Assignment #10- week 10

Questions for NU Educators Panel:
1. My friend said it's harder to get hired with a Masters degree (because that means they have to pay you more) is this true? And do you think it is better to receive a Masters after getting a teaching position or before?
2. What piece of technology is most beneficial to middle school students?
3. What does the Educators Panel do?

Assignment #9- week 9

Bob Spankle's blog made some good points.  It showed me great ways to use video in the classroom.  I liked the idea of taping the students questions at the beginning of the unit, and then having them answer their own questions at the end of the unit.  I also never really thought of taping students while they do work in class and then emailing it to their parents, this could be a great way to encourage students.  He had some really great ideas for video taping, in reality, it may be difficult to actually tape students all the time or have time to sort out the videos and email them to each parent, but to do something like this every once in a while could be very encouraging for students.

Assignment #8- week 8

I looked at Cascade View Elementary's website, it is where I used to go to school and where my mom currently teaches.  I think that the website is set up very conveniently, there is a side menu that gives you options of what you want to look at.  The website is simple and is very easy to navigate through.  The main page introduces the school in a short summary, and it gives a link that goes straight to all of the teachers email addresses so that parents can contact teachers easily.  If I could add two things to the website, it would be a link to a page with photos of the students and activities that the school has done, and I would also add a link that could connect to specific class websites if the teachers have one, that way a parent could go to the schools website to find everything they may be searching for.

Technology Project Plan

I am going to create a class website or blog for my technology project. My students can go to the website to find homework assignments. The blog/website will also have pictures of my class throughout the year so that parents can look at them and see what their child has been doing. I will see if I can put a Storybird on the website as an example of a project my class will be doing. The website will also have a basic schedule of what is going on in class. I will also have a letter for the parents to introduce myself and give them my contact information.

Comments

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Assignment #7- Week 7

Newton High School Blog

I liked this blog because it was a PE classes blog.  It was a fun website to view because it had pictures of the students doing their activities with a little explanation about what the class had been up to lately.  It seemed like a great source for parents to look at so they get a feel of what their child is doing in PE and it also was a place where the teacher could give out helpful information, such as how the lockers should be used during class.  The blog itself is fairly simple, it has the date on each blog entry, pictures and links to different discussions.  It seems like a great place for students to look back and see all the fun things they had done in class.  This was an example of the type of blog I would want to keep if I had one.  A blog that tells what is going on in class and had pictures so that students and parents could look at it and be informed.

Reflection #6

I was talking to the lady I nanny for and she was saying how her sons school put him in a lower math level than his grade.  He is in third grade, and this bothers her because she feels her son should be in a higher level.  This is the feeling many parents have, they want their kids to succeed and be at grade level in all things.  Sometimes I wonder though, why do we choose to put kids in certain math levels at such an early age? Sometimes it is obvious that a student needs extra help or time to learn something, but other times it may seem that a child is randomly thrown into a group.  This made me think back to when I was in 6th grade.  I have always been pretty good at math, and throughout elementary school I did very well.  But when 6th grade rolled around, I noticed a group of about 20 students got to go and do more challenging math while the rest of us didn't.  I didn't understand why I was never given the chance to be part of that group, because some of my friends were in it, and I felt I was at the same level as them.  It upset me at the time, because I thought they were learning things earlier than the rest of us, which gave them a head start in middle school and high school, and it turns out that it did.  Many of them remained in higher math classes, while the rest of us were stuck taking the "required" classes that they got to skip.  Looking back, I realize that teachers see our capabilities more than we think.  But I still wonder why we were never given a test or even an opportunity to be bumped up to the next level.  So I question what the best method of placement for students is. Should it be up to tests or just the teachers opinions?

Reflection #5

I love making and creating things with my own two hands.  I love to draw, knit hats, and I recently started painting.  I think about this and realize that in school growing up, much of the projects we made were with our hands, so it makes sense why I love to do things with my hands.  Times are changing, and more and more kids love creating things with technology.  Lots of it is still a form of art, just a different kind of art.  I think that making things from scratch, like painting and drawing, is still important for kids to do, but now it may be more important for kids to be able to create things with technology.  Since this is where our future is heading, and our kids need to be prepared for what's to come, as teachers it is important that we allow our students to challenge themselves and create new things using technology to express themselves.

