Teacher Centered Classroom vs. Student Led Classroom

Traditional classrooms are now shifting to including new technology into the classroom. By including new technology into the classroom, educators are now having to teach students how to navigate the new tech that is being introduced. To accommodate students with disabilities, they would need to have a step-by-step instruction on how to successfully incorporate it into their work. By having face to face trainings with our students, it will help pave the way to success in our classroom.

            In the classroom, teachers are being open to transitioning into a student-centered environment rather than a teacher centered classroom. By having a student-centered environment, the students are more likely to learn the material more. Having a student-centered classroom has helped the students be more accountable for their learning and they like to have freedom on how they learn based on their learning style. When I do blended learning for my lesson of the day, I love to incorporate two to three stations to where they get to choose what they can do in the station. I find that my students are susceptible to wanting to do their work more. When including technology into the stations they love to get more involved with their work because they have the freedom to get creative. The more freedom you give them, the more quality work you will see.

            The difference between digital and hands on learning experiences are so different when you compare the two. When using digital technology, I found the students having fun when creating content on digital assignments like google slides and Canva. Canva just got approved by our district and find my students leaning more towards Canva because they can get creative with their work. By providing students with the tools to visually create and evaluate within a useful context, Canva is helping to equip them with the skills they'll need in the workforce (Canva n.d.). My girl students love it the most because they find cute templates they can use to do their assignments. My boys especially love to use it because they find cool effects they can add to their presentations. When incorporating hands on learning in my classroom, I find it very easy since I teach science. My class involves a lot of labs that the students are required to do in my class. Now when it comes to the balance of having digital and hands on learning can be tricky, but once you find a balance between the two it is very doable. Just this past week I had my students create a model of the lungs while incorporating technology into my classroom. Instead of printing out the worksheet and having them to write, I uploaded the worksheet on google classroom to incorporate technology into the class. I find it that the students enjoy it more when you include technology and hands on project.

            Each person can learn in so many ways. Technology can support different leaning styles and abilities by how you want to incorporate it your lessons. When it especially comes to our kinesthetic learners, it’s kind of hard to get them to use technology since they are hands on learners. However, since most classrooms now have a clear touch in their classrooms, the kinesthetic learners can now go up to the board to do work while still being hands on. Students can now use technology to create 3D models by designing it with a programming software. It still amazes me how anybody can do it and create an actual figure come to life.

            The challenges I see about incorporating technology is not knowing where to start. It's so hard to know where to start due to not knowing which technology is available. It's also a challenge when the district you work for does not have the software or tech to be successful. I see a lot of my friends from other districts who are struggling because their district does not have the funds to support their students and teachers need. It sucks because our school district is so behind in technology that would be so beneficial for us all in the district. To help alleviate our problems I found some solutions that could help us. Research, research, and RESEARCH! We as educators should be looking for programs to help our students to be successful in the classroom. If we see a program that we like, we can see if the district can fund the technology. If funding is not available, we can look for grants and funding to help us get the programs and the technology we need to be more successful. Also, we can find training or PD’s that can help us incorporate technology into our classroom.

Reference

Canva for Education. (n.d.). Berkeley County Schools: Empowering educators with design tools. Canva. https://www.canva.com/education/case-studies/berkeley-county-schools/