Module 2 - Improving Instruction Introduction
Overview
For the next three weeks, you will be working on assignments designed to help you learn more about ways in which technology can be used to help improve specific aspects of INSTRUCTION. To introduce this important experience, an expanded INTRODUCTION is required.
This introduction begins with a short video that went viral near the end of the Spring 2013 semester. Perhaps you have seen it already. The video depicts Jeff Bliss, a Texas high school student in a world history class who is asked to leave the room because he questioned a time limit the teacher (Ms. Julie Phung) imposed on a test the students in the class were taking. Here is his response to Ms. Phung as he made his way to the door:
This introduction begins with a short video that went viral near the end of the Spring 2013 semester. Perhaps you have seen it already. The video depicts Jeff Bliss, a Texas high school student in a world history class who is asked to leave the room because he questioned a time limit the teacher (Ms. Julie Phung) imposed on a test the students in the class were taking. Here is his response to Ms. Phung as he made his way to the door:
And here is the immediate, official response from the school district following the video's wide exposure via Youtube, national news outlets, Reddit, etc.:
Here are some reactions from other high school students after watching the video
I believe the official position from the district was not too different from the response the teacher provided during the incident. In the video, we see Ms. Phung telling Jeff to leave repeatedly, even remarking multiple times that that he is "...wasting my time." The school district's statement seems equally dismissive.
I think the district should have edited their response slightly:
"We want our students and teachers to be engaged, AND the method by which the TEACHER expressed HER concern could have been handled in a more appropriate way."
In my opinion, this teacher missed a perfect "teachable moment" to dialogue with her concerned student about learning and the real purpose of her instructional decisions (i.e. packets and time limits on tests). She didn't even get out of her fortress to approach Jeff and help him with his obviously upset state of mind. She also could have taken the opportunity to discuss with all the students questions about the test, the packets, or their own perspective on what Jeff was saying. Granted, she may have been having a bad day, but her choices to create a space for herself in the classroom putting multiple layers of objects between herself and her students bears witness to her relationship with them and her regard for them.
I believe Ms. Phung is probably not a good teacher. I could be wrong. I have not ever seen her practice in any detail, other than the few moments displayed on the video. But I generalize about her abilities not just because of her responses to Jeff in the moment as captured on another student's cell phone, but also because of all the decisions she made to arrange the learning environment (fortress for herself, seats in rows, uninspired physical space, use of packets as primary activity experiences). You might think Ms. Phung is just an exception to teaching. Not all teachers are this bad, right?
Unfortunately, we all know teachers like Ms. Phung which means there are way too many teachers out there like her. If you listened to the teenagers in the react video above, you would have heard about their teachers ordering from Amazon during class or teachers who flat out do not care about their students. Luckily, I rarely walk into classrooms today that look like Ms Phung's or the picture below on the left. Instead the look more like the classrooms on the right. Compare the two pictures and think about the decisions the teacher made in each class what these decisions communicate to their students. Consider:
I think the district should have edited their response slightly:
"We want our students and teachers to be engaged, AND the method by which the TEACHER expressed HER concern could have been handled in a more appropriate way."
In my opinion, this teacher missed a perfect "teachable moment" to dialogue with her concerned student about learning and the real purpose of her instructional decisions (i.e. packets and time limits on tests). She didn't even get out of her fortress to approach Jeff and help him with his obviously upset state of mind. She also could have taken the opportunity to discuss with all the students questions about the test, the packets, or their own perspective on what Jeff was saying. Granted, she may have been having a bad day, but her choices to create a space for herself in the classroom putting multiple layers of objects between herself and her students bears witness to her relationship with them and her regard for them.
I believe Ms. Phung is probably not a good teacher. I could be wrong. I have not ever seen her practice in any detail, other than the few moments displayed on the video. But I generalize about her abilities not just because of her responses to Jeff in the moment as captured on another student's cell phone, but also because of all the decisions she made to arrange the learning environment (fortress for herself, seats in rows, uninspired physical space, use of packets as primary activity experiences). You might think Ms. Phung is just an exception to teaching. Not all teachers are this bad, right?
