TLP

[Boosting Student Engagement using Technology inside the Classroom: Peardeck]

By
[Aubrey Olson and Alexis Thomason]

C&I 100
Dr. Trang Phan

California State University, Fresno

Summer 2022
Class observation/Interview report:

Descriptions of the audience

i) Who is the audience that you’re interviewing or observing?
We interviewed Jordan Cota. He is an eighth grade Academic Block teacher at Clark
Intermediate school in Clovis Unified.
ii) What are their characteristics? (i.e what grade level do they teach? What subject? Where
do they teach? How have they been using technology in their teaching? etc.)
Jordan Cota is an eighth grade Academic Block teacher at Clark Intermediate school in
Clovis Unified. This is his first year teaching eighth grade AB. Before this year he taught
fifth grade for six years at Boris Elementary school in Clovis Unified. Jordan Jordan
received his master’s degree in Learning and Technology. Mr. Cota says that he uses
technology in his classroom every single day. He “prides himself on having technology
proficient students.” Inside his classroom, Mr. Cota uses technology applications such as
Google Docs, Google Forms, Google Slides, Nearpod, Gimkit, Kahoot, Google
Classroom, Kami, Quizlet and Quizziz to name a few. He uses these apps for
organization, engagement, communication, lessons and so on. Mr. Cota is a firm believer
of using technology in the classroom.
iii) Any other related information about the students/school, etc?
Clark Intermediate School was one of the first Clovis Unified middle schools. It seems as
though Jordan Cota was able to change the way that technology is now used in the
classroom.

Take note of your interview or classroom observation. Use your interview or classroom
observation notes to answer the below questions

Below are the interview questions that we used with Jordan Cota:
1. What is your name and what grade do you teach? Have you taught any other grades? If
so, what were they?
2. What are your degrees and credentials in? Please include Masters if you have any?
3. What grade were you teaching when COVID hit?
4. How hard was the transition from in person teaching to an online learning environment?
5. What was one of the biggest challenges that you faced during online teaching?
6. What were some strategies you used in order to boost student engagement during
virtual learning?
7. What digital applications did you use during online teaching (ex.peardeck, google
slides)?
8. What digital applications would you say are most effective in your classroom?
9. What engagement strategies do you use in the classroom now, after online teaching.
(can be virtual, tech based strategies, or normal engagement strategies)
 10. Do you feel as if your colleagues and yourself have a good grasp on using technology in
the classroom. If so, were there any training sessions for you guys that you feel were
helpful?
11. What is the biggest challenge for you as a teacher when it comes to using technology in
the classroom?
12. How often do your students use technology in the classroom? How often did your fifth
grade class use technology? What applications are they using?
13. How beneficial do you think technology is inside the classroom?
14. If you had any tips or tricks for first year teachers when it comes to technology, what
would they be?
15. How did you explain to your students your expectations for using technology in the
classroom? Do they seem to follow these rules well?
16. Do you notice students playing games on their devices instead of working on what you
have assigned?
17. What motivates you as a teacher?

