Final Blog

Well this is it the final blog of the semester. i have learned a lot considering I thought the class was going to be about how to use a ELMO machine, or an overhead projector. When I was in school, even college, that was educational technology. So now I know that microsoft word is more than a word processing program, and that as future teachers we need to really push to get technology into the classroom. The students will be expecting it and it can be very useful. Most of the assignments were helpful but I do wish we could have spent more than a half hour on website design. The website design is something that I really see me using in the future. It is too bad that some of the other assignments that were maybe just to get a grade overshadowed the website design stuff. So now as I study for the final I look back and think that I already showed I understand the technology with the various assignments but now we need to be tested on the theories, and the application of technology in the classroom. Good luck to all, I will see you in the hall.

Web-Quest at Harris Hill

I had the chance to see some great integration of technology at Harris Hill the other day.  Student’s went to the computer lab and had to take on the identity of a Japanese students, as they are studying Japan.  Then using a web quest set up by the computer lab teacher they had to choose their favorite Japanese food, favorite after school activity, favorite school subject, etc.  They did this by searching previously selected websites about each topic.  They were told to take notes on each topic then as a follow up activity they made books about themselves as a Japanesestudent.  It was so neat to see these children navigating the Internet and reading and writing.  Unfortunately some of the websites they tried to visit had expired but enough were there to finish the project.  When the students were done with their assignment they started racing each other on typing exercises.  They were amazing.  Typing away without looking at the keyboard, and doing very well.  What else was nice about this is that the students stayed on task and needed very little if any teacher intervention.  I have learned a lot this semester about technology in education but this was my first chance to see it in action.  Neat!! 

The Sleeping Teacher

I can understand getting away with plagiarism.  That is sneaky and there are ways to cover your tracks.  A good teacher will do research at the first hint of plagiarism.  But a sleepy teacher may let it pass.  This really does harm the student.  To allow a student to think they are beating the system will someday catch up with them.  However, the cheating stuff, I found a little crazy.  What teacher is going to let a student look at a phone or listen to the i-pod during a test.  If they do allow it they deserve to be cheated on and cheers to the student smart enough to beat the lazy teacher.  I don’t think technology is the worry for cheating.  I was more impressed with the old school forms of cheating.  The rubber band trick is a good one and the writing on clothes or a water bottle could work.  In my career as a student I have tried and been successful but the worry and anxiety that goes on was so tough I should have just studied.  As a future teacher I will be vigilant in my quest to knock out cheating.  During test clear desks, walk the room, have students move to a different area, be creative and be awake.

Starstruck

I had the pleasure of going to Martha’s Vineyard last summer and enjoying a week with family.  The whole time I was there I kept saying that I wanted to see James Taylor.  He lives on the vineyard and has been known to be very nice.  He is also my absolute favorite recording artist.  Well my week came to an end and I did not get to meet my idol.  However, as I was waiting for the ferry back to the mainland, who should come up and stand right next to me but Carly Simon (ex-wife of James Taylor)and her son (with James Taylor) Ben Taylor,who happens to be a up and coming recording artist.  I played it wicked cool and left them alone so I would not be considered stalkerazzi.  When we all got on the boat I conveniently decided to take my son for a walk around the boat.  I passed Carly and Ben and noticed they were working on a computer.  On my second pass I noticed they were composing or tweaking their music using, you guessed it Garageband.  So this is a long way to go just to relate a story about the new technology learned about in class, but I though it was neat to know that professional musicians use this piece of software that we now know about.  So as you do your podcasts pretend you are your favorite musician because you never know maybe your favorite song was mixed using Garageband technology.

Cardboard vs. Computer

I have the opportunity to take a graduate class that is located at a local elementary school.  This is a great situation as we do grad school work then go to individual classrooms and observe teachers and students.  After the observation we go back and meet as a class to finish up grad school work.  Last week I watched the teacher I observe instruct her class using a homemade jeopardy game.  She had constructed this huge game board out of cardboard and had questions the whole nine yards.  The students were engaged and having fun.  The students were also learning from each other answers and mistakes.  What a great teaching tool with no bells and whistles.

Then I went back to my grad school professor and watched as she tried to show/teach us something on live-text using a smart-board.  The problem is that she had not used a smart-board enough or ever.  She seemed to be fumbling and making mistakes, and at one point accidentally signed herself out of live-text.  This teaching method caused me to glaze over and never really grasp what she was trying to teach us.

The moral of the story is that technology can be great but take time to learn how to use it before trying to teach a class full of tired hungry grad students.

