Sunday, June 16, 2013
Monday, June 10, 2013
Final Reflection
Well, here we are, at the end of another semester. This was certainly a difficult course to keep up with, and hopefully the following blog post demonstrates that. I will review what I've learned, what I know, what I'd like to learn, and the objectives from the course. After that I'll discuss technology in the classroom in general, and why it is so important. Finally, I'll speak a bit to what a PLN is and how I manage my own.
Part I - Learning Outcomes:
1. Demonstrate the understanding of how technologies can effectively promote student learning - I think that this would be the ultimate purpose of the class, and it has been a guide ever since the beginning. We as a society understand that technology is important to our futures, but not many understand exactly how. Integrating technologies to promote student learning and engagement is the key to education in the future. As some articles have detailed, flipping the classroom and teaching students how to learn is far more important than lecturing every day in class.
2.
Evaluate and use a variety of current technologies to enhance content
instruction and to advance students' technological literacy - The key to effective use of technology is to diversify the experience, and that is where using multiple options and a variety of technologies comes in handy. Using the same tool over and over again will stifle a students' creativity, while at the same time using too many tools will overwhelm a student. Making sure you thoroughly understand the different technologies available is vital to effectively facilitating a classroom and the adventure of learning.
3. Design meaningful and authentic digitally based learning experiences with multiple and varied assessments - This class has certainly taught me how to design meaningful experiences online. Prior to the class, I understood how to effectively use a limited number of technologies. However, through the lectures and numberless resources available through sites like Cool Tools for Schools has revealed an endless supply of research to conduct.
4. Reflect upon and demonstrate effective use of digital tools and resources - Reflection has been vital to the educational experience since high school when I wrote three reflective journals per week. Blogging has been a great form of reflection, going over different tools that we have learned about, like Jing, and Voki, and Storyboard That and a hundred other things. Reading other people's blogs has shown me not only how to effectively leverage technology but different ways to make it revolutionary as well.
5.
Demonstrate a comprehensive understanding of safe, ethical, legal and
moral practices related to digital information and technology - Growing up through much of public internet use, I understood early on about plagiarism. But being exposed to lessons about copyright issues and law has been really fascinating. Finding ways to either create your own music or video experiences through online tools has been eye-opening and will benefit students all over the world. Creation is so important to the entire experience.
6.
Illustrate through application how state and national standards are
implemented within the curriculum (e.g., NH Curriculum Frameworks, ISTE, NETS-Teacher/NETS-Student) and NH-ICT Literacy Standards for K-12 Students (306.42)) - National Standards have always been the bane of my lesson planning. Developing tools to assess students has never been an issue, but tying them in to existing systems always seemed daunting. However, with the simple resources we have gone over I can effectively site several different types of standards for each of my lessons, which is so vitally important. It has been one of the greatest learning outcomes from this course for me.
7.
Demonstrate an understanding of the use of adaptive technologies and
other digital resources to personalize and differentiate learning activities for every student - The portion of the lesson plan that had to do with accomodations always shook me up through this ever since it was introduced half-way through the course. But technology has so many unique a custom tools for exploring different ways to meet students where they are, and then helping them to move beyond even further.
8.
Evaluate, adapt and reflect on emerging tools and trends by
participating in local and global learning communities and by reviewing current research and professional literature - Local and global learning communities is one of the most exciting opportunities presented by technology. Things as simple as How-to videos all the way through to global participation in Webinars is so amazing. Listening to experts opinions through blogs and websites I bookmark using my Google Reader account offers professional development on my own time at my own pace. The lesson plans uploaded on the numerous sites makes sharing enjoyable and contributes to the greater knowledge sharing pool of, for, and from fellow educators.
Part II - Is technology all that important?
Yes, of course it is. Technology has advanced every field of human development, and by ignoring it within the classroom we are creating a mirror image of an ideal future workforce, economy, and citizenship, rending students completely unprepared after leaving the campus environment. Uneducated individuals make for a rough future. Like Education Week puts it in one of their articles, "screen culture is a foundational element of the contemporary American childhood."
Technology in the classroom has allowed us the opportunity to create individualized curriculum for students in advanced, average, and below-grade level states, while keeping everyone on the track to matriculation.
