - to learn from our past and consider the degree to which our 'ancestors' (near and far) used OR were used by the technological advances of their respective eras.
The solutions offered - 'Flipd' and other 'dashboard' arrangements of teacher oversight (most of which fail to impress initially - owing to the trendy misspellings) are probably the only way forward for teachers willing to allow cell phone usage.
'Cell Phones...Learning Tool or Distraction?' (Oxford)
The article continues the cell phones in the classroom debate. The pros and cons are listed with an attempt at even-handedness.
The list itself might serve as a teaching tool at the start of the year, for educators who, having decided to allow cell phones, wish to raise the issue for discussion and identify as many arguments (on either side as possible).
The article raises, for me, the option of making the issue a part of the community building that's necessary to the first weeks in September. There are plenty examples of fact and opinion and trend and assumption include in the authors lists. Establishing a plan for cell phone usage (in those classroom where gadgets may be used) would be necessary. The plan could be referred to (at first) constantly and (as time passes) occasionally when the cell phone privilege is abused. 'Remember the rules we crafted and adopted in September...' could be invoked by teacher and students alike. It wouldn't get ride of the possibility of distraction, but it would teach students what it means to be a part of a group of people with specific goals that need to be achieved and rules that (both) further those goals and prohibit/punish violations.
'How Schools are Missing a Chance...' (Strauss)
The writer addresses the current pandemic crisis and the need to enact new teacher paradigms - for teachers and administrators. The ideas expressed touch on psychological, economic, and sociological themes.
The article resonated with me because, for me, my 'distance teaching' has (quite unintentionally) changed my paradigm. I have had very meaningful 'conversations' with students who are feeling isolated. And, because my interaction with students is far more limited, I have resolved to respond, at length, to the written work that student submit. The author encourages a 'humanistic' element and a 'whole student' approach - both of which have proven valuable and, even, appreciated (by students) during this time.
Strauss makes the point that standard measures of teacher accountability (used by administrators) - 'walk throughs' and 'cumbersome' forms - are actually harmful to the on-line learning climate. They simply pass along stress and anxiety from the top of the educational hierarchy to 'middle management' teacher - and are counterproductive.
Future Implications? If, as Strauss, suggests, the standard array of observations and measures of accountability are based on a distrust of teachers (by administrators and parents), a conversation (open and frank and inclusive) should occur when education gets back to normal - so that education DOESN'T get back to 'normal.'
Randy Laird
1. I believe that issues in all of these factors were addressed and are concerning. One of the main issues that really stuck out to me was all of the information linked to cell phones and then adolescents and adults having depression, anxiety, disrupted sleep, and overall poor health. I can see that with my students when they are talking about using their cell phones at home. They will talk about how tired they are and when you ask why, they talk about how they stayed up late on facetime, social media, playing games, or watching YouTube videos. I think that then leads them to being tired in school and they don't complete their work as well. Cell phones and social media can also lead to the anxiety and depression from cyber bullying and all of the videos and information they see from both around them and other parts of their community, state, country, or world. Another central idea I saw was the talk about addiction to technology. I constantly see that not only in students, but with adults also. I think it is important to have a balance of using them for beneficial reasons, but not relying on constantly using them. I know that I personally use video chat features a lot recently to talk to my students, family, and friends with everything going on. However, I also like to set aside time each day to not have any form of technology with me and go outside or enjoy a walk and not be dependent. I think that it helps to not be constantly attached to it. I also noticed this when we first implemented the cell phone policy of taking them at the door. When students first found out about it, they were very angry and complained a lot. Although towards March I still had some students complaining about it, I found that a lot more started realizing why we did that and would talk about how it was beneficial. The article about Technology and Student Distraction did bring up an interesting point of how technology can benefit learners. I know in my classroom, we do incorporate technology a lot in the lessons and when they are on their chromebooks completing a game or other vocabulary practice, they tend to be more engaged. With college and their future in the work force, I believe it's important for them to use technology and understand it, but it's also important to have that balance for it. The article on Phones and Childhood Psychology discussed the impacts of communication skills with technology. I think it's important to have face to face conversations with the students, but also show them how to properly communicate via e-mail so that they have that skill when they have a job or are in college. Medically, I can see how cell phones could cause issues of anxiety, depression, lack of the ability to communicate in person, poor mental health, and no longer learning with play which I think is important. I believe that as teachers and parents, you need to implement those balances for the children/students so that they can see the usefulness of the technology, but are not as addicted to it and not having as many negative health issues. It's also important for "kids to be kids", so I think that being able to play without having technology in front of you in imperative for growth.
