Journal 7

A teacher at my school sent the staff a link to this article about math self-concept:
To Get Students Interested in Math, Address Their Self-Concept

While the article was not about teaching with technology, the link is simple to make. In the article, the author points out that,

I learned that, regardless of how ‘tough’ some students are or how weak their math skills are, teenagers still love feeling successful when they become good at something or when they figure something out. A sequence of small successes can lead students to develop intrinsic motivation to learn and take risks in a classroom . . .

Isn't it the same with ANY new skill, including technology? Everyone loves to feel successful and hates feeling uncapable. The article goes on to talk about how to teach to address a student's self-concept:

Instead, I began to design my lessons and accompanying student work so that (1) all of my students could successfully complete the first problem or task independently, and in which (2) the sequence of problems/tasks matched my students’ tolerance for challenge and self-concept.

It all sounds like scaffolding to me. While this article touches on building that self-confidence and self-concept in math and taking the words "I can't" out of a student's vocabulary, the same rings true for teaching anyone, young or old, about technology. You have to make lessons where students can achieve and slowly build up their confidence. A child who has never touched a keyboard before can't be expected to create a PowerPoint, so start at the basics. Scaffold and teach to make all students successfull, and as they see that success, their self-confidence in technology (and self-confidence, in general!) will skyrocket. It just takes patience and scaffolding.

While this article and journal was not about design in the aesthetic sense, it is very much about the instructional design process. I have had to scaffold myself this semester, not overwhelming myself and expecting myself to learn the complicated before the basics. Especially with Dreamweaver, I had to take it step-by-step and learn the foundational elements before I could begin the complicated. Through this process, I have found myself building a self-concept in both web design and the design principles that I did not have before, and it has resulted in a higher self-confidence level in these two areas.