Chapter 12- Technology in Social Studies Instruction

The book gives a lot of good technology integration strategies for social studies instruction. These strategies are simulated problem-solving environments, graphic representations, virtual trips, adventure learning, digital storytelling, digital information critiques, electronic research, GIS and GPS lessons, and practice of factual information. According to Roblyer and Doering (2010), “Adventure learning is a hybrid distance education approach that provides students with opportunities to explore real-world issues through authentic learning experiences within collaborative learning environments,” (p. 353). Adventure learning would be a useful tool in the classroom because the students would be able to interact with the material that they are learning. Surveys have shown that social studies is not a popular subject. It is our job, as teachers, to make it as interesting as possible. Using adventure learning is one way to show students that social studies is important. It is also an activity that motivates and engages students.

Simulated problem-solving environments are another useful tool for teachers. Roblyer and Doering state, “Some simulations allow students to take an active part in historical situations… Other problem-solving environments situate learning in authentic situations using real-world data and situated movies… Most such products are designed to immerse students in problem-solving scenarios where they must make decisions and apply information they have learned,” (p. 350). Students do not always have an opportunity to apply information they have learned in meaningful ways. Simulated problem-solving environments allow students to do this, which will not only help them transfer the content into long-term memory, but also help them apply it later in life. I believe that integrating technology into social studies instruction will positively affect students’ motivation and interest in social studies content. Simulated problem-solving environments give students an opportunity to apply what they are learning in meaningful ways and connect it to their lives. This will increase their motivation to learn the material and remember it, which should be every teacher’s goal.

Chapter 8- Integrating the Internet into the Curriculum

I like that this chapter gives types and examples of web-based lessons and projects. Using the Internet, students are able to engage in interpersonal exchanges, information collection and analysis, and problem solving. The book suggests setting students up with an electronic pen pal and getting students involved in electronic mentoring. It also suggests having students take electronic field trips, use electronic publishing, develop group products, engage in problem-based learning, and produce social action projects.

Problem-based learning is an activity structure that I believe is important for students to experience. Students are able to solve problems in many forms. Four forms of problem solving that are described in the book are collaborative problem solving, parallel problem solving, data analysis, and simulated activities. All of these forms will give the students an opportunity to learn by investigating and resolving authentic problems. This type of learning engages students because the focus is on meaningful problems, which gives the students an apparent purpose for learning the content being taught.

I believe that allowing students to complete social action projects is another important experience for students. According to Roblyer and Doering (2010), “In social action projects, students are responsible for learning about and addressing important global, social, economic, political, or environmental conditions… The emphasis in this kind of project is collaboration to offer solutions to an issue of practical community (global or local) concern,” (p. 243). This kind of project gives meaning to learning because the students are researching and addressing important issues that affect their lives. This book gave some excellent lesson ideas that incorporate the Internet. Whether we choose to use these ideas or not, it is up to us, as the educators, to engage our students in meaningful experiences.

Chapter 7- Distance Learning Tools and the Role of the Internet in Education

In today’s society, it is important for students to learn how to appropriately use the Internet. The Internet is a great way to find information and communicate with others. However, the Internet does have pitfalls that teachers need to address when using it with their students. One pitfall is that there are many sites that contain inappropriate materials. Schools usually install firewall software and/or filtering software to prevent students from accessing these sites. Another pitfall is copyright and plagiarism issues. According to Roblyer and Doering (2010), “…the growing wealth of written products available on the Internet makes it all too easy for students to locate material and cite it without crediting the author or even to turn in whole papers as their own,” (p. 219). As teachers, we need to be aware of this issue and teach our students the importance of citing their sources. We should also use sites to check for plagiarism.

In addition, we need to evaluate the information that we are using from the Internet and teach our students how to evaluate information from the Internet as well. Content and design are two potential problems concerning the legitimacy of information found on the Internet. The book provides a useful checklist (Figure 7.6 on p. 216) to help teachers and students determine if the content of the website they are using is accurate and reliable. Design can effect a student’s ability to locate or read information provided on the website. Teachers should keep this in mind when providing websites for the students to use during a research project.

Chapter 6- Teaching with Multimedia and Hypermedia

Hypermedia development software is something I believe will be beneficial in the early childhood classroom. Adobe Flash is one type of hypermedia software. According to Roblyer and Doering (2010) “Most recently, Adobe Flash has become the industry standard for creating interactive web-based animations, websites, interactive storybooks, and online software tools,” (p. 191). Teachers could use hypermedia authoring software to create tutorials. This could be useful if students are absent for long periods of time. The student could go to the teacher’s website and watch a tutorial on what they missed. Teachers could also use hypermedia authoring software to allow students to create presentations. This would give students an opportunity to learn more about a topic and improve their communication skills, while allowing them to present information in an aesthetically pleasing format.