ReplyDelete2.As I talked about in the first question, I recently use video chat features a lot to talk to family members, friends, and my students. Although I am very thankful to have this technology in order to be able to easily communicate with everyone, I also find myself needing time away from my phone/computer to take a break from that. I have taken PDs this year that show how to effectively use technology and apps in the classroom to make lessons more engaging and I do find myself looking into more of those to have the students use technology in a positive way. I use technology for the video chats, but also for online shopping and looking up any information that I am curious about. Although I don't find myself having anxiety over my phone, I am always conscious of how it effects me medically and financially to have all of the technology in my house.
ReplyDelete3. I believe there are both positive and negative aspects brought up for the future in the articles. I think the first article about Accommodations and Interventions brought up good points on how technology now and in the future can help students make social connections and have video conferences that may not feel comfortable in person. The second article about what Socrates would say brought up the point that some say in enhances growth while others say it stunts growth. I can see that as being true. The students and everyone having technology allows them to have more information and ability to do different activities that they may not have been able to do before and leads to them learning in a different way that could be beneficial. However, it could also lead to people being too dependent on the technology and internet and not having the basic skills that they need without it. I believe that one thing that was present in all of the articles was that there can be multiple negative aspects of having technology and internet easily available to everyone. However, it can be used in a way that could be beneficial for everyone as long as everyone is aware of what aspects you should use and where to be cautious of using the technology daily. One positive and negative that is currently happening with education and I can see happening in the future is that technology with distance learning is very important and required. However, there are concerns with students and teachers knowing how to use it and knowing how to use different aspects of technology properly in order for it to be fully beneficial for the students' learning. Also, like the one article stated on students with disability, it could be beneficial with technology for modifications, but we also have to create a balance for the parents so that they feel comfortable with what we are doing and asking them to do in order to help out at home.
4. I believe that the main solutions that were presented was to look at programs, apps, and technology to see which ones could benefit people in order to enhance their ability to communicate, learn, and complete projects. I also think the article on Child's brains and cell phones brought up a good point of using them for work vs. fun. I believe that it is important to be able to use them for both, but to also have a balance of using technology and taking a break from technology. I believe that there are multiple people that can implement these. Teachers can look at how to properly use technology in their classrooms while also having times where it is not used, parents can limit the amount of time the child is using screen time, and as adults, we can limit our own usage in order for it to be beneficial for ourselves. I do believe that it is possible to learn the balance of technology and when it would be a positive usage of it and when it starts to be to addictive and have a negative impact on our health.
Working on the collection of cell phones for both semester 1 and 2 has allowed me the opportunity to engage in a positive manner each morning with my 7th grade students and also see my former students that are now 8th graders. I am able to great them each day and ask them how they are doing or how their weekend was. This has helped develop a positive relationship with them outside of the math classroom. Often, I am able to remind them of things, ask them to see me during 4th period lunch or 5th period advisement, or tell them something that needs to be made up. They, too, often ask clarifying questions of me such as a due date or for help on something that they are struggling with.
ReplyDeleteI believe that the 7th graders have benefited from not having phones as well. Less cyber bullying, less comparisons of what kinds of phones,and overall less nonsense has take place. May students don't have the latest and greatest phone or some don't even have one and not having them in class has saved some the embarrassment in this case. They have one less thing to worry about in this regard. It has been a positive experience this year.
1) Some of the central ideas that are addressed in the articles deal with the use of technology. The idea of how technology can be more utilized in the classroom is something that many educators face. Since technology is a resource often it is not used in a way that makes teaching practices more effective. Thus the reason why teachers will refer to stale and traditional forms of teaching. How teachers utilize technology impacts how technology is viewed by students and families. If teachers are creating blogs, or virtual classrooms, but they are unorganized, confusing, or not updated this becomes a point of contention.
ReplyDelete2) Technology impacts my life in many ways. There is this idea of constantly being connected and that can be overwhelming. I see this with students. They have a strong desire and bank a lot of their gratification on what the technology tells them or provides for them. This has created a large disconnect amongst people, especially those born to different generations. So, technology can be exclusionary more often than not. Neophyte users are limited and therefore are intimidated by those who are more comfortable. These are ways that society and technology have impacted our world.
