Mobile Learning for the Reluctant Digital Enthusiast

I am not a digital native.

Ten years ago, my husband set up an email account just for me”Why in the world do I need an email account?” I asked him. I didn't have anyone to email. Eventually, I became an avid emailer.

Six years ago he forced me onto Facebook. “What am I going to put on there?” I asked him. He updated my status for me. “Lisa is cooking spaghetti for dinner!” Eventually my posts got better.

Four years ago he bought me my first smart phone. “What am I supposed to do with this?” I complained. “I'm not smart enough for a smart phone.” Eventually, I realized I couldn't live without it and that maybe I should start trusting my husband.

I think you get the idea. I am a reluctant digital enthusiast. Like most people, I resist change. However, if my hand is forced, I soon realize the error of my reluctance and embrace the new technology with enthusiasm.

If you'd asked me last year if I thought students should have iPads in the classroom, I would have given you a most determined “No!” But really, would you expect anything less from me? I have three boys of my own, and I could only see the negative effects of tablets. I saw these devices as primarily being used to play games and to rot the brains of our youtht, and I just couldn't see any merit in having that temptation in the classroom. To Last Year Me, it would have been the equivalent of taking an alcoholic to a bar. My kids were video game junkies, and they could only learn if I forbid them from getting their fix-- at least until the weekend.

Then Teach Now made me research apps and mobile technology for the classroom. They made me watch videos by James Gee touting the merits of game-based learning. I started to rethink all my ideas about iPads, and my own kids are now reaping the benefits. My oldest son is especially excited (or maybe just amused?) about my new found interest in all things iPad. He has devoted a folder on his iPad called “Mom Experimetns” to apps I've made him download and try out. Through him I am learning that mobile learning can be rewarding.

In an ideal classroom, every student would have his or her own iPad. As any mom can tell you, sharing is great in principle but harmony comes when everyone has their own space-- physically and digitally. Schools seem to be reluctant to invest in this idea, issuing one iPad per classroom or having multiple classes share a set of iPads. The problem with this is that the full value of the iPad is lost. In these situations, the iPads are solely used for media consumption and not for production. In order for the iPad to be a truly effective tool in the classroom, students must be able to personalize it and learn to make it work for them. They must learn to create work through a variety of applications.

You may be like Last Year Me and ask, “But why do kids need iPads in the classroom at all?” Kids need them to learn 21^st century skills, which they will need to thrive in the real world. Students need to be fluent in Information and Communications Technology (ICT) and they need to be able to use digital tools for collaboration, creativity, and problem solving. Allowing kids to learn and use today's technology in a rewarding and effective way in education will create lifetime learners. Just like my husband forced me to change with the times and climb aboard the technology bandwagon, we, as teachers, must force our students to learn to make iPads work for them for more than just playing Minecraft and Injustice. Students need to be able to create in a digital age, and the iPad is the perfect tool for doing it.

Now we come to the elephant skulking in the corner. What principles should guide iPad use in the classroom? Smarter people than I have devoted much thought to this very subject and some of them even offer seminars on it. After perusing the internet for enlightenment, here's my takeaway.

1. Establish expectations for proper iPad use. Students need rules, but you won't be able to monitor everything that every student is doing at every moment on their iPad. However, if you give them the proper guidance with clear expectations of iPad use, you can trust that most of them will learn and produce some pretty amazing things.

2. Don't be afraid to trust students and set them free to learn and create. Students should be able to access the internet as needed for research, and the iPad should be used as a tool for getting things done. Teachers make the assignment and let students use their imaginations and iPads to get it done.

3. Learn 10 apps and learn them well. According to EdTech Teacher, “All the good apps fit on one screen.” If the best practices for learning involve student production, all we as teachers really need is powerful apps for creating amazing presentations. We don't need an app for every subject we want to teach.

4. Don't be afraid to learn from your students, the digital natives. Although students may not naturally gravitate toward the apps you want them to use on the iPad, once they are introduced to them, you can be sure that they will master them quicker than you. And they just might be able to tell you a better way of accomplishing the same goal.

5. Experiment with different methods of using the iPad. It is almost certain that everything you try on the iPad will not be a great success. Don't let that discourage you. Try new things and let the students interest help propel your teaching strategies.

With those things in mind, here are a few ways I plan to integrate iPads into my language arts classroom.

1. Students will use the camera function to take pictures of real world examples of literary devices like alliteration, analogy, onomatopoeia, and hyperbole. We will discuss as a class why these devices were used and if they were effective.

