Memo # 3: Using Primary Sources

     The I-Search journey continues! As mentioned in my previous post, my research has taken me in a new direction. Originally, I was mostly interested in discovering how social media and technology impact our reading and writing abilities within the classroom, and how that effects the way that educators teach. However, most of the articles that I discovered discussed the positive effects that technology has had on the field of education. Learning about things like "live tweeting" in the classroom, and "hashtagging" homework on Twitter for student's easy access sparked a new interest in my mind. I'm now beginning to wonder how else educators can use (or already have used) technology to reach their 21st century students. With that being said, my I-Search has become more focused on the topic of technology in the classroom, specifically how it is being used and how it impacts student success. I will no longer be investigating the effects of social media on reading and writing abilities, and while it was a bit uncomfortable to make that decision, I'm excited to continue embarking on this new I-Search journey. 


     Now that I have focused my topic in a bit, I will continue to find secondary sources that provide me with more information about the implementation of technology within the classroom. Going beyond journals and articles, I also plan to interview current students and teachers about their experience with his topic. Fortunately, access to these primary sources will be rather easy for me, as I will conduct interviews with educators and students from my current Practicum placements. I have recently developed a strong rapport with my previous cooperating teacher at a middle school in Coventry, Rhode Island. Throughout my time at this school, we often discussed technology being used in the classroom, not with regards to my I-Search investigation, but simply because it was a topic of interest to the both of us. With this being said, the interview process with this teacher will be rather smooth and natural as I ask questions like: 

- How do you implement technology into your lessons?
- What impact do you think technology has on student success and engagement? Does it have an impact? 
- How has your classroom changed over the past 6 years you've been teaching?
- Does technology ever pose as a barrier between yourself and your students?
- Is there professional development at your school based around technology? 

As mentioned, in addition to interviewing this educator, I will also be interviewing students from her classroom (that she suggests or approves). I will ask these students questions like: 

- How often do you use technology (computers, tablets, etc.) during your classes?
- Does using technology help you to understand the material? 
- Do you have social media accounts? 
- How would you feel if your teacher "followed" you on social media and posted assignments there?

     These are just a few examples of the questioning that might take place. Once I have collected data from these middle school classes, I will also conduct the same research at the high school level using another cooperating teacher from my Practicum course. I anticipate using the same questions (and more) and then comparing how the views and/or implementation of technology might be the same or different between the two levels of education.

     Now that I have narrowed my search to focusing on the topic of the implementation of technology within the classroom and how that impacts students and teachers, I am much more excited to continue on this journey. I feel that my research has become much more focused and less vague, and I believe that utilizing these primary sources will provide me with the insight I need to truly do this topic justice!