Technology in the classroom has allowed us the opportunity to create individualized curriculum for students in advanced, average, and below-grade level states, while keeping everyone on the track to matriculation.
Barriers
Many different barriers exist for professionals in the field. Educators must leverage every asset available to improve the students' experience. Luckily, the internet gives us a vast pool to pull from. Through educational tv programs, which sound like homework assignments from the 90s, to Massive Online Open Courseware, teachers and students have hundreds of opportunities. Having students access a TED Talk or a video by the Khan Academy has never been easier, from home, remotely on the go, through computer use at libraries, or allowing extra time after class gives thousands of possibilities to teachers. Grant writing could work for many schools as millions of dollars go unclaimed each year, though this is time intensive and not possible for every school. Pilot programs are available for experimentation (like giving every kid in a school an iPad), or staying low tech and making use of computer labs does the trick one way or another. Finally, mobile devices can be shared in class to make sure some level of technology is available.
Many different barriers exist for professionals in the field. Educators must leverage every asset available to improve the students' experience. Luckily, the internet gives us a vast pool to pull from. Through educational tv programs, which sound like homework assignments from the 90s, to Massive Online Open Courseware, teachers and students have hundreds of opportunities. Having students access a TED Talk or a video by the Khan Academy has never been easier, from home, remotely on the go, through computer use at libraries, or allowing extra time after class gives thousands of possibilities to teachers. Grant writing could work for many schools as millions of dollars go unclaimed each year, though this is time intensive and not possible for every school. Pilot programs are available for experimentation (like giving every kid in a school an iPad), or staying low tech and making use of computer labs does the trick one way or another. Finally, mobile devices can be shared in class to make sure some level of technology is available.
Part III - PLN
PLNs, or Personal Learning Networks, is a personalized network of different connections to keep you keen and learning as much about education as students themselves are. Using things like e-mail list serves (for example, one I get from Education Week and Imagining America), updates from Google Reader and Diigo groups such as Classroom 2.0) and keeping a pulse on TED Talks and other video resources, one can stay completely in touch with leading experts. Reading personal blogs and following accounts on Twitter contribute a surprisingly vast amount of reading and professional development. I wouldn't continue in the field without following at least a dozen websites, blogs, or people.
And that's a wrap. This, as stated above, has been extremely rigorous, but I would rather know what I know now than to continue a long-dead tradition of lecture based and technology-less classroom environments. The future is bright, lined with brilliant, glowing screens to guide us.
PLNs, or Personal Learning Networks, is a personalized network of different connections to keep you keen and learning as much about education as students themselves are. Using things like e-mail list serves (for example, one I get from Education Week and Imagining America), updates from Google Reader and Diigo groups such as Classroom 2.0) and keeping a pulse on TED Talks and other video resources, one can stay completely in touch with leading experts. Reading personal blogs and following accounts on Twitter contribute a surprisingly vast amount of reading and professional development. I wouldn't continue in the field without following at least a dozen websites, blogs, or people.
And that's a wrap. This, as stated above, has been extremely rigorous, but I would rather know what I know now than to continue a long-dead tradition of lecture based and technology-less classroom environments. The future is bright, lined with brilliant, glowing screens to guide us.
Sunday, June 9, 2013
Blog Review Blog
The Thesis Whisperer
This blog is a creation of many - it is an online newspaper with contributors who are in the process of writing and submitting their thesis for their Ph.D. It is edited by Dr Inger Mewburn, the Director of research training at the Australian National University. The articles are all aimed at doctoral students, on their personal journey to doctor-hood, and is written appropriately; in their "About [us]" section, it reads, "We want to be concise. PhD students have to do a lot of reading so no posts will be longer than 1000 words." I think that is really cool.
I would certainly add this blog to my Google Reader. I would follow this because eventually I do plan to get my own doctorate degree, and I think it holds many valuable stories. For example, the absurdly short post titled "What's Up Doc?" brought up a vital point - what does getting your Ph.D actually mean to you? Why are you chasing the degree? Or is it just a title? Even though the post numbered a measly 258 words, the message evokes a great many thoughts and questions, far outnumbering thought to words 1,001:1.
