Continuing Research

Hello fellow bloggers!

So, I have finally started to do some research in order to answer my Genius Hour Question!  It's about time, right!?

Teaching has become a major part of my life... and I'm not even a teacher yet!  I've spent the last four years studying child development and education. Since I am in my final year of my teaching degree I felt that it was important that I prepare myself as much as I can by understanding how to get students engaged in their learning experiences (how to motivate them, what strategies to use, etc.).

Just a reminder, my Genius Hour Question:

What instructional design elements can teachers use to create engaging learning experiences for students?

When I started my research I was focusing a lot on instructional design elements that create effective lessons that students will love.  But I started to find that was more of the theory behind everything rather than actually putting it into practice.  So, instead of focusing on academic papers for research, I started looking at blogs and other teacher strategies webpages.  The information that I have collected so far has been so helpful for my personal knowledge as well as my Genius Hour Question (which is basically the whole point, right?!)

Momentum -- NOT Motivation
One thing that I've learned through my research is that motivation (while very important) can be the result of something different than trying to get students excited about learning.  Momentum in learning can really helps students "take off" with their learning.  When students have momentum in their learning they are already striving for the next thing they can learn.  In other words, rather than trying to push students into being motivated, allow them to find something they love and let them run with it.  Once they have momentum and are enjoying what they are learning, they will be intrinsically motivated to learn new things -- which will help them be more engaged in their learning experiences.  It all flows together kind of nicely, don't you think?

New Thoughts
Over the last few weeks of using technology for learning AND learning new things through technology, I can tell that my thoughts have completely changed.  Of course I would love to think that I knew what I was doing with technology and how beneficial it can be... But the last few weeks have been such an eye-opener!!  The amount I've learned from being guided through my technolgoy course and the amount I have learned by trying new programs and using new ideas -- it's been incredible! I've learned more than I would have thought and it just makes me think that there is so much more that I can learn (strong momentum makes me motivated to learn more... interesting!).

My Next Steps
Continuing on with my learning involves synthesizing the material that I've gained in order to create a deeper understanding of my Genius Hour Question (and future knowledge of technology). From here I hope to be able to understand even more strategies and techniques for instructional design that will help students become engage in their learning experiences.  Another thing I hope to do is start talking to real teachers and real students to understand what they think.

After all, I want to know what will help get students more engaged, who better to ask than students themselves?  

Plus, asking teachers will hopefully give me a more realistic idea of what I can and cannot do, what is easy and what is more challenging to do.  I would love to think that all options are easy to do and won't have any issues, but teachers will hopefully be able to help me understand the best options!

Well that's all for now!

- Kathleen :)

Genius Hour Questions

Hi all! :)

So, Genius Hour Questions... not so easy! While trying to design my question, I had to consider how vague or specific my question was.  BUT after I did a lot of thinking, planning, and wishing I could give up and just ignore it... I finally thought of one (with a bit of help).  My genius question:

What instructional design elements can teachers use to create engaging learning experiences for students?

Over the next few weeks I will be looking into this question and researching new ideas in order to find an answer.  As a teacher candidate, I think it is important to understand as much about the theory of the classroom as possible (as well as the practice) in order to be prepared for when I actually have a classroom of my own.  I've seen that some students are not even remotely motivated to learn and just go to school because they have to.  Other students have shown great interest in their learning because they love what they are learning.  This got me thinking about how teaching strategies can determine whether or not a student is engaged and motivated to learn.

My goal for this project is to get a better understanding of how students are motivated to learn and what strategies I can use to make their learning experiences fun and engaging!  Learning should be a fun experience for students, not something they are dreading every day.

I think I'm starting to have the right idea -- and a more positive idea -- about Genius Hour Questions.  My next steps involve researching the different instructional design elements in order to understand how they differ.  I'm hoping that will give me a variety of information about how to use those elements in the classroom to engage student!

Copying Right

Hello bloggers,

After reviewing some information about copyright, it would appear that there are certain ways to avoid copyright issues.  I found it interesting that as part of a copyright, it is understood that others may copy/use the copyrighted work if it is properly cited.  Within the university system, copyright is similar to plagiarism in my opinion.  While writing papers, we are able to obtain information and use it to make an argument IF it is cited properly.  Basically, the citation tells viewers/readers that the piece of work is not an original idea/image from the person using it, but it is from someone else.

In the classroom, it is important to teach students about copyright for many reasons.  It is important for students to understand that it is not okay to use someone else's work and claim it as their own.  Additionally, it is important for students to be able to research information (and cite it) in order to gain new understandings about different things.  Students are able to gather the information someone else has created and combine that with their own thoughts in order to demonstrate their knowledge.

Salter, David. (2014, May 5). Barn Owl [Photograph]

Retrieved from https://www.flickr.com/photos/101295317@N06/13930447099/in/photolist-ndZbAp-5aZkay-9Nw65u-ca7bsG-bmEaSa-odeKMU-iV2DnA-9EzH7R-o2gc4E-bNxB5z-317Xbj-7B9K5c-8mx2o5-e7txfB-d6S2g3-5cEjQB-oa4c67-KEDh-rRpVK2-faDJmn-5Um3yb-oGzdMV-dnYoaF-49WxEm-ajegSj-6h9Mve-pMPife-dRuM8u-gtCarK-59K4ct-qaGktV-fDxRyu-qAByqX-e1SbCX-7brX4p-7rKhZF-pbFj1A-sd9Vtx-nrzii3-nHSDLE-pSQiyz-rT5LyA-6AMV1C-dxLn1U-6YxtXH-i9izBX-9kXN6i-76DgSb-9mQyVu-q32DF7 

"Atlantic Puffin Birds" [Photograph]. Retrieved from https://www.google.ca/search?q=copyright+friendly+images&safe=off&espv=2&biw=1366&bih=599&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0CAYQ_AUoAWoVChMIi_Xe77vrxwIVCjqSCh0rWALQ#imgrc=H_vylv16aqF7tM%3A

Those are just two examples of how I learned to avoid copyright issues.  The first photo describes the photographer, the date it was taken, the title of the photograph, a description of the image, and the website it was obtained from. For the second photo I was unable to determine the photographer or the title of the photo, so I used a description of the photograph and the website I obtained it from.

Well that's all for now :)

Welcome :)

Hello fellow tech bloggers,

Welcome to my new blog!  I created this blog to share my journey through my course about technology in my Teacher Education program! I'm excited about all that I am going to learn, and all that I am going to be able to share with all of you!

So far we have learned about Genius Hour Questions.  The first thing I learned is how difficult it is to create a Genius Hour Question.  It's not as easy as having an idea pop into your head and you research it.  These questions are far more complicated than that.  The idea of a Genius Hour Question is to think of something you are interested to learn about, but that isn't as simple as using google to find an immediate answer.  These questions involve research and blending ideas in order to come up with a good response.  When I think of one, I will let you know!

Stay tuned for more about technology in education!

- Kathleen :)