Sunday, September 30, 2012

Blog Post #5

The iSchool Initiative and Zeitgeist Young Mind's Entry
 
Travis Allen discusses in his video “The iSchool Initiative” how he could change the future of education through iSchool. Instead of students spending tons of money on school supplies, like paper, students can learn in a more eco-friendly way by iSchool. Through iSchool students can access textbooks, homework assignments, and much more all through a touch screen devise.

I agree with Travis Allen and his idea on the future of education. I think iSchool would be great for students, teachers, and parents. Teachers can keep up with their students more and students can access their assignments a lot easier. Also, parents can keep track of their child’s progress at school. All in all I think Travis Allen has a valid point, however, I do not think everyone is ready to make that change just yet.


Eric Whitacre's Virtual Choir 
 
Wow! I do not even know where to begin. I have never seen such an awesome creation put together. It was neat how all the students were separated from one another. What made it really interesting is once students started performing individually; their voices soon came together as one. I never would have thought of a choir ever becoming a virtual choir. Everyone must see!

Teaching in the 21st Century by Kevin Roberts
 
Kevin Roberts Teaching in the 21st Century was an eye-opening video to watch. I never thought about students not asking me for help, since I am the teacher. One thing that really grabbed my attention was “Students do not need to be entertained they need to be engaged.” I feel like this is true as to what does it mean to teach? Teaching shouldn’t be something where you entertain students with information. Teaching should be about engaging students with information, so they can learn something valuable.


Katie Gimbar- Why I flipped my classroom? and Dr. Lodge McCammon's Fizz- Flipping the Classroom
 
I thoroughly enjoyed watching these videos. I definitely want to flip my classroom as these teachers did to theirs. I do not want to lecture to my students like some teachers tend to do. I want to engage my students in the material being discussed and have them ask questions. I think this type of teaching style will come in handy not only when I begin teaching, but for all current and future educators as well. I encourage everyone to check out these videos.

Sunday, September 23, 2012

C4T#1 Summary


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iPads in Education Slide Decks

Summary:
Silvia Tolisano’s blog post was very informational. Mrs. Tolisano states why iPads can be helpful in the classroom through a listing of slide shows. In these slide shows, Silvia says how iPads are not just something that kids can play games on. iPads can be used for reading,creativity, and much more.
Response:
My response to Silvia’s post was concise. I enjoyed the slide shows made by Mrs. Tolisano. I thought her slides gave a great outlook on how helpful iPads can be in the classroom. iPads can be used for all sorts of things such as reading, writing, and creativity.

Twitter HOTS & Establishing aTwitter Routine in the Classroom 

Summary:
Silvia Tolisano's second post was highly informational and full of resources.  In this post, Mrs. Tolisano discusses how to incorporate the use of Twitter with students in the classroom.  Tolisano mentions in her post about Terry Heick and his Twitter Spectrum.  Terry divides his tweets into three sections:
  • Watch
  •  Talk
  • Produce
Watch is considered a stepping stone for younger students.  Talk and Produce are targeted for middle and high school students but can be adjusted for younger grades.  Mrs. Tolisano exclaims that by tweeting with our students, we expose them to:
  • Social net working strategies
  • Support their growth as global digital citizens
  • Model focused, clear writing
 Response: My response towards Mrs. Tolisano’s post was amicable.  I thought her post was very informative and full of great resources.  Twitter is a great tool to expose to students inside and outside the classroom.


Thursday, September 20, 2012

Blog Post #4

 1st Graders Create Their Own Read-Along AudioBook

In this blog, I learned how first graders collaborated and recorded stories onto Podcasts. Each student recorded his or her part, then it was added to a Podcast by the teacher.  Students could then listen to the stories that they had read aloud using an iPod or other MP3 device. This makes reading a lot more fun, since each student was able to participate and helped create the Podcast. I think this is beneficial for students because they are learning how to read and collaborate with each other while incorporating the use of technology.
  
The Benefits of Podcasting in the classroom by Joe Dale 

 I was unfamiliar with Podcasts or Vodcasts until watching this video. There are many great benefits for using Podcasts in the classroom:

1. It is an effective way of interacting with students inside and outside the classroom.
2. It can offer distance learning opportunities for absent students.
3. It promotes creativity and learning.  Parents can see and hear what their children are doing at school.

I appreciate how Podcasts are accessible for students anytime and anywhere. For example, if a student misses school, he or she can download the class material to an MP3, iPod, iTouch, iPhone, iPad, and still be able to keep up with the class while out sick.

