Blended learning is a process of education, learning and assessment, that takes place in a physical classroom within the interaction of the teacher and students combined with online educational tools. The following paragraphs outline two major points of intersection on learning and assessment with technology that takes place in the classroom: project-based learning and the use of a variety of online (or downloadable) educational applications. Through the use of modules of learning/LMS (e.g., Google Classroom) and educational tools (e.g., Autodesk, Codecademy, etc.), students will not only engage in a personalized learning environment of their own making, but they will also have the guidance of a teacher throughout the process.
Blended Learning:
- “Active, engaged learning online and in class”
- One major goal of blended learning is to give students more control over these items:
- TIME, PATH, PACE, PLACE
- Students have some control over some of these items some of the time
- “Use technology to replace and improve”
Technology can help organize learning around real-world challenges and project-based learning – using a wide variety of digital learning devices and resources to show competency with complex concepts and content.
Using Google Classroom can help keep students protect their work by the auto-save function of google. In using Google Classroom, teachers can post assignments ahead of time to be scheduled to come out to meet the needs of the students. When working under the project-based learning model, students are responsible for their own learning by using brainstorming, planning, and gathering materials as their guide towards answering open-ended questions that could very well address real-world situations. Organizing their work (i.e., brainstorming, planning, and gathering) can be done collaboratively with the teacher.
The teacher can post the individual components of the project-based activities as assignments: as an example, Assignment #1: Brainstorming. Students can work on this activity individually and share these documents with their group members to work collaboratively. Once students are done, they can submit this on google classroom. That will allow the teachers to give them permission and/or post their next assignment: Assignment #2: Planning. This can all be done online.
All of these assignments can be organized in the same folder for individual groups in google classroom, where we can make the assignments viewable for other students to see or private. The organization of the assignments allows for collaboration, access from any classroom, and where subsequent/cumulative activities are easy to track for both the students and the teacher. With Google Classroom easy to access from anywhere with internet, students can use it to collect pictures, videos, links, and so on to. Students may also use the shared folder in their Google Classroom as an archive for files to present using other mediums, such as Prezi or Animoto. An example of what Google Classroom would look like, along with handing out assessments, for students when entering their classroom module can be seen below.
Home Page:
Assigning Work:
Technology can enable personalized learning or experiences that are more engaging and relevant.
Technology, though possibly singular in their purpose (but more likely having multiple uses), has a multitude of ways they can be used through a variety of different contexts. In education, technology can be used to facilitate learning, engage learners, and close learning gaps for students with various learning needs. The vision of the U.S. Department of Education (ED) and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is two-fold: “1) all young children will have adults in their lives who are well-informed on how to use technology to support learning at various ages; and 2) all young children will have opportunities to learn, explore, play, and communicate through a multitude of approaches, including the use of technology.” (Office of Educational Technology: Vision) This vision speaks to the desire for blended learning or other forms of education involving technology to be involved in the elementary classroom.
There are a variety of technological tools that are helpful for young learners. These types of technology include autodesk, codecademy, websites (such as Science Kids, Science Bob, or Phet), and so on. These are useful tools that not only give students a platform for learning to use in the classroom, but also exciting ways to learn at home.
Autodesk: Sketchbook allows for students to manipulate various tools on an electronic pad that allows for new forms of art to take place through the use of a writing stencil (i.e., electronic pen, mouse, or your own finger). You can learn about symmetry, landscape, perspective art, among others. You can also fix mistakes that you made by undoing your mistakes. An example of perspective art done by yours truly using Autodesk can be found below.
Codecademy is a programming website that invites students of all learning backgrounds to engage in the input-output process involved in coding. It comes with lesson plans for teachers to use to teach specific elements of coding in an effective manner. One lesson I taught to a group of elementary students was on debugging. Students were taught the terms coding, bug, and debugging before engaging with the lesson. Debugging is the process of looking at lines of code and identifying the problem. This process not only teaches programming but also invites students to practice self-evaluation/ checking your own work.
Websites like Science Kids: Fun Science & Technology for Kids! and Science Bob give students ideas for science experiments they can perform at home or for their science fair (under supervision). A website like Phet give students the opportunity to simulate a variety of experiments (not exclusive to science) to see what the results they may find. Ranging from circuits to finding the area of a square, Phet provides opportunities for students to play with different experiment or review their learning from school!
Circuits
Area Model Multiplication
These applications and websites offer students with an abundance of tools to use in a variety of contexts in their learning. As students, they may want to explore a variety of new tools. As presenters, they may want to review their learning/ use these applications to showcase their knowledge with the class. As teachers, they may use these applications to help their peers and demonstrate their understanding of the material.
Works Cited
Google Classroom, https://classroom.google.com. Accessed 8 Oct. 2019
Prezi, https://prezi.com/. Accessed 8 Oct. 2019
Animoto, https://animoto.com. Accessed 8 Oct. 2019
Office of Education Technology, https://tech.ed.gov/earlylearning/vision/. Accessed 20 Oct. 2019.
Autodesk: Sketchbook, https://sketchbook.com/. Accessed 20 Oct. 2019.
Codecademy, https://www.codecademy.com. Accessed 20 Oct. 2019.
Science Kids: Fun Science & Technology for Kids!, http://www.sciencekids.co.nz/experiments.html. Accessed 20 Oct. 2019.
Science Bob, https://sciencebob.com/. Accessed 20 Oct. 2019.
Phet, https://phet.colorado.edu/en/simulations/category/by-level/elementary-school/. Accessed 20 Oct. 2019.
