With the first real lesson passing by, it is definitely something that is going to be a blind leap but we're going to be prepared. It was exhilarating and enlightening knowing what to be a little more prepared for this time. There are still moments that will arise where we won't be prepared, but now that we have an idea of what is to come, we will have the necessary tools to take the leap.
0 Comments
"One tick-tock, two tick-tock, three tick-tock.
Repeat, repeat, repeat. Step for step. Beat for beat. One tick-tock..." After the first real week of teaching and getting into the groove of the semester, I've come to realize that it's going to be a lot of repetition and making sure everything is in order. Especially from my first time in a kindergarten classroom, I knew that it'd be a lot of repeating to make sure messages are translated across and understood by the students. It will take cooperation from both us as teachers and them as students as we work in sync. If it's one thing I've learned in the first couple weeks of this semester is that it's going to be an upward climb until December comes along. There's going to be plenty of assignments every week for education, big projects that are going to take a lot of focus to complete in Electronic Art, and diligence with keeping up on Pottery. It feels like that even though I have soon to be four years of college behind me, that I'm still at the first level. It's a daunting view from down here compared to other people but the top view is going to be breathtaking.
The semester is going to be a piano performance; it will require a lot of practice and preparation but even maestros will miss a few notes. Once everything has balance, the rest will fall into a golden harmony.
It will take quite a bit of concentration, a smidge of luck, and dedication to this endeavor, but it's all going to be worth while. At least I hope so because it'd definitely put a damper on things if I was duct taped to the ceiling. Every early teacher has a moment, be it an epiphany or an existential crisis, where they think about what they want to teach future students. This may be rock solid from day one or it may be much more fluid changing from year to year.
For mine, I see my teaching philosophy as a seal or coat-of-arms. The rules/beliefs are embodied and upheld with these representations of groups or families. So in turn I want my philosophy to be embodied with this respect. With the semester's end slowly approaching, it's time to trace our paths back through the weeks of learning. There have been so many things passed down to me that it's hard to keep track of them all.
To really get the ball rolling, the best way to talk about my philosophy on technology in the classroom is to refer back to the famous quote from Spider-Man: "With great power, comes great responsibility." --Uncle Ben You can give a student all the training in the world on what is right and wrong, but that won't determine how they'll use it. That's why teaching them digital citizenship will be so crucial in the long run. Through this quote, I will show them the ropes to being a good digital citizen and what that means; however, it will mean that I can only show them the steps and that whether they choose to follow it is their responsibility. As for modeling these ideals, it would be best to have posters hanging around the room with steps to being a responsible digital citizen because I cannot constantly monitor or worry about what students are doing if I am going to be conducting class. It's likely that I will be focusing on leading them through the projects with questions they have and tips I've accrued, so most modeling will have to be streamlined in that fashion or echoed in instructions when necessary. In terms of the frameworks for technology integration, the best one suited for art classrooms is Project Based Learning. The entirety of art curriculum is based around the creation of projects in order to build understanding on everything that goes with art. With that being said, a lot of projects will require new skills to be learned if this is the first digital art class they've been able to take. With projects, though, it allows for problem solving for when one bit doesn't seem to work and involves innovation to get things to work or understanding of what doesn't work. Project Based Learning will likely be the most used framework for the future lessons I design. The most prominent technologies I will likely use to improve my class would be virtual reality, augmented reality, 3d printing/design, and drawing tablets. A lot of the classes that I've been a part of so far had us rely on the computer and mouse for digital art. Of course, there are tools in the programs to make this easier but there's something about the inclusion of a drawing tablet that gives things a personal touch. It would allow students to have direct control like they would with a pencil over clicking and dragging with a mouse because of the natural gestures that correlate with traditional media. As for VR and AR, I want students to be able to create something and have the option of seeing it interact in an environment. The HTC Vive is one of such VR headsets that has access to a 3d drawing program where the participant can immediately start drawing in the 3d space. With this they would be able to design 3d spaces and add details before putting it into a maneuverable space for a VR headset. The same can be said for AR where they design models on computers before importing them to a AR program to use. Through all of these things, they would be able to apply things outside of a monitor. The students would be able to work out problems with devices that can be transferred to multiple professions and help design the future versions. By being to have a hands on experience with the tools, they will better understand how many different ways things can be viewed. There are limitations, of course. Some students may not have access to a computer at home or the advanced programs that are being used in schools. Any efforts that could be put forth in the classroom would be unobtainable at home. It would be difficult to find a balance because of how reliant electronic art is on