Tuesday, January 27, 2009

TPACK

Today I learned about TPACK. TPACK stands for Technological Pedagogical and Content Knowledge. It is a way of thinking about how you intergrate technology into your teaching. I had never heard of TPACK before today, but I feel that it is important to know and to use in my classroom.

TPACK is broken into three main areas--Pedagogical knowledge, content knowledge, and technological knowledge. Pedagogical knowledge is defined as general knowledge and skills relating to teaching. Content knowledge is the knowledge of facts, concepts and skills. It's important to remember that having this kind of knowledge doesn't mean that you will be a good teacher. Content knowledge doesn't include any of the teaching skills. Technological knowledge is the knowledge required to understand and use various teachnologies.

Each of the three knowledges are important, but the key is to use all three knowledges when teaching. If you use all three knowledges, lessons become more hands on and enjoyable. The children walk away having learned much more than they ever would have from just reading a text book.

It is important for teachers to use this in their classroom. Students learn much more about the concept they are studying, if they are able to physically experience it. Students also learn about new technologies, as they use them to study the given concept. TPACK is a way to reach students, who usually are not reached through textbooks. Children all learn differently and TPACK is a tool teachers can use to reach a full spectrum of different learning preferences.

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