enthusiastically engaged throughout the lessons. The availability of student computers allowed the teacher to divide the class in small groups and made it possible for students to practice assigned vowels based on their own phase and learning ability. Homework assignments with online reading practices helped extend the learning beyond the classroom. As a culminating project, using Kidspiration to web word families helped students to recognize similarities and differences in the graphic and symbolic forms. There were indications that the students learned the short vowels faster.
the lesson on the Promethean Board. As a whole-class activity, the students studied two lessons from the site; the word families “–ip” and “ig.” Several students came to the Promethean board and used the magnetic pen to click on letters and words to be pronounced for them. The story on the site is interactive; when students click on a word, it vocalizes the sounds of the letters and highlights them for the students to make sound-to-letter connections. Once this section was completed, students moved to the story in the same program to get more exposure and practice with words containing short “i.” After that, the teacher divided the students into two groups; one group went to the student computers to practice the same lesson on their own pace using Starfall site with headphones. Another group worked with the teacher using a printed book that was downloaded from
www.hubbardscupboard.org site to reinforce the family to the students. The teacher assigned homework for more reading practice to this group and students were asked to access the site from home. Then she switched the groups.
The next three lessons were implemented in a similar way with the focus on the short vowels e, o, and u. The last lesson includes reviewing the short vowels and creating a web for one of the word families using Kidspiration.
In general, the lessons went very well. The Promethean Board made it possible for students to be active learners and remain
It was also surprising how quickly the newcomers learned to use technology and navigated the programs without being proficient in English language and with no previous technology experience. It was reassuring that technology integration in the classroom enhances the teaching and learning process even within a very unique learning environment. Given the experiences gained throughout the presented unit, the teacher encouraged implementing technology-integrated lessons with the newcomers even more.
Conclusion
The available technology provided an opportunity for the teacher to reach out to each student and differentiate instruction. By its nature, the Newcomer Center required multiple types of instructional strategies such as whole-group instruction, small group instruction, collaborative learning, and one-on-one teaching. Having the technology resources readily available in the classroom gave the teacher the opportunity to work with individual students at their level and on their own pace.
It was important to spend some time with students while they were learning about how to use new technologies around them. However, the fact that students didn’t have prior experiences with such technologies made the teacher’s job easier, presenting the available technology as a learning tool and using it in a seamless manner. A good degree of collaboration among students who were new to the Center and others who had been there for a while was necessary when the teacher needed time to work with small groups or individual students. Students were encouraged to help each other, thus learning by taking the teacher’s role and by helping others. Cooperative learning was also strong in the Center, in which students were grouped by the same level ability or multi-level groupings to work together.
References & Resources
Smith, G.E., & Throne, S. (2007): Differentiating instruction with technology in K–5 classrooms. Eugene, OR: ISTE Publications.
Nada Darwish’s electronic portfolio:
http://www-personal.umd.umich. edu/~ndarwish/edtech/
edt510.html
Nada Darwish (left)
holds a bachelor’s in elementary education from the University of Michigan-Dearborn.
Mesut Duran (right) is an Associate Professor of Technology at the University of Michigan-Dearborn.
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