ReplyDelete3) As always the implications are the unknown entities. This is what creates confusion and chaos. In one realm technology unifies in other it makes the job less authentic. As a society we will continue to feel contradictory about the pros and cons of technology. Human nature indicates that people fear change and technology brings change. So that in itself is something that we need to be careful of in the future. We also have to be able to understand that the learning curve is always changing and at certain times we are going to be in different positions. One way that we can make certain is always being open and flexible to learn. We need to utilize what we have for efficiency.
ReplyDelete4) I didn't think there were any solutions because who knows how far we are going to go, and with that it is impossible to gauge problems of situations that haven't happened yet. That in itself is the problem, the lack of understanding as to how far this will go and how technology will be in our lives. I never thought people would be addicted to matching shapes and colors over the age of 3, but here we are.
ReplyDelete1) I think that it was good to take cell phones away from students, but our process is not sustainable and that needs to be addressed.
ReplyDelete2) Instead of wasting time to use technology to suspend inappropriate activity on the Chrome books during class, I have them turn the device towards me. Super easy.
ReplyDelete3) I can't really answer this because since mid-march I have been totally reliant on students using technology to stay connected with me and the course work. I think we realized that our students are not as comfortable with technology other than texting and basic searches. This is something that we need to address as a building in case distance learning becomes a more common occurrence.
ReplyDeleteRandy Laird (Final Outcome Questions)
ReplyDelete1. During the current era of 'on line' teaching, I've applied some of the advice from Jung and Strauss. I've tried to lower the stress level for students and parents by following a more wholistic and, it may be said, pastoral approach. I've endeavored to enlist the support of parents without over-burdening them, to limit (as a rule) classes to two assignments per week and to spend much of our zoom time on personal concerns related to the pandemic. The structure and timetable for my assignments are straight forward and predictable for students. Content readings are typically primary source documents with a few accompanying questions (rich in context, owing to the fact that I can't help them face to face). The questions always relate the topic to the current situation, inviting (and, thereby valuing) the personal opinion of the student. I've made it a point to respond to every answer from every student and also to respond to any e mails that indicate student isolation or depression. I've tried to be a steady, reliable, predictable 'presence' in each student's life - given that little else, right now, seems predictable. To me, this 'pastoral' approach (humanistic as it is academic) is particularly appropriate to the PD topic given the psychological concerns of isolation and depression that students, typically, use their cell phones to alleviate.
2. A number of students have expressed their appreciation of my response to their assignment answers. They interact on zoom about which teachers respond and which don't - with a clear preference for those who make the effort. Parents appreciate my sensitivity to the work load - and, on occasion, the appreciation allows for the possibility of an honest conversation (free of any defensive reactions) about their child. Given the limited number of assignments, I've had to choose the most important topics and send them only what is essential in the way of content. This has forced me to decide what really matters in each unit (evidence, for me, that I've improved) - and to emphasize those particular points in zoom meetings.
3. Some 'absent' students - to whom I've reached out through e mails - have 'appeared' at the next zoom meetings. When students receive my responses to their assignment answers, they frequently take the time to write back and thank me - sometimes they ask an additional question based on my response to their answer. On occasion, the interaction plays out through a number of rounds - and, the teacher/student relationship is nurtured. In those cases when a string of e mails develops over a particular topic/question, there is an eventual moment of realization when the student 'gets it.' The very fact that interaction is reduced in large part to one-on-one exchanges between teacher and student, has allowed for more 'aha' moments for students - an experience that's less likely in the turbulent climate of the school building and communal classroom setting.
1. How did your work within this Collegial Learning Circle impact teaching/learning? Include implementation samples; student work samples, lesson plans, observations, peer reviews, etc.
ReplyDeleteIt made me more reflective about myself using a cellphone and how the students are with their cellphones. One the cellphones entered the room 9th period, the mood shifted because they were aware they were there but if they came late or quietly into the room. The mood did not shift. Also, when passing out the cellphones, I used it as a time to talk to students and teach a routine. When thinking about next year, I want to figure out a system for 9th period so I can have the most time for instruction without the mindset of the students shifting once the cellphones entered the room.
2.Provide evidence that as a result of this professional learning you have improved/enhanced your practice and more effectively addressed student learning.
