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M, C. (2013). TPACK in 2 Minutes [Video file]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FagVSQlZELY
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As a classroom teacher, I feel I have two main paths to take when approaching technology–use the technology as it is and alter my content and pedagogy or alter the technology to fit my content and pedagogy. I find myself using my knowledge of learning and how students learn (pedagogy) along with what it is that they need to know (content) and adapting technology to fit those needs. Before taking CEP 810: Teaching for Understanding with Technology I had no idea that what I was doing with technology in regards to teaching had a name--TPACK (Technological Pedagogical and Content Knowledge). Taking this class was confirmation of my teaching practices.
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We continued cutting up our fruit to make our fruit salad and experimenting to see what worked and what didn’t. The idea of collaboration became evident as we neared the end. For example, I had a set of tongs and another person at my table had pizza cutter. Our goal was to cut a cantaloupe into bite size pieces for the fruit salad. Immediately, we devised a plan that since the pizza cutter had a straight edge, it would be the best choice for cutting the cantaloupe. However, the pizza cutter was not sharp enough to do the initial cut through the rind. Using another tool (my tongs), we were able to start the cut through the cantaloupe rind and then finish it with the pizza cutter. The collaboration and problem solving to cut a cantaloupe can be transferred into the classroom when students are constructing their own knowledge.
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However, after taking CEP 800, my thinking has shifted that my ideal classroom would be a mix of cognitivism and constructivism. Ideally students would be the ones constructing their knowledge through their own experiences (constructivism) and the teacher would be the facilitator. However, due to my middle school students’ cognitive development where students can think logically when it comes to concrete events and analogies but depending on where they are at, they struggle with abstract events and analogies so it is up to the teacher to help organize the abstract information
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