She Writes

Prior to learning this course, I always thought that the teachers gives us meaningless activities for the sake of passing time and additional grades. Little did I know that in creating and developing instructional materials requires a lot of planning and careful consideration.

Module 1:

In today’s time teachers takes a lot of effort in order to provide learning retention. An educator needs to provide their students with concrete experiences to create a better connection and accommodate learning styles.

Module 2:

I learned that there are a lot of changes that happened in the educational system and educators needs to be constantly learning and adapting to provide the needs of the students enabling an efficient learning process. Teachers now have a wide variety of instructional materials to chose from but with careful consideration they must learn the needs of the student, especially with the advancement of technology.

Module 3:

Teachers must carefully study the type of media to use for the students because it can either catch their attention or fly right pass their heads. Some materials are not applicable for the different levels of student learning process and it can be crucial to use a media that is not suitable.

Module 4:

Taking advantage of proper teaching resources benefits students in more ways than one. Not just to students but also to professors. It simply serves to lighten the topic of discussion, but also facilitates and expedites the delivering of lessons. These material may need time and careful planning, but the instructor may decide to develop a reusable type should be saved for further usage.

Module 5:

Educators need to consider different factors of the students’ status and the diversity of each one. The instructional media should be inline with the diversity of the class and the cultural, economic, and environmental background with their students.

Module 6:

Learning how to create and develop a printed hand-put considering its visual design and content are the things I have learned in this module.

Module 7:

I was able to make instructional material using appropriate materials that would capture the student’s attention and create a deeper connection of the thing that I presented it with.

Module 8:

I learned how important cohesiveness in terms of materials that I will be using. In my opinion, more teachers that are in the industry for several years needs to be aware of this because I have seen a lot that does not have a cohesive design.

A. Teaching Context

In teaching about Earthquake and Its Causes to be taught in the Science subject, learner-centered approach is the best medium to facilitate learning.

B. Educational Setting

Grade 7 high school learners in a private school setting with an average of 25 students per class.

C. ASSURE

1. ANALYZE LEARNERS

Age: 12- 13 years old

Economic Status: Below average – above average income households.

Diversity: 80% catholic students with 10% international students.

Gender: 60% female, 40% male

Learning Styles:

1. State Objectives

At the end of the lesson, the learners should be able to:

The objectives stated follows the understanding level of Bloom’s Taxonomy, the first and second objective shows how the learner’s level requires explaining and understanding concepts about an earthquake. The last objective requires learners to use their deep level of understanding to be able to generate an evacuation plan which shows collaborative activity for the whole class.

1. explain what an earthquake is
2. describe the causes of an earthquake
3. develop an evacuation plan during an earthquake.

2. SELECT METHODS, MEDIA, MATERIALS

Method, Media, Material	Learning Style
Science book	Visual and auditory learners with direct and interactive instructions.
Power Point Presentation	Visual and auditory learning accompanied with interactive lecture
Whiteboard/Chalk board discussion	Visual and auditory learning accompanied with interactive lecture
Oreo Cookie Plate Tectonics Activity	Collaborative learning
Facilitate an Earthquake Drill	Collaborative learning

4. UTILIZE MEDIA AND MATERIAL

a. Prepare the lesson plan, materials, and activities.

b. Use the projector or tv inside the classroom to present the PowerPoint slide.

c. Download and use 2-3 minute YouTube videos to present in the class.

d. Ask the class to prepare their science books provided by the school.

e. Talk to the level coordinator about an earthquake drill to be facilitated.

f. Arrange the learning environment appropriate with the class and subject.

g. Anticipate questions and answers by students.

5. REQUIRE LEARNER PARTICIPATION

Teacher and learner-centered methods will be used for engagement process that allow students to be more open in asking questions resulting in an active participation.

Learner Participation Guide

Topic	Instructional Material	Activity
Presentation of Learning Objectives	PowerPoint slide	Class discussion about prior knowledge and expectation in the subject.
Parts of an Earthquake	PowerPoint presentation and short YouTube video	Oral Recitation – Enumerate and identify parts of an earthquake
Causes of an Earthquake (Faults)	PowerPoint presentation and chalkboard	Group Discussion, Oral Recitation, Oreo Cookie Plate Tectonics Activity
Earthquake Preparedness	PowerPoint Presentation	Develop evacuation plan and route. Facilitate an earthquake drill

6. Evaluate and Revise

Formative assessments happen at the end of every subtopic (quizzes and activities). A summative assessment will occur at the end of the lesson. The students are required to hand in a reflection about their realizations and the skills they have acquired by doing the last activity.