This professional learning made more aware of how cellphones impact our life. I want to figure out how to use technology more effectively in the classroom and create a routine with end of the period cellphone distribution. I talked with other colleagues about what they do and what has been effective. Also, help with classroom management. Using lightspeed helped with monitoring chromebooks, but by eliminating cellphones from the classroom, it one less students have to worry about and easier to transition in to learning.
3. Provide evidence that this experience has had an impact on student learning and achievement has increased.
I have seen a change in student interaction and learning. Students are talking to more to each other, but are finding ways to communicate with each other through a chromebook. When they do this I talk to them about when it is a good time to use it and when it is not. When switching to online learning, I realized I need to teach how to use google app (Make copy of a doc, access links, how to use google classroom) and how to send an email.
- Chandler Fitzgerald
1. What are some of the central ideas discussed in the articles? What issues or ideas do the authors explore? Are they personal, sociological, global, political, economic, spiritual, medical, or scientific?
ReplyDelete1. The Macro ideas discussed in the articles deal with digital life—both good bad and perhaps neutral. Very generally, The bad is a sociological inference that phones are as addicting as drugs and alcohol and does damage in the hands of youngsters who are not yet mature enough to navigate the distraction. This may come at great detriment not only to their education, but on their wellness and health. Those who find the phones to be a positive attribute in schools are, in my opinion, letting the risks outweigh the benefits. Do I want my students to be technologically savvy? Yes. Do I want it to be a distraction and a tool to do harm to themselves and others? No. Are there other ways to be tech savvy besides the phone? Absolutely. It’s all about accommodations and modifiations.
Neutral views are what I equate to those who subscribe to the philosophy that we need to allow and acknowledge the phone as an everyday part of life and thus teach appropriate use with it in school. While this does give a nice inflection on the issue, and in theory may work,it does not seem practical in day to day practice.
_Elana Herman
2. Do the issues affect your life? How so—directly, on a daily basis, or more generally? Now or sometime in the future?
ReplyDeleteThis has been an eye opening experience as a teacher and parent. Admittingly, harboring prior bias to the issue, it is interesting to see that the skew of the articles tend to conjure the more negative aspects of cell phones and distraction, there is still much debate over the overarching position that schools find themselves in. This affects me personally on a daily basis, as previously stated as a teacher and parent. As a teacher even though the students this year do not have their phones with them, I tend to refer to the cell as a device of educational value, and find myself writing sticky notes of musical artists for students to check out when they have their phones back, as an extension of the lesson outside of the classroom. While I’m sure they check their social media first, I have found this to be successful in that I am acknowledging the phone as part of their life, and I am not demonizing it, rather I try to show the educational opportunities they can tap into outside of school. On the other side of the coin, as a parent, every time I see my kids on a device (they’re young for phones and use kindles or switch) it drives me crazy. In the micro sense of the world right now, late May 2020 during a pandemic, I am doing whatever I can to keep my kids off devices, although due to the pandemic the only real way they are engaging with school is through the device. I acknowledge this disconnect, and find it interesting that through the articles assigned, there is also a certain level of differing opinions in our use of technology as a whole.
-Elana Herman
3. What are the implications for the future? Are there long- or short-term consequences to the issues raised in the article? Are they positive or negative...affirming or frightening?
ReplyDeleteAs a society we have been trending towards there are negative consequences on the effect of phones/tech on kids. Then the pandemic hit. Covid19 has flipped education on its head and many were not ready for it. I applaud the District for exhibiting some foresight (not pandemic related) in distributing chromebooks to many students. Without this action, we likely would have been in far worse shape. Those with the necessary tech are still able to engage in the “The building is closed, but school is not closed” process. I can speak for myself that this has been a stressful time. Aside from family and admittedly not successfully balancing work and kids each and every day in the best way, there is a recurring need to center oneself, and breathe each day. Right now I am trying to be a positive leader and make others –namely my kids and students—feel safe. If I exude stress it may frighten them and this would have far more negative consequences in the future when we are hopefully back at school. I want to keep the relationships going, keep the stress low, and find the joy in music. This is easier said than done, but it has been my goal since the novelty of the first week in quarantine has worn off. I want to help ease the mindset of the youth that they won’t look back on this time with fear, but found a zoom lesson helpful and unique and my kids will make fond memories of having me at home and at their disposal. No one can predict the future, just as we seem to have been unprepared for the pandemic. That being said, I have always tried to be prepared for a worst case scenario, not the nest case. No, I don’t have a shelter of canned goods but I don’t think it hurts to have a game plan in your back pocket.
