Technology in the language learning classroom and library

As I’ve mentioned in previous posts, I do not currently work in a school or in a library. I have therefore chosen my library at my most recent middle school, as I remember it from last year. I believe the current TL is working towards making more interactive and reading spaces.

I used Floorplanner.com for this assignment. I played around with Tinkercad to get to know it better, as I have had students use it in past projects and was unfamiliar with it. It did not seem intuitive for 2D which is why I switched to floorplanner. I could imagine students having lots of fun with this to design their ideal classroom, library or bedroom. The first photo is a screenshot of my working design, and the bottom shot is the exported version.

Pierce, D. (2015) Three ways technology is Transforming Learning Spaces. The Journal. (Website). Retrieved by https://thejournal.com/articles/2015/08/25/3-ways-mobile-technology-is-transforming-learning-spaces.aspx

While I am no longer physically in a school and have never worked as a TL in a library, I spent countless hours working with our amazing TLs at my last middle school, which still feels like my home school. So while I still think of it as « my » home library, I am no longer at the school and am not in a TL role there. My observations of what we already have and new ideas may be outdated as I have not been there since last year.

Already in place	Possibilities for my school community
Access to tools and to a physical maker space for many groups	Access to a maker space for all (beyond recess, enrichment, and interested teachers- how to enhance access to all students)
Totes and carts of tools that can be wheeled into main library space	Perhaps a dedicated maker space that does not have to be shared with main library space and constantly put away?
Connections with the community have been made in the past- 3D printers, Artificial limb organisation, architects	Make better use of the parent community to reach out
Partnerships, local events, etc.- connect with the community about hosting or partnering on events.
Tech tools: Basic 3D printer, spheros, green screen	More buy in from teachers beyond TLs and a handful of classroom teachers. More understanding of the value of experiential making.

Students tinkering at a design exhibit on a recent field trip to Science World.

Question: Should Making exist in some version on its own for pure experiential learning and fun, or should it be tied to a specific course or curriculum?

References

British Colombia Ministry of Education (2020) Applied Design, Skills and Technology Curriculum . Retrieved by https://curriculum.gov.bc.ca/curriculum/adst

Crichton, Susan & Carter, Deb. (2017). Taking Making Into Classrooms: A Toolkit for Fostering Creativity and Imagination. (website) Open School BC. Retrieved by: https://mytrainingbc.ca/maker/en/toolkit/Taking_Making_into_Classrooms.pdf

Young Adult Library Services Association (2014). Making in the library toolkit. Retrieved by http://www.ala.org/yalsa/sites/ala.org.yalsa/files/content/MakingintheLibraryToolkit2014.pdf

Here is the result of a few hours of exploring Sketchnote programs. I finally decided to experiment with a sketching program on my partner’s iPad. He has shown me his designs using his new sketching app and they look amazing. I used a stylus pen which was really fun to play with, but there was very little room to write much. While I am very underwhelmed by my finished product, I was happy I finally tried the ipad. Most of my family members are very artistic and I tend to avoid art and design for that reason. I clearly have a ways to go with the program but it was fun to try.

Crichton, Susan & Carter, Deb. (2017). Taking Making Into Classrooms: A Toolkit for Fostering Creativity and Imagination. (website) Open School BC. Retrieved by: https://mytrainingbc.ca/maker/en/toolkit/Taking_Making_into_Classrooms.pdf

I was already familiar with mindmeister, so I tried Pinup for this mindmap. While I really liked its simplicity, It was not possible to create titles or group ideas besides putting notes geographically close to one another. For this reason, I prefer padlet, where you can create different types of mind maps and have others collaborate. It was still worth trying Pinup, and I must say I appreciate I did not have to format arrows like I did with mindmeister.

Lastly, there was an export button on the Pinup site but it did not work for me. HERE is a direct link to my Pinup map.

References

British Colombia Ministry of Education (2020) Applied Design, Skills and Technology Curriculum . Retrieved by https://curriculum.gov.bc.ca/curriculum/adst

Brown, T. (2008). Tales of Creativity and Play [Video]. TED. https://www.ted.com/talks/tim_brown_tales_of_creativity_and_play?utm_campaign=tedspread&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=tedcomshare

Here is my final version of my Tech Leader goals for Module 1. Based on the feedback that I received, I mostly kept the content the same but fiddled with the images and text to keep it balanced. I also replaced a few images that had been cropped at the edges. I also enlarged the text wherever possible.