Another post written to the title of "Wormhole Literature" is perhaps even more so terrifying. The author writes about a friend doing research for her Ph.D. - "She hadn’t yet read enough to know what she should be looking for." Basically, this means that I can NEVER stop reading, and there is no such thing as knowing "enough" about a subject. I recommend the read - AND the blog.
The Ivy Coach
The Ivy Coach is great. A blog written by Bev Taylor, the leading authority of college admission. The Founder of the Ivy Coach (which includes the blog, resources, and the opportunity to have Ms. Taylor speak or even become a private college counselor), she writes and speaks about everything from students selecting a university to interviewing and social media.
Indeed, Taylor tackles every problem. In the short post "MIT Legacy Admission," a recent declaration about not believing in legacy admission by an MIT employee is disputed. The counselor Chris Peterson states that he would not stand for that, and that he would never personally work for a university that practiced such measures. However, Taylor asks why, then, would MIT have a section on their application asking for affiliation? A compelling three paragraph post really gets you thinking.
I would add this to my Google Reader because, if I ever do end up teaching in high school, I would want to give my students the best advice out there. Reading from the widely accepted authority on admission will certainly be a welcome boon to my students and their future. With insightful posts like the one listed above, there is no reason not to read it.
The Tech Savvy Educator
Ben Rimes is impassioned about using technology in the classroom as a means to allow student-centered learning to flourish.The blog seems to be far more informal than many of the others I have been reading - and that's a good thing in and of itself. So many of the postings we read are so sterile, spell checked and uniform that we lose the human element of these posts. Blogs were meant to be individual, and I can appreciate a good rant when I read one.
The post "The Revolving Door of Technology" is a great example. This post was written and posted after a self-professed long string of "failures," and carries that tone. But even in this organized ramble, Rimes seems to capture a good deal of questions a number of us ask on a daily basis. And even while raising the same point, Rimes finds a way to elegantly point out a few ways for us to continue to push forward.
I will add this blog to my Google Reader as well, for very different reasons than the other two. Sometimes you need to read words that you can tell are written by another human being, and more than that with emotion. A familiar, comfortable, and encouraging one.
This blog is a creation of many - it is an online newspaper with contributors who are in the process of writing and submitting their thesis for their Ph.D. It is edited by Dr Inger Mewburn, the Director of research training at the Australian National University. The articles are all aimed at doctoral students, on their personal journey to doctor-hood, and is written appropriately; in their "About [us]" section, it reads, "We want to be concise. PhD students have to do a lot of reading so no posts will be longer than 1000 words." I think that is really cool.
I would certainly add this blog to my Google Reader. I would follow this because eventually I do plan to get my own doctorate degree, and I think it holds many valuable stories. For example, the absurdly short post titled "What's Up Doc?" brought up a vital point - what does getting your Ph.D actually mean to you? Why are you chasing the degree? Or is it just a title? Even though the post numbered a measly 258 words, the message evokes a great many thoughts and questions, far outnumbering thought to words 1,001:1.
Another post written to the title of "Wormhole Literature" is perhaps even more so terrifying. The author writes about a friend doing research for her Ph.D. - "She hadn’t yet read enough to know what she should be looking for." Basically, this means that I can NEVER stop reading, and there is no such thing as knowing "enough" about a subject. I recommend the read - AND the blog.
The Ivy Coach
The Ivy Coach is great. A blog written by Bev Taylor, the leading authority of college admission. The Founder of the Ivy Coach (which includes the blog, resources, and the opportunity to have Ms. Taylor speak or even become a private college counselor), she writes and speaks about everything from students selecting a university to interviewing and social media.
Indeed, Taylor tackles every problem. In the short post "MIT Legacy Admission," a recent declaration about not believing in legacy admission by an MIT employee is disputed. The counselor Chris Peterson states that he would not stand for that, and that he would never personally work for a university that practiced such measures. However, Taylor asks why, then, would MIT have a section on their application asking for affiliation? A compelling three paragraph post really gets you thinking.
I would add this to my Google Reader because, if I ever do end up teaching in high school, I would want to give my students the best advice out there. Reading from the widely accepted authority on admission will certainly be a welcome boon to my students and their future. With insightful posts like the one listed above, there is no reason not to read it.
