Blog Post #14

Top Ten Tips for Using Technology in the Classroom by Jose Picard

This was exciting to see in the blog post assignment. I had previously watched this video. When I was coming up with a blog post for blog post assignment 12 I was going to use this video not realizing it was already assigned. Jose Picardo had some very neat tricks when it comes to incorporating technology in the classroom.

Students do enjoy music. It helps keep then intrigued. Using teleconferencing tools can encourage students to communicate with others all over the world. Students’ involvement in the lessons is very important. If a student is involved, then you know they are learning. To make this possible you can create interactive exercises. To keep students working to their full potential can have them creating a log or wiki. This way their work is being published for others to see and students are striving to do their best work.
Social networks can allow students and their peers to communicate. There is controversy over some networks, but if used appropriately they can be very useful. The internet offers so much; therefore we might as well use it.
In Jose Picardo’s video he talks about many parts of technology that can help teachers in the classroom. They are all things that will spark a student’s interest. I think if teachers would use these tips in their classroom they would see an increase in the students’ attention during a lesson. I will be sure to incorporate these tools in my lessons.

Project #15 SmartBoard Instruction Part 2

Blog Post #13

My Teacher is an App by Stephanie Bancher

For this blog post I chose option 2 and I’m glad I did. This was a very interesting post. I didn’t realize how many students were taking classes full-time online. It stated that an estimated 250,000 students were teaching themselves through virtual schools. It amazes me that in Georgia students can use a new app to take courses on there iphone or blackberry.

My like for technology has drastically increased while taking edm310. Even though I know that you can teach yourself a lot from the internet, I still think students should use it in a classroom setting. I don’t think students should use the internet to teach themselves entirely on their own. Can you count on students grade K-12 to get on the computer and do their lessons everyday? I think it would make sense that students from virtual schools would make lower on standardized test. When a student is viewing information online they might not know exactly what they need to now specifically. They will remember what stood out to them, where in a classroom you have a teacher telling you what to focus on.

The hybrid school sounds more like something I would agree with. They blend online and face-to-face interaction with a teacher. It is surprising to me the number of states offering virtual schools and the amount of students attending them. I feel very much out of the loop. This is why I enjoy edm310 because I am continuously learning something new.

Blog Post #12

For Blog Post Assignment 12, I am able to create my own assignment. I found a video where they are discussing technology in the classroom. I would have the students of edm310 watch the video and give their opinion. It is a video that is on 2 minutes and 7 seconds. Even though it is short you get to see students using technology and also the opinion of a teacher is given. So please watch Integrating Current Technology as discussed in Donna Walker-Tileston's Ten Best Teaching Practices.

When I was in elementary, middle, and high school I did not really get the chance to use technology. I had 2 computer classes over all. Some of my teachers had a SMART board that they never used, and were not familiar with. It was unfortunate that it went to waste for that time. I have a little sister that is 5 and is aware of how to do things on a SMART board. Her teacher uses it in the classroom everyday. In this video you can see a teacher who is using a smart board and students can get involved in the assignment. The students choose a tile and dragged it to its appropriate place depending on I were a reptile or mammal. The teacher also says she is able to create quizzes, food chains, Venn diagram, and make corrections to a power point if she were to forget something. They can also create organizers. There is just an endless amount of possibilities. Why would a teacher not want to have access and use a SMART board in the classroom? After making an instructional video on using the SMART board I really enjoy using it. If I were give the opportunity to use the smart board in my classroom, I would try and use it to it’s full potential.

Post Progress on Final Project

For the final project I am in a group with Brandon Hastings and Maegan Torres. For the final project we collectively came up with the idea of a video discussing technology in the classroom. We each have picked something specific to gather information on. My focus is students using blogs. I thing this is very important after taking edm310 and would like to find out more about.

C4T #3

1. Shawn Cornally’s Let’s Go Camping with ThThTh

This post discussed to ways of assigning work to students. One of the ways was “arbitrary.” This is where you give the students an assignment with a deadline. The other way would be where you give assignments and have the student turn them in when they feel that it is complete. My opinion was that you need to set deadlines so that every student in the class is working on the same assignment at the same time. I do like Mr. Cornally’s way of giving the assignment back to a student if he feels they could have done better rather than just giving them a bad grade. If we give students work and they rush though it, they aren’t gaining what they need. By giving it back to the student to complete they can go back and correct their mistakes in their spare time. Mr. Cornally had some good thoughts in this post. I really enjoyed this and wouldn’t have thought about this on my own.

