Get to Know Becky Baron

For children with reading issues school can be a very difficult place to attend 180 days of the year.  Once a reading level gap is established in a child and left untreated then that gap only grows as they progress through to the higher grades.  A lot of times these children are left behind while the rest of the class follows the natural progression of education.  When a child struggles with reading their development often tends to suffers in every subject.  If you have difficulty reading the directions for your Math homework, your performance on that homework will certainly suffer.  The same can be said for Language Arts, Science, and Social Studies as well.  The issues of fluency and comprehension are fundamental to a child’s success in all school subjects and if the issue is not address early that child’s learning will certainly be inhibited.
I have chosen to examine the potential uses an Amazon Kindle can provide within a classroom.  A couple of years ago I volunteered in a local school to help a third grade class that had an unusually large number of students who were testing well below grade level in reading.  We used the computer program Read Naturally as a tool to bring their reading levels up to the appropriate grade level.  This program involved having the students read several short stories along with a computer generated voice over a thirty minute period.  The programs “voice reader” modeled appropriate reading styles for the students to help them gain fluency skills.  One of the biggest selling points the Kindle offers is a fluent reading application.  The voice that reads the digital book is not a jumpy digital recording, it actually sounds like a human voice reading a book aloud which is quite similar to the Read Naturally program.  There is huge potential for this as a supplemental reading tool for children who struggle with fluency and since fluency aids in comprehension the applications for this technology are boundless.  The other positive aspect the Kindle offers arises from its popularity.  Since it has become a popular alternative to books there has been a large outpouring of support from the publishing world.  Many textbooks are now available in digital format, which is just one more reason a Kindle would be a great asset to a classroom with students who struggle with reading.
The one aspect of the Kindle that makes it relatively unreasonable as a classroom tool is its price.  For the most basic model a Kindle costs around $250.  That is a lot of money for one unit within schools that are constantly struggling with financial constraints.  It is also a lot of money to pay for a device that young students will be handling.  However, I feel like the potential positives of integrating Kindles into a classroom setting far outweigh the negatives.
There is considerable research proving that fluency practice increases reading levels and comprehension.  One specific example is a study conducted by the Florida Center for Reading Research of 13 schools in one Florida school district.  Researchers found that students with Oral Reading Fluency levels of 110 words correct per minute or higher consistently scored higher on Standardized Tests in all subject areas.  It would be awesome to be able to hand a Kindle to a student who struggles with reading fluency for a Social Studies lesson that involves a lot of Textbook reading.  Instead of that kid falling behind once again and pretending like they are finished reading when the rest of the class has finished reading, he or she may finally have completed the reading with the help of their digital reader and a set of earphones.
I have access to a third grade classroom with several readers who would be considered “at risk” for reading comprehension and fluency.  I am planning on using a Kindle as a reading assistance tool for a textbook lesson.  I want to set up a situation where a child will be able to follow along with a textbook lesson while listening and reading along on a Kindle.  The ideal situation would be to have two kids that are functioning at similar reading levels and have one student follow along while listening and reading with a Kindle while the other student proceeds through the lesson in a traditional manner without a Kindle.  If that situation is available I would then be able to gauge the results of the lessons on both children.  The same type of situation can be used for reading lessons as well.  Should my assumptions regarding the usefulness of a Kindle as a reading assistance tool prove true, it would be wonderful to report my findings and find potential funding for the purchase of Kindles as reading assistance tools for low level readers.
My project addresses all four common places in education: the teacher, the learner, the subject matter, and the setting.  When thinking about the teacher in a classroom the Kindle has the potential to be a huge asset in terms of keeping kids on even ground when reading is a part of the lesson.  Obviously this would apply to lessons in Math, Science, Social Studies, and Language Arts lessons since all of these subjects include reading at some level.  With a Kindle the concerns about a student keeping up with the class while reading through a lesson is eliminated because the Kindle is reading the lesson for that student and they are following along.  This same concept applies when you think about the student as a common place in education.  The frustration a low level reader usually feels when they are fighting to keep up in a lesson is alleviated by relying on the Kindle to read their lesson at a fluent and consistent pace.  When thinking about the subject matter as a common place for learning a Kindle can be of great assistance on many levels.  I will be focusing specifically on a social studies lesson in which the Kindle will hopefully be keeping a lower level reader on track with the rest of the students in the class while reading through the textbook subject matter.  The other aspect of a Kindle that is a bonus in terms of subject matter relates to its built in Dictionary.  If a child does not know what a word they have read in their lesson means they can look it up immediately on the Kindle.  The final common place of education that this project addresses is setting.  A third grade classroom is the setting I will be observing within this project.  It is a bit daunting to think about handing over a $250 device for a third grader to use during a lesson, but if it is an effective tool the cost should be a secondary consideration.
I am aware that the Kindles are a relatively new technological innovation, but there is so much potential when thinking of them in the context of educational assistance.  If fluency is key to reading comprehension then a tool like a Kindle in the hands of a low level reader has limitless potential.  Hopefully this project will prove just that.

  There are many things that I have learned about teaching strategies while integrating technology in a classroom.  Just like every other teaching tool, technology best serves students when it is combined with other types of learning.  I really believe that a lot of the projects we developed in this class are best used in Cooperative settings.  Group discussion and brainstorming are only going to enhance a StAIR project or a WebQuest.  It also helps to have some hands on activities that supplement technology tools.  That way you touch a little bit on strategies that work for all your students, not just the tech-savvy ones.
 
As I integrated web-based technologies in this class I was able to evaluate their worth along the way.  I have found that every project I have done in this class is very time consuming, but once they are completed they are easily edited and updated, so really it is only the initial development that takes up a lot of time.  I have also seen how well these projects keep a child’s interest, especially children who have not had a lot of exposure to technology up to this point.
 
