Category Archives: Learning

Assistive Technology: How does it help?

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For many years, in my division, assistive technology really meant that students could be issued a laptop that was designated for only their use. While this is a great use of technology, I did not realize the amount of other assistive technology that was out there! Students that were issued laptops were typically issued headphones that had microphones attached or two separate pieces. As we have advanced our technology and as students grow older, the headsets and mics have been phased out. Students usually have their own sleeker versions. 

I have often used many different programs for students as part of best practices; however, they are considered Assistive Technology. For example, Google Read&Write is an extension on Chromebook that I teach my students to use. This extension has the ability to make web articles accessible to all students. Students can enable the text-to-speech function so they can listen while reading along; text and picture dictionary for words that need explaining; word prediction when writing; speech to text to dictate writing; collect highlights from documents or the web when researching; and copy summarize text to new page without ads that can be distracting for students.

In the school I am in now, each of our classrooms is equipped with a sound system, including two different mics. One is to wear around your neck like a necklace, the other is a headset, like Madonna or Britney Spears wear. We choose the one to wear around our necks as it is the easiest to wear. However, this is one of the best Assistive Technologies that I have been able to use. I also teach in a double classroom with another teacher and 57 students. Using the mic eliminates the need to speak loudly all day long; all students can hear me, no matter where they are sitting in the classroom; and for the sake of fitting in, no student needs to feel different from anyone else because of a piece of equipment.

With many, many EAL learners in my school and classroom, I have noticed students bringing their own Assistive technology that our division has never provided. Several students have brought to school Cpens. They have shown me the functions and how they assist them everyday. Knowing the number of EAL students in our school system, it would be great if more students could have access to these. Several students also have their own phones with apps installed that will allow them to take a picture of a document and translate immediately to their native language. 

Assistive technology helps to level the playing field for students, like glasses do for people that need them. As it is evolving, software, apps and cheaper hardware is making assistive technology more accessible to students and school divisions. On the other hand, computers, FM systems, sound systems and newer tech like Cpens are expensive. It is up to the student and teacher to work together to find out what is needed and works best.

Assistive Technology – My Experience

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According to the Disabilities Education Act Assistive technology is “any item, piece of equipment or product system, whether acquired commercially off the shelf, modified, or customized, that is used to increase, maintain, or improve the functional capabilities of children with disabilities”. This is a very descriptive definition except it only takes into account children with disabilities. In my experience all types students might need or benefit from assistive technology. At Central Collegiate we have a lot of English as an additional language learners who don’t have a disability but they can understand so much more clearly with these technologies. Therefore, the definition from the World health organization fits a little better for my practice so far. “Assistive products help maintain or improve an individual’s functioning related to cognition, communication, hearing, mobility, self-care and vision, thus enabling their health, well-being, inclusion and participation.”

The issues I have come across is not having enough hands-on deck or space to support our students who struggle whether they have disabilities, or they are learning English or they are neurodivergent thinkers. Hence, this assistive technology replaces a scribe, or a reader for activities or assessment. As there are more and more students that need supports to be more successful, we will either need to buy more subscriptions to supportive software, physical tools to help or have more adults in a classroom. The assistive technology I have used the most in my high school classes is google read and write, speech to text software, and google translate features on docs. Speech to text software is great for students with ADHD to help them get all their ideas down by speaking rather than typing, same for my students who struggle to write and type. The technology that was shown in the presentation was called immersive reader and this was such a neat tool to replace a person for a student with dyslexia. Instead of having a reader a student could use earphones with a chromebook to listen or use the line reader aspect to support themselves. This is the exact reason and importance for this technology, is to help students become more independent regardless of their limitations.

