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Educational researchers have demonstrated time and again that the most meaningful learning takes place when students have direct, first-hand experience with concrete materials: math manipulatives, science equipment, art supplies, photographs, news reports, surveys, maps, and copies of historical documents. This is true whether you are teaching the concept of intersecting sets, constructing graphs, or throwing a football; students learn best by doing.
Today’s computer-based technologies offer powerful new ways to provide students with direct experience in the classroom curriculum. And, through using teaching and learning resources that can be manipulated electronically, technology can extend the experience of students far beyond the time and space limitations of conventional materials. Examples of such applications include these:
- Productivity software such as word processors, databases, spreadsheets, and multimedia programs that manage and display data concretely in a variety of forms and allow parts of documents and collections of information to be manipulated like building blocks.
- Problem-solving software in which students have repeated opportunities to use inquiry skills in computer-based investigations. Examples include Sunburst’s classic Puzzle Tanks software for manipulating electronic representations of physical materials and the interactive videodisc series Science Sleuths and Math Sleuths for Videodiscovery.
- “Cyber-materials,” such as the on-screen Toolkit for Interactive Mathematics (IBM/EduQuest) or the combination computer-manipulative package Lego TC Logo (LEGO Dacta), both of which allow the user to move and assemble a variety of computer controlled objects into devices that can be operated electronically.
- Simulated environments where users can move around in contrived computer habitats, make moment-by-moment choices, and see the results of their decisions. Examples include the SimCity 2000 city-building simulation (Maxis) and the popular adventure game Myst (Broderbund).
- Computer telecommunications that allows students to use the resources of the worldwide Internet and commercial networks--including America On-Line, CompuServe, Delphi, eWorld, and Prodigy--to locate, retrieve, organize, evaluate, and process global information, such as tracking international weather patterns using downloaded maps.
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MAKING IT WORK
What are the techniques that are most effective for teaching effectively with technology in large-group, small-group, and individualized situations? To a large extent, they are the same as those used to encourage discovery learning in any context. The following methods have been documented extensively with hundreds of successful teachers and should have observable results in your classroom.
Techniques for Initiating Technology-Based Learning
- Relate Each Technology Activity to Student Experience: Your students need to understand the purpose of every technology-based activity, and a good way to accomplish this is to integrate local content into the experience. For example, a database activity on decimals and percent might use data from area sports teams, or results from school surveys. It is also helpful to relate each new technology activity to a previous activity. For example, a link between an elementary manipulative exercise with pattern-blocks and the Thinkin’ Things (Edmark) problem-solving software section on auditory memory might involve a brief review that starts with the question, “Last time, how did you make patterns using colors and shapes?” followed by “Today we will work with patterns in sounds.”
- When Introducing Unique Marketing Materials, Provide Unstructured Time: If students are being given their first opportunity to use new hardware (a scanner, for example) or tool software (such as a drawing/painting program), it is difficult to focus immediately on a structured activity while they are captivated by the experience itself. In such cases it is a good idea to provide initial exploratory time for students to try things and become comfortable with the materials. In a Logo Microworlds (LCSI) experience with multiple screen turtles, for example, most students will benefit from experimenting freely with moving turtles simultaneously before they begin work on specific problems where those skills are important.
- Introduce All New Terms in Writing: Students should be able to read any new vocabulary term that is introduced in a lesson or activity. This ensures that they grasp the actual word being communicated and adds an additional “concrete dimension” to learning. A word processor or presentation software--such as Persuasion (Aldus) or PowerPoint (Microsoft)--can be used with a large-screen monitor or computer projection system to display words and their definitions. Even as a term arises unexpectedly during the activity, it should still be written out, at least on a whiteboard or chalkboard. Every teacher is also a reading teacher.
- Organize Technology Resources for Easy Distribution: Especially if manipulative materials will be used in conjunction with technology-based activities--such as distributing parts to construct the fastest toy racing car as measured by a computer-controlled device--it is important to organize manipulatives in advance so they can be used efficiently. For example, sets of materials can be grouped conveniently on trays, or in plastic pans, shoe boxes, paper bags, or envelopes that you and/or student volunteers can carry quickly to groups, teams, or individuals. A variation on that theme is the “shopping trip” model, in which the entire class files past the materials--follow-the-leader style--and individuals take each required item. (Humming the theme from “Bridge on the River Kwai” is optional.)
- Keep Teaching Materials Hidden Until They Are Needed: Whether you are introducing computer-based laboratory probes, a graphics tablet, or computer-controlled construction materials, putting materials on display at the start of an activity is likely to distract students when you would like them to be listening to you, not wondering when and how specific items will be used. Even more problematic is giving students direct access to the materials while the activity is being introduced, since there is a huge temptation to get started and not pay attention to the introductory comments and instructions. If instead, you introduce materials only as they are needed, your students will focus better on the discussion at hand. Introducing new materials also adds new interest to the activity, so the student “interest profile” becomes a series of peaks, rather than a down-hill slope. In addition, you have less pressure to rush through an activity in order to get to all the items displayed.
