Technology Inquiry Wiki Reflection

When completing this task I probably took more time than necessary. I put a lot of effort into my wiki and hope that it shows. The part that took up hours of my time was my screencast. For some reason I could not get through the entire thing without messing up even though I had a script prepared. Then the microphone I was using was not allowing me to increase its volume so it wasn't picking up my voice well. I had to talk into the microphone while it was an inch from my face to get the volume that I wanted. Overall I am pleased with the final product. Doing this assignment will make my life so much easier when creating a wiki for my future classroom. I now know firsthand how it works and its capabilities. I think having us as students create a wiki was more effective than just telling us how it works because we were able to interact and manipulate it ourselves.

IWB Reflection

I feel as though I spent lots of time creating and revising my interactive whiteboard lesson. I made sure to consider what students at the second grade level are capable of reading and doing. Creating a lesson using the Smartboard made me want to have one in everyone of my classes! Making the lesson was fairly simple and picking a standard to form the lesson around was the most time consuming. I was overwhelmed with the program at first because I was unfamiliar with it. Now I feel extremely comfortable using the Notebook software thanks to this assignment. I thought it was useful creating this lesson because this is likely a program that may be included in my future classroom. I look forward to utilizing interactive whiteboards in my classroom.

How Will You Teach? Incorporating Technology

A few ways that I plan on using technology in my future elementary classroom are:

• SMART board - having an interactive whiteboard in the classroom expands so many new possibilities for lessons and ways to keep students intrigued. I hope that this tool is included in my future classroom, but if not I will do my best to find a way to get one into my room. By the time I have my own classroom, hopefully the interactive whiteboard programs will improve and become even better than they are now.
• Classroom Wiki - In the older elementary grades allowing students to be in charge and manage a classroom wiki can have lists of benefits. I want my students to know how to use this technology, but also be able to share what they are learning with others globally. Had this been included in my elementary education I would be much more comfortable using different forms of technology today.
• Skype - I love the idea of communicating with other classrooms and possibly even influential people over the internet. If my classroom is doing a reading unit, for example, the opportunity to talk to the author in real time would be exciting for me and my students. Communicating with other classrooms across the world when working on a unit and collaborating on a project would make the information more real and tangible for students.

Professor Boyer stressed the use of Scratch in the classroom because it is so simple to personalize games for students who need extra practice. I'm not opposed to using Scratch in my classroom, it was just not in my top 3. I think that Scratch program would allow teachers (and students) to develop games that apply to their interests even outside of school while including educational information. A resource that we talked about was "iTunes U". The iTunes application allows teachers to listen to educational podcasts that can help with professional development. Another interesting point brought up was that many textbook publishing companies are introducing online textbooks. I personally do not want to read information on a computer screen and I'm sure some students may find that difficult as well. I do think that it is worth it though to invest in these online books. I loved the idea of having students record screencasts documenting their reading levels at different points of the year and sharing that with parents. Students could be able to examine how they have progressed which I think would prove very rewarding for everyone involved.

Exit Post 12-9-10

How had my thinking about technology's role in teaching and learning changed over the semester?

My thinking about technology has expanded exponentially this semester. I learned many new tools that will fit in perfectly with my future classroom. I am glad that we were required to use all of the tools rather than just be lectured about them because that would not have been as effective as actually trying to figure it out later on in our careers after only being lectured about it. I enjoyed this course and feel as though I'm coming away with many new tools to make my classroom a better learning environment.

PSA Reflection

I feel as though I exerted lots of effort into this PSA assignment. It took a while to come with an idea for a video that was something other than cyberbullying so that took the longest. I felt a bit silly when producing this video, but still had fun with it. The whole editing process with the transitions was tricky to figure out at first because the video order kept jumping around. I was unfamilar with the Windows Movie Maker technology prior to this project, but now that I have the basic skills I can use it in other classes for projects as well. Creating and sharing a PSA is beneficial to my future teaching because I am aware of the technology tools for editing and creating a professional video presentation. I thought that this assignment was a fun way to learn how to use technology that I was not very familiar with previously, while relaying an educational message.

