Name:  Crystal Bedinghaus

Date:     November 1, 2023

Grade Level of Teacher/Instructional Coach: Kindergarten

Content Area of Teacher/Instructional Coach: Kindergarten

Directions: When you meet with the teacher or instructional coach, ask him or her the questions below. Feel free to ask a few more related questions. Make sure you inform the teacher that you will take notes during the interview. Record the interview if the teacher agrees to be recorded. After the interview, reflect on the interview experience by answering the reflection questions.

Collaborate with Colleagues

What is your background, training, and experience as an educator?

I graduated from Miami University in 2018 with a bachelor’s degree in Early Childhood Education, and again in 2022 with my MAT. I have been teaching kindergarten for 5 years now.

What digital apps, digital programs and digital media do you recommend for your classroom?

We are lucky to have a class set of iPads. We use SeeSaw as a student learning platform. (I also use the app for family communication.) We use EPIC and Storyline Online for reading. We use our curriculum’s math apps and the website Happy Numbers for math. We also have a Clever Touch smart board that we use throughout the day.

Technology Goals

How do you stay current with key research that supports technology’s role in improved student learning outcomes?

 I stay current by talking with fellow teachers in my building, reading education websites and journals, and engaging in conversations on twitter.

When you learn that a digital tool or a pedagogical practice is not as effective as you originally thought, how do you adjust?

I like to give tools and practices an appropriate amount of time before I decide if they are effective or not. Because I teach 5- and 6-year-olds, I try to be extremely selective before introducing digital tools and practices to my students. I must make sure they are user friendly and worth our time.

How do you engage in conversation about current research or findings from the learning sciences?

I engage in conversations with my peers at school in person and via twitter. I like to hear from real teachers what’s working for them.

How do you make educational research meaningful in your context?

I don’t really understand what’s being asked here.  

Digital Learning

What is your experience in online or blended learning environments?

I taught online for the entirety of the 2020-2021 school year. I was the district’s kindergarten teacher. I had 18 students. The students I taught chose to be remote, so their families were very supportive, which made my job much easier than when everyone was forced to be remote. This experience helped me become much more tech savvy than I was before.  

What strategies do you use to engage students in active learning in online or blended learning environments?

I taught using Zoom and SeeSaw. Having SeeSaw as a digital learning platform allowed for students to work directly on the app, take pictures and videos of their learning, and record their voice. This helped me understand their learning process and allowed me to give them quality feedback.

Manage Technology Use

How do you manage technology use in the classroom and in the online or blended learning environment?

In kindergarten, we do a lot of hands on activities. I use the Clever Touch daily for lessons, but students only use their iPads probably once a week.

How do you engage students in setting clear ground rules and parameters for technology use?

I walk students through each technology tools and model how to correctly use them. I’m very clear with the expectations surrounding them before we even use them and we review the rules often.

Cultural Competency

Reflecting upon your class, how does this specific group of students create a completely unique learning group and environment?

Each group of students I get make for a unique class family. They came into kindergarten knowing more than my previous kindergarteners, which allowed us to jump right into some fun academics. They are also a pretty calm group. So that– coupled with my classroom management skills makes for a calm learning environment.

How would you recognize and describe diversity as an asset?

Diversity in schools allows students to get to know people who are different and gives them an opportunity to discover things they have in common with them. Which prepares them to be kind, connected human beings in the “real” world.

How do you model cultural understanding for your students?

I use inclusive language. We read books with diverse characters. We learn about holidays around the world. The pictures, clipart, etc. are inclusive– with all different shades of skin tones, different family types, etc.

What are the factors that affect your student’s learning?

The biggest factor that affects students’ learning is whether or not their basic needs are being met… food, clothing, shelter. Learning styles, speech and language skills, and family involvement are all big factors in how successful a student is.

What are a few student strengths and student learning needs?

The list of strengths and needs vary from student to student, but here is a list of what some of us have mastered and some of us find challenging…  ability to identify letter names and sounds, read sight words, one-to-one correspondence, counting skills, handwriting, fine motor skills, basic problem solving abilities

How can technology enhance your student’s strengths and remove barriers?

Students thrive when given opportunities to choose. So we like to give them technology as an option to show what they know through assessments and activities on Seesaw. Doing activities on Seesaw allows us to differentiate assignments… which allows us to work with individual students’ strengths and needs.

 Directions: Reflect on what you learned during the interview.

Reflection

 Describe what you learned about technology tools in the classroom. Describe the strengths and weaknesses of the teachers’ classroom practices. Does the information connect with any personal experience or content learned in this course (research, theory, a scholar’s work)?

 I learned they are important aspects to a child’s learning, and very dominant heavy when taking tests. Mrs. Currier has done an excellent job teaching the step-to-step details with technology with her students. Everything is a teachable moment, especially in technology.

Describe what you learned about how to manage technology in the classroom. Describe how you will manage the use of technology and student learning strategies in digital platforms, virtual environments, or in the classroom. 

 I learned how to use the SeeSaw app, which I will be excited to implement in my future classroom. Mrs. Currier did an excellent job demonstrating the importance of connectiveness within our classroom family. Technology extinguishes this, and families love it.

 Describe what you learned about cultural competency in the classroom. Describe how diversity is an asset and how you can model cultural understanding for your students. Describe how the teacher demonstrates cultural competency in his or her classroom. Does the information connect with any personal experience or content learned in this course (research, theory, a scholar’s work)?

 Sarah Currier did a great job helping me understand some families’ beliefs on modern technology. We have a student that isn’t allowed to watch movies. She is to sit out when there is any sort of movies/dance being involved in class. We did a great job limiting the number of clips we showed in class. Most importantly, I learned how to understand/respect their beliefs.