Teachers everyday lesson plans involving designing and developing everything that is encompassed into one lesson. This is anything from criteria to time length to activities. Lesson plan development involves “all activities that teachers do to create, teach, and evaluate lessons with students, encompassing a teachers decisions about three interrelated elements of classroom instruction: academic content - what to teach, teaching goals, methods, procedure - how to teach, and learning assessments - how to know what students have learned” (Maloy, et al, 2013, p. 76).
In regards to the academic content teachers need to follow the school system guidelines and the state/national curriculum frameworks. But, “teachers must choose what will be explored or explained to students each day” (Maloy, et al, 2013, p. 76).
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| Photo credits to Wesley Fryer on Playing with Media |
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| Photo credits to Bill Ferriter on Flickr |
Technology plays an essential role in assisting teachers in what to teach. “Using internet, search engines electronic databases, online encyclopedias, blogs, wikis, and other technology tools, teachers and students can gain access to powerful new ways to research and retrieve information” (Maloy, et al, 2013, p. 76). “Digital content available on the internet includes a vast collection of curriculum resources and information” (Maloy, et al, 2013, p. 76).
Teachers must also decide the teaching goals, methods, and procedures that they will use. The goals are the reason why a lesson is being taught, the methods are the “instructional strategies teachers use to convey academic content to students” either being large or small groups, discussion, lectures, role plays, simulations, case studies, inquiry based activities, creative writing, learning and reflection journals, drill-and- practice exercises, online tutors, learning games, and the procedures are the “scheduling and grouping of students by teachers during a lesson and the decision of how much time to spend on each activity” (Maloy, et al, 2013, p. 76). Teachers combine these into daily learning, and technology can enhance education when used in a variety of ways:
- presentation software
- visual thinking software
- web based diagram and flowchart making tools
- teacher developed websites
- threaded discussions and emails
- digital portfolios
- student response systems
- online surveys
- learning performance rubrics
Although I am not preparing to be a teacher I believe that it is necessary to keep in mind the steps that teachers take in order to have a successful profession. When I have to lead a discussion or make a presentation it will be beneficial for me to remember to accurately and accordingly plan. When preparing, although I don’t have state/national standards to follow, I should make a conscious decision how long I want my presentation to be. I should also organize the content, plan a procedure, and have an assessment for myself in mind as to what the most important information is and should be conveyed through my presentation.
Teachers have different ways to plan a lesson and they also have different approaches on how execute a lesson. One approach is called the understanding by design. Understanding by design has three main components:
- Stage 1: Identify desired results (enduring understanding and essential questions). To provide a frame for student exploration of a topic, the teacher identifies the lesson’s enduring understanding and its essential questions. Enduring understandings are the big ideas or relevant information that students will remember long after the lesson has been taught. Essential questions are a way to organize the topics that students examine in a lesson.
- Stage 2: Determine acceptable evidence (assessment strategies). The teacher decides what kinds of evidence will show that students have learned the material and can articulate information and ideas about the enduring understandings and essential questions. Evidence includes papers, performances, or other products that students can create using the new knowledge they have learned. Decisions about assessment thus precede the writing of objectives and procedures for the lesson.
- Stage 3: Plan learning experiences and instruction (objectives and methods). Many of the same elements found in a student learning objectives lesson plan are present in a UBD design lesson plan. The teacher chooses learning objectives, identifies teaching methods, and crafts a plan of how the lesson will be conducted.
(Maloy, et al , 2013, p. 79)
Technology can be integrated into classrooms in many ways. One way to enhance a lesson plan is to use a powerpoint. A powerpoint is “a multimedia presentation software package” (Maloy, et al, 2013, p. 220). In order to successfully use a powerpoint it is necessary to understand a powerpoint strengths and weaknesses. Powerpoint uses attention getting techniques such as colorful graphics and pop-up or slide-in windows. A few critiques of Powerpoint are that Powerpoint is presenter oriented and not content or audience oriented. So it is important to remember to not overuse these techniques as they will become a distraction and take the attention away from the content.
“Digital projectors and document cameras are technology tools that expand how Powerpoint can be used as a student-engaging form of information presentation” (Maloy, et al, 2013, p. 220). A digital projector “projects images from a computer to a large screen or a other external veiwing surface” (Maloy, et al, 2013, p. 220). A document camera “captures whatever is under its sense and, when connected to a digital projector or a television set, projects that image onto a large screen or whiteboard” (Maloy, et al, 2013, p. 220). “Both technologies can transform the small screen of a single computer into a classroom-wide, theatre like learning environment, drammatically changing the presentation experience for both viewers and presenters” (Maloy, et al, 2013, p. 220).
Although I won’t be presenting to a classroom I will definitely have a time where I have to present in a professional setting. From past experience I know that when a presentation is thoroughly prepared the delivery of that presentation goes much smoother. Although technology is advancing and Powerpoint is an older technology it is still a commonly used technique that if used successfully can deliver a presentation in an audience and content oriented manner.
With all that you have learned in this class, you can always have education as a secondary goal/major? ;) You are right though to align the lesson planning with just about any presentation you might have in a work situation. One needs to consider the audience and the goals and objectives before you can embark upon the plan. Good reflections. Like your Piktochart, too - you should give credit to yourself for that in the Resources, i.e., Korbel, K. (June 10, 2015). Lesson Planning and PowerPoint created with Piktochart (and then hyperlink to Piktochart site) or something along those lines - it could be APA citation using website criteria.
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