technology, but that would only be a worthy adversary to conquer for education. As for management, it is likely that I will implement a figurative "ban-hammer" for irresponsible use of technology. A ban-hammer is a popular term used in online communities when someone breaks the terms and conditions of posting multiple times resulting in the moderators bringing down the ban-hammer. It is likely similar to a gavel in how it can pass judgment. I am planning on creating a prop called the "Ban-hammer" that I will use to deem whether students are on task or off task in subtle manner of tapping their shoulder. If they reach three taps, then I will have them refrain from using the computer unless they can prove that it was helping them with their project. Now, you might be thinking "If you don't allow them on a computer to do their work, then how are they going to do well?". If they are consistently off task using a computer, then I will have backup assignments available that will fulfill those requirements. This is used to enforce the idea of using technology properly in the classroom, and in some cases the distraction of online videos and social networks is too great for some to handle. Others might have YouTube open for music purposes or background sounds to focus, but I would be looking for those that are consistently misusing the computer during class time. Some of the greatest tools I have in my technology toolbox are: Screencast O' Matic, Creative Commons, and BulbApp. Screencast would allow me to create walkthroughs and tutorials for students that pertain directly to the assignment we're working on. There are other tutorials available online, but this would allow me to be available outside of the classroom by basing videos on questions in class and create pre-class overviews they could watch on their own. Creative Commons would be an excellent place for them to review the rules and meaning behind the Creative Commons lingo on image sites like Flickr and other places that utilize the signs. BulbApp is a specialized art website that allows students to create digital portfolios. It is similar to a digital classroom format where you can create a group for students to join, but its main purpose is for students, and artists in general, to have permanent portfolios available at the click of a link. This way students can always reference their artwork and have a permanent online archive available to them. It is hard to say what I will do in the time between now and my first job as a teacher. Based on what I've heard from people this past semester, it seems like a safe bet to register as a substitute teacher first to test the waters. This way I'd be able to get a sense of where I'd prefer to be. It may end up being where I pursue a career in animation or illustration over education with my Electronic Art major. I think that in order to grow as a teacher using technology, I will continue to explore all that is available for art education and general education needs. It is likely that I will not see the growth of technology until my senior year in 2019, so I will have to make note of what I find and see floating around. In doing so, I will investigate and experiment with the tools I find and make a note about how I could use them. The answer to what I'd do in my first position is similar to how I described the time between now and then. It may end up being where I am not an educator, at first or ever depending how things play out. If I had to say, though, it'd be through the continuous use of what is readily available for students and teachers. I'd do what I could to make sure students had access to what's being used in the art program at home and in class. The most important thing would be making sure they have the materials they need to succeed over whether or not they can do something. That's why they're in school--to learn how to do something. They can't do that if they never have the materials made available to them. That Which Only Makes Us StrongerIn light of how fast technology has advanced, there are those that see it as more of a hindrance in the line of education. However, there have been great strides in assistive technology that benefits students, who are unable to receive a traditional education like others.
Assistive technology is a selection of tools, programs, and items that allow students to participate in lessons if they are unable to ask questions, ask for help, or interact traditionally within the classroom. These can vary from Velcro books with words to fancier tablet speaking apps with predesignated words or the ability to type their own words. It is hard to say what type of classroom I will have, but there will always be the chance I have a student that requires something to help them. Although, now that I know about these resources, it will be easier for me to integrate them for the student to use. It is better to know about them now rather than trying to find them later where a student needs them right away. I can, also, prepare my classroom by having some forms of assistive technology available to use until they get what they really need. That way they can participate in the class while we work out something that would fit their exact needs. In order to access these kinds of resources, it would be best to think outside of the box on how to access them. It would likely be the best choice to provide what I can at first, and then see what the people that specialize in the field of assistive technology think would work better. These would be: teachers in the special education program, district providers, and possibly a personal assistant if the student has one. Since I only had a crash course in the benefits of assistive technology, I do not feel that I am as qualified as others are to provide specialized technology for students that need it. They have a right to a better education, and I will do what I can to aid them, but the better choice is to support them with what I can while someone can get the best tool for the job. So far, assistive technology plays In light of the way technology plays a role in the classroom, it garners questions about whether it is actually useful or something that can be used as a resource.
