Friday, October 23, 2009
These technology tools are something that all teachers should incorporate into their curriculum. Not only does it allows students to become familiar with technology, it also gives the students a choice and freedom to use whichever technology tool they feel will work to their advantage and be more beneficial. After reading this article, i think i need to enhance my knowledge of certain technology tools like wikis and wiki spaces. I will take the articles word that they could perhaps be the best communicative technology toll but would like to know firsthand. With this in mind, as a teacher i must know how they operate and function as i will teach and assist my future students. As far as incorporating into my classroom, i think it would be very beneficial to have the students to a simple project with each of the technology tool and take a poll at the end of the year asking which one they liked the best or which one they felt was most beneficial and useful. I also liked the idea that the authors of this article which one is a physics teacher and the other is a director of technology that specifically states the benefits of texting. This is a highly debated topic where i can see and agree with the authors that there are specific benefits of texting especially in group settings.
Friday, October 16, 2009
I love this idea of spicing up the old way off reporting with the use of technology and computers. It allows reports to be more intriguing and exciting with images as well as video clips and sound. In my elementary school, we held a multicultural festival that taught the students about the different countries and cultures in our world. We performed dances of their culture and sang songs that were significant. When performing these songs and dances, we also took on the role by dressing up like that culture. I would definitely incorporate this lesson and project into my curriculum as it excites me just reading about it. I think i would add an extra element by having the students taste the foods of the different cultures and countries as well. One day or week would be designated to a particular country or culture. We would first learn about that culture then get into the hands on and fun stuff by listening to music, dancing, and tasting the scrumptious food. A lot of time and work is needed for this project but with the help from teachers and guidance from supporting staff will help make it run smoothly and very worthwhile!
Thursday, October 8, 2009
I really enjoyed reading this article and kept questioning how old these students were. I am still shocked to know that these second graders were able to conduct all of these interviews and use specific technology tool that for I haven't even used. I am sure there was a lot of teamwork involved as well as assistance and guidance from both the teacher and the library media specialist. I think this would be a wonderful end of the year project that most students will always look forward to doing. After reading the article, I would allow 2-3 weeks to complete the given project as it involves a lot of time and effort on both the students and the teachers. It incorporates a wide array of technology tools and also multiple literacy's. This would be something that I would definitely use when becoming a teacher. You can even change the concept of snow to rain, tsunamis and so on. It all depends on your location and what is typical of these places so the students aren't shocked and unaware of what it consists of. This article provided snapshots of certain web pages created by the students but am curious to see the entire project. All in all, I am very impressed with these second graders and give the teacher and library media specialist praise for helping and guiding these students!
Thursday, October 1, 2009
These types of videos I find to be very beneficial in incorporating into my classroom. All I can recall from Elementary School is watching the very old outdated videos that were very monotone and must have been made in the 80's or even earlier. They were known for putting students to sleep including myself. This reaches out to all students by having that option of subtitles and the option of getting it in Spanish. Aside from being revamped, they also have the capability of a quick load time, meaning that with a click of a button the video will start and will not require time and time to load. This technology tool can definitely enhance the learning environment as well as reach out to all different types of learners. Majority of our students today are visual learners and thus would benefit them greatly. I would do some more research on this Digital Science Video Library with the hope of seeing one of the videos alongside the interactive activities and on screen quizzes. I think it is something I would consider in using in my classroom. I am curious as to what other technology tools the Visual Learning Company has launched. All in all, I found this article very beneficial and informational in the sense of the introduction of the Digital Science Video Library.
Friday, September 25, 2009
I find this software beneficial for all classroom teachers. Like I mentioned previously, we are facing a huge budget crisis and first things cut are our arts and music programs. We as teachers should be prepared to teach arts and music in our classroom since we don't get the pleasure and convenience of sending them to an art teacher or music teacher. I think it would be a good idea to purchase two keyboards and have the students rotate while giving the other students face to face lessons that are provided in the box set. I found the pricing of these technology tools very reasonable and something i would definitely consider in my budget when becoming a teacher. They didn't mention anything in the article about other instruments, but with further research I hope to find that out prior to purchasing or considering. I was really surprised to read that they actually took into consideration what composers they wanted to use. They wanted to show students that composers come from a variety of different places. I think it's awesome that they used women and also minorities. This software seems to offer so much and provides so much for the students. From a teachers standing point, I don't feel like it would be a difficult task to grasp and yet easy enough to inform the students on what to do. When students hear that they will be doing a lesson with technology, they are already excited and eager to get their hands on it. This works very good for the hands on learners like I am. Even in college, I find lessons more intriguing with the use of technology. Just think of how exciting this would be for an elementary school student.