PSA Checking Your Sources

12-2-10 Exit Post

In class we watched a Youtube video about education technology integration in a teacher's classroom. She used to use traditional methods of teaching, but found that students were disengaged and not wanting to learn. After integratign technology she found that her students came to class excited to learn. Having students access homework over the internet provides a paperless classroom which is important and then students have less materials to forget at home. We talked about using a site called EPal where classrooms worldwide are looking for other rooms to interact and correspond with. I would definately use this website in my future teaching in order to expose my student to different cultures and improve writing skills. We all participated in a jigsaw activity with articles about dumb things teachers do with technology and the best things teachers can do with technology.

11-18-10 Exit Post

Today in class the presenters focused on the last chapter in the Rethinking Education book. The group used the jigsaw method of discussion so we each got to meet and discuss with different people. I liked the way that the group divide out the class with the colors and shapes of cut outs. Professor Boyer went over how a Smartboard is a brand name for an interactive whiteboard and how an ELMO is a specific brand of document camera. We went over again how important it is to avoid saying “um” in presentations. When I looked at my screencast evaluation it was mentioned that used an “um.” We talked about the three R’s of Education which are: relevence, rigor, and relationships. Professor Boyer stressed that simply using technology in a classroom is not enough. It is the way that the technology is used to aid the teacher and engaging students. We then searched for media items that apply to a grade level or content area and post them on our delicious account.  The purpose of this assignment was so we all saw how simple it was to find specific materials that we can use in our classroom.

11-11-10 Exit Post

                Today in class the group presenting discussed Chapter 9 from Rethinking Education. I was excited when we were going to use Scriblink to talk about our questions. I had mine all ready but others computers were not working with the programs so we had to just verbally discuss. Professor Boyer gave the class the opportunity to use part of the class period to get things done. I thought this was great and it came at the right time. With all of the projects and assignments being due within the next few weeks I was glad to have the opportunity to complete things that I would have had to focus on after class. In this worktime I was able to get my podcast reflection completed and my exit post for the day. I think we should have worktime more often in this class!

Contemporary Issues Podcast Reflection

                When creating the contemporary issues podcast this week I feel as though I produced the best podcast to my capabilities. The most difficult part of the process for me was creating a script and editing the podcast using Audacity. It turns out that I downloaded the wrong application for converting the Audacity file to the mp3 file, so I wasted lots of time trying to figure that out. I also experienced difficulty finding an appropriate sound effect that I was able to include into the presentation. Using the plug-in microphone with my computer was difficult at first with changing sound settings. During this project I realized that my computer does not function well with certain technologies. If I am going to produce more podcasts, screencasts, iRLO’s, etc. I should invest in a higher quality computer.

                Podcasts would effective in the classroom especially with students who own iPods or mp3 devices. I would use these with an older audience because as an elementary educator I do not plan on giving many lectures that would be recorded as a podcast. I do think that podcasts are a useful tool for educators because of easy access to current topics discussed. And they are free! I looked on iTunes at podcasts that are available and there are thousands of options and types. Being able to listen to a podcast when working out for example would be a way to get multiple things done at once.

Rethinking Education Chapter 10 Reflection

The last chapter in Rethinking Education focused on its title name. The chapter provided conclusions and things to think about after reading this book. The author claims that technology is leveling out the playing field as far as careers as concerned on the first page of the chapter. I would agree more with this statement if it was the case that everyone had access to all the same technology and could all afford it. This not being the case, I would not claim that we are all going to be at the same level anytime soon. I thought the book did do a sufficient job pointing out that educators need to reconsider the learning process. If all different kinds of beneficial technological tools are available for us as teachers, why are we ignoring that? I do not think that there is any excuse why educators are not incorporating more technology into the classroom. I would recommend this book to any of my future colleagues who are stubborn to changing their methods of instruction.  The whole life-long learning concept brought up numerous times in this book is something that we as teachers also need to consider.  How are we preparing our students for the real world? I was glad that the book also mentioned that technology has been a tool that some people are using to escape from poverty. I am thrilled about this advancement because it means this will hopefully help some of my future student’s have a better life provided for them.

