Technology in Today's Classrooms

Blog Reflection #3 As a millennial, I feel I traversed great eras in technological history. I remember when you couldn’t wander too far from the phone on the wall because of the cord. I remember floppy disks. Playing with the payphones in the school’s lobby was a frequent fun recess activity. Listening centers in classrooms involved choosing a cassette and placing it in a tape deck. In my elementary school years, my teachers used dusty blackboards and squeaky chalk. Computers was a separate class where we learned to type. Two decades and technological light years away from that era I now teach in a time when using an interactive whiteboard is standard in almost every class, I have access to devices such as iPads and search engines in the classrooms, and my students are probably even more tech savvy than me. These are my thoughts on technology in the classrooms and how our technological know-how can help achieve better student success in the classroom.

                Like I said, when I was in grade school, technology meant bulging computers that took up a lot of desk space, computer software that involved CD-ROMs, saving files on disks, and feeding videos into a VHS machine. I think Jaclyn Nordome’s (https://www.techchange.org/author/jaclynnardone/) quote in her September 8, 2010 blog post: …“Today kids have digital cameras, social issue games  Facebook and iPhones — Facebook on their iPhones. …kids today have become frantically digital, and rightfully so…”

                In all the technological craze, I see a lot of positive benefits in utilizing tech educationally, both in the classroom and out. I believe that tablets, apps, video and interactive whiteboards can be learning tools for students as well as teaching tools for us educators.  I agree with the fifth grade teacher who  was quoted in a U.S. Department of Education article saying, “Technology is the ultimate carrot for students.” So the first and foremost positive benefit in technology is where it all starts: motivating our students to learn. And just like teaching the ELL student, well the way I see, technology is speaking the universal language of today’s kids. Besides for motivating students, it also engages them better than I can. I just don’t measure up to those interactive presentation tools, such as video clips and graphics in techno-color-it’s all the “lights, camera, action!” that kids are accustomed to and that helps keep my classes engaged.

Here are several other benefits I see and ways to implement tech today. Firstly, technology like tablets and ipads allow students to work at their own pace, since they read directions, process information and complete work at their own pace. A built in bonus here is this helps free up our time so we can give students who may need extra guidance or assistance the attention they require. Secondly, the supportive tools available through technology is endless, with new and improved digital resources constantly being generated. For example, educational apps, search engines, videos, portable technologies interactive activities, and e-resources provide students with a nearly limitless supply of information. Thirdly, since the entire world is shifting with the digital age, and will continue to progress into the digital model…my principle remarked at a staff meeting last year that soon kids will be born with a digital chip in place of their brains…well these changes should be aligned with teachers’ lesson plans and learning techniques of children and classrooms. We always insist as teachers that the learning children do in school will prepare them for the future, and for this reason it is important to incorporate technology in the classroom. After they graduate grade school and move on to college and careers, they will continue to face the incorporating of technology. I even read an article, forget where that the prediction is out there that the shift will be so drastic that school building s will disappear! Students will instead school digitally. Gosh. We already see this phenomenon with colleges offering on-line degree options and the forecast referred to even grade school students completing their education in this way. Which personally is thought provoking to say the least- will I be outsourced of a job by my PC?!

Which I guess will bring me to the flip side of technology. It’s not all a magical wand transforming everything rosy. I think the first argument teachers and administrators will bring about technology is the expense. Equipment, software, hardware etc.- it is costly. I actually had to continuously ask my principle for three years before I got a smartboard installed in my room. And then I had to ask for tech training and support which I did get to some degree. However, I guess my old-school training still shapes and re-affirms my belief that expensive classroom technology solutions don’t always result in effective teaching and learning. I just read an article publishing a global study from the OECD showing little improvement on student learning even with schools that invested heavily in information and technology systems. (check it out: http://www.bbc.com/news/business-34174796 )(yes, I recently learned how to use hyperlinks and I admit I am having fun with it in this blog!)  Students don’t necessarily score higher on standardized test across the country with all our booming tech.

For laughs, I always do this with my class the first time I turn on the smartboard in our room. I pretend to ask it, “What’s 1+1?” When of course there’s no response, I ask my students, “OK, what’s 1+1?” When they all shout out “2!” I tell them, “See, you guys are smarter than the Smartboard!” They love it, and I’m giving over to them the confidence that they’re brains are smarter than any technology.

