TPACK Quest

TPACK Teacher Quest

Throughout our Digital Learners course, we earned badges for completing certain assignments or demonstrating certain skills. Here is are some of the badges that we earned along with a description of how each was acquired. 

The Digizen Badge is earned in week 1 and this is a foundational badge for demonstrating an understanding of the rights and responsibilities for learning and working in our digital society. This badge is extremely important because it allowed us to understand creative commons and copyright laws and practices. Read more about it here. This badge contributes to my 21st century teaching and learning repertoire. Not only does it explore copyright, it also explores what digital citizenship is and issues around netiquette and cybersafety. 

Our students are digital citizens and as their teachers, we must model and teach legal and ethical practice related to technology. This badge allows us to learn about supporting copyright laws in our own work, displaying/expecting proper Netiquette behaviour, and explain procedures for maintaining a safe internet presence. 

The Project-Based Learning badge is earned in week 3 and it was earned by understanding how to use technology in the classroom to create project based learning assignments and activities. This badge is important for developing teaching skills by teaching teacher candidates about implemented methods for which their students can gain knowledge and skills by investigating and responding to a complex question or problem. Using technology as an enhancing tool, students can be successful in this type of learning environment design. A lot of things can be applied to make students think about what they're learning such as using technology for the purposes of communicating with others. A lot of technology can be used to apply to reading and writing skills. Through this badge, teachers learn that technology can be used for project-making so students can demonstrate what they've learned. 

One resource I used in my Language class was a Fake iPhone Text message site that students could use to show what they've learned. Students who have read a book recently can pick a scene and write an exchange between two characters while they keep the use of voice, point of view, plot and conflict involved. This resource has many sites to choose from but a good site can be found here.

Mobile Learning was one of our modules of choice that we could choose from in week 4. I decided to do this module because it talks a lot about how school boards have been buying iPads or chromebooks for their students to use in the classroom. This is turning more schools into tech schools or BYOD (Bring Your Own Device) schools. This means that teachers need to prepare instruction that models appropriate ways to use technology during instruction. Apps are becoming a large platform to use in the classroom that students can use on their own mobile device, or the school's devices. In this module, teacher candidates explore and learn about different kinds of apps that can be implemented in the classroom. Creating a curated list of apps can be especially helpful for when teachers are creating lessons and want to incorporate an online resource to compliment or enhance the lesson. Creating the list allows us to easily choose which resource would be best suited for which kind of lesson or subject.

The Digital Teacher badge introduces a blended or flipped classroom learning environment where teachers deliver tech-enhanced instruction. Going off of the Mobile Learning badge previously discussed, the Digital Teacher badge was earned by understanding how to implement technology in a blended learning environment and what this would look like. This badge develops our TPACK knowledge which is the pedagogy of using technology in instruction where teachers willingly explore technology, take risks using these tools, use these tools to engage students and encourage collaboration among students in the classroom. 

Working through the TPACK Quest was informative and represented its own particular set of skills and knowledge that contribute to my 21st century teaching an learning repertoire. Through these modules, teacher candidates learn not just the importance of using technology in the classroom, but the ability to use technology effectively. We also develop our TPACK knowledge by breaking it down into 3 parts: 

     1. Knowledge about how technology influences the content we teach (TCK)
     2. The design of instruction (TPCK)

     3. The pedagogy of using technology in instruction (TPK)

   

I've certainly learned about some really great resources that can be used in the classroom that I think will effectively engage students, compliment my lessons in any subject and encourage collaboration and participation in the classroom!