Final Reflection

My most valuable experience during this class was the encounter with technology. There are many things we take for granted when referring to computers, internet, and applications, but unless we are faced with the need to use them, we don’t realize our lack of experience or practice. Preparing the portfolio was for me a challenge. Many of the assignments included applications in Microsoft word, excel, and power point that I haven’t used in a long time, and to my surprise, my lack of practice on them was an issue that cost me time, and a lot of frustration. Today, at he end of the semester, I don’t see myself as an expert on office and internet searches, however, the tools I was taught and reminded to use in order to complete the assignments, had certainly educated me even more about what you can do with a computer with access to internet. Many things I have forgotten, I see myself now using to prepare my lessons for my students, and some even for using on another subjects and classes I’m taking. The use of short videos, and colorful handouts represents a higher level of attention and retention on my students. If I were to mention and improvement on my professional life, I would say my students have benefit tremendously with my knowledge on web searching and handouts. They enjoy watching short videos as part of anticipatory sets, and I am able to prepare worksheets for them more efficiently and in a shorter amount of time. My student life is easier since taking the course, not only for the tools and resources I was introduced to, but for the amount of work I had to put on every single assignment. I have noticed that homework that used to take me forever to finish, I’ve been able to complete without even realizing I was done. These are just some of the benefits that I received from taking this class. I am sure I will discover more as time goes b, and as I take other courses, or apply for a different job, or a different organization.

Technology and Instructional Delivery

Technology is around us everywhere we go nowadays. It was just a matter of time until computer surrounded us. ATM machines, online payments, new technologies for the use of law enforcement agencies, just to mention a few of the uses of technology in our daily lives. Internet has had a great impact on our routines, until the point in which many of our regular communication tools would not be working without it. Education is an area in which technology should be applied regardless of the age of the students and the subjects. Teachers have access to countless online resources for lesson planning, teaching material, job placement, and continuing their professional education. Today’s society is one in which we depend on time. Everything should be done the fastest and more efficient way, and internet has facilitated our lives in that matter. We use the internet all the time, to pay for bills, check the status of any kind of application, for a job, bank account statements, etc, for communication purposes such as keep in contact with people in different cities, and countries, and also for fun. Internet is an unlimited source of resources which if used properly, can take us everywhere. Internet is used also for distance education. As said before, in our society time is money, and if there is a way in which we can complete several tasks at the same time, is with the internet. There is no need now to travel long distances, or to move to a different city in order to attend a class or a specific university. Of course internet does not replace the feeling of being in a different place, but it makes it possible to live in Miami, and virtually attend a university in Canada, or Israel, or New York. Internet makes our lives easier, needless to say; and when applied to the area or education, the benefits are endless. Teachers have access to programs to grade assignments in an easier and more efficient way; provide feedback to the students, and even fellow colleagues, there are blogs for teachers to share information about the subjects, projects, and many different ways in which a topic can be approached to be taught. They also have access to virtual conferences, that are not restricted to the educational field, but are a great way in which people communicate without moving from home or workplace, and they still get the information needed. Education and technology go hand on hand. We need the technology to deal with present issues, and education provide us the tools to work with the technology we need, not to stayed with the same knowledge, but to go beyond ourselves.

Personal Educational Philosophy

It is a critical question for me to define myself as a follower of a specific educational philosophy. I have not had the opportunity to work with children older than 4 years old, hence, what I will write right now may change the circumstances do as well. The perennialist philosophy is the farthest one I can relate to. Being so young, my students do not understand the scientific method and it is really hard at this time of their life to try to impose such way of learning. Most of them are at an early stage of developing their vocabulary; thus I have not had the occasion to try this philosophy. Needless to say, the experimentalist and pragmatist are beyond my students abilities at the moment. However, I do see myself so far as a teacher with not only one, but a collection of different philosophies and ideas. I am a little bit progressists because I enjoy involving my students in every lesson. It is important for me that they feel include, and I believe this is a crucial ingredient in the process of knowledge. I value their individuality, and if I see any special interest, even in just one, I try to incorporate it in the lesson. Nevertheless, I consider there are certain concepts that are fundamental for future knowledge and development of forthcoming abilities. I consider they need to recognize the alphabet in order for them to read and write; the numbers so they can develop abilities in mathematics, and vocabulary and phonics, so they can communicate better in writing and speech. This part of my philosophy is essentialist, since I judge these elements as vital part of imminent knowledge, and concept which will help them to success in the future. The part of me which relates to social reconstructivism is linked to manners. I encourage my students the use of words like thank you and please, but behind these words, there is a message of patient and courtesy. When they go home and apply those manners at the table, to talk to their parents, they are also inducing their parents to do so. If my students can go home and be patient and have some manners, I contemplate that as a small change in society, then is up to the parents to continue. As said before, I value each and every one of my students, and I respect their feelings and ideas. The development of self-confidence has a lot to do with existentialism, especially at this age. In summary, I do not have a specific educational philosophy, but I do take a little bit from each so my students can feel respected, and at the same time, they can enjoy the journey of learning.

