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=Reflection for Embedded Assignment =

I envisioned that the assignments I would undertake would teach me how to integrate technology. I thought I’d be given instructions or a direct teach and I’d be expected to apply what I had just learned. However, I learned much more than I expected. I learned how to integrate technology by collaboratively working on a project based assignment. At the time I didn’t realize it, but I learned to integrate technology. This was my expectation. However, I also learned to work collaboratively, use several sources of communication, be resourceful, and so much more.

Everything I learned when completing the project based assignment is relevant to the work I do at my school. Unlike many districts, mine does not offer our students a technology rotation class with a technology specialist. The classroom teacher is our students only technology teacher. As such, learning how to integrate technology with our daily curriculum is essential if teachers at our district want our students to become technology savvy or to develop some technology skills. Without the integration, our students will not receive technology instruction until they enter middle school. I also experienced how challenging a collaborative project-based assignment can be. Most of all, this type of assignment forced our group members to rely on each other, troubleshoot, and find answers to problems and questions. Now that I've experienced how a collaborative group learning strategy works, I'm able to apply this in my own teaching. I found this learning strategy forced us to work on the upper levels of the blooms taxonomy. Collaborative grouping is one of Marzano's Nine Learning Strategies. During routine walkthroughs, my principal or district administrators are looking for evidence of the use of Marzano’s Nine or Kagan’s strategies. The project-based assignment I completed in this course helped me to further understand Marzano’s strategy of collaborative grouping. Since I've experienced this strategy myself, I'm much more confident in implementing this strategy in my classroom. What puzzles me about my district as it relates to Marzano's strategy for collaborative grouping and project-based assignments is that our district does not include project based learning in the curriculum guide. Yet, they expect that we use the Marzano's strategies and that we follow the guide. The message our district sends to educators is very confusing. I'd like to ask why the expectations to use certain strategies are not incorporated into our curriculum guide that we are expected to abide by? Are we truly expected to use these strategies? If so, how do we use them?

This was one of the most challenging assignments I’ve completed so far, but also one of the most rewarding. There were minimal instructions for the project-based assignment. As such it forced me to collaborate with colleagues, research, analyze, read and reread, ask questions, and try new things. This being said, I achieved much more than I expected. I feel very comfortable using the Google docs and the Google site. Up until now the only collaborative tools I'd used were the wiki and blogs. For this assignment our group chose to use Google sites and Google.docs for collaboration and displaying our project. The gadgets and the graphics possibilities were so much better. Although it took a little while to get accustomed to the Google site rather than a wiki, I found it to be user friendly and a more attractive arena for sharing and collaboration. I was able to do so much more with the Google site, like add gadgets.

So how did our group work together? I managed and organized the Google site for my group. I was in charge of maintaining the Google site for my team. As the manager of the site, I felt it was important to guide the members of my group in the use of site. Additionally, I took advantage of the tools available to help my team stay on track and meet deadlines. For example, I used a “To do’s” list to keep my team abreast of the deadlines that were approaching. I made sure that I was reading and responding to our Google Doc’s comments and concerns. Furthermore, I’d carefully read the rubric and helped our group come up with a solution to address them. My attitude has always been one of conquer, not defeat. I face challenges head on and I’m very determined to meet the goals I’ve set for myself. The roles just seemed to fall in to place as we went along. We discussed it first, but it was difficult to assign roles for this project because we weren't exactly sure what we were doing. So as we began to figure it out, the roles became much more evident. This team was the best team I've worked with so far in my graduate studies at Lamar. Overall, I’ve learned that I am strictly business first and play later. Unfortunately, I skip the play later many times. This is something that I need to work on.

[|Reflection on UDL Lesson]
The Universal Design for Learning (UDL) promises that teaching can be presented so that every student learns if specific principles are followed. The principles I will describe are based on recent brain research that states every learner learns differently. Learning styles are as unique as one's fingerprints. According to Hose, D.H. & Meyer, A. (2002), if the UDL principles are followed in the planning and delivery of lessons; all students will learn. For the UDL lesson I planned, I present information both written and orally in tools such as power point presentations and electronic books. Additionally, I provide opportunities for students to use graphic organizers, participate in hands-on investigations and collaborate in small groups. Furthermore, students will be provided with an opportunity to view an electronic book as an extension to this lesson. I'm hopeful that this will provide students with the opportunity to learn the material presented to them. The second principle states that a lesson should provide students with "Multiple means of action and expression to provide learners alternatives for demonstrating what they know...."(Hose, D., et. al, ch. 4). Students will be afforded the opportunity to show what they know through collaboration, completing a graphic organizer, drawing a picture with labels, creating a foldable, and/or oral discussion. As an extension of this assignment, students will be given the opportunity create a digital book on their own time. By providing all of these differing opportunities for students to learn and show what they know, I'm providing the students with "Multiple means of engagement to tap into learners' interests, challenge them, and motivate them to learn" (Hose et al., ch. 4).  By engaging them in this fashion, student's remain focused and learning soars.

Source Cited:

Hose, D.H. & Meyer, A. (2002).//Teaching Every Student in the Digital Age: Universal Design for Learning.// ASCD. Retrieved December 5, 2009, from []