Technology: Word on the Street

1. Technology: Word on the Street Jake Long 2012 EDU 545

2. Parents Research Socio-economic status and technology perspectives Hollingworth, S. S., Mansaray, A. A., Allen, K. K., & Rose, A. A. (2011). • significance of parents’ working lives, educational experience, and vocational access to technology afford varying degrees of technological capital • Surveyed housing, education, employment, income • Parent perspective gleaned through interviews/surveys

3. Parents Research Middle Class Working Class • “Studious Leisure” time • Ability to set up Parental Controls allows them to monitor without being physically present • Easier time expressing pride about children’s proficiency despite their own shortcomings • Learning is time pressured, task specific, and less-autonomous • Harder time recognizing technological opportunities, impose blanket restrictions that end up impeding both recreational and academic use • More shame about technological ignorance/ generation gap

4. Parents Research All Parents • All parents saw “risk” in technology before opportunity: • physical health (obesity) • social aptitude • intelligence (dumbing down- reading, spelling, handwriting) • attention span

5. Parents Interview Allison Kamars • Portland Resident • 2 Kids at East End Community School in Portland • Son 10- 4th Grade • Daughter 8-2nd Grade

6. Parents Interview Allison Kamars • College Grad, not particularly a tech-junkie • Kids are more adept on iPads/Kindles • Doesn’t impose restrictions, but tries to ensure her kids lead a “balanced” life • Kids play recreational and educational games (Portland Public Library site) • Finds them to be cranky after too much time on Internet • Never been directed to School/Teacher Website, no parent training aside from Demos at Back to School night • Her school’s successful tech integration keeps her confident in kid’s abilities

7. Students Research Middle Grade Perspectives on Technology in School Spires, H. A., Lee, J. K., Turner, K. A., & Johnson, J. (2008). • No one ever asks what the “digital natives” think • surveyed 4000 middle schoolers, also focus groups- high standardized test performers from rural, low-income districts • students rate themselves as high users of video games, internet, email

8. Students Research • students rate using computer or internet (favorite activity) more enjoyable than, group work, individual work, listening to teacher explain things, worksheets • students use technology outside of school to listen to music, social network, play games; inside school, students use technology for word processing and doing research on the internet-more traditional, academic purposes • students expressed interest in having more technology at school • students consider school restrictive of technology use • Recognize Limitations- research online can be harder than flipping through a book, typing is slower than writing, harder to show work for math problems, vulnerability to cyber predators

9. Students Interview Miley Cyrus • 5th Grader at Longfellow Elementary School • 11 years old, 31 year old sister • Mom is an elementary school principal • Has iPad, iPod, HP, iMac at home • Wore a frog knit hat for duration of interview

10. Students Interview Miley Cyrus • Uses computers to type papers, play games (mostly educational), email, and Skype with friends • Uses iPad more recreationally (Angry Birds, Doodle Buddy, Netflix) and iPod (Temple Run) • Claims she never plays games for more than 10 minutes because she gets bored • Uses computers at school for writing and research, making aPowerpointon animal adaptations • Researches through Google search but knows Wikipedia is not reliable because “anyone can write anything they want on there” • Her tech use is really not that different than my own

11. Teachers Research Examining Teacher Integration with Action Projects Dawson, K. (2012). • study involved action research: driven by inquiry (guiding, overarching research) and data collection (journals, notes, interviews, student work)- weighing/analyzing data in terms of guiding question • “A fifth grade teacher studied the ways that the use of online resources contributed to greater depth within content-area writing. An eighth grade math teacher studied whether an online simulation would help lower- level students articulate and apply the concepts of volume and surface area.”

12. Teachers Research • classrooms use technologies in two ways: Type 1- drilling, rote memorization, practice, lecture- makes these activities more efficient; Type 2- transformational uses- authentic, purposeful, use higher-level thinking • newer teachers typically use technology as substitute for teacher-centered, direct instruction, while more seasoned teachers use technology for collaborative purposes

13. Teachers Research • 43% direct instruction, 30% drill and practice, 38% collaborative/cooperative learing • 56% classrooms report using more than 9 computers • 63% word processing and presentation tools, 12% authoring tools and 7% databases; 34% digital video and 41% digital audio, 26% concept mapping software; 83% inquiry on internet

14. Teachers Interview Richard Johnson • 5th Grade teacher for 23 years at Longfellow Elementary • Team teaches with 2 other 5th Grade teachers, teaches science and writing • Got his first yahoo email account in 1998 • Taught Felicia Mazzone • Gives all his students nicknames (Felicia’s was Felicia Navidad)

15. Teachers Interview Richard Johnson • Calls himself the “Drill guy” for 5th Grad math, uses these websites: • -BrainPop, ThatQuiz,MathPro, Rover, WhiteBoard, ScribblePress, MathDrills • Also uses Kahn Academy, PBS, and MoveElements for teaching Science • Keeps class blog and email, also has parents register for conferences on PTCfast • Students are currently making Powerpoint for class project - (75% knew, 25% didn’t)

16. Teachers Interview Richard Johnson • “If you want to use it, you have to buy it, and teach yourself how to use it” • Has iPad cart once a week- Fridays • Just got the digital projector for the first time this year, used dusty 70s overhead before that • Buying AppleTV for the class with his own money • Has had one Cyber Bullying incident with Facebook- talked to parents and students involved

17. Specialist Interview Liz Meahl • Technology Coordinator at Longfellow Elementary for 12 years • Favorite current educational technology tools are dot cam and AppleTV

18. Specialist Interview Liz Meahl Perfect World Real World • 5 iPads in each classroom • computer lab for each grade level • Apple TV for each classroom • projector in each classroom • clearly defined support system for classroom teachers • more opportunities for staff professional development • higher salary for the Building Technology Coordinator • 1 iMac in each classroom • 1 MacAir for each teacher • 6 iPads for Special Ed. • 1 iPad for Speech Teacher • 2 laptop carts (25 MacBooks) • 2 Dot Cams • 1 Digital Projector

19. Super Lane ( classroom teacher, online teacher, parent, literacy board member …spy?) Lane Clarke • Has 6th Grade son in Portland Schools (King Middle), last year at Longfellow • Gave a presentation to 5th Grade teachers at Longfellow last year about integrating technology • Creating (animoto,voicethread) and Learning (reading web features, Googling “Tiger”= infinite hits) • Experience teaching in web-based and classroom environments

20. Super Lane ( classroom teacher, online teacher, parent, literacy board member, …spy?) Lane Clarke the Parent Pros Cons • Son used iTree app, GoogleMaps, Keynote, digital cameras to chart and recommend trees to city of Portland • Blown away by all the layers, creating • 1hr/ day on Kahn Academy? • Screen time, best use of time • Substitute for direct instruction • Loss of valuable direct instruction during class time

21. Super Lane ( classroom teacher, online teacher, parent, literacy board member, …spy?) Lane Clarke the Professor Pros Cons • More structured, intentional in lesson planning • Can connect with each person one-on-one • Less dynamic • Harder to formative assess • Harder to model and scaffold

22. Conclusions • Recognize the many ways to use technology (transformative vs. drilling/informational) • Read the ingredients before you drink the Kool-Aid • How do I use technology? Would this be engaging for me? • Know your students and their parents as Technology users • Scaffold skills, anticipate snags • Don’t be afraid to embrace the unknown– students are constantly doing this, why shouldn’t we ?