Technology Fish Bowls

Last week in Literacy class we discussed technology and the classroom.  Three people in the class did teaching presentations either using or introducing educational technology.  First a student did an impressive job showing off Voicethread.  She did a nice job showing the class how a program such as this can be used in a classroom to peek student interest and involvement.  Next a student who has not even taken Ed. Tech showed us Kidspiration.  He had found the program while searching on the internet and was amazed at the ease of use.  He went on to show features of the program and gave examples of its use.  Third there was a very basic showing of power point (nothing like were learning about).  However again the information was not so much what the program can do but how to incorporate it into a lesson plan.  It was nice to see information crossing content areas and have people talk about how to use these programs in classrooms

Geek of the week

I was checking out the website sent to me from Dr. Ransom and was very excited to find this information available.  There were a number of great programs listed and each came with ideas of how to use them and why.  This is a great resource for current teachers that need the resources now, but also for us future teachers that will probably forget quite a bit of what we learn this semester.  Not that I want to forget it but my brain only holds so much information before some gets deleted. I especially like the news you can use program.  I believe that kids and adults should read some sort of newspaper daily if possible.  Although i this day and age most will read the internet.  Both are important.  First what a great way to practice reading skills but also a way to keep up to date on the happenings in the world.  This program would give kids an introductory look at news and may get them excited and motivated to check out the paper at home with their parents or open an internet site devoted to the news rather than MySpace.  I was forever trying to get the students I worked with to read the paper and they just flat out refused.  maybe had they been introduced at an earlier age they would have seen the importance of being up to date and how interesting a person can seem when they are knowledgeable about current events. 

Research paper-Social Networking

While doing the research for this paper I was really surprised to learn that social networking is such a new activity.  The first site was launched only about ten years ago, and now millions of people are using online sites to stay in touch or meet new people.  I am not a fan of online social networking as I feel that face to face communication is so important.  When communicating online it is impossible to really feel what someone is saying, for example IF I WRITE IN ALL CAPS AM I YELLING or did I hit the caps lock button on accident.  I do see the need for this activity but it needs to be used in limited fashion not as a main way of communicating.  While doing research I found that 93% of teens use the internet as a venue for social interaction.  This may explain why when I had a part time job and had to speak to the teens I worked with I thought they had no social skills.  Maybe if I could have communicated with them online we all would have been more comfortable.  I kid, but the fact is no matter how much computers advance being able to speak face to face to another human will always be important.  I do agree with using social networks in school if for the right purpose.  Posting homework assignments and keeping lines of communication open between home and school are great examples.  However having students collaborate on projects online rather than in person to me seems backwards.  Students need to meet each other and get to know each other to be part of society.  Sitting in a room typing on a computer all day will lead to social isolation and a distorted view of reality.  If we want to teach anything about social networking in the classroom let us teach internet safety, and, like in Ed. Tech class, how to use the available programs in case they will help with future employment.  Having the knowledge base is beneficial but to make a whole class online or have all assignments done online I personally think will have long lasting negative effects.  At my last job when a new employee was hired rather than introduce himself he sent an all staff email.  To this day I never met him and had no desire to try.  We need to leave our offices, cubicles, bedrooms, etc. and get out in the world.  I found that social networking may have a lot of benefits but to me as a society we are already using it too much and the effects are starting to show.

Technology Fair School #9

It was really great to see the article in the newspaper March 21, about the technology fair at school #9.  I was so happy to see that a school is not only using the technology we are learning about but trying to spread the word.  One teacher that was in school in the 70’s stated that he was happy when his teacher let him try typing on a monochromatic computer screen.  Today that teacher is running a computer lab that has the ability to teleconference with classrooms around the country and the world.  What an amazing feeling that must be for that teacher.  Another teacher talked about how she helped teachers at school #9 set up classroom web pages using “My Teacher Pages”.  Now 20 teachers at school #9 have set up classroom web pages, and the reaction of the parents has been outstanding.  Just to hear that parents are excited about their children’s learning makes all of the difference.  The article mentioned items such as SMART boards, document cameras, LCD projectors, and dance pads.  I hope we will be learning about those in our class as they seem more prevalent than some of the programs we are learning about.  The best part was the picture showing a teacher experimenting with a zoom scope and smiling from ear to ear.  If technology can be used to make teachers excited about teaching then imagine the students reaction.  Fourth grade teacher Charles Hall summed up the excitement and curiosity about technology saying “the teachers are as bad as the fourth graders”.  Technology is going to be a great tool as long as it is available and teachers are taught how to use it to get the most out of their students.

Blank

 Is it possible to just blank out and have nothing to write about?  These last two weeks we have had system overload in tech class.  I can barely remember programs that we are learning about.  Dr. Ransom had good advice telling us to use the stuff we are learning in a personal way.  He gave the example of communicating with relatives overseas.  I would love to do that but life keeps getting in the way.  Every time I sit down at the computer I feel as if I should be doing schoolwork, not fooling around with new programs.  I could make my homework in tech class to take time and try new things, but I have to do a research paper for that class.  I could have done it today during my sons nap.  However, the sun was shining as it rarely does and I could not stay inside.  What is the best technology?  What programs are more important to know.  Is there a way to narrow down the list so that we can concentrate on the programs that we might see in the future.  When I am at the schools where I am observing this semester the students are mostly using the computer for reading programs.  In class we have not learned about these reading programs.  Will they be taught to us by the school district we work in or are they self explanatory?  I wish I could say I am seeing kidspiration projects on the walls, or evidence of a class blog, but I am not.  Do these teachers know what we know or are we the next generation of teacher?  I definitely feel more tech savvy.  In the future may it come in handy.