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Managing Technology-Based Resources and Activities
- Once the Technology Activity Starts, Check 100 Percent of the Students: As soon as your students begin a technology-based activity, your next move should be a quick “once through” walk from student to student to make sure that each individual or group has started out on the right foot. This should be done before you work with groups or individuals, refer to your lesson plan, or do anything else. If you tune in to the start of activities in this way, you can immediately help students who misunderstood instructions or have difficulty with equipment. This is important whether the students are working with software designed for small groups such as the Search series (McGraw Hill/Tom Snyder), in teams of two using micro-computer-based laboratories such as SensorNet (Acculab), or individually with instructional software.
- Attempt to Separate “Talk” Time and “Work” Time: Although there are exceptions, it is usually a mistake for you to make running whole-class comments as students are working (e.g., “Did anyone call up a help screen yet?” “How many people are on problem level three?” etc.). This tends to interfere unnecessarily with the concentration of your students, and the student work also interferes with your talking. It is best to avoid speaking to the whole group when students are working--either independently or in small groups. An alternative might be to repeat any important message quietly to each team or group (e.g., “Be sure to save your documents before you print them”).
- Avoid “Talking Over” Group Noise: If you absolutely must talk to the whole class while activities are underway, it is hardly ever effective to try to overpower the “working noise” by raising your voice. Doing so only adds confusion, and most students are simply too occupied to focus on what you want to say. The better option is to excuse the interruption, wait until all working noise has subsided, and make your announcement in a normal classroom speaking voice. (If you start to talk before the noise level drops to “zero,” it will bubble back up immediately and your words will again be wasted. To help students focus on what you have to say, you might ask them to turn off their monitors temporarily.)
- Avoid “Telling” or Concluding for Students: A good technology teaching rule is Avoid telling students anything they can find out for themselves! Rather than “teacher telling” statements such as “Here’s how you change the color of your paintbrush,” or “Your new sentence was inserted in the wrong place because you didn’t move the cursor,” use student-centered questions such as “How can you change the color of your paintbrush?” or “Why do you think your new sentence wasn’t inserted where you wanted it?” Your primary teaching role is to coach and guide your students, not to do the thinking for them.
- To Prompt Student Discussions, Join Groups as an Observer: No matter what kind of technology your students are using, only you can maintain that delicate balance between knowing when to probe their knowledge and understanding and when to pull back. For this reason you will want to share in technology-based activities as they are going on and encourage your students to talk about what they are doing. Simply sitting down with a group or with an individual student may be enough to prompt such discussion (joining students at “eye level” tends to increase their comfort levels--especially for young children), but you may also wish to suggest some pertinent “what if” kinds of questions and comments. For example, “See if you can make the Logo turtles draw larger and smaller circles.” If you turn instead to other matters--such as correcting papers--when your students are working, the unfortunate message you communicate is that the activity is not really important.
- Return to the Technology Materials to Resolve Differences: Differing results in an activity offer excellent opportunities for students to learn to use concrete evidence for resolving differences. When these occasions arise, you should encourage the students with different conclusions to talk to each other and share evidence that each side used to support its position. These back-and-forth negotiations are extremely valuable class learning experiences, and you should not intercede too quickly.
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Effective Approaches for Concluding the Learning Experience
- Alert Students to the Approaching End of Each Activity: Technology-based activities are so involving and empowering that time passes quickly. Thus, when students are given an abrupt signal to end an activity, it can be an unwelcome intrusion that catches them in the middle of an involved procedure. It is therefore better to alert students to the approaching end of an activity (without talking over group noise--see above) so they can plan ahead to finish what they are doing. For example, announcements such as “We will end this simulation in about ten minutes,” or “We will report results in five minutes,” when repeated from group to group, will make transitions to other activities flow more smoothly.
- Use a “Group Focus” to Display Information for Discussion: Especially since many technology-based activities are done by individuals and small groups, and many different kinds of investigations may take place, it is important to meet periodically as a whole class to discuss procedures and results. When work time has ended and it is time to talk about an activity, therefore, the discussion will be more effective if students can focus their thoughts on all the information that is contributed--and this requires being able to see what others have reported. A word processor, database, spreadsheet, or presentation tool used with a large-screen monitor or computer projection system can serve as such a group focus for recording information, making conclusions, reviewing procedures, and concluding the activity. In addition, you can save and edit the contributed information and print out copies for each student.
- Avoid “Lysiphobia,” and Make Links to the Next Technology Activity: “Lysiphobia”--a word coined by the late Dr. Robert Karplus of the University of California at Berkeley--is defined as the “fear of leaving loose ends.” A teacher who is lysiphobic, therefore, attempts to wrap a lesson into an overly neat package by summarizing what was learned. Although you’ll eventually want to do some summarizing, it is the “loose ends” that encourage thinking and inquiry to continue, so intentionally allowing an unresolved part of the lesson to spill over to another day is an important teaching technique. In fact, one reason that project-based activities and real-world problem-solving simulations such as The Adventures of Jasper Woodbury (Optical Data) are so effective is that they allow student thinking to continue over a period of many days. Avoiding lysiphobia also provides a natural link for continuing lessons and activities and may even get students talking about the experience with their parents. (Just getting some of them to talk with their parents is a marvelous feat!)
