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Journal Week #8: Digital Storytelling Process

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Journal Week #8: Digital Storytelling Process

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After reading this article, I found that digital composition seems like such an intriguing way to approach assessments, whether formative or summative. It paves the way for students to explore their creativity and allow their voices to be heard in whatever route they want to take. I especially love this idea because it creates space for kids who are super artistic and those who are not (I was always this kid). Students have the creative freedom, but given some of the assessment routes, a lot of the options seem very low stakes (meaning that kids aren’t pigeon-holed into a certain project type.

Personally, I love how it allows students who may be a little more shy than others to have their voices shine through. Presenting in front of your peers is very daunting, so options like recording a ted talk, or creating an iMovie are fantastic ways for students to show wha they are learning while also developing those public speaking skills implicitly.

Another intriguing concept I want to use is the digital skills checklist! Living in a continuously developing technological world can often leave students (and myself for that matter) at a loss for what to do. There seem to be an overwhelming amount of digital skills needed to complete some of these projects, so seeing where our students measure up in terms of different skill areas is essential for making this kind of unit flow smoothly. After identifying what area(s) students are skilled in allows me to help create support groups like Kittle and Gallagher mentioned. Additionally, as a person who always feels behind the technology curve, I love the idea of letting the students skilled in the particular target area of the day have the opportunity to teach/show the class. It allows the extroverted students an outlet for their energy and expertise, and hopefully the opportunity to help me learn something right alongside them! Units like this are really helpful for developing that student-teacher relationship if done correctly!

With all that being said, I would need to do some serious research and practicing with the different tools and project types if I want there to be any semblance of cohesion and learning going on. My goal for myself is to go in and help myself become more comfortable with tools such as iMovie or making a ted talk/podcast. After looking at the different responses to the questions on my Digital Youth Interview, my students at least were very apprehensive to new tools being brought into the classroom. With that in mind, I feel it is very imperative for my level of knowledge to be slightly ahead of theirs in order for them to feel comfortable. Finally, I cannot wait to implement some aspects of what Kittle and Gallagher mentioned in my lesson plans next semester!

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As a future teacher, I'm always looking for different ways to reinvent the typical classroom and learning environment, and technology is one of the easiest ways to do this! It allows students to participate on varying levels that align themselves with their level of comfort/ability. If nothing else, it honestly just makes the classroom more fun sometimes (I have to admit, I hate a boring classroom)!

This week we learned about a really cool tool called "Hypothesis" and we actually used it in a class setting (which was pretty sick once we figure out how to work it)! After working out the technology issues, it really made interacting with a article super low stakes, but it allowed me to get my thoughts together before I actually had to say anything!

As we interacted with this tool, I began thinking of my 1st period class. Throughout the school year, it has really been a challenge to get them to participate in classroom discussions or honestly participate in general. I think that if I brought this tool into the classroom, it would take some of the pressure off the kids and they have the chance to sort through their thoughts without the pressure of forming an immediate response. I really think they would respond well to this, so I'm definitely introducing it as soon as I am able!

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Journal #2: Social Media, Mental Health, and Phone-Free Schools 

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Journal #2: Social Media, Mental Health, and Phone-Free Schools 

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The articles for this week covered a wide range of very interesting material! I really enjoyed reading about the differences in mental health for students who were frequent users of social media and those who didn't. As a person who grew up during the rise of social media and the developing availability of different electronic devices, I have seen first hand how phones/social media can affect the mind and how it processes things. There have been many times in my life where I have had to take a step back and limit my usage of my phone and at times, I have even temporarily disabled my social media accounts. With all that said, I truly am a full believer that young kids (up to 9th grade) should not have social media accounts and that they do not need an iPhone. It exposes them to a menagerie of hurt and allows them to access material that they have no business seeing, or can even fully understand and process.

In regards to the "Phone-Free Classrooms" article, I believe that wanting a phone-free classroom and actually establishing a phone-free classroom are two VERY different things. For one thing, in regards to recent events, I would never suggest that schools need to collect student phones and keep them in the front office. As a sibling, I would be devastated if I couldn't get in touch with my brother, sister, or cousin.

Personally, I am a big fan of the phone caddies inside classrooms. It keeps the phones out of student's and takes away one of the many distractions that could arise, but it is there in case a parent needs to get in touch with them. I think that kind of policy is the best of both worlds because it benefits the students, and teachers don't have to waste valuable instruction time redirecting class/student attention from phone distractions. However, in order for any kind of phone policies to work, there needs to be uniformity across the entire school. It needs to be a blanket policy with no room for exceptions here or there, and it definitely does not need to be left up to teacher discretion. At that point, all the schools are doing is making the teacher a villain if they decide to implement a no-phone policy in their classroom; inviting discord and encouraging students to complain and sneak around.

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Journal #1: AI Technology in the Classroom 

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Journal #1: AI Technology in the Classroom 

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After reading our articles this week, they all really opened my eyes to the pros and cons of AI usage in the classroom. Like anyone, I'm very excited to see what kinds of opportunities new technology can bring into our future classrooms; ai is no different. It opens so many doors for students to evaluate their work before they turn it in and they have the chance to really grow in their writing. It allows students the ability to find incredible sources more easily and so many other amazing things.

That being said, the only issue that I find with AI is the danger it poses of being a crutch instead of a learning tool. With the boundless ability that AI has, it is so easy for students to let AI do all the work for them instead of being a helpful guide. The most important issue that all three articles spelled out is the necessity behind teachers fully explaining and monitoring students' use of AI. It's up to us as teachers to set the parameters for AI incorporation and explain to our students how AI should and should be used.

I think the most impactful thing I've gleaned is that teacher transparency is the key component to the successful integration of AI into a classroom curriculum. Most importantly, this is an opportunity for teachers and students to learn alongside each other and demonstrate how learning never stops with age!