https://www.knowlarity.com/blog/an-exhaustive-guide-on-text-to-speech-software

However, there are limitations with these technologies. Firstly that students need to have independent instructions on how to use these tools. They then need to practice them and when other students don’t need to do this sometimes it is an issue. There seems to be a lot of comparison in my grade 9 and 10 classes when I try to use these technologies. Kids do not want to be different. My language learners really are happy about the support but my students that need those adaptations to be more successful they seem to rather not do well than be different. The other issue is the space. Students to use text to speech will need an alternate environment and we have no room at Central. There are no where for kids to go with adult supervision and a quiet environment. There is always that adult needed to support. Sometimes kids don’t want to leave the room because again they look different. I have tried getting all kids to try this technology with their phones to show that is normal to use different tools for writing. Still hasn’t helped a few of my students. According to the Assistive Technology: Enabling Dreams video, students should learn these skills from a very young age to foster independence as they get older. I think this would help with some of these embarrassment issues. I speak to students about equity vs equality when they notice differences, we speak about all different people need different things. But they seem to compare often so kids would rather not use the tool and not do well than be different. I have tried getting students to then try these things at home, but then there is the issue of accessibility, wifi and the parent having to know how to use the technology as well.

I am not sure how to go about the needing space or relieving embarrassment around assistive technology in my high school classes. Any suggestions?

ECI 833 – “How do you know what you Know?”

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This is an age-old question that the education world and most societies have sought to discover an answer to. How do we objectively assess learning, and what one knows in an effective, efficient way that can be reliable and valid over time. Spoiler Alert –> It does feel like a tough task to have a sufficient solution to this question. Perhaps, simply understanding that assessment is a very complex process that can take many different formats is a start to conceptualizing what a solution might look like to that question. I have really liked Hattie’s (2004) work that focuses on student learning as a “Rope” analogy that single strands all connected together provide strength through overlapping and it’s important to recognize these strands in each of our students when we assess their learning.

https://www.semanticscholar.org/paper/Models-of-Self-Concept-that-are-Neither-Top-Down-or-Hattie/beaadff694619622d0101925281f3a019bb5a3e7

“Assessment is not a spreadsheet, it’s a conversation.”

https://medium.com/learning-re-imagined/assessment-is-not-a-spreadsheet-its-a-conversation-3d743c754809

I love that quote above, and I feel like it captures an authentic view of how learning can occur and the simplistic nature of this process. However, I realize that it is very challenging to attach a grade or percent to a conversation, and the subjectivity that can cloud this process. Reading the article listed here, I can understand why education has made changes in assessment and judgment in the 20th century from only one individual evaluating someone to a more objective format of multiple-choice assessments. And, these changes were to create more objective and consistent means for evaluating knowledge. Still, it does appear we created a model that values efficiency over effectiveness for assessing knowledge. And, these notions of efficiency can still be felt in modern classrooms. However, I do think there needs to be a balanced approach in this process, but it is tricky to find a method that will cohesively fit into this format.

Another tricky facet of this assessment process surrounds the definition of what we as educators deem “good” citizens and the assessments that teachers create to mold and cultivate this outcome. This is an age-old debate about what it means to define a “good” student, and how we as teachers foster that process and effectively assess that definition. These definitions are deeply connected to our philosophical worldviews, and the various theories of learning that guide our practice. It is important to be cognizant of the context of these worldviews and theories that impact our understanding of assessment because that forms a framework that can be consistently reflected, and adjusted against best practices from year to year.

It is so valuable that we as educators continually reflect on the technology assessments we introduce in the classroom. If we randomly start using new assessment tools for the sake of flashy new things to increase engagement, then when is the purpose of this technology. I would hope that based on the paragraph above, teachers carefully select assessment technology and trial it for its use that meets higher levels of thinking. However, I understand and empathize with how exhausting it is to test out each tool. And, the time and energy needed in this process and is not afforded in a typical workday. So, it is difficult to break out of the mold of relying on dated assessments to produce the same data. And, the time consumed to scan new assessment technologies that connect with the same learning theories as before seems pointless. I can see why it is so appealing for educators to find the most efficient method for assessment technologies that do not value higher levels of learning compared to discovering an effective one that could do both.

