The
Interactive Classroom
With the ever
growing use of technology in the classroom, it is becoming more and more
important that teacher and students become well versed in the uses of
technological devices. Roblyer and Doering (2013) refer to the skills that 21st
century students and teachers need for the classroom by focusing on P21 which
promotes the use of technology in the classroom as well as skills need inside
and outside the classroom (21). The frame work that Roblyer and Doering (2013)
describe “…focuses on skills that teachers require to bring about three
different levels of human capacity development: technology literacy, knowledge
deepening, and knowledge creation” (21). The interactive classroom adheres to
all three of these skills. With interactive lessons like flipcharts, students
are able o become familiar with technology, enhance their understanding of a
topic, and create connections with what they already know. Another important
aspect that is constantly question is how to engage students. With the
flipcharts and interactive classroom this tasks becomes simpler. The best way
to accomplish this goal is by having students relate what they learned in class
to real world experiences. Roblyer and Doering (2013) state, “When students can
see that high-level math and science skills have real-life applications, it is
no longer just ‘school work’;…” (25). This can easily translate to other
subjects, the main goal is to help students find ways to connect what they learn
in class to their own lives.
Objectivists
vs. Constructivists
Perhaps one of
the most hotly debated topics is what is the best way to do something, whether
it be how to write, how to play a sport, or even how to teach. As far as
teaching is concerned, it can the argument of how to teach can be broken down
into two camps: Objectivists and Constructivists. Roblyer and Doering (2013)
describe objectivists as “Knowledge has a separate, real existence of its own
outside the human mind. Learning happens when this knowledge is transmitted to
people and they store it…” (37). Basically this states that learning is
something that exists completely on its own. Alternatively, Roblyer and Doering
describe constructivists as “Humans construct all knowledge in their minds by
participating in certain experience. Learning occurs when one constructs both
mechanisms for learning and one’s own unique version of the knowledge…” (37).
So this is saying that knowledge is an internal process and does not come from
external sources. In regards to the interactive classroom and the use of
flipcharts I think that it would fall in with the constructivists’ style of
teaching. While the flipchart does require someone to give some information, it
relies more on the student fitting their own knowledge into the flipchart format.
Such is the case with the flipchart example below.
This example of a flipchart is
geared towards middle school aged students and focuses on the introduction of
fiction literature. What I like best about this flipchart is that it allows
students to see fiction writing in the real world. Roblyer and Doering state, “Students
who see the application of what they are studying as authentic and part of the
real world are motivated by the application to their daily lives” (25). The
frame where it asks students to write down books and movies allows students to
think about things they themselves know about and are more real to them than
what is typically discussed in a literature class. While I stated above that
flipcharts fit into the constructivism style of teaching, I think this
particular flipchart is more of directed instruction which Roblyer and Doering
(2013) describe “…teachers transmit a pre-defined set of information to
students through teacher-organized activites…” (35). This flipchart relies
heavily on the role of the teacher assigning activities as well as “feeding”
information to the students instead of allowing them to construct it on their
own.
M5 Here is another website where you can get flip charts for your classroom! http://t.co/S1FWvh1mpy #ED527UM
— Michael (@mfisher8akl) November 2, 2013
The importance of learning is obvious, and it is also evident that the Interactive Classroom can play toward a huge advantage for students. Using these types of technologies in the classroom increases the likelihood of knowledge deepening and knowledge creation. Technology increases and adds value to society and the economy on the level of students, citizens and later on in the workforce where these individuals are "continually engaged" and benefit from life-long learning (Roblyer and Doering, 2013, pg. 21).
ReplyDeleteRoblyer and Doering point out that from a constructivist point of view the teacher acts as a facilitator and students learn through inquiry based learning (p 35). A flipchart can certainly fall under that category depending on the presentation of the material, whether it asks students to inquire about the subject matter or simply relays information like a powerpoint
ReplyDeleteConnecting new ideas to things you already know is so important, especially in subject areas such as science and mathematics. You could easily use flipcharts to say, "Hey, look how similar this new idea is to what we just covered, one more variable isn't really changing that much." Or in a science setting to show deeper levels of different subjects like cells in biology or how new forces change the same free body diagram in physics. Using a flipchart to show these ideas could easily increase productivity through engaging students and understanding of not only the material but the technology as well. (Roblyer and Doering, 2013, p.21)
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