Article Summaries 1

Running head: ARTICLE SUMMARIES

Article Summaries

Maggie Davis (Margaret Moore)

Georgia Southern University

 Article Summaries 2

Boling, E., Castek, J., Zawilinski, L., Barton, K., & Nierlich, T. (2008). Collaborative literacy:

blogs and internet projects. Reading Teacher, 61(6), 504-506. Retrieved September 29,

2009, from Academic Search Complete database.

Professional Practice

Summary:

This article describes ways teachers can incorporate popular technology, such as blogs

and wikis, into the classroom. A third grade teacher incorporated the use of blogs into her

classroom on a regular basis by requiring the students to write their thoughts about a weekly

topic on the classroom blog. A fourth grade teacher created a classroom blog so that students

can have an online group discussion in order to share ideas. Another teacher had students blog

with other students in the Philippines as part of class project. Teachers notice that when blogs

are used in the classroom, students are more motivated to complete an assignment and are far

more engaged than if they were completing a typical “pen and paper” assignment.

Collaborative internet projects were another focus of this article. A 5th grade classroom

in Connecticut and a 4th and 5th grade combination classroom in California collaborated on a

project about national parks. The students created a wiki that was designed to encourage others

to visit the national parks. The authors found that teaching the students to use the wiki was

very difficult and that many corrections had to be made throughout the process. As with the

classroom blogs, the authors found that students were more engaged in the project and far more

motivated than if they were to complete a “typical” assignment.

 Article Summaries 3

Critique:

With the abundance of technology available to today’s students, it seems only natural to

incorporate more technology into the classroom. While I commend the authors for finding

success with the blogs and wikis, I can’t imagine that everyone has had such great success.

With the filters and blocks placed on many county servers, it has become increasingly difficult to

incorporate technology into the classroom, even if the technology is “just” a blog or a wiki. It

would have been helpful to know how common using blogs and wikis are in the classroom, and

if the authors encountered any problems using the technology with the blocks typically placed on

the servers.

The authors completed these activities with upper elementary school children. I am

curious as to how effective these assignments would be in a high school setting. Today’s high

school students are definitely technology savvy, and when placed on school computers for any

assignment, they must be watched like hawks. It would have interested me to have a high school

teacher comment on his experiences with blogs and wikis in the classroom. Between the county

filters and the technology savvy students, incorporating technology into a lesson could be more

of a hassle than a true authentic assessment.

 Article Summaries 4

Cooper, E. (2009). Overloading on slides: Cognitive load theory and Microsoft’s slide program

powerpoint. AACE Journal, 17 (2), 127-135. Retrieved September 29, 2009, from

Academic Search Complete database.

Theory into Practice

Summary:

Cognitive Load Theory (CLT) states that the brain has a limited about of space to absorb

new material. As the amount of technology in the classroom increases, researchers have been

concerned with the ability of children to absorb all of the information presented in multimedia

formats. This article focuses on the use of multimedia in the classroom and its effects o on the

learning of children.

The author begins by describing three theories that educators must remember when

designing multimedia presentations, the Dual Channel Assumption, the Limited Capacity

Assumption and the Active Processing Assumption. These three theories describe the abilities

of the working memory, the limited capacity for storing and organizing information and how the

mind processes information. Educators typically overload the brain of children during

multimedia presentations when both sounds and text, or text and pictures are used

simultaneously.

In order to keep the brain from overloading, the method in which one presents new

information must be presented in a certain way. Dr. Richard Mayer conducted a study to

determine how an educator could incorporate multimedia presentations with effective learning

strategies. He found that students learn more effectively from multimedia presentations rather
 Article Summaries 5

than from strictly verbal presentations. He also found that students need narration and pictures

presented simultaneously rather than consecutively for optimal learning to take place. The

amount of unnecessary video and sound should be limited as to not overload the brain.

As Power Point is becoming more common in the classroom, students have become

overloaded with stimulation. Many studies were done to determine whether Power Point was

effective in a classroom setting. Some researchers determined that Power Point presentations

used in classrooms were inundated with pointless information and contained distracting

transitions. The extra features that Power Point offers can cause the learner to lose sight of how

the presentation is organized, resulting in the lack of retention of information. In order for

Power Point to be effective, one must take extra time to create slides that do not distract the

learner. This is critical for meaningful learning to take place.

