Bohanon,+Phillip+Gray+-+Closing+Reflection

1. Now that you’ve had this #|professional development experience, how are you defining “new literacies?” How do you think your definition has changed or evolved this week? **I am defining new literacies as a way to connect to the 21st century learner by using technology. Before last week I really thought that new literacies was just a new term for common core. I really never put much thought in what new literacies was. I just thought it was going to be something that people were saying instead of saying common core.**

2. Describe some new literacies that you learned about this week? What did you know about these topics before the week began and how has your experience this week contributed to your understanding of these new literacies? **I really enjoyed the cool tools session every day. I learned a lot about using the web 2.0 tools in the classroom. For instance, Irubric was one thing I knew about but wasn't a wiz at. After the cool tools session I felt comfortable trying Irubric to create a mock rubric. When I was having trouble trying to figure it out, I just asked other members attending the NLI and they provided me more of a hands on learning environment. This could be said about all the other web 2.0 tools I learned about. Most of the topics covered during the cool tools session I knew about and had limited experience with most of them. What contributed the most to me understanding was new literacies was the interaction with other teachers there that already have experience with the web 2.0 tools.**

3. In what ways are the new literacies prompted by technology? How do they affect one another? **New literacies is using technology to engage students in the classroom. That being said, technology is new literacies and new literacies is using technology.**

4. How do new literacies affect the way we think about academic]] content? Describe an examples of how some specific academic content is affected by changes in the ways we reading write and thinking (i.e. new literacies). **New literacies makes me think of how the content in my area can be taught differently in a new style. Can I change the way students learn how to modify a spreadsheet, into an exciting lesson using web 2.0 tools. Students in my classroom are still learning how to modify spreadsheets the same way I did when I was in high school. I guide them through the learning objectives using a media projector, and then they open a book and follow the procedures. After the NLI, I have a different approach of of engaging my students through the use of technology and web 2.0 tools.**

5. How do new literacies affect the way we think about our teaching practices? How do they affect the development of new teaching practices or approaches to teaching? **New literacies affects the way I think about all aspects of teaching. New literacies makes me feel like I am out dated in my approach of engaging students. As a football coach, I am constantly learning new styles and drills to coach every year, when I learn something new all I want to do is get back home and put it to use. I feel like that now after attending the NLI. New literacy gives you something new to achieve and work for. Instead of having the out dated approach that I have always had.**

6. During the week, you learning about several conceptual / theoretical frameworks for understanding the new literacies including, project-based inquiry, TPACK, Bloom’s revised cognitive theory, online identity, and #|global literacies (i.e. cultural competence, cultural awareness, cosmopolitanism). Describe your personal perspective on new literacies as it is informed by these conceptual and theoretical ideas. **New literacies helps students become more engaged with the use of technology. The days of of using lectures and notes are over. Finding new ways for students to learn by doing is essential in classroom. These conceptual/frameworks allow for the students to only learn something new, but they are creating something that they will remember.**

7. How does the design process you learned about in your design studio work and the video digging deeper session support your understanding of the creative process? **The design studio was great! It caused a great deal of thinking and a great deal of learning. The project based learning causes you to think more and ask more questions than you normally would. When you are thinking more and have a great deal of questions like it I did, being creative becomes fun. Creating the lesson plan that we worked for was rewarding because we put the effort in asking the questions, learning the answers, and then seeing the final result..**

8. You learned this week about how to manage, and in some cases create, your online identity. What action steps will you take (are you taking) to manage and further extend your online identity? **I try to keep my online identity to the bare minimum. I don't use social networking sites except twitter. I like keeping it that way, because I don't like people to know what I'm doing all the time. Going forward I would like extend my professional online identity by using Edmoddo for my classroom. Other than that I will try to keep my online identity limited.**

9. If you had one more day in the Institute, what would you like to learn more about and why? **I would like to learn more about how the professors have incorporated new literacies in their area. I know that at one time in their career that technology was limited, so how have things changed in their classrooms since incorporating technology.**