- How do you learn best in school? Describe a time that you were excited about learning. What was happening in the class?
- What would make learning more interesting for you at school?
- Do you think using technology makes school more interesting? If so, how?
Monday, September 10, 2007
21st Century Learners
Interview a student or a group of students to learn about the 21st century learner and prepare a 400 word response on what you have learned. Post your response on the class Blog Here are sample questions to use for the interview.
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If you want to view the class performing in the music project, go to www.iamlodge.com/cebula
After interviewing Christian (an 8th grade student at Centennial Campus Middle on the Pelican team) he confirmed what I suspected. Teaching this new generation of conceptual learners need to incorporate highly interactive, highly engaging activities to capture student’s attention. According to Christian, examples of this would be adding technology to the lessons, incorporating hands on activities, and bringing in guest speakers to the students to interview. Christian stated that the best types of learning for him are the ones that incorporate either hands on activities, like when he became a human mummy wrapped in honey, salt, sugar, spices and toilet paper, or lessons that include forms of technology such as power points. He also confirmed that this new breed of student needs to have real word examples either brought into the classroom through guest speakers or have student go out and experience meaningful job opportunities. One of the most effective activities he could recount had to do with job shadowing for a day. He was able to go and observe an engineer designing buildings(his father). This he said gave relevancy to the algebraic math he was learning and the elective he was “forced” to take(Solid works). After the job shadowing opportunity he could see the relevancy of learning to design basic shapes on the computer in his dread exploratory when he saw how those shapes turn into 3-d buildings later.
Through the interview I also saw the need to incorporate technology into the classroom. When asked “what made his classes exciting?” he said it was teaching using “more advanced teaching stuff like power points and the internet instead of encyclopedias.” Christian even explained how when technology was used in the classroom he started using it at home. This was different then the class notes he some times still takes. An example he gave was his calculator. Now that he knew how to use the calculator for more than just addition and subtraction he used it all the time.
In summary, Christian has confirmed that this new conceptual age of learners needs to be highly engaged in their learning. They need to be coached and mentored instead of taught and lectured at. They need to be shown the relevancy of what their being taught and how it applies to their daily lives, and because their daily lives include high doses of computers, and web surfing, teachers need to meet them where they are at by bringing that technology into the classroom.
I interviewed all of my students enrolled in grades six through eight Language Arts classes and my younger sister who is in seventh grade. One caveat of importance is that my students attend a public separate school and most have done so since early elementary.
I found across all the grade levels many similar themes among how the students felt they learned best. These themes included liking teachers to explain, show or model new concepts. The most popular response amid these was and I quote “show me how”. I was not surprised by this response in of itself, but rather that students were able to clearly articulate that need and it was so pervasive.
The replies received for describing a time in which learning was exciting, I had varied answers. For the most part my six and seventh graders did not really grasp the question in its entirety. For example, many students indicated times when they experienced success, such “when I was getting As and Bs” or “when I was focusing or paying attention”. Although perhaps not precisely what I was expecting, I was impressed to find my students are aware of the cause and effect paradigm as it relates to success in school and even more importantly their role in that interaction. My sister and my eighth graders were better able to put in to words a single experience, including “the first time I read a chapter book”, “math game in fifth grade”, “a project about animals” or “Superseed”(4H program). Many, many of my students indicated “never” being excited about school; part apathy, part trying to be cool and sadly, very true for many of them.
In terms of technology in the classroom, it was by and far the most popular solution offered to make learning more exciting. Reasons varied from “it helps with work” “we already know how to use it” and “I like it”. Some interesting limitations mentioned that some students felt that learning while using technology was stifled by the teachers desired outcome, in other words their access was very directed and limited; “We are learning about computers, but I have not even been allowed on the computer once!”
What is the take away…students still want teachers to guide them through the act of learning while desiring a seamless porthole to technology where they feel academically savvy. Our job is meeting this mutually inclusive dichotomy by providing lessons that scaffold students learning in a technological environment.
This evening, I spoke to the 15 year-old son of a fellow teacher. I went into the conversation knowing he is fairly reticent, and I confirmed that fact immediately. What I found interesting was that he had difficulty talking about himself as a learner, causing me to wonder if he is ever asked to describe and/or define the way he learns. He did not seem to understand what I was asking.
When asked how he learns best in school, he named chorus as the class he enjoyed the most and the class is most excited about. When asked how the chorus teacher presented material, he replied that the students get to sing. This is interesting in light of the elements of R-directed thinking that we recently read about. While the conversation did not necessarily answer the questions I had set out to ask, I do feel like I learned a lot about him through the answers he did supply. Later in the conversation, he told me that at his high school, students have electives every day, and that he will have chorus every day for the entire year. I found it interesting that no core academic subjects came up at any time in the conversation.
Interestingly, when speaking about technology, it is clear that the only ways he uses it in school is to speed up certain processes, such as typing and organizing writing and making calculations. He couldn’t think of any other instances where he used it for other purposes. He does think it makes school more interesting, and he considers it efficient. Finally, when asked what would make learning more interesting, he suggested that teachers relate it (subject matter) to things that appeal to students. I wish that I had then asked him about technology that he uses outside of school, and how he believed it could be used/applied in the classroom. Knowing he is interested in singing, I am curious about what he would think of learning to use technology in order to compose and record music. I think gleaning that information will take a number of separate conversations.
