This article summarizes and evaluates five research articles that discuss using instructional technology in the classroom. The first article describes how digital storytelling can help struggling writers by making the writing process more organized. The second discusses how teachers can integrate technology like blogs and podcasts into lessons using resources that are freely available. The third evaluates beginning reading software programs. The fourth explains how technology can be used to teach math concepts aligned to national standards. The last explores how a multidisciplinary approach using technologies like movies and role-play can increase comprehension of literacy lessons. The evaluation notes the importance of selecting educational technologies carefully and integrating them effectively to support learning.

1. Running head: ARTICLE SUMMARIES & CRITIQUES<br />Applications of Instructional Technology<br />Tracee M. Pearson<br />Georgia Southern University<br /> FRIT 8530<br /> TOC quot;
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Abstract<br />According to the National Center for Education Statistics, by the year 1999, more than 95% of all U.S. public schools were connected to the internet (2000, February). By 2005, nearly 100% had access (2006). So, what is the problem, you ask? The problem: are there enough qualified educators to use and teach proper application of technology? This is an important issue in education because technology can be used in a multitude of ways. It can remove educational obstacles-especially for at-risk, or lower achieving students. It can also help schools create productive critical thinkers who will be prepared to join the workforce. Integration of technology into the curriculum has been and continues to be an on-going challenge for many educators, but with the invention of Facebook, podcasts, blogs, and wikis, it has become much easier. The article summaries that follow discuss ways in which technology may be used in the regular classroom. <br />Sylvester, R. and Greenidge, W. (2009). Digital Storytelling: Extending the potential for struggling writers. The Reading Teacher, 63(4), 284-295.<br />Professional Practice Article<br />Summary:<br />Because we are in the age of technology, digital storytelling may be a concrete way to help students who exhibit difficulty with the writing process. The paper discusses three elementary students who are struggling writers. The students- Kyle, Ray, and Colleen (their pseudonyms) have very different issues. Kyle is the type of student who can write a first draft, but does not use classroom resources such as dictionaries or thesauruses to assist him in correcting his spelling. Nor, does he utilize given class time to revise or edit his work. Ray, on the other hand, rarely completes his written assignments, especially when given time over the course of a few days. He does, however, complete tasks when the writing is timed, or when there is a shortened amount of time in which to work. Last, there’s Colleen, who really loves to write. Her writing, though, is sketchy- often leaving out important details. These students are used primarily as examples- to show the types of problems that may plague struggling writers. Because of the frequent use of computers and various other technologies in homes as well as in schools, students have many tools at their disposal. Most major computing systems offer digital storytelling- for free. When students create digital stories, they may use still photographs with narration, videos, or documentaries. According to the article, creating digital stories may help students become more organized in their writing because of the process of storyboarding. Storyboarding is when writers sequence their stories in outline form. There are many benefits to digital storytelling. They include: 1. making students more aware of the audience they are writing for, 2. creating stories that are visually appealing due to computer graphics, 3. writing can be edited via keyboard, 4. is interactive, and 5. helps writers visualize their work. <br />Critical Evaluation:<br />I really enjoyed reading this article because it contains a lot of useful information. The first set of useful information is at the beginning of the paper when the different types of literacy are discussed. I learned a new term that encompasses technological, visual, media, and information literacy: multiliteracies. So, vocabulary instruction is a strength of this article.<br />The article gets its point across mainly because the authors utilized the tool themselves. In the past, I had often wondered how to motivate my struggling writers. I was going about it the wrong way, for I mostly consulted books for worksheets or templates to use. Digital storytelling is a great way to help students overcome their weaknesses. I have created digital stories for some of my own classes and found myself enjoying the process as much as looking forward to the finished product. Taking a class of 24 students to the computer lab or Media Center would only require planning on my part- and that’s not so bad- especially when students leave class with a newly found skill and a finished product to share with others. <br />One weakness of the article was that its authors were not able to have the three struggling writers to create a digital story due to timing issues. I feel this would have given their position more validity.<br />O’Connor-Petruso, S. A., & Rosenfeld, B. (2009, Fall). Effective strategies for integrating technology and the tools of Web 2.0 in the curriculum when limited by budget, infrastructure, and shelf life. The Journal for Computing Teachers.<br />Theory-into-practice Article<br />Summary:<br />This article explains methods in which teachers, teacher candidates, media specialists, and administrators can utilize Web 2.0 tools effectively in our schools. According to this paper, many of our public schools, colleges, and universities have budgetary restraints and outdated technology- which limits their ability to provide proper computer-based instruction to students. Because students are now in the digital era, teachers must help prepare them for survival in this global economy. <br />The authors of this article describe a graduate level course, ‘Advanced Pedagogy and Curriculum II, in which teachers and teacher candidates create a science unit that integrates new technology into traditional lessons using the Constructivist approach. For each lesson, students were instructed to use resources that were readily available to them. The resources they listed are tools that all educators, media specialists, and teacher candidates can take advantage of and use in their own classrooms because many of them are free. Some of the resources are: web pages, recording tools, podcasts, blogs and discussion boards, and virtual field trips. The article’s main point is given in its conclusion when it implies that educators teach in the manner in which they were taught. Those educators who have access to technology and use it regularly are more likely to introduce these tools to their students. <br />Critical Evaluation:<br />I agree with the concepts presented in this article. Teachers and media specialists should integrate technology into the curriculum as much as we possibly can. I feel that in order to be well-rounded educators, we must recognize the importance of and adapt to the ways of the 21st century learner. Since most of our students have access to the internet and other technologies such as Twitter™, Facebook™, Wii™, etc, at home, we must find innovative ways to use them in our lessons. In doing so we will create students who are more apt to share ideas, construct new knowledge, and apply what they have learned, just as Bloom wanted them to. <br />One of the things I found appealing about this article is its description of each Web 2.0 tool it features. With each description, readers also get the website/link to access the particular tool, and a way to use it in the classroom. One of its weaknesses is not providing more tools! It merely scratches the surface. <br />Santoro, L.E., and Bishop, M. J. (2010) 'Selecting Software with Caution: An Empirical Evaluation of Popular Beginning Reading Software for Children with Early Literacy Difficulties', Computers in the Schools, 27: 2, 99 — 120.