Reflection for EDUC-6714D-2

Reflection

This course has helped me to take the leap from teacher-driven lessons in which I allowed some choice options now and then to developing student-driven lessons that are designed with my students’ interests, learning profiles, and use of technology in mind. It is this course that helped me fully understand how to create Universal Design for Learning lessons and about the benefits these lessons have for my students. As stated, “UDL provides a blueprint for creating instructional goals, methods, materials, and assessments that work for everyone--not a single, one-size-fits-all solution but rather flexible approaches that can be customized and adjusted for individual needs” (CAST, 2011). Through the readings, research, and discussions each week with my fellow classmates, I have gathered a wide variety of websites and technology tools that I will be using in my classroom.
The first thing I will do, which I have already begun to start, is to develop a menu box for my students providing them with several choice options of different tasks they must complete as a class work grade. These will help students work with the content we are learning in a meaningful way as they picked the task that was most appealing to them. By doing this, students will be able to better retain the information and be better prepared for the test. Some of the choice options involve using the computer such as designing a restaurant menu that requires the use of five proper adjectives and five proper nouns using Microsoft Word or creating an online comic strip that requires using dialogue properly using the web site http://www.readwritethink.org/files/resources/interactives/comic/ and print it out so it can be graded.
By providing students with some choices options that involve the computer I am helping those who have difficulty staying focused in class or organizing their thought when we are writing. As Bray, Brown, and Green state, “software programs provide multisensory and interactive experiences that can be so important for students who are easily distracted” (49).
Software programs also “help users through processes such as outlining and concept mapping” (p.49). A web site I will be using for our next writing unit is http://www.writingfun.com%2Fwritingfun2010.html&h=b7b9d as it provides a list of different writing styles and graphic organizers. When you click on a writing style, a graphic organizer appears that provides step-by-step instructions on how to follow the writing format for that particular style of writing, and there are examples modeling that writing style. On the side of the page, you can see tips or parts of the format which become highlighted in the text, so you can view how it was used. This web site is going to make life a lot easier for my struggling writers and organizers.
I also want to add more technology options to help customize the assessment processes in class. For my advance students who like to take on challenges I will recommend creating a Prezi presentation as this took my some time to get use to how it worked, but when I was finished I was very proud of my product. Prezi presentations can be assessment options in many units that we study. Another assessment option is to create a podcast which is another flexible option to use in a unit of study. I really liked the podcast idea I found at http://voicethread.com/#q.b425796.i2574380 . This allows students to create poems that depict the Great Depression which is a topic we cover in my six grade reading class. I could also have students create commercials using this website when we study persuasive tactics and create recordings from the perspective of the main character in their novels.
Although technology is not the only way to offer choice options for students regarding the learning process and assessment, it definitely provides a larger degree of choice options then what can be done without it. Not all students have the opportunity to work with a wide variety of technology tools outside of the classroom. Therefore, it is my role as their teacher to design lessons that offer the chance to work with such tools, so they can have exposure to them and begin to develop the skills needed in the workforce. I want to ensure I give my students “equal opportunities to learn” (Cast, 2011).

References
Bray, M., Brown, A., & Green, T. (2004). Technology and the diverse learner: A Guide to classroom practice. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press.
Center for Applied Special Technology. (2011). UDL guidelines, version 1.0. Retrievedfrom http://www.udlcenter.org/aboutudl/udlguidelines