Sign in or 
Share this
Using Technology in the Classroom!
Although it has been difficult to incorporate technology into the classroom with the given resources at a low-income school, I have found several ways to use technology in my classes. This year I taught 7th grade Language Arts. Since the students would be taking a state writing assessment in March, I decided to take an idea I learned from the Integrating the Internet into Education class we took over the summer. I decided to keep track of my student’s writing progress using charts and graphs produced with excel and Microsoft word. After each writing assessment, students received their essays with written comments as well as a chart comparing their previous scores. Students loved seeing whether the bars or lines were going up and having a visual of their progress really helped students stayed motivated. I also made graphs using items on holistic rubric from the state. In the beginning of this activity, I made graphs to show if students had mastered items on the rubric from the state (clearly stated thesis, delineated paragraphs, or proper grammar and usage). As students progressed and had a clear understanding of all of the components they needed to gain a perfect score of four on the state exam, they used their written comments to identify (for themselves) items they were missing. This use of technology had a tremendous impact on student learning. Students gained an understanding of charts and graphs (which is a MS curriculum framework), and they also became excited about getting their charts and they strove to improve their scores from essay to essay. Students actively pursued the reasons why their scores may have increased or decreased. For the first time, I saw students analyzing their own writing. In addition, I have created a website, on the novel The Watson Go To Birmingham, which students will complete as a group after the MCT. You can see the site if you click here. I am predicting that this will be my very best project with technology yet! Students will take ownership over the site and produce their own media. I cannot wait to start this project. Through this exercise they will have a stronger understanding of the novel as well as the historical setting of the novel.
Another use of technology that has been helpful in staying in contact with parents is my website on schoolnotes. You can view the site by clicking here. I wrote about this website in my section on Community and Parental Involvement. I have had numerous parents e-mail me and ask questions about projects, grading, and tests.
Furthermore, I have always used gradekeeper (a computer application) to keep track of grades. Students receive a printout of all assignments and grades at both mid-term as well as throughout the course of a semester. Since students can see exactly where their grade is coming from, I have a much higher rate of students’ making-up tests and assignments than teachers who use a regular grade book. I can even post a class list without names and students can see how they are doing in comparison to others. This has also had a tremendous impact on student learning, as my students understand how each and every assignment “counts.” Their assignments and tests not only “count” towards bettering their grade, but it also helps students see how it helps them understand and learn more from my class. When they see that they received a zero on participation and then on the same day received a zero on a quiz, students begin to make the connection between effort and grades.
Home/Table of Contents
Next>Community & Parental Involvement
Previous>Classroom Management Techniques
|
amynoellee |
Latest page update: made by amynoellee
, Apr 26 2007, 5:39 PM EDT
(about this update
About This Update
Edited by amynoellee
1 image added view changes - complete history) |
|
Keyword tags:
None
More Info: links to this page
|
There are no threads for this page.
Be the first to start a new thread.
