And Marianne Handler answered:
>The activities seem appropriate but what is in the curriculum that would
>allow these to be usesful tools in the classroom? Are classroom teachers
>interested in integrating these tools? Teaching tech is one thing...
>applying it in the learning process is another.
And now for my soapbox delivery of the day! It seems to me that the days of
teaching applications are over. The old model of technology in schools was
to pick an application, then try to locate activities that would "work"
with these applications.
The "new" model is to determine what you want students to know and be able
to do as a result of their education (particularly in the "core" content
areas). Then you design learning activities that assist the students in
developing this knowledge and these skills. If you can find technology
tools that facilitate this learning as good as or better than
non-technology-assisted learning, then you desing learning activities to
incorporate these tools.
You should take some time to become familiar with Judi Harris' work. She
has written profusely on this process, and she has identified several
"Activity Structures" that you can use when designing such instruction. If
you need a reference, I invite you to visit our training site at:
http://web.isbe.state.il.us/peohs/structures.html
In the "Additional Links" section of this site, you will find references to
Judi's "Activity Structures". Of particular interest are her "Mining the
Internet" articles.
Fred
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| J. Fred Schouten, Ed.D. |http://web.isbe.state.il.us/peohs|
| Director of Curriculum and Technology | fschoute@mail.isbe.state.il.us |
| Peotone Unit District #207U |---------------------------------|
| Peotone, Illinois, USA 60468 | Phone: 708-258-3236 |
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