The Thrive/Motivation The Challenges

● What works in their classroom? ● Describe a challenge/problem you

In Jordan Cota’s classroom what works best
is Google Classroom. It was the hub for
each and every student to find anything we
they were doing throughout the day. Overall
the best for the students was Gimkit, they
loved playing the games and as a grade
level we would take content from whatever
we were teaching and turn them into
Gimkits for the students to play throughout
the lesson and day. Jordan’s students to
this day in 8th grade love playing gimkits.
● Some examples of success
○ What did the teacher and the student
do?
○ How could you tell it’s a success?)
All of the Google tools that Jordan was
forced to use have become regulars in his
classroom. Students are so adept with
using these now that it is an amazing tool to
keep them organized, engaged, and in
charge of their learning. Jordan still uses
Gimkit regularly and loves anything that
brings a competition aspect and game like
observed/discussed in detail. There may be
more than 1 problem that you identify,
however, please describe one that requires
designing a solution.
The biggest challenge that we are focusing
on is student engagement in the classroom.
Another challenge would be that Jordan
feels that the biggest challenge when using
technology in the classroom is developing
the classroom understanding of how we use
the technology. He tries to reinforce that
computers are “tools not toys” and all
students are expected to use them
accordingly. He feels that students spend
so much time using technology at home on
youtube, gaming, and otherwise they do are
so tempted to use the computers for those
purposes at school as well. As an educator
he feels that he has to retrain my students
to not go directly to those things and to use
the technology for the right purposes.
 learning to the room. Truthfully, the biggest
impact for his classroom was just for him to
learn how to be patient with his students
and have the ability to adjust his schedule
as needed. He feels that that is his biggest
engagement tool that he utilizes coming out
of online learning.
● What thrives them as a teacher?
Jordan loves to create new and fun ways to
engage his students in the classroom. He
enjoys watching his students get excited
about learning through technology.
The Unexpected
● Was there anything unexpected/surprised you
during the interview/classroom observation?
When asking Jordan about trainings on
technology he responded with, “Not
particularly, I feel like it really came down to
us just trying these different applications
and not being worried about them not
working or how it went. I feel that we really
had to just dive in to get to where we
wanted to go and COVID forced us to do
so.”
● Any questions/concerns you have?
My concern is that educators do not have
trainings for technology use. It is concerning
that some teachers, if not using their own
resources, are not trained in technology and
do not know how to use specific
applications in the classroom. This may
create a disadvantage between classes that
don’t use technology compared to those
who do.
Problem Statement
What’s Next? Your Action Plan
Based on the problem you described above, how
would you propose solving it? Answer the
following questions in details:
● What technology tool would you use? Peardeck
● What other materials would be used besides the
proposed software? Blooket, Kahoot and Gimkit
● How would the problem be solved? We would
like to solve the problem of student
engagement inside the classroom by creating
classrooms that are technologically fluent. In
order to do so, we want to create lessons that
use technology applications such as Peardeck,
Gimkit, Blooket, Kahoot and Google Apps.This
problem can be solved by explaining the
educators expectations of technology in the
classroom before students even have the
opportunity to touch a digital device. The
educator can talk about how to be a digital
citizen and that when using digital applications
we need to remember the “class rules” that they
discussed.
● How would the solution’s effectiveness be
measured? By how many times the educator
catches the students on digital applications that
shouldn’t be used in the classroom.
Write a detailed problem statement (1-2 paragraphs) and include the kind of impact you want
this project. Use the following questions to guide your statement writing:
● What is ONE problem you identified from the interview or observation and how would
you like to solve it? Why do you think it’s important to solve this problem?
● What are some possible solutions to your problem?
● What is the ultimate impact you would like to see or determine to achieve?

One of the problems that we identified from the interview with Jordan Cota is that
student engagement is especially hard in a middle school setting as well as elementary and
high school. Upon talking with Mr. Cota it is evident that technology inside the classroom and in
a virtual learning environment is very beneficial. Mr. Jordan Cota swears by technology in
education.”I see technology as a necessity in the classroom. In today's world we are working
with students that are constant consumers of technology and use it from the time they can
walk.” We would like to solve the problem of student engagement inside the classroom by
creating classrooms that are technologically fluent. In order to do so, we want to create lessons
that use technology applications such as Peardeck, Gimkit, Blooket, Kahoot and Google Apps.
Student engagement inside the classroom is especially important. If students are interested in
what is being taught they won’t be engaged enough to comprehend and truly learn the content.
With that being said, students will fall behind in subjects and eventually be so far behind that
dropping out of high school is the only answer. We want to nip this notion in the bud early on by
creating lessons that use technology in order to keep the students interested and engaged in
the curriculum.
Some recommendations that we came across when talking with Jordan Cota that can
help boost student engagement include creating lessons that use technology applications.
Some of these recommendations included teaching content through Peardeck which is an
interactive lesson application that allows for the students to interact with the material while
learning. Some other applications of technology that we think could help our problem would be
using education game applications such as Blooket, Kahoot and Gimkit to help check for
understanding after the content is taught. The Ultimate impact that we would like to see is
students actively engaged in the content being presented. We hope that by using the proposed
technology applications above we are able to see an increase of excitement, collaboration and
engagement inside the classroom and in a virtual learning environment. With technology
sweeping through the nation and our children, it is time that our classrooms change with the
times and use technology in education as a positive experience.

2.1 Research
What problem was addressed?

What technology was used and how?

What are the pros and cons of these solutions (if any)?

Please cite the sources within the text and in the reference list using APA 6 at the end
of this document
1. Throughout our research we found a multitude of reasons why technology is a
great tool to boost student engagement inside the classroom. “...when used
appropriately, technology can help teachers become more efficient by speeding
up and simplifying lesson plans. Technology can help students learn new
concepts quicker, as well as help them retain that information better. It also
breaks down the barriers between teachers and students, making the learning
process more engaging for students, as well as allowing them to work from
outside of the four walls of a classroom, such as at home” (Smith, 2021). From
this article, we found that technology is the answer to student engagement
problems. In this day and age, technology is everywhere and becoming more
and more used with every waking moment. This article talked about using
technology tools such as Google Classroom and Blackboard Collaborate to
motivate and engage students. The research showed that by using technology
resources such as the ones above, it allows students to learn outside of the
traditional classroom. The article also discussed tools such as Proprofs Quiz
Maker.”In addition, many teachers are using online tools like Proprofs Quiz
Maker to create fun, interactive quizzes, and games for their students. These
tools are especially great for increasing student engagement in STEM
subjects”(Smith, 2021). Just like this article discussed, there are many pros to
using technology inside the classroom to boost student engagement. From
receiving student feedback to creating fun quiz-like games, technology shouldn’t
be shied away from. In order to keep students engaged in the classroom,
educators should evolve with the times and utilize technology in their lessons.

