Theories of Critical Thinking Blog Post- Ridge Watson

As educators and future leaders of schools, we must evolve with the times and ensure our students are prepared for a successful education and post-educational career. We must prescribe and help guide our students using 'new pedagogies' to adapt to a continuously changing world, which is becoming more digital (Fullan & Langworthy, 2014). Currently, I teach world history, which includes delivering informational content more so than teaching skill sets. This is considered 'old pedagogy' and should be replaced with skills that allow students to obtain more knowledge and skills that they may use upon graduation and integration into the workforce. We want our students to achieve deeper learning, which is more impactful than just content mastery. 'New Pedagogies' will create students who are deep learners and who show the capability of succeeding after leaving school. In A Rich Seam: How New Pedagogies Find Deep Learning, the expectation is that the digital era is embraced and harnessed into tools that take our students into a new age of learning. I fail at adequately using digital platforms to expand student learning and mastery. I often resort to the easy option of presenting content at a low level of Bloom's taxonomy. I plan to use digital media to enhance students' skills and increase their capability in my classroom and beyond. 

This aligns directly with the ideas expressed in Bloom's Taxonomy, which lays out the expectations for students to demonstrate the capability to perform complex cognitive tasks. The levels of Bloom's Taxonomy are similar to the divide illustrated by Fullan & Langworthy in A Rich Seam: How New Pedagogies Find Deep Learning. Traditionally, educators have presented content to students in a way that requires a very low level of thinking and problem solving. In this 'new pedagogy', educators are expected to prompt students with tasks that require a higher, more complex level of understanding. We must go beyond just knowledge and venture into application, evaluation, and synthesis, as it applies to the real world (Huitt, 2011). This, combined with deep connections between students and educators, will foster a learning environment where 'new pedagogies' become the expectation and foundation of learners' educational outlook. As an aspiring instructional leader, I plan to implement 'new pedagogies' and encourage my staff to adopt these policies to best help our students. 

This vision of digital integration cannot come to fruition without digital literacy on the part of students and faculty alike. Literacy could be defined as "the ability to share meaning through symbol systems, in order to fully participate in a society" (Hobbs, 2011). This definition highlights the importance of literacy and makes it sound as though to fit in in an educated society, you must be literate in many things. In 2025, literacy in the digital world cannot be replaced. Digital platforms and tools are not just to be used to facilitate learning in a K-12, undergraduate, and postgraduate setting, but to be the medium where skills are developed and used to further one's educational potential and impact on the world. Although acquiring new technology and mediums is a crucial step, the actual competency and understanding of the tools is what will tell the tale of its effectiveness in the learning environment. As the push for the digitization of schools has come along, many administrators and school leaders believe that results will come just based on acquiring these new resources (Hobbs, 2011). According to The Adoption Process, technology and other innovations vary in the time in which they are to be widely implemented. For example, artificial intelligence has improved and increased dramatically in just the last few years. If educators and instructional leaders do not find a way to work with this and use it as a tool to help students, it will continue to hinder students and provide false indications of learning. This is only the tip of the iceberg. Empowering Learners With Digital and Media Literacy encourages the literacy of sources that are used in digital platforms. Educators, instructional leaders, and instructional coaches act as the safeguard to reliable sources for students' access. As an instructional leader, I would plan training for staff on how to use these digital tools academically and responsibly in hopes that the staff would pass this on to their students. I would expect the school to establish a culture of digital excellence.

This increased literacy in all the media forms that are available to educators and their students will prove meaningless if they are not utilized correctly. According to Connecting Depth and Balance In Class, if educational technology is used correctly, it can give new meaning and utility to long-established educational paradigms like Bloom's Taxonomy and the theory of Multiple Intelligences (Kuhn, 2008). This allows us to build upon solid, research-based theories and encourages the advancing 21st-century students to become more literate and capable in a technologically advanced world. As a classroom teacher, I need to continue to search for opportunities to ask students to perform more complex tasks. As I have moved into the AP curriculum, this has come more naturally, and the students who are enrolled in these AP classes respond better to complex challenges. As an instructional leader, I need to push students and educators to seek complex challenges, which can be accommodating to those of multiple intelligences, while also pushing each student to do their best. Digital literacy is a key component to success in education. We cannot afford to be illiterate in digital media, because it is here to stay.