-Elana Herman
4. What solutions do the authors propose? Are the authors recommendations concrete, sensible, doable? Who would implement those solutions?
ReplyDeleteDiffering solutions are offered in the articles as I found much of this to be driven on opinion. Data only serves to move towards change and there is a temporal aspect in affecting the outcome. When phones first came out, we didn’t have the data and how this would affect kids and schools, and now that we have some information, what should be done? Even as the research is coming out phones have become more engraved in our lives just making the issue all the more complicated. This has become an issue with unclear answers, and the articles reflect a myriad of recommendations that sway from the polar opposites to the middle.
Each stakeholder carries with him/herself implicit bias on the matter. Generally speaking, students would like to have their phones. While there are some that are an exception to the rule, the majority of students would prefer their phones with them. Most of the teacher I’ve spoken to, and myself included do not believe phones are appropriate in school, although I do know some teachers who disagree. Parents I suspect are the most varying, many wanting the kids to have phones for ease of communication. The articles reflect this triangulation as well, and with muddying waters of perspective, the debate continues. The essential question we all have to ask is, “What is the best way to use technology in an ever evolving and rapidly changing digital world?”
-Elana Herman
FINAL OUTCOMES
ReplyDelete1. How did your work within this Collegial Learning Circle impact teaching/learning? Include implementation samples; student work samples, lesson plans, observations, peer reviews, etc.
Beginning each and every day greeting students and collecting cell phones has had mostly positive effects on my daily teaching. I am pleased that I get to be one of the first faces to make a positive interaction, although is has not been drama free. Even so, the majority of the interactions have led to developing relationships with students that I would not see and become a familiar face to, which was one of my goals in joining this effort. In addition to being a closer figure to the student body, I also enjoyed fostering relationships with my colleagues. Beginning the day with a lot of ‘good morning’s and subsequent conversations has been very gratifying and aids in our school community.
2.Provide evidence that as a result of this professional learning you have improved/enhanced your practice and more effectively addressed student learning.
This professional learning has enhanced and improved my practice in that I am more involved in the school community, as stated in the first questions. Along with that, I have continued to practice consistency and sensitivity to the cell phone issue. If you are fair with students, they will respect the directives and settle into the learning.
3. Provide evidence that this experience has had an impact on student learning and achievement has increased.
Outcomes from this experience has been unique and worthwhile. Aside from daily collection and interaction or cell phones, the COVID19 pandemic has brought so many questions surrounding technology and instruction to the core. I found the readings interesting, even if I did not personally agree with the opinions. They were carefully chosen and opening a dialogue that needs to be addressed now (if not sooner) and all educators must take action and have a plan for technology within instruction now and into the future.
-Elana Herman
Final Outcomes:
ReplyDelete1. Impact on teaching and learning: Collection of the phones had an impact on the classroom by removing a distraction. There was one less thing pulling student attention away from the lesson/classwork/discussion going on in the class. While not a total solution to all the problems in a classroom, it definitely reduces issues. No more students looking at their laps to see what their friends have posted on social media. No more texting between students in different classes, "where you at?" "In class, where you at?" "In class". Also gone is the twenty minute bathroom trips which are really texting trips. This is an improvement over the previous policy, of not having the phones out in the classroom but allowing them in lunch/the hallway because the arguments, disruption when calling for a student removal and all of the additional issues that came along with it were removed.
2. Improvement/enhancement of practices: As noted above, the removal of the distraction and the subsequent discipline from the classroom. No more "put your phone away" statements at the beginning of each class or the student in the hallway allowed for more time on task each class. I don't have data to back it up, but I know that by reducing that time more time was spend in class on the lessons and learning in general.
3. Impact on learning and achievement: Again, the additional time on task in class and the lack of distractions allowed for more time on task in the classroom. Additionally, during the cellphone collection there was an unintended positive consequence of getting to know the students outside of class. The same students would arrive at the same time every day, coming to the same tables for cellphone collection. This allowed for a "good morning" between teachers and students or a reminder about an assignment or a quick assessment about who is having a bad day. These connections may not be quantifiable, but I am certain they made for better teacher/student relationships and a better classroom and learning experience for all.