                Under the “Rethinking Motivation” section in the last chapter, some disturbing statistics were brought to attention. 50% of high school students are bored in their everyday classes. I have to admit that I was part of the half that was bored in class. The majority of my teachers in high school were older and I think had more traditional ways of how they thought students should be educated. Thinking back, my teachers that were more engaging were my business and marketing teachers, whose classes were held in computer labs. Also with this study I think that high school students especially feel as though they can’t take enjoyment in their classes because that is not socially acceptable. By using not just technology but other creative teaching methods, we can increase the level of interest in our classrooms. I loved the idea of including fantasy sports in math class because that is something many students participate in and do in their own time anyways.

                An important thing for educators to think about is that with technology, the level of challenge is set to the individual. It is impossible for one teacher in a classroom of 25+ students to address every student’s level of capability. By giving them each a level to work at that challenges the individual, no student will be bored because of being under stimulated.  

Rethinking Education Chapter 9 Reflection

                Chapter 9 was a relatively short chapter that focuses on the meaning of everything presented in the book thus far. In the beginning of the chapter the author mentions the use of video games and how as teachers we should keep up with what student’s are doing outside of the classroom. A large issue with integrating video game play into a classroom would be the argument about how children become violent and are wasting their time. In response to this, there are many alternative games to play that are not violent. Some games may be violent, but are suited to teach about historical events and wars. The game called Making History which is a WWII strategy game. The game comes with a curriculum, supporting materials and tools that allow teachers to customize the game to their lesson plans. I would definitely consider using this video game in my classroom, but I would want to of course play the game first. Another thing I would check for when bringing a video game into the classroom is its appeal to both sexes. If a game is important enough to bring into the classroom, it should be a learning experience for everyone.

                The book brings up the point about how parents express concern that their children are not spending time reading books. This is something that I hope to address in my future classroom. I love books and love to read, so I admit that with this topic I may be a little biased because of that fact. I strongly believe that reading is something that should be done by students on a daily basis. I am uneasy about allowing students to use video games for reading practice because although most games do include text, most include audible directions so students are not even paying attention to what the text says. I would be more comfortable providing a broad range of books that would appeal to any interests, or be willing to suggest books that students may be interested in.  When playing video games the focus is on progress made in the game rather than reading skills. If a video game was designed for the sole purpose for students to engage in reading I would be more willing to integrate it into my classroom.

                A third point I would like to address from the chapter is the topic of budgets being cut. With all the funding for schools on the decrease it will be more difficult to bring the best technology into the classroom. I will apply for any grants that I can, but there are only so many grants available to apply for. I am optimistic that funding will be able to be raised in order to bring more effective teaching practices into place for our future generations.

Chapter 10 Blogs, Wikis, Podcasts

                The final chapter of blogs, wikis, and podcasts sums up everything that was said throughout the book. I thought the point made on the first page of the chapter about how collaborative technology is being used in the vast majority of jobs so why not expose our students to similar technology? I plan on introducing these different forms of technology to my students so that they are comfortable using it and can figure out how it works. The chapter also talks about the “Big Shifts.” The first shift rang true to some of my experiences in school about how students had limited access to more information about what they were discussing in class. In elementary school if I found something to be interesting and I wanted to read more about it I had to go to the library and look up information in the card catalog. I did not have the time during or after school to tediously go over all the cards that I could dig up related to the information I was looking for. This is an enormously positive change that technology has brought us. Now when I see a topic that interests me I can look it up by simply typing the subject in on Google and have thousands of results at my fingertips in a matter of seconds. The second shift intrigued me as a future educator. The thought of interacting with other figures that children may be studying is just fascinating to me. In my classroom I would love to talk to an author of a book we are reading in my class and let the children ask questions. What an opportunity! Including the third shift in with this idea, having students receive input from other people in the world and not just their teachers would be incredibly valuable. In the past student work has seemed to be for the teacher’s eyes only, but now with the chance of having work put on the internet student’s will likely take more pride in their work. Big Shift number 6 brings up the point about reading on the internet. The author points out the fact that readers are unable to assume that all the information they are receiving is correct. I am unsure if this is a positive or negative.  Should students have to wonder whether the information they are reading is correct? The eighth Big Shift is a bit controversial for me. It involves the forms that writing can take. I agree that writing is now able to take different forms, but in my classroom I will include some of those new forms along with “old-fashion” writing skills. Writing is essential to a student’s future! Even if a student is using audio and video to write, the basic skills are still necessary.