References 

Fullan, M. & Langworthy, M. (2014). A rich seam: How new pedagogies find deep learning. London: Pearson. Retrieved from https://www.pearson.com/content/dam/one-dot-com/one-dot-com/global/Files/about-pearson/innovation/open-ideas/ARichSeamEnglish.pdf 

Hobbs, R. (2011). Empowering learners with digital and media literacy. Knowledge Quest, 39(5), 12-17. Retrieved from Alabama Search Premiere Database.  

 Huitt, W. (2011). Bloom et al.'s taxonomy of the cognitive domain. Educational Psychology Interactive. Valdosta, GA: Valdosta State University. Retrieved from http://www.edpsycinteractive.org/topics/cognition/bloom.pdf    

Kuhn, M. S. (2008). Connecting depth and balance in class. Learning & Leading with Technology, 36(1), 18-21. Retrieved from Academic Search  

Rogers, E. M. (1963). The adoption process II. Journal of Cooperative Extension, 1(2), 69-75. Retrieved from https://archives.joe.org/joe/1963summer/1963-2-a2.pdf 

 

Theories of Critical Thinking-Hunt

 

This is my first attempt at a Blog post so I’m not sure how formal or informal to be. After reading these five articles I honestly had to do a lot of reflection especially being so new to teaching and very old school myself. To begin with, the theories on education have always been a sticky point to me. Taking information created 69 and 42 years ago respectively and applying it to students today seemed wild to me in undergrad. Times were different when the theories were written compared to now, but as I taught this previous year, I began to notice the fundamentals really stuck around. Take Bloom’s Taxonomy for example, according to Huitt (2011) the levels are meant to be successive, and students can “know” about a topic at any different level, I didn’t fully comprehend that until I started teaching and realized that students could regurgitate extremely well if they cared enough to. But to be able to take what they learned and apply it they needed to be able to create or evaluate the material which shows they fully comprehend the material. Howard Garners Theory of Multiple Intelligences stuck out to me quickly because I knew I learned differently than others and I had seen with my own eyes my sons learned in an even different manner. The issue for me here though was how to incorporate it into a lesson and now fully jumble the whole lesson. Here’s where I agree with Kuhn when he said in his article that the power of educational technology is making it easier to include these theories into our teaching (2011). That’s the main reason I started this master’s course on technology, to make it possible for me to show other teachers the tech used to make their jobs easier and further help the students.

One issue I came across with technology is the willingness of teachers to utilize it once they are set in their ways. At my school there are a high number of teachers close to retirement and have never really incorporated technology into the classroom, or if they did not very effectively. The Adoption Process, while mainly discussing farmers, made a very good argument for the different levels of adopting technology or innovations. The list of acceptance goes from Innovators to Laggards with three steps in-between. While I wish I was an Innovator I do believe I would fall under an Early Adopter or Early Majority at the very least. According to Rogers, “Some innovations diffuse from their first introduction to widespread use in a few years. Others require 50 years. (1963, p.71)” I believe the key aspects of acceptance are ease of use and a proven track record.  With both of those details met I believe more teachers would adopt different technology faster.

The key concept I try and establish before incorporating technology into the classroom is Digital Literacy. A good definition for Digital Literacy is new social competencies needed to address cyberbullying, privacy, identity protection, respect for authorship and knowledge of all aspects of digital technology (Hobbs, 2011). Technology has its uses in every avenue of daily life; the trouble is some people use it incorrectly or dangerously. I noticed as I started incorporating Chromebook use in my class last year many students only had basic knowledge of the device. They knew how to use a VPN to play the coolest game but failed to be able to do the most basic troubleshooting, couldn’t properly write an email, find information other than the first suggested thing in Chrome, or even not to fall for scams. While we in Alabama have made huge strides in Computer Science classes it hasn’t spread far or fast enough. The basic classes should be available to everyone but currently rural schools fall behind in access due to funding so it falls on the core subject teachers to incorporate Digital Literacy into their lessons or skip out on technology use altogether.