The Tech Savvy Educator
Ben Rimes is impassioned about using technology in the classroom as a means to allow student-centered learning to flourish.The blog seems to be far more informal than many of the others I have been reading - and that's a good thing in and of itself. So many of the postings we read are so sterile, spell checked and uniform that we lose the human element of these posts. Blogs were meant to be individual, and I can appreciate a good rant when I read one.
The post "The Revolving Door of Technology" is a great example. This post was written and posted after a self-professed long string of "failures," and carries that tone. But even in this organized ramble, Rimes seems to capture a good deal of questions a number of us ask on a daily basis. And even while raising the same point, Rimes finds a way to elegantly point out a few ways for us to continue to push forward.
I will add this blog to my Google Reader as well, for very different reasons than the other two. Sometimes you need to read words that you can tell are written by another human being, and more than that with emotion. A familiar, comfortable, and encouraging one.
Monday, May 20, 2013
Student Blog Sample
This blog is a mock blog of student created work for one of my lesson plans. It is my own writing, not a students'. It is only written as if I were the student after my in-class lesson.
Today in class Alex took us through a lesson on Digital Citizenship. We looked at a lot of different websites that we've used in the past like Myspace. It's been a while since I checked mine out, and since I never deleted it I was surprised to see that it was still up and active! Friends that I haven't talked to in a long time posted all over and sent me a lot of messages. It really brought back a lot of memories.
Anyways we made a "Digital Footprint." It was basically just a paper foot that we got to decorate. You can check mine out here. I liked it, but I didn't spend a lot of time making it look good. Anyways I put Facebook really big cause that's where I spend most of my time. I added some things like Skype and Oovoo, and there's a broken Myspace word since I don't use it. I got to delete it today.
It was cool to talk about long term effects. I haven't ever really thought about it a lot, but if I wrote something controversial on here or posted a rude picture, it could effect the way people think about me in the future. We've talked about college in the future, and just thinking about my college looking at some of my old posts from middle school could mess up my reputation. A friend of mine got into a fight last year and everyone recorded it and posted it on YouTube. It was funny to watch for a minute, but after a while you gotta realize - that's up there forever! And the guys didn't make it private, so anyone could have downloaded it. Scary to think about if someone wanted to find something about me.
But now after the class everyone seems to understand what's going on online and what can happen. I've used privacy settings a little bit on some of my Facebook posts, but now I know I have to be more careful about what people can see. There wasn't a lot about me on Google, but definitely more then I thought there would have been. I'm glad we went over this stuff so I can control how I appear on the internet.
Today in class Alex took us through a lesson on Digital Citizenship. We looked at a lot of different websites that we've used in the past like Myspace. It's been a while since I checked mine out, and since I never deleted it I was surprised to see that it was still up and active! Friends that I haven't talked to in a long time posted all over and sent me a lot of messages. It really brought back a lot of memories.
Anyways we made a "Digital Footprint." It was basically just a paper foot that we got to decorate. You can check mine out here. I liked it, but I didn't spend a lot of time making it look good. Anyways I put Facebook really big cause that's where I spend most of my time. I added some things like Skype and Oovoo, and there's a broken Myspace word since I don't use it. I got to delete it today.
It was cool to talk about long term effects. I haven't ever really thought about it a lot, but if I wrote something controversial on here or posted a rude picture, it could effect the way people think about me in the future. We've talked about college in the future, and just thinking about my college looking at some of my old posts from middle school could mess up my reputation. A friend of mine got into a fight last year and everyone recorded it and posted it on YouTube. It was funny to watch for a minute, but after a while you gotta realize - that's up there forever! And the guys didn't make it private, so anyone could have downloaded it. Scary to think about if someone wanted to find something about me.
But now after the class everyone seems to understand what's going on online and what can happen. I've used privacy settings a little bit on some of my Facebook posts, but now I know I have to be more careful about what people can see. There wasn't a lot about me on Google, but definitely more then I thought there would have been. I'm glad we went over this stuff so I can control how I appear on the internet.
Animoto and a Podcast
Above you will find my Animoto video about my longboarding experience, from the beginning.
Tuesday, April 23, 2013
Webinars
In my Webinar review, I had a hard time stopping the discussion of the content to address the format itself. Therefore, I will address this in a separate post... Right now!
