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Does Technology Foster More Active Learning, or More Shallow Learning?

As you all know, I’m a big proponent of the use of mobile technologies in our classrooms. In previous posts I’ve blogged about the benefits of BYOD and posted a research paper I wrote about mobile devices as vital learning tools. This article from theJournal discusses how today’s mobile technologies are “creating today’s active learners” who crave immediate access to educational content and timely feedback from teachers and peers. The author makes some valid points about meeting today’s “digital natives” on their turf. But then I came across this video on UpWorthy…

…and it got me thinking: Are mobile technologies creating more active learners, or more distracted learners? And if this important distinction hangs in the balance, what can we, as educators, do to determine the answer to this question?

I know from first-hand experience that the narrators of this video are right when they say that the Internet creates a “perpetual state of distraction” that “crowds out the more contemplative, calmer modes of thinking.” To illustrate, just last week I was enjoying a book talk at Central Office with author Allison Zmuda while participating in a live chat of the event on Twitter. There I was doing my best to multitask, listening closely while tapping out some of the key concepts on my phone’s Twitter app, when a text message notification appeared on my screen. It was from my brother. The notification displayed a thumbnail preview of a photo of my nephew grinning widely, holding a baseball in his hand as if it were some lost treasure, and a truncated version of the text that let me know he had just hit his first home run. Proud uncle that I am, I just had to read the full text. Before I knew it, I had lost one of the key concepts Ms. Zmuda was explaining. My attention was divided, and thus, my learning interrupted. I’ve seen this happen with students, too. Once, while helping one of Luke Arsenault’s Video Production students with the attention-demanding task of planning her PSA on digital citizenship, a text message notification appeared on her smartphone that sat on the desk between us (students were instructed to use their mobile devices to brainstorm on their group’s online discussion board). I commended her for not becoming distracted by her phone, but there is no doubt in my mind that, had I not been sitting right there with her, she would have picked up the phone, totally losing her train of thought in the process.

Yes, thanks to mobile technologies, the Internet has the potential to constantly divide our attention and puts at risk our ability to think conceptually, critically, and creatively–the very modes of thinking we know are so vital for our students to develop. But the Internet is such an information and idea-rich place! Without it, I would never have come across the article or the video that prompted this blog post and challenged me to grapple with and synthesize these two pieces of information that seem to be at odds with each other. And without the Internet, I wouldn’t be able to share them with such ease, and collaborate with you on trying to find a solution to the problem this information presents. Thanks to the Internet, I am engaged in a cognitively complex task that calls on my ability to ask tough questions, think critically, and attempt to solve this problem of how to harness the power of mobile technologies to foster deep learning, not shallow, distracted learning. Moreover, thanks to the Internet, I am not alone in finding a solution ( I hope). We can work on this together.

I have some ideas that begin with an open discussion among students and staff about how to manage our digital/academic lives and control the notification settings on our smart devices. But I need your help. You’re the ones in the trenches, day-in, day-out. Share your experiences. What ideas do you have about how we can utilize the power of mobile devices to produce deep thinkers, not distracted, superficial ones.

Please leave your comments below.

Twitter Really IS the Best PD Tool Available to Teachers

I’ve made this claim before, and I’ve written in this blog about how great Twitter is at building Personal Learning Communities that stretch beyond the walls of your school. While some in the MPS teaching community have gotten on-board and started using Twitter to connect to other educators’ ideas, most have not. One reason for this is obvious: time. The whirlwind pace of the typical school day makes it difficult to squeeze in a healthy lunch and bathroom breaks, let alone search for inspiring instructional ideas on the Web. Other reasons teachers have been slow to get on Twitter include the misconception that it’s just a repository for jokes or mindless drivel about what people had for lunch, or more generally, a lack of know-how or a compelling example of how it can benefit them.

For some compelling examples, read this article by educator/author Mark Barnes. Then watch his simple how-to video on some of the basics for how you, as an educator, can harness the power of Twitter….


Once you’re all set with your Twitter account, you’ll be able to curate only the content that matters to you. And while it’s nice to contribute ideas to the Twitterverse from time to time, it’s certainly not necessary. You can simply read what comes into your Twitter feed. You can participate in a live Twitter chat, or just follow the stream and learn from others’ insights.

Speaking of live Twitter chats, I (@MadisonITS) will be live tweeting next week’s Meet the Author book talk in the Hammonasette Room and our guest speaker, Allison Zmuda (@compclass) will be encouraging others who attend to do the same as she discusses her book Breaking Free from Myths About Teaching and Learning.  All you have to do to join or follow the discussion is log in to Twitter next Monday at 7:00 pm and search the hashtag #kidsandlearning.

Hope to see you there…in person, or on Twitter!

Addendum: If you’re interested in checking out some regularly occuring live weekly Twitter chats specific to your interests or subject area, click here for an extensive list containing meeting times and hashtags. Thanks to Paul Coppola for passing this on.

Show Students How to Get Better Search Results with Google’s Advanced Features

Since the topic of this post is Information (or Web) Literacy, I asked Library Media Coordinator  Dawn Fiorelli to co-author it with me. Thank you, Dawn!

As we were recently reminded during a professional development conference led by educational technology guru Alan November, web literacy is an essential skill we must teach our students across all content areas. The Common Core requires that students be able to manage web-based information, but more importantly, web literacy involves being able to think critically, conduct meaningful, purposeful research, determine fact from fiction, and synthesize multiple pieces of information. And it all begins with knowing how to use Google to get the results you need.

