In a hypothetical fifth grade classroom studying social studies I will have students break into groups of 4-5 and have them film four people outside the class in a response to this question: “What would life be like if the Colonists hadn’t moved to America?” They will also include a collective answer to the question at the end of the video. I will assist editing the video and posting it on the class blog, inviting others to respond with videos.
Monday, October 25, 2010
Week 9: "Caught on Video"
There was a lot addressed in this article. Most of it was very helpful and interesting but I disagree with a few points he made.
The bulk of the article was very visionary and idealistic--which is a good thing. There are many advantages to providing video cameras to students and teachers. His argument for the documentation and evidence-gathering of learning was compelling because video recording really is the best way to see that process. I am sure parents would love it if parts of the classroom was recorded and they could see the exciting things their children are doing.
I think it's important not to get carried away with this idea. I can see how it could become very easy to focus on just getting something onto tape rather than using it efficiently, while not taking away from important learning experiences.
As for the elimination of grading aspect: I think for progress report kind of grades videos would be a good replacement, similarly with parent-teacher conferences. But, for standardized tests and final grades, videos, in my mind, seem to be cumbersome and detrimental.
Students could be embarrassed or unable to concentrate when being filmed failing to represent an accurate picture of their learning. Also, those needing to evaluate the countless videos coming in may find it taking much longer than looking at numbers and percentages from tests.
Just my thoughts on this article. I learned a lot about integrating video into the classroom and the importance of collecting this kind of evidence. It is a brilliant idea with a few flaws in my mind.
The bulk of the article was very visionary and idealistic--which is a good thing. There are many advantages to providing video cameras to students and teachers. His argument for the documentation and evidence-gathering of learning was compelling because video recording really is the best way to see that process. I am sure parents would love it if parts of the classroom was recorded and they could see the exciting things their children are doing.
I think it's important not to get carried away with this idea. I can see how it could become very easy to focus on just getting something onto tape rather than using it efficiently, while not taking away from important learning experiences.
As for the elimination of grading aspect: I think for progress report kind of grades videos would be a good replacement, similarly with parent-teacher conferences. But, for standardized tests and final grades, videos, in my mind, seem to be cumbersome and detrimental.
Students could be embarrassed or unable to concentrate when being filmed failing to represent an accurate picture of their learning. Also, those needing to evaluate the countless videos coming in may find it taking much longer than looking at numbers and percentages from tests.
Just my thoughts on this article. I learned a lot about integrating video into the classroom and the importance of collecting this kind of evidence. It is a brilliant idea with a few flaws in my mind.
Tuesday, October 19, 2010
Week 8: NU Panel Questions
For our panel discussion today I want to ask the following questions:
-As new teachers how do you use technology in your class and how much time can reasonably be devoted to th eplanning of technology integration?
-How much support is there from the administration and district for technolgoy integration?
-Is it still as important to send notes and handouts home with students if a blog is in place, etc.?
-How do you integrate your faith into your classroom?
-How much technology pieces (smartboard lessons) do you create yourself and how much is gleaned from other resources?
I'm sure I will think of more tonight!
-As new teachers how do you use technology in your class and how much time can reasonably be devoted to th eplanning of technology integration?
-How much support is there from the administration and district for technolgoy integration?
-Is it still as important to send notes and handouts home with students if a blog is in place, etc.?
-How do you integrate your faith into your classroom?
-How much technology pieces (smartboard lessons) do you create yourself and how much is gleaned from other resources?
I'm sure I will think of more tonight!
Tuesday, October 12, 2010
Week #7: Promethean Activboard
Article Link: Maximizing Student Achievement (just click on the first article that is displayed)
A lot of what we've already covered about SMART Boards and it's impact on learning was mentioned in this article: interactivity, hands-on experience, etc. However, this article had direct research to prove these things and it was really fascinating. Also, the impact on the classroom was reiterated: the teacher becomes more of a guide than a lecturer, students don't have to "power down" in their use of technology when they enter the classroom, and they can see and hear the material better.
