Introduction:
With the introduction of more and more new technologies each year, it can be challenging for educators to master and utilize these tools in the classroom. Despite our best intentions, we might simply reproduce non-digitial experiences in a digital way. My task this week for CEP 810 was to design a “21st Century Lesson Plan” in which technology helps students “design, create, inquire, play, problem-solve, and/or evaluate in some meaningful way.”
An Overview of Incorporating Digital Tools:
I decided to use two digital tools in my mathematics lesson focused on applications of absolute value inequalities. One of these tools is Socrative, a student response system that provides immediate feedback to both the instructor and the student. The other tool is Google Docs, which allows collaboration amongst peers. The objective of my lesson is for students to find ways to express real-world information using absolute value inequalities. Before this lesson, students would receive direct instruction on solving absolute value inequalities algebraically and representing the solution set on a number line. The new tasks require students to investigate this topic further while simultaneously assessing their own understanding through both independent work and collaboration with peers.
Digital Tools in Action:
Students will first take an individual assessment on Socrative, which I created. Students simply sign into my virtual class on the site using a mobile device or iPad and take the quiz. The benefit of using this digital tool is that it allows students to complete the assessment at their own pace and they receive immediate feedback on their mastery in addition to an explanation for the answer. Additionally, as an instructor, I can use this formative assessment to identify which students need more individual attention during latter parts of the lesson. These screen shots should provide a feel for the experience (taken from the teacher vantage point):
Next, students will work with a partner on questions within an online PowerPoint posted to my classroom webpage. Students will document all of their answers in a Google Doc that will be shared with myself. When students reach the final slide, they must share their Google Doc with another pair of students in the room as well. The task on this slide is for them to write down a real-world scenario that could be expressed using an absolute value inequality statement. Students can either be creative and think up one on their own, or else use a web browser to get ideas. By working with two additional classmates, students can check their work and discuss their reasoning with peers and myself.
Educational Benefits of Utilizing Digital Tools:
The beauty of using an iPad in this case is students have access to information about this topic’s applications to the real world. Students are forced to sift through information and resources to find answers. Moreover, there is not just one correct answer. According to Douglas Thomas and John Seely Brown, “the classroom as a model is replaced by learning environments in which digital media provides access to a rich source of information and play, and the processes that occur within those environments are integral to the results” (2011, p. 37-38). Thus, as an instructor, I do not have to be the sole source of information. Students have the tools necessary to discover and learn independently with my assistance and guidance.
Additionally, if students are struggling at any point throughout the lesson, they will be encouraged to watch tutorial videos on Khan Academy’s website related to absolute value inequalities. Not only will this provide an additional explanation to students, but it will also familiarize them with a great resource to use at home while working on assignments.
As a whole, this lesson asks students to access, analyze, create, reflect, and act as Renee Hobbs discusses in her book, Digital and Media Literacy: Connecting Culture and Classroom (2011). Learners access real world applications of absolute value inequalities. Learners reflect on and analyze how real-world data can be expressed as an inequality. Learners create their own example of data that could be expressed this way and act by sharing their work with peers and discussing misconceptions.
References:
Hobbs, R. (2011). Digital and media literacy: Connecting culture and classroom. Thousand, Oaks, CA: Corwin/Sage.
Thomas, D., & Brown, J. S. (2011). A new culture of learning: Cultivating the imagination for a world of constant change. Lexington, Ky: CreateSpace?.
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