Part of this, also, comes from how teachers can take the initiative to create their own guidelines covering the use of technology. The plan I have in my classroom is to have a short blurb in a syllabus backed up with a prop that has not been made yet. The blurb will read something like "Use technology (phones, tablets, laptops, iPods) within reason for the class or the "ban-hammer" will be used". Those of us that are already up to our eyes in digital communities will likely know about this mythical tool used among moderators and admins of chats, forums, and websites. For those that don't know, a ban-hammer is the tool that moderators and admins use to bring down judgement for the misuse or misconduct on their site. My plan to mitigate the improper use of technology in classrooms is to create a prop that I will call a ban-hammer that I can use to tap a student's device to let them know they are off task. This will go up to three taps before they are no longer allowed to use it, if it is interfering with their classwork. Should it be during free time, after a project, then they will likely have the option of doing other classwork or a silent activity of their choosing. For future thoughts on what I could ask during interviews for a teaching job, I would probably ask about the policies they have been working with in terms of personal devices and their usage in classrooms. As technology evolves, and the need for new forms of education arise, new plans and ideas are always being created. Ten years ago, in my middle school's classroom, we were sitting in the rigid desk-chair combos in uniform lines where we were chastised for moving them anywhere out of line. We had beaten up textbooks that had the infamous "Issued to Michael Jackson, Given: Black; Returned: White" written in the front chart along with the "turn to page 82, now go to 93" scrawled across pages. When I went to my first middle school in Wellington, CO, last Spring, I saw that desk-chairs were all but obsolete in classrooms, and replaced with milk crates, exercise balls, stools, etc. The textbooks are still old, but now they have access to personal laptops to conduct the periods online where before it'd just be an overstocked binder with papers falling from the covers. In the ten years that it took me to get to college, middle school has drastically changed since the days of extreme no nonsense attitudes, and uniformity in rows. In Future Ready Learning, the section of technology touches on this aspect of introducing new ideas and resources into a classroom. One of the major things I have noticed is how iPad driven schools have become. Personally, I see them as nothing more than a nuisance to education as kids constantly play games during class. Part of this can come from the goal that's set where educators will be supported by technology that can connect them to people, and resources, where they can become empowered and inspire them to teach more effectively. However, we need to stop and think about whether we should do something or whether we did it because we could. In terms of how technology has gone, iPads are thought of as more entertainment than education compared to laptops, but educators have connections to Apple to receive used items and recycle the items. It's helpful, and a great trade-off, but it would be more effective to collect laptops (PC, Chromebook, or MacBook) to conduct student learning as they are not built around entertainment. A quick Google search provided an interesting article that is literally called "What Is the Purpose of an iPad?" on the site: http://smallbusiness.chron.com/purpose-ipad-55278.html where it highlights the capabilities of the device in a business scenario, but focuses more on the uses that what could hinder it. It was interesting to see how they applied the uses of the iPad as a simple business management tool with Facebook and Twitter, but they did little to touch on the cons iPads create. Future Ready Learning tends to focus more on how technology can benefit the educator versus the students too. In the second section, about the integration of technology, there are multiple examples on how technology can be used to benefit the way a teacher leads and teaches a class. One such sub-section is titled "Educators can collaborate far beyond the walls of their school." because teachers can use internet outlets to talk with educators outside of their own district. This is a beneficial resource for the teachers because they can get that feedback, but it feels like they can just go and go and go for days gathering up this information without really bringing any back to the classroom. It's possible, and I've seen examples, but knowing how people can think too big it can backfire and they become absorbed by interacting with others online.