I interviewed all of my students in the 3rd grade, a small group of children in the academically gifted program, as well as, a small group of children in the resource room. I interviewed all of these groups because I wanted to see the similarities and differences amongst them all.
First, I will start off with my 3rd grade students. The majority of the students answered the first question, How do you learn best in school? with working in small groups and sharing ideas, and in a quiet environment. When asked to describe a time they were excited about learning, most responded; when making our own compost pile, studying soil, touching worms, scientist of the week, going to the computer lab and learning typing to learn, and learning a new cool way to subtract numbers. All of these responses are very hands on, inquiry approaches to teaching, which bring us into the conceptual age. Most kids said that if we did more experiments, played more games, and had more projects learning would be more interesting to them. The majority (21 out of 25students) of my children did think technology made school more interesting.
The students that were pulled from their classroom to receive resource time felt that they learned best in school when directions were repeated and several examples were given before having to do independent work. They were excited about learning when they had math centers and games, and science projects. Doing more activities on the computer, playing more games, and having teachers that are nice would make learning more interesting. All of these students felt that technology did make school more interesting.
The academically gifted students felt that they learned best in school when making things, doing projects, reading books, and playing games. They were excited about learning when doing projects (making salt elevation maps) and working with a group on making a poster about social studies. More projects, working in small groups, and playing games would make learning more interesting to them. All, but 1 of these students felt that technology made school more interesting.
In summary, I feel that the way we teach children today is so very different from how we were taught, and as educators it is our job to continue to teach children through inquiry, discovery, and hands on approaches. In teaching this way, students are creating and taking away with them their own experiences. I feel this is a much better way of teaching/learning then the “old school” way so many of us were taught. I thought it was interesting how all groups of students pretty much had the same sort of responses for most questions. As you can see almost all the students felt that technology made school more interesting. It is also our responsibility as teachers to integrate technology into our curriculum. We are in the 21st century and are preparing our students for the future that is going to be full of technology. Not only do we need to teach them computer skills, but they should also be familiar with other forms of technology like webcams, digital microscopes, digital cameras, etc…
I interviewed my class of second graders. I have a very diverse group of students this year. I have EC children ranging from students to need occupational therapy to mild learning disabilities, as well as students who are AIG (Academically and Intellectually Gifted). However, the responses to the questions that I asked were very similar in context.
When I asked my students how they best learned in school, they seemed to be a little confused at what I was asking them. After some further explaination and examples, the majority of the group responded that they learn best when they get to work in a group or with a partner. I also had responses such as doing things on the computer, when you show me how, when I can "do" something, and also by playing games. All of these responses can be linked to inquiry-based learning and learning through right-brained teaching. I think that our children are moving more towards the conceptual age even if we don't think that they are!
When I asked my students to tell me about a time that they were excited to learn or had fun learning, I had a variety of responses. Some students talked about playing math games, doing projects, going to the technology lab, learning how to balance things in first grade, graphing things in math so that you can see the answer, and many responses related to science. I had several students tell me about lessons that they have done in regards to science and math. These two subjects tend to be more hands-on and inquiry based in learning style. The majority of the responses had something to do with "doing," "seeing," and "making learning fun!" Establishing meaning and purpose for students seemed to be something that was very important to making learning exciting and memorable.
When I asked my students what would make learning more fun in school, they had lots of ideas! They said more projects, being able to work in groups or choose who they got to work with, acting out plays, playing learning games on the computer, and having more choices in what they do. Again, their responses revolved around interaction and discussion.
Technology is a hot topic among most of my students. They get very excited when we go to the Orchard Lab or it is our day to go to technology. They absolutely loved the video that we made this week in class! Every child in my class said that technology makes learning more fun. Some said that it is because you don't have to write as much, others said that you can play games on the computer that teach you about reading and math, and some said that they liked using the computers with other students. We are lucky to have 5 multimedia carts at our school. We are able to integrate technology into our lessons very easily. My students are becoming more and more familiar with various forms of technology. Although we are still teaching the same concepts, we are teaching them using different materials, which makes learning more fun! As teachers of a new generation of children, it is our responsibility to stay up to date on the latest technologies to integrate in the classroom.
I decided to interview my Honors English I class because I knew that they would have the most access to technology and would also be the most candid group. The responses that I received, however, surprised me. When I asked them to list the ways that they learned best, they listed lectures, teacher-lead group discussions, and group activities. I mentioned my surprise that they had not listed any technology-based learning, and I had several students say that they did not learn unless they wrote the information down themselves. They used the computer and Internet for supplemental assistance, but they understood the material much better if they took a more direct approach in their knowledge acquisition. They were motivated by a positive relationship with their teacher and preferred teachers who added humor and personal anecdotes to their teaching. They enjoyed playing teacher-lead games and teacher-assigned art projects, and they also were more driven if they had incentives such as the stickers that I give them for participation.
After receiving these answers, I explained the idea of our graduate class to my students and moved into asking them about the technology that helps them learn. There was a resounding response of PowerPoint even though they said that they understood why most teachers did not use it. They told me that PowerPoint had the visual advantage, but sometimes teachers relied on it too heavily and did nothing more than read off the slides. I discussed Ms. Cebula’s teaching method with my students, and I received mixed reviews of this particular method. One student told me that she had a social studies teacher who would rap for them to help remember facts about North Carolina, and she said that the class would always perform well on tests after learning with that method. Another student, however, raised her hand and said that she had had a similar experience, but the teacher was very unenthusiastic. This student said that this lack of energy in her teaching made the whole experience almost annoying to them and said that she always cringed when she heard that a teacher was going to incorporate music into a lesson.