Title: An Instructional Plan for Teaching Earthquake and its causes, integrated into the “Science” subject.

Learning Objectives:

At the end of the lesson the students will be able to:

1. explain what an earthquake is
2. describe the causes of an earthquake
3. develop an evacuation plan during an earthquake.

Assessments:

Table 1: Basic Elements of Visual Design

Basic Elements of Visual Design	Description
Lines	There are little to no lines seen in the PowerPoint Presentation.
Typography	There are 2 font colors (dark green and black) and font sizes (34 and 22) that differentiated the topics and subtopics. And one font style is used to show coherency, Corbel.
Texture	To show consistency, the repeated elements of yellow and green color and picture shapes of rectangular in the same placement.
Color palette	The color palette used is yellow and green
Shapes	There are rectangular shapes repeated in the PowerPoint.

Table 2: Principles of Visual Design

Principles of Visual Design	Description
Unity	There are pictures and text that are in the same placement and shows alternates in between slides.
Gesalt	General topic which is aftermath of an earthquake
Space	The space in this PowerPoint is minimalized with less elements.
Dominance	There is a picture in each slide which shows the dominant subtopic whilst considering the shape and colors.
Balance	The PowerPoint shows a proper and equal balance of elements.
Similarity	There is coherence with the design from the first slide to the very last.
Scale	The scale of the slides which shows the alternate placement of the pictures and text shows depth.
Contrast	The font color of the topic is dark green while the text description is solid black.
Heirarchy	The heirarchy is seen at the 2 different sizes of fonts for topics and description.

Title: An Instructional Plan for Teaching Earthquake and its causes, integrated into the “Science” subject.

Learning Objectives:

At the end of the lesson the students will be able to:

1. explain what an earthquake is
2. describe the causes of an earthquake
3. develop an evacuation plan during an earthquake.

The non-projected visual that I chose to suit with my ASSURE Instructional Plan is a poster that would capture the attention of the students because of the cartoon quality of the pictures and the disruptive environment of each picture. Through this picture, I aim for students to be more attentive when it comes to earthquake drills and evacuation plans for the poster shows how dangerous an earthquake can affect the lives of the people.

Assessments:

Table 1: Basic Elements of Visual Designs

Basic Elements of Visual Design	Description
Lines	The line separates each picture to create a beautiful collage.
Typography	Only one font were used; 29LT Adir because there are a lot of elements in every picture so the simple font is best used.
Texture	The texture is not solid but shows a grainy effect as well as smooth surfaces of lines in each element.
Color palette	The dominant color in this collage is brown. This color represents debris and dust.
Shapes	The dominant shape used in the collage is rectangular in straight solid lines that represents masculinity and rigidity, shows the disastrous aftermath of an earthquake

Table 2: Principles of Visual Design

Principles of Visual Design	Description
Unity	Unity is seen in terms of colors and solid shapes in each picture.
Gesalt	General topic which is aftermath of an earthquake
Space	The space in this poster is maximized with a lot of elements clashing altogether.
Dominance	The bright color of the picture of a cracked Earth is the focus of the whole collage as it simplifies and directs the collage into a single point.
Balance	The collage shows a proper and equal balance of elements.
Similarity	The spaces that separates each picture have the same solid black line. The consistency of the colors used and the elements that is animated pictures.
Scale	Different sizes of each picture gives image depth but still shows balance because it maximize the space.
Contrast	The brightness of the image in the middle and the dullness of the pictures that surrounds it emphasize the color contrast.
Heirarchy	There is no heirarchy in this poster.

Title: An Instructional Plan for Teaching Earthquake and its causes, integrated into the “Science” subject.

Learning Objectives:

At the end of the lesson the students will be able to:

1. explain what an earthquake is
2. describe the causes of an earthquake
3. develop an evacuation plan during an earthquake.

The ASSURE instructional plan that I plan is about “Earthquake and Its Causes”. In one of the learning objectives where a student is supposed to be able to describe the causes of an earthquake, I consider creating a manipulative material using Oreo Cookies. An Oreo cookie has 2 sides and a filling, using these parts, students will be able to mimic different types of faults by sliding and breaking the cookie in half. The two sides will represent tectonic plates and the movement of the two sides represent the earthquake. The student will be asked to bring Oreo cookies in groups and then simultaneously in class, they would be able to see how earthquake happen and what causes it.

Using a well known snack to students provides the sense of familiarity that provides a deeper connection and understanding towards them and the object that is prepared (Kamina & Iyer, 2009).