2. Throughout our research we found a multitude of reasons why technology is a

great tool to boost student engagement inside the classroom. “Technology can
increase student engagement at the elementary…levels when teachers
intentionally provide students the opportunity to use tech tools in a blended
learning environment. Lesson plans and PLCs must address how to successfully
plan and implement technology to meet the needs of all students”( Chiaro, 2021).
This article proved that technology is the solution to student engagement in the
classroom. Technology is a resource that is beneficial to our students in the
classroom if it is used correctly. This article addressed specific technology tools
that improve student engagement in the classroom such as, “Coolmath,
Funbrain, ABCmouse, video software applications and QR codes”( Chiaro, 2021).
These technology tools are used to, “... encourage play via content video
games,can be used as an introduction to social circle conversations to help
students and their peers solve issues they are currently facing, and can be used
to track students progress over a period of time” (Chiaro, 2021). Just like this
 article discussed, there are many pros to using technology inside the classroom
to boost student engagement “technology not only increases student
engagement, but it also enhances students’ opportunities to be successful and
productive citizens” (Chiaro, 2021). The world is constantly adapting to new
technology tools and it is important for our students to have the access and
knowledge of these specific tools.

Lesson Plans

Lesson Topic: ELA key ideas and details of the book Holes

Grade level: 5th grade

Lesson duration: 45 minutes

Tools and materials:
Materials:
Computers or tablets
Peardeck
Kahoot
Holes (book)

We are using the Technology tools of Peardeack and Kahoot. We chose these two
tools to implement because we feel as if they are engaging and fun for students. In
addition, these two tools allow for full control from the educator to ensure that
students aren’t off task. WIth an evolving technological society, we want our fifth
grade classroom to also evolve in such a way.
CCC Standards
ELA.R.5.2: Determine a theme of a story, drama, or poem from details in the text,
including how characters in a story or drama respond to challenges or how the
speaker in a poem reflects upon a topic; summarize the text

ISTE Standards
1.1.c Students use technology to seek feedback that informs and improves their
practice and to demonstrate their learning in a variety of ways.

Learning goals and objectives:

Goal: For students to use Pear Deck and Kahoot as technology tools in order to
increase student engagement in an ELA lesson regarding key ideas and details of
the book Holes.
Objective: Given the book Holes and a Peardeck slideshow, students will determine
the theme of Holes from details, including how the characters in Holes respond to
challenges with 100% accuracy.

Description of activities/Steps of Instruction

 ● Make sure to list the activities for the students to do in a sequence.
● Explain how technology will be used
● Use of bullet points is recommended.
(The book Holes was read independently by students for two weeks before this lesson)
● Students will grab their laptops and sit quietly for directions
● The teacher will discuss behavior while using technology by incorporating CHAMPS
○ C-Conversation Level: 0-2 (0 during teacher lesson; 2 during partner work)
○ H- Help: Raise your hand
○ A-Activity: Following along with Peardeck and participating in Kahoot)
○ M-Movement: Sitting quietly at their desk
○ P-Participation: Listening and participating when prompted
● All students will log on to Peardeck using teacher provided Peardeck Join Code
● Students will follow along with the Peardeck lecture and participate in Peardeck
interactive activities when prompted
● Once Peardeck concludes, students will join Kahoot with the join code provided by
the teacher
● Students will participate and compete in Kahoot timed questions to ensure that the
teacher is checking for their understanding from the Peardeck lesson
● After each kahoot question answered, the teacher will discuss the correct answer
while providing time for questions
● When Kahoot concludes, students will respectfully put computers back

Assessment/Measures of Student Learning Outcomes

Based on your lesson goals and objectives, how will you find out whether you
achieve it or not? What activity(ies) will you use to measure the students’
performance?

We incorporated checks for understanding throughout our lesson by providing

interactive questions and activities throughout the Peardeck lesson to ensure that
our students were understanding the material presented. We also finished the
lesson with an engaging and fun Kahoot competition that incorporates questions
based off of the Peardeck lesson to ensure that our students full grasp the content
at hand.

References

Chiaro, C. (2021, March 04). How technology can increase student engagement.
Retrieved October 27, 2022, from
https://www.teachhub.com/technology-in-the-
classroom/2019/08/how-technology-can-increase-student-engagement/

Smith, A. (2021, December 22). How to utilize technology to increase student engagement.
Retrieved October 27, 2022, from
 https://resources.10to8.com/blog/technology-and-student-
engagement