Friday, September 18, 2009
In this article, it provided an insight into how autistic classrooms run and also how autistic students can learn more efficiently with the introduction of technology tools. This article focused on an interactive whiteboard that has the capability of training the students' attention. In a classroom where there are autistic children, you tend to see as many adults as there are children. The goal of these whiteboards are to increase group instruction with the hopes of proving that they were capable of social learning. They hoped that this increased group instruction and social learning would help these students develop communication skills. They introduced an experienced teacher that was hesitant about using this software but came to find that she was very enthusiastic and excited about the outcomes. She was surprised by how engaged her students were in creating a story using pictures. This interactive whiteboard allowed the teacher to access interactive sites to teach her daily math lessons. Using the whiteboard, she was able to incorporate pictures and images to her lesson plans that engaged and captured the students. Towards the end of the year, the students were so familiar with the interactive whiteboard that they knew specific tools and how to navigate interactive websites. With all of this said, the students engagement increased to 90 minutes in the morning and additional in the afternoon. Katie is a 12 year old girl who was diagnosed with multiple disabilities and a primary diagnosis of autism. She has shown aggression towards activities and lessons that she was not familiar with. With the use of ACT project (interactive whiteboard) she would wait to be called to do the whiteboard activities rather than get angry and throw a tantrum. Her ability to attend to lessons increased from 5 minutes to 45 minutes. Using the ACT toolkit allows teachers to create an environment where students with autism can become engaged in active learning.
As a future teacher, I find it very beneficial to learn more and utilize this ACT toolkit as this article suggests that it has helped many students. With the increase of class size and lack of budgets, we as teachers may be in a situation where some of your students will have some level of autism. I feel that this interactive whiteboard is beneficial for autism students as well as my other students. I personally am more engaged in a lesson where there are visuals that enhance the meaning and understanding. As far as interactive, this will engage everyone to a much higher level no matter if you have a disability or not. the shocking reports of these interactive whiteboards is quite astonishing and makes me want to research this more in depth. The only thing that was not mentioned in this article is the pricing. Without the funding and appropriate budgets, some teachers don't have the option or opportunity to purchase or even inquire about this technology tool. All in all, I found this article very beneficial and interesting. If given the opportunity and budget in my classroom, i would definitely do further research and possibly purchase this ACT toolkit when becoming a teacher.
Friday, September 11, 2009
I feel technology has reached an all time peak and that while these students are so intrigued, we should re purpose these tools to be educational. When I was in elementary school, I had no computer at my house so when we went to the computer lab, I was excited and so intrigued to do math exercises on a tool that was so new to me. In one of my science classes her at CSUSM the professor used a technology tool that allowed the students to respond to answers via this tool. It escaped the routinely question and answer on a sheet of paper. It got the students engaged and wanting to learn and be taught. I do agree with the authors when they say that re purposing these technology tools can be very complicated but first as a teacher you must be willing to play and experiment. This isn't too much of a concern, as most teachers already own an ipod, iPhone, computers etc. Out of the three examples given in this article, I feel that I could use micro blogging. This would work great with group projects as the students can communicate with one another outside of the classroom setting. It's a complement to our face to face discussions. This would be very beneficial for the students who are too shy to speak up during class and can expand their minds through technology. Overall, re purposing technology would be highly beneficial to all students and teachers.
Friday, September 4, 2009
This article has definitely inspired me to wrap my hands around technology as a factor that can be applied to all aspects of teaching. As we have seen in this article, there is a great deal of teamwork involved and allows everyone to partake in their exercise. This article focused on the idea of chatting with an author, but in reality it can reach out to people in all other subject matters. For instance, it would be an awesome technology tool used in science as the scientists or whoever it may be, can carry out an experiment with detailed explanations and descriptions. Technology has really brought education to a much higher level of opportunities if one is wiling to attempt and learn. Not only do the students experience a unique way of learning, this article proved that this particular author offered great insights and recommendations to the students pertaining to love to read and opening the possibilities and opportunities to write books themselves. I for one, was not aware of these types of "author chats" but am willing to learn more and inform others as well. With this article in mind, i have come across many tips and recommendations that i have found very beneficial as i will become an elementary school teacher, Here are a few of the many tips given within the text; to prevent disappointment, don't tell your student's until you're really far along in the process, it is best to ask open ended questions that cannot be discovered through other sources, and always have a back up plan as technology does not always deliver what you want. Overall, this article has provided me with great knowledge of "chatting it up online" as well as using technology to enhance and provide my students with a unique experience of learning.