Bottia-Philosophy of Education

Darling-Hammond and Bransford (2005) summarized their research

findings on learning into three principals: (1) Learners need opportunities to
activate their prior knowledge. (2) To improve expertise in a field, learners
need to develop foundation of factual knowledge to facilitate retrieval and
application. (3) A metacognitive approach to instruction helps the learner
take control of his or her own learning. These three learning principals are
the pillars that support a productive learning environment.
Asidefromthethreelearningprincipals,Ialsothinkstudentslearn
bestwhenteachersuseknowledgenottooverpowerothersbutinsteadto
formulatetaskstomaximizelearning.Thesetasksmustbesupplemented
withtheappropriateeducationaltechnologythathelpsteachersandstudents
achievethedesiredgoal.
Inmyopinion,itisfundamentalforteacherstounderstandthat
educationaltechnologydoesnotonlyapplytoelectronicdevices.
Educational technology is any tool that facilitates learning other than text.
This technology allows teachers to plan and implement a curriculum using
appropriate modalities. For example, when teaching students about timelines
I have used different colors to differentiate between B.C and A.D while also
using this technology to teach about integers. Educational technology can be
rulers, protractors, highlighters, outlines, note taking, graphic organizers,
kinesthetic strategies, and even the systemsthatsupportcommunicative
interactionswherethestudentstalkabouttheconceptstheyhavelearned. In
my math class students journal what they learn everyday. This journal
becomes a book that it is built for them by the end of the year. I also think
this is educational technology.
A problem that I have identified through my research at National
Louis University is that students learning is scattered in my elementary
school. Students have not been exposed to technology that teaches them to
organize their thinking, clarify meanings, and connect curriculum. Instead, I
observed classrooms that use traditional educational technology (software
and hardware) as a means to an end. Students are sitting down completing
online programs that do not match the core of the curriculum. Hence,
making learning fragmented rather than holistic. To make it holistic, it is my
hypothesis that teachers must understand that educational technology

extends beyond todays definition of technology, which as I mentioned

before only applies to electronic devices.
To better understand the implementation of educational technology I
go back to the TIE 585 course I took at National Louis University. In this
course I learned about the TPACK (Technology Pedagogical Content
Knowledge) framework. This framework helped me understand how
technology, content, and pedagogy work together in order to help teachers
create meaningful rigorous tasks.
Through the study of Wetzel and Marshall (2012) I was able to draw
connections with TPACK and the Three Learning Principles defined by
Darling-Hammond and Bransford. Wetzel and Marshall stated, Pedagogical
knowledge refers to the broad principles and strategies of classroom
management and organization and involves lesson planning and
implementation (p. 73). Pedagogical Knowledge (PK), an important piece
of the TPACKs framework, mirrors two learning principals: Activating
background knowledge and integrating metacognition skills into the
curriculum. To help students make connections with their background
knowledge, teachers have to investigate and understand students skill levels,
knowledge, attitudes, and interests. After students connect concepts, a
metacognitive approach is used to instruct students on how to take control of
their learning. (Nancy Hekkema. Professor, In-class PowerPoint
presentation, July 24th, 2014).
Intheirstudy,WetzelandMarshallobserveda6thgradeteacher,Ms.
Marshall,whoprovidedexcellentexamplesoftheimplementationofthe
TPACKframework.Inherclassroomstudentstooktherolejournaliststo
researchaboutacharactertheyhavepreviouslystudied.Theydeveloped
questionsandanswersfortheinterviews;andfoundanotherstudentto
assumetheinterviewersroleandrehearsedtheiranswers(p.76).Inthis
exampletheteacherusedboth,backgroundknowledgeandmetacognition,
tosolidifyherpedagogicalpracticesforthisassignment.Studentshadthe
opportunitytoportrayacharactertheywerefamiliarwith(background
knowledge),andtheyalsohadtoassumethecharacterspointofview
(metacognition).Collectively,thesetwoideasrepresenttheessenceofthe
PedagogicalKnowledge(PK)componentinTPACK.
Aftertheblueprintofherlessonwascompleted,Ms.Marshall
precededtoshowanexampleonhowTechnologicalKnowledge(TK)and
TechnologicalPedagogicalKnowledge(TPK)lookedlikeintheTPACK

framework.Ms.MarshalldecidedtomakeherstudentsuseWeb2.0toolsto
brainstorm,writeinformation,andvideotapetheirwork.Inaddition,she
createdanonlineplatformthatallowedstudentstocritiqueeachothers
projects.Duringthelesson,thestudyexplainedthatitwasevidentthatMs.
Marshallhadalreadytaughtproceduresonhowtousethecomputerssafely
intheclassroom.Aprotocolwasclearandwellunderstoodbyherstudents,
whichdemonstratedanexampleonhowtoimplementTechnological
Knowledge(TK).Ms.Marshallalsousedtechnologyasaformative
assessmenttool,whichofferedanopportunitytocoursecorrectmid
journeywithoutpunitiveactions(WestandBleiberg,2013,p.13).
Effectivepedagogyisstronglylinkedwiththequalityofformative
assessments.Ms.Marshallusedthewritersworkshopwithtechnologyto
strengthenherformativeassessments,whichfacilitatedherreflectionon
studentsneedsandeditingforfuturelessons.
Ms.MarshallsdemonstratedContentKnowledge(CK)by
establishingessentialquestionsfortheRenaissanceproject.Sheusedthose
questionstoguideherinstruction,andherstudentsusedthemtocreatea
conceptmap,whichbecameascaffoldfortheirwritingproject.Inaddition,
Ms.Marshallgavestudentscontentandlanguageobjectivesbeforeeach
lesson.Theprocessofwritingandthinkingisapplicabletothecontentarea
subjects,andMs.Marshallprovedthatshecouldteachlanguageartsatits
bestmodalitybyusingsubjectslikesocialstudiesandscienceasthe
backboneforherunitsofstudy.
AsidefromtheTPACKframework,Ibelievetheprocessofself
reflectionisvitalineducation.Inmyopinion,teachersmustreflectontheir
ownpracticestofindbetterwaystomaximizelearningintheclassroom.
Reflectionandexperimentationshouldleadteacherstouseuptodate
research,anduseresultstocontinueimprovingpractice.
Inconclusion,educatorsmustoverseenumerousareasoftheir
professionalgrowththatrequirecontinualreview.Curriculumplanningand
implementation,usageofeducationaltechnology,classroomenvironment,
andmanagementmakethiscareeranextremelydifficultonetoexecutewith
perfection.

References
Chapter2Bransford,Brown,&Cocking,(1999).Howpeoplelearn.Brain,mind,
experience,andschool.WashingtonD.C.:NationalAcademiesPress.
Hekkeman,Nancy.LearningPrincipalsandClassroomEnvironment.PowerPoint
presentation.NationalLouis,Chicago,IL.22July2014.
Wetzel,K.,&Marshall,S.(2012).TPACKgoestosixthgrade:Lessonsfromamiddle
schoolteacherinahightechnologyAccessclassroom.,July23rd,2014.