I think using technology causes an increase in the OT and Speech challenges in students. My cousin who is an OT in the NYC districts bolstered my belief when she told me she’s seen an alarming increase in cases with students whose fine motor skills are weak- things like cutting paper and holding a pencil, and she thinks it’s because kids are accustomed to do things virtually.

And what if technology fails you? The system is down, you can’t access the material in your classroom, access is blocked-whatever. There goes your day’s lesson plan, time to swing into “wing it” mode.

The distractions of digital technology are inherent as well. While kids are engaged and motivated to learn, they can become so diverted from that they lose focus for the task at hand either literally, since they go off into places on-line (games, chat rooms) where they aren’t supposed to be, or because they get so caught up in the tech aspects that they don’t thoroughly participate in the educational aspect. Like if you give them a power point to prepare and they get caught up more in the cool transitions between slides than the material.

I would be remiss if I didn’t mention the lurking dangers of social media. Kids who aren’t developmentally mature enough to understand and protect themselves from the lure of these real hazards are at risk of falling prey to real harm.  

So I think the blended learning approach is the way to go. The way I see it, a teacher needs to be there and school as an institution needs to exist. Blended learning brings both positive aspects together- the best of both worlds so to speak. There are various models out there, and I don’t there is one right way. There never is in education. A college of min took the initiative this past year to introduce the station-rotation model in the class. I was impresses, the students loved it. I think this will be what I will continue to look into and adapt as my approach moving forward.

Where is the Real Joy in Teaching?

Blog Entry #2: I always loved acting. When I was in Pre-1A, my younger brother had a small performance in his nursery school to which parents were invited to attend. I was so jealous that he had a performance. My teacher must have picked up on my dour feelings because the next day, she called me in to a small office and asked me what was wrong. I must’ve solemnly explained to her that I was upset that my little brother had an opportunity to perform. She was most empathetic with my upset state. She then asked me if I would like to plan a small presentation for the class, to which my classmates would be invited to view! I eagerly nodded and my dear teacher proceeded to plan out a simple script which included one or two songs that we had learned in the class. Over the next few days, I remember being called aside with this teacher to practice our little skit. We even added in props. On the appointed day during “circle time”, my classmates gathered to the meeting center of our room, and watched as I performed my special skit.

 I honestly don’t remember the specifics of what I did- I think it was something to do with Hanukah which occurred around that time. But I do remember the delight of having all eyes watching me. I think I was too young to even be nervous. What sticks with me from this experience was the warmth, empathy and genuine caring that I felt flowing from my teacher. She saw an upset child, took time from the busy day and curriculum to pull me aside and find out what was wrong. She then even provided a forum from which I could feel unique and express my creativity.

I think this is the essential element in creating and eliciting joyful moments in education and really in any life experience.  Tapping into a person’s inner potential, allowing them to utilize their unique talents and personality and directing it positively is how we bring on those moments of joy. It’s always amazing when a lesson or activity goes over well, or when a student’s response indicates they “got it”. Or when the principle or co-teacher walks into to your room at just the right moment (I don’t know about you, but it often seems to me that they are always walking in at the WRONG time!) when you’ve got a great discussion going on, there’s students responses and retorts flying back and forth, they might be trying to look up something in the computer center, you can feel the interest in learning and discovery sizzling in the room…yeah, these are all wonderful moments and we NEED the positive gratification these times bring. Because there’s so much aggravation and frustration in between where we feel like banging our heads (or the students!) against a wall.

But in the long term, I think that the real joy is reaching the whole student. I started out my teaching career thinking that teaching is all about covering curriculum, creating lessons and activities that will motivate student interest and keep them engaged. By the middle of my third year, after experiencing two and half classes of students with all their different combinations of personalities, family backgrounds, levels of abilities and talents, I started to realize that there is opportunity for so much more than covering ground in academics. Whenever you get to tap into the student’s whole self-that is a point where you will experience the joy of teaching.

