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Final Project

Tori Mills

Department of Education, College of Southern Nevada

EDU 214: Preparing Teachers to Use Technology

Professor Steven Saladino

July 24, 2022

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I believe that technology enhances education greatly from where it was before technology

was widely available to the public. We have worked so hard and spent millions of dollars

integrating all this technology into our schools. It would truly be a shame to undo all the hard

work of our teachers and administrators by getting rid of all our technology and reverting back to

traditional teaching methods. Not to mention, we would have to reacquaint students with these

traditional methods again after going through all the effort of getting them acquainted with

utilizing technology and online tools. To the critics of technology in our schools, I do also

believe that there needs to be a clear line where it stops. Technology is a tool to be utilized, and it

has a time and place in the classroom, but technology should not be the baseline go-to for all

lessons and activities. Students should not be absentmindedly staring at a computer screen all

day long, there needs to be activities where they are actively working with traditional materials

or in groups with other students. At work, I hear complaints from first and second grade teachers

that students’ handwriting is practically illegible, because they are typing on the computer so

frequently and do not have many opportunities to improve their handwriting. I would say from

grades kindergarten to second grade, the focus should be on handwriting and traditional

materials, and from third grade on we can introduce technology and teach those skills that are so

important today when everything utilizes technology. From Brookings, “Our review of the

evidence indicates that technology may accelerate student learning when it is used to scale up

access to quality content, facilitate differentiated instruction, increase opportunities for practice,

or when it increases learner engagement.” (Ganimian et al., 2020).

Ganimian, A. J., Vegas, E., & Hess, F. (2020, September 11). Realizing the promise:
How can education technology improve learning for all? Brookings. Retrieved from
https://www.brookings.edu/essay/realizing-the-promise-how-can-education-technology-improve-
learning-for-all/
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There are many things that are similar and different between the Nevada

Performance Indicators compared to the National Educational Technology Standards. Looking at

the biggest contrast first, the national ISTE standards do not have a grade level reference. This

requires more thought and finesse on the teacher’s part to decide whether or not that standard is

too advanced for the grade they are teaching. Nevada standards do have a suggested grade level,

which makes it easier to choose a specific and appropriate standard. I noticed also that the

Nevada technology standards has a far larger number of specific standards than the ISTE

standards. I realize that you would be limited by your grade level, but you could easily

implement some of the higher-level standards with elementary students if introduced with an

appropriately gauged assignment/assessment.

Something similar about both sets of standards that I noticed was that they are both

sophisticated enough to be used in any educational setting. By this I mean that these standards

are open-ended enough to be used for in-person, hybrid, or online settings. As long as students

have the digital resources, both sets of standards can be achieved in a wide array of settings and

also a wide array of lessons. Both sets of standards can be applied to practically any subject if the

teacher is creative enough to design a lesson around it.

The main standard I will be using for my lesson is Nevada standard 1.A.8.1, which

expects students to be able to apply existing knowledge to independently generate new ideas,

products, or processes with digital tools. I chose this standard because it does not focus on

problem solving, it focuses on being creative and simply coming up with your own invention.

Students will use their existing knowledge from the book to come up with their own invention,

and create it using digital tools.

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• Name of lesson: Transportation: Then and Now

• Grade Level Appropriateness: 3

• Technology Content Standard Addressed: Nevada Computer and Technology

Standard 1.A.8.1: Apply existing knowledge to independently generate new ideas,

products, or processes with digital tools.

• Other Content Standard Addressed: NS 11.3.2: Use a variety of library resources,

media, and technology to find information on a topic.

• Objective: Students will be able to use computer assisted drawing tools to generate new

ideas, products, or processes and use resources to find information on the topic.

• Materials needed to facilitate the lesson:

• Transportation Then and Now:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7WME-lWSbDw

• Chromebooks

• Computer mouse (optional)

• Students’ design/drawing software of choice (Google

Drawing/Docs/Slides, Microsoft Paint/Word/PowerPoint)

• Digital worksheet template

• Digital worksheet teacher sample

• Canvas

• Suggested group size: Independent

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• Procedures:

1. Start by having students watch/listen to Transportation Then and Now.

(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7WME-lWSbDw).

2. Introduce that many of these technological advancements came about not only for the

betterment of society, but for safety reasons as well.

3. After you have finished the book, allot 30 seconds for students to discuss one safety

feature from the mode of transportation they use to get to school with their shoulder

partner.

4. Allot another 30 seconds for students to tell their face partner what their shoulder

partner said.

5. Emphasize that this book showed what modes of transportation we had in the past,

and the equivalent modes that we have in today’s world. Ask students to think about

what transportation will look like in 10 years, 20 years, 50 years, etc. Students will

have a chance to design what they think one mode of transportation will look like in

the future, focusing on how to make it safer/more accessible.

6. Students will use their Chromebooks to navigate to Canvas and find the assignment

titled “Transportation: Then and Now”. There, they will see a blue download button

where they can download the template for this assignment. (See download symbol).

Point out the rubric listed under the assignment and what needs to be done to earn full

credit. (See bottom of page).

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7. Students will navigate to their preferred design/drawing program (listed above). As

they do so pull up file labeled “Transportation Then and Now Teacher Example” on

the Smart Board:

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8. Preface that you are using a different invention as an example, and that students will

be choosing one mode of transportation to make their template look like the example.

9. Students will choose one mode of transportation that was invented before 1950. This

can include any examples from the book (covered wagon, the first plane, wooden

ships, trains, etc.) Students may use their Chromebooks to research different modes

and ensure they meet the criteria.

10. In the upper left box labeled THEN, students will use simple shapes or drawing tools

to depict what they have chosen, and list 2-3 downsides or risks of traveling this way.

(This can include health risks, environmental risks, accident statistics, etc.) Students

may NOT use online images or clip art to depict their mode of transportation.
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11. In the upper right box labeled NOW, students will choose the modern day equivalent

of the mode of transportation they chose from 1951-2022. (A car for a covered

wagon, subway for a train, just as the book did.) Students will use simple shapes or

drawing tools to depict it and list 2-3 features that make today’s invention safer than

the past invention.

12. In the lower left box labeled THEN, students will depict the modern day mode of

transportation (they may copy and paste the drawing they have already made in the

previous box, see shortcuts below). Students will then list 2-3 risks or downsides to

the modern day transportation.

13. In the lower right box labeled NOW, students will depict what they think this mode of

transportation will look like in the future (from 2023 on). Students will focus on how

to make their mode of transportation safer and/or more accessible, and list 2-3

features that make their invention better than what we have today. Students may

research current/ongoing technological developments.

14. When students are finished, they will save their template as a JPEG, PNG, or PDF

and turn it in to the appropriate assignment on Canvas.

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• Assessment: This project will be graded using a rubric. Students will be graded in three

categories, as follows:

1= Approaches 2= Meets standard 3= Exceeds

standard standard
Appropriate use of Did not use listed Used listed Used listed
digital and research programs or programs but did programs and
tools template from not use template correct template
Canvas
Original, creative Invention was not Invention lacks Invention is original
design of new turned in, not creativity or and goes with the
transportation original, or used switches modes of chosen mode of
method online pictures transportation transportation
Uses background Features do not Features lack Features are
knowledge and improve on past thought, or there are thought out and
research to design designs or are less less than 2 listed improve on past
and explain new safe designs
transportation