When this course first started, I must admit that I had no idea what to expect in terms of new learning. I wasn't sure if I was going to be able to incorporate things from this class into my current classroom setting. The past eight weeks have provided me with a wealth of knowledge in terms of literacy skills and shown me strategies and techniques in order to successfully develop an Inquiry-Based Unit Plan.
After completing the 21st Century Fluency Audit during the first week of class, I learned that there were things that I need to work on in order to further develop my knowledge of 21st century fluency. I have gained strategies that have allowed me to overcome my weakness of locating and managing resources for problem solving and reading for information and application. I now understand the importance of being well-rounded in terms of new literacy skills and will continue to work on developing these skills in the future.
The most striking revelation that I had in regards to teaching new literacy skills is that it is really not all that difficult. I was intimidated at first, but I have soon realized that many of my students already possess a large amount of resources that simply need to be managed and developed. I was surprised to see the students' working throughout my Inquiry Based Unit Plan. They were excited to use the computers in order to conduct research on the Olympics and even more excited to transcribe their new knowledge into their classroom wiki. Without knowing it, they were questioning, understanding their resources, evaluating, synthesizing and transforming their information into a final project.
The knowledge from this course has made me think about other units in which I could incorporate the QUEST model for Inquiry Based Unit Plans. I have already spoken to our technology teacher and we have plans to incorporate this model into the 5th grade Ballroom Unit that occurs annually in the winter. I have also learned the importance of the ability to determine fact vs. fiction online. I have learned strategies and exercises to teach my students ways to determine valuable vs. invaluable websites. Students must understand what they are reading and know whether or not the information is creditable.
One professional learning goal that that I plan to pursue after completing this course relates to Prometheon Software and Interactive White Board Technology. This year, my entire school received Prometheon Boards, Active Votes and Active Tabs. I have already signed and started a Course on "Using Prometheon Boards", which is conveniently being offered at my school. I have enrolled in an online course as well through Prometheon Planet which will allow me to gain further knowledge in the area of this particular software. My goal is to become proficient with this new technology by the end of the second quarter so that I may utilize this technology to extend my students' 21st literacy skills throughout the second part of the school year. I plan to incorporate critical thinking skills, cooperative activities, strategies on applying new knowledge and fun and exciting activities designed to encourage interaction and creativity with the Prometheon Software. I
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