Jasmeet Virk's ETEC 533 journey

As I look over some of my posts earlier on in the course, I am able to see my pedagogical beliefs reflected…

Jan. 7, 2012 [ on trying  to sort technology…]

Technology is a huge spectrum….we can be on one end and never see or fathom the other end. Like some will only relate to social networking while some will use computers only for word processing. So it is so easy to be involved with technology and still be a stranger to it.  Everyone is touched by technology in their lives – but in different ways.

Jan. 10, 2012  [ on differntiating instructions]

Thinking of “many levels in one classroom” regarding technology – I was thinking that we differentiate instructions according to student need – so can we also differentiate in use of technology? For example some use powerpoint, some prezi, some kidpix to make a slide show? What we would need to have in place is a generic criteria…. Thoughts?

 Jan 8 [ on making math more realistic]

Janet’s question   : Do we always have to make math relevant or practical or tie it in to “when are we ever going to have to use this in real life”? I think technology can allow us to explore and investigate the beauty of math and the FUN of how it works, without it always having to be practical.

OK – Math can be very abstract  [ mental, not concrete] and so many students have a hard time with it. The way out can be to memorize formulas and not totally understand the concept. As a kid I rote learned my times tables but had no understanding of what it meant. No one taught it and I was too afraid to ask. What we need to do is help students crystallize the concept – to see it. And often that comes from showing them the relevant connections to the real world. Kids can see what fractions means when we keep splitting the limited amount to cookies or smarties amongst the ever growing group members; they can visualize litres when we talk about pop bottles and the milk jug, they see adding when they put their crayons in the same box as their neighbours.

I teach kids who are still in the concrete operational age[ Piaget] and so I think it works at this level.The concepts are easy to connect too. I honestly have no idea how some high school teachers  do what I am talking about with their topics – am sure it is a tough feat!

Jan 8 [ on how to teach technology]

……Teaching tech is similar to anything else I teach – gradual release. I keep modeling and my group keeps shrinking as students feel they do not need my help. I also chunk lessons a lot. Like for power point right now they have learned to make new slides, add pictures and text. Now I’ll teach them slide transition and animation.