First let me start off by saying that I think Webinars have a neat concept. The ability for experts to give presentations to fellow professionals regardless of where they are in the world is a powerful concept. In the number of webinars I have participated in, people have logged on from every area of the world. That is amazing, and very cool. What's more is that those people can engage through asking questions - even better!
I think where my attitude towards webinars starts to decline is when the presenters do not have everything together. Some people, it seems, just jump online and start talking without the due amount of preparation. I have seen everything from duplicate slides on their presentation to a complete loss of voices because the presenter is not familiar with their own technology. I have jumped onto presentations of supposed "experts," and the person is merely reading off the screen. If we are going to leverage this tool properly, I believe people should have a bit more respect for the medium and realize that just because you aren't in front of us doesn't mean there is little to no accountability for your presentation.
That said, I still support webinars and I will continue to engage in them. I enjoy being able to ask questions should I have one (despite having to listen to some people ask less-than-informed and common sense questions). I also enjoy the fact that most presenters allow you to access and print off their presentation, allowing you to take notes and have that resource forever. It is and will continue to be a valuable and simple form of professional development.
First let me start off by saying that I think Webinars have a neat concept. The ability for experts to give presentations to fellow professionals regardless of where they are in the world is a powerful concept. In the number of webinars I have participated in, people have logged on from every area of the world. That is amazing, and very cool. What's more is that those people can engage through asking questions - even better!
I think where my attitude towards webinars starts to decline is when the presenters do not have everything together. Some people, it seems, just jump online and start talking without the due amount of preparation. I have seen everything from duplicate slides on their presentation to a complete loss of voices because the presenter is not familiar with their own technology. I have jumped onto presentations of supposed "experts," and the person is merely reading off the screen. If we are going to leverage this tool properly, I believe people should have a bit more respect for the medium and realize that just because you aren't in front of us doesn't mean there is little to no accountability for your presentation.
That said, I still support webinars and I will continue to engage in them. I enjoy being able to ask questions should I have one (despite having to listen to some people ask less-than-informed and common sense questions). I also enjoy the fact that most presenters allow you to access and print off their presentation, allowing you to take notes and have that resource forever. It is and will continue to be a valuable and simple form of professional development.
Monday, April 22, 2013
Digital Citizenship Presentation
In the above Prezi, I present on digital citizenship to parents, teachers, and administrators alike. In it, I highlight several articles and videos; everything from a discussion by administrators about what 21st century skills are and why they're important, to the internet myth about 1 in every 5 students being sexually solicited via social media by predators. These are important topics to discuss when it relates to teaching our youth about Digital Citizenship, as all schools should. Everyone should teach our youth about digital citizenship, and it should be taught to them as soon as they have the capacity to interface with the digital world. As soon as they understand how to create and contribute to the online community, they should be informed about the implications of those actions and guided through the mess.
I can't remember when my parents gave me the talk about my digital footprint - primarily because it didn't happen! In school, I remember going through programs and computer games teaching me where to place my fingers on the keyboard, but never do I remember a lesson on where to put my thoughts on the internet - or whether or not I should. By the time a good friend tipped me off about "Googling" myself, my digital dossier was already well underway, and littered with things I didn't even know were out there about me.
I believe the discussion should start early. Exactly how early I don't quite know, although based on this articulation by a third grader, I would say that it should probably happen by then, if not sooner. By middle school, students should be knowledgeable about how to create and contribute to the online community and should be discussing the implications of their actions. In an earlier blog post on my personal Blogger account, I discussed how rapidly our children are being forced to grow up and the paradox it creates. Students need to understand the future they are creating in the present. By high school, students should be collaborating and forming their digital identities with great intentionality, both in terms of their own presence as well as their greater cultural and global community through technology.
Below is a Voki I created to begin the discussion with students. Check it out, and begin the conversation for yourself.
Should the video not load, please try this link:
http://www.voki.com/pickup.php?scid=8115106&height=267&width=200
Tuesday, April 16, 2013
Cell Phone Webinar
I recently watched a webinar titled "Teaching Generation Text: Harnessing the Power of Cell Phones in Education."With
students all across the nation texting in class and policies banning
students from their digital life-line, the topic is very timely. I chose this webinar because all practitioners in our field from elementary on up to college deal with this issue daily. With a
claim of harnessing the power of cells for the classroom, I had high
hopes for this Webinar. The two facilitators were Lisa Nielsen and
Willyn Webb, and they went on to divide the discussion into 5 separate
aspects.
