JINGing the TPCK

Problem: Students don’t elaborate or write descriptively while writing; however they do while talking to someone else.

Solution & Pedagogy: Provide students with more opportunity to interact while writing.


a.What is the PC knowledge for the solution?(i.e., how specifically do your pedagogical choices make the content in your problem more intellectually accessible?


b.What is the TP knowledge for the solution? (i.e., how does the technology you have chosen support the teaching strategies and methods you have chosen?)

c.What is the TC knowledge for the solution? (i.e., how specifically does this technology make the content in your problem more intellectually accessible?

The Pedagogical strategies that complement the content problem (descriptive writing) are active learning, cooperative learning, guided discovery, and direct instruction.
The PC knowledge for the solution is Interactive writing because writing is a social process. Interactivity is important because it “improves the learning value of the media”. Because of this the best knowledge is gained through active involvement, thus the theory “to learn is to do”.

Since writing is a social process, the technology helps with this lesson because it allows the students to practice this craft socially, and “learn by doing”, BEFORE they write and produce the final project for the audience.

The technology makes the content easier to understand by allowing for differentiation for each child and by having them to choose their focus according to their own writing skill level. For example the use of voice thread affords the students the opportunity to focus their thoughts on a specific topic but in short spurts. The technology also allows the students to actively engage in the learning process to do that.

It also allows the content to be given in small digestible doses to the student through social interaction and allows the teacher to meet the student where they are (attention grabber) but also allows a challenge for the students so improve and expand thus resulting in a better understanding of the content (descriptive writing).