Reflection for Reaching and Engaging All Learners through Technology

As I look back at the past eight weeks of this course, I am amazed at the plethora of information for how many ways a teacher can differentiate instruction. Over the years, I have differentiated when I saw the need to do so, but not to the extent of what I have read about and researched during this course. For the past eight weeks, I have been learning about Universal Design for Learning, Differentiated Instruction, and how these two concepts affect learning for all students. I now know of new ways to incorporate technology into my instruction to assist, engage, and motivate my students to learn. I have also learned of ways to use technology to assist students with learning and physical disabilities.

Our groups were required to establish a Differentiation Station social network to collaborate on UDL/ DI and the use of technology. We shared various web sites that we found to implement into our lessons. This has not only allowed me a multitude of new tools to use, it has also made me realize the importance of establishing a social network of this type for support and sharing of information. By using the various tools we have found, I can differentiate my instruction in a myriad of ways to engage learners at all levels of readiness and skills. I am also grateful for the assistance, understanding, and encouragement of my group members when I was struggling with one of my projects. I truly believe that it is just as important for students to have this social network as it is for teachers. When I am teaching again, I will establish this type of network for my students.

Until I am teaching again, I will not be able to apply any new adjustments to my lessons. I can, however, start going over lesson plans that I use and make revisions to incorporate the use of technology. At the start of each school year, I would like to get the students comfortable digitally recording themselves signing stories. I would also like to have students create a class web site and class blog to use for displaying work and collaborating with peers. Finally, I am contemplating having my students use an e-portfolio for storing their final products. All three of the presenters in our course, Drs. Carol Ann Tomlinson, Grace Smith, and Stephanie Throne, were in agreement that teachers need to start with one or two things that they want to change. Once they feel comfortable or confident with the changes they are making, they can move forward to the next change. The important thing is to keep moving forward, and this is what I plan to do.