However, sadly, not all their recommendations hit home. The webinar facilitators site a principal who was out of budget and had not implemented any emergency policies or procedures and elected to use mass texts as their only solution. I cannot say that this is a prime example of leveraging cell phones in schools. And yes, using a cell phone in the place of a stopwatch is certainly convenient and appropriate. But using your cell phone as a platform for displaying relevant photos for students seems ill-advised in the middle of a lesson plan. Using a camera to snap shots of a brainstorm makes sense, but texting parents about individual successes and areas of concern seems cumbersome and distracting on a regular basis.
Other articles, like "How to Use Cell Phones as Learning Tools," echo similar remarks in reference to Poll Everywhere and Wiffiti. Author Meg Ormiston also adds that teachers can record their lectures via audio or video for flipping the classroom. Both Ormiston and the facilitators of the webinar also speak to delivering classroom material through text messages to students who missed the day because of sickness.
I think this webinar has taught me about understanding how different technologies can [at least semi-]effectively promote student learning. By learning the basics of how to engage a cell phone for academic purposes, we are exploring the tools and technology students use on a daily basis, and that is a step in the right direction. I think this also helped me to evaluate a current technology to enhance content instruction and enhance technology literacy, especially a tool students take for granted and do not necessarily independently explore its academic potential.
That said, I remain unconvinced. The webinar, itself a tool produced by technology,
was quite ineffective. The moderators tried to offer examples of how to
effectively use cell phones by engaging the audience in Poll Everywhere
text messages (as well as other polling applications), by accepting pictures of those participating by using
their cell cameras, and several other types of cell services. However, the
whole process came off, at least to me, as messy, confusing, and just a
little hokey.
This leads me to my conclusion - are we coming up with these ideas because they are genuinely useful and innovative, or are we trying to apply techniques and applications to the wrong platform? Are we revolutionizing education, or just plain forcing it? In some cases, I think we can be creative and productive with this technology, like using Twitter for history lessons. In other cases, like using your cell phone to record your entire lecture, I believe we may be forcing it. Let's realistically look at what we're trying to accomplish and apply the correct tools.
- Teacher Use of Cell Phones for Professional Purposes
- Teacher Models Appropriate Use for Learning
- Strengthen the Home-School Connection
- Students Use Cell Phone for Homework
- Students Use Cell Phones for Classwork
 |
| A sample Wiffiti screen |
- Poll Everywhere, a mobile response application where facilitators can create a question, generate several multiple choice options, and watch live responses on a web address,
- Wiffiti, an online discussion board that displays anonymous text responses from students,
- Voki, a recording application that allows a person to record audio from their cell phone and save the file digitally online,
- and ChaCha, a cell phone text service that answers any question you ask.
 |
| Abe's Tweet |
However, sadly, not all their recommendations hit home. The webinar facilitators site a principal who was out of budget and had not implemented any emergency policies or procedures and elected to use mass texts as their only solution. I cannot say that this is a prime example of leveraging cell phones in schools. And yes, using a cell phone in the place of a stopwatch is certainly convenient and appropriate. But using your cell phone as a platform for displaying relevant photos for students seems ill-advised in the middle of a lesson plan. Using a camera to snap shots of a brainstorm makes sense, but texting parents about individual successes and areas of concern seems cumbersome and distracting on a regular basis.
Other articles, like "How to Use Cell Phones as Learning Tools," echo similar remarks in reference to Poll Everywhere and Wiffiti. Author Meg Ormiston also adds that teachers can record their lectures via audio or video for flipping the classroom. Both Ormiston and the facilitators of the webinar also speak to delivering classroom material through text messages to students who missed the day because of sickness.
