Blog Post Reflection 3

This week I visited www.edutopia.com and found an article on project-based learning. According to the article, project-based learning is designed to put students in settings where they learn critical thinking, collaboration, work ethic, technology literacy skills, written and oral communication while meeting state and national standards. There are four fundamental elements to project-based learning: 1. Create team of three or more to work on a project for three to eight weeks, 2. Introduce a complex question that students need to know, scaffold the project with activities and information that deepens the work, 3. Calendar the project with drafts and benchmarks, finally the team presents to parents and people from the community, 4. Provide timely assessments of content, critical thinking, teamwork, oral and written communication and other important skills. I think it is a great strategy to involve students in real-world projects that capture their interests yet tackle complex realistic problems. After reading this article, I would like to investigate whether  project-based learning can be used with pre-kindergarten and kindergarten students.

Blog Post Reflection 2

I chose a journal article from http://www.thejournal.com/ for this professional reflection blog. This article discusses the controversy over RTI (Response To Intervention), the three-tiered triangle instructional model. Some educators are taking a more holistic approach to intervention, favoring strategies that may prevent intervention by using more inclusive procedures for academic deficiencies .For example, one woman has developed a research program called R&R, recognition and response, it detects and addresses learning deficits through early childhood intervention. It is derived from the RTI model but is adapted for very young children and benefits all children regardless of their developmental level. The key difference between R&R and RTI is the interventions in Tier 2. R&R opposes explicit, segregated tutoring in favor of integrating what is learned in small target groups into whole-classroom lessons. I agree with this idea because the focus in Tier 2 of an RTI is on how long and how often the tutoring sessions are going to be. In R&R, the students are given the opportunity to practice the skills they learned in their small groups with the rest of the classroom. As a special education minor, after reading this article, I plan to do more research on the R&R approach.

Blog Post Reflection 1

The resource I chose for this professional development blog was an online journal from www.thejournal.com.  This journal addresses merging assistive technology with mainstream consumer technology. Students with special needs are now able to have access to the same technologies as mainstream students. According to the article, part of the reason the two technologies are being combined is due to the aging baby boomers. An advantage of blending mainstream devices with assistive technologies is lower prices for schools to invest in technology. Some researchers are working on a project to develop applications with Apple’s iPad, iPhone, and iPod to help students with communication impairments. As a special education teacher, this information is very useful for me and the students I plan to work with. This article has made me even more aware of how little I am familiar with the newest technologies. I plan to educate myself as often as I can on emerging technology programs.