Reflection: Personal Theory of Learning

As the course I am taking, "Bridging Learning Theory, Instruction, and Technology," comes to and end, I have reflected on my personal learning theory developed in the beginning of the course. During this course, I was able to collaborate with other teachers and learn more about how educational technology can be used effectively in the classroom. I've gotten many ideas for new things that I can try with my students.

How would I modify my personal theory of learning? In my original assignment, I stated that learning was based on experience and is unique for each individual. I also mentioned how it is important to understand how the brain works and that students learn through making connections. Teachers need to be open to different teaching and learning styles. Throughout this course, I have learned more in depth about learning theories that I already knew of and also a few new ones. If I were to modify my personal learning theory, I think I would add in more about students working together to create and build knowledge together and the benefits of students using technology. I would focus more on a student-centered classroom and technology as a learning tool.

There are some adjustments I will make to my instructional practice regarding technology integration based on what I have learned during this course. This course has helped me to further understand the difference between technology as both an instructional tool and learning tool. I would like to try to focus more on using technology as a learning tool, where students are more engaged and using the technology. Another adjustment I would like to make would be to give students more choices for completing assignments. I think that when students have more choices, they feel they have more control and gain more interest in what they are doing.

Two long term goals I have for technology integration are keeping up to date on new technologies that could be beneficial for my students and integrating more opportunities for students to use technology during daily lessons. I think it's important to keep up to date on technology because so many new things come out all the time. During this class, I learned about different programs that I had never heard of before that would work great in a classroom. I would like to try and collaborate more with other teachers and professionals about how they use technology. I also said that I want to provide more opportunities for students to use technology because I haven't had a chance to really do so yet. Once I get my own classroom, I will keep everything I have learned throughout this course and previous ones in mind. I feel that I've learned the most beneficial ways of integrating technology and how to make it most meaningful for the students. Technology can be an amazing tool for both the teacher and students.