Reflection #4

This semester I have realized how much I will probably use technology in my classroom.  When I think about lesson plans I have to make for my other classes, I think, what would be a fun way to engage the students right off the bat? or what is a quick and easy way to present this information that will also allow my class to flow smoothly.  The answer to this is often technology.  In the past when I had to give presentations, I often would use PowerPoint, now with the use of SmartBoards and other cool websites, I realize that those are simple tools I can use to create a lesson that my students will engage in easier.  Technology may not be the focus in my classroom, but I'm realizing more that it will be a tool that I will use often, and probably more than I expect.

Reflection #3

Tests are always a part of schooling.  And often times students feel that they deserve better grades than they earned because the test was "too hard" or "everyone did bad" or "the questions were confusing."  As a student, it is easy to hope for better grades than you've received.  But as a teacher, is it good for the students if you grade on a curve? or give them points because a question was confusing?  Obviously I think there that there are good times for curves or omitting a test question, and other times it may not be necessary.  As teachers it is important to look at how the class as a whole did, and to see if curving a test is a good idea or not.  Grades are very important for many students.  So being aware and flexible is a good characteristic for a teacher to have.  I think as long as tests scores are not changed just so that kids feel good about themselves, then adjusting a grade may be good.  Sometimes tests are harder than expected or confusing.  As teachers I think it is important to challenge students and not just give out good grades, but instead be fair in knowing whether or not tests were more difficult than intending.  One of the best things teachers can do is adjust the next test to fit their class more so they have the opportunity to succeed next time.

Assignment 1- Technology Literacy

ARTICLE LINK
I read a short article called "Avoiding the Digital Abyss: Getting Started in the Classroom with YouTube, Digital Stories, and Blogs" by Rebecca Mullen and Linda Wedwick. This article talked about a middle school language arts teacher who uses all three of those technology tools in her classroom.  She is from a rural area with very few students.  The schools technology is pretty much a computer lab with internet and basic Microsoft software.  The article tells about these three tools that she includes in the classroom in order to help her students gain wisdom on technology while also learning great skills in language arts.  I learned about the digital stories, which sounds very familiar to a podcast type of thing, except it can have pictures along with it as well.  What I appreciated about this article is that it was about a school that did not have all the new technology, but it used the few resources it had in order to help the students grow in their academics while still learning how to use high tech resources using mostly internet servers.  The digital stories are definitely something I will look into doing for my future classes because it sounds like a fun activity that inspires students to write well, and it also allows them to perform their writing by recording their own voices and putting pictures with their stories.

The teacher NET that I want to focus on this semester is 1. Facilitate and Inspire Student Learning and Creativity.  I feel that in order to fully allow a student to learn and grow with/through technology is by allowing them to be creative and try projects that they may not come up with on their own.  Technology can be used in different ways, having students create projects with friends can help them grow in the subject area as well as socially and technologically.  When students are challenged to create something that they know they will share in class, they will put more effort into it knowing that their peers will see the finished product.  This semester I hope to learn more sources I can refer to for my students to use on their projects, learn about projects teachers have done in the past that have worked well in the classroom, and also the best way to incorporate learning through the technology projects given.  Students learn best when they have a passion for what they do, and if technology is part of their passion, then allowing them to learn through technology would be a great gift to the students.  The student NET that I would also like to focus on is 3. Research and Information Fluency. I find that this NET is very important because research is still something I have a difficulty doing sometimes.  Finding reliable sources on the web can be difficult, so I want to help my students learn at a younger age what resources are reliable and how to cite them correctly.  Some ways I could do this is simply by having them do a research project and I would be there to help them find good sources and teach them how to cite things and do effective research.  Another way I could help students succeed at this NET is by simply showing them resources that are free that can be used by anyone yet are reliable and safe for student's to use.

