Shanna Shaked​: Physics & STEM Education Expert

I am able to effectively utilize technology to enhance student learning and professional growth and development.

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I use technology in the classroom for two main purposes: to help students understand physics that is difficult to observe in real life, and to take advantage of and enhance students’ knowledge and use of technology. In integrating technology, however, I am cautious to ensure that it actually aids teaching rather than merely providing a fancy but unnecessary distraction.



Use technology to understand phenomena that are hard to observe

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Videos and virtual simulations help students see phenomena that would otherwise remain abstract. Youtube has helped bring a world of science demos into the classroom, so I often use videos to engage, to explain, and to evaluate. When not overused, a youtube video will quickly quiet students at the beginning of class and get them ready to learn a new topic introduced by the video, such as this OK GO video with a Rube Goldberg machine (at right) that I used to introduce energy conversions. I’ve also found that virtual simulations are engaging and very effective at helping students understand things they can’t directly observe.

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The University of Colorado phet simulations cover an array of science topics and students are always interested in watching or playing with the simulations and answering related questions. When learning about plate tectonics in middle school, kids were jumping out of their seats to get to be the phet “Plate Tectonic Controller”, while the rest of the class picked out crust types and watched in fascination as mountains and volcanoes were formed. Students later drew a diagram of volcanoes for homework, and about half included the plates sliding under one another that we had seen in this simulation. These simulations also let students conduct virtual “experiments” in ways that are easy to manipulate variables and find relationships. Of course, in using these or any simulations, the objectives must always be kept in mind, and I will help students understand any differences between the simulation and reality.

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Use and cultivate student knowledge of technology

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As digital natives, many students are more comfortable with technology than teachers and are excited to integrate their interest in technology with academic endeavors (OECD (2008), "New Millennium Learners. Initial findings on the effects of digital technologies on school-age learners", OECD/CERI International Conference "Learning in the 21st Century: Research, Innovation and Policy", 15–16 May 2008 Paris). I use Edmodo, clickers, a wiki site, and have the students design meaningful powerpoint slides to use and cultivate their knowledge of technology.

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Implement new technologies cautiously

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People have jumped to the conclusion that we need to rapidly integrate technology to address “digital natives”, but more data is needed to fully understand and shape lessons around these issues (Bennett, S.; Maton, K.; Kervin, L. (2008), "The ‘digital natives’ debate: A critical review of the evidence", British Journal of Educational Technology 39 (5): 775–786, doi:10.1111/j.1467-8535.2007.00793.x; Cuban, L. (1986). Teachers and machines. New York: Teachers College Press.). I will thus continue to learn about new instructional technologies by reading the literature and attending workshops. Due to the fast pace and often questionable results of new technologies in education, I will holistically consider whether a given technology complements my own subject and instructional character. Most importantly, I will regularly assess the effect of integrating technology into my own classroom and reflect on the benefits and drawbacks. For example, I created an online test (at right) for my middle schoolers to take on laptops, which included analyzing a virtual simulation and deciding how they would experimentally test a youtube video. Upon seeing that the first period took longer than expected for this test, I decided to use paper versions for the other classes, and then did a Microsoft Mail Merge to quickly create paper versions of the 1st Period’s test so that they could finish the test the next day.