I closed the “interview” by discussing a blog option with them. Every two weeks, students have journals that they must submit to me, and I asked them if they would want to post their journals online in a blog format. I then had to explain what a blog was to some of them since surprisingly, they were unfamiliar with the term. All but three of the twenty-five students were hesitant. They explained that their writing was personal to them and that they usually did not feel comfortable sharing with others. They were more willing to blog if they could post about less personal topics.
Overall, my interview turned out much different than I thought, but it has given me ideas for incorporating technology into my classroom at a future date.
I spoke with my younger sister who is in 5th grade. She attends a private school in Iowa. Interestingly, she has extensive experience at a variety of schools—from Philadelphia to Houston. When asked to describe herself as a learner, she hesitated and appeared confused at the question—much like Laura’s interviewee (15 year old). I contemplated when one discovers one’s own learning style. From personal experience, I know that I did not fully comprehend my own learning style until reading Gardner’s Theory of Multiple Intelligences. Realizing my sister’s apparent confusion, I utilized specific questions about learning styles to incite her thinking. She says that she learns best when her “teacher explains well” and when she is able to “work in groups for hard projects” and “independently for easy projects.”
When I probed about a specific time that she was excited about learning, she was pensive for a while—there was obviously not a stand-out experience for her. She finally responded about a state research project that she had completed her 4th grade year. She described it as “fun” because she was “able to use the computer for research.” Technology—bingo!
From a 5th grader’s point of view, she had significant difficulty brainstorming what would make learning more interesting. Therefore, I informed her about certain schools where all of the students had their own laptops, utilized blogs, and made videos for their classes. She instantly perked up, “Really?” she asked. “That would be cool to be able to blog for my class” was her immediate response. She described how she loves how others can read her blog “even if they are in another state.” This referred to her connections to friends from her previous schools. She asserted that this was her primary form of communication with her distant friends. If only we could channel this energy into the classroom!
When I questioned her about the use of technology in her classroom, she said that she “was an expert.” Even more, she said that she knew significantly more than her teacher, my parents and most adults in her school building. When asked where she acquired all of her technology knowledge, she exclaimed, “I taught myself!” Interestingly, she said that she does not even remember learning how to use the computer. That statement exemplifies our current generation of learners. Computers are seamlessly integrated into their lives. They cannot imagine life without technology, so the big question is…Why are we teaching without it?
Since my experience has only involved teaching college students, I chose to interview a friend who has already earned a BA, an MBA, and is now back at UNC working on anatomy & physiology in order to satisfy a needed requirement for admission to medical school. It was an insightful interview because she was able to provide me with her current perspectives on the learning environment, in addition to perspectives she held when she was younger.
To begin, she told me that as a younger student, she would sit and passively absorb information as she took notes and listened during the lectures. She always did well as a student, but never felt like it was as fulfilling as she imagined it might somehow otherwise be. Once she entered graduate school, she did some serious re-thinking, and decided she would take a more active approach to learning…which she claims has made all the difference in the world ever since. She sits in the front row and makes a point to ask a LOT (her emphasis was on “lot”) of questions. She also helped to create a small study group that meets regularly to talk openly about material in the chapters. She claims that listening to others vocalize the information and explain it in ways they understand it truly helps her to grasp the material more firmly.
As far as learning being exciting and enjoyable, she mentions that she has always enjoyed learning, but has recently begun to take this more active role in learning…which has increased her enjoyment of once again being a student. This semester in Anatomy & Physiology, she particularly enjoyed when the professor brought out a human skeleton and began moving various limbs in different planes of motion. Having a passion for knowledge of the human body, she claimed that simply watching what goes on inside of us, even when we don’t think about it, is always exciting to her.
In order to make the learning process more interesting, she said that the application of theoretical ideas to real-life experiences makes it “immensely” more interesting. Her view is, “If you can’t apply it, then why bother learning it?”. As an adult learner, she noticed that she is interested in more than just what is going to be covered on the next quiz or test, which seems to be the only consideration of many younger students.
To her, technology is a double-edged sword. She mentioned that it streamlines information to the different senses, because PowerPoint, guest lectures via the Web and Skype, and podcasts make learning more multi-faceted that it ever was when she was a younger student. Technology allows multiple ways of teaching the same topic, so an instructor is provided with more than one way of communicating with students. However, technology can make people very lazy. She went on the mention that “when you are spoon-fed, you sometimes forget you can use your own arm!”
I interviewed two fifth graders, a girl and a boy. When I told them about the class and why I was conducting the interview, they were perplexed as to why I would be studying technology if I did not want to “teach computers.” When I explained that we were exploring how to use technology to improve learning in general, they were still uncertain—but very forthcoming in their responses.
When asked what would help them learn better, both students agreed they prefer when the teacher “shows you how to do something instead of just telling you.” Interestingly, both students agreed that one of their favorite learning experiences was their North Carolina project from the fourth grade. The male student explained that he loved history and social studies but didn’t feel he had the opportunity to study it very much in school because “Everything is about math and reading.” The female student said that she liked that she was able to be creative in how she presented her project and enjoyed researching (through books, and the internet) state symbols and history.
