Integrating Technology Into The Classroom

Collaborative technology such as Wikis and podcasts has changed the society on how it works and plays. In keeping pace with these new trends, the 21st century demands a different set of skills. The new fast-paced, media-rich environment has even produced different students. Therefore, schools and classrooms have to change in order to keep up. 

I am working as a homeroom teacher of grade 5 (five) at an International Baccalaureate (IB) school. All PYP students have to do the PYP Exhibition on their final year. In my school, the final year of elementary is grade 5 (five). Each student demonstrates engagement with the five essential elements of the programme: knowledge, concepts, skills, attitudes and action (Primary Years Programme Making the PYP Happen: A curriculum framework for international primary education, 2007, 2009).

The Exhibition goes under the Transdisciplinary Theme of How the World Works. It is an inquiry into the natural world and its laws; the interaction between the natural world (physical and biological) and human societies; how humans use their understanding of scientific principles; the impact of scientific and technological advances on society and on the environment. (Primary Years Programme Making the PYP Happen: A curriculum framework for international primary education, 2007, 2009). This also acts as the content area objective. From the Transdisciplinary Theme descriptor mentioned above, I create the Central Idea as follows: This issue matters to me, my community and my world. From the Central Idea, I create Lines of Inquiry as the learning objectives. They are the current, relevant information related to this issue; the connection between this issue and my community; how I can contribute to change. For this coming Exhibition, I want my students to inquire deeper on Earth and Space as the issue.

The skills that I design for my students to master are recognizing the issue of Earth and Space deeper by listing, describing, identifying, and explaining what they know and believe about Earth and Space; carrying out what they have known to inquire the unit deeper by comparing, organizing, and integrating what they know and what they have learned about Earth and Space; and the last one is judging, testing their findings which led them to designing, constructing, producing a learning process as their product.

I choose to use different graphic organizers which are taken from Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Education Place Graphic Organizers for the diagnostic assessment. There is a variety of graphic organizers that the students can use. They are ice-cream cone, ladders, garden gate, e-chart, KWL, sandwich chart, tic tac toe, cluster or word web chart and tree chart.  By providing different types of graphic organizers, the students have the choice to express their prior knowledge in related to the unit. From the formative assessment, I invite my students to take active parts in choosing different ways or methods to show their understanding. They can integrate their IT skills in doing this assessment. I want my students to learn more on how to use use Prezi (a program for presentation like Microsoft Power Point which my students have used it all the times). To record their findings and process of Exhibition, I introduce them to blogging. From the blogging, I will be able to see the misconceptions that they have in related to the unit. I use blogging as the formative assessment so that I can give direct feedback which will improve their learning process. Each week, each student needs to blog about the process that they have done. At the end of each week, each student will read through a sampling of their friends’ blogs, respond to two or more blogs, reflecting on further implications this issue holds, return to their blog in a few days to read the responses to their initial blog. They will continue the dialogue as desired by responding to their friends’ thoughts. I will check their blog regularly so that I can approve it and display the blogs. By doing so, I will also have chances to evaluate my students’ learning. I will be able to see the collaboration that my students work on.

For the summative assessment, exhibition is very special. I have some requirements. Their task is that students must show facts and concepts that I want them to know. The goal is that students must use their knowledge to reason and problem solve. The challenge is that students must demonstrate the skills they have learned. The obstacle to overcome is that students must create something in related to their exhibition. The students in this performance task act as scientists. They have been asked to share their knowledge on Earth and Space. The target audience is the elementary students grade 1 – 4. To help the students in doing their learning process, I will work collaboratively with them in looking for materials which suit their language skills. I provide some basic vocabulary list for my students whose English is not their mother tongue. I also provide a range of materials (books, DVD, songs, etc). I encourage them to have independent investigations. I encourage them to have web inquiries. There are times when I encourage them to have a peer group work in addition to the individual work. I provide students-generated product options so that the students can choose their final product. I believe that each student has enough time to do their works online.

In PYP the assessment is integral to all teaching and learning process because the main goal for assessment in the PYP is to give inputs on the learning process (Primary Years Programme Making the PYP Happen: A curriculum framework for international primary education, 2007, 2009). Based on that, I choose to use different graphic organizers which are taken from Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Education Place Graphic Organizers for the diagnostic assessment (please see appendix for samples). From the formative assessment, I want my students to learn more on how to use use Prezi. My students have been using a presentation program Microsoft Power Point all the time. I think it will be better for them to improve their skills by learning on how to use Prezi as their presentation tool. To assess Prezi presentation and their blogs using a rubric that I created from Rubistar (http://rubistar.4teachers.org/) (please see appendix for samples). I also need to assess the five PYP Essential elements (Concepts, Knowledge, Skills, Attitudes ad Action). I will use a rubric for that assessment.(please see appendix for samples)

I believe that having a collaborative technology such as blogs will help my students in doing a collaboration project. This skill is very important for my students. The blogs can bring different result on each student.