Assignment #6- week 6

Generation IM article review:

I often hear about the amount of hours kids spend looking at a screen after school, and it always surprises me.  I figure that if a child gets out of school at 3, then 6.5 hours of using technology puts them at 9:30 at night, this being said, it seems as though kids spend all their time at home doing nothing but technology based activities, and this is a very sad reality to me.  I don't think that much technology use is necessary in a child's life. 
On the other hand, as we all know, technology is the future, and it is important for our kids to know how to use it and understand it.  The article clearly tells the importance that technology has in the younger generation and how even the littlest kids know how to use it in some form or fashion.  I thought the seven tips for teachers at the end of the article were good ideas that could definitely be incorporated in the classroom.  The best way for students to learn is when they get to do things for themselves, so watching a teacher use technology is not always the best method of teaching. This is why I liked the seven tips given, they give examples of projects students can work on that provide a safe way for students to express themselves through technology in an appropriate manner.  Overall the article had many good ideas and strong arguments as to why technology is important in the classroom as well as having students use it at home for homework activities.

Assignment #5- week 5

Promethean ActivBoard 387 Pro Article

This article tells the pros and cons of an ActivBoard.  For the most part, the author was a fan of the ActivBoard.  It said that the ActivBoard could only be written on with the digital pen, which is both a pro and con because it is nice to be able to rest your arm on the screen while writing and not mess up what is written (like it does with the SmartBoard), but it is a con because if the pen is lost, then there is no way to write on the board without getting a replacement.  The article also mentioned that the projector is put in a place where the speakers shadow will not be in the way of the light, so the teacher is able to stand right in front of it and students will still be able to see what is on the board at all times.  Much of the tools and hardware are very similar to the SmartBoard, but this article did lean towards liking the AcitvBoard's technology a little more than the SmartBoard. 
The article mentioned much of the uses an AcitvBoard can have in the classroom, and that using it for lessons, student interaction, and trivia games is very beneficial to student learning.  Like with most technology, when it is used correctly, it has a very positive effect on the students.  The question I have about the ActivBoard is if it has templates set up for lessons that can just be filled in so that teachers don't have to worry about the fancy touches that can make a presentation a little more appealing to students?

Assignment 2

presentation

Smart Board tools I will use:
-pen
-word chooser
-timer

Teacher NET
Facilitate and Inspire Student Learning and Creativity

Teachers use their knowledge of subject matter, teaching and learning, and technology to facilitate experiences that advance student learning, creativity, and innovation in both face-to-face and virtual environments.

-The teacher NET is met because I will allow students to interact with the technology while also using it myself as a way to engage students in my lesson.

Student NET
 Technology Operations and Concepts
           Students demonstrate a sound understanding of technology concepts, systems, and operations.
-The student NET is met because I am allowing the students to use the Smart Board a little throughout my lesson, allowing them to learn how to use the Smart Board technology as well.

An interactive whiteboard can improve student learning in my future class because it is a tool that I can use to engage students as well as get them involved in the lesson.  Interactive whiteboards are also nice for when I have students to technology based projects, and I can show their work using the interactive board i.e. videos and presentations.

What I Learned About SMART Boards- week 4

In class on Tuesday, I continued to learn more about SMART Boards.  I learned how to create more slides similar to a PowerPoint, and how to put a background on the slides.  I learned how to use the tools such as pens, erasers, and highlighters.  Some cool tools that we found as a class were the timers, the timers will definitely be helpful in the classroom because it can be used for timing the students to do work on their own, and they will know the whole time how much time remains for them to work.  Another fun tool was the word chooser, this is great because you can put students names into this and it will randomly select a name.  I also found many pictures that have noises with them.  Along with these tools, I also played with the actual SMART Board and found that the pen delays a little before writing, so it will be something to get used to.  There are so many different tools and settings that I need to figure out the best way to navigate through things to find them.  Also on the SMART Board website, when I search for good lesson plan slides, they tend to come up as games and quizzes, so I would like to know how to find better lessons.