Both students agreed that school would be MUCH more fun if they went on more field trips and “didn’t just read about everything.” I asked if they thought that interactive software related to content areas would interest them. They were emphatic that this would be a significant improvement over the status quo. Both emphasized that this would help them work at their own pace and not have to work too fast or too slowly. Also, they said that working on a computer program would allow them to go back and do something over if they didn’t understand.
Our school has technology as a special once per week. When I asked about what they did at this special, they said they practiced typing, sometimes played games (a favorite), and were going to learn power point later in the semester. However, both said that during normal class time they didn’t really have the opportunity to use computers because their classes only had four or five. They did use Study Island occasionally, but were not crazy about it. At home, they both used the computer to visit websites of interest (Disney-channel games, sports sites) but not for school projects other than typing papers. One student had an IPOD. When I asked if he could think of a way to use the IPOD in class, he said the teachers could download songs or speeches of interest and play them for the class.
In general, I was surprised by how little the students used technology for school. Coming from the high school setting, I experienced much more technology integration. I think it is even more important for younger students to integrate technology and maximize their skills as “technology natives.” In addition, students without home access to computers must have ways to familiarize themselves with technology.
As a side note, it always surprises me how excited students are to be asked their opinions on learning, regardless of their age. It makes me think we don’t do this nearly enough.
Since I am not currently teaching, I used a close friend's three daughters. The three girls, Kelsey (age 12), Rebecca (age 10) and Megan (age 8) were all students who overall enjoy the learning experience.
I began by asking the girls if they liked school and particularly what they liked most about school. Megan, the youngest, without hesitation responded that learning was what she liked best about school. After further questioning, I found out that she loves math and anything associated with math. Why? They do math games and activities instead of worksheets and problems over and over. She has had great math teachers for the last few years and you can tell from the way she talks that it has really developed her love for the subject. It did not surprise me that the older two girls responded that their favorite thing about school was a specific subject, the one in which they did the most fun activities.
When I asked them about a time they were excited about learning, their responses varied from specific hands-on activities to activities in which they experienced success. Kelsey told me about a time in elementary school in which she got to dissect an owl. Years later she still recalls the experience and all the facts that were associated. Yet, when I asked her about her science lessons this year so far, she could not really remember the topic of class that day. When she finally remembered, she told me they had taken notes and the teacher had lectured all period. Megan had also mentioned a hands-on activity as the most exciting. Her class had gone to a nearby park to research and search for little critters. Rebecca had recalled her most exciting moment as coming in as runner-up in the Spelling Bee. You could tell how proud she was of this.
All three girls named hands-on and technology based activities as things that would make learning more interesting. They said how sitting at a desk all day and just listening doesn't make them want to learn or come to school. If they could get outside and look at the things they were studying in science or do calculations on their surroundings it would make it more enjoyable. None of them mentioned technology or computers as things that would make it more interesting. I have a feeling that this is because the area that they live in is still very rural and the technology is very lacking. These girls do not have much exposure to the computer.
In fact when I asked them if technology made learning better, they were pretty indifferent to the idea. Rebecca actually stated that she would rather not have technology incorporated because she is not very good with computers and that would make it harder for her. Megan and Kelsey both said that they might like computers being more involved, but right now they only get to play games on them on random days.
From my interviews with Kelsey, Rebecca, and Megan, I learned that students today definitely need to be highly engaged. We as teachers cannot expect them to sit in their seats and listen to the content and be excited about it. We need to give them opportunities to experience their learning hands-on.
I interviewed a 5th grade class at Davis Drive Elementary. I would like to preface my findings by giving a little background of the school. DDE is a traditional calendar school in Cary. The majority of the students come from upper-class families with high socioeconomic status. DDE is a technology school, with 5 computers per classroom. Davis Drive prides itself on high academic standards and growth.
I asked the class to tell me how they learn the best. Most of the responses were based on hands-on activities. The talked about playing games in class, performing science experiments, and completing projects. Some of the students mentioned an affinity for visual learning…videos, Power Points, presentations, and reading textbooks. One mentioned his love of guest speakers. More than half the class stated that they learned best when they were having fun and when the teacher was excited about the subject matter.
The entire class agreed that the use of technology, in all its forms, makes learning more interesting. Over the school career at DDE and other schools the children have come into contact with a variety of technology. They also have a wider view of what constitutes technology…from computers, to calculators, to books, to the poster maker we have in our library. Students mentioned the use of video games in school to help reinforce learned concepts. They use PAWS, Accelerated Reader, and Study Island from 2nd grade on. Daily, our announcements are broadcast over the television…the 5th graders each get a turn hosting them in the morning. The children have used computers in many ways: research, typing reports, checking teacher websites, making flyers, and completing on-line assignments. Some of the students also mentioned the use of calculators, music, and overhead projectors in school.
Outside of school, these children come into contact with technology every day. They play video games, watch television, use calculators, and are on the computer often. Multiple students mentioned Webkinz…an online game where you can design rooms and win prizes. I was surprised however, that none of the children mentioned i-pods. I asked them afterwards how many of them owned an i-pod…over 75% of them did.