Evan Wilson
1. How did your work within this Collegial Learning Circle impact teaching/learning? I believe that the new policy of taking phones from the students when they entered the building has lead to an improvement with there being less of a distraction in the classroom. The students don't have the notifications going off in the classroom where they then have to look to see who it is from. I also think that although it has not removed it completely, it has helped with some of the drama. In previous years, during the school day there would be issues about someone saying something on social media or recording issues that happened in school. Although it can still occur outside of school, I noticed less of these issues in my class this year. Technology has improved some parts of our school as far as chromebook usage. I have found it important to balance the use of technology in the classroom and to allow the students an option of using it for certain items where other students prefer to still use paper and pencil. I think that offering both methods help reduce student reliability on technology and anxiety due to technology.
ReplyDelete2.Provide evidence that as a result of this professional learning you have improved/enhanced your practice and more effectively addressed student learning. My students have used different aspects of technology to complete different work both in the classroom along with distance learning that we are currently doing. Although with distance learning, I have learned of multiple new sources that you can use to make it effective and engaging, I have also found that the students get overwhelmed with new programs when you are not there in person to help them trouble shoot. Therefore, I have found it important to use technology, but to balance it so that the students are not anxious to do their work.
3. Provide evidence that this experience has had an impact on student learning and achievement has increased. I believe that my students have done more work without the distraction of a cell phone. They are less concerned on being able to check their notifications, texts, etc and are more engaged in their learning. I also believe it has helped with students having conversations in personal and building those connections with students and teachers. I think that although in the beginning of the year there was a lot of push back regarding the cell phones, by the end of the year I had multiple students tell me they think it was a positive thing and they understood why we had to do it. I also believe it has helped the students balance the use of technology. I think it helps their overall health to not have constant access to technology so they are not constantly exposed to the anxiety and depression linked to cell phone and technology use.
-Erica Smith (Cline)
1. What are some of the central ideas discussed in the articles? What issues or ideas do the authors explore? Are they personal, sociological, global, political, economic, spiritual, medical, or scientific?
ReplyDeleteThe central ideas of the articles is how technology is affecting the lives of individuals
and how it can be more efficiently utilized in the classroom. How teachers utilize technology impacts how technology is viewed by students and families. If teachers are creating blogs, or virtual classrooms, but they are unorganized, confusing, or not updated this becomes an issue. I think all the articles together touch up everything from personal to scientific.
2. Do the issues affect your life? How so—directly, on a daily basis, or more generally? Now or sometime in the future?
I look at my son who at the age of 5 knows how to use a cell phone. He can make phone calls, FaceTime, download applications and even delete applications so he can make room for more stuff. When I was his age, I had no clue what a cell phone was. The first cell phone I used was my mom’s when I was 14 years old. I very clearly remember when I stumbled upon texting for the first time. Thinking about it now, it is strange because I can remember what like was like before phones and other technology. Our lives are built around technology. What would life be like if we tried for one day to not use a cell phone or computer for one day? Could we do it?
3. What are the implications for the future? Are there long- or short-term consequences to the issues raised in the article? Are they positive or negative...affirming or frightening?
If you look at what is going on now in our county with schools being virtual, you can see how the use of technology has had a negative impact on our students. Teachers feed off of reading students body language. Via Zoom we can only see the student from their neck up and even then we are lucky when that happens because many students leave their screens off. I feel like this will be our “new normal” for quite some time going into the next school year and we need to figure out of to make that work.
4. What solutions do the authors propose? Are the authors recommendations concrete, sensible, doable? Who would implement those solutions?
Limiting screen time is something that was proposed in one of the articles. I have found that many times teachers will try to utilize technology in their classrooms but not in a successful way. Students too easily find ways to “beat the system” and not be engaged in the class material. I don’t think screen time in school needs to be limited per say but it needs to be utilize appropriately. At home it is up to the parent to take control of their child’s screen time. Kids do not need to be on their phones 24/7, and neither do adults for that matter. Kids need boundaries and need to find other productive activities to do in place of the increasing numbers of screen time at home.
1. How did your work within this Collegial Learning Circle impact teaching/learning? Include implementation samples; student work samples, lesson plans, observations, peer reviews, etc.
ReplyDeleteI loved collecting cell phones in the morning solely for the fact that I got to see all my kids the moment they started their academic day. I got to briefly chat with them to see how their night was or if they had anything fun planned that night or weekend. I don’t always have the chance to talk about non school related things with each student in class or as I pass by them in the hallways. I also noticed that there were less distractions in class when students did not have their phones. I didn’t have to ask students multiple times in one class period to put their phone away. More time was able to be spent on the lesson this year verses last year. The only negative thing I found was handing back phones 9th period. This often was difficult because students would watch the clock until the time they knew they could get their phones back. There also had to be enough time to pass phones back before the bell rang.
