Teaching and Learning with Testa

  For the Instructional Strategies class, I recently participated in we had to create a mash-up of instructional strategies to use in our classrooms.  One thing I have struggled with is teaching how to take notes.  Particularly when watching videos and learning how to engage in them.  I started to think back to college and how one of my Education professors mentioned making questions out of headings and finding the answers to these questions.  I thought about doing this and utilizing google keep as I did it.  Raising Your Bar was developed.   My goal is to have students learn how to ask good questions and keep good notes as well.  One reviewer already mentioned the goal is to get students to ask questions they don't know the answers for, and to be okay with that unease that occurs.   Check it out and let me know your thoughts!

In this day and age, thanks to the pandemic, teachers are using technology tools more than ever.  The use of technology is a great way of enhancing our classrooms and having a 21-century approach to learning.  Over the past two years, as I and my colleagues shift our teaching, I begin to wonder where each of the technologies lands on the SAMR model.  Have I moved my technology integration in a way that is productive?  Am I using this time to blow up my teaching to give less content and focus on what students need to learn? The SAMR model of technology integration was designed by Dr. Ruben Puentedura. The idea of the teachers looking at using common terminology when using technology.  The key is to always ask two questions as an educator:  How do you want to use technology and what is the purpose (Ruben, n.d).  Students shouldn't be using technology just to do technology but it should enhance the learning (Reben, n.d).  Below is an image of the levels of the SAMR Model.  Lefflerd, C