I think this webinar has taught me about understanding how different technologies can [at least semi-]effectively promote student learning. By learning the basics of how to engage a cell phone for academic purposes, we are exploring the tools and technology students use on a daily basis, and that is a step in the right direction. I think this also helped me to evaluate a current technology to enhance content instruction and enhance technology literacy, especially a tool students take for granted and do not necessarily independently explore its academic potential.
 |
| source |
This leads me to my conclusion - are we coming up with these ideas because they are genuinely useful and innovative, or are we trying to apply techniques and applications to the wrong platform? Are we revolutionizing education, or just plain forcing it? In some cases, I think we can be creative and productive with this technology, like using Twitter for history lessons. In other cases, like using your cell phone to record your entire lecture, I believe we may be forcing it. Let's realistically look at what we're trying to accomplish and apply the correct tools.
Friday, April 5, 2013
Exploring the Edge
Week 1, Assessment: Should we integrate technology into the classroom?
Much like many videos using production quality akin to 90s soap operas prompting the same notion, this question is far out of date. We have moved past the question of "should" to "how." How do we integrate technology is a far more relevant and critical question to be asked.
At the risk of looking completely ridiculous and verging on pompous, I would like to reference one of my own past blogs on the subject, found here. In this blog I answer the same question above by speaking to what I call "technology staples," including blogging, videos, and digital presentations. These three tools are the most common and easy-to-use aspects of technology in the classroom that any teacher can integrate into any subject. I have found personal success with each of these in my time as an instructor.
So instead of repeating what I have already explored in another blog post, I will attempt to use this one to give concrete examples of what creative and cutting-edge teachers are doing for their students!
We can start with a two-part series called "Cutting Edge Classroom." In Part I, an employee of the Kant and Tahoma's school district's information technology department says,
The article goes on to discuss Activboards, and the myriad of uses for Apple iPads, so check it out if you get the chance.
The next tool that is greatly impacting schools is Khan Academy. In an article about Khan Academy and it's uses, Wired Magazine interviews a teacher using the free online videos ranging from math to history to flip the classroom. Students will watch the videos and perform equations at home (watching/listening to a lecture, basically), and then do interactive learning (or what was homework before) in the classroom.
The website also offers teachers a dashboard of all their students, collecting data on what videos students watch, how many they're watching, how much time they spend on certain subjects, and even exactly where students are struggling or spending extra time. This allows time in class to be spent one-on-one with students going over precisely what they struggle with, or more time to do creative activities that explore the fun side of subjects instead of falling asleep at their desks.
Lastly, I will just touch on one last technology, less as an explanation of the tool, and more to the point of it's practical use. In the Article 6 Expert Tips for Flipping the Classroom, one instructor named Mazor uses NB, an online reader developed by MIT that allows the user(s) to create annotations and create dialogue with one another. Mazor has this to say about his experience:
These examples, and many more, indicate that learning does not have to be painful, and technology gives us the tools to avoid that. The tools and techniques outlined in this blog don't even scratch the surface of what technology has to offer education. Again, the question is not "should," but rather "how."
So tell me, how do you use technology in the classroom? Let's learn together.
At the risk of looking completely ridiculous and verging on pompous, I would like to reference one of my own past blogs on the subject, found here. In this blog I answer the same question above by speaking to what I call "technology staples," including blogging, videos, and digital presentations. These three tools are the most common and easy-to-use aspects of technology in the classroom that any teacher can integrate into any subject. I have found personal success with each of these in my time as an instructor.
So instead of repeating what I have already explored in another blog post, I will attempt to use this one to give concrete examples of what creative and cutting-edge teachers are doing for their students!
We can start with a two-part series called "Cutting Edge Classroom." In Part I, an employee of the Kant and Tahoma's school district's information technology department says,
Granted, this article reports from a district streets ahead of many other districts nationwide. However, this unique perspective offers us examples of - you guessed it - cutting edge technology. Take for example the tool DyKnow. This software is used by teachers to control their students' laptop screens, directing them all to one site, blocking everything else, and even at times shutting the screens off completely. This seems like a very useful tool for guiding a WebQuest session or watching a video, while at the same time solving what some consider to be the greatest challenge of technology in the classroom - students freely surfing the web."We feel it is our responsibility to match what is going on in our society. Our society is becoming more technological and digital, meaning we need these same tools in our classroom so that our students can graduate and be successful in the real world."
The article goes on to discuss Activboards, and the myriad of uses for Apple iPads, so check it out if you get the chance.