In today’s society, technology is growing on a daily basis, and those who are intimidated or confused by it will get left behind. As Pink said, we are moving into the Conceptual Age, where technology will be used to increase the six senses. After talking to the 5th graders, I feel confident in their abilities to learn with and about different forms of technology. I am sure that in their lifetimes they will see technology grow into unimaginable things. And I am positive that the students at DDE will flourish in a society that will be based greatly on technology.
I interviewed Brinkley, a 7th grade student who attends Ligon Middle School. I began the interview by just asking her how she liked her school. She told me that she really likes it because she gets learn beyond the basic academic subject areas and gets to participate in specialized electives. Ligon Middle School’s motto is arts plus academics equals achievement. I think this is interesting because it shows how are schools are moving to expand teaching beyond the basic subject areas such as math, language arts, science, and social studies. It is enabling students to really explore subjects that they may find interesting. For example, Brinkley is taking three electives right now. She is taking an art elective where they make different types of masks, she is taking band where she plays the trombone, and she is taking a science fiction elective where they read stories, discuss them and watch movies. I asked her if she liked electives and she said yes, because they are hands-on, interesting, and fun.
Next I asked Brinkley how she learns best in school. She told me that she is a visual learner and she learns best when she sees material in front of her. For example, she told me that when a teacher is lecturing, she likes to be able to have a sheet in front of her to guide the lecture, or she likes to be able to see a PowerPoint. When she was younger, she liked using manipulatives to solve math problems, because this enabled her to see the problem visually.
I asked Brinkley what types of activities she likes doing in school. She told me she loves science, so she loves to do investigative labs. She also likes writing creative stories and reading. I then asked her describe a time she was really excited about learning. She told me that in the 6th grade she had a teacher, whose attitude made the class interesting. In fact Brinkley said, “Well everything she did was fun because of her good attitude.” This was an interesting comment to me, because it just goes to show that a teacher can truly make a class what it is. If a teacher is excited about learning, then the students will be as well. She told me of another time that she was excited about learning. Her class took a field trip to Camp Kanata where they got to explore topics they were studying in school. She said that got to participate in hands-on activities that made the information interesting and easy to learn. For example, they did activities with map making, Eco Tech, and bottle rockets. Brinkley said these stations made the information they were learning in school a lot easier to understand because they got to experience it first-hand.
I asked Brinkley what she thought would make learning more interesting in school. She told me that more field trips that directly connected with what they were learning would be a great way to learn information. She also said learning would be more fun if they got to participate in more labs in science. The last thing she told me was very interesting because she said that instead of hearing people talk for an entire period, it would be great it we could move around and do more hands-on activities. She told me the classes where they actually get to do hands-on activities and explore different topics they are studying are the most interesting. I agree with her completely, because students learn best when they can manipulate the information and explore different concepts in a hands-on way.
The last thing Brinkley and I discussed was whether or not technology in school makes it more interesting. She told me that at Ligon they frequently get to use computers and other varying sorts of technology. She also told me technology allows students to find/learn information independently and in an interesting and fun way. She told me that the school has other varying forms of technology. For example they have a device they use in science which enables them to determine the brightness of light. She told me it was fun to be able to use this tool because she was able to really understand how brightness was determined. This was a perfect example to me of how technology can truly be used to enhance a subject/topic. Instead of students just reading about brightness in a book and answering questions about it, they were able to manipulate the information and explore the topic in a hands-on way.
I learned a great deal from this conversation about how students are learning in the 21st century. Our schools are moving beyond the traditional pencil and paper activities to incorporate hands on activities, field trips, and technology into our curriculum. I feel that students will benefit greatly this shift that society is making. However, it is our job to prepare our students for this shift. I agree with Sara that it is our job as educators to prepare our students for a society that is going to be using a lot more technology. We need to incorporate technological skills into our lesson plans and curriculum to help prepare them for a technologically advanced society.
I decided that it would be interesting to interview two groups of students. I began with my kinderarten class and then I interviewed a group of fourth grade students.
After our daily morning meeting, I talked with my students about school and learning. They expressed to me that they learn best when it is quiet and when I am being fun. One child in particular said that he was very excited when we were using the overhead projector and connecting cubes. As a whole, the students feel that learning is most interesting when we use manipulatives and work with partners.
When discussing technology in the classroom, the students became very excited. They love computers! They enjoy typing their names, math, and reading programs. We also extended the discussion by making the students aware of other forms of technology in the classroom : our television, the United Streaming videos that we watch, the overhead projector and the listening center. "I luv taknlog" was what one of the students wrote in their journals that day.
The second group of students that I interviewed were fourth grade students. When asking about how they learn best in school, students responded with various answers including : focusing, listening, playing games when learning, partner activities, and lessons that allow them to move around.
There were many responses about what would make learning more interesting for them at school. They think that if they could help one another while working, it would be "more fun and interesting." Fewer students in the classroom was also poular. Students feel that smaller classroom sizes would make it easier for things to get accomplished. Field trips ranked high as well. Larger classrooms wold allow for more room and fun activities. Calculator games, laptops for notetaking and working on assignments, and science experiments were also listed.