Judy Scharf Podcast Collection

This is a helpful site for those who may not be familiar with Podcasts.  Judy Scharf gives a great explanation of Podcasts, as well as step by step instructions on creating a Podcast and uploading it to iTunes. I have learned a lot by browsing on her website. I am more informed about Podcasts which will be beneficial when I begin recording my own Podcasts.  I strongly encourage anyone who is unfamiliar with Podcasts to check out this website.

Saturday, September 15, 2012

Blog Post #3

What Is Peer Editing?

Peer editing is when you work with someone your own age to help improve, revise, and edit his or her writing. There are three important steps to follow while peer editing, which can be found in What is Peer Editing? and Peer Edit Perfection Tutorial. Step 1 start off with a compliment. For instance, you could say I really liked how you stayed on topic or I really enjoyed your choice of words. When evaluating a peer, never start off in a hostile manner. You’re evaluating a peer, evaluate them like you would want to be evaluated. Step 2 give suggestions. By this, give your peer some ideas on how he or she can improve his or her writing. Some ideas include word choice, using detail, sentence structure, topic etc... Give your peer ways on how to improve not how poorly they did. Step 3 corrections. Check for any given mistakes in your peers writing. Look for punctuation, grammar, sentences, and most defiantly look for spelling errors. There is also a video made by a group of 4th and 5th graders on the Top 10 Mistakes Made By Peers. I found this video to be very entertaining as well as informational on how not to be a “Picky Patty.” It is defiantly a must see for students and future educators on the matter of peer editing.

I have learned a lot from the videos and tutorial on peer editing. I have learned to follow the three important steps when peer editing. These include compliment, suggestions, and corrections. I must be positive and be specific on what my peer should correct in his or her writing. I certainly do not want to come off as any of the top 10 mistakes made by peers in the short video made by the students. I highly recommend the following videos and tutorial to anyone who may not be aware of what peer editing may be.

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Stephanie Tyler (Fall 2011) Adaptive Technologies

A. Technology in Special Education


In this video, Mrs. Cook, a teacher in a vocational program; informs others on how she uses the use of technology in her classroom. Mrs. Cook begins by stating each child’s aliment whether he or she is vocal or no vocal or may have physical limitations. Some students have trouble writing but once given an iPad or a computer they can write. Technology makes things a lot easier for students who have a difficulty at doing certain things. It was amazing to see how Mrs. Cook could interact with her students all by the use of technology and how happy her students were when they were able to communicate back with her. It was very touching to watch!

Technology is a great necessity for students with special needs. Students who have trouble writing or speaking can use an iPad and communicate much more with their teacher. I think technology has helped improve the way special education use to be taught in many ways. In the video, a student used to spell out words with his finger on an alphabet mat that slid all over the place. However, when he was given a computer he could spell things out a lot easier. I would love to use technology in my future classroom for students of special needs. They are just like me and you, except for the fact they may not be able to write or speak clearly. So, why not give them the great technology that we have?



B. Education Apps


There are so many great education apps to choose from in the apple store. I looked for a decent education app that was free; let’s face it who doesn’t like FREE?? One app in particular that I found that I like to use in my classroom for a student of special needs was Math Drills Lite. This app helps students with addition, subtraction, multiplication and division problems. You can either practice or review certain math equations. I actually downloaded this app to my iPhone to see how it worked. I must say this app was pretty cool and I enjoyed playing it. I think students who have trouble with math problems will like this app. I encourage parents, teachers, and students to download the app and give it a try.

Here is a link to the app :Math Skills Lite app

Vicki Davis: Harness Your Students Digital Smarts


Vicki Davis is an educator, in Camilla, Georgia, who uses every kind of technology to connect her students to the world. She incorporates the use of technology in her classroom so students can learn, create, and connect with other students in the world. Students in Mrs. Davis’s class learn how to use new software, learn how to learn, as well as learning how to blog effectively.

I would like to use all sorts of technology in my future my classroom as Mrs. Davis did in hers. I like to use blogging and any other type of source that can be educational for my students. I believe students would want to learn more if technology were in the classroom. Plus, technology can help students who are of special needs connect with their teacher more as well as their classmates.

You can find more about Mrs. Davis on her blog:Blogspot:coolcatteacher and watch her video : Vicki Davis: Harness Your Students Digital Smarts.

