Due to the recent pandemic, many people had to begin rethinking their everyday lives. This was especially evident in our schools. The Shelby County School System, along with many other Alabama school systems, gave parents the opportunity to have their children learn remotely. I believe this shift in thinking has helped teachers, parents, and students see the value in a more technologically enhanced classroom. I had the opportunity to teach a remote first grade class this year. I implemented so many new and exciting activities through the use of technology. I worked very hard to make everything digital for my students and allowed them to show mastery of concepts using different digital assessments. Some of the resources my students were given the opportunity to use were Kahoot!, Flipgrid, Nearpod, and Epic, along with all of the Google apps. Flipgrid was a great way to allow students to explain their thinking and reasoning. Students could record themselves, post the video, and even respond to other students.
Turner and Hicks (2017) believe that teachers need to teach students using media in strategic ways. Girmen, Özkanal, & Dayan (2019) agree with this point. They believe that it is important to integrate technology in writing courses and to really analyze the outcomes. Teachers should integrate activities in the classroom that not only focus on the content of the writing, but also the digital product. According to Turner and Hicks (2017), gateway activities are tasks that require students to create a more complex strategy along with discourse. These activities allow teachers to build on the students’ skills instead of just the one product. In a study conducted by Girmen, Özkanal, & Dayan (2019), students participated in digital storytelling. They observed that there were lots of mistakes and high anxiety in the beginning. However, after several lessons and activities, the students began to write with a higher self-confidence. It is also noteworthy to mention that the students’ confidence in digital literacy and in themselves also increased. The researchers observed that the students’ motivation and attitude towards digital storytelling also increased. When I allow students to be creative and share their writing in formats that are relevant to today’s world, I see students who are more engaged and willing to work.
We as teachers know that we are expected to assess or grade students' work. We have to know what the students know and that they understand the required objectives and standards. Turner and Hicks (2017) believe that teachers should look at their role in the assessment as a coach and not a judge. We should help students identify their weaknesses and provide practice or scaffolds to help strengthen those weaknesses, but also, build on their strengths. We should also allow students to learn from peers. They gave an example from a teacher who allowed her students to practice this skill when they annotated an article. She provided students with mini lessons on how to identify and respond to claims. After the lessons, she noticed students had a deeper level of understanding of argumentative thinking (Turner & Hicks, 2017).
Even though we should get to experience a more "normal" school year in 2021-2022, I hope that we do not forget all that the pandemic allowed us to experience with remote teaching. I witnessed students who were more motivated and engaged; therefore, I will be sure to carry over the digital literacy strategies I used remotely to my face-to-face classroom.
References
Girmen, P., Özkanal, Ü., & Dayan, G. (2019). Digital storytelling in the language arts classroom. Universal Journal of Educational Research, 7(1), 55–65. https://doi.org/10.13189/ujer.2019.070108
Tech Thought Staff. (2021). What is remote learning? https://www.teachthought.com/learning/what-is-remote-learning-definition-for-teachers/
Turner, K. H., & Hicks, T. (2017). Teaching adolescents to read and write digital texts: Argument in the real world. Heinemann.
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ReplyDeleteDana,
ReplyDeleteI agree! The pandemic definitely made us all rethink the use of technology as teachers, students, and parents. I also agree that we can never go back. Thank goodness we had access to so many digital tools that allowed for continued communication in a variety of formats. I have not personally used Flipgrid before, but your description of it made me think about how it could be used for screencasting. Using Flipgrid could provide students an opportunity to share their thinking in a video format. As teachers, “we can see their motions on the screen and hear their thoughts about the text” (Turner & Hicks, 2017, p. 134). In order for a screencast tool like Flipgrid to be effective, students will have to be trained and develop their evaluation skills so that they can learn how to provide helpful feedback (Irwin, B., 2019).
Thank you for sharing!
Valerie
References
Irwin, B. (2019). Enhancing peer feedback practices through screencasts in blended academic writing courses. JALT CALL Journal, 15(1), 43–59.
Turner, K. H., & Hicks, T. (2017). Teaching adolescents to read and write digital texts: Argument in the real world. Heinemann.
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteDana,
ReplyDeleteI agree that it is very important to integrate technology in writing courses for students. If there is anything that the recent pandemic taught us it is to always be prepared and up to date with technology. With so many digital tools at our disposal as educators, we would only be doing our students a disservice by not implementing technology into reading and writing. I also agree that students must see teachers as coaches and not judges of their ability. "Many other scholars and teachers, notably Alfie Kohn, have presented much more elaborate and detailed critiques of grades and grading and the ways in which they destroy genuine inquiry and learning" (Turner & Hicks, 2017, p. 124). I believe that it is so important for teachers to explain the “why” behind what students are expected to produce. Students also need to be observed and then coached by their teacher on ways they can improve with digital tools. I love that you also mentioned students can learn from their peers to help scaffold argumentative thinking (Turner & Hicks, 2017). Students know more and more about devices and technology use that peers represented in the classroom would be a great resource to utilize.
