I scanned through TPACK model a few weeks ago when I was reading an article about digital storytelling, but I did not pay too much attention to it. I learned more about it through some of our assigned reading articles and videos, then I read a few more scholarly articles about the framework and found it interesting.
I am always passionate about finding ways to engage students’ learning. Using technology as one of the learning tools can be effective, and I am looking forward to learning more about it. I would like to share some of the learning and teaching experiences I have gained in the past a few weeks. In our school, we have a monthly theme that tied with our curriculum. For example, October is all about curiosity. All staff members in our school shared one or two things that we wondered about and posted them on a staff bulletin board for students, parents and others to read. Each class also did something similar and shared it with others. My students created “I wonder” project using the little cork person they made and recorded their questions through ChatterPix app. All my students was highly motivated to write and record their ideas. Here is an example:
Now when I thought about the whole procedure of this project, it reminded me of the TPACK model. For instance, The Content Knowledge (CK) for my practice was about curiosity and things that students wondered about. In order to give them some ideas and inspirations, I showed them a website called “wonderopolis” and explored “Wonders With Charlie”. We watched some interesting videos such as “What is Climate Change?”, “Who Invented Paper?”, and “Why Can’t Penguins Fly?”, etc (What, n.d.). My students became more curious about some new things and topics, and they were able to come up with more ideas and thoughts, as opposed to not knowing what to ask or what to write about. The website provided some valuable, informative information about the topic, and it has enhanced my concepts of content knowledge in things that I wonder about. This project-based learning (PK) about curiosity was fun and meaningful as students shared their answers with each other and learned more about the world around them. Creating a talking cork person through ChatterPix (TK) to talk about their questions was a bit hit. I made a video of their projects and shared it in our school assembly.  My students were super proud! I know there are many other ways to introduce this topic, but using technology as one of the teaching tools has offered us more opportunities in teaching and learning. In a word, I have never thought about connecting these knowledge and practice through a theoretical framework such as TPACK, but it makes more sense now.
Reference
Mishra, P., & Koehler, M. J. (2006). Technological pedagogical content knowledge: A framework for teacher knowledge. Teachers College Record, 108(6), 1017–1054. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-9620.2006.00684.x
What Are You Wondering? (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.wonderopolis.org/.
