Originally, I didn’t feel any connection to any
instructional theory but constructivism. Now, I see that while I firmly believe
in Constructivism, my personal theory of learning also includes elements from
other theories as well. Praise, which is used in behaviorism, can be a very
powerful tool to motivate students, when given in a specific and real way. I
also now see the importance of Social learning theory. . According to our
online text “Cooperative Learning,” cooperative learning “is a teaching
strategy which allows students to work together in small groups with
individuals of various talents, abilities and backgrounds to accomplish a
common goal” (Palmer, et. al, 2003). This made me realize that my classroom is
a community, and my students will learn better if they were able to work
together more often.
Before this course, I had trouble comprehending how
behaviorism could be used in the classroom. when I thought about behaviorism, I
thought about Pavlov’s dog experiments and B.F. Skinner’s “Skinner box.”
Through this course, I can now see the difference between positive reinforcement
and negative reinforcement. Now, I am able to look beyond these experiments and
see that behaviorism can help me in the classroom.
There are two immediate adjustments that I will make
to my instructional practice. The first is the use of homework. In the past, I
have only assigned homework when work was not completed in class due to student
behavior issues. Now, I see that homework can be used effectively to practice
skills learned in class. I am planning a class website, on which I will post
the homework assignments for each class period. If there is a handout for the
assignment, I will post it as well, so that students can still complete the
homework even if they have left their worksheet at home. If possible, I might
even create a dropbox where students can turn in their homework, while still
allowing students to turn in their work in person. This would help eliminate
homework forgotten at home.
The other adjustment I am making is the change from
instructional tools to learning tools. Until now, I have not given my students
many opportunities to use technology for themselves in my classroom. I now see
that they would learn so much more if I would have them make technology rich
presentations, as opposed to me creating the presentations and lecturing with
them.
The two technology tools I will use with my students
are voice threads and virtual field trips. I used voice threads for my project
assignment, and once my students understood what to do, they loved making their
voice threads and recording comments to each other’s work. I could use a
virtual field trip to show my students the setting of a story, when it is too
far away to explore in person.
My repertoire of instructional skills has expanded
from being in this course. Before, taking this course, I probably would not
have implemented homework in my classroom. I always felt like if my students
weren’t wasting my class time, I wouldn’t waste their home time. Now I see that
homework is not a waste of time, but is actually valuable practice of skills.
I have two long term goals for the integration of
technology. First, I plan on implementing more cooperative learning. Problems I’ve
had in the past with group work are the noise level it brings on, and the off
task behaviors that can occur. To combat this, I will choose the student
groups. I may also use group wikis to interact, so that students do not
actually speak to each other in class every day of the project. This will reduce
noise, and students will not be able to sit and talk to each other rather than
work. I will also create a system for group members to rate each other to hold
each member accountable for the work he or she is assigned.
The second goal I have is to just incorporate hands
on technology in my classroom more often. I will do this by securing computer
equipment for my students, which is a problem at my school. I will speak to my
administrators, and then my students’ parents, about the possibility of having
students bring their own electronic devices to class, so we will not have to
worry about the school’s lack of computer equipment. I know that not all
students have a device to bring, but this may be a solution for when we do
cooperative learning.
This has been my favorite class in this program so
far. I have learned so much about choosing instructional strategies and
subsequently choosing technology to go along with those strategies. I cannot
wait to incorporate more technology into my classroom!