                Near the end of the chapter it is mentioned that educators need to become skilled with these tools if they are requiring their students to use them. I know that when including different forms of technology in my classroom I would master the tool before introducing it to my students so that I would be more capable of dealing with any issues that may arise. It goes back to the saying “practice what you preach.”

11-4-10 Exit Post

Today in class the class group presented the last chapter. Something Professor Boyer stressed about the presentation is that when dividing groups it is important to assign what groups should discuss before groups gather. Expectations should come first followed by dividing into groups. Another thing to keep in mind is the sizes of groups in order to provide opportunities for everyone to participate in the discussions.

After the presentation we read an article from Professor Boyer’s Twitter account. The article discussed a charter school that has no designated classes and surprisingly functions without teachers. I am worried about this type of schooling because that means that I will be out of a job in the future.  Looking past the fact that this could potentially limit my opportunities for employment, I think this idea is well thought out and is obviously successful. I think that the school day should not be 100% on computers. Students need to have hands on activities and physical movement during their school day. The health of America’s youth seems to be declining rapidly and if in school students are only sitting on computers for their entire school day this would increase the severity of health issues.

We talked about Scratch and how we need to improve our iRLO for our final products. Professor Boyer went over common problems that he saw in everyone’s iRLO. We discussed how long the text on the screen should be visible, and it should be visible for the time it takes you to read through it twice. We discussed how our peers are a great resource to use. If we see something we think is neat and would like to add into our iRLO we should download their project and see how they did it, or just ask them.

I was glad that we talked about our technology inquiry wiki in class because there are lots of things that I realize I need to work on and improve.  I need to add more to my annotations when describing what the source is focused on and why it is applicable to my wiki. Of all the projects so far this technology wiki is becoming my least favorite.

Rethinking Education Chapter 8 Reflection

In Chapter 8 of Rethinking Education the chapter determined three categories that are driving the technological revolution in schools. They are: customization, interaction, and learner control. The chapter talked about how progress is usually measured by standardized tests. I was also surprised that teachers can “game” the system and cause results without making a difference in student learning. I am uneasy about this and the fact that teachers would actually consider doing this. “…Schools need to embody more individual support and choice in how and what students learn.” This statement causes many concerns with my view of teaching. I do believe that students should have some control over what they are able to learn about, but if we give too much power over to the students how do we know that we are helping children become well-rounded with knowledge in more than one subject? If students are allowed to choose what they want to learn, those who dislike reading or math would likely not choose to learn further about those subjects. I do not think that is an acceptable approach to learning. Another statement the book makes in this chapter bothered me. “Kids today spend over 6 hours per day interacting with television, video games, the Internet, instant messaging, email, and other media. This is more time than they spend in school or with friends, and almost as much time as they spend sleeping.” I thought this statement was NOT supporting technology being integrated into schools. If students are already spending that much time using different forms of media, then why should we encourage that they use more? If anything that statement would convince me to incorporate less technology into my students learning than more because of all the time they already spend using it.

                A credentialing system was also discussed in this chapter and would be divided into three categories: academic, generic, and technical skills. I think that this system would help for focusing on skills required for certain career plans, but most middle school and high school students are still in the process of finding what they want to do with the rest of their lives. High school is already stressful enough and throwing in job training certifications may be too much. If this was more of an option rather than a requirement I think it would be successful and is overall a great idea.