2. Provide evidence that as a result of this professional learning you have improved/enhanced your practice and more effectively addressed student learning.
I worked with my co-teacher to set expectations for returning phones. There needed to be a specific time when phones would be handed back, and expectations from the students before and during cell phone distribution.
3. Provide evidence that this experience has had an impact on student learning and achievement has increased.
Overall this experience has been extremely beneficial! The relationships built by a simple good morning has made for a more successful classroom experience as well as more instruction time!
1. What are some of the central ideas discussed in the articles? What issues or ideas do the authors explore? Are they personal, sociological, global, political, economic, spiritual, medical, or scientific?
ReplyDeleteThe authors explored how electronic devices such as cellphones and computers as well as the Internet have impacted students’ lives in various ways. The authors explore the topics of students with IEPs and how to provide modifications and accommodations when learning online, using Socratic inquiry combined with technology to help students learn how to use higher learning skills,the affects of cellphone use on students, and using laptops in the classroom. The ideas run the gamut of sociological, personal, economic, medical, and scientific.
2. Do the issues affect your life? How so—directly, on a daily basis, or more generally? Now or sometime in the future?
Yes, these issues affect most areas of my life since I am an educator.
Directly, I am still trying to “learn on the fly” ways to improve and enhance instruction through technology, which is hard for someone who is not the tech savvy. A lot of frustration and having to step away when it gets too frustrating, strains on both my eyes and my brain, and feeling like I am an island in the middle of the ocean with no help in sight. These are on a daily basis, and I really miss teaching in the classroom and find classroom teaching to be much easier and more personal between my students.
Glenn Long
3. What are the implications for the future? Are there long- or short-term consequences to the issues raised in the article? Are they positive or negative...affirming or frightening?
ReplyDeleteI am hoping that there are no implications for the future, but with the push for electronics and Chromebook usage, I find that is only wishful thinking. I think online learning is a disservice to all students, but especially my students with IEPs because most do not like using Chromebooks and would rather have pen and paper work. Yes, there are short and long term consequences such as a lack of social interaction with their teachers and other students and a breakdown of learning how to interact appropriately with others. I think it is negative and frightening more than anything else, but I am “old school” and did not learn with computers in my K-12 years. I am sure younger teachers probably think more positively than myself.
4. What solutions do the authors propose? Are the authors recommendations concrete, sensible, doable? Who would implement those solutions?
The authors propose a number of solutions such as using cellphones for learning purposes through apps, using laptops and Chromebooks in a variety of ways, and embracing technology by teaching students how to use them as tools. I do not think it is sensible or doable, and definitely not concrete, because now the authors are proposing putting more stress on teachers by having them not only cover the content that they need to teach in a limited amount of time, but also expecting all teachers to be proficient at doing this. If this were the case, we would also have a degree in Informational technology instruction, which none of us were taught when we went to school for our teaching degrees.
Glenn Long
1. How did your work within this Collegial Learning Circle impact teaching/learning? Include implementation samples; student work samples, lesson plans, observations, peer reviews, etc.
ReplyDeleteI have a much better understanding of technology than before this Learning Circle. I have tried to implement new strategies to get students engaged, but often can be limited when there are problems with the technology that is beyond my control. I have been mapping out how to do tasks and implementing them in instructional videos, trying to make sure I am covering any problems I may think my students will have.
2.Provide evidence that as a result of this professional learning you have improved/enhanced your practice and more effectively addressed student learning.
My Zoom Meetings have slowly improved, I am trying new ways to instructionally reach my students by being more aware of problems they may have at doing work at home, and I am thinking about ways to implement my online learnings for when I get back to the physical classroom.
3. Provide evidence that this experience has had an impact on student learning and achievement has increased.
When we were in school, students were more engaged when there was not easy access to cellphones and we were not constantly policing students trying to sneak using their cellphones. Student engagement was encouraging because they were actually remembering what we had taught because they were not distracted by the need to use their cellphones. The Chromebook use still had to be monitored, but with apps the school district had on all school distributed Chromebooks helped control recreational use during class.
Glenn Long