So far I am feeling pretty confident in my I-Search. I've been able to interview students from a variety of school districts. I've already gotten a lot of my teacher questionnaires back, observed an elementary class in Providence (about 8-10 hours over the last 2 weeks) and had a teacher interview.
What I am noticing is that the students I having been talking to learn how to write using pen and paper, but use technology to practice concepts that have already introduced. A few students mentioned they are given a personal device at the beginning of the year so those particular students seem to use technology more than the students that don't have access to that technology. Another student, from Cranston, mentioned that her school changed their personal device policy this past year. Students are now allowed to bring a personal device from home with them and keep it on their person throughout the day. When I asked her if she uses her tablet to do a lot of writing she replied, "Not really, some kids don't have an IPad so my English teacher says it's not fair. I can use it to look up words on my Dictionary.com app!"
In my observation, I've noticed that the teacher has her student practice writing in their notebooks or on chart paper. When I observe students using laptops and computers they are using a program called Lexia, which is a reading software. I've asked the teacher how she prefers to teach writing she stated, "I tend to take the more traditional route. I really like to encourage their motor skills as they learn how to write for academic purposes." She did mention that if her students were older (middle school and above) she might incorporate technology more because they have an understanding of the basics.
Overall, I noticed that when a school district has the means to buy technology like tablets or laptops for all the students, teachers frequently incorporate them into their teachings. Districts that cannot afford the technology usually stick with pen and paper compositions with a few visits to the computer lab during the year. This has me asking a new question that I didn't think of before: If every student was given a tablet to use in school, how would that change the way you teach writing in your classroom?
Moving forward, I have reached out to teachers who left contact information on the questionnaire (about 5 so far). I would like to observe other classroom settings. The teacher that I observed in Providence promised that she would ask her colleagues if any of them would let me observe or just sit down with them.
Leah,
ReplyDeleteI think that the new question that you have come up with is a very good question, as I was wondering the same thing. It is a good thing that the school you visited is allowing students to use technology, but at the same time it does seem to be equally bad because students who don't have the same technology can fall really far behind, which can raise a lot of questions about technology in the classroom. Have you looked at technology that has been supplied to the teachers? In my high school we had Smartboards installed into every classroom to help increase technology ans learning in the classroom, but the teachers rarely ended up using it. It seemed like there wasn't much that this technology could do seeing as it was basically just an interactive projector. So maybe sometimes technology would seem it would help, but really is just a waste of money. I like the start to your research so far.
One thing stuck out in my head in your blog. The whole idea of differentiation and knowing your students is such a push I started thinking about the teachers comment about it not being "fair." Now granted I am all for the pen and paper, but it made me think if some kids flourish and can go above and beyond with the use of technology why would a teacher NOT allow that? Coming from a district that has 1:1 technology (all kids and teachers) have Mac books the fairness has been equalized. But I guess my question is when it comes to writing I personally don't think technology is necessarily and advantage....PS I tried the paper background and it was a FLOP. How did you get the white back for the writing? Glad it worked for one of us!
ReplyDeleteLeah,
ReplyDeleteAlthough I'm interested in what you've done thus far I am curious to see what is going on inside of high school class rooms. I think it's very odd that any elementary school child should have a tablet for academic purposes but that's just my opinion - I could be very wrong. I'm not sure where writing instruction is coming into the picture. For instance, teachers are supposed to be teaching to all students when not all students have the same, equal advantage - if that's what owning a device even means, to be advantaged. How does a teacher teach.. with such growing diversity. And yes, you ask the question is it FAIR? What methods of practice are teachers using in the classroom? How is it affecting students and their writing? Does technology really make the difference? These are some questions I might want to implore more from those you meet with in the next few weeks.
Leah,
ReplyDeleteIts great you were able to visit classrooms and interview so many teachers. I like your question you came up with throughout the process. "If every student was given a tablet to use in school, how would that change the way you teach writing in your classroom?" It shows the ISearch process is truly working for you and having you dig deeper into your topic. I do also wonder as Brianna did, what some of the high schools look like, as far as technology used. As Gwen pointed out, they have 1:1 Mac books at her high school and we do not... So I would assume we are using technology a lot less than Chariho!! Hoping you find the answers to more of your questions and good luck!!
Leah,
ReplyDeleteIt sounds like your observations and interviews went well! You raise some interesting points in this post. I think your question, "If every student was given a tablet to use in school, how would that change the way you teach writing in your classroom?" is very intriguing, and also gives me something to think about as I continue on my own I-Search journey. Your research appears to be very open to various perspectives on the topic, which I think is just the right way to go about the project. Good luck as you continue your research, can't wait to see the outcome!