Critique:

With the addition of Smartboards and computers in the classroom, teachers are using

multimedia presentations more often in their lessons. In my opinion, children are using

technology more and more in their private lives, to a point at which they come to expect the use

of technology in school. As their videos games keep them entertained on the weekends, they

expect teachers to entertain them in the classroom. While educators want their students to be

engaged in the lesson, using these multimedia presentations seems more like a form of

entertainment.

The author makes numerous references to the working memory of the brain. The brain

is only capable of keeping a small amount of information within its working memory at any

given moment. She states that too many sounds, videos, etc. along with text and pictures creates
 Article Summaries 6

too much information for a student’s brain to process. If research shows that the brain can be

overloaded very easily, then why is there such a push to use multimedia in the classroom?

Every administrator that I have ever worked for has pushed the use of technology by the teachers

in the classroom. It seems to me that if researchers are saying that students cannot handle such

overload, then why are administrators still continuing to mandate the use of such technology

regularly?

However, I do agree that some technology should be used in the classroom. I think that

being able to show the students video clips from news stories that are pertinent to the lesson is a

good thing. I also think that there are many appropriate interactive websites available to teachers

that, when used on the Smartboard, engages a class in a lesson. All educators, including

administrators, would find this article useful as many of them are overloading the brains of their

students every day.

 Article Summaries 7

Cutshall, S. (2009). Clicking across cultures. Educational Leadership, 67(1), 40-44. Retrieved

September 29, 2009, from Academic Search Complete database.

Professional Practice

Summary:

Today’s 21st century learner is being encouraged to master a second language. As

foreign language teachers try to teach a language to a room full of students in a regular

classroom, many students need to use the language in appropriate context to actually master the

language. Only a few students are able to travel abroad to study a second language, so teachers

are encouraged to use available technology to help students comprehend this new language.

Such technologies include Skype, wikis and other conversational tools.

Skype is free software that allows its users to make free international calls over the

internet. The users can purchase an inexpensive webcam so that they each user can see each in

real time. To work around the time differences, teachers can also set up blogs and wikis so that

students can communicate with students from other countries. When students are able to call

someone or write to someone in another country and speak, hear and read the native language,

learning the language becomes real and meaningful.

The author describes several foreign language classrooms that use technology to help

students learn a new language. Specifically, the author discusses the language of Hindi; this is

a common foreign language that is rarely taught in public schools. A program and curriculum

has been established recently so that U.S. students can interact with students in India, thus

promoting conversations and meaningful learning between the two cultures.

 Article Summaries 8

Critique:

Anytime students can find a project, class, or even a lesson meaningful, then the teacher

has done a good job!!! It is refreshing to hear that students are actually excited to learn a new

language. Being able to communicate with native speakers regularly is certainly a plus when

learning the new language. It does make learning difficult languages seem pertinent and

meaningful.

I have my doubts, though, when it comes to using such technology in the classroom. I

have said before that our county places many blocks on the county server so that all technology

that involves communication with others is blocked. Being able to use Skype, wikis, etc. in the

classroom is extremely rare. While the author tells of enormous strides that are being taken in a

foreign language classroom, there will have to be many changes in the current thinking of our

administrators in order to put these new technologies in every classroom.

 Article Summaries 9

Hamlen, K. (2009). Relationships between computer and video game play and creativity among

upper elementary school students. Journal of Educational Computing Research, 40(1), 1-

21. Retrieved September 29, 2009, from Academic Search Complete database.

Research

Summary:

The use of technology by school children has increased dramatically over the last few

years. I-Pods, MP3 players, the Wii, etc. now have a place in the homes of many children. With

the increasing number of children using technology and playing video games on a regular basis,

a study was done to determine whether or not playing video games contributed to the creativity

of children in the classroom. The author introduces her study by finding links between children

who are creative and those who play video games. Thinking outside the box, curiosity, and

perserverance are traits that one would find in the typical video game player and the creative

child. Fourth and fifth grade students at a suburban school, along with their parents, completed

surveys about the child’s video game habits. The students were then asked to complete the

Torrence Test of Creative Thinking (TTCT) to measure the child’s creative ability.

The results of the study showed that, at this point, there is no relationship between the

time that children spend playing video games and the amount of general creativity that the child

has. The author of this study was clear to point out that further research is needed to confirm

these results. However, she did conclude that boys play more video games than girls, the

amount of time that children play video games increases with age and that when children are in

school, they spend less time playing video games.