Thank you for sharing your thoughts,
Laney
Turner, K. H., & Hicks, T. (2017). Teaching adolescents to read and write digital texts: Argument in the real world. Heinemann.
Dana, we have brains that think alike! I mentioned some very similar points in my blog post on Kami. I was also a virtual teacher during this pandemic year, and one subject I know has greatly suffered is writing. For some teachers like Caldes, it has forced us to be more created and create activities, like an anonymous peer review, that we will continue to carry with us through future years (Caldes, 2020). Although a digital platform may not be how we envision our students to share their thoughts, digital writing can help students be more intentional about their choices and what they want their reader to get out of the piece (Turner and Hicks, 2017). We have also used Flipgrid before in school and some teachers have continued the use because students are so obsessed with making their short video "just right". I personally see nothing wrong with a little healthy competition in the classroom.
ReplyDeleteThanks so much for sharing!
References
Caldes, S. (2020). Pandemic pedagogy: anonymous peer workshop for increased effectiveness and inclusivity. International Journal of Multidisciplinary Perspectives in Higher Education, Volume 5(2), 100-106
Turner, K. H., & Hicks, T. (2017). Teaching adolescents to read and write digital texts: Argument in the real world. Heinemann.
You brought up some excellent points! It is truly a form of art to be able to identify our students weaknesses and digitally scaffold our lessons, all while simultaneously building on their current strengths (Turner and Hicks, 2017). Not to mention, being able to do all of this behind a computer screen with first graders! I love to hear that you've used so many of those digital media platforms with your first graders, I really enjoy using Nearpod and Flipgrid with my students as well (and they actually like it too!) Turner and Hicks believe that it enhances student learning when we are able to incorporate all of these different forms of digital media in our classroom (2017). And it really seems as if you've mastered that concept!
ReplyDeleteTurner, K. H., & Hicks, T. (2017). Teaching adolescents to read and write digital texts: Argument in the real world. Heinemann.
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteDana,
ReplyDeleteRemote teaching and learning is not for the faint of heart. It takes commitment, dedication, and discipline in order to make it successful. Dorsah states, “online learning can be challenging for students because of the self-regulated nature of learning online and the distance between instructors and students''(2021). If teaching through a pandemic has taught us anything, it has taught us to PIVOT!! I have seen colleagues log countless hours creating, grading, recording, and reinventing in order to make online learning rigorous and complex. With all of the challenges the pandemic brought, I feel that our virtual teachers really connected with the students and bridged the learning gap through the use of technology. Assessments are essential in education. You really don’t know your next steps of teaching until you assess. The mention of Google apps was brought up for assessments and I think they are all great. Google Forms is something I use in the classroom as have some of my colleagues. It helps the teacher “consider particular students individually as well as look collectively, across the group, to see patterns of students strengths and weaknesses” (Turner & Hicks, 2017, p. 132). It’s through assessment tools like this that we can be more intentional with our students and our teaching. The pandemic has certainly changed the way we look at learning and made us more open to the digital world, especially in the younger grades.
Thanks for sharing!
References
Dorsah, P. (2021). Pre-Service Teachers’ Readiness for Emergency Remote Learning in the Wake of COVID-19. European Journal of STEM Education, 6(1).
Turner, K. H., & Hicks, T. (2017). Teaching adolescents to read and write digital texts: Argument in the real world. Heinemann.
Dana,
ReplyDeleteTeaching alongside you remote this past year was definitely an eye-opening experience. Yes, we were stressed to the max but I also think it taught us much more than we could have ever expected or imagined! I think you will not only bring a valuable technological skillset to the classroom next year, but also the skillset of listening and letting students have a voice. Crafting arguments and having meaningful dialogue are essential skills, but even more importantly, we want to make sure students have a voice. You always allowed your students to have open dialogue with one another which will empower them contribute to society in a manner that is empowering to all involved (Turner & Hicks, 2017).
Sadly, not all students across the country received the same level of engagement from their teachers or even their families. Social interaction with peers is something I think most of us took for granted before the pandemic; however, after teaching remote students, the importance of these everyday interactions is, at times, more important than academics. In a
recent study it was noted that "students whose families remained socially connected to other students’ families were more likely to engage online" (Domina et al., 2021). Students need to be in school and need to interact with their peers and teachers! Thank you for sharing!
References
Domina, T., Renzulli, L., Murray, B., Garza, A. N., & Perez, L. (2021). Remote or Removed: Predicting Successful Engagement with Online Learning during COVID-19. Socius: Sociological Research for a Dynamic World, 7, 237802312098820. https://doi.org/10.1177/2378023120988200
Turner, K. H., & Hicks, T. (2017). Teaching adolescents to read and write digital texts: Argument in the real world. Heinemann.