                Under the new curriculum design section the authors bring up the point of self paced learning. They propose the fact that some students may attend college at age 15 or 16. I think there are many different things to consider when looking at this prospect. On one hand this would allow students that are more advanced to move at their own pace, rather than being bored and stuck in one grade for a year. Alternatively, should students as young as 15 be exposed to the college environment? There are multiple pros and cons to all of these issues and it’s difficult to make the decisions that will be the best for all students.

Chapter 9 Blogs, Wikis, Podcasts

                Chapter 9 focused on ways to include social networks into the classroom. The chapter defined two different ways youth use social networks, friendship based use and interest based use. In the interest-based kids are using networks to find more information that they are unable to share at school, or in their local community. When using social networks for interest based activity students are engaging in “self-directed, peer-based learning” that differs from their experiences in the classroom. The author mentions that teachers should explore the potential of this interest-based learning in schools because of the numerous possibilities. When bringing up the most popular social networking site, Facebook, the author mentioned that as teachers we are responsible to investigate what all the fuss is about because it is such an integral part of our student’s lives. I think this is something all future teachers should think about. In my future teaching career there will be so many more technological advances coming out that students will be interested in. If I am able to keep up with these popular advances and integrate them into my classroom, hopefully it will be beneficial to all of my students. The book talks about teachers having a Facebook profile so we are able to “model our experiences there in appropriate ways so kids at an early age have some context for what the expectations and roles are that await them there.” A few pages later the book advises against adding students as friends on Facebook. How could we be a role model for students on the internet when they are not able to see our profile? As a current Facebook user I was unaware that a group can be monitored as far as “closed” where everything is open only to users (except cover page) or “secret” if a group does not want to have anyone see anything about their classroom. I think this is a great idea especially for high school students because the wide majority of them already have a Facebook page and are on Facebook most of the time they are not in school. I know had I had course material on Facebook it would have been easy to contribute to discussions or anything else. At the same time that I think using Facebook in the classroom is great, I think many students would start their homework on Facebook and then play around instead of doing homework not available online. From past experience I have found Facebook to be very distracting when trying to do homework.

                In the chapter Ning is also brought up as an additional social website to use in classrooms. I had never heard of Ning prior to this reading and thought it sounded like a good alternative to Facebook. When visiting their website however, there is a fee of $3 per month to use the website. I did like that once you prove to Ning that your pages are used for educational purposes only, the site removes the ads seen on your site. I thought the quote by Kevin Honeycutt on page 145 was a great way to address poor behavior shown by students on the web. He says “Some people feel that even one negative event on a network is a reason to shut it down, but I would offer that when kids cross behavioral lines in schools, we don’t shut them down, we address the issue and try to learn from the experience.” I think that behavioral lines are frequently crossed in classrooms and in front of other students. When students break rules on the web they would be dealt with in the same manner. I thought this would be an explanation to give to anyone who thought a social network should not be used because of inappropriate comments made online.

Exit Slip 10-28-10

Today in class we started off by reviewing our midsemester evaluations of the class and Professor Boyer. I appreciate the fact that he showed us the results and explained some methods of his thinking. We talked about our Delicious accounts and what the expectations are for this point in the smemester.  Using a Google survey in my classroom would be a great way to find out information from my students. I liked the  way the group presenting today set up the discussion where we were all across from someone with the opposing viewpoints.  We talked about how taking initiative for grants is important especially if your school does not have the funding to integrate the technological tools that you want to use in your class. I have been thinking about funding for all these technology applications so I was appreciative that we discussed this in class.

We talked about a synchronized program called “Elluminate” which allows our whole class to interact with one another. When Professor Boyer was talking about the program it was a little distracting that everyone was playing around with the application, but it was so entertaining. After playing with Elluminate we discussed our podcast assignment and how it has to focus on an issue directly for K-12 age students. Finding an article with be simple but finding one that is appropriate that we can discuss with be more time consuming. We talked about the importance of having a script before beginning our podcasts. We need to have a summary of an issue, find an article, and give our opinions and reflection about the issue. Professor Boyer stressed that the most important part of the podcast is how we feel about the issue. We need to develop an engaging script. The most important item for the week is the Cool Tools Screencast.

