Saad's+Teacher+Interview

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**__ Teacher Research Assessment: Technology in the Classroom __**
We live in an age where cell phones and iPods are always at our fingertips and have become an easy distraction. Some schools have gone to the extreme of blocking off all forms of these distractions by creating firewalls on computers to cutting off cell phone reception to their entire building. The hope for limiting these distractions is that students will be better able to concentrate and learn if they are engaged with what the teacher is doing, and not the latest Facebook update. However, I will attempt to uncover ways that we can engage students in writing about literature by using 21st-century technology. I believe many teachers fear the unknown and are not willing to take risks when it comes to blending technology into the classroom because they simply are not educated enough on proper ways to do so. By interviewing a teacher on their methods, and doing some further research, I will prove that by using 21st-century technology in the classroom, teachers are better able to encourage their students to write about literature in effective ways.

I interviewed Jodi Bullinger, an 11th and 12th grade English teacher, at Pioneer High School in Ann Arbor, Michigan about her methodology of formative and summative assessments in writing about literature. Pioneer High School has a large, diverse student body from all different socio-economic status levels. She has been an educator for over 10 years, specializing in the teaching of British Literature and other English AP classes. Jodi uses many different formative assessment tactics in her British Literature classes, ranging from quizzes to peer/self assessments to classroom discussions. She was quick to point out that she rarely keeps a consistent lesson plan between her classes, rather, always adapting her lesson to fit each class on a personal level. For her first hour, her students always seem to enjoy working in small groups and helping each other. So, she uses peer and self-assessments as the primary tool for grading. She closely looks at how her students are helping each other in improving their own writing skills before offering any extra support. She believes this type of learning best prepares her students for solving problems and offering help in a real world setting. However, her last class of the day is a different story. The students in this class are much rowdier and unfocused. They are unable to work in small groups without quickly becoming distracted and moving off topic. So, she uses quizzes to help her students focus at the beginning of class before moving onto any type of discussion. Students are then able to use their quizzes as an organizer for future writing assignments.

After gaining a little more insight on her teaching philosophy, I wanted to know more about how Jodi incorporates technology into her assessments. Her summative assessments are truly unique and creative. For an example, she assigns an end of the year creative project for her British Literature class. Students are to modernize Shakespeare to fit into a 21st-century environment. For this summative assessment, Jodi provides brief directions with specific requirements on what she looks for. Students are to choose one Shakespeare play and creatively transform the characters, setting, plot, etc. to fit in today’s world. Furthermore, students reflect on their creative adaptations by writing a paper that clearly describes which Shakespearian elements they found important to keep, take out, or change, and what they learned from the assignment. Jodi has seen all types of projects like, video interpretations of specific scenes, a soap opera script, children books, and even music albums with song lyrics. A majority of these projects all use some type of multimedia applications that the students are already familiar with and enjoy. Jodi discovered that when she allowed her students to build on their own interests, their work ethic and writing became stronger.

Sarah Brown Wessling was awarded National Teacher of the Year in 2010. She best sums up her teaching philosophy in her publication entitled, “Making A Difference--Shaping The Future”. She believes that her students “are more engaged when their purpose is clear and when they see their own passions, questions, and motivations reflected in their work” (Wessling 7). Her classes use an array of multimedia applications like podcasts to practice the research process as a pre-writing exercise, or creating storyboards for film trailers that must convince their audience to read something they have studied. Sarah Wessling is a big advocate for 21st-century teachers. Upon meeting pre-service teachers she will always ask, “You're going to be teaching in the 21stCentury, but are you going to be a 21stCentury teacher?" She continues by arguing that any type of technology can become “tools towards student achievement, but should never be the culmination of an authentic learning experience” (Wessling 9). I couldn’t agree more with what Sarah Wessling has achieved. However, not everyone agrees that technology in the classroom can be effective.

In the article, “The Pros and Cons of Technology in the Classroom: A Debate by Drs. Roy Pea and Larry Cuban”by, Melanie Eve Miller, we see both sides of the technology integration argument. Miller believes that young children “should not be immersed in technology as a dominant source of activity or education as their cognitive development requires a multi-sensory approach that is unrealistic to simulate through technology” (Miller 2). I agree with Miller’s belief as it applies to younger children, but also cannot help but compare our country’s education system to other, far more advanced countries. In places like South Korea and Finland, students are using all types of technology to learn in the classroom. Students in South Korea are able to build and understand computer programs around the same time students in the United States are just learning basic Algebra. The global competition in education is tougher than ever before. I believe educators need to implement better, more effective ways of using technology in the classroom as a means of learning earlier on.

__ One way to integrate technology into different forms of assessment is to allow students to record and publish podcasts onto the class website. Students would have to answer specific questions that address what they took away from the unit and how they have applied it in their final project. This opens a new space for students to collaborate on what they have learned throughout the unit. I purpose giving students a minimum of five minutes to record and reflect on the question prompt, and share it with other students in the class. Podcasts would allow students to add emotion to their writing and stress the important aspects of what they learned. __

Upon reviewing the Michigan High School Content Expectations (HSCE), I learned that students must be able to “use technology tools to produce polished written and multimedia work (e.g., literary and expository works, proposals, business presentations, advertisements)” (CE 1.5.4). This is not only a Michigan expectation, but also a nationwide expectation. We see this in Michigan where Jodi Bullinger encourages students to use a variety of multimedia tools when assigning creative projects, to Iowa, where Sarah Wessling uses podcasts and prepares pre-service teachers to become a 21st century educator. There is no escaping new age technology from becoming a distraction for the average student. Instead, we as educators should attempt to meet our students in the middle and discover ways in which we can use technology as a tool for learning and growing.

__ Annotated Bibliography __ 1.) Bullinger, Jodi. Personal Interview. 11/21/2011.

2.) Miller, Melanie. "The Pros and Cons of Technology in the Classroom: A Debate by Drs. Roy Pea and Larry Cuban." //Views on Technology in Education//. (2008): n. page.

This published journal is a response to a debate between Dr. Roy Pea and Dr. Larry Cuban on the issue of using technology in the classroom. Melanie Miller shows both the pros and cons of the technology debate, while also arguing her side. At first, her reflection shows a balanced view of the issue, but Miller concludes by stressing the importance of incorporating technology in our classrooms as a gateway to better learning.

3.) Wessling, Sarah. "Making A Difference--Shaping The Future." Diss. Johnston High School, 2010. Print.

This is Sarah Wessling’s application to be Teacher of the Year in 2010. Her application entitled, “Making A Difference—Shaping the Future”, highlights her major achievements, teaching philosophy, goals, and advice for teaching in a 21st century classroom. She provides specific types of assessments she uses in her own classroom, and also shares the work her students have created.