Transforming w/ Unique, Powerful Technology

          Just as teaching methods change, we as teachers have to come up with new innovative ways to keep it new, exciting and fresh!Just like there are any ways to learn, visual or hands-on learning, there are also different routes to teach these to keep things interesting and fun! Below I will talk about four different teaching theories, different ways to actually engage students and ways to actually use Social Media to successfully teach.

        There are four main theories as seen here that instructors use to teach beginning with Behaviorism, which according to the book is learning from others behavior by observation. The second is cognitivism, which focuses on the activities of the human mind and its interactions with the environment. Next is Constructivism is learning based on the idea that individuals make up meaning through their actions and their reflections. Lastly, is Constructionism, which is my personal favorite because it seems like the most realistic and natural. Constructionism is when you contruct through your actions and and the become optimal when something is explained, taught or revealed to others.

        As an instructor I think one of the top biggest things we look for is engagement because it means you're not just doing your job but doing it well. Engagement means that the brain is working, things are being processed and students are being challenged and growing. There are four main types of engagement methods which include one-on-one tutoring where the student might not feel embarrassed or pressure to answer or ask questions. This type of engagement lets the students walls down and opens doors for them where in a classroom setting they feel they don't have. Learning groups, are team efforts, where each student takes part in the bigger picture. Inquiry learning which is the most common, I think, used today starting from middle school, where the teacher gives them broad information and the students have to do their own research which takes time and effort to accomplish assignments. Lastly, metacognitive thinking, where you spend time "thinking about thinking".

        Lastly, Social Media has become the number one outlet for essentially everyone to express their creativity. It has made both new solutions and problems for educators. Problems because because of all the new technology, some students see no importance in writing, and conducting experiments is import and or valuable. The rise of technology has made students lack literacy when writing or reading but as mentioned above, engagement and involvement is key.

        In conclusions, there are many ways and tools to accomplish incorporating technology into our curriculum in schools. Different people learn in different ways so being open to engaging each students mind should be our daily goal as a teacher.

       
RESOURCES:

Maloy, R., O'Loughlin, R., Edwards, S., & Woolf, B. (2013). Transforming Learning with New Technologies. 2nd Edition. Boston, MA: Pearson Education Inc  

Behaviourist Theory - Cognitive Approach to Learning (Behaviourist Theory - Cognitive Approach to Learning)
https://sites.google.com/site/cognitiveapproachtolearning/Behaviourist-Theory

https://collaborativelearningforum.files.wordpress.com/2013/11/cognitive-learning.jpg 

Constructivism as a Paradigm for Teaching and Learning (Constructivism as a Paradigm for Teaching and Learning)
http://www.thirteen.org/edonline/concept2class/constructivism/

4.2. Constructionism (4.2. Constructionism)
http://l3d.cs.colorado.edu/~ostwald/thesis/section4-2.html

How to Keep Kids Engaged in Class (Edutopia)
http://www.edutopia.org/classroom-student-participation-tips