 Article Summaries 10

Critique:

As a parent of small children, I am very much against the use of video games by my

children in my house. I have always believed that my children need to spend their time reading a

book or using their imagination rather than immersing themselves into the latest video game.

Both of my elementary school children have taken the TTCT and subsequently have been placed

within the gifted program. While the author points out that there is no relationship between time

spent playing video games and the amount of creativity a child has, she also makes it clear that

she does not believe that playing video games takes away from the skills needed to develop

creativity. I have trouble believing that children do not lose skills when playing games, or at the

very least, misses out on some important “skill building” time when playing video games.

This study was done using elementary aged children who are still developing cognitive

and creative skills. I would have liked to have seen this same study completed using teenagers.

Teenagers are technology driven and require the use of many electronic devices in order to keep

their attention. I would have found it useful to see how long teenagers play video games during

the school year and what kind of impact these games have not only on creativity, but on

academic performance as well.

 Article Summaries 11

Mun, W., Hew, K., & Cheung, W. (2009). The impact of the use of response pad system on the

learning of secondary school physics concepts: A Singapore quasi-experiment study.

British Journal of Educational Technology, 40(5), 848-860. Retrieved September 29,

2009, from Academic Search Complete database.

Research

Summary:

Teachers within classrooms are typically unable to provide immediate feedback for

every student within a short period of time. While small group instruction enables the teacher to

provide instant feedback, there are some classrooms in which small group instruction is difficult.

Many classrooms still provide whole group instruction regularly. In order to give immediate

feedback to students, response pad systems (RPS) are being used more regularly. A response pad

system consists of a transmitter that students use to select their response to a question, a receiver

to collect the student responses and a computer that has software installed to interpret all of the

responses. Students are able to answer questions from the teacher anonymously, and they

receive feedback from the teacher via the computer instantly. The teacher can then adjust his

teacher style accordingly. A study was done to determine if there was a difference in

performance of students who used a response pad system than students who did not.

Two classes of physics students, each with thirty five students a piece, participated in the

study. Each class was taught the same material for the same amount of time. However, when

the teachers were teaching the lesson and wanted feedback from the students, one class provided

answers via the response pad system, while the other class had only seven students provide
 Article Summaries 12

answers. These answers were verbal due to the length of time it took to gather the responses..

Both classes were then given a post-test. The results showed that the class using the response

pad system outscored the other class significantly. Teachers found the response pad system to

be beneficial in the classroom. They claimed it to be very user friendly, and liked how it

afforded everyone in the classroom an equal opportunity to participate without embarrassment.

Critique:

Out of all the technology that I have tried in the classroom, I have liked using the RPS the

best. I agree with the author in that using this system allows everyone a chance to participate

without any embarrassment if the student answers the question incorrectly. It also has given

me immediate feedback so that I know instantly what topics I need to teach again. In my

experience, students also like to know where they stand within the class, meaning that they like

to know if they understand a topic that no one else comprehends.

In this particular study, I thought that the researcher should have spent more time using

the RPS in order to get more accurate results. Between the pre-test and post-test, there were

only four one hour lessons using the response pad system. While an increase in score was shown

using the RPS, I felt that just four hours of teaching was not quite long enough to get an accurate

result. The author does make note of this in his conclusion suggesting the use of the RPS by a

class for an entire semester.

 Article Summaries 13

Salend, S. (2009). Technology-based classroom assessments. Teaching Exceptional Children,

41(6), 48-58. Retrieved September 29, 2009, from Academic Search Complete database.

Professional Practice

Summary:

As the use of technology grows within a classroom, teachers are using technology as a

way to assess a student’s knowledge about a topic. This article explores the many ways

teachers can have technology based classroom assessments.

The use of response pad systems (RPS) is extremely common in a classroom and are a

wonderful way to assess students’ knowledge. RPS consists of a student transmitter for

students to record a response to a question, a teacher receiver for receiving the response and a

computer with appropriate software to interpret the responses. Teachers are able to assess

students’ knowledge immediately and change their teaching style if need be. Students are able

to receive feedback instantly thus knowing exactly which topics they need to review again.

Digital diaries are another way to use technology to assess students. Teachers can

document a student’s performance in class, both academic and behavioral, for others to view in

an eportfolio. Both the educator and the student’s family can make note of a student’s progress,

plus they can identify skills and behaviors that need to be improved.