Digital Story

A digital story is a new and improved version of storytelling. A couple of decades ago, to get to know a story the only way was either to read about it, or to have contact with somebody who knew the story and could tell us about it. Nowadays, the methods of mass communication have changed. The computer presence not only at the work place, but at a corner at home, has revolutionized the way we study, work, and live. A simple action as taking a book from a bookshelf to read is an almost lost habit. We currently live in an era of rush. Every day that passes by people has less and less time to appreciate nature, to get to know the neighbors, and to get a book from the library, which is going to consume cruelty, at least two weeks of our divine time. Researchers and teachers has alarmingly seen how this has affected students, regardless of their age, and they have started to come up with praises and even bribes, to get the students if not appreciating reading, at least appreciating the history they represent. This is where digital stories benefit us. A brightly and strategically arranged meeting of narrative, images, music, and voice, to get the students interested and involved. Any story can be combined with different media elements, and accessible to the “reader”, at any time, and at any pace. The digital stories are usually short, just a couple of minutes, but the idea behind them is similar to a commercial, to catch the attention of the viewer/listener, keep them interested, and to express an important idea or fact, in a short, precise, and effective way. Being short, a digital story can be seen/heard several times, and the message that the creator wanted to communicate gets attached to the audience. However, the use for digital stories is not only restricted to the educational area. Many companies and business nowadays can get to know better, and analyze more efficiently a job candidate through a digital story. As said before, we live in an era of rush. A message which is sent in a clear, short, and precise way is ten thousand times more effective than reading a five hundred pages book and has no idea what the main idea was; or remembering the interview in which the applicant spent twenty minutes going around the same idea, or the one who with a 3 minutes message communicated his/her experiences, and ambitions.

Telecollaborative Lesson

A telecollaborative lesson is a tool of the 21st century, to help the students aware of the world that surrounds them. The internet has certainly had a great impact on education nowadays. Students have endless access to information that several years ago would take weeks or even months to obtain. Telecollaborative means that the students will work in groups, that every member is going to have a respected and important role on the development of the project, but their experiences will not be limited to their own. Students will have the possibility of getting to know a culture on the other side of the globe. Students have internet access, and work not only with their fellow classmates, but with students living in a different country, state, or city. They will be exposed and they will learn from people their own age, what it means to be a child, a teenager in a different society. They are encouraged to see how it is to live in a different place; to understand the problems, difficulties, advantages, customs, traditions, etc, but not from the teacher, who may have never visit the place in question, but from habitants their own age, who they may feel related to. The students can contrast their own experiences, which is a great tool for learning, since students tend to listen and learn from their peers, in a language and point of view they can easily understand and agree and/or discuss. Telecollaborative learning gives young minds the opportunity to explore a culture, to analyze it and look at their own background and ethnicity in a different way. Students learn to appreciate more their own traditions and way of life. They can get countless knowledge also in history and geography, and better yet, it opens their eyes to see further, it increases their sense of awareness, and it gives them a better idea of why the world moves the way it does.

Cooperative Learning

Cooperative learning is a branch of the constructivist learning approach. The students are the focus and the base of the lesson, and they work as a team to develop the material and information presented by the teacher. The cooperative learning, as its name states, is a method of teaching that includes constructivist views, and focuses on the development of intrapersonal and interpersonal skills. Cooperative learning, even though its base is constructivist, has specific techniques and goals which should be included in the lesson plan. The most important intention of the collaborative learning method is for the students to have a good base to work with, meaning that they will be clear about what is expected from them, but at the same time, they are going to be exposed to challenges and conflicts, which they will learn to work out as a group, and as individuals. It is important to divide the class into small groups for the reason that students learn from each other, and also learn from themselves. The groups should be small enough to give every member the opportunity and responsibility to contribute substantially to the development of the project. The participation of every individual is crucial in this type of learning method. The skills that progress and improve with this type of learning include, but are not limited to active participation in debates, and problem-solving situations, respect for diversity and opinions of other group members, and value self-expression, and the involvement of the students in their own learning progress. This method is celebrated in many ways, and also gives the opportunity for students to go beyond their own abilities, and for teachers to value much more the students’ participation in the learning process.

Inquiry-based learning

Inquiry-based learning is a branch from the constructivist philosophy of education. It states that the learning process should and must be directed by the students. Their questions and interest should dictate what there must be taught in the classroom. The reason why they support such theory is that the students are the ones who will benefit from education and knowledge. Students should be encouraged to investigate according to their own instincts and interest. They assure is more effective if a student is learning about something for which the student feel passion and curiosity, rather that to impose concepts that may not be valued by the students, and that at the end, will just serve the purpose of passing a test, without further impact on a student’s life. The fact that students are encouraged to investigate and to propose topics for discussion helps them also to increase their self-esteem and their growth as human beings. Their opinions and feelings are valued and taken into consideration with this philosophy of learning, making education around and for the student, and stimulating the student to really learn. As constructivists did, the inquiry-based learning grounds are the fulfillment of the students’ curiosity through active learning, and the development of skills which help the students to have a practical experience when approaching learning, and real-life problems. Inquiry-based learning philosophers believe that rather than evaluate on how much knowledge a student possess, it is more important to develop individual skills that will help them work better in a group, and when working in singles. The figure of the teacher is not a dictator of concepts and formulas, but a guide, a counselor, and a motivator who will help the students develop themselves as human beings, as individuals, and members of a group. Another way to describe inquiry-based learning would be “open learning”, because the teacher is open to students’ suggestions, and willing to work with them to finally accomplish a goal set by the students.