Once a good grasp is held on Digital Literacy teachers and students should start going through a change in how they teach and learn. Fullan and Langworthy discuss a “deep understanding” in their article, A Rich Seam: How New Pedagogies Find Deep Learning. This deep understanding comes with a new type of pedagogy that, “shifts focus on covering all required content to focusing on the learning process, developing student’s ability to lead their own learning and to do things with their learning (Fullan&Langworthy,2014).” While I will be the first to admit I prefer direct instruction for most standards, especially in Social Studies, learning Math has shown me the need to have students own their learning. We are adopting Proficiency Scales in Jackson County this coming year and it ties in closely to the pedagogy discussed in this article. There is a lot of emphasis on students owning their learning, defining their own learning goals, and teachers taking a step back to allow students to show proficiency in other forms than formal assessment. So, my new pedagogy for this upcoming year will be a drastic change and l will be co-learning with the students as we tackle things like Project Based Learning, Inquiry Based Learning, and Student led classrooms.

References

Fullan, M., & Langworthy, M. (2014). A rich seam: How new pedagogies find deep learning. Pearson. https://www.pearson.com/content/dam/one-dot-com/one-dot-com/global/Files/about-pearson/innovation/open-ideas/ARichSeamEnglish.pdf

Hobbs, R. (2011). Empowering learners with digital and media literacy. Knowledge Quest, 39(5), 12–17.

Huitt, W. (2011). Bloom et al.'s taxonomy of the cognitive domain. Educational Psychology Interactive. http://www.edpsycinteractive.org/topics/cognition/bloom.pdf

Kuhn, M. S. (2008). Connecting depth and balance in class. Learning & Leading with Technology, 36(1), 18–21.

Rogers, E. M. (1963). The adoption process II. Journal of Cooperative Extension, 1(2), 69–75. https://archives.joe.org/joe/1963summer/1963-2-a2.pdf

 

           

Joey Chun_Theories of Critical Thinking Blog Post

     I teach my students mathematics using the direct-instruction model, and majority of my summative assessments are in test or exam format. Although this instructional model is effective in teaching students content knowledge and developing procedural fluency, it rarely teaches students useful skills they need for their future. According to Fullan and Langworthy (2014), they stated that current educational institutions put heavy emphasis on covering content knowledge day after day and taking tests after tests. Perhaps, this is the reason why many students believe what they learn in school will not be useful in their future. Fullan and Langworthy suggest that educators to implement "Deep Learning" pedagogy using digital tools. They firmly believe that deep learning will help students "gain competencies and dispositions that will prepare them to be creative, connected, and collaborative life-long problem solvers and to be healthy, holistic human beings who not only contribute to but also create the common good in today's knowledge-based, creative, interdependent world" (Fullan & Langworthy, 2014, p.2). I like how this pedagogy prepares students to be creative and problem solvers, as these skills are life skills an individual must have to succeed in their life, so I want to implement at least a few traits, if not all, from deep learning pedagogy. In addition, I also learned that I need to implement more technologies to better support my students in developing these useful skills.

    Reflecting on my teaching last school year, I do not think I used technologies as often as I did before. For example, I did not use GeoGebra when teaching angle relationships formed by parallel lines cut by a transversal. Perhaps, this reflection is telling me to implement and use technology often and effectively for successful implementation of deep learning pedagogy. However, Hobbs (2011) state that simply purchasing and implementing "the latest digital technologies does not necessarily lead to the acquisition of digital and media literacy competencies" (p.15). I must carefully select and use technologies so that they allow my students to develop important skills, such as critical thinking, creativity, and communication, they must have for their school and future (Hobbs, 2011). I will collaborate with the media center specialist and instructional technology specialist to help me select and use technology, and I will also collaborate with them to build digital and media literacy for me and my students.