One thing that I haven't read a lot about that this article emphasized was the learner response systems. This allows for students to have a voice--even those that are shy and quiet. With the voters students anonymously submit answers and the feedback is displayed immediately on the screen. This enables every student to be involved at once and limits feelings of embarrassment and fear.
Another amazing thing that was discussed in this article was Promethean's accommodations for special needs. The height adjustability and panels can help involve students who may not have been able to participate before. Special needs teachers also comment on the amazing enhancement of the boards in their rooms.
I am excited to see and use a Promethean Activboard today in class. I do have questions though:
1. How do voters work?
2. What are the main differences of the Activboard to the SMART Board?
3. How does the audio enhancement technology work?
4. What kinds of assignments/tasks could kids do to use the Promethean software at home?
Guess I'll find out tonight! See you all in a few hours:)
A lot of what we've already covered about SMART Boards and it's impact on learning was mentioned in this article: interactivity, hands-on experience, etc. However, this article had direct research to prove these things and it was really fascinating. Also, the impact on the classroom was reiterated: the teacher becomes more of a guide than a lecturer, students don't have to "power down" in their use of technology when they enter the classroom, and they can see and hear the material better.
One thing that I haven't read a lot about that this article emphasized was the learner response systems. This allows for students to have a voice--even those that are shy and quiet. With the voters students anonymously submit answers and the feedback is displayed immediately on the screen. This enables every student to be involved at once and limits feelings of embarrassment and fear.
Another amazing thing that was discussed in this article was Promethean's accommodations for special needs. The height adjustability and panels can help involve students who may not have been able to participate before. Special needs teachers also comment on the amazing enhancement of the boards in their rooms.
I am excited to see and use a Promethean Activboard today in class. I do have questions though:
1. How do voters work?
2. What are the main differences of the Activboard to the SMART Board?
3. How does the audio enhancement technology work?
4. What kinds of assignments/tasks could kids do to use the Promethean software at home?
Guess I'll find out tonight! See you all in a few hours:)
Reflective Entries #1-6
Reflection #6
As I was working on a paper for another class the other day I was very thankful for a new(ish) aspect of technology: ebooks. For my biblical interpretation class I was able to access commentaries online! This was extremely helpful as it was late and the library was closed. Also, most commentaries are in the reference section which means they can't be checked out. I was grateful to be able to access the material from my desk. Not only have I used ebooks, but online journal articles have been a huge help in paper writing. I love the way information is available on the internet and that libraries are supporting this--because, as we all know, not all the information is reliable. But when we gain our source from a output such as the library we can know we are in good hands. Thank you technology!
Reflection #5
Reading Yajaira's post on podcasts spurred me to realize that I know nothing about podcasts in the teaching profession. I listen to sermons on podcasts when I work out, and I knew that there were podcasts for almost anything, but I guess it never crossed my mind to use them in teaching. So...I took a look on my itunes for the podcasts available relevant to teaching. I found podcasts providing lesson plans, language learning, and music lessons even! The coolest thing I found however was this: the sites we could use to get videos for our students (like discovery, BBC, PBS, and TED) have podcasts! Just another feature we could incorporate into lessons. I can just imagine a secondary teacher assigning a project to review a certain amount of podcasts on from one of these providers on a certain topic. My horizons of possibilities with technology keep expanding.
Reflection #4
I was driving into my church the other Sunday and a sign I had never seen before met me at the entrance of the long driveway. It said something like this: "We welcome you to Overlake Christain Church. Tune your radio to 89.9 for more information." I was in awe! So, of course, I turned my radio to 89.9 and listened as our head pastor welcomed everyone to church and gave resources for children, main service times, and even available cofffee. To me this was a perfect example of integrating technology on a professional level to the benefit of many people. I immediately felt welcome (even though I wasn't new) and knew that the church cared for me and it's other attendees. What an awesome and effective idea. Just thought I would share.
Reflection #3
I have realized that a lot of creativity goes into making technology integration work in a classroom. And this really excites me. I love being creative, artistic, and visual. I think these things will help me adapt certain tools into my teaching. I can't wait to get to my own classroom and use the things I have learned so far.