However, I still think there is hope that this can change as more people spend time furthering their education about assessment technologies, but it is not an equitable option for all teachers. So, we can continue to hope that small changes can domino into bigger shifts in assessment policy and philosophies.

Please let me know what you think is a possible solution to the above dilemma, or an assessment technology that you find really makes your day as a teacher so much easier.

Does the Assessment Pass the Test?

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Assessment is defined by the University of Alberta as “the state or condition of learning. An instructor assesses learning through both observation and measurement in an attempt to better understand students’ learning in a course. This includes collecting evidence, both graded and non-graded, about a students’ progression in the course.” As educators, we know that good assessment lets the student show, explain, demonstrate to the instructor as much as they can about the concept being assessed. However, as educators, we are also aware that this is not always possible given the number of students in each class, and the differentiation needed in each class. As a result we use assessment techniques that are quick and convenient, and hopefully give timely feedback to the student.

As a high school student, I often took finals using Scantron. Filling bubbles for multiple choice exams or maybe a few true and false questions. While there may be some value to multiple choice and true and false questions, in the end, it assessed my ability to suss out the question that was worded best, related best or I was guessing.

Even after studying, wording questions to trick students or ‘needle in a haystack questions’ is not a true assessment of students’ knowledge or abilities. As a student, I often left those exams feeling as though I did show my teachers what I knew. While I do not feel good about Scantron as a final exam assessment, this is a good way to give students quick feedback as Exit tickets, mid semester or as a check-in.

The new version of Scantron is called Zipgrade. It is still filling in bubbles, using multiple choice and true and false questions. Rather than putting the card through the scanner like you would for Scantron, Zipgrade is an app. You simply load the answers into the app and use your phone to scan the students assessment. The assessments can be analyzed by question, mean scores can be given, and grades are immediate. While this is very fast feedback, the same pros and cons exist with Scantron.

As I looked for new and fun ways to assess students, I was quickly turned onto Kahoot! I used this several times to the delight of my students. Kahoot! is still a hit with students as they feel like it is a competition and a game. However, this is not an assessment I value as it relies on the speed of the student entering their answers, it is multiple choice or true and false questions, and many students guess to ensure their speed is the quickest.

Speed matters for Kahoot! This is a ‘fun’ way to review with students before the end of a unit. Students that enjoy this way of reviewing or assessment already have a solid grasp of the content. Students that are struggling or need a moment to process the questions, do not like this game. It creates high stress levels and anxiety. They rarely see their names on the leaderboard and does not reinforce their learning.

I have tried many different ways to assess students during my career. When looking for quicker feedback, I like to use Google forms. There is an opportunity for multiple choice and true and false questions. However, I can ask students to make false questions true in a follow up statement. In the same assessment, I can also create short answer and long answer questions. I find these questions much more valuable as they give more insight into the students’ learning of the concept I am assessing. One of the most valuable questions I have been asking students during assessment recently is “Is there anything else you would like to tell me about __________ that I did not ask?”

I have found that letting students show their work, write their answers down and explain their thoughts has been the best way to truly assess their knowledge. As students get to understand my assessment process, they also understand that I really do want them to succeed! 

All Assessment is Valuable

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“Assessment is not a spreadsheet, it’s a conversation”, stated by the late teacher, Joe Bower. I think he is saying summative assessment with a number or letter attached to is not good assessment or depiction of what a student has learned. Instead, he imagines assessment as a lifelong process and it is never finished, hence it isn’t about what is learned but what learning has occurred and how to move forward. I mostly agree however what he is saying is easier said then done, and I think the “spread sheet” isn’t all bad.

I always tell my students there are 3 reasons for what you learn in high school: one, to help you learn ideas about the world, formulate your own ideas, and explore new ideas; two, to inspire interest in certain subjects or ideas; and three, to teach you different skills in the process of learning different things; how to manage time, how to collaborate, problem solve, critically think and so forth. This is just my personal philosophy I have used to make sense or our education system and to explain to students why they are learning what they learn.

