Beyond Apps and Activities

This chapter examines the importance of intentionally planning with an instructional framework to leverage the use of technology. The author provides an integration framework to support middle and secondary language arts teachers. The author shares how she has refined the process of using mobile phones in her classroom. Initially, her focus was on trying new mobile applications in her language arts classroom by adding technology to existing lessons or adapting lessons to use with the mobile application. Next, she became more strategic, examining student thinking and actions throughout a daily workshop lesson and developing and applying a resource guide for mobile applications specifically geared for each lesson segment of class: opening, work period, and closing. No longer focused on application fit or application first, the author shares the transformative power of deliberately planning for the use of technology: a practice that has improved her clarity and amplified student learning.

Critical Thinking

Teaching critical thinking skills to students has become a central focus the language arts classroom. It is therefore important to examine what critical thinking may look like for the language arts teacher: How do language arts teachers come to know and understand? How do language arts teachers engage in critical thinking in order to enhance their pedagogical practices? This chapter examines the ways in which teachers' involvement in developing their critical thinking skills can aid them in establishing their knowledge and understandings. The chapter explores findings from a study that involved teachers in Grades 2 and 4 in the development of a framework for reading instruction in the primary grades. These findings make a case for encouraging teachers to engage in critical thinking in professional learning communities that foster professional development and collaboration in an active and reflective process.