Sunday, September 9, 2012

Blog Post #2


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Did You Know? 3.0 A John Strange 2012 Version

The following videos Did you know? 3.0 -A John Strange 2012 Version and Did you know 3.0? by Karl Fisch and Scott McLeod both gave factual information on how fast technology is changing and how technology will change our future. For instance, in Did you know? 3.0 31 billion searches are made on Google every month. That’s roughly 372 billion Google searches a year. I find that very interesting, since I happen to use Google for most of my internet searches. Also in the video, it mentions how new technological information doubles every two years. Therefore, students pursuing a career in technology half of what they learned in their first year of study will be outdated by their third year of study.

Just watching these videos has made me want to know more about the rapid rate of new technology and how I can use it towards success. One thing that I felt was a disappointment was how low the United States was ranked compared to other countries like India and Bermuda. India has the highest IQ compared to the entire U.S. population and the English language is now becoming the first spoken language in many countries. It makes you wonder what lies ahead in the future for the United States.

Mr. Winkle Wakes

Mr. Winkle Wakes is a short-animated video by Matthew Neddleman. Mr. Winkle, who has been asleep for over 100 years, finally awakes from his slumber. Mr. Winkle explores a tall, building with new technology that he never seen before. All of the new technology Mr. Winkle discovers makes him slightly ill, so he goes and checks into a hospital. There he ends up finding the same new technology but instead of computers printing off pictures or video chatting with a friend, this technology was helping patients with certain elements; such as breathing. Mr.Winkle left the hospital and went for a walk where he came across a school. He entered the school that he was once accustomed too. Inside he hears teachers giving lectures and students taking notes. In the very back of a classroom, he finds one of those computers he saw in the building and hospital. This computer was dusty and not being used at all. Mr.Winkle was much more comfortable with how he remembered school over a 100 years ago than what he discovered a 100 years later.

I thoroughly enjoyed watching this video. I’m very thankful to have lived in a generation where technology, such as computers, has been in the classroom. I think technology is such a great tool to use especially in a classroom setting because it can be so helpful not only for teachers but for students as well. Speaking of technology, I wish the Smart Board was created while I was still in grade school. I haven’t got to use a Smart Board yet, but I’m pretty excited to begin using one. Overall, this video has taught me how some generations may not like the fact of new technology and may want to stick to their old ways. However, some of these older generations are going to have to learn and be accustomed to some of the new technology that’s being created today in order to know about new technology tomorrow.

Sir Ken Robinson: The Importance of Creativity

Ken Robinson says, “Schools kill creativity.” By this, Ken means that our school systems try to avoid the use of creativity in other subjects like dance, music, or art. Schools have set up these guidelines that teachers must follow in order for students to succeed. Another quote made by Ken,”If you’re not prepared to be wrong, you’ll never come up with anything original.” I couldn’t agree more with this quote! I think some students are fearful of being wrong because of these standards that have been created by our system. If we don’t encourage students that it is ok to be wrong then what does the future hold for these students? No one on this earth is perfect. We each have our strengths and weaknesses that make each and every one of us unique. In order for us to achieve greatness, we must encourage each other and learn from each other.

Ken Robinson’s video was quite entertaining as well as educational on what the future beholds for children in our education system. Ken mentions in the video, “Creativity is just as important as literacy.” If we leave out creativity in our school systems, how will students be able to express themselves? One example that Ken gave on the importance of student creativity was the story about a six year old girl and her drawing of God. I thought it was amazing how a child so young was able to create something that she truly believed in and was so passionate about. When her teacher asked what she was drawing, the young girl’s response “A drawing of God.” The teacher then replied, “How do you know what God looks like? No one has actually seen him before?!?” The young girl responded, “They will in a minute!” If the teacher never let the young girl express what she believed in her drawing, then the young girl would have never been able to show her creative side since she wasn’t too fond in her other school subjects.

Think about the FUTURE- Think about Glass

Think about the Future-Think about Glass YouTube video was certainly an outlook of what the future might be like. In the very beginning of this video, a girl jumps out of bed and begins to pick out an outfit for school through the touch of her finger onto a glass screen. Throughout the video everything is mainly composed of a touch screen. For instance, in one scene, children gather around a touch screen table and begin to pick out different shades of color all within a touch of their hand.

This video makes you wonder if future technology will one day be all through your finger tips. Cars that were made twenty plus years ago are no longer the same as cars made today. Some of the SUVs and cars made today have touch screens inside. Where drivers and passengers in the car can pick and choose which radio station they like to listen to or change the temperature inside their car all by touch screen or in some cases voice command.

The following videos I have watched above were very interesting and gave me a great perspective about the future of technology. Some of these videos were entertaining while some gave informative information about the future of education in the classroom. Overall, I have enjoyed watching and learning from these videos and can’t wait to see how future technology evolves.