- When Possible, Provide for “At-Home” Technology Activities: Technology is making home/school connections more possible than ever, and you should try to take advantage of these opportunities. This means that you should find out what hardware and software resources your students have available at home and which parents have technology skills that might benefit your class activities. For example, teachers who introduce telecommunications activities into their curriculum typically find that certain students have relatives or friends in distant locations who might be willing to exchange e-mail on specific topics with the entire class. If enough students have computers at home (and others are able to sign them out for the night or use school computers during free time), it’s a good idea to expand technology-based teaching to out-of-class time by giving homework to be completed at the computer. Such unique activities almost always involve other family members and garner additional support for classroom technology programs and activities.
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THE ART OF QUESTIONING
Asking the right question is central to all types of meaningful teaching and learning, and the inquiry questioning teachers presented here are equally relevant when teaching with technology.
- Avoid Asking “Everyone” Questions: Asking an “everyone” question, (e.g., “Is everyone finished?” “Does everyone understand?”) is an invitation for everyone to respond out loud. As a result, the noise level in the class rises unnecessarily amid a group chorus of “yes,” “yup,” and “me, too.” The preferred question format is to ask “Who is not finished?” and “Who does not understand?” which brings only a few voice responses.
- Pause at Least Three to Five Seconds After Asking Each Question: Research done by Dr. Mary Budd Rowe of the University of Florida has shown that teachers typically wait less than one second after asking a question before they call on a student, answer the question themselves, or make an additional comment, and that they wait the least amount of time for slower students to respond. Increasing questioning “wait-time” produces dramatic improvements in the number of students who participate in discussions and in the quality of their responses.
- Avoid Repeating Student Answers: Repeating the answers of students is a common problem that can become an annoying habit. For example:
Teacher: “What kind of words are highlighted on the screen?”
Student: “Those are adjectives.”
Teacher: “Yes, those are adjectives.”
Student: “And they refer to the nouns.”
Teacher: “Right, they refer to the nouns.”
Student: “So we choose “D” at the bottom.”
Teacher: “Correct, so we choose “D” at the bottom.” etc.
Repeating student answers teaches them not to listen to each other, since the teacher will repeat what has been said. It also brings a feeling of artificiality to the classroom (imagine the effect of repeating every response in a normal conversation: e.g., “I saw a film last night,” “You saw a film last night,” etc.). One of the best ways to get students to respect each other’s contributions is to remove the crutch of repeating answers. Experiment instead with other verbal responses such as “O.K.” “Someone else?” “Who agrees?” “Tell us more,” “Fine,” and “Good,” a well as non-verbal responses such as a nod, thumbs-up, or an “O.K.” sign. - Put Student Names at the END of Directed Questions: If you direct questions to a specific student using the format, “Kurt, how do you save a graphics file?” the rest of the class tends to disregard the question, since a student has already been asked to respond. It is therefore better to place the name of the student at the end of the question and pause before announcing it, for example, “How do you save a graphics file?. . . (long pause). . . Kurt.” When you ask questions in this way, every student--not just one--is thinking about a response.
- Turn Students’ Questions Back to the Students Initially: You can encourage students to do their own thinking and learn to answer their own questions if you turn most questions back to the students who ask them, with a response such as “Well, what do you think?” After a student has had a chance to respond, the question can be given to the entire class for discussion, and finally you can add your own comments or decide with the students what you might do to get more information before the next class meeting. In contrast, if you function as the answer-giver in the classroom, you lose important opportunities for student thinking to take place.
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GIVING INSTRUCTIONS
Techniques for giving instructions effectively are even more important in teaching with technology, where many different kinds of activities may be going on at the same time. Here are some suggestions:
- Make Instructions as Concrete as Possible: The key to giving instructions clearly is to list them as a series of steps to be followed and to list the materials that are needed. Presentation in paragraph form is almost always less effective. A word processor or presentation software such as Persuasion (Aldus) or PowerPoint (Microsoft) can be used effectively with a large-screen monitor or computer projection system in this way.
- Give Instructions “Different Ways”: In addition to giving instructions verbally--both orally and in writing--they can also be given symbolically, through pictures and diagrams, and concretely, by using sample sets of materials or examples of work to be completed. Some students prefer to read instructions, and still others focus best when they can see what they are to do (through demonstrations or graphic representations). Appealing to multiple learning styles engages more learners more quickly and is fundamental to the growing success of multimedia instruction.
- Give instructions in “Bite-Sized Chunks”: When students are given too many directions at the same time, confusion is inevitable. Rather than packing all instructions into the start of an activity, it is better--for you as well as your students--to divide a lesson or activity into several installments, coming together for additional instructions between each episode. For example, you might direct students “Work only through Step Four and then we’ll talk about your results,” to be followed later by “Now complete Steps Five through Nine.” Dividing lessons in this way also adds interest through varying the kinds of things that students are doing.
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