Reflection #2:
Sitting in class a few days ago, I was thinking about the adjectives we use to describe different forms of technology and how it affects a student's perception of the material. In this class the teacher had prepared visuals and helpful tools for us on the computer which wasn't working. So she told us we would be using the "archaic" overhead projector. Now even in a college level class we automatically think of the overhead being "old" and it slightly turns us off to the information being presented. I assume this would be the same way with an elementary class. Students like to use new things!! When I was in elementary school I loved being called up to write something on an overhead because it was a new thing. But, as with anything, things get better and we, kids especially, aren't satisfied with our old stuff. Keeping ahead with our use of technology is consequently and important aspect to the attractiveness of a lesson. It may make or break the attention you get from your students. Just a thought:)
Reflection #1:
I was thinking about how technology makes learning effective in the classroom and my mind wandered to the classes I have taken at Northwest so far. The class I would say was most efficient in integrating technology and using devices to connect with students was Professor Kowalski's Christian Thought class. He is very knowledgeable about technology--so it is no surprise he would use it to further his teaching ability. It was easy to follow the material with the information Kowalski would put on the screen. He would also access passages of scripture online with different resources right in front of us. My favorite use of technology however was used at the beginning of class. He would have a music video playing as everyone entered relating to the material for the day. This was the perfect tool to get his audience of young adults engaged and interested right away. All this to say, I applaud his creative use of technology to drive home educational points.
As I was working on a paper for another class the other day I was very thankful for a new(ish) aspect of technology: ebooks. For my biblical interpretation class I was able to access commentaries online! This was extremely helpful as it was late and the library was closed. Also, most commentaries are in the reference section which means they can't be checked out. I was grateful to be able to access the material from my desk. Not only have I used ebooks, but online journal articles have been a huge help in paper writing. I love the way information is available on the internet and that libraries are supporting this--because, as we all know, not all the information is reliable. But when we gain our source from a output such as the library we can know we are in good hands. Thank you technology!
Reflection #5
Reading Yajaira's post on podcasts spurred me to realize that I know nothing about podcasts in the teaching profession. I listen to sermons on podcasts when I work out, and I knew that there were podcasts for almost anything, but I guess it never crossed my mind to use them in teaching. So...I took a look on my itunes for the podcasts available relevant to teaching. I found podcasts providing lesson plans, language learning, and music lessons even! The coolest thing I found however was this: the sites we could use to get videos for our students (like discovery, BBC, PBS, and TED) have podcasts! Just another feature we could incorporate into lessons. I can just imagine a secondary teacher assigning a project to review a certain amount of podcasts on from one of these providers on a certain topic. My horizons of possibilities with technology keep expanding.
Reflection #4
I was driving into my church the other Sunday and a sign I had never seen before met me at the entrance of the long driveway. It said something like this: "We welcome you to Overlake Christain Church. Tune your radio to 89.9 for more information." I was in awe! So, of course, I turned my radio to 89.9 and listened as our head pastor welcomed everyone to church and gave resources for children, main service times, and even available cofffee. To me this was a perfect example of integrating technology on a professional level to the benefit of many people. I immediately felt welcome (even though I wasn't new) and knew that the church cared for me and it's other attendees. What an awesome and effective idea. Just thought I would share.
Reflection #3
I have realized that a lot of creativity goes into making technology integration work in a classroom. And this really excites me. I love being creative, artistic, and visual. I think these things will help me adapt certain tools into my teaching. I can't wait to get to my own classroom and use the things I have learned so far.
