For our assignment, Cooking with TPACK? [credit to Michigan State University MAET program], we were asked to complete an activity that was similar to a "blind study" where a person (in this case my husband) was asked to obtain a set of somewhat random utensils (a plate, a bowl, and utensil). In this case, without knowing why he was choosing them, he chose a dinner plate, a glass mixing bowl, and a rubber spatula. I then asked him to pick a number (1-5). These numbers corresponded to a set of activities we were to do if that number were chosen.
The potential activities were...
1. Slice Hard Cheese (e.g. cheddar, gouda, havarti, wensleydale) as though you were going to add it to a cheese plate.
2. Make whipped cream from 35% heavy whipping cream.
3. Make a fruit salad (or at least slice up two types of fruit as though you were going to add them to the salad).
4. make a peanut butter and jelly sandwich.
5. Slice veggies for a veggie tray.
My husband picked #3. So, below is my video recording of me attempting to make a fruit salad using the items chosen by my husband.
This was a very interesting challenge. With my tools, I was able to complete my assigned task. While I needed to change the way one of the utensils was used, the spatula, it worked enough to get the task done. The biggest thing that I got out of this challenge is understanding how important it is to make sure the tools we are using when instructing are actually the best tools to use. We, as educators, need to make sure we are instructing our students with the best and most purposeful tools we possible can.
I would have really hated to cut a whole pineapple with the rubber spatula. I need to think about this every time I am designing an assignment with technology.
From my own observations of your work, it seems that you are very thoughtful and purposeful in selecting and using technologies for your teaching. After viewing your personalization VoiceThread, I am now wondering if the same tool make work really well for some learners while a different tool may work better for others...
ReplyDeleteLoved your video - this was a fun challenge! It definitely highlights the importance of using the "right" tools whether in the kitchen or classroom. I completely agree that one of the biggest concerns that educators need to have when integrating technology into classroom is to make sure the tools they are using for instruction are actually the best tools to use for that learning environment.
ReplyDelete