Rethinking Education Chapter 7 Reflection

In Chapter 7 the author discusses the pros and cons of including technology in education and an education community without technology. In the chapter the author says that modern media sources “have had a very strong homogenizing effect on the population, which ensures a common culture without depending on schools to produce one.” I do agree with this statement, but would it be the school’s duty to create a common culture had the media not provided one? I am worried that if different groups take over the education of children that the minority students and those living in poverty will suffer greatly. When technology is incorporated into my classroom I will make sure that each my students will be able to access it. In all classrooms there is a wide range of living situations and students should not feel unfortunate because they do not have different technology tools in the classroom. I am disturbed by the fact that parents are paying for educational services for their students more and more frequently, because those without the finances to do so will only expand the ranges of learning levels in the schools. Technology is causing a greater inequality amongst students rather than decreasing it.

 I thought the study referred to in the chapter on home computer users who had begun using the internet seemed to be unsettling. When I thought about it more, I remember when I first started using the internet. I thought it was the neatest thing ever and wanted to be online all day long. After the first week however, I got sick of sitting at the computer so I started using it less often. I know some people have issues with computer usage and lack of socialization, but that’s why in the classroom it is important to allow socialization, when appropriate, into school.

On the side of what may be gained from technology the main point is that it is engaging. Education can be focused on what students are interested in so they will be more interested in learning. Technology can help customize education and give support to students in areas that they need extra help. The students also feel as though they have power in their education which is important as well.

Chapter 8 Blogs, Wikis, Podcasts

                When beginning to read this chapter about podcasting and other types of casting I was not even sure what the words meant. I found out that podcasting is creating radio sessions. I think that podcasting would be efficient for college classes in particular because most of them consist of mainly lecturing. I am not opposed to using podcasting for my own personal use to hear about education topics and apply them so I can better my classroom. I did appreciate that the users can use an iPod or mp3 player, but if they do not have either they can have the same connection using the internet. Having students that are unable to afford a personal music device is likely so I think it’s great that there is another option available. I like the idea of the student’s radio show, but if it were to be an on running show I think it would fit best as an extracurricular. I loved the idea of the “Coleycasts” by Brent Coley where students create podcasts with slides relevant to what they are learning. I think it would be fun to create different podcasts to help future classes learn about a topic, or even another class that hasn’t been taught the information yet.  I liked that the chapter included information about the Audacity tool because it seems that it would really be useful if using podcasts. 

                The chapter also talked about different video tools that can be used. I love using YouTube because you can almost always find what you’re looking for.  I do not necessarily agree with YouTube being blocked in schools because I think that it offers many opportunities to be used in education. I agree with the author’s point that we should prepare our students to deal with content because when they get home and go onto the internet there is usually no limitations on what they can see. I am undecided about the video uploads because I know there would be concern with parents having their children on video. Using podcasts or screencasts would be more acceptable and less likely to be questioned.

                I think screencasting is something I would include into my classroom.  It would be perfect for showing how something is done on the computer. I am excited about the idea of having students narrate their own work as it is shown on screen. Some students may be anxious about speaking in front of the class, but using a screencast could help them ease into it. Screencasts are something that would excite students while letting them feel less pressured when developing it.

Book Presentation for Chapter 6 Reflection

    I felt that my group put forth a large amount of effort for this presentation. We met together more than once to develop and practice our presentation. I thought that everyone did a great job at splitting up the work evenly and doing their parts. I made sure I had prompts on notecards that I could use to promote discussions when my peers where in groups. I think its valuable to present to our peers because that is something we are going to be doing daily when teaching, only to our students rather than our peers. It's likely that we will be presenting to our fellow collegues at times too when we come up with creative teaching practices we want to share. I was extremely nervous prior to this presentation, but once we got it started I felt more comfortable. When discussing our pluses and deltas in class I thought we had a positive reaction from the class. One of our negatives was not being loud enough. Professor Boyer also mentioned different discussion strategies that we could have used during our presentation, but since we did not know these methods we weren't able to implement them.