NINTH GRADE

School/Classroom Profile:

School Location: Urban

eMINTS Classroom: No

Grade Level: Nine

Subject Area for Assessment: Science

As I was thinking about who to interview for this assignment I talked with my mentor teacher and we couldn't think of anyone in the social studies department that really uses a lot of technology, so I decided to interview someone from the science department.   I figured that if I interviewed someone from outside my content area I might get some new ideas or something fresh that I could adapt for my social studies classroom.  I decided to interview a 9th grade physics teacher.  This teacher is known for using technology on a daily basis in his classroom so he would be a logical choice for this interview.  

After choosing this teacher, I came into his classroom during sixth hour, which is his conference period and my study hall.  I began by asking him what types of technology he uses in his classroom to get a sense of what he works with on a daily basis.  He said that the technology that he most commonly uses is data projectors for PowerPoints, motion detectors, computers, Internet, TI-83 calculators and a new piece of technology the department has obtained called Clickers.  

Once I found out about what types of technology he was using, I wanted to know how he integrates that technology into his curriculum.  As far as the data projectors goes, he uses them for PowerPoints and showing graphs, which is basically what I use them for in my class as well.  He integrates the motion detectors into his curriculum when he is teaching about movement and velocity.  I found that this supports constructivist learning especially when students are being asked to graph motion.  He has his students draw graphs based on their prediction of what the motion graph will look like.  The students then use the motion detectors and they can figure out it they were right or wrong and they know how to go back and change their graphs, usually without much help from the teacher.  

What was really interesting was his use of these motion detectors as a form of authentic self-assessment.  When he wants to assess this unit, he draws out graphs and gives them to his students.  The students then must recreate the graphs using the motion detectors and the graphing function of the TI-83 calculators.  Students really have to know how to use the motion detectors and have an understanding about how to graph motion to do well on the assessment and it is a real life task so it is very authentic.  

As we continued the interview I was wondering if there was anything I was going to get out of the interview that I could use in my classroom that I was not already using like data projectors and PowerPoints. Then this teacher began talking about the new technology that the department just got called Clickers.  This is a computer program that the teacher can put a test review into and the students are given a remote control and the data projector projects the question on the board and the students can click in their response and the students can see right away if their answer was correct or not.  I am going to use this program when I give the United States Constitution Test.  I'll program in questions similar to the ones on the test and we will use that as a review method for the test.  

I also wanted to know what this teacher had learned from allowing his students to use these forms of technology in his classroom.  He stated that most of the time the students know more about how to use the technology then he does or they can show him how to do things with the technology that he did not know were possible before.  I also wanted to know what some of the difficulties were with using technology in the classroom and his response was very interesting.  He said that today students are very dependent on technology, almost too dependent. It is great that students know how to use technology but according to this teacher, if you ask them what 3X3 is they ask for a calculator.  Sometimes technology causes students to miss out on some of the basics.  I think this is probably true because as with anything there is some good and some bad.  While technology is great and has many positives, there are bound to be some negatives like the ones discussed previously.  

I learned a lot from doing this assignment.  When I decided to interview a science teacher I did not really think I would gain a lot through the interview because I didn't think the technology would apply to social studies.  However, I learned a lot and I cannot wait to use the Clickers program in my class.