The next tool that is greatly impacting schools is Khan Academy. In an article about Khan Academy and it's uses, Wired Magazine interviews a teacher using the free online videos ranging from math to history to flip the classroom. Students will watch the videos and perform equations at home (watching/listening to a lecture, basically), and then do interactive learning (or what was homework before) in the classroom.
The website also offers teachers a dashboard of all their students, collecting data on what videos students watch, how many they're watching, how much time they spend on certain subjects, and even exactly where students are struggling or spending extra time. This allows time in class to be spent one-on-one with students going over precisely what they struggle with, or more time to do creative activities that explore the fun side of subjects instead of falling asleep at their desks.
Lastly, I will just touch on one last technology, less as an explanation of the tool, and more to the point of it's practical use. In the Article 6 Expert Tips for Flipping the Classroom, one instructor named Mazor uses NB, an online reader developed by MIT that allows the user(s) to create annotations and create dialogue with one another. Mazor has this to say about his experience:
"Their discussions were incredibly thorough, exciting, and in-depth. Yet, every time I participated in the NB annotations, I killed the discussion among the students, because I was seen as the authority. It stopped them from working it out on their own and finding the solution. [Now] I participate only if there is a situation where they are completely and utterly stuck."I wanted to point this out to close my first real blog post because I think the message is poignant: Students want to learn. The technology used in Tahoma's school district makes learning fun inside the classroom, but more importantly, the technology products of Khan Academy and NB make learning itself fun, anywhere at any time. The Wired article sites students excelling from basic math to geometry in a single semester, and students that stay up until 2 in the morning because they're having fun. The article above from CampusTechnology.com painted the picture of a vibrant community of peers, only governed by an authority figure to provide guidance when they really need it, and not a second earlier.
These examples, and many more, indicate that learning does not have to be painful, and technology gives us the tools to avoid that. The tools and techniques outlined in this blog don't even scratch the surface of what technology has to offer education. Again, the question is not "should," but rather "how."
So tell me, how do you use technology in the classroom? Let's learn together.
Monday, April 1, 2013
Introductory Post
How has technology changed my life?
Hard to say. Most of my life I have been surrounded by digital technology. In elementary school, my mom worked in the computer lab. Granted I didn't get my first cell phone until after I graduated high school, but they were always around me.
I suppose I would have to say technology has changed my life in that it makes day-to-day activities easier (communicating with friends/family, keeping up on current shows/movies, locating an archived journal I wrote four years ago, accessing articles and books, etc.). Nothing revolutionary; but then again I guess I was born after said revolution, so perhaps that's a tad privileged. :)
What types of technology do you currently use daily/weekly?
I use a smart phone, iPad, laptop, and desktop daily. Ideally, I also use a washing machine weekly.
What is one technology you could not live without?
Blenders - I love smoothies. (Haha)
Seriously, I would have to say that I could survive without any of my devices on a daily basis. However, as a person who lives 3000 miles from what I consider home, I don't think I could survive long term without a speedy and reliable way to contact friends and family long distance. I wouldn't say it has to be Skype or FaceTime, but something a little more modern than the US Postal Service and less silly than SnapChat.
Hard to say. Most of my life I have been surrounded by digital technology. In elementary school, my mom worked in the computer lab. Granted I didn't get my first cell phone until after I graduated high school, but they were always around me.
I suppose I would have to say technology has changed my life in that it makes day-to-day activities easier (communicating with friends/family, keeping up on current shows/movies, locating an archived journal I wrote four years ago, accessing articles and books, etc.). Nothing revolutionary; but then again I guess I was born after said revolution, so perhaps that's a tad privileged. :)
What types of technology do you currently use daily/weekly?
I use a smart phone, iPad, laptop, and desktop daily. Ideally, I also use a washing machine weekly.
What is one technology you could not live without?
Blenders - I love smoothies. (Haha)
Seriously, I would have to say that I could survive without any of my devices on a daily basis. However, as a person who lives 3000 miles from what I consider home, I don't think I could survive long term without a speedy and reliable way to contact friends and family long distance. I wouldn't say it has to be Skype or FaceTime, but something a little more modern than the US Postal Service and less silly than SnapChat.
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