It took me some time to realize that. But once I established this as my mindset, I felt I moved up a level as a professional and as a person. Two years ago, I was given the privilege of having the two most difficult classes of the third grade. I guess that meant I moved up in the ranks from rooky to “experienced” with the administration. There was one kid that all the teacher’s warned me was a real troublemaker whose mother didn’t care about her child’s behavior. Yikes! Well, on the second day of school, I noticed this troublesome student doodling in her notebook. And it was good illustrations for a third grader! I decided to ask her if she would want the privilege of decorating our class pencil containers. I keep one can for sharpened and one for unsharpened. I gave her two index cards and she proceeded to illustrate a very cute animated pencil with a happy expression for the sharpened can and a sad looking pencil for the unsharpened can. I thanked her for her designs in front of the whole class and displayed the cards on the outside of the cans. The look on her face when she saw her work as an important part of our class décor was of pride- her face lit up. That for me was perpetrating the moment of joy I had in my pre-school year. And I believe that spurred a positive spin on our relationship since then. She still remained a personality, but I can honestly say that I had no trouble with her behavior throughout the year. I actually enjoyed her spunk and high spirits and they added a lot of sparkle to the class.  

Now, I would like to qualify here. I’ve also read numerous stories about teachers changing the lives of students with a caring act. I believe in the potential power of a teacher to do so, and I believe that will bring on the moments of joy in our work of education.  However, I really feel that sometimes these stories are portrayed with a too narrow viewing. Caring and consideration for the whole student is vital in the classroom. But there needs to be elements of discipline as well-namely consequences for wrong actions. Without this other side, the concern won’t be as effective. And it is a long term journey, of connecting with the student and providing opportunities to allow them to shine. In most cases, this isn’t an overnight step.

Those are my thoughts. What do you think? I would love to hear your feedback.

From The Beginning

I still treasure my kindergarten yearbook. Each of us proud little graduates have a page with our picture on it and a caption that included our favorite color, activity, and what we wanted to be when we grew up. When my teacher asked me this question, I replied assuredly, “I want to be a teacher”. At all of eleven years old, I gave my first “model lesson”. My fifth grade teacher Miss Lieberstein allowed each student to choose a reward for some behavior contest. Among the rewards was an opportunity for the student to be teacher for a day- which I eagerly chose. I clearly remember the tingle of excitement I felt standing in front of a class full of students awaiting my instruction. It was also through this experience that I realized some of the finer points of teaching such as good lesson planning and classroom management aren’t as easy as they seem! My next foray into the teaching world occurred when I was an eleventh grader in high school. I was in my neighborhood’s elementary school building with a group of friends when the principle spotted us strolling around, visiting the old haunts. She greeted us warmly and turning to me asked, “How would you like to sub for third grade?” At first, I thought she was joking. Clad in a pleated uniform skirt, blouse and pony tail, I looked every inch the high school junior that I was. Hardly the look of a teacher! When my principal continued pressing me to call her if I was available, I realized she was serious- and that I was receiving a unique opportunity that most people don’t get in high school.  My spring vacation had already started, but the elementary grades still had school, which is why I was able to take up this offer.  To the background sound of all my friends laughing, I marched into the third grade, and taught for a day. Well, subbed is better word. And as my father rightly stated, “Subbing is not teaching”.

Once I reached high school, I got involved with various activities such as youth groups, tutoring, day camp and babysitting. Through these pursuits, I developed the abilities I knew I had in connecting with children, and working with them in capacities to give over knowledge and skills as well as help to broaden their worldview while instilling in them self-confidence and develop their inclinations.

For four summers, I was a staff member in a sleepaway camp. I held diverse positions in camp over the years, ranging from junior specialty to counselor to head lifeguard to assistant director. My experience allowed me to work with the campers who were as young as second grade, straight through the oldest bunk of teenagers. These various experiences deepened my understanding and appreciation for relating to a diversity of people. Through working with different children from various backgrounds and different capabilities, I learned various methods and modalities for reaching a wide variety of children.

            My own education has been one of the greatest influences on my life. From learning the alphabet in preschool to analyzing the differences and similarities between nationalism and globalism in high school, my own teachers profoundly influenced the way that I relate to and interpret the world.  I was fortunate to have an outstanding string of teachers who educated me from pre-k through high school. They have motivated me to want to share this knowledge with those around me.

But education begins in the home, and it is my father who is my primary role model for inspiring me to pursue a career as a teacher. My father has been a teacher for over twenty years, and has taught the gamut of grades, from elementary to junior high, to high school. Growing up in a home where teaching others is so fundamental has truly molded my mindset that one must utilize their abilities and talents which they are endowed with, in whatever capacity they fill, to reach out and inspire those around them. I saw firsthand the hard behind-the -scenes work life of a dedicated teacher: using after school hours and Sundays to plan and prepare, constantly speaking with colleagues, the phone calls and details that go into organizing extra-curricular activities, participating in events such as open house, retreats, and intra-school/community functions. Years before progressive education coined terms like “student directed lessons” and “active learning” my father demonstrated to us these crucial aspects of tangible learning experiences. In keeping in sync with the world’s hi-tech revolution, my father implemented technology into the classroom long before the hi-tech industry made these features so easily adapted to the classroom. For example, he created slideshows and music videos of the rules and behaviors he wanted to set in the classes he taught. The students and our own family(!) starred in these presentations, which allowed them (and us) to internalize learning in a meaningful and very fun way.

