Diverse Learners in the Classroom

In every classroom, there will come a time where there is a diverse learner.  This can mean all types of things, but for this blog, I am talking about those learners who have some type of disability that prevents them from learning in the normal way.  When this happens, you, as a teacher, need to decide what to do.  I have a student in my Level I field experience class who has problems putting letters together to form words.  He understands that sounds, but he just can't put them together to form the word.  For him, a simple solution was found.  The syllables are broke up into boxes, and he places what he hears in the boxes, but it forms one word.  He can sound out what he hears, put it in the first box, and so on, until he has sounded out all the sounds and filled in all the boxes to form a word.  Technology is used in so many different ways to help learners learn, including those who are blind, deaf, or can't control their bodies very well. The first thing the teacher had to do was understand what was wrong.  To help you understand, look at the website that explains some of the learning disabilities. Once this is established, research ways to help that child learn in your classroom.  This is the first step to helping the student move forward in his or her education, and with your help, that may be able to stay on pace with everyone else. 


Picture from Flickr by jimf0390

Mobile 1:1 Learning

It's no secret that technology is coming more and more into practice in the classrooms around the world. At my school, when I was in elementary, we didn't have a computer class.  Now, I know that at my elementary, along with others around the world, they are teaching children at a young age how to work on a computer and navigate on the internet.  So what's next? Mobile 1:1 learning.  You might ask when is this going to happen, well the answer to that is simple.  It is happening now, and has been for a while now.  Students are being allowed to have their "own" laptop to work on and learn with.  Children at young ages are learning to use a laptop, while I know many people in my parents generation, some younger, some older, that don't know how to even turn one on.  Many teachers are now being told that they will be teaching their students with computers.  An online article called Eleven Tips for Better Laptop Learning that I found in the Ed. Techs. RWLDs explains some ways to help bring the laptops into the classroom and into the students' learning.  For many going into teaching, I suggest looking through this, because it is our future, and it is what will eventually be in our schools.


Picture from flickr.com by lavilleautady

Educational Games

Gaming is on the news a lot. Mostly to do with whether or not violent games cause violence. One type of gaming that is overlooked in the news, however, is educational gaming. There are many types of games that are used in the classrooms that are used to help educate in a fun way. There are websites set up specifically for educational games, such as a site for some fun and educational math games.  Whether or not these games help children probably varies from child to child, but in my opinion, it is overlooked by media as a topic to discuss more often along with when they talk about the bad of games. 


Picture from flickr by Chris Denbow

ClassTech

Technology in the Classroom

Technology. Classroom. Those two words are brought up together a lot these days. Is there enough?, is it too much?, when do we start?, etc. These are all questions that have different answers depending on who you ask. Today, technology is used in different ways in the classroom. But not all people use it. There is a generation gap when it comes to those who use technology and those who don't. Most of the older teachers just don't know how to use technology in the classroom. To me, that's a problem. Technology is involved in many aspects of people's lives as they grow up, whether it's for school, for work, or just to use socially. Without any preparation of the different uses of technology, some are just falling behind. Teachers need to be taught how to use it in the classroom, and to teach their students to use it in more ways that just writing papers on the computer. To help, I found an article called Integrating Technology into the Classroom, and it helps explain different ways technology can be used in the classroom.  Also, below is a short video that has 10 tips to using technology in the classroom. (you may notice the words in the pictures shown are in Spanish, but it talks in English.)

Picture from Flickr by James Sarmiento