Reference

Graphic Organizers. (2013). Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Education Place. Retrieved from http://www.eduplace.com/graphicorganizer/

Making the PYP Happen: A curriculum framework for international primary education. Cardiff, Wales GB CF23 8GL, United Kingdom. International Baccalaureate Organization. Retrieved from http://occ.ibo.org/ibis/documents/pyp/p_0_pypxx_mph_0912_2_e.pdf

Partnership for 21^st Century Skills. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.p21.org/ 

Prezi. 2009. Retrieved from http://prezi.com/?gclid=CJiwr8nP6rgCFZJ7cAodMwoA-Q

Purnama, Tjandra. (2013). Instructional Strategies And Differentiantion. Designing Curriculum Instruction and Assessment . Walden University.

Rubistar. 2000-2008. ALTEC at University of Kansas. Retrieved from http://rubistar.4teachers.org/

Appendix

Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Education Place Graphic Organizers - Cluster

Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Education Place Graphic Organizers – Garden gate

Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Education Place Graphic Organizers – Ice Cream

Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Education Place Graphic Organizers – KWL

Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Education Place Graphic Organizers – Ladder

Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Education Place Graphic Organizers – Sandwich

Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Education Place Graphic Organizers – Ticktacktoe

A rubric for assessing the Prezi Presentation and Blogs

Category	4	3	2	1
Contribution	Routinely provides useful ideas when participating in the group and in classroom discussion. A definite leader who contributes a lot of effort.	Usually provides useful ideas when participating in the group and in classroom discussion. A strong group member who tries hard!	Sometimes provides useful ideas when participating in the group and in classroom discussion. A satisfactory group member who does what is required.	Rarely provides useful ideas when participating in the group and in classroom discussion. May refuse to participate.
Quality of work	Provides work of the highest quality.	Provides high quality work.	Provides work that occasionally needs to be checked/redone by other group members to ensure quality.	Provides work that usually needs to be checked/redone by others to ensure quality.
Time Management	Routinely uses time well throughout the project to ensure things get done on time. Group does not have to adjust deadlines or work responsibilities because of this person's procrastination.	Usually uses time well throughout the project, but may have procrastinated on one thing. Group does not have to adjust deadlines or work responsibilities because of this person's procrastination.	Tends to procrastinate, but always gets things done by the deadlines. Group does not have to adjust deadlines or work responsibilities because of this person's procrastination.	Rarely gets things done by the deadlines AND group has to adjust deadlines or work responsibilities because of this person's inadequate time management.
Focus on task	Consistently stays focused on the task and what needs to be done. Very self-directed.	Focuses on the task and what needs to be done most of the time. Other group members can count on this person.	Focuses on the task and what needs to be done some of the time. Other group members must sometimes nag, prod, and remind to keep this person on-task.	Rarely focuses on the task and what needs to be done. Lets others do the work.
Monitor group effectiveness	Routinely monitors the effectiveness of the group, and makes suggestions to make it more effective.	Routinely monitors the effectiveness of the group and works to make  the group more effective.	Occasionally monitors the effectiveness of the group and works to make the group more effective.	Rarely monitors the effectiveness of the group and does not work to make it more effective.
Working with others	Almost always listens to, shares with, and supports the efforts of others. Tries to keep people working well together.	Usually listens to, shares, with, and supports the efforts of others. Does not cause "waves" in the group.	Often listens to, shares with, and supports the efforts of others, but sometimes is not a good team member.	Rarely listens to, shares with, and supports the efforts of others. Often is not a good team player.
Sources	Source information collected for all graphics, facts and quotes. All documented in desired format.	Source information collected for all graphics, facts and quotes. Most documented in desired format.	Source information collected for graphics, facts and quotes, but not documented in desired format.	Very little or no source information was collected.
Content	Covers topic in-depth with details and examples. Subject knowledge is excellent.	Includes essential knowledge about the topic. Subject knowledge appears to be good.	Includes essential information about the topic but there are 1-2 factual errors.	Content is minimal OR there are several factual errors.

 A rubric for assessing five PYP Essential elements