Technology based educational games can be used to assess a student. Between software

that is available and websites online, there are numerous games available to assess a student’s

knowledge about a subject. These games make learning “fun” for the student, thus it increases

motivation and participation among the students.

 Article Summaries 14

Technology based performance assessments can play a huge role in problem based

learning. It allows students to use a wide range of technology to complete open ended activities

and create authentic products. This can include using presentation software such as Power

Point, Keynote and Impress and add on software for video and animations such as Preezo and

Impactica. Creating blogs, websites, digital videos, etc. can also be used as an authentic

product. Many blogs are free as are webpages and websites.

Virtual learning experiences, such as virtual labs and computer simulations are popular

within classrooms as well. Students can take on a virtual role and be a part of a real life

learning situation. Students can work in groups to tackle a webquest or work individually

completing a virtual dissection. Either way, students are being assessed on knowledge they

have gained by means of technology.

Critique:

I found this article to be extremely useful. I am always looking for new ideas for my

instruction. The author provided numerous websites, software, etc. for each of the technologies

that were discussed. This article would be useful to anyone who wishes to become more

“technology literate” in the classroom.

While I enjoyed all of the sites provided to the reader, I am concerned with the amount of

material that, in reality, is not available to teachers. With the amount of material on the web that

is blocked by my county, it becomes impossible to have the students complete online blogs,

wikis, webpages, etc. because so much of the material is blocked by the county server. If

administrators and other “officials” want to see more technology in the classroom, then they are

going to have to make the material available regularly to educators. If they cannot make the
 Article Summaries 15

material available, then all the money they are spending on computers, etc. needs to be spent on

something else.
 Article Summaries 16

Yan, J. (2008). Social technology as a new medium in the classroom. New England Journal of

Higher Education, 22(4), 27-30. Retrieved September 29, 2009, from Academic Search

Complete database.

Professional Practice

Summary:

Although technology has been used in the classroom for a few years, a branch of

technology that is still considered relatively new in the classroom is social networking. Social

network sites such as Facebook and Myspace have been used for a couple of years for private

social networking, but now many teachers are starting to use social networking as a tool for

students in the classroom. Online collaboration tools increase motivation among students,

enhance creativity and allow for better communication between students and teachers.

The author describes the benefits of many online collaboration/networking tools. For

example, the use of blogs in the classroom has many benefits. Online journals, otherwise

known as blogs, are great tools for both teachers and students. Teachers can create a class blog,

and post class announcements, notes from a lesson, and test material for an upcoming test.

Students are able to respond to the blog, ask questions, and share information with other

students. Blogs are typically free and can be set up in just a few minutes.

Another online tool the author describes is a wiki. Wikis are used as a collaboration

tool in which students can work on group projects without ever seeing each other face to face.

Teachers can set up a wiki within just a few minutes and allow students to post ideas or

collaborate on a project. The teacher could then give specific feedback to everyone who had
 Article Summaries 17

access to the wiki. There are many wikis available to educators that are easy to use and free of

charge.

Online learning communities is the last tool discussed by the author. Teachers looking

for more advanced collaboration features would be interested in a learning community. These

communities allow its users to develop eportfolios that may be shared with others. Learning

communities have safeguards to protect students who use them unlike most open social network

sites such as Myspace or Facebook.

The author believes that these Web 2.0 tools are a benefit for teachers and students. He

believes that collaborating with others via the web inspires students to participate, increases

motivation and allows for better communication among students, not just within the classroom,

but with anyone using the web.

Critique:

Web 2.0 tools are becoming extremely popular within the classroom. As a teacher who

keeps a blog for her students, I am all for my students using these web 2.0 tools. I do find that

my students remember what was written in my blog ten times more than they remember what I

said in class the previous day. I agree with the author in that these tools increase motivation and

participation among students.

While teachers may find blogs and wikis useful, my experience shows me that not

everyone agrees. The county has basically blocked every web 2.0 tool from the county server so

that students may not access any social networking site at school. While I understand the need to

block such sites as Myspace and Facebook, there are many educational sites that are now

blocked as well, including the blog for my students. Teachers have trouble teaching 21st
 Article Summaries 18

century learners if they are unable to access the tools needed to teach the students. This article

needs to be read by all the county employees in charge of making the decision to block Web 2.0

tools from each school in the district. Teachers might be able to reach these students better if

they were given the freedom to explore the new tools that are available.