As long as the teacher can conduct the classroom with the technology being used, it is possible for it not to be abused by the possibility of games. One such practice would be to just say technology won't be used today, and not be seen at all, but in the field of art, technology is used constantly to find references and look up information. It's also a problem because not all art is digital, so there may not be a way to conduct class through the iPad or laptop resulting in a Schrodinger's Cat scenario--the students are both researching and gaming at the same time. I think that it is important to look more at how the students can benefit from the integration of technology rather than how it can benefit teachers. We'll being using the new apps and trends, but the question is if these new toys really help the student populace or if it is just a shiny object distracting them. As a personal example, my high school was one of the first ones to integrate iPads, and it was a resounding disaster the first year. It's like the teachers honestly thought we wouldn't use the tablets for games, and would use them for educational purposes. 8 out of 10 students were on their iPads playing games rather than using them as they were expected to. There were a lot of apps given to us to conduct education practices with, but some teachers didn't even use them or just used them passively. The iPad became a digital binder that was cluttered with stuff over being utilized and organized for the class. Looking back on it now, it feels more like a toy for the teachers to play with, and try to use over utilizing it as an actual teaching tool. In terms of my classroom, depending on the medium of art I will be placed in, technology will be used slightly or relied upon like water. In a studio based classroom where the main medium is paper, canvas, or clay, technology should not be very present as an iPad is not going to create an image with your paint brush. Although, there are programs and apps available to be used for digital painting, drawing, and sculpting; however, those may not be permitted as forms of end products. In a graphic design setting, computers are everything and anything in that department. It will be dependent on the medium I am teaching, and how it can be applied to technology. It may be where it's only used for writing artist statements or uploading to an online portfolio in traditional medias. If that's the case, then it will be easy to watch what is going on with people using iPads or PCs. In digital media, it will be ten times harder to tell whether they are working, gaming, or researching unless you walk around and check on how they are doing. Between the two medias, there is no real middle ground that can be found because one doesn't have to rely on technology whereas the other was created through technology. This past week has been pretty exciting in terms of what was passed on to us. During this time, we were given a crash course on the function and use of SmartBoards, and that what we learned in five minutes took others three weeks because of how tech savvy we are.
A bit of clarification on the SmartBoards, these tools work similarly to how a whiteboard is presented on the wall of a classroom. The difference is that this functions as a large wall tablet via a projector and advanced screen. Teachers and students are then able to tap icons on the screen, use pen tools to create digital marks, and even create interactive activities based around the SmartBoard's functions. SmartBoards were just the start of things that we learned; following that we were shown several classroom conductors that could be used for presentations. One of these sites was called Pear Deck where teachers could create a presentation room for everyone to follow along with on computers or tablets. This ensures that students will be on the right slide as the lesson progresses. It also allows for students to interact on slides where the teacher has created interactive pieces for live feedback on where everyone is. Following up with conducting a digital classroom, we learned more about how virtual reality and augmented reality can play key factors in the classroom. One of the activities that has been set up is a virtual escape room where students must collaborate and figure out what the codes are. This can be used as a reward or as a moment to immerse the students in a lesson where it is viable. Virtual Reality may not have activities that are applicable quite yet for your field but it may help shake things up from being in a classroom. Augmented reality isn't as popular as virtual reality is nowadays, but it can be a cheaper option depending on whether tablets are available or if the students have their own smart phones. Rather than immersing someone in a completely simulated space, augmented reality creates a digital object that interacts with the physical world. Much to how the popular Pokémon GO functions, devices will place a 3-d object in the real world using the camera's field of view. As a functional tool, augmented reality can be used to set up a classroom activity where students use devices with corresponding apps to investigate different stations. The best part about this is how you don't have to make room for physical objects and how multiple students can look at the same screen to see what is happening. With the constant increase in technology, it will become increasingly important to make sure students have access to it. If they don't know how to use it, then we have not been doing our jobs as teachers in making sure they know more than just the content. We're training them for jobs yet to be created and technology that hasn't been invented, so we have to do our part to prepare them for as much as we can. |
Joel SchreinerBorn on December 17th, 1996, Joel Schreiner entered the Electronic Art program at CSU right out of High School. From there he decided to set his eyes on becoming an educator alongside an illustrator and concept artist. Archives
December 2018
Categories |