I see how my father devotes himself endlessly to his students, going way beyond academics in the classroom. The connections my father has with his students aren’t severed after graduation, but rather strengthened. Students actually come to visit my father years after they graduate, sometimes even joining us for a family dinner. I have often heard the remark that sitting at our family’s table is like being in my father’s class, as he interacts with us, his family, in a very similar manner to how he interacts with his students. Through these comments, I’ve realized in a penetrating manner how devotion to one’s students can be as great as the devotion one has for their own family. My father keeps up with his students in their post high school years, continuing to offer guidance in the next stages of life: college, dating, and marriage. When previous students come over to visit with their own little children in tow, students who are working to build homes replete with the ideals my father imparted to them, I get a glimpse into the results that show what years of dedication, concern, and caring of a teacher can accomplish. This propels me to want to attain similar goals.

            After graduating high school, I studied in Israel for a year in a post high school seminary. I chose the track where we attended pedagogue classes, went observing in different schools, and were required to give model lessons. I also signed up for electives which supplemented our regular teaching instruction, such as Intro to Special Education. When I came back to America, I was excitedly looking forward to fulfilling my long anticipated dream of going to the other side of the desk and becoming the teacher. I was offered a fourth grade position in the Hebrew Academy of Nassau County (HANC Plainview campus), which I accepted. It was a small school with very small classes which I thought would be ideal to start out with.

Despite a summer of excited preparations, my first day was a disaster- the kids were doing the proverbial “walking on the ceiling”. The talked to each other, giggled, made cross-eyed faces, and kept on asking to go to the bathroom. I left the building thinking I would never go back. I went home to my family’s inquiries about my first day and with a sinking heart related how it didn’t really turn out to be like the rosy dreams I cherished. In an eye-opening conversation, my father let me know that despite his tremendous success that I saw, his first day of school almost mirrored mine. His own principle suggested to him to come in real tough the next day, and take no nonsense. He did it- first kid that called out was out of the room. “And,” he concluded, “I have had a very happy twenty years since”. He added that ironically, the student he came down on was his greatest student that year.

Well, I tried that, and to some extent it worked for me as well. But the number one lesson that I learned is that I am not my father or any other model, great as they may be. And I have to teach according to my personality and style that I’m comfortable with as well be in tune with the school’s culture and expectations.  Thankfully, I also had a lot of support from my principle and assistant principle who offered me the much needed encouragement and advice to get me through my first year of teaching. My co-teachers were incredible sources of support and ideas. And though I promised myself at the outset of that first year that all I need to do is get through the first year and never come back, I found myself the following September facing a new group of eager students. And the next September. And the next. And the next. I am almost a decade in the profession, as educator and counting.

At the same time, I worked toward my undergraduate degree in Touro College. After completing my undergrad, I went on to get my master’s in Education and Special Education in grades 1-6 which I’m still working to complete. After six years of growing and learning in HANC, I switched to my current job as third grade classroom teacher in a private school. I loved HANC but as a mom of two delicious kids, I wanted to work closer to home. Being a student and teacher (never mind wife and mom!) is taxing, yet at the same time enjoyable, as I can really reflect and out into practice the methodologies that I am learning.           

I hope to continue working in the capacity to perfect the craft of teaching. Right now I am looking into the possibility of transferring from classroom teacher to SEIT provider as this will allow me to work with the students who need the small group instruction. I think it is less demanding in some ways than classroom teacher while still enabling to do what I love most which is teach. Right now, I am in elementary education but I would like to eventually branch out into middle school or secondary education. In the elementary classroom, the teacher is responsible for pretty much all the subjects. I would love to specialize in one field- right now I think it would be science or math- and teach that one subject.

Real long term, I would love to become a mentor and guide young student-teachers in honing their skills as educators. I understand where they’re coming from and would love to be able to give back the encouragement that propelled me onward in my journey instead of turning around and going elsewhere altogether.

Alright that’s about it for now. Signing off.