Because this is my idea I believe our curriculum does have valuable outcomes and we should assess them, hence we do need summative assessment. Depending on the goal or outcome giving a range of what the student may know at that point and time helps them know how well they learned the topic. For very content-based outcomes this works! Here is an example: “Distinguish between physical and chemical properties of common substances, including those found in household, commercial, industrial, and agricultural applications.” If a student got an 80 % on the assessment for this outcome it tells me and them they get the concepts 80 % of the time. In the world of assessment tools. A multiple choice assessment tool like zipgrade might work just fine for this outcome to determine a students ability to distinguish this. It is an efficient way for teachers sto save some time! Kahoot, blooket and quiz multiple choice programs on socrative are all great to practice these concepts because of hte wide variety of premade quizzes. Time saver for teachers and fun for students. Everybody is hatin’ on this a little, however science knowledge can be objective hence this is a great way for the teacher to assess a students abilities to distinguish this information. Even if we wanted to remove grades for specific concepts it would be difficult.

I do live in the high school world where students need certain classes and certain grades to get into the program of their choice. So removing grades is impossible at this point in education. University, and secondary programs still need numbers on a spreadsheet called a high school transcript to determine if someone is eligible for a certain program. On the other hand I wish there was more options for students, those that know they were not heading to post secondary it would be great to have pass fail courses based on a variety of outcomes that hit these different categories that I believe are most important. Number two is really important hence why choice for students is key.

We need to inspire and motivate our students and studies show grades don’t do that. Relevance does. The problem is some of these outcomes are not interesting to students and have no motivation to learn anything about them. So, if we were to completely change to only formative and remove grades there would need to be more choice for students. This would help build intrinsic motivation. This would help students to be excited about what they are learning and maybe students would be even more inspired! If we remove grades and continue with the curriculum we have it will not work.

In this article, Pendergast et al. goes onto say that objective ideas aren’t as valuable as skills. I agree that, sometimes the content is not as valuable moving forward in life as the process of getting there. However, it is still a duty as teachers to asses the outcome. But is it a duty to summatively assess the outcome? I think so? Correct me if I am wrong. So, should we be assessing their effort, or the skill of just distinguishing and not worry about the content at all? According to this article yes.

I think the third one is what has gotten lost sometimes.   Learning should be exploration, engagement, discovery, analyzation and creation. Hence we should assess these processes. This is where some amazing assessment tools can come in because be honest, formative assessment with personal feedback is the ultimate goal. However, the amount of time given to teachers to assess this way is -1,000,000 hours. That is what it feels like anyway. Although, there is some great tools to help with this. I was very impressed by the Brisk Teaching Chrome Extension. It could give extremely accurate and thorough feedback based on your rubric instantly. It gave positive feedback as well as next steps on how to improve and continue growing and that is exactly what students need.

What we felt like before Brisk Teaching

 All types of assessment is valuable from tests, assignments or questions on content, to rubrics evaluating ones process and opinions, exploration and creation. Some should be assessed by how much effort was put in by the teacher, self assessed, or peer assessed. The means of how we asses should also have variety as well like conversations, projects, observations, questions, team work and so forth. The key is look at the outcome but also look at the big picture and this will guide you in assessment.

Assessments landscape – “Where the mind is without fear and the Head is held High”

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This quote by Rabindranath Tagore comes to mind today while writing this blog on Assessments. One of my most dreaded experiences as a high school student was facing my final exams, particularly the dreaded Math assessment. The weeks leading up to the exams felt like a marathon of cramming every formula and concept, trying to stuff my brain with as much information as possible. And then, sitting through those grueling three-hour tests, feeling bogged, dizzy as I struggled to recall everything I had memorized. The anxiety was palpable, knowing that the results would determine so much of my academic future. It’s a feeling I’ll never forget, and even now, it sends chills down my spine just thinking about it……Lol. As a facilitator, I think the traditional summative assessments, like final exams, put students in a high-stakes environment where the performance is judged solely based on memorization and rote learning. For students like me, this approach can be stressful and demotivating. The fear of failure looms large, leading to anxiety and even physical symptoms like sleeplessness, nausea.