2. Do students understand their ‘digital footprint’ and how it can affect their employability? By David Hopkin

This is a topic that every student needs to think about. Some people who are using social media do not realize the affects it may have on their future. This is something that employers may look at and have a major impact on their opinion of you. When leaving a “digital footprint” you have to be extremely careful about what you say. You never know who may see it and the difference it can make on your future.

C4K Post for October

C4K5
In this comment I told a student something interesting about the United States. I chose to inform her that even though most people in the United States speak English, we have no official language.

C4K 6
For this comment I was assigned to Alisha who told a story about Harold. Harold is a giraffe that visited her school from the Life Education Caravan. She learned that they breathe through the nose and mouth. Air goes through the wind pipe then through lungs and brain. I just told her that I was glad she listened to Harold and was able to learn some interesting facts.

C4K 7
In this post there was a video made by Tevita and Dartanian. It was well done. They were learning to use imovie for interviewing, filming, and editing. They did such a great job. In my comment I mentioned that I wish I could have started using imovie at their age. I also said they have an advantage b being able to use imovie and to keep up the good work. They have been given such a great opportunity and are doing really well with it.

C4K 8
I chose to comment on a student names Abby’s post. She had created a story about a girl amed Kayla who shared her Facebook password. Someone had logged on her Facebook and bullied other students. Kayla was at blame and even transferred schools because she had no friends. In my comment I told Abby that this could really happen. I stressed the importance of not sharing personal information. I told Abby that anything said on a personal profile is a reflection of her, therefore she should be the only one posting information.

C4K 9
Mr. McClung’s school was able to dress out for spirit week. It was the week before playing their rival. Sound like a lot of fun and I wish that I would have had more freedom for spirit week at my school. My schools always had strict rules for spirit week and we weren’t able to do very much. Mr. McClung won a contest where the kids got to chose how he would shave his beard. I must say the kids gave him a very interesting look.

Blog Post #11

Ms. Cassidy's First Graders in Mr. Cassidy's Class and Skype Interview with Ms. Cassidy

Ms. Cassidy has developed a way of teaching. It seems that her students in her first grade class are gaining a lot from her use of technology. From the interview it seems that she started out simple and was new at using technology in the classroom. This all began because she was given five computers for her classroom. She has done a lot of work and has come a long ways today. She had to get help and have support from others to be able to get to where she is today. Now every year the students are working with technology on a regular basis. Not only are the students gaining from the use of technology, but also parents are able to view the progress of their child. Cassidy has a strong opinion on technology. She believes that there are so many useful sites and tools on the internet. If you don’t take advantage of these tools then we are not only creating a disadvantage for our self but for every student. The world is changing around us, so we need to stay current as well. The internet is making it possible for students to communicate with people all over the world. Ms. Cassidy talks about how some teachers are also using technology but some are unwilling to change and are comfortable using there old ways. Future teachers need to be technologically literate because technology will always be here and will continue to grow. I would like to have my students using to technology to gain any additional information that they possibly can. Technology has many interactive tools that can be very beneficial to the student. I want to be technologically literate so that I am not creating a handicap for my students. It is very important for us to offer our students all that we can. If we don’t take the time to learn technology, we are doing a disservice to our students. This Skype interview was very neat and I really enjoyed hearing what Ms. Cassidy had to say and directly to Dr. Strange and edm310 students.

Blog Post #10

Do You Teach or Do You Educate?

When I get started in my career as an educator, I hope to educate each student in my classroom. I would never want to be the teacher that just lectures and have the students memorize the information I am giving. I want to interpret the information in a way a student can understand and comprehend. I want them to be able to do research on there own and be able to gain something from it as if I were to explain it to them.
When a student leaves my classroom I want them to be able to apply techniques I have taught them to every subject and not just have facts memorized about the subject I teach. I want to be a mentor to all o my students. I want them to know they can come to me anytime they need help. I will teach them skills that can help in the classroom and in life.

Tom Johnson's Don't Let Them Take the Pencils Home!

This post made a point in a very interesting way. The conversation between Tom and Gertrude is going back and forth over students taking home pencils. Gertrude is arguing that students should not take home pencils. Her argument is based off of an article she read. In this article it said students who take home pencils have lower grades on standardized test. Tom has been trying to solve this problem, he continues to state that pencil and paper are not the problem. The problem is what the students are doing with the pencil and paper.
This also shows how closed minded some educators can be. Gertrude was not willing to even try to compromise. She continued to reject the idea of pencils being sent home all based off of one article she read. She was overlooking the problem instead of finding a solution.