Furthermore, teachers could use hypermedia authoring software to create interactive storybooks for their students or they could have their students create them. Roblyer and Doering (2010) state, “Those reading the hypermedia and multimedia stories can click on various places on the screen to hear or view parts of a story. This format also lets students go beyond one basic sequence and create their own branches and endings to stories,” (p. 193). An interactive storybook could be a great way for teachers to present information to students because it allows the students to interact with the information. It could also be a great way to engage students because the students would be working with the information to create a meaningful product. Hypermedia authoring software is going to be something I could use to enhance the learning experiences of my students. I like that I will be able to use it to present information to my students and that they will be able to use it to present information as well.

Chapter 5- Teaching with Software Tools: Beyond the Basic Programs

As a teacher, I plan to use materials generators in my classroom. I like that I can use desktop publishing in my classroom to help my students practice grammar, spelling, and communication. It will also give them an opportunity to organize information in a creative way. According to Roblyer and Doering (2010), “Software tools help teachers with what many consider to be one of the most onerous and time-consuming instructional tasks: producing tests and other assessments,” (p. 145). Using test generators makes creating and revising tests easier. Test generators can create different versions of the test to hinder cheating. Also, test generating programs usually provide an answer key as soon as the test is generated. Rubric generators will be beneficial as well. Sometimes it is difficult to create rubrics on our own. Roblyer and Doering (2010) provide a list of websites on page 142 where “the teacher follows a set of prompts, and the system creates a rubric that can be printed out or referred to online” (Roblyer and Doering, 2010, p. 146).

Additionally, worksheet and puzzle generators will be a great tool to use. Generating worksheets and puzzles is a lot like generating tests. “Like test generator software, worksheet generator software prompts the teacher to enter questions of various kinds, but it usually offers no options for completing exercises on-screen or for  grading them,” (Roblyer and Doering, 2010, p. 146). Puzzle generator software is similar. Both worksheet and puzzle generators help students practice skills as well as review words and definitions. They also help teachers check comprehension (Roblyer and Doering, 2010, p. 146). Overall, I believe that materials generators are useful in the classroom. They are easy to use and save time. Exactly what a teacher needs!

Chapter 4- Teaching with the Basic Three Software Tools: Word Processing, Spreadsheet, and Database Programs

I think that word processing is one of the most important software tools to use in the classroom. According to Roblyer and Doering (2010), “It offers many general relative advantages (unique benefits over and above other methods) to teachers and students: It saves time, enhances document appearance, allows sharing of documents, and allows collaboration of documents” (p. 115). All of these benefits have allowed teachers and students to work more constructively in the classroom. However, no software tool comes without some potential issues. Roblyer and Doering (2010) state, “Educators seem to agree that although word processing is a valuable application, its use in education can be controversial: When should students start word processing? Is it necessary to teach keyboarding skills? What effects does word processing have on handwriting? What impact does word processing have on assessment?” (p. 116). These are valid questions to ask when using word processing, and as teachers, we need to think about these questions before using word processing in our classroom.

The book provides excellent productivity and teaching strategies for using word processing in the classroom. I love that with word processing I can use the same documents every year while only changing the date and adding new information. I also like that word processors are available in other languages to support foreign language learning. This tool could be a great resource for ELLs. Furthermore, I plan to use a dynamic group product approach in my classroom. I think it is important to teach students how to work together and allowing them to use word processing will make it easier for them to share and add information onto drafts. Overall, I believe that word processing is beneficial to use in the classroom. It is great to use for individual projects and group projects. It makes creating documents easier and faster. It also gives students an easy way to edit their work, which in early childhood can be a very grueling process. Word processing does have issues to consider; however, using a variety of resources to enhance students’ learning could help counteract possible problems.

Chapter 3- Teaching with Instructional Software

I believe that instructional games are effective for educational purposes. According to Roblyer and Doering (2010), “The appeal of games seems to center around students’ desire to compete and play. Games provide teachers with opportunities for taking advantage of this innate desire to get students to focus on a curriculum topic,” (p. 92). I used instructional games with the students during my methods placement last semester. The games were a great way to get students motivated to practice the material. The students enjoyed playing the games and they helped reinforce what the students had learned. I believe that using instructional games did provide me with opportunities for taking advantage of their desire to compete and play to get them to focus on the topic I was teaching.

Roblyer and Doering 2010 mention some limitations and problems related to instructional games. “Some schools forbid any use of games because they believe games convince students that they are escaping from learning, thus drawing attention away from the intrinsic value and motivation of learning,” (Roblyer and Doering, 2010, p. 92). I can see how this could be a legitimate problem; however, I believe that as long as other motivators and hands-on activities are used to engage the students in the lesson, this should not be an issue. In addition, “some teachers have observed that students can become confused about which part of the activity is the game and which part is the skill; they may then have difficulty transferring their skill to later nongame situations,” (Roblyer and Doering, 2010, p. 92). One way to avoid this problem would be to use other ways of reinforcing knowledge in addition to instructional games. Then the students will have an opportunity to use the rules in other contexts besides game situations. Furthermore, before the students play the game the teacher should emphasize which rules are only part of the game and which rules are important to remember while they are doing their later work. Depending on the content, an instructional game might be one of the last things that the students do in the lesson. This way, the students will have time to practice the rules before they play the game.