Technology in the classroom appeared to be the topic that brought the most excitement. Students feel that computers are of the utmost importance and they definitely aid in learning. "Computers can take you anywhere you want to go...to places you never knew about." "Computers are also great because we don't have to handwrite everything. Typing is much faster." Learning and studying takes place through games, math programs and Study Island. Students feel that having their own laptops would be very beneficial and that they would never lose their notes.
Although there are many differences between kindergarten and fourth grade, the topics of learning and technology appear to be both exciting and important to all of the students. Smaller classrooms, less students, manipulatives, hands-on activities, and computers rank highest in the minds of children. The most interesting thing that I've learned is that I am in total agreement with both groups of students and I feel as if I'm on the right track in terms of my lessons and activities.
I interviewed ten students from grades 2-5 during an after school program where I work as a assistant director at a private school. The majority of the answers to the first question involved learning experiences that were very hands on. Some suggested a game that had them “drive” across the U.S. by rolling a die with the cardinal directions on it. Another group named a time where they observed and documented the growth of mealworms as well as other hands on science experiences. Some other responses included experiences included field trips that integrated their unit on North Carolina. I found it interesting that all of the responses incorporated hands on active learning, which goes along with Pink’s conceptual age of learning.
I got many varied responses to the second question dealing with what would make learning more interesting at school. The responses included games, working with partners or small groups on tasks, experiments, going to the computer lab, creating final products like posters or slide shows, integrating art and music in learning activities. This all goes along with what Pink had to say about including play into the classroom. Most all of the students that I interviewed said that to make learning more interesting that they have to be enjoying it and having fun. Some also commented on that they do better on assignments where there are games or centers involved and where they get to work with groups. Some also mentioned that they enjoyed art and music. One second grader and five fourth graders said how fun songs are when they are used in the classroom to learn the content being taught. This linked right into our class last Monday where we saw the importance of song and motivation in the classroom.
The last question that I asked this group of students was if technology makes school more interesting. They all responded yes. About half the group made the comment that it is only interesting when they are using technology that is familiar to them. They also went on to say that if a teacher introduces a new technology and does not explain it, it’s hard for them to catch on because the teacher thinks that since they are so good with technology that they don’t need to explain it. I also got some responses that said they enjoy technology because they understand it and they work with it in their free time at home on the computer. They said they particularly like homework assignments that include technology because they enjoy working on the computer for anything, whether it is homework or a game.
When I interviewed a student in my fourth grade class, I heard a lot of modes of learning that I expected, but there were also some ways of learning that I had not considered. Ellen is a ten year old with academic performance ranging from average to high average depending on the subject area. She enjoys school as much for the social aspects as for the academics and she will typically follow rules without question.
During our conversation she stated that she learns best when activities are hands-on. She went on to say that when a teacher is talking in front of the classroom she becomes bored very easily. I have heard it stated that activities planned for children should not be longer than their age, meaning that, in general, my students could maintain attention for ten minutes at a time. I was not astonished at her mention of needing to be more stimulated in the classroom. The activities creating the most excitement for her and her peers were those that gave them the ability to build, draw or make a product that represents our area of study. This was, of course, most prevalent in science, but also could be a part of any subject.
The most interesting learning, according to Ellen, is the use of the science kits to perform experiments, but she also mentioned that using tools in math helps to make numbers more manageable. She enjoys group work and collaboration with peers on larger projects. Some teaching tools that did not occur to me as being particularly interesting before the interview were the use of calculators and watching videos. Ellen also felt that being encouraged to sketch ideas before writing have helped to improve her personal narratives.
Ellen’s structured experiences with technology have almost all taken place in the computer lab. Although in fourth grade students will have a weekly rotation of the computers, we have not yet begun full use of the classroom PC’s. She also stated that she enjoys viewing PowerPoints or completing webquests but would like it to be more of an every day occurrence rather than just once or twice a year.
I also made a decision to speak with my seventeen year old cousin about his experiences with education as he is entering his senior year. Astoundingly, he had much of the same requests as my fourth grader. He finds learning most enjoyable when group activities and interactive instruction is taking place. And Georgios’ experiences with technology throughout his educational career is that less emphasis is placed on it in high school than in middle or elementary school. He claims that instructors place much more weight on reading skills and literature than on the use of computers at this level.
Finally, I think the most profound statement that Georgios made was that he finds the most learning taking place when teachers are funny and make instruction interesting. It is not important that there are a lot of bells and whistles going on, but that what is being said connects with the students. It is ultimately most imperative that teachers know their students on a personal basis and show them that they genuinely care about them emotionally and educationally to illicit the greatest impact.
I am a Title 1 reading teacher, so I have been in the midst of testing students the past week. I do not have a group of students to teach yet; therefore, I asked the 4th and 5th grade classroom teachers to suggest students for me to interview. I interviewed two 4th grade students and four 5th grade students. I used the questions suggested and then added one that I took from the Vision 2020 article, “What would you like to see invented that will help kids learn in the future?”.
I will begin with responses I received on the first two questions. The students’ responses varied. Some said they learn best and that learning is more interesting when they have hands-on experiences and do experiments. Others said they learn best in small groups and discussions. Another student learned best through teacher demonstrations and when the students are physically involved such as making human graphs or acting things out in groups. This reminded me of Ms. Cebula’s and Lodge’s presentation last week and how much more exciting and interesting it was to me when they got all of us involved in making the music video. Two students said that the teacher telling a story helped them learn best. I found this to also be interesting because it fit into Pink’s explanation of the sense of Story and how it helps people remember information.