However, the 21st century transported us into the technologically advanced world of education. The emphasis on formative assessment, gamification in the Edtech world brought about empowering changes in the pedagogy of learning and evaluation. Unlike traditional assessments, which can feel like daunting obstacles, gamified learning environments are designed to be engaging, interactive, and enjoyable.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8WxvVgXC_NY

Assessment Technologies in Education: In the modern classroom, assessment technologies have become indispensable companions for educators seeking to enhance their teaching practices. The Learning Management systems have not only helped in connecting the teacher and learner but also lowered the administrative burden. The pandemic brought about more popularity for the applications like Google classroom, Zoom, MS teams, Kahoot, Mentimeters, Jamboarding etc. The learning theory of connectivism popularized these Edtech tools by emphasizing the significance of digital networks, collaboration, personalization, data-driven decision making, thereby integration the informal learning experiences with the learning process. These tools provide learners with opportunities to connect, collaborate, and engage with content in meaningful ways within digital learning environments. A few days back, my classmates in Edtech course, gave a group presentation on some wonderful assessment application like: Socrative, ZipGrade, and Mathletics. The tools were really impressive in what they could do with great effectiveness and efficiency!! The Zipgrade tool for assessment was impressive in how it eliminated extra work for teachers and gave instant feedback. And One of the most important aspects about feedback in classroom is that it should be timely, reinforcing and redirectional.  This helps teacher focus more on instructional activities. I remember how our teachers would carry bundles of papers back home or from one class to another and check them whenever they had free time. On the other hand, Socrative offers interactive quizzes, fostering active engagement, facilitating personalized learning experiences alongwith real-time feedback. Similarly, Mathletics helps students to hone their mathematical skills through gamified learning modules and adaptive assessments, catering to diverse learning styles and abilities. These tools gamify the evaluation and therefore remove the fear associated with the process of evaluation. Positive reinforcement, such as badges or rewards for completing tasks, can motivate students to engage with the material and persist in their learning.

The Shift Towards Formative Assessment:

Assessments play a large part in the learning of students and our understanding as teachers. . If evaluation finds teaching learning process satisfactory, it motivates the teachers and students to work harder for better results. And while summative assessments are important, the true understanding of learning comes from the formative kind

The assessment tools also contribute to making evaluation more formative than summative. They take away the administrative burden unlike the traditional methods of evaluation, are quick in implementation, cater to Visual, auditory and kinesthetic students equally and so it becomes easier for the facilitator/teacher to plan formative assessment. I personally feel that formative assessment lowers the fear factor amongst students and learning happens in the absence of fear. Unlike the usual end-of-term exams where students compete for higher marks; the formative assessment is about continuous feedback in bits and pieces. If evaluation finds teaching learning process satisfactory, it motivates the teachers and students to work harder for better results. This move towards formative assessment promotes growth and empowerment in learners, rather than just focusing on grades and labeling students. It’s more about the journey of learning rather than the destination of a final grade.

The technology has not only empowered the teachers but also the students. Every individual in some way is the owner of one’s education, development and growth. The organization/schools no more completely control the education process (Rigby, 2015)

References

Rigby, C. S. (2015). Gamification and motivation.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Formative_assessment

Why Formative Assessments Matter

EC&I 833 – Web Evolution

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The evolution of the web from 1.0, 2.0, and 3.0 is quite a fascinating process that was presented to our class through our peers, Brianne, Sydney, and Jenni. The presentation unfolded the makings of each web blueprint and the subsequent theories attached to each design. I really enjoyed reading Thenmozhi Babu’s post that offered great videos of the nuanced differences between Web 1.0 to 3.0. Here is a short infographic that highlights the unique features of each web design.

