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Jennifer Perkins Home Learn More Standards Inspiration About the Author |
About the Author
Hello! My name is Jennifer Perkins, and I am in my dream profession right now as an upper elementary school teacher in the Napa Valley. Both of my parents were dynamic educators who devoted their professional lives to impacting their students in a motivational, and innovative way. I grew up in a home where education was not only valued, but where it was a career choice that led to fulfillment, joy, and impact. There was never a time I doubted that I wanted to be a teacher.
Working with children on a daily basis, and watching them develop and grow educationally and personally is extremely fulfilling and motivating. As a teacher, I am always learning and growing right along with my students. I am always looking for new ways to enhance my teaching skills. I am incredibly thankful to NapaLearns for providing me with the opportunity to do this through Touro University’s Master’s in Innovative Learning program. Because of the support of NapaLearns, I have been able to enhance my teaching alongside my creative, hard-working, and innovative colleagues in Cohort 16.
I am passionate about instilling positive growth mindset principles in my classroom. This was something I knew I wanted to implement into my research topic because I believe that teaching students to apply a growth mindset in their learning will positively affect their academic success. I chose to focus on mathematics because I wanted to see my students become engaged and motivated in math, increase student performance, and develop innovative teaching techniques. This led to my Essential Question: How does implementing technology and a growth mindset increase student performance in the mathematics classroom? You can read more about my learning here: http://jperkins.weebly.com/
Working with children on a daily basis, and watching them develop and grow educationally and personally is extremely fulfilling and motivating. As a teacher, I am always learning and growing right along with my students. I am always looking for new ways to enhance my teaching skills. I am incredibly thankful to NapaLearns for providing me with the opportunity to do this through Touro University’s Master’s in Innovative Learning program. Because of the support of NapaLearns, I have been able to enhance my teaching alongside my creative, hard-working, and innovative colleagues in Cohort 16.
I am passionate about instilling positive growth mindset principles in my classroom. This was something I knew I wanted to implement into my research topic because I believe that teaching students to apply a growth mindset in their learning will positively affect their academic success. I chose to focus on mathematics because I wanted to see my students become engaged and motivated in math, increase student performance, and develop innovative teaching techniques. This led to my Essential Question: How does implementing technology and a growth mindset increase student performance in the mathematics classroom? You can read more about my learning here: http://jperkins.weebly.com/
Reflections on My Journey
Teaching is an ever-evolving field, and I feel so fortunate to be in a program where I have learned new and innovative tools and teaching design models that are geared towards helping me reach ALL of my students. These tools help prepare them to develop 21st Century skills in order to thrive in the future workforce. What drew me towards the Innovative Learning Master’s degree was how applicable this program’s curriculum is to teaching today. Focusing on learning effective teaching practices in multicultural school systems to prepare my students for future success is essential.
My journey through Touro's Master's in Innovative Learning Program exposed me to many new ideas, as well as introduced me to different instructional models. My students used a Common Core aligned math program in tandem with online programs such as Prodigy, Khan Academy, and Sumdog to support student learning. Through our Digital Tools for Edu-Vators class, I learned how to create video content to put into Google Classroom for my students to use during small group rotations in class. This was used as part of an In-Class Flip model of learning. I used Google Classroom to get immediate student feedback and provide 1:1 support. This technology provided the opportunity to redesign student learning experiences based on student feedback. This allowed me to learn from my students, and make sure I was reaching each child by individualizing instruction while maintaining high expectations.
Students benefited from consistent growth mindset instruction throughout this study. Beneficial growth mindset resources included impactful read-aloud books, growth-mindset bracelets, student feedback forms, and continued growth mindset reflection time for my students. The combination of a growth mindset, strong technology support, and rigorous common-core aligned curriculum led to increased student performance.
My journey through Touro's Master's in Innovative Learning Program exposed me to many new ideas, as well as introduced me to different instructional models. My students used a Common Core aligned math program in tandem with online programs such as Prodigy, Khan Academy, and Sumdog to support student learning. Through our Digital Tools for Edu-Vators class, I learned how to create video content to put into Google Classroom for my students to use during small group rotations in class. This was used as part of an In-Class Flip model of learning. I used Google Classroom to get immediate student feedback and provide 1:1 support. This technology provided the opportunity to redesign student learning experiences based on student feedback. This allowed me to learn from my students, and make sure I was reaching each child by individualizing instruction while maintaining high expectations.
Students benefited from consistent growth mindset instruction throughout this study. Beneficial growth mindset resources included impactful read-aloud books, growth-mindset bracelets, student feedback forms, and continued growth mindset reflection time for my students. The combination of a growth mindset, strong technology support, and rigorous common-core aligned curriculum led to increased student performance.
Lasting Learning from the Innovative Learning Program
One of my goals before entering this program was to learn how to best utilize 21st century resources in order to maximize learning opportunities for all of my students. I wanted to learn more about this in order to close achievement gaps, and to provide learning experiences that reach each individual student. The TPACK Model was instrumental in helping me reach this goal (this is a goal that will continue throughout my career!).
Our students now have more access to knowledge than at any other time through technology. Because times are changing, our teaching needs to change with it. This is why TPACK is an effective model for 21st Century teaching and learning.TPACK focuses on Content, Pedagogy, and Technology.
