Reflecting on What I Know - Chapter 2

How do I plan an integrated lesson that will work with my students?
In order to plan an integrated lesson that will be effective with a specific set of students, a teacher must consider a few factors. First, the teacher must decide how long the integrated lesson will last. This will depend on how quickly students will work, how complicate the lesson is, and how much content needs to be covered. After the teacher decides the length of the lesson that will be most appropriate for her students, the teacher needs to consider the attention span of the students. The teacher should also plan the lesson expecting that all of the objectives cannot be taught with the computer. The teacher should make use of other classroom resources to make sure the lesson is fully integrated.

Why do I need objectives to help with my planning and lesson development?
Specifying objectives is the first step of the Ten-Step NTEQ Model and is a very crucial and important process in lesson development. Objectives are an all-inclusive statement of the lesson and describe what the outcome of the lesson should be. They define specific skills and target abilities for students to have when the lesson has completed. Objectives are also one way of making sure that your lesson plan is aligned with the goals and standards of the school district that you are teaching in. While the basis of objectives should come from the district's goals, the teacher should further refine these goals and add to them to create appropriate objectives for his or her classroom.

How can I encourage my students to engage in the processing of information?

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When a student is engaged in the processing of information, it is more likely that they will remember what they have learned and enjoy the learning process in general. We can encourage students to be more engaged by specifying problems in our lessons that are relatable to the students. The problems that we create should be based on events that come from the students' real world experiences. As teachers, we should attempt to make the problem as relevant as we can to students. If a problem is relevant and relatable, the student will understand what they are trying to learn and will be more interested in learning about something that pertains to them personally. We can better engage students in learning by making sure that the problems they attempt to solve are real world problems that they have, or may face in the future.

Do I have to use a different lesson plan when I want my students to use computers?
When creating a lesson plan in which students use computers, it is very important to use the NTeQ model because of its adaptability and usefulness. First of all, the NTeQ model ensure the computer is used as a tool, rather than as an instructor. We want the computers to help students solve the problem instead of giving instruction. The NTeQ model is also preferred because of its use of integration, or combining all of the elements of the lesson together to form the best lesson possible.

What is the relationship between objectives and computer functions?
In order to ensure that the lesson being created is fully integrated, a teacher needs to match objectives and computer functions. This step is important because it brings technology into the attempt to meet objectives. For example, objectives often include the words graph and sort, which are objectives that can easily be completed by computer programs like spreadsheets and word processors. Computer functions help us meet our objectives in an easy and timely manner. They also make sure that we are using technology in the most appropriate way throughout the lesson.

Can you use a computer for every objective or lesson?
Computers are wonderful tools that aid in the teaching of students in so many ways. They are an excellent way of recording and analyzing data. They are a quick and efficient way of finding research information. Computers even provide us with ways to communicate with learners across the globe. As the NTeQ Model suggests, and as noted above, we can match any objective to a computer function. While it is possible that computers can be used for every objective and lesson that is present in a classroom, I do not believe it is always appropriate to use them. Students should be exposed to a variety of learning approaches and tools, including computers. Although computers are a major part of the educational world, there is still a small place for lessons taught on whiteboards and tests or short papers that are handwritten.