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/crypto-101-part-5-web-1-vs-2-3-erik-frederiksen

And here is one more infographic that shares an interesting perspective of the web blueprints.

https://bertugcaliskan.wordpress.com/2015/12/07/diffrences-between-web-1-0-web-2-0-and-web-3-0/

I wanted to dig a little deeper into Web 3.0 because as I read it, it feels more like a theory than it does a reality at this contemporary moment. Doing some more reading and researching on the topic, does reveal that it is more theory-based than actual reality. The thing that mostly sparked my cognition here focused on the theory of decentralization of web spaces, and in a way a dethroning of the capitalist nature of the internet. However, it could also be that we are only approaching this theory and perhaps we are only at the beginning. It does feel in my experience that the commodification and commercialization of the web are so deeply ingrained in our politics, culture, and social norms that utterly flipping them on their head would cause massive deconstruction and major shifts in our institutions and general societal structures. I think that is why it is so difficult to conceptualize the practical applications of Web 3.0 in our contemporary society that are not congruent with the theories of decentralization and shared autonomy.

As well, the volatility of cryptocurrency mixed with the ever-changing nature of NFTs creates immense challenges for a central blockchain-style economy to take presence in our modern world given the regulation and prevalence of banking institutions and politics. Now, I will not pretend that I am an expert in any of the fields listed above, but these are a few of my thoughts regarding the theories of Web 3.0 given my limited understanding of the concepts. And I would welcome any thoughts or comments on my ideas here.

Furthermore, I do find it a tad bit scary to think about the future of Web 3.0 given the rising tensions of the world dynamics, and even more challenging to think of the impacts of Web 4.0 on a global scale.

So, those a few of my thoughts regarding the theories of web 3.0 and how it may impact the world that we currently live in.

And on that note…I think I will close this post, but please let me know what your thoughts are on the nature of Web 3.0 and its potential impact on education.

Evolving.

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I am old enough to remember life before Web 1.0 became a useful tool in education. 

I am old enough to remember when my high school first got the internet and we could sign up for 15 minute time slots. But we had no idea what to do once we were signed into the internet! What were we supposed to do? Look for? Search for?

I am old enough to remember when Facebook was new and controversial. And we could download free music on Limewire or Napster. It took FOREVER but it was FREE! Once Facebook and Twitter became a part of most people’s lives, new apps were being introduced quickly. Some apps were more prevalent or popular than others such as Instagram and Snapchat. But what they have in common is the social aspect. These apps were a different way for people to socialize through social media. Suddenly people could keep in touch with one another all over the world. Or could meet new people with seemingly minimal risk.

This technology quickly entered the educational world. Teaching in a Web 2.0 educational world has been fun, challenging and diverse. Students have gone from textbook learning to the world at their fingertips! If we do not know the answer, Google it. It’s an adjective now. Google it. 

Students and teachers are learning together rather than teachers being the sole owner of knowledge. The teacher’s role has changed to become the facilitator and guide in the classroom. This creates independence in the student and takes the ownership of learning from the student out of the teachers hands and gives it to the student. While this sounds wonderful, in theory, there are drawbacks. 

  • Not all students have equal access to the same resources. 
  • Not all students are mature enough to handle the responsibility of “owning” their learning. They need someone to tell them what to do and be more than a guide in the classroom.
  • Discovering information together is ok, but sometimes students need an expert in the field they are studying. They need a strong point of reference so they can question. The internet can only provide so much.

Web 3.0 will expand our knowledge and our boundaries regarding technology in the classroom. Students and teachers are already taking advantage of Generative AI in very creative and useful ways. We are already connected to the Internet of Things; however, how we use this in an educational setting will be something to explore. Web 3.0 seems like it will take the commodification of education to the next level as it relies on a ‘token’ system. The idea that teachers could potentially share their knowledge and resources with each other on a token based marketplace is wonderful; however, it relies on the permission of the community!