2. Students will use the video function to create vlog posts of book reviews.

3. Students will use the Kindle or other book reading apps to annotate, highlight and bookmark as they read ebooks on their tablet.

4. Students will research the author and the time period in which books we are about to study were written.

5. Students will create presentations to illustrate their knowledge and to teach their classmates.

And now for a real world example. My son, the iPad user and conductor of mom research, was given an assignment for Sunday school in which he had to give a presentation on a saint. There was much grumbling and complaining until I told him he could use his iPad. And this, my friend, is what he created.

For more information on integrating iPads into the classroom, check out these resources:

Daccord, Tom. (2015). Five Tips to Create Strong Learning Environments with iPads. EdTech Teacher. Retrieved from http://edtechteacher.org/ipads-in-classroom-tom-daccord/

GDC Team. (July 1, 2014). The Teacher's Guide to Choosing the Best Digital Content. Retrieved from https://globaldigitalcitizen.org/the-teachers-guide-to-choosing-the-best-digital-content

Gliksman, Sam. (Nov. 15, 2013). Checklist: Are you ready for iPads in your School? Mindshift. Retrieved from http://ww2.kqed.org/mindshift/2013/11/15/checklist-are-you-ready-for-ipads-in-your-school/

Prensky, Marc. (December 2, 2005). Shaping Tech for the Classroom. Edutopia. Retrieved from http://www.edutopia.org/adopt-and-adapt-shaping-tech-for-classroom

Mad Skillz for the 21st Century (and how they can be applied to English/Language Arts)

Teaching 21st Century Skills is the prominent goal of the modern teacher. The term gets thrown around frequently with other terms like innovative teaching strategies, technology integration, interdisciplinary themes and the 4Cs. These make up the second language of the 21st century teacher. But what do they all mean?

Here's a rainbow to help out the pedagogically challenged.

http://www.p21.org/about-us/p21-framework

For those of you that would like some concrete ideas of how to make this work in your classroom, I humbly offer the following examples of how I plan to integrate these skills into my seventh grade language arts classroom.  I will also attempt to integrate the 21st Century interdisciplinary themes of global awareness and financial, civic, health and environmental literacy. Prepare to be amazed.

1. Teach students to annotate as they read. The Kindle app is a great tool for highlighting and making notes as they read so that they are active readers. Students can then turn in their notes in PDF form to the teacher or use them to write an essay or blog.

2. Create a classroom blog in which students work individually or in groups to create video or written book reviews. They should be able to discuss the major themes, characters, plot, setting and use of symbolism. The blog can also feature creative writing from students in various genres including poetry. Students should be aware that anything they post on the internet can be viewed by anyone else in the world. Additionally, students should view and comment on other student created blogs from around the world thus promoting global awareness.

3. Read Tuck Everlasting as a class. Discuss the theme of eternal life and the things that people do today to prolong life. This incorporates health literacy and students should brainstorm risky behaviors and healthy behaviors. Additionally, I will show two commercials for health products (one for men and one for women). We will compare and contrast these two ads and discuss the effects that media has on making healthy choices. We will also discuss the use of ethos, pathos and logos in effective persuasive writing. Students will then be given a budget to create their own "commercial" for the fountain of youth found in Tuck Everlasting. Students will need to research the cost of commercials and manage their money effectively, thus promoting financial literacy. Students will then work in pairs to use Powtoons to create their commercial employing the use of persuasive writing. This project incorporates the the 4 Cs of creativity, communication, critical thinking and collaboration.

4. Read The Giver as a class. Discuss why this dystopic society was created. Were there environmental factors at play? We know that there is no pain or suffering or memory of pain or suffering in The Giver, but there are also no environmental problems. Help students build their environmental literacy by brainstorming and discussing what environmental factors the society of The Giver had eliminated and why. This book is also a great way to discuss civic literacy and the role of the individual and the government in society.  Additionally, students will create a graphic novel summarizing the plot of The Giver using ComicMaster.  Students will be required to add a final chapter to the book. If they like, students can change the perspective of the story to be told from a different character's point of view. Students should work in pairs on this assignment, thus incorporating the 4 Cs of critical thinking, creativity, collaboration and communication.

Finally, if you want to know how to incorrectly teach 21st century skills, check out this video created on Voki, another wonderful tool to use in the classroom.




References:
Framework for 21st Century Learning. (2015) Partnership for 21st Century Skills. Retrieved from http://www.p21.org/about-us/p21-framework

See the Possibilities...21st Century Schools. (2015) Retrieved from http://www.21stcenturyschools.com/What_is_21st_Century_Education.htm