Technology Reflection: Instructional Use of iPads

Technology Reflection Assignment

Description/Experience

The technology demonstrated in the last seminar was the use of the Apple iPad in the classroom.  The iPads are used for enhancing in-class activities, using applications for the device that students can utilize.  I would like to say that I’m more excited about the Apple iPad than I actually am.  I find it difficult to see the benefits without bias because most schools are struggling for money in the first place.  In my opinion, it would be more beneficial for schools and teachers to use the money they would put towards buying iPands, and instead, buy better books and/or curriculum materials.  Nonetheless, if a school has the budget for iPads, I see where they come in handy in the classroom.  For the current generation of learners, it is important for them to be able to work with classroom subject matter digitally, and the Apple iPad allows for meaningful learning through a digital medium.

Application

The learners for this activity would be eighth grade students in a Read 180 classroom, at the end of the activity, students should be able to understand how certain applications on the Apple iPad work, and how/when prefixes and suffixes work.  Assessment would be the iPad activity in itself, as at the end, the students will receive a grade or percentages of correct answers, and they will be instructed to show the results to the teacher.

For the first five to seven minutes of class, the educator will lead a classroom discussion reviewing what prefixes and suffixes are, re-explaining what they do, and talking about how sometimes, they can change the parts of speech of a word.  The teacher should include examples here, and allow students to come up with their own examples as well.

                For the next three to five minutes, the teacher should explain the iPad application that is being used and show the students how to successfully and carefully use it.  For this activity, the educator should create an application that deals with combing root words with prefixes and/or suffixes to change their meaning.

                For the next ten minutes, the students should work on the activity.  The application would be a list of prefixes and suffixes with one root word popping up at a time.  As the first root word pops up, a statement will appear, instructing the student on how to change the meaning of the word.  The student will have to tap on the prefix or suffix that will do the job, and drag it to the word, placing it in the correct spot.  If the students gets it correct, he or she may move on to the next word.  For example, if the root word “do” appears, the statement above it would say something like “change the definition of this word to an action word that means repeating something.”  The student will then have to choose the prefix “re-“ and drag it to the root word, “do,” creating the final word: “redo.”

                The final five minutes should be spent reviewing the students’ scores, and assessing whether or not they understand the material.  If time allows, it is encouraged to answer any questions students may have.

Reflection
Considering your learning activity described above, write a paragraph or two for each section below addressing the questions. It may be helpful to keep in mind the followings when reflecting:

1. How well the use of this technology may support your teaching strategies in this activity.
2. How effectively the use of this technology may enhance students' understanding of and learning from your particular content in this activity.

--Pedagogy-Content:

It is important for students to understand the material they are learning.  The best way for students to learn is to discover on their own, with the teacher scaffolding along the way.  This is why the activity begins with a teacher/student discussion about prefixes and suffixes.  The educator can see if, how, and why students are having difficulty in particular areas, and he or she can adjust the pedagogy to suit the student needs.  Furthermore, the demonstrations that go along with the activity are, in essence, the application on the iPad.  When it comes to the content of the activity, all students should be relatively familiar with prefixes and suffixes; we use them all the time.  What is difficult about the activity, is teaching the students why and how we properly use them.  I would be concerned with students prior experience with this technology because for the most part, the iPad is seen as a toy, rather than an educational device.  I would be concerned that students would not take learning through this medium seriously. 

--Technology-Pedagogy:

The Apple iPad is used in the activity primarily as both practice and assessment.  Students should have already mastered the material through classroom lecture and discussion, and the iPad provides for a digital way to perform independent seatwork.  The technology allows for students to take a hands-on and fun approach to what most consider a boring topic: grammar.  Through working on an Apple iPad, students are able to see how morphemes come together to create larger words in the English vocabulary.  As for classroom management strategies, it would be beneficial to use the iPad as an extrinsic motivator for the students.  For example, in this activity, the teacher could say, “If you behave and participate while we discuss prefixes and suffixes, you will be allowed to work on the iPads.”  This gives the students positive reinforcement for good behavior in the classroom.

--Technology-Content:

The iPad in this activity enhances the way content is represented in many ways.  The best way to describe this, however, is to reflect on the differences between teaching this subject matter with and without this technology.  If the iPad was not used in this activity, chances are that a worksheet would be used to represent the material.  Some students are overwhelmed when a worksheet is placed in front of them because there is so much material on the page.  Students who have a sense of learned helplessness may not be motivated to learn in this way.  With the Apple iPad, the material is organized and easy for students to understand.  They are able to work with the iPad instead of against it, as many students would do if given a worksheet.  The iPad enhances the way students practice because it really caters to kinesthetic learners, which is what most eighth graders are considered to be.

--Technology-Pedagogy-Content:

The content can be effectively taught with an integration of hands-on activities, like working with the application on the iPad, and teacher interaction with the students.  I do not think that technology can replace a teacher giving instruction, and it should not be considered to do so.  It is important, however, for the educator to have an understanding that students will be more apt to learn with the use of technology.  The iPad can enhance the way an educator teaches by providing supplemental material to already given and talked about examples.  It enhances the way one teaches by showing the importance of hands-on activities within the classroom.