The next question about whether or not technology makes school more interesting was a unanimous “yes”. Students’ reasons ranged from “because I don’t have to look in a book” to “it makes learning fun and they don’t even realize they are doing it” to “the computer helps us learn more than the teacher can sometimes”. The final question about the invention they would like to see in the future to help kids learn required more thought and most students had to think about it for a while. Their answers ranged from “a robot to help do homework or give teachers a break from teaching” to “video streaming where you could see your teacher live on TV and therefore could just stay at home and not have to go to school” to “a helmet that shocks you and zaps knowledge into your head at school when you have trouble understanding something” (I thought that one was especially creative and cute).
After reflecting on all of the responses, I see that students all prefer to be engaged in some way in order to learn best. This shows that these 21st century learners do not enjoy learning by simply taking notes from teacher lectures, and that they need to have their right brains engaged as well as their left brains through active involvement, stories, etc., which it sounds like their teachers are already doing. It also shows that they see technology as a fun and interesting tool to help with their learning, and that it is made available to them in school. Hopefully, Pink’s six senses and technology will become more deeply integrated into all areas of curriculum in the very near future. I feel that this would benefit all students’ learning.
I interviewed a sophomore in high school and the answers I received were what I expected. The student says that she learns best when she has visuals and hands-on activities to do in class. She says that she would prefer to be involved in the lesson rather than just sitting and taking notes and having to listen to the teacher lecture. She enjoys working with groups of students rather than by herself. She is able to get more ideas when she works in groups of people and things are more clarified for her.
One class that the student really enjoys is creative writing. She says that the teacher gives them a broad topic, but they can decide what they want to write about and the genre of writing they want to use. She says that before she was never really given a choice in writing a paper. There were always guidelines and rules to follow. Choosing her own topic and how to write the story makes writing easier for her because she does not feel held back in her writing.
When asked how learning could be more interesting for her, the student responded that she would like to be more involved in the class and have more hands-on activities to do in class. She says school gets boring when she just sits and takes notes. She would like to do more with the computer in class.
When asked about technology, the student said that using technology such as, computers and cameras makes school more interesting. She told me about a video project she had to do in her history class and it was one of her more favorite projects she did. I also asked the student how she would feel if some of her teachers used a blog in class. She said it sounded like an interesting idea and that none of her teachers had done this yet. She thought it would be better to be able to discuss things that happened in class and homework. Using a blog would give her an idea about what other students in the class were thinking and maybe even clarify things for her.
Over all, the student answered the questions as I thought she would. I found it interesting that her teachers were using very little technology in the classroom. But, the student was very open to the idea and thought it might make school a little more interesting.
As a 5th grade teacher, I teach all content areas and have recently tried to increase my use of technology in the classroom. While I have always used our school access to United Streaming, web quest activities, and the internet as a research tool, in previous years, I have rarely used powerpoints or smartboard activities. This year, I have already implemented the use of PowerPoint for trivia/review games and to preview students for science reading selections. In order to learn about my students' ideas about learning and what has worked so far this year, I led a class discussion on the topics of learning and technology. Overwhelmingly, my students said they "liked the way reading is connected to what we are studying," and seemed to realize that this helped them learn more about what we were studying in science/social studies. This comment was related to how I incorporate the topics we are studying into our read alouds and guided reading. Students also said they liked it when they got to do activities outside, even if it was just a walk to take a break. It was also not a surprise that students enjoyed when they got to talk to a partner about their work and when they had tasks that allowed them to work in groups.
When I inquired of students' feelings about the past few weeks and how I have tried to use more PowerPoints and smartboard activities, they replied that when the SmartBoard or projector was in the room, they were excited about what we might be doing that day. As I would have expected, they also commented on some of the United Streaming videos being cheesy or boring, but that the videos did help them learn more about specific topics. And definitely, as one student commented, "Watching the videos is more fun than reading in the book." In addition to my discussion with students, I also had parent conferences this week, and many of them noted their child's excitement about science and social studies, which has not been a common compliment in the past and I can only equate it to the energy I have put into making the content more engaging and interactive with the use of technology.
As I stated before, I have already made a commitment to using more technology in science and social studies, but I also think I have lots of room to grow in using technology for math and reading. In the past, I have used math websites that are self checking and even seem boring to me, but students love the self-directed approach to learning and always like learning from someone other than the teacher. As we move through this class, I am excited about learning more child-centered ways of teaching that aim to motivate students in ways that make learning fun but also memorable.
I interviewed my sister who is a senior this year at a high school in New York. She uses technology in and out of school, more so outside of school.
When I asked her how she learns best in school she told me when she is in a small class(not a lot of students). She also told me when her friends are not in her class. When her friends are not in her class she pays more attention to the material then what she would if her friends were there.
A time when she was excited about school is when she was taking a law class. She liked this class because she liked the teacher(she was funny, easy-going, and knew what she was talking about) and she really was interested in this class. She talked about how her teacher brought in guest speakers to talk to the class. Some examples of the guest speakers are the mayor, DA, and etc.
She finds learning interesting when she does not have a mono-talking teacher. She does not like when they just sit there in the classroom and when they do not make learning interesting.