Unfortunately, we all know teachers like Ms. Phung which means there are way too many teachers out there like her. If you listened to the teenagers in the react video above, you would have heard about their teachers ordering from Amazon during class or teachers who flat out do not care about their students. Luckily, I rarely walk into classrooms today that look like Ms Phung's or the picture below on the left. Instead the look more like the classrooms on the right. Compare the two pictures and think about the decisions the teacher made in each class what these decisions communicate to their students. Consider:
- Arrangement of desks in the classroom
- Pictures on the walls
- Student engagement
- Available resources
Decisions...Decisions
The teachers in the photos above made intentional decisions about they want to organize their instruction. And most teachers have made massive changes to move away from rows of students to having them work in groups. But has the work changed? Too often, the students are doing the same type of work they did years ago when the were separated into rows. They can now just copy off each other much easier. If the content and ages of the students in the two pictures were the same, I think it is very possible the students could be doing the same work. Hopefully you noticed the two class do not have the same resources. On the right, each group, including the teacher, has their own computer and projector/screen. Yet, they seem to be working out of textbooks. So while I applaud this teacher in having his students work together, are they really taking advantage of the technology they have?
Teachers make thousands of decisions, both deliberate and unintended, when planning and implementing a lesson. Each of the decision can affect what and how a student learns. One of my goals for this course is for you to learn how to make good decisions as educators including the use of technology. When I use the terms "technology" in this manner, I am referring to both the media teachers use within learning experiences, as well as the methods and instructional design strategies teachers use to help plan, implement and evaluate learning experiences. And it is the technology of instructional design and methods that is more important. For example, consider the technology of television. This technology has changed quite a bit since its introduction in classrooms (not widely used until perhaps the mid 1980's...once an affordable VCR could be connected). But has its use in the classroom really changed much? Has television ever been a big deal in the classroom?
Teachers make thousands of decisions, both deliberate and unintended, when planning and implementing a lesson. Each of the decision can affect what and how a student learns. One of my goals for this course is for you to learn how to make good decisions as educators including the use of technology. When I use the terms "technology" in this manner, I am referring to both the media teachers use within learning experiences, as well as the methods and instructional design strategies teachers use to help plan, implement and evaluate learning experiences. And it is the technology of instructional design and methods that is more important. For example, consider the technology of television. This technology has changed quite a bit since its introduction in classrooms (not widely used until perhaps the mid 1980's...once an affordable VCR could be connected). But has its use in the classroom really changed much? Has television ever been a big deal in the classroom?
Today, teachers tend to use video projectors more than television sets to project multimedia messages. And they certainly face more choices than teachers in the past regarding HOW they might choose to use such technology.
It might be used with a SmartBoard as a full-color chalk board/white board during teacher-led discussions.
It might be used with a SmartBoard as a full-color chalk board/white board during teacher-led discussions.
Or it might be used by students to interact with practice items, complete with feedback from the system. Obviously students find this very exciting. It looks like the teacher in the image is trying to restrain one of the excited students from jumping in early.
Or it might be used to present dynamic content or examples from sources connected to the Internet.
These represent some of the more traditional ways in which teachers might choose to use emerging, connected technology. But there are even more powerful ways in which teachers might decide to use technology. For example, using limited resources a teacher might decide to have learners work in groups to create, problem solve, or tell stories. A decision like this might force the students to learn and apply a number of constructive collaboration skills.
Or a teacher might choose to make decisions about the use of technology that involves the student creation of material that actually matters in the real world. For example, the image below represents a screen shot of a website created by third grade students that presents some important information to new students about their school. It features interviews with teachers, descriptions of lunch procedures and options, playground rules, and other types of information that might help new students become acclimated to the school before they arrive. Such a useful tool, developed by students. Interviewing adults, working with the technology associated with developing the site, trouble-shooting, and collaboration skills reflect some of the important skills learned within a project that resulted in a real, useful part of the school website. Can you remember ANYTHING you did in 3rd grade that truly benefited others? Anything? I can't.
How teachers choose to use the tools and resources available to students represents some very important decisions to be made.
Recall that this course is designed to help you answer a very important question:
“How can teachers use technology to improve their professional practice?”
The next three weeks include assignments designed to help you learn specific strategies for improving the "technology" of designing effective learning experiences (in this case, the instruction aspect of a learning experience). It begins with helping you learn how to develop effective INTRODUCTIONS to new learning experiences, which a a good way to start...don't you think?
Recall that this course is designed to help you answer a very important question:
“How can teachers use technology to improve their professional practice?”
The next three weeks include assignments designed to help you learn specific strategies for improving the "technology" of designing effective learning experiences (in this case, the instruction aspect of a learning experience). It begins with helping you learn how to develop effective INTRODUCTIONS to new learning experiences, which a a good way to start...don't you think?