Cross-post from Remind101 Blog
When you think back to your childhood education, what do you
remember? I guarantee that your fondest
memory was not the grammar worksheets, writing your spelling words five times
each, or what seemed to be the endless paper pencil assignments. The times that most people remember are the
hands-on activities, the field trips, and projects that allowed them to
collaborate with their peers and classmates.
As an
educator, I want my students to have many positive memories. Seven years ago I introduced PDAs, Personal
Digital Assistant, to my students. Yes,
I said PDAs. Unfortunately, the same
year, the company that made them decided to stop manufacturing them. This is when my school district decided to go
in the direction of using smartphones in the classroom. Something unexpected happened when each one
of my students had their own smartphone.
The students that usually said
very little in class were now the students who couldn’t wait to be called upon. It did not stop there. They were not just raising their hand; they
were asking to go up to the front of the room to share with their
classmates. The students began collaborating with each
other. That year we allowed the students
to extend their learning outside of the classroom by taking their devices
home. They were actually excited about
doing homework, and they were doing more of it.
Many were concerned that allowing the devices to travel back and forth
to school with the students would result in broken or lost MLD’s. In the end, their concerns were put to rest
when not one device was misplaced or damaged in any way. The students took pride in the interactive
learning that was taking place as a result of these devices. They were more than excited to share this
learning beyond the school setting.
Students took special care of their devices, and in turn learned not
only academic content, but also responsibility and maturity.
This brings
me to the question, “Why such a change in student performance and interest in
learning?” The reason for this was that
the students were given the opportunity to learn in a similar format as they do
at home. I realized that outside of the
school setting, many of my students had some type of digital device, if not
many, at their fingertips. The
activities that we were doing in school were all hands-on. I specifically remember an activity that we
doing on a Friday afternoon. We called
it “write, pair, share.” The students started by typing a story on their mobile
learning device. Then the students
“beamed” their story to their partner who was responsible for completing the remainder
of the story. The students were so engaged in their
learning that the bell rang to end the school week, and not one student stood
up to leave. They were so enamored by
the lesson that they wanted to continue their learning right then and
there.
We took our
learning beyond the classroom setting and students were encouraged to look at
the many educational opportunities that surround them on a daily basis. Students were able to take their learning to
another level during class field trips. They worked collaboratively to take pictures
and journal about their experiences. Through
the implementation of these devices, we as educators were reminded of a very
important lesson. When learning is memorable, students take ownership of their
learning. Their education now meant more
to them because they now had an invested interest in what they were learning
and more importantly…how they were learning!
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