Assessment:

Design Elements	Description
Significance	This kind of teacher-made manipulative material captures the importance of familiarity which plays a significant part in grabbing the attention of the learners.
Effectiveness	The use of a popular snack for this activity shows how easy and simple understanding the movement of the faults in an earthquake.
Cost	If bought in groups, and each children take a piece it does not cost much.

Reference:

Kamina, Penina, and Iyer, Nithya N., “From Concrete to Abstract: Teaching for Transfer of Learning when Using Manipulatives” (2009). NERA Conference Proceedings 2009.

Topic: An Instructional Plan for Teaching Earthquake Preparedness, integrated into the “Science” subject.

Audience: Grade 7 high school students, ages 12-13 years old in a private school. Average of 25 students per class; 60% female, 40% male.

Learning Objectives:

At the end of the lesson the students will be able to:

1. explain what an earthquake is
2. describe the causes of an earthquake
3. develop an evacuation plan during an earthquake.

ASSURE Instructional Plan

This model was created after giving the contents, including audience goals and the kind of print-made material, serious thought and planning. I created the print material’s design to be basic and unique through avoiding the “Print-shop syndrome” and “newspaper syndrome” while also making sure everything is fit on a single page (Lamb, 2005). The printed material is intended for grade 7 students ranging 12-13 years old which is processed through their age and level; easy to understand yet minimal.

The content of the worksheet is designed with the third learning objective where they will plan and develop an evacuation route in case of emergencies.

Following Lamb’s (2005) of avoiding all-capital letters is also planned to not give the impression of yelling. The font pt size is 11 for all letters for readability.

Resources:

Lamb, A. (2005). Designing & developing resources: Print materials (Chap 7). In Building tree houses for learning: Technology in today’s classrooms, 243 – 272. See attached file on Developing Print Materials.

The readings for this week’s module showed the distinction between media and technology and has brought new knowledge that most people did not know. I had a lot to learn about maximizing the use of technology and media in improving education in terms of the ways of student learning. The readings highlighted more on student-centered learning that teacher-centered which is a great approach especially with the new education. Provided the insight of technology and media, I learned that technology is merely a tool and a form of media that has to be taken action to. As a future educator, it is important to be aware that choosing the right and proper instructional material can help the students transform and make a difference.

Also, the use of human senses in designing instructional materials creates effective student learning, with this aspiring educators like me and educators today can benefit from learning more about Dale’s Cone of Experience

• 

Inclusive Education

When I enrolled in a non CoEd school, I found a more diverse group of students in a classroom. What struck me the most was my friend that follows the line of ADHD spectrum.

At first I noticed that there are times in the midst of a teacher discussion she would often do things standing up or roaming in the class, no one seems to mind which fascinates me because I came from a school where one has to raise their hand and ask just to stand up. As I got closer to her she told me that the class as well as the teacher understands her situation, and often times where she gets too distracted she is allowed to leave and go to the guidance office to relax, breathe, and focus on the activity. It made me happy that the acceptance of the class is not a big deal to them because for them it is normal and should not make a big deal out of it. And my friend tends to perform better academically in a class where she can be herself without judgement than other cases with ADHD that contains special classes.

I realized that promoting inclusivity develops a sense of maturity in all aspects by accepting and understanding one another. Bridging the gap that mentally disabled person in a classroom shows diversity and provides better opportunities.

Selection and Development

Every student in a class came from a diverse community at home that we, teachers, should take account for. Some students are taught differently than others and we, as educators, should get to know our students in order to fix the barrier that they face when going to an educational facility.

In simpler terms, when educators plan their mode of teaching and which instructional media is to use for an activity, they should take consider the learner’s cultural, economic, environmental background, etc. with their planning.

With this, we can clearly see how important and crucial the work of most educators that follow a student-centered learning when in planning their mode of instruction. We should all be grateful, as students, to the efforts of the teachers who teaches diverse students simultaneously in a classroom.

INSTRUCTIONAL MEDIA RESOURCES

Being used to the use of different instructional media for learning pushes us to sense their limitations and strengths. With these strengths and limitations, it would serve as a lead to control which instructional media is to consider providing the solution to the challenges that faces us. As a future educator we intend to provide ease and efficiency in learning and our job is to fully grasp which instructional media is congruent for different learning methods.

Utilizing the use of instructional media maximizes our abilities to provide a more student-centered learning in a classroom. Understanding its capabilities induces adaptation and innovation which probes more access and availability.

In a Power Point presentation, it is noticeable that students often lose their attention most of the time so we should consider the ratio of images and texts that is in the presentation. Even as a speaker to promote an advocacy, infographics should be shown with lesser texts.