Finally, I added the PLN section back to the goal infographic after being alerted by a fellow student that it was missing (Merci Marie-Josée!).

I tried to make my goals specific and relevant to my current position. While my goals are all related to supporting French language learners, I am curious if others find them relevant in an English language classroom.

My other question is more technical since infographics are new to me: how do you like the layout and flow of the infographic? I used Canva and found it quite user friendly but really hard to read the tiny text boxes when I was editing. While my PNG version of the poster is very clear, it appears a bit blurry on this blog. I have noticed this with all Canva PNGs on this blog and I am unsure how to rectify this.

Sources cited

Averil, Sandra (2020) ADST Design Thinking. (Video). Vimeo: https://vimeo.com/400420774

British Colombia Ministry of Education (n.d.) Applied Design, Skills and Technologies Curriculum. (Website) https://curriculum.gov.bc.ca/curriculum/adst

Koehler, M. (2012). TPACK Explained. Website. http://matt-koehler.com/tpack2/tpack-explained/

Common Sense Education (2016) What is the SAMR Model? [Video] 

Youtubehttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9b5yvgKQdqE&list=PL8TjVyuBdsCmZeSjU-l4qCpX11XENxsRi

Puentedura, C.R. (2019) SAMR in 120 Seconds. [Video]. Youtube https://www.youtube.com/embed/us0w823KY0g?version=3&rel=1&showsearch=0&showinfo=1&iv_load_policy=1&fs=1&hl=fr&autohide=2&wmode=transparent

I chose grade 12 French Language Arts since I have recently been working with a secondary French Immersion teacher on this course. We have been looking at both how to meaningfully connect to francophone and Indigenous texts as a way of exploring culture and identity, and I have suggested many digital resources that may help support this exploration. It was nice to think further as to other ways that technology could help modify the learning for students in this course.

Cited sources:

Koehler, M. (2012). TPACK Explained. Website. http://matt-koehler.com/tpack2/tpack-explained/

I tried to make my goals specific and relevant to my current position. While my goals are all related to supporting French language learners, I am curious if others find them relevant in an English language classroom.

My other question is more technical since infographics are new to me: how do you like the layout and flow of the infographic? I used Canva and found it quite user friendly but really hard to read the tiny text boxes. Hopefully things will improve when I retrieve my glasses from work tomorrow….

Sources cited

Averil, Sandra (2020) ADST Design Thinking. (Video). Vimeo: https://vimeo.com/400420774

British Colombia Ministry of Education (n.d.) Applied Design, Skills and Technologies Curriculum. (Website) https://curriculum.gov.bc.ca/curriculum/adst

Koehler, M. (2012). TPACK Explained. Website. http://matt-koehler.com/tpack2/tpack-explained/

Common Sense Education (2016) What is the SAMR Model? [Video] 

Youtubehttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9b5yvgKQdqE&list=PL8TjVyuBdsCmZeSjU-l4qCpX11XENxsRi

Puentedura, C.R. (2019) SAMR in 120 Seconds. [Video]. Youtube 

I oscillated in choosing the best addition to my PLN. I was tempted to choose Google since our district uses GSuite with students and teachers. I am very confident with many Google applications, but I would like to get a better learning of Jamboard and other tools that I am less familiar with. After taking a look at the site, I feel that I can take these short pro-d sessions about new tools as needed. I’m sure if I explored the Google Educators site more I would see it’s potential for collaboration, but I can’t help but feel that the network is made by a company and therefore has commercial goals.

I am drawn to the ISTE Community since the networks are so varied. While I was hoping it would have a group specifically for language teaching, it does have several groups that are of interest to me, such as Digital Citizenship, Digital Storytelling, and Teacher Education Network. These sound like networks that will support me in using technology to deepen learning for my students in areas that are pertinent to my Coordinator role and my UVic Instructor context. These are also areas of education that I am passionate about. 