Reflection #2:
Sitting in class a few days ago, I was thinking about the adjectives we use to describe different forms of technology and how it affects a student's perception of the material. In this class the teacher had prepared visuals and helpful tools for us on the computer which wasn't working. So she told us we would be using the "archaic" overhead projector. Now even in a college level class we automatically think of the overhead being "old" and it slightly turns us off to the information being presented. I assume this would be the same way with an elementary class. Students like to use new things!! When I was in elementary school I loved being called up to write something on an overhead because it was a new thing. But, as with anything, things get better and we, kids especially, aren't satisfied with our old stuff. Keeping ahead with our use of technology is consequently and important aspect to the attractiveness of a lesson. It may make or break the attention you get from your students. Just a thought:)
Reflection #1:
I was thinking about how technology makes learning effective in the classroom and my mind wandered to the classes I have taken at Northwest so far. The class I would say was most efficient in integrating technology and using devices to connect with students was Professor Kowalski's Christian Thought class. He is very knowledgeable about technology--so it is no surprise he would use it to further his teaching ability. It was easy to follow the material with the information Kowalski would put on the screen. He would also access passages of scripture online with different resources right in front of us. My favorite use of technology however was used at the beginning of class. He would have a music video playing as everyone entered relating to the material for the day. This was the perfect tool to get his audience of young adults engaged and interested right away. All this to say, I applaud his creative use of technology to drive home educational points.
Tuesday, October 5, 2010
Week #6: In Class
One thing I have learned so far:
So far I have learned so much--but to pin it down to one I would say that learning how to use the SMART Board and it's online resources was amazing. I had no idea you could download the SMART Board software onto your personal computer and work on presentations that way. I loved it--it made me want to make a presentation over and over again.
I am still confused about:
I am comfortable with using the SMART Board within it's own Notebook program but I wonder how I could use the SMART Board funtions outside the Notebook page. For example writing and saving things you have modified online, on word processor, etc.
So far I have learned so much--but to pin it down to one I would say that learning how to use the SMART Board and it's online resources was amazing. I had no idea you could download the SMART Board software onto your personal computer and work on presentations that way. I loved it--it made me want to make a presentation over and over again.
I am still confused about:
I am comfortable with using the SMART Board within it's own Notebook program but I wonder how I could use the SMART Board funtions outside the Notebook page. For example writing and saving things you have modified online, on word processor, etc.
Week #6: Generation IM Article Reflection
I really enjoyed the article "Generation IM". It was very similar to the article I read for my technology literacy paper but I still learned a good deal. Right off the bat I think a very important statement in the article was, “If we teach them the way we were taught, we’re not serving them well.” Peggy Sheehy illustrates the importance of understanding the way the students of the current generation learn because it is often different from the way the teachers learned.
Another thing that caught my attention was how the article contrasted television and the Internet in terms of roles the students take. I used to hear the TV and computer being grouped together and people (usually parents) saying their children waste too much time on the TV and computer. The view, as the article suggests, may be changing to accept Internet use more now due to it's interactivity? Either way it is important to realize our students love being interactive! And we should make the content in our classroom interactive.
The suggestions of using technology in lessons was great! Some of the recommendations I hadn't heard of before. One that I like particularly was how sixth graders made fictitious profiles of characters from different books on a social networking site. They could then write as if they were them. What a great way to step into another person's shoes and think outside yourself for a little bit. Another suggestion I liked was exploring Google maps in a lesson or for research--because, as the author said, who doesn't like using Google maps?? I sure love it! It is an excellent way of visualizing geography and history.
This article is one that will be bookmarked on my computer so I can access it when I have my classroom. It is very helpful and resourceful.
Another thing that caught my attention was how the article contrasted television and the Internet in terms of roles the students take. I used to hear the TV and computer being grouped together and people (usually parents) saying their children waste too much time on the TV and computer. The view, as the article suggests, may be changing to accept Internet use more now due to it's interactivity? Either way it is important to realize our students love being interactive! And we should make the content in our classroom interactive.
The suggestions of using technology in lessons was great! Some of the recommendations I hadn't heard of before. One that I like particularly was how sixth graders made fictitious profiles of characters from different books on a social networking site. They could then write as if they were them. What a great way to step into another person's shoes and think outside yourself for a little bit. Another suggestion I liked was exploring Google maps in a lesson or for research--because, as the author said, who doesn't like using Google maps?? I sure love it! It is an excellent way of visualizing geography and history.
This article is one that will be bookmarked on my computer so I can access it when I have my classroom. It is very helpful and resourceful.
Assignment #1: Technology Literacy Paper
I read an article that fully supports exactly what this class is all about: understanding how to integrate technology into teaching to connect with the students further. This article was called “How Do You Leverage the Latest Technologies, including Web 2.0 Tools, in Your Classroom?” and the author described ten characteristics that this generation of students have and how these characteristics can be applied to the classroom.
