Utilize Technology in Meaningful Ways

Through action research, literature, and independent study, I have become increasingly aware of the ability of technology to engage and motivate students of a technology-saturated generation. Also emergent in this realization, though, is the importance of using technology with a meaningful purpose to enhance learning, rather than simply using technology for technology's sake. The meaningful use of technology further engages students not only in printed texts, but also in multimodal texts. The following artifacts represent the work I have done which has led me to craft this understanding.

Cool Tool Modules Wiki

Through an independent study, I helped to develop the above Cool Tools Module Wiki by researching useful technology tools and creating learning modules in which others could learn how to utilize these tools in the classroom. This work developed my own knowledge of technology tools, but also developed my understanding of how to share these tools with other educators through creation of learning modules.

Presentation: Technologically-Based Teacher Resources for Designing Comprehension Lessons

Through ECI 540, I presented the above Prezi based on the article "Technologically Based Teacher Resources for Designing Comprehension Lessons" (Lacina, 2008) in Comprehension Instruction: Research-Based Best Practices. This literature and presentation further helped me to develop an understanding of the importance of technology to engage the current and future generations of students, as well as the importance of sharing and collaborating upon this knowledge with others.

Increasing Fluency with Voki Video

As part of an Inquiry Learning Project through ECI 546, my partner and I utilized technology through Voki, a custom-created avatar tool, in order to engage lower level third grade readers. The above video documents this process, as well as the success in increased reading scores due in part to the engaging use of Voki.

Engaging 2nd Graders with Flip Camera Book Review Videos

The above video documents my work with 2nd grade students in implementing a literacy  lesson which utilized Flip cameras. In this lesson, students created a book review video on a book of their own choosing; the dominant engagement factor which emerged from my research was the students' enthusiasm toward the use of the Flip cameras.

Action Research of Daily 5 Literacy Model

In research to evaluate the effectiveness of the Daily 5 Literacy Model to motivate and engage students, the use of technology emerged as a key motivational factor. In choosing their literacy tasks, students consistently chose tasks involving technology first, including literacy tasks on the computer or on an iPad, as well as listening to books on an iPod Shuffle. The following graphs display the motivation rating of the students in each of the observed classrooms on a scale from 1-5. The high motivation scores are partly a result of the influence of these technology choices.