The Content focuses on what is being taught. I have used instructional strategies such as Think-Pair-Share, note-taking, higher-level questioning, growth mindset lessons, and student interviews. To design instruction for each individual student I have broken my content into small groups for math, and facilitated student conversations for students to use inquiry in mathematics. I have used a combination of direct instruction, small group intervention, small group core-instruction, and small group enrichment. Students participated in an in-class flipped model of learning. Students engaged in growth mindset lessons geared towards increasing their mindset, specifically in mathematics.
The Pedagogy focuses on how to teach it. This includes facts and concepts. For my Essential Question, it was imperative to study the math curriculum and standards that drive each lesson. I researched about the brain and how to implement a growth mindset in the classroom, and applied my research to designing student instruction. I facilitated student conversations about their thinking while using math vocabulary, taught with direct instruction in a whole-group setting, and broke students into small groups. I made sure to build in time for student reflection and feedback. Students reflected on what was most effective for their learning, specifically in reference to a growth mindset and technology. I applied their feedback directly into my teaching and calibrated my instruction. Throughout this study, I provided students with feedback as well. This collaborative time allowed for students to interact with the content in a meaningful way, and for me to learn from my students and make sure I am reaching each student by individualizing instruction while maintaining high expectations.
The Technology includes the tools that allow students to represent ideas and share them with one another. With access to technology, students can experience alternate forms of learning. This includes web based videos and support, a flipped classroom model, and providing multiple ways for students to demonstrate their learning. As educators, we know that students learn in many different modalities. Technology is a tool that can be used to help students learn in a more individualized way. It is important to remember that technology is a support to content, not a replacement of content. It should be used to strengthen our lessons and support student learning and understanding.
Essential Question Growth and Evolution
My Essential Question has grown and evolved over the course of Touro’s Master’s program, particularly in the area of technology. I originally thought focusing on inquiry to engage my students in mathematics would be part of my Essential Question. As we progressed through our classes, I began getting more excited about the results that came from using the new technology we were learning about. As I began implementing the new tech tools and ideas in my classroom, and saw how positively my kids were responding, I began to shift my focus. My students loved the CCSS aligned math programs Sumdog and Prodigy. To create a more individualized approach to learning, I created content for an in-class flipped model of teaching through Google Classroom. Implementing this new technology ended up yielding the results I was looking for: increased student motivation, greater creativity shown in math, and increased student performance. I believe that I grew as an educator in the “Technological Knowledge” portion of the TPACK approach to teaching. This helped me move to the "sweet spot" of teaching in the mathematics classroom. The "sweet spot" is when all three pedagogical contents areas overlap.
Our students now have more access to knowledge than at any other time through technology. Because times are changing, our teaching needs to change with it. This is why TPACK is an effective model for 21st Century teaching and learning.TPACK focuses on Content, Pedagogy, and Technology.
The Content focuses on what is being taught. I have used instructional strategies such as Think-Pair-Share, note-taking, higher-level questioning, growth mindset lessons, and student interviews. To design instruction for each individual student I have broken my content into small groups for math, and facilitated student conversations for students to use inquiry in mathematics. I have used a combination of direct instruction, small group intervention, small group core-instruction, and small group enrichment. Students participated in an in-class flipped model of learning. Students engaged in growth mindset lessons geared towards increasing their mindset, specifically in mathematics.
The Pedagogy focuses on how to teach it. This includes facts and concepts. For my Essential Question, it was imperative to study the math curriculum and standards that drive each lesson. I researched about the brain and how to implement a growth mindset in the classroom, and applied my research to designing student instruction. I facilitated student conversations about their thinking while using math vocabulary, taught with direct instruction in a whole-group setting, and broke students into small groups. I made sure to build in time for student reflection and feedback. Students reflected on what was most effective for their learning, specifically in reference to a growth mindset and technology. I applied their feedback directly into my teaching and calibrated my instruction. Throughout this study, I provided students with feedback as well. This collaborative time allowed for students to interact with the content in a meaningful way, and for me to learn from my students and make sure I am reaching each student by individualizing instruction while maintaining high expectations.
The Technology includes the tools that allow students to represent ideas and share them with one another. With access to technology, students can experience alternate forms of learning. This includes web based videos and support, a flipped classroom model, and providing multiple ways for students to demonstrate their learning. As educators, we know that students learn in many different modalities. Technology is a tool that can be used to help students learn in a more individualized way. It is important to remember that technology is a support to content, not a replacement of content. It should be used to strengthen our lessons and support student learning and understanding.
Essential Question Growth and Evolution
My Essential Question has grown and evolved over the course of Touro’s Master’s program, particularly in the area of technology. I originally thought focusing on inquiry to engage my students in mathematics would be part of my Essential Question. As we progressed through our classes, I began getting more excited about the results that came from using the new technology we were learning about. As I began implementing the new tech tools and ideas in my classroom, and saw how positively my kids were responding, I began to shift my focus. My students loved the CCSS aligned math programs Sumdog and Prodigy. To create a more individualized approach to learning, I created content for an in-class flipped model of teaching through Google Classroom. Implementing this new technology ended up yielding the results I was looking for: increased student motivation, greater creativity shown in math, and increased student performance. I believe that I grew as an educator in the “Technological Knowledge” portion of the TPACK approach to teaching. This helped me move to the "sweet spot" of teaching in the mathematics classroom. The "sweet spot" is when all three pedagogical contents areas overlap.