1. Technology Theories
1.1. Media Ecology
1.1.1. Technology influences all aspects of society.
1.1.2. Communication is key; social networking, PLN's, etc.
1.1.3. Media is crucial and will always be looked at more than once, rather than a "one-night stand" (Paul Levinson, 2000).
1.1.4. Implication: Teachers must find new ways to connect their students to each other, while not alienated those with limited access to social networking. Teachers must also try to find new ways to do this rather than what students already know (i.e. alternatives to using Twitter or Facebook)
1.2. Social Construction of Technology
1.2.1. People that use technology should be the ones creating and innovating it.
1.2.2. Used to determine whether or not a technology is useful or relevant anymore.
1.2.3. Where the technology comes from does not matter as long as it is doing its job for the targeted user.
1.2.4. Implications: What a teacher might deem as an excellent resource, a student might not agree (i.e.: those really old VHS videos that students still watch that were made in the early 80's). Teachers might also have an issue figuring out what it best for the class as a whole when there are discrepancies about which technology is best.
2. TPACK
2.1. There are three types of knowledge that are crucial for teachers to know
2.1.1. Technology
2.1.1.1. Knowing how and when to integrate technology into the classroom
2.1.2. Content
2.1.2.1. Knowledge about subject areas
2.1.3. Pedagogy
2.1.3.1. The art and science of teaching
2.2. The star in the centre represents a blending of knowledge which, in theory, creates the most ideal learning and classroom setting.
2.3. Like students, teachers continue to learn and improve so over time, one's knowledge over certain areas, how to integrate/use technology, and how to teach evolves over time and will come naturally at one point.
3. Learning Theories
3.1. Constructivist
3.1.1. Learning from past experiences.
3.1.2. Interacting with the environment.
3.1.3. Personal experiences influence learning.
3.1.4. Implication: Teachers must be prepared to facilitate learning rather than lecture; they must provide good learning environments for their students.
3.2. Connectivist
3.2.1. Seeing connections between lessons is important.
3.2.2. Nurture is needed to maintain knowledge.
3.2.3. It is crucial to learn more than to focus on what is already known.
3.2.4. Implication: Teachers must make sure they give enough attention to each student to help them maintain what they have learned as well as making connections to the real world to show relevance.
3.3. Cognitive Load
3.3.1. Prior-knowledge and schemas are key for learning.
3.3.2. Learning is based on a "staircase;" each new lesson builds on a previous one.
3.3.3. Learning cannot occur if the brain is overloaded.
3.3.4. Implication: Teachers must be careful to not overload students with too much new material and make sure that the new material builds off of old material.