<br />Research Article<br />Summary:<br />This article was written to show how reading software should be chosen for at-risk learners. A study was done using thirty-one reading software products in an effort to develop research-based evaluation criteria to determine the efficiency of the software. The study was based on the premise that students with reading difficulties need instruction that specifically focuses on phonemes and progresses from teacher-directed to independent learning. There are four main areas in which the software was tested. These include: interface design, instructional design, and beginning reading content. Researchers chose products addressing the needs of pre-kindergarten to third grade learners. For evaluation purposes, researchers used indicators within the four categories to rate the programs. For instructional design, software rated highly if it gave helpful instructions and quick feedback to the user. For interface design, if the software prompted learners to complete specific tasks and could be exited easily, high scores were given. For beginning reading content, evaluators judged the products according to phonological awareness, syllabication, onset & rime, and phoneme level. The two evaluators (a special education professor and an instructional technology professor) reviewed and rated the software independently. In addition, two special education graduate students rated titles as well. The results of the study were inconclusive; this was primarily due to the evaluation instrument needing more development.<br />Critical Evaluation:<br />Reading this article gave me food for thought. Although I use reading software in my third-grade classroom, I never thought much about its effectiveness on at-risk students. I assumed because it was chosen and purchased by our school that it was doing its job. I learned several key points from this article: 1. Teachers and media specialists must always evaluate computerized instruction. By evaluating these programs, we can save money and purchase only those items that will really help instruct and engage our students, 2. Great software does not have to cost a lot of money. The study’s findings showed that programs such as Read, Write, and Type ($9.95) performed as well as (or better than) programs costing hundreds of dollars, 3. Despite the effectiveness of software, good instruction from a teacher can never be replaced.<br />In summary, we must note that further studies must be done, better measures must be developed, and more samples must be utilized to present highly recommended reading software. <br />Litowitz, L. (2009, Fall). Addressing mathematics literacy through technology, innovation, design, and engineering. The Technology Teacher.<br />Professional Practice Article<br />Summary:<br />This article explains the role technology plays in teaching students basic math concepts. The author visits the NCTM (National Council of Teachers of Mathematics) standards that were originally published in 2000. These standards dictate the skills and knowledge students in grades pre-kindergarten through twelve should possess. There are ten standards which increase in degree of difficulty as the grade level changes. This piece focuses on the content standards only, not the process standards. The skill-sets covered by the content standards include; number and operations, algebra, geometry, measurement, data analysis, and probability. The article explains that with mathematical communication, new technologies can exist. When integrating mathematics into the technology classroom (and the reverse), students can gain lifelong skills (i.e. designing, measuring, and estimating).<br />Critical Evaluation:<br />The main point of this article is technology education is often overlooked as a core subject, although it is a component of all other academic subject areas. I somewhat agree with this because it was viewed similarly at my school until we received a technology instructor who met with each homeroom class once per week. Technology was the regarded as an integral part of our curriculum. With the addition of this course, I could see my students become more knowledgeable and hands-on in math and other areas due to the projects and activities that were assigned to them. Based on the points presented in this article, I believe that technology education does contribute to mathematics education.<br />Whitin, P. “Tech-to-stretch”: expanding possibilities for literature response. The Reading Teacher, 62(5), pp. 408–418.<br />Research Article<br />Summary:<br />Tech-to-Stretch talks about what teachers hear frequently- integrating technology into the curriculum. This article goes a bit further, though, in its suggestions regarding this topic. It discusses how educators must incorporate multiple disciplines when teaching reading and language arts. Basically, the paper states that teachers of reading and language arts can increase comprehension during literacy instruction by using visual, aural, written, kinesthetic, and technological strategies; the theory being that effective use and understanding of technology increases the advantages of these elements. The author completed a study to test the effectiveness of this theory. With the idea that teachers’ own educational experiences helps mold their teaching style, a graduate class of teacher candidates participated in a study of Ruby Bridges’ memoir about her experience with integration (Through My Eyes). The goal of the study was to see if using a multidisciplinary approach to teach this unit to the teacher candidates would result in greater comprehension of the material and use of different modalities to complete tasks associated with the text. The results of the study revealed that all groups involved utilized various modalities to respond to the literature. The groups used collages, music, digital movies, and role play to complete given tasks.<br />Critical Evaluation:<br />There have been many studies and researches regarding the effects of multimodal response strategies on comprehension. But, understanding how to effectively use technology in addition to these modalities can help increase students’ critical thinking skills. I need to incorporate more technology into my lessons. I feel that time is a big constraint because schedule conflicts. The article brings up a valid point in stating that when given the opportunity and proper exposure, students will use different methods to present information. When teachers employ different methods to teach new concepts, they touch the learning style of every student because children learn in different ways. This type of study would be useful to all preservice teachers to assist them in teaching the 21st century learner.<br /> <br /> <br />