    The use of technology is also beneficial for teachers. According to Kuhn (2008), he states that "technology is making it easier for teachers to ensure depth and balance in their lessons" (p.18). I've experienced this when another math teacher introduced me to Formative, a website that allows teachers to assess students in real-time. I used Formative in my lesson and used its real-time student response system to determine if I needed to slow down or move forward. Kuhn (2008) also states that "the differentiating power of educational technology makes meeting the needs of different 'intelligences' or 'learning styles' more and more possible" (p.18). I've also experienced this, as Formative allows students to demonstrate their understanding in their preferred learning style. For example, visual learners can use a digital whiteboard. In addition, Formative allowed me to provide feedback immediately to students. As a result, students are more inclined to ask me questions regarding errors they made in their work, which is something you do not see often from students when they are working on paper assignments.

    Although I use technologies like Formative in my classroom, I noticed how this use of technology is limited to lower-order thinking skills, such as Remembering, Understanding, and Applying from the revised Bloom's Taxonomy (Huitt, 2011). To promote students to develop higher-order thinking skills, I believe I need to design rigorous tasks that involves technology. For example, I could create an assignment where students explore transformations on the coordinate plane using GeoGebra and create a video that explains each transformation, which would be a task that falls under Creating. The article written by Everett Rogers also helped me learn different types of adopters when it comes to responding to new technologies. From his article, I learned that I am an early majority, as I am "willing to consider new ideas only after peers have adopted" (Rogers, 1963, p.73). Perhaps, I believe I need to step up and become an early adopter so that I can better support my students in their education journey.

Theories of Critical Thinking

 

In today’s educational society, technology is no longer a supplement but rather a core component of meaningful teaching and learning. Michael Fullan and Maria Langworthy’s concept of Deep Learning encourages educators to expand beyond surface-level instruction into pedagogies that promote creativity, critical thinking, collaboration, and real-world problem solving. This shift requires not only digital access but also digital literacy, as mentioned by Renee Hobbs. Her work indicates the need to empower students with the skills to access, analyze, create, and reflect on media content. These capabilities are essential in a world overflowing with information and misinformation.

Bloom’s Taxonomy supports this by providing a framework for progressing from remembering and understanding to applying, analyzing, evaluating, and ultimately creating. When students use technology not just to consume but to create things such as producing podcasts, blogs, or digital presentations, they are able to reach the higher order thinking skills as Bloom described. But this jump doesn’t happen at one time. According to Everett Rogers’ Diffusion of Innovations theory, individuals adopt new ideas and technologies at different rates. In a classroom, innovators and early adopters might quickly embrace new tools like AI or interactive platforms, while the late majority and laggards could possibly resist due to discomfort or lack of support.

As educators, we must acknowledge this adoption spectrum not only among students but also among colleagues. Professional learning communities can be a space where early adopters share success stories and strategies, easing the transition for others. Kuhn reminds us that balance is key and depth must be maintained while embracing new methods. By aligning deep learning with thoughtful implementation of technology and scaffolding digital media literacy using Bloom’s structure, we can support all learners, regardless of their place on the innovation adoption curve, in achieving 21^st century readiness.

 

 Title: Deep Learning, Innovation, and Tech in My Gym and School

As a PE teacher and athletic director at a KIPP primary school, the ideas in these articles hit close to home. Fullan and Langworthy’s writing on deep learning helped me reflect on how much more powerful learning becomes when students take ownership and when technology is used to unlock real-world, collaborative problem-solving. In my classroom and after-school programs, I’ve seen how students light up when they’re actively engaged, whether they’re creating digital fitness logs, leading a group warm-up, or using tablets to track personal goals. These are small steps, but they show how learning shifts when it becomes more student-driven.

Bloom’s Taxonomy reminded me to keep pushing students beyond just remembering or doing what I ask. Whether we’re learning the rules of flag football or analyzing movement in dance, I want my kids to reach those higher levels, applying, analyzing, and even evaluating their performance. I also think about this with my co-workers. Not everyone is at the same place with technology. Rogers’ Diffusion of Innovations helped me put language to something I already feel: I tend to be an early adopter when it comes to trying new tools (especially ones that help with data or make fitness more interactive). However, some of my coworkers are more hesitant. I don’t believe that means they don’t care; it means they may need a different kind of support.

