Tech play 4: Content Objects

 Content vs. Literacy

Although I find that information literacy is extremely important, I also find that content objects are just as important but more applicable to me as an interventionist. That is why I am choosing to my fourth and final pay tech over content objects. As an interventionist I must be supportive to fellow teachers and instructional staff therefore I find content objects to be of great importance in my line of work. Through this play tech experiences I want to highlight specific virtual manipulatives and creativity tools that I believe can be beneficial throughout all subjects and discuss what I explored while utilizing them.

Tools and Function 

Khan Academy

Main Function: Informational videos

Subject(s): Science, Math, Social Studies
Investment:  Free!

With flipped classrooms becoming the new thing, teachers needing a new way to teach content, or students who just need a little more help, Khan Academy is a  great tool turn to. Khan Academy consists of over 2,200 educational videos that range from seven minutes to over twenty depending on the complexity of the content. I absolutely love Khan Academy and look forward to using it with my small group science and math pull out. I think that I prefer this type of technology because I get distracted very easily therefore it can be hard for me to soak up content in one sitting. Khan academy gives students the opportunity to pause the video, take notes, or watch it over again until they fully understand the content. The graphics used in the videos are great because they help the learner to see what the speaker is talking about therefore deepening comprehension.

 

Mathmateer

Main Function: drill & practice, instructional game

Subject(s):Math
Investment:  Free!

Mathmateer is a fun educational app that allows students to practice their math skills all while playing games. The more correct answers the kids get while playing game the more the rigor increases as well.  Game categories range from numbers, time, U.S. money, shapes/patterns, multiplication and division. Difficulty can range from beginner, intermediate, to advanced. I like this app, mostly due to the fact that it is in a game form therefore I nor do I think kids would realize they are practicing or building math skills til halfway through the game.

Inference Ace

Main Function: drill & practice

Subject(s):Reading
Investment:  Free!

Inference Ace is another educational app that focuses on student inference skills. Students are read a short passage and decide which inference best aligns with the passage. As an interventionist this is one of the things I see my students constantly struggle with. I think this app will help the students practice their inference skills all while playing in a game like setting. The app is divided into 31 levels in which the students must pass one level before moving onto the next. What I like most about the game is that when you do not pass a round it gives you different scenarios on the level that you need to work on. So the student is not working on the same scenarios over and over again to get out of a level.I also like that when a student gets the answer wrong the app has a pop up that guides the student in the right direction but still reminds them to reread the passage. I think that kids will also like this game because it is user friendly and allows the kids to

TPACK Model Implications

I am choosing to further explore  the Khan Academy tool because it is cross curricular and seems to have a lot of success. Specifically goals/objectives that could be address with could vary from high elementary science, social studies, or math to secondary or even post-secondary concepts.  I believe that Khan Academy supports student learning in that it allows students to hear and see about a concept as well as learn at their own pace.When students are able to learn at their own pace and take in the information they are acquiring in a way which is meaningful too them. Some students need to hear or see something repeatedly while others like to take detailed notes. Khan Academy allows the students to process the information given in a way valuable to them. The technological affordances that Khan Academy allows are for the students to view the videos in class, out of class or wherever they have Internet access including cell phones working on a mobile network. Overall I find the Khan Academy app to be very useful and have very close correlation tot he TPACK model. I do not believe the other apps I explored could address the same caliber to which the Khan Academy application could due to the fact that they are more practice based rather than informational based.

Overall, I find knowledge of content objects to bee very useful and heavily needed for all educators. As we move further into the 21st century it is important that we are cognizant of how we can best prepare our students for their future lives and jobs. Thee more we evolve the more technology is going to play a major role in how we teach our youth. It is important to keep this in mind and be willing to integrate technology on a regular basis.