The bulk of the article described these ten characteristics of the “Net Generation”, the generation of students today who obtained their name from their access and use of technology. Being a part of this generation myself made it easy to see how these characteristics are valid and abundant. They range from “relying on search engines for information” and “interested in multimedia” to “prefers typing to handwriting” and “multitasks”. Knowing the ways a student learns and lives is important for a teacher to know how to identify with the students’ culture and consequently their academic world. This article is a great resource because it specifically identifies programs and tools to use to connect to each of the characteristics this “Net Generation” of students has.
I had one problem while reading this article however. Under the characteristic “multitasking” the author suggests, “permitting students to multitask in class; they can listen to you, type, listen to music, play an online game, and send an email or text all at the same time”. I do not think that this would be productive at all. It would be a huge distraction to the individual student and those around him/her. Additionally, even though the student participates in multitasking throughout the day, it would be important to learn to focus his/her attention and glean from one source and one source only. I heard casually from another student that there was a study done at an Ivy League school that showed students’ IQ drop when a new “task” was added to a test-taking environment. I wonder if the majority of the research supports this or what the article’s author seems to recommend.
On the other hand I agree with the support of typing in the classroom—especially for note taking. Last year one of my professors didn’t allow us to use our computers to take notes and it was really frustrating. For me, it was easier to organize my ideas on the computer versus pen and paper. I can understand that it could be an issue of multitasking if the students are doing other things than note taking. Nonetheless, this is the world we have grown up in.
I gained a lot of information from this article even though the intended audience was older teachers who weren’t a part of the “Net Generation”. Since I am part of this generation I have a greater understanding of the student characteristics—because they are mine. One important thing I will need to take to my future classroom, however, is not to throw technology out there and assume it will help students connect—I must be intentional about integrating and keeping the importance of the content in place.
Citation:
Berk, Ronald A. "How Do You Leverage the Latest Technologies, including Web 2.0
Tools, in Your Classroom?." International Journal of Technology in Teaching & Learning 6.1 (2010): 1-13. Education Research Complete. EBSCO. Web. 5 Oct. 2010.
NETS Goals
NETS for Teachers:
3. Model Digital-Age Work and Learning
This standard is important for teachers because it ensures them a knowledge base to teach off of. We must do our research as to what kind of tools our students connect with and are familiar with. Also, as a teacher I don’t want to “throw technology” at my student like it mentioned in the above article. I want to know how to use the right kind of tools in the right kind of way with the right kind of content. Teachers modeling technology integration in the class is important for students because their horizons are expanded—“oh I can use the computer for more than just online games!” It is also extremely important, especially in today’s age, to know how to evaluate and question information found through technology. Modeling can help students know specific ways to do this.
Three ways I will work on this standard this semester are:
- Learn how to use the technology we study and how to apply it to teaching.
I will pay attention and practice how to use the tools we are learning about—constantly thinking about how they can be used to deliver content.
- Research other pieces of technology students are using that could be integrated.
- Never think that I have learned it all
I don’t ever want to think that I know everything about a tool of teaching or device of delivery—because things are always changing and it is important to stay current and connected with my students.
NETS for Students:
2. Communication and Collaboration
This standard is important to students because it literally grows their perception of the world and those in it. Knowing how to interact with people is an essential life lesson and something that is needed anywhere else a student might go. Technology has made this connection broader and easier. Students today could have access to chatting with a student in India or discussing a book with a class in Guatemala. Not only does this stimulate peer relationships but it also develops an understanding and appreciation of different cultures and people.
Two assignments/projects for students to meet this standard are:
- After studying Brazil culture and history the teacher could set up a Skype video feed from a Brazil classroom so students could talk and become aware of the differences in order to appreciate them. Teachers could require each student to write one question to ask a student on the other end.
- Students could be assigned a math topic in which they must research and present in small groups. With only one computer per group, students will have to divide the work evenly and plan to have each participant working on the computer at some point.
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