My sister really did not say if technology makes school interesting, but she does use it in school. She told me she only uses the computer at school to type an essay, other then that she does not use it at school. She does use the computer at home to talk to her friends on instant messenger and on My Space. Her teachers do use overheads and powerpoints in their teaching, but she would rather take the notes herself because it helps her learn the material better. She is able to read her notes and then memorize them.
Other technoloy that she uses is her cellphone and IPOD. She always has both of them with her. If she forgets them at home she will go right back and get them. She told me she likes using her cellphone at school. I asked her when she is able to do this and she told me she does it during class. She is texting her friends while in class. I asked her how she does this and she told me that she hides it behind her purse or holds it down so the teacher can not see her using it. She has gotten caught a few times and was just told to put it away. When I was in school you did not see any of the students using cellphones during class.
After interviewing my sister I was able to see how much technology means to her inside of school and outside. She depends a lot on the use of technology. She is always using it. I also see how technology is being used more by students and it is important for teachers to integrate it in their teaching.
I’m obviously approaching this subject from a different perspective than most of the other students in this class. Given that I’ve only taught college students, their needs and their attitudes toward technology in the classroom is not quite the same as those in middle or high school. However, in my interactions and discussions with my students, I’ve been able to generalize some of their opinions on this subject. From what I’ve seen and heard from them, there are three ways to describe students as it relates to their usage of technology in the classroom.
First, given that we’ve just read Pink, I would describe them as creators. This means they want to have as much technology as possible available to them in the classroom. They want it as an alternative way to complete classwork and to help spur their creativity. However, while they enjoy the technology, they also want the assurance that there is a connection between using the technology and the objectives of the course. They want an authentic experience when using technology in the classroom.
The second way I would describe them is impatient. This isn’t meant to be an insult, but rather a description of the way students approach schoolwork. They don’t want to be lectured at all day; they want to be engaged with the material they are learning. They feel that they can learn better when lessons are presented in multiple formats through the use of technology.
Finally, I believe that today’s student is also defined by their sense of community. They are looking to interact with one another at all times. Technology has given them a variety of new ways to do this. By using the technology that involves social networking in the classroom, they can thus collaborate and communicate with one another about class assignments. They are willing to open up more with each other and they learn more by hearing what their fellow students have to say.
For these reasons, I believe students want to see educators use more technology in the classroom. While technology is not some panacea that will cause all students to get straight A’s, it seems that it addresses a lot of the problems students have with the current educational system. This generation of students will grow up using this technology; so if educators can find ways of using it productively in the classroom, they should.
I interviewed a male student in my 6th grade language arts classroom who is identified as EC due to behavior issues. He did not pass the reading End of Grade test in 5th grade, and is currently reading below grade level. I interviewed him to gain some more insight into what would help him become a better reader and to find out what he enjoyed about school and learning. The conversation was very valuable and we were able to identify some activities that really interest him and some that he finds very boring.
I asked the student about three topics during our interview starting with, “How do you learn best in school? Describe a time that you were excited about learning. What was happening in the class?” He reported that he learned best when he had fun teachers. He likes to play games that allow him to learn while also letting him have fun. He mentioned two games he has played to review for vocabulary tests which were playing bingo with skittles and playing a version of basketball in the classroom.
The second topic we discussed was technology. I asked him, “Do you think using technology makes school more interesting? If so, how?” He said he liked using the computer because he got to work at his own speed. He also liked using the computer to play games and to complete writing assignments. He liked writing with the computer because it was easier to fix his mistakes and he didn’t mind the process as much when he was typing. He mentioned he was able to play a keyboarding game this year during his business education elective, and he thought it was fun He also liked that his teachers at school can use the LCD projector to play video clips and PowerPoint slideshows on the screen in the classrooms. The survey results reported in “Having Our Say” indicate the students enjoyed using the computer at school more than working on projects, working in groups, completing worksheets, or listening to the teacher. My student agreed with the study findings, and reported that using the computer was the best way to learn at school.
Lastly, we discussed “What would make learning more interesting for you at school?”
He honestly said that, “School would be more interesting if we had rappers for teachers.” After some gentle probing, he also said that school would be more interesting if he got to use the computer more – specifically the Internet. He also wanted his teachers to use more technology by showing more video clips and images with the LCD projector. He added that listening to more music in school would make learning more interesting.
I learned a lot about my student from our interview, and hopefully I’ll be able to provide him with more opportunities to use the computer at school this year. I also plan to incorporate more music into my lessons to keep students who enjoy music engaged in learning.
I enjoyed reading the results of your interview sessions with 21st century learners. I noticed there was a range of responses, with Tori's class being at one end of the continuum and most of the students being in the middle and more towards the other end of the continuum. Most students seemed to respond as we would expect--they want more interactivity, more hands on experiences, and more use of technology. During class tomorrow, let's be prepared to discuss what you learned that you didn't know before and what you might do differently as a result of the information you obtained.
Hiller
I enjoyed reading the results of your interview sessions with 21st century learners. I noticed there was a range of responses, with Tori's class being at one end of the continuum and most of the students being in the middle and more towards the other end of the continuum. Most students seemed to respond as we would expect--they want more interactivity, more hands on experiences, and more use of technology. During class tomorrow, let's be prepared to discuss what you learned that you didn't know before and what you might do differently as a result of the information you obtained
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