Using Web 3.0 in the classroom relies on an expansive skills and knowledge set from the teacher to be passed to the student. Students no longer just need to know basic computer skills; rather, they need to be able to understand and potentially build Blockchains! Also, students will need to understand that digital citizenship is critical. Students will need to keep their personal information PRIVATE! In Web 3.0, compromising your personal information could be devastating. It is also important to remember that there are people on the internet with bad intentions. Using Web 3.0 is a decentralized network and this will make cyber criminals even harder to stop and catch.

PIVOT

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Teaching online is easily one of the hardest moments of my teaching career. 

I had developed strong teaching skills and strategies that were based on best practices. I had excellent classroom management skills and techniques. I was great at developing relationships with my students. Suddenly I had to throw this all out the window and experiment with many new techniques, tools and strategies that I was not familiar with. I did not know if I would be able to engage my students. They ALL felt like a risk. I was really out of my comfort zone!

I had developed a Google Classroom and was already skilled in using this platform. But I needed to be able to expand what I was posting to the Classroom. Not all students were coming to designated meeting times. I needed a way to teach students at any time of the day or whenever was convenient for them. After speaking with my colleagues, I began trying new things such as recording our lessons on our phones and uploading them. This method worked, but was clunky. 

We tried recording a Zoom meeting as we taught and uploading the meeting to Google Classroom. This was much more effective, especially because it captured student questions and answers. But this also raised privacy concerns as we have now recorded students names,  and faces and posted them to Google Classroom. While this was effective it was not something we could continue. 

Next we tried recording our teaching without the students being present and using Screencastify.

This was a game changer for myself and my students. It allowed them to watch and rewatch as needed. It instantly gave them the flexibility to access lessons when they were available.  And it also allowed students to work at their own pace. As I made and uploaded videos, students began working weeks ahead while others needed more time to work on previous lessons.

As an educator I have used Seesaw and I have used this as a parent as well. I really found this effective as a parent of very young children, especially during online learning. This was easy for them to navigate, and it was easy for me to help them find and upload work. This is an easy to use app. However, the computer version is easier to use than the mobile version.

In 6.2 A Short History of Educational Technology – Teaching in a Digital Age, social media is referenced as a subcategory of technology. I have already referenced how valuable Zoom has been during online learning, but several other social media platforms have also been helpful.

“Social media cover a wide range of different technologies, including blogs, wikis, YouTube videos, mobile devices such as phones and tablets, Twitter, Skype and Facebook. Andreas Kaplan and Michael Haenlein (2010) define social media as

a group of Internet-based applications that …allow the creation and exchange of user-generated content, based on interactions among people in which they create, share or exchange information and ideas in virtual communities and networks.” 

Teaching older students has enabled me to use several of the social media platforms such as Twitter (now X), wikis, blogs and especially YouTube. Students are able to create and find content that is valuable to them and engaging.

Distance Learning it Helped me Grow but Please No…

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The best tools for blended and online learning that I have used or are aware of is Wacom, Zoom, Google meet, Kahoot, Edpuzzle, Remind, and Screencastify. When COVID-19 happened, we were forced to go online very quickly with a few tools and keep our students engaged and learning just like before. This was a huge undertaking. I survived but only because of a few wonderful tools. Zoom was a great way to still teach with some contact with students. Without scheduled classes, I think no work or fun would have occurred. The Zoom classes made it feel a bit more normal; we could still discuss, and students could ask questions but in the comfort of their home. I even did work out classes with the students over zoom for my Wellness 10 and Physical Education 9 courses. Through Zoom and Screencastify I made lesson videos for my math and science classes. It was great if students missed class or just wanted to go back and see how we worked through questions together; it was all there for them on google classroom. The Wacom tool made it possible for me to write like I do on the smart TV in the classroom. Therefore, we could work through problems in math as we always did and my videos reflected what it was like in the math classroom regularly. Collaboration and teamwork was more difficult though, as I couldn’t supervise the groups in breakout rooms well. I still use these videos on my google classroom. Some of them wouldn’t fully match my content as I adjust my program all the time but is so helpful for when students miss. The complete notes to how to work through questions never seems to be enough. Students have trouble figuring it out with out a visual or explanation. This type of independence seems to be rare hence the videos was a wonderful tool that came from the terrible COVID-19 pandemic. I learned about a lot of great online tools during the pandemic.

