EDUC 6712 Reflection of Course Assignment

The most striking revelation I have had about teaching new literacy skills to my students is that students need to be more involved in directing their own learning.  From choosing a question to guide their inquiry, to searching, evaluating, synthesizing, and communicating what they have learned, students are capable of much more than most teachers give them credit (Laureate Education, 2009b).  I agree, “the most important thing we can teach children is how to learn to accomplish goals” (Laureate Education, 2009c).  Inquiry learning is an excellent way to motivate, challenge and actively involve students in their own learning.  When students learn to make their own decisions about their learning they take more responsibility in and pride from their learning.  Also, they will be better prepared for their futures from Inquiry Learning experiences.

The knowledge and experience I have gained from this course will influence my current and upcoming teaching practices in a variety of ways.  I now believe it is very important for teachers to teach students how to use the resources available to them. Currently, desktop computers and a laptop cart are utilized daily, in my school, as a learning station.  Students may be taughthow to go to the specific sites their teachers want them to use in the station, but that is all that they are taught.  Each time I am using technology with students I will now use the think aloud approach to help students understand the how and why of what I am doing (Coiro, 2005).  Also, I will model and provide guided practice with how to use the desktop and laptop computers.  Although the oldest students in my school are in fourth grade, they are old enough to learn about ethics and safety using technology.  Technology will most likely play a large role in their futures’, so the earlier they learn how to use technology safely and ethically, the better.  
This course has changed how I think about daily lessons.  If I were in the classroom I would think and plan differently as a result of this course.  My new mindset would include step-by-step explicit instruction on using technology.  Lessons must be presented using the think aloud approach (Coiro, 2005).  After modeling, lessons should be scaffolded to assist in student comprehension of the material (Eagleton & Dobler, 2007).  Formative assessment should occur throughout the entire lesson to guide my instruction and my differentiation for particular students (Kuhlthau, Maniotes & Caspari, 2007b). Using rubrics will focus students on their topic and how they will be evaluated. They are used as a tool for self-assessment (Kuhlthau, et. al., 2007b).  I really like the idea of students using their literacy skills to present their learning.  What an excellent experience for them to express themselves through a variety of medias and oral presentation.  This skill of presenting will help students learn to share their views with confidence and experience.  It also enables them to use their higher level thinking skills rather than just skim the surface of learning (Jansen, 2005).
Also, I now realize how important it is to give individual feedback to students (Eagleton & Dobler, 2007).  Using formative assessment daily I will be able to gauge how my students are progressing and what they need to improve.  Using conferencing and reflective journals I can give specific constructive criticism and/or advice to improve student achievement and understanding. Formative assessment will also indicate areas in which I must differentiate my lessons in the classroom (Laureate Education, 2009a).
Finally, the concept of my own personal reflection has been revisited.  I did begin using a reflective journal at the beginning of the year, but eventually stopped due to an overwhelming workload.  I must begin self-reflection again to improve my own teaching practice (Eagleton & Dobler, 2007).  The reflective journal may also serve as a reference for myself for next year since it will assist me in keeping track of what went well and how I can improve other lesson components.  This will strengthen my teaching and, in turn, student achievement.
Due to this course I have set a new professional development goal for myself to increase my information literacy and technology skills.  I know that “the Unites States in particular is concerned about the general level of literacy among low-achieving students and the loss of human talent through the attrition of disadvantaged students in urban schools” (Kahlthau, Maniotes & Caspari, 2007a, p. 2).  My school is full of these disadvantaged students.  I have to take a leadership role to help change occur and to create more equity with my students in order for them to be successful in their futures. In order to encourage more information literacy and technology usage in my school, I have to practice and develop my own skills in these areas.  I have decided to really concentrate on creating at least one Guided Inquiry project for the fourth graders in my school next year. The fourth grade teachers are open and willing to try something new.  In fact, they requested to get together this summer to work on redoing the fourth grade math curriculum to make it more meaningful for the students and to incorporate more problem-solving based materials.  We will work together to create this unit using the materials from this course to guide us.  Eventually I would like to redo the entire curriculum rather than just one unit, but if we start with one unit we can reflect and collaborate to build new ones based on experience with this type of teaching and learning.  If teachers plan with me they will feel invested in the unit and will buy into using it in their classrooms.  If Guided Inquiry assists students to “develop research competency and subject knowledge as well as foster motivation, reading comprehension, language development, writing ability, cooperative learning, and social skills” (Kahlthau, et. al., 2007a, p. 2), then we are doing our students a disservice if we do not implement it in our classrooms.  Creating this unit with our 21st Century literacy and technology skills being utilized will strengthen my own familiarity and skills in this area.  In addition, I will take the finished unit plan to the head of the math department to show him the type of 21st learning that is possible utilizing available technology.  I know he will be thrilled to see this type of teaching and learning in our school.
Another goal I have will occur in the next month.  I am going to introduce the concept of epals to the third grade teachers at the next math data meeting.  Their students are researching different countries in the library and in the classroom.  It would add an entirely new perspective if they could epal with someone from the country they are learning about (Demski, 2008).  I am thrilled to be the conduit of change in my school.  I know the teachers and students will be really excited about this opportunity. As new ideas are introduced and grasped by teachers and students, new literacies will be learned. As an agent of change I am in a position to introduce new ideas and new technologies to the teachers and students in my school.
Students in my school are already disadvantaged.  If I can open the doors to the exciting and vast resources the Internet has to offer they will benefit by knowing how to use these resources in their futures (Eagleton & Dobler, 2007).  “Being a lifelong learner is about asking the questions burning in our hearts and minds and having the strategies needed to find the answers” (Eagleton & Dobler, 2007, p.281).  I am a lifelong learner, and in order to encourage my students to follow in this path they must be given the tools, the materials, the knowledge and the opportunity to succeed.  

References:

Coiro, J. (2005, October). Making Sense of Offline Text. Educational Leadership, 63 (2), 30-35.
Demski, J. (2008, November). E-palling Around. THE Journal, 35(11), 18-19.
Eagleton, M. B., & Dobler, E. (2007). Reading the Web: Strategies for Internet inquiry. New York: The Guilford Press.
Jansen, B. (2005, October). Meaningful Products: Making the Whole Greater than the Sum of the Parts. Library Media Connection, 24(2), 27-28.
Kuhlthau, C. C., Maniotes, L. K., & Caspari, A. K. (2007a). Guided inquiry: Learning in the 21st century. Chapter 1: Introduction to Guided Inquiry (pp. 1-4). Westport: Libraries Unlimited.
Kuhlthau, C. C., Maniotes, L. K., & Caspari, A. K. (2007b). Guided inquiry: Learning in the 21st century. Chapter 8: Assessment in Guided Inquiry (pp. 111-131). Westport: Libraries Unlimited.
Laureate Education, Inc. (Producer). (2009a). Supporting Information Literacy and Online Inquiry in the Classroom [Motion Picture]. Developing Students’ Digital Literacy. Baltimore: Author.
Laureate Education, Inc. (Producer). (2009b). Supporting Information Literacy and Online Inquiry in the Classroom [Motion Picture]. New Literacies. Baltimore: Author.
Laureate Education, Inc. (Producer). (2009c). Supporting Information Literacy and Online Inquiry in the Classroom [Motion Picture]. Skills for the Future. Baltimore: Author.