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Educ 5313 Blog 5: Yay! Percentages!!

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Image created with Gemini AI Okay, so let’s be real — teaching percentages and tax calculations isn’t exactly the stuff students get wildly excited about. “Yes! Let’s calculate tip percentages!” said no seventh grader ever (even if I include a little bit of six-seven in the mix). But that’s the fun part of lesson design: turning something traditionally dry into a real-world experience that actually feels like life outside the classroom. That’s where Universal Design for Learning (UDL) really shines — and why Basham, Smith, and Satter’s (2016) article has been stuck in my head since I read it. Their study, Universal Design for Learning: Scanning for Alignment in K–12 Blended and Fully Online Learning Materials , digs into how we can build digital learning spaces that actually meet learners where they are — not where we wish they were. They argue that too many “digital” lessons just slap tech on top of traditional instruction. You know the type: a digital worksheet pretending to be inno...
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EDUC 5313 Week 4: Trying Magic School

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  In this episode of Trying Technology I Have Never Used Before , I explored Magic School , a website many educators and schools have adopted. While it certainly has potential, my initial experience was mixed. Specifically, I tested the Lesson Plan Generator and AI Tutor features to evaluate their usefulness for classroom application. 1. Lesson Plan Generator has Room for Improvement Using the Oklahoma Academic Standard 7.A.2.2 (“Solve multi-step problems with proportional relationships, such as percent increase or decrease, discounts, tips, unit pricing, mixtures, and similar figures”), I asked the generator to focus on tax and tip —a concept with real-world relevance. I also requested integration of ISTE Standards and the Triple E Framework . The lesson plan generated technically aligned with the Oklahoma standard, but it lacked depth and rigor. The plan suggested posing a question, demonstrating a formula, and assigning a worksheet. That approach, while functional, resembled...
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EDUC 5313 Week 3: How People Learn

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For this week's blog, I read chapters 4-6 of "How people learn II: Learners, contexts, and cultures" from the National Academies Press (2018). My focus was on Chapter 4, which specifically emphasized processes that support learning. The following is an infographic on how people learn and make connections between thinking, memory, and creativity. It draws from chapter 4, but also Gura (2020) on the Creative Classroom and Rivero's How to Use 5 Tools to Foster Creativity (2020). It describes how metacognitive skills such as self-regulation, focus, and reflection enable students to really participate in their own learning and how these ideas are also aligned with the ISTE Standard for Empowered Learner, in which students use technology to set goals, solve problems, and reflect on their learning journey. Infographic:.Gathered from How People Learn, Gura, and Rivero;  shows how thinking, memory, and creativity work together to help students become empowered learners. Refere...
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EDUC 5313 Week 2: Authentic Intellectual Work

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Image source: AIW Institute,  The Framework  page. In today’s post, I’d like to look at Authentic Intellectual Work (AIW). First, let me discuss my views of what Authentic Intellectual Work is and how it differs from traditional approaches to instruction and assessment. In my own words, I believe that Authentic Intellectual Work is when the instruction and assessment has the student apply what they have learned and not just regurgitate facts. With traditional approaches, teachers (myself being guilty of this) will present the information to the students, and then the students are expected to basically mimic the lesson. Authentic Intellectual Work provides students with the opportunity to understand why the information is important and how they can apply it in situations outside of the classroom.  There are three components of Authentic Intellectual Work. These are: construction of knowledge, disciplined inquiry, and value beyond school. “According to the AIW framework, th...
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EDUC 5313 Week 1: Intro and Lesson Thoughts

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                                                                                                                            Image created with ChatGPT   Hi everyone! For those of you who are new to my blog, let me introduce myself. My name is Liz Henderson. I am many things (a wife, a mom, an educator, a life-long learner), but this blog is for my role as a grad student. This particular entry is for my very last grad class, and when I finish, I will have a master's degree in Curriculum and Instruction with an emphasis in Educational Technology. I am very excited to have that degree. I have recently had a job change. My previous ...
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Technology Budgeting for Your School: Find the Funds! EDUC 5373 Blog 5

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                                                                 Image created with Gemini AI              Internet access is not an issue at Epic Charter Schools because we provide mifis for all our students if they do not already have access. Due to this, it is not part of my Technology Integration Plan. However, if broadband access were made available in more rural areas, and more affordable in all locations, this would still help our community because once our students leave Epic, they will not have access to the mifi any longer.The Biden-Harris Administration's Internet for All initiative has set out to deliver high-speed internet that both affordable and reliable to all American citizens. Internetforall.gov states that the digital divide affects comm...
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From Technology Vision to Technology Integration: EDUC 5373 Blog 4

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                                                                     Image created by Gemini AI                Last week in EDUC 5373, we worked on creating a Technology Vision for our school districts. I worked with our deputy superintendent of technology and one of our managing directors of instruction to create a vision that matches our school's aspirations. This is the technology vision we devised with actionable goals: Epic Charter Schools is committed to providing an engaging and innovative digital learning environment that empowers all students to become future-ready and in-demand graduates. Integrating the ISTE Student Standards into EpicEd, we ensure students actively use technology to transform their learning experiences, solv...
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