Technologically Literate

I cannot say that I am as engaged in my graduate work as I should be.  Life often interferes and one must do what one can.  I am attending Walden University online and I am partially through a graduate degree in technology integration.  The class I am currently in is a study of habits of mind developed by Costa and Kallick (check older posts if you want to read about that) 

This week the class is learning more about rubrics within the discussion of teacher to student feedback.  This is what I submitted for discussion this week:

As we move our way through the degree program I try to adopt things that change weakness into strength.  The problem is that, as a new teacher, I find I am not often aware of my weak areas.  Feedback is one area where I have grown in this degree program.  I like to think of myself of a nice guy.  I talk with my students as much as I can and I try to reinforce the behaviors that I think are appropriate.  I have come to find that, although the students consider me easy to talk to about life, the classroom feedback I provide them is very general.  “Good job, well done, here is a good grade.” I am a guy against grades that is providing feedback in almost exclusively grade form. 

Lately, I am trying to incorporate more thought and even further action in my day to day feedback.  I comment on the overall design and color schemes of projects.  If possible I quickly bring up other examples and ask them to compare.  I ask if the students have come across interesting information related to their project.  I try to do what I can to spark a conversation about the content that the students are covering. 

Although I use rubrics, I don’t think I clearly explain why I do the things I do.  It is my goal in the future to include the vocabulary of feedback into the everyday classroom so that the students not only understand what I want, but can also see and understand it in situations outside of my classroom.    

Yes, I love myself; however, the purpose of posting this is to hear from other, more experienced teachers about the feedback they provide.  It may be teacher to student, teacher to teacher, or how you set student to student feedback.  Here is a cross section of  the people I would love to hear from:

Jim Gates

Ryan Bretag

Vicki Davis

Teacher Dude

Jennifer Dorman

Karl Fisch

Anastasia Goodstein 

Anyone else that wants to comment on the value of feedback in education.   

“Whatever kind of technological programs educators decide to develop, the primary consideration should be the purpose of using the technology.” -Gary Burnett 1994

As I work my way through a graduate degree, I get the opportunity to page through some interesting research on the value of educational technology.  Being the great procrastenator that I am, I sometimes spend time perusing older publications that technically, shouldn’t apply to my fancy on-line degree.  After all, this is the 21st century and technology has changed the way we live and work.  Information and social interaction are just a click away.  Schools have technology standards the must adhere to.  We have come along way in 13 years right? 

In 1994 Gary Burnett was studying how technology could improve urban schools.  Burnett was aware that the landscape was changing and that all of the research of the day pointed to the importance of technology skills.   He did not dispute the facts, however; he saw the need for some forethought.   See if this sounds familar.

(Burnett 1994)”The methods and purposes of computer use often differ radically from school to school and from district to district: sometimes computer use enhances learning for all students and sometimes it simply confers a new technological sheen on the low-level programs…In some cases, they are present in the schools but are not being used for any clear purpose at all.”

 As we start to leave the 2006-2007 school year behind (state test are done, we’re done, right?), I wonder, how far have we really come in 13 years.  Sure the tools are changing, and access to information is changing, but where are we really?