For assessment I used google forms and moodle multiple choice assessments, but also posted written assignments because it was hard to change it all to digital platforms. There was a lot of issues with cheating with certain assignments unfortunately. Photomath is a great tool to help you find answers and learn backwards but also a bad one for online education cheating. Google meet and remind kept parents and students informed about changes, reminders about assessments or to support students and guardians with the technology issues. Google meet was great for students to be able to access support from me and again I could use my digital writing tool to demonstrate how to do a task.

I mostly spoke about the positives and how these tools supported me through these difficult times, but how would I feel if I had to teach in this blended learning way or full online with Moodle through distance education? I would hate it. I didn’t like it during COVID and I wouldn’t like it now. Regardless of being more prepared if I were to do it again, it still removes my favourite aspect about my job. I enjoy interacting with students, discussing new ideas, debating, having conversations, building relationships, supporting them with the “hidden curriculum” and having fun. In my opinion I couldn’t do this at all in a full online platform and only partially in a blended online class format. Not only would I hate it, but as far as I learned through COVID it wasn’t beneficial for students either. I see many issues with online and blended learning for public education for grades K-12.  I mentioned a few times how some of the tools I used made it feel more normal, like we were in the classroom again. I was trying to recreate the classroom because this is the best place to help students be involved and excited about learning. Most students don’t have the maturity to stay focused, be involved in discussions, or complete assignments and learn in an online or Zoom class environment. There are a lot of distractions at home, and it was a lot easier for students to disengage. I am guilty of this myself. I would NEVER touch my phone in an in-person lecture in a university class. But I have in my online zoom classes.

Trust me, I tried to engage my students on zoom. Although, without parental guidance of getting students to school, a lot of students opted not to turn on their devices to sign into class. To foster engagement and get them to want to come to class, I tried Edpuzzle which takes youtube videos and allows you to pause them and ask multiple choice or discussion questions as you move through the video. I also used Kahoot for practice games before quizzes.

Students need, and most enjoy the face-to-face interaction in the classroom; online there is a lot of isolation and according to Martin and Bolliger these in-person interactions create a “dynamic sense of community”. The Edpuzzle videos I created during that time, I still use in the classroom to foster discussion. If that video with the questions was on an online moodle platform, the student could create their own opinions and ideas with those questions however it doesn’t give them the opportunity to hear other opinions or a new perspective.

I personally have an issue with the lack of movement and connection to our physical world due the technology shift in schools and not everyone has access to this technology! The government would have to provide all students with device and a proper wifi connection. Other funding is hard enough and I don’t think this will happen. Physical manipulatives and activities with peers foster appropriate relational knowledge and teamwork. There could be a similar activity online but then it is done individually on a school device. Learning with physical objects outside in the real world is a more authentic experience than virtually. If it is not possible to experience something in the real world due to funds, or distance or accessibility than virtual is the next best thing.

I don’t want to teach online and I think it is the best option for K-12 education but for graduate students it has shown to be a wonderful way for many people to increase their education. Those that don’t live by a university can continue working and going to school with this shift in remote learning. Martin and Bollinger said in one study student to student interactions were least important for graduate students and they preferred online communication tools. This makes a lot of sense, they have the maturity and drive to continue their education and engage as much as they need to be successful.

I would rather use every classroom management tool in the book to try to control an excited, chaotic, talkative, loud classroom than never get to discuss and just assess written work by students. Physical togetherness is better, and evolution has shown that is how people thrive.