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Like some of what you've seen so far? Want to know more about me and my philosophies on teaching? Here's a little more info below.Wehrley: Home Learn More Standards Inspiration About the Author |
About the Author
Just a picture from a non-virtual world.
I wouldn’t consider myself to be much of a stereotypical “gamer.” When I was younger, my mother didn’t allow video games in our house, so the only video games I ever played while growing up were the ones I played with my friends when I was hanging out with them at their houses. I didn’t actually own my first true video game console until I was in college. Even now, as an adult and a teacher, I spend most of my time planning lessons and grading student papers rather than playing video games.
However, I do consider myself to be a creator. I like writing stories, drawing cartoons, filming skits, recording songs, and learning to make video games. Before learning more about the human brain and the process that human beings go through to learn, I used to think of each of these hobbies as separate activities. However, I have now realized that the human brain is the hardware that transforms novels and movies and video games into virtual worlds. Our brain is the universal component that makes all of these virtual worlds possible—regardless of the medium in which they are presented.
This epiphany has led me to a new direction in teaching. I am now exploring the relationship between different mediums and how I can teach my students to be travelers who can hop between one medium and another. I want my students to break down stories and comic books and videos and games and plays and virtual reality environments—and I want my students to create them, too. By utilizing many different types of multimodal texts, from text-only narratives all the way through interactive narrative video games, I plan to leverage all of my students’ literacy abilities. In teaching my students to be creators and to see the world through this lens, I hope to help them improve their abilities to make meaning and to express that meaning to others both in high school and beyond.
However, I do consider myself to be a creator. I like writing stories, drawing cartoons, filming skits, recording songs, and learning to make video games. Before learning more about the human brain and the process that human beings go through to learn, I used to think of each of these hobbies as separate activities. However, I have now realized that the human brain is the hardware that transforms novels and movies and video games into virtual worlds. Our brain is the universal component that makes all of these virtual worlds possible—regardless of the medium in which they are presented.
This epiphany has led me to a new direction in teaching. I am now exploring the relationship between different mediums and how I can teach my students to be travelers who can hop between one medium and another. I want my students to break down stories and comic books and videos and games and plays and virtual reality environments—and I want my students to create them, too. By utilizing many different types of multimodal texts, from text-only narratives all the way through interactive narrative video games, I plan to leverage all of my students’ literacy abilities. In teaching my students to be creators and to see the world through this lens, I hope to help them improve their abilities to make meaning and to express that meaning to others both in high school and beyond.
Reflections on My TPACK Journey
The brain. It’s all about the brain.
What do I mean by this? I mean that a teacher’s technological knowledge, pedagogical knowledge, and content knowledge all revolve around students’ abilities to process information in their own brains.
Teachers who can integrate this knowledge effectively know how to utilize specific types of sensory tools at specific stages of the learning process to help students situate new information in a meaningful context. When teachers leverage TPACK in a thoughtful and cohesive way, students can build connections in their brains to their own prior background knowledge and experience; that creates real learning.
Based on my experiences in the Innovative Learning Master’s program, including time spent learning about the human brain, I’ve come to the following realizations:
Technological Knowledge means:
Pedagogical Knowledge means:
Content Knowledge means:
By utilizing specific forms of technology to provide specific inputs to student brains at specific times during the learning process, a teacher can help their students to draw connections to their own background knowledge and experience. This allows students to make sense of the content they are encountering and to experience that content in a more effective and meaningful way.
What do I mean by this? I mean that a teacher’s technological knowledge, pedagogical knowledge, and content knowledge all revolve around students’ abilities to process information in their own brains.
Teachers who can integrate this knowledge effectively know how to utilize specific types of sensory tools at specific stages of the learning process to help students situate new information in a meaningful context. When teachers leverage TPACK in a thoughtful and cohesive way, students can build connections in their brains to their own prior background knowledge and experience; that creates real learning.
Based on my experiences in the Innovative Learning Master’s program, including time spent learning about the human brain, I’ve come to the following realizations:
Technological Knowledge means:
- Being aware of and familiar with the technologies available to create, utilize, and transmit sensory input, such as images, sounds, text, and one’s sense of touch.
Pedagogical Knowledge means:
- Having an understanding of what, how, and when specific technology can be used to target specific phases of the learning process with specific types of sensory input.
Content Knowledge means:
- Knowing how to translate and disseminate the ideas, information, systems, and skills that are common to a specific subject area by situating that content in different contexts, including situating that content in a context students can relate to and understand.
By utilizing specific forms of technology to provide specific inputs to student brains at specific times during the learning process, a teacher can help their students to draw connections to their own background knowledge and experience. This allows students to make sense of the content they are encountering and to experience that content in a more effective and meaningful way.
Lasting Learning from the Innovative Learning program
Throughout my time in the Touro Innovative Learning Master’s program, I’ve expanded my knowledge on many topics, including how students process sensory information, how they commit that information to memory, how they make meaning through this process, and how teachers can leverage specific techniques and understandings to initiate and maximize this learning process.
I’ve also learned how different technologies can support this process. Many of these technologies are already being utilized by students in their everyday lives, including video games, smartphone apps, and online communities. In many ways, the students of today are actually far more literate than their teachers. After having developed my own deeper understanding of how these technologies can be used in education, I would now like to share what I have learned in this program so that I can help other teachers to become more literate in these areas themselves.
I’ve also learned how different technologies can support this process. Many of these technologies are already being utilized by students in their everyday lives, including video games, smartphone apps, and online communities. In many ways, the students of today are actually far more literate than their teachers. After having developed my own deeper understanding of how these technologies can be used in education, I would now like to share what I have learned in this program so that I can help other teachers to become more literate in these areas themselves.