Twitter- Pedagogy Wheel

So, I finally did it. I joined Twitter. Why? I have an assignment that forced the issue of me activating a Twitter account. Using Twitter, I followed a few people who are educators. As I followed, most the sites they tweeted about were based on technology in the classroom. Perfect! This is an aspect of my teaching that I want to build on.

The tweet subject was an article about iPads on a website, Edudemic. The site focuses on connecting education and technology. The Ultimate Guide to Using iPads in the Classroom was the article that the group was tweeting about. The author stated that learning increased by large percentages! Read the article to find out more. http://www.edudemic.com/the-ultimate-guide-to-using-ipads-in-the-classroom/.

The technology has had a lot to do with student engagement thus driving student learning. The key is what the students put in the iPads. The research found that when students used the iPad as a video camera or audio recorder housing the students’ work, deep learning was achieved.  Now that I am aware of this research, I am driven to pursue more applications for student use. Right now, we use Educreation to create student created diagrams and recordings for assessment. The students think it is fun and I have the opportunity to spend one to one time with them interviewing them after a unit is completed. It’s a great app for students who are better abled to articulate their knowledge of the material vs. putting to paper.

But now that I have seen the light in the form of the Pedagogy Wheel, http://www.unity.net.au/padwheel/padwheelposterV3.pdf  I see the fortune in learning integrating technology further into my classroom. The Pedagogy Wheel incorporates Bloom’s taxonomy and practical educational iPad apps. Using the Pedagogy Wheel, one can create and iPad that has apps to support the project based learning of a lesson plan. I look for all the free apps. I can request the purchase of apps through my district. The grant I am involved in allows some purchasing. So, I now have some homework to do to seek out apps that will enhance the learning in my classroom to drive growth with consistency.