This article by Alan November makes a compelling case for why we should all teach kids how to search the web as early as first grade and goes on to describe how we can all start. It’s a great read that I highly recommend. Also worthwhile is the Information Literacy Resources page on NovemberLearning.com, which contains information on how to validate websites and “read” a web address.

But the real key here is developing a solid understanding of Google advanced search options. So we’ve compiled some Google tips and tricks resources that are all downloadable. You might want to start with the embedded image above, but be sure to check out Google Tips for Better Search Results, too. Then there’s this link from Google’s website that is geared a little more to consumers but is incredibly useful.

Another powerful tool is Easybib.com.  Our students in grades 5-12 have access to subscription services provided by Easybib which help students evaluate websites using their Criteria for Evaluating Websites guide.

Why the New Name?

Recently I’ve come to view “Teacher Tech Talk” as a name that, in a subtle way, perpetuates the notion of technology being an occasional enhancement to the learning process…technology as a separate category of learning tools not really essential to the learning process.  The truth is, as a society we entered the Digital Age years ago and aren’t turning back. If we’re to prepare our students for the world that awaits them when they graduate by fostering the essential skills that will enable their success, technology should simply be a natural part of the learning process. Depending on the learning context and how we harness it, technology can be the most powerful tool we can leverage to foster deep learning.  So to remove the “otherness” of technology, henceforth this blog will go by the name “Leveraging Technology for Learning”. What it lacks in pizzazz, it gains in getting to the point of what this blog’s purpose has been all along–helping you navigate a changing educational landscape. As Mike Ginsburg aptly noted on his blog recently, change can be intimidating. Know that I’m always here to help when it comes to leveraging technology for learning. Thanks for reading.

More Ideas for Digital Learning Day…Let’s Make It Digital Learning Week!

Today is Digital Learning Day, so for the rest of the week I will be posting some quick suggestions/recommendations for how you can incorporate meaningful digital learning activities into your lessons. Today I’d like to focus on Wallwisher. This collaborative web-based tool gives students a great way to process information, reflect on what they are learning, and share their thinking with others. Some elementary teachers in the district have been using this tool during reading/writing lessons with awesome results. Click here to see an example from Renee Pardo’s 3rd grade class.

Like many of my favorite digital learning tools, Wallwisher doesn’t require any student logins or extensive setup on the teachers part, and it can be used with mobile learning devices. Check out the video below to see how easy it is to set one up for your classes. And if you’ve used Wallwisher with your students, please leave a comment below to share your experience with others. Was it a success? Is there anything you’d do differently? Any lessons in particular that are a good fit for this tool?

Addendum: Since this post was originally published, Wallwisher has officially changed its name to Padlet.

Digital Learning Day 2013

As an Instructional Technology Specialist, tomorrow is one of my new favorite days of the year: It’s the second ever Digital Learning Day.  It’s a day on which people like me encourage other teachers to try something new in their classrooms to engage students with a meaningful, purposeful use of technology in the classroom. Now that we have WiFi available to students and teachers in grades 5-12, we have more possibilities than ever before. So here are a couple suggestions that may inspire you to try something new. The first is geared toward grades 5-12, but the second can be used by all grade levels…no WiFi needed.

  • Use finalsiteSocial’s Activity Stream to engage students and spark a discussion related to that day’s lesson objectives. I recently had an opportunity to try this out at the high school with two of Luke Arsenault’s TV Production classes. As we were introducing the topic of their new project–PSA’s about digital citizenship–we asked students to log in to finalsite on their mobile learning devices and go to Luke’s class where we posted two questions for them to respond to in the Activity Stream: What are the benefits of WiFi in the classroom for students and teachers? and What are the risks? Students took out their phones, tablets, and laptops (there was at least one of each) and keyed in their responses where they appeared in real time as I periodically refreshed the page on the teacher machine. This proved to be a great way to get them all engaged in the topic, and it helped that Luke encouraged them to bring their mobile learning devices to class in the days leading up to the lesson. Those who did not have a device were able to borrow one from me or a friend. For more ideas on how to use finalsite on Digital Learning Day, click here.
  • This next one features one of my new favorite digital learning tools. You know those super expensive student response clickers that some teachers use to check for student understanding during class? They’re about to become a thing of the past thanks to free web-based alternatives that harness the power of mobile devices to conduct customized formative assessments on the fly. PollEverywhere.com has been known as the go-to clicker alternative for some time, but I think it’s about to get smoked by the new kid on the block: Socrative. What makes Socrative so good? Just about everything. Some key features:  teacher-created polls and quizzes that can be saved and re-used, no student logins needed, available on multiple platforms from desktop PCs to smartphones, students can easily share devices but record their own responses, mobile apps for iOS and Android devices, and a killer mobile website for those who don’t have the app, and engaging game-like features.  Watch the video below to see how it works, then sign up for your free account at the link above.

The official Digital Learning Day website has excellent resources and toolkits to help teachers get started. And, of course, I am always willing to help see your vision through. Don’t forget that you have great resources in your building, too, whether it’s the library media specialists, computer lab paras, or your colleagues who tend to be quick to embrace technology as a teaching tool. So start talking to each other and leave a comment below about what you might do to celebrate digital learning.

One final word to the wise: If you’re taking the leap of letting students bring their own devices into your classroom for the first time, you should set aside some time helping them connect to the WiFi the day before the big lesson. For instructions on how to connect your device to our BYOD WiFi network, log in to finalsite and look for the link in the “New Features” box. Depending on the device, you may experience a few hiccups connecting. If this happens, the best place to start is to completely turn off the device then turn it back on. This is especially true for Apple devices…genius!