Cook, Rebecca J. (2017)  « Online Professional Learning Networks: A Viable Solution to the Professional Development Dilemma. » Journal of Special Education Technology, 32(2).

I found an article on Edutopia helped me to better understand what a PLN is. I like that the P can be both Personal and Professional. I am amazed at how when we can connect virtually with colleagues online over common professional interests and questions, we make both personal and professional connections and relationships. 

Rather than creating or joining more sites and growing my PLN, I feel an overwhelming need to do a “Marie Kondo” reorganization and sorting of my current PLNs. I have connected with many online facebook groups over the years related to teaching languages and to library and media. While they may still offer some great learning opportunities, at this point I find that facebook creates too much covid stress for me and as such I am no longer participating in the learning intended by joining these groups. I plan to take a look at which ones are still pertinent to my current position and unsubscribe from most. 

I have also followed French language educators in the past on Twitter, but have not used this platform in a few years. I think now could be a good time to reconnect with key academics and educators in the French as an additional language world. I can get so busy with the coordinating and collaboration aspect of my job that I risk falling behind in current research and best practices in second language learning. 

Finally, since I need more support in using technology in the language classroom, I would like to look for leaders in this field or forums that exist that specifically address this topic. I have found some great resources by following Edutopia and Common Sense Media in the past, but I need to expand beyond these two to find what I am looking for in terms of TL and technology support for language learning. 

Cook, Rebecca J. (2017)  « Online Professional Learning Networks: A Viable Solution to the Professional Development Dilemma. » Journal of Special Education Technology, 32(2).

Top Picks 22 Tools: Best Professional Development Websites and PLNs for Teachers » Common Sense Education, https://www.commonsense.org/education/top-picks/best-professional-development-websites-and-plns-for-teachers. 

Whitby, Tom (2013). How Do I Get a PLN? (Website) Edutopia, 18 Nov. 2013,   https://www.edutopia.org/blog/how-do-i-get-a-pln-tom-whitby

 Design thinking, maker space, and human-centred design thinking are all terms we are hearing more in our LLCs and classrooms. While they are all interrelated, they differ in key ways that I will explain below. 

Maker Space is a constructivist approach to learning through tinkering, playing with and constructing new objects and products. While it shares many commonalities with design thinking, it does not necessarily involve all aspects of the design thinking process. 

Human Centered Design Thinking is a design process that focuses on solving a problem specific to an identified human need. Beyond simply getting to tinker and play with tools to create prototypes, students must interview an intended public to define a problem and come up with ideas or solutions that are responsive to the group’s needs. As such, this approach can help students to develop empathy since their project’s intended goal is to solve a need of another individual or group. 

It’s important to remember that it is the process that is important rather than the final product when it comes to human-centred design thinking. While the end product can be motivating for students, great learning can come from the process of ideating, prototyping, and especially from gaining feedback. As such, this important step needs to be valued and taught explicitly, so that it is seen as an essential part of the learning and design process.

In addition to the above mentioned skills, human centred design thinking requires the development of a lot of specific language skills. Developing, asking and answering questions during the interview, interacting and collaborating with peers while tinkering, providing constructive feedback are all specific language skills that students can develop if properly supported.

I was introduced to design thinking by my amazing TL a few years back, and we worked together to create an interdisciplinary design thinking project called “IMAGINER L’AVENIR” for our grade 8 French Immersion students. I loved this project, and saw the potential for human-centred design thinking to motivate students, create a culture of learning and risk-taking, connect the class to real-world problems, and support authentic language learning. In my current position as Language Coordinator, I would love to put together an open lesson sequence that helps to scaffold the language-learning aspects of human-centred design thinking in a French Immersion classroom. Much like the program referenced in the Main school, human-centred design thinking in French Immersion could help make language learning authentic, relevant and engaging for students. 

Cited Sources

British Colombia Ministry of Education (n.d.) Applied Design, Skills and Technologies Curriculum. (Website) https://curriculum.gov.bc.ca/curriculum/adst

Averil, Sandra (2020) ADST Design Thinking. (Video). Vimeo: https://vimeo.com/400420774

Main School engages kids with Problem-Solving Challenges. (Video). Youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i17F-b5GG94