Engaging+in+Learning

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 * __HOW HAVE I ENGAGED IN LEARNING & TEACHING WITH TECHNOLOGY?__


 * 1.) In January 2009, I joined the "Structures for Learning" team at my school, Port Moody Secondary. I did this partly because of the LTT Program. Structures for learning includes looking at ways to use technology in the classroom and I hope to implement some of what I learn into my LTT endevours and vice versa.

2.) February 13th, 2009 Professional Development ( MARCO TORRES - WEB 2.0 WORKSHOP ).

3.) February 2009 Purchased classroom textbooks (** WEB LITERACY FOR EDUCATORS **by Alan November and** THE REFLECTIVE EDUCATOR'S GUIDE TO CLASSROOM RESEARCH **)

4.) I have joined a couple of discussion forums (CBC / CNN). These forums are designed to let people comment on various topics in the news and have ongoing discussions with people anywhere in the world. I joined these to learn about posting comments on the web but also because I have a genuine interest in news. I must admit that I was excited about it at the beginning but as time went on and I took on other things I started to use them less and less. Still an interest but I think it is something I would use once in a while.** [|CNN]
 * [|CBC.CA]

5.) I have conducted a number of surveys with my classes about their knowledge of technology, technology use in the classroom, and about learning in the 21st century. I did these to help better understand who I am teaching, what I have been doing in the classroom since my career began, and what I should be doing in the classroom in the future. This also helped me in determining what I should be focusing on (technology wise) during my time in the LTT program and afterwards.**
 * [[file:Technology survey.doc]]

__Digital Learner Survey__

I gave my students a quick survey on digital learning after we looked at those questions in LTT class. I asked them a couple of questions, such as "what is a digital learner" and "how are you a digital learner?". Some of the more common words in the responses included: //research, collaborate, integrate, communicate, mass knowledge.//

What do my students use technology for? - Youtube - Forums - Messageboards - Movies - Music - ABC Speller - Yellowpages -Word Processing / Spell Checks - Google - Dictionaries - Wikis**

- I have tried to incorporate technology into my Japanese class. I designed a lesson that involved having students use various Japanese websites to study characters that we have learned. In previous years we had done this by simply using the textbook and handouts. I found that when I did this the students were far more engaged, especially because the websites I was using were ones that the students could relate to such as Mcdonalds, Pizza Hut, and Disneyland.** [|Mcdonalds] [|Disneyland]
 * 6.) Japanese Lesson / Project
 * [|Pizzahut]



- I also recently gave my students the chance to do a project using a wikispace. I had originally only thought this would be good for Social Studies however I have actually done the most so far with my Japanese class. They had to do a tourism project on a particular city. I already have a Japanese wiki and so I gave them the option to join that wiki and then create a page on their city. I was excited by how many students wanted to do this and it was so easy to add them to my wiki. They caught on very quickly and were doing things right away that took me days to learn (Digital learners!). See reflections.



7.) Digital Current Events - Every week in my Social Studies class I do current events with my students on Fridays. We get approximately 10 or so //V// //ancouver Sun //** **papers delivered to our school to use. The participation level is fairly good, with about 70% of the class reading the stories and discussing them out loud. I think current events is an important part of the class and I am always searching for ways to get more participation. When I heard about using iPods in class at one of our LTT presentations(**Sonya Woloshen) **I thought I could integrate this into my current events. I now give students the choice of reading the paper or finding something in the news that interests them on their iPods or cellphones. Most students are still reading the paper but I do have about 4-5 students that use these as a way to get involved, bringing my participation rate up to almost 90%.**

- **I have also started using iPods and phones in class a little bit. I now encourage students with questions to look up the answers if I don't know right away. It is very easy as many of them have the ability to do this, and it benefits the students and I as we both get the answer. The students seem to feel empowered when doing this and it keeps them interested in the subject material. I have come to accept that it is okay that I don't know all the answers and that students will remain more involved if they are able to use their technology in this way. Yay for those high-powered computers in their pockets!!!

8.) Messageboards - I have designed a couple of lesson pages that I plan on implementing in my Social Studies 11 class in the near future using my Wikispace. They will be used as part of my Geography unit and focus on human rights, Canadian Identity, and Population/Technological Change.

9.) Moodle

[|Moodle Site]

10.) April 2009 - Purchased a microphone for my laptop to use in making videos with Jing, media encoder, and photostory.**