Hobbs’ article on digital and media literacy brought it home for me. Our students, especially those in underserved communities, deserve the skills to navigate the digital world critically. I try to sneak this in, even during PE, like when we analyze fitness influencers or viral sports videos. It’s all connected. Kuhn’s idea of connecting depth and balance helped me realize that even in a fast-paced environment like PE, there’s room for both challenge and reflection. We need to be intentional about how we frame it.

Overall, these articles gave me a framework for the work I’m already trying to do—and a reminder that innovation doesn’t always mean flashy tech. Sometimes it just means rethinking how we teach, who we empower, and how we grow together. Whether I’m coaching, leading a team of educators, or mentoring student-athletes, these theories will continue to shape how I show up as a leader and educator.

Brittani Scott - AVL assignment

https://youtu.be/O2RQTxetFH0

PBS LearningMedia is a helpful online resource that offers free videos, lesson plans, and activities for K-12 students. It's got content for all kinds of subjects like science, math, reading, and social studies, and everything is designed to be fun and engaging. For kindergarten teachers like me, it’s a great way to bring exciting, interactive lessons into the classroom, whether through short videos or hands-on activities. I could use it to introduce new topics to my students or reinforce lessons in a creative way, helping them stay engaged and making learning more fun.

Alabama Virtual Library

AVL Video

PebbleGo is an educational database designed for young learners, primarily aimed at children in grades K-3. It offers many resources on various topics, including animals, science, social studies, biographies, and more, all presented in an engaging and accessible way. The content is specifically tailored to early readers, with simple text, audio support, and vibrant images to help students understand complex concepts. PebbleGo’s interactive features allow students to explore and learn independently while building essential research skills. In my Kindergarten classroom, this resource can be used for guided research projects where students explore animals or famous figures, using PebbleGo’s read-aloud option to support literacy. You can also incorporate PebbleGo into a thematic unit, allowing students to discover new facts about topics like plants, weather, or community helpers. It fosters curiosity and promotes independent learning, making it an excellent tool for both whole-class lessons and individual exploration. With its engaging format, PebbleGo is an ideal resource for sparking young students' interest in the world around them.

AVL - Cruz

AVL - Cruz 

    In my English class, I use the Alabama Virtual Library (AVL) as a primary research resource, specifically focusing on the Academic Search Premier database. Academic Search Premier provides a comprehensive collection of scholarly articles, academic journals, and peer-reviewed research across multiple disciplines, making it ideal for high school students engaged in research projects. This database is particularly valuable for students as it offers credible sources for literary analysis, thematic exploration, and historical context, all of which enhance their understanding and critical thinking in English studies. For example, when analyzing a complex text or exploring a specific literary theme, students can use Academic Search Premier to locate scholarly articles that provide different interpretations or in-depth analyses. This not only helps students learn how to evaluate sources but also supports them in developing well-rounded arguments and perspectives in their essays and presentations.

Alabama Virtual Library Demo

PebbleGo by Capstone 

Here is a clickable link to my screencast project 

https://youtu.be/L1bb0jwvlUQ

    PebbleGo by Capstone is a learning platform for students. In my professional opinion and how I use it, I think this source is best for individual learning experiences regarding various topics within the state standards. Students can click on subjects such as science, social studies, health, math, etc, and read "student-friendly" information. They can watch videos and complete games. Also, there are resources that teachers can print for students to complete. My recommended age level would be those in 2nd and up. Even for those in the lower grade who can't read or struggle to read, they have a listening option for each passage. 

EIM 505 AVL: Pebble Go

 https://app.screencastify.com/v3/watch/tvwAgqsFbtwdOv9Q7F34

Pebble Go

Pebble Go is a wonderful resource that I found on the AVL website. This resource is targeted for grades K-3rd. It provides information on animals, science, social studies, and biographies. I think this information would be useful when used to support curriculum or content being taught and/or teaching informational or research writing. Pebble Go provides text to speech options that is extremely useful for kindergarten and first grade (learning to read grades). The information provides pictures and definitions to unknown or difficult words (such as amphibian). The site is easy to navigate for teachers and students. I would use this in my second grade class as we are learning to write informational pieces. Another great aspect of this site is it offers a button students can click on and it gives them the MLA format of their 'cited' work. This is very beneficial as we have been talking about crediting our sources.