I feel like I have been starting from scratch in these classes with little or no knowledge base on the subject of educational technology.  Despite that, I feel like I have met a lot of my personal goals.  I feel like I can now have an intelligent conversation about existing technologies that are currently being used in classrooms.  Before this class I had no idea what Web 2.0 meant and I had never blogged anything.  I now see how useful all of these technological tools can be in a learning environment and I hope to use them in my own classroom in the future.

My next goal, of course, is to get a teaching job.  I am coming off this class with a lot of new and exciting knowledge that I can’t wait to share with a group of students and I hope that the enthusiasm I feel will be the edge I need to get a job. My long terms goals go hand in hand with getting a job because I have learned about so many new and exciting resources and I can’t wait to implement them in my own classroom.  I know there are a lot hurdles to overcome when using technology in the schools, but I feel up to the challenge.  Just to use my WebQuest I will need about 15 websites unblocked and that doesn’t even take into account the lack of background knowledge with the internet that most kids would bring to the activity.  Again, I am not concerned with any of those issues because I feel that the activity is well worth the time it will take to implement it.

My bottom line is this; I need a job and I hope that all the things I am learning in this set of three classes will set me apart from all the other people who are trying to get a job.  I am truly excited to implement all I have learned in these classes within an educational setting and I feel confident enough in my new role as a technology savvy teacher to introduce my students to a whole new world of learning experiences. 

My WebQuest has been the focus of my time for the last week and while I was still in the developmental stages of the project I stumbled upon an online activity developed by National Geographic that dealt with the subject of the Underground Railroad.  I ended up using it as a research tool in my WebQuest, but I think it is worth mentioning here as my favorite Internet-based learning resource.  You can view this activity at: http://www.nationalgeographic.com/railroad/index.html

There are several reasons I really like this activity, the biggest reason is  that it is so thorough.  I feel like just about everything I would want my students at a 3rd or 4th Grade level to learn is included in the activity.  I would definitely use this activity in a Collaborative setting as some of the text content may be difficult for lower level readers.  Plus I would like my students to discuss the information as they progress, since a good discussion is always a good learning experience.  The Underground Railroad activity is also very visually stimulating while not being overwhelming.  There are a lot of good internet skills gained by navigating this website. Kids are given prompts that allow them to listen to someone reading the information or are allowed to read through the info themselves.  Also there are additional information buttons that allow kids to click on and receive more detailed information. 

The creators of this activity definitely took into account the idea of Scaffolding information.  They begin with a general idea and then build on it so kids start out with the big concepts and then move on to more specific concepts.  A Teacher's role in this activity would be more like a "guide on the side".  The site is very user friendly, but it is important for teachers to make sure that the students are clicking on all the available buttons and getting all of the information for the best and most thorough learning experience. 

If I could interview the creator of this resource I am sure they would say that students learn best when they work together and are active participants in their own learning.  This activity could definitely be completed without a teacher's help and I truly believe the students would be actively engaged for the duration of the activity.  The site is well thought out, very userfriendly and as I have stated before, very engaging.

As I read through The Michigan Merit Guidlines: Online Experience and the Michigan Merit Curriculum Online Experience Guideline Companion Document the first thing that caught my attention was the fact that they only covered Grades 6-12.  Since I have been working for quite some time on my Webquest for 3rd and 4th Grade Students, which is an activity I would consider an "Online Experience", I wondered why these Guidelines specified only Grades 6-12.  A lot of the experiences they require are also applicable to Grades K-5, for instance  Sustainability.  That Characteristic says: "The experience must provide an opportunity to practice using technology tools, explore virtual learning environment and develop a comfort level operating in this space.  This requires a period of time and is not accomplished in just one experience."  In my opinion good Online Experiences should begin from Kindergarten on through to Graduation and not necessarily focus on just Grades 6-12. 

While I see all the ways these Guidelines are important I also see how little they are being put into practice in the School I am familiar with, especially in the High School.  I feel that a lot of times the State develops these standards with the best intentions, but then lacks the power to enforce them or even to insure that they are easily fulfilled by the Schools.  For instance, I know from experience how long a WebQuest takes to construct.  We know that they can be an effective learning tool, but with all the standards that teachers are already required to fulfill it is hard to imagine how they can find time to develop and then competently implement a project like a Webquest.  That is not to say that it cannot be done, I just know that it is not happening in the High School where I work.  Another aspect of the guideline that puzzled me was the section that referred to Computer Requirements.   According to the MMC Guidelines a school is recommended to have: A Pentium speed PC or PowerMac with at least 32MB, Screen Resolution should be at least 800x600 pixels and a color depth of Hi Color (16bit/64K) or greater.  Now that sounds like a lot of babble to a lot of us, but it also sounds like a lot of money too.  As many schools try to make up for budget shortfalls, where does the State expect them to find money to make sure they are compliant with their technology curriculum standards?

My final thought is this, I know that the State has the best intentions as they sit in Lansing and come up with these standards and it is my hope that schools truly are doing their best to comply with these standards.   A lot of schools are doing the best they can with the little they have and since there is very little equity when it comes to technology in Michigan Schools I have no idea how the State Department of Ed. is keeping track of everything they are asking school to do with technology.  I do know this, that teachers will always work hard to please the State while at the same time bringing the best out in the students they teach withthe limited resources they have.  What more can we ask for?

If you are a teacher and you have never taken advantage of the Smithsonian Institute's Website you are missing out!  Not only do they have information on just about anything you can imagine, but they have teacher resources as well.  If you are like me and you don't have your own classroom yet the site also has parent and student resources.  It is a truly amazing resource for anyone.  My favorite city in the United States is Washington D.C. and I love to visit the Smithsonian in person, but until I am able to visit again the website is a great substitute:)