Group Project Reflection by Julie Youngkin

This course has truly been a growing experience. I often shudder at the thought of “group work” in relation to anything that will be assessed. There are too many bad memories of being the only one doing the work and staying up all night to make sure I get a good grade in spite of everyone else’s lack of commitment. However, this was a much different experience. I worked with an exceptional group of ladies that each brought unique talents and exemplary effort to help everyone succeed. I believe the quality of your collaborators makes all the difference!

As our group worked toward a solution to help a teacher integrate technology into her classroom, we researched activities that would meet the needs of every student. We worked hard to plan accommodations for students with disabilities as well as gifted and talented students. Collaborative work was stressed to allow students to learn from each other as well as provide peer support for struggling learners. Additional supports were provided for the students with disabilities including a Braille keyboard, a projection screen to magnify information, multiple forms of text, sound, and video. A variety of strategies were employed to allow students several ways to master the objectives set before them. An interactive mimio lesson was provided for hands-on learning. Kidspiration was used for visual mapping. Multiple links were used to research information to build a group timeline. Presentation software was used to record groups’ findings. Students were given a variety of media for recognition purposes including video segments, sound effects, and online games. They were also given the opportunity to demonstrate what they learned in multiple ways, such as pictures, text, URLS, and presentation slides.

We felt it was important for the teacher to participate in professional development that directly related to her own classroom. She would meet separately with the technology expert to preview the learning activities and try out the new technology before it was implemented with her students. We recommended she reflect upon the new strategies she learned in a blog or wiki so that others could collaborate with her.