Opinion of Technology

My thoughts about technology in the classroom have definitely changed since the beginning of the term. I came into this class thinking that technology meant, word documents, PowerPoint’s and research. I have learned that there is much more to technology then these three aspects. There are hundreds of programs that can be used to integrate technology into a classroom that are fun, easy and exciting. I have also learned that technology is an extremely important aspect of teaching and is necessary to integrate into a classroom for multiple reasons. It helps improve ways of teaching and allows for teachers to reach all types of students, shy, out going etc.
After learning about multiple programs that we could use as teachers, i feel as though i will definitely use storyjumper and voki's. I feel as though these sites are simple enough for Kindergarteners, but still allows for the children to express themselves in fun and creative ways. Print Page in IE

Students using technology

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Changes Needed In The Classroom

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Integrating Websites into the Classroom

       Learning the cities, states, and places around the world can be very difficult, so why not make it as fun as possible. There is a website called Geosense that allows for learning where places are on the globe to be fun and exciting. This site can be used for people ages 9 to 100.  The is essentially a challenging game of where is this place. You can play against yourself, or against other players. You can play on the US map, the world map, a European map, or you can scramble it and play on all maps. To begin a place on the map you have chosen will pop up on the top of the page, and you have 10 seconds to click on the map where you think that place it. After the 10 seconds are up, it shows your results. It shows where you thought the place was in blue, and where the place actually is in yellow.
        This site could be very helpful in a classroom. To begin with, a teacher could evaluate his/he students knowledge of places in the world/US by collecting all their scores after they play. This would allow for the teacher to know who is understanding what. This site could also be used for a competition. The entire class could play against each other (either individually or in small groups), and find out who knows the most about the map chosen to play on. Students would be able to use the site at home to study and to play against people in other cities, states, countries, etc. Print Page in IE

Project Based Learning

     I have learned that project based learning teaches students problem solving skills, energizes the curriculum, iinspires exploration, investigation, and an understanding of the world in which we live. After looking at six different projects, I felt as though, My Healthy Self Project (http://www.dukeschool.org/files/My%20Healthy%20Self%20Project.pdf) is a great example of all of these things. This project was my favorite because it was based on a topic that happens in every body's life whether we want it to or not. This project brought up many different subjects of health, such as food, exercise, body, and mind. I really enjoyed how the final step of the project brought all of these topics together in a way that fully involved the students. This project includes many of Bloom's higher-level thinking skills such as evaluation, synthesis, analysis, comprehension, and knowledge. I don't think that i would personally change any part of this project. I feel as though it covers all aspects of health, gives the students first hand information on these aspects and allows for the students to act on what they have learned in a fun and creative way.  Print Page in IE

Reading Response #2

        In today's society, working on a project independently is extremely common. Whether you are working as a journalist, an architect, or are a student you tend to work alone. As we learn from PennStates article about Teaching Collaborative Activities, "... students don't neccessarily know how to work in groups. After years of working independently and competitively, they may find cooperation and collaberation difficult concepts to accept in an accademic setting." This is why I believe that it is extremely important to use telecollaborative projects in schools. By doing so, students will be able to   work together and hear from each other while still expressing their own views. THis also allows for them to gain skills needed in the real world such as social skills and comunicative skills.
       Although telecollaborative projects allow for students to learn how to work with other people, it also allows for students to cover all six levels of Blooms Taxonomy of the Cognitive Domain. By working on telecollaborative projects, students cover, knowledge, comprehension, application, analysis, synthesis and evaluation.  As Bloom explains, "the major idea of taxonomy is that what educators want students to know... can be arranged in a hierarchy from less to more complex. The levels are understood to be successive, so that one level must be mastered before the next level can be reached." I personally find both Penn State and Bloom's findings important when looking at why telecollaborative projects are so important. With out collaberation skills and thre ability to master one level at a time, individuals are confined to small abmounts of information. Print Page in IE

Reading Response #1

Tech Past
   I have used computers since I was in first grade. In elementary school we would go to the computer lab once a week. We would play games and learn how to type. In middle school, computers were used a lot, but mainly at school. Assignments were mostly required to be typed but my school had very few computers on campus. As for high school, computers were used all the time, at home and occasionally at school. I went to a public school in Los Angeles that had very little money to spend on computers. There were two computer carts that carried 20 laptops each, that were checked out to classes if the teacher signed up for them.

Tech Present
    If I were to be running a kindergarten level class right now, I would definitely integrate technology into my class room. Although kindergartners are very young, anywhere from 4-6 I feel as though the use of technology is very important to implement at such a young age. I would personally use computers so that students would be able to become familiar with the keys on the keyboard and learn how to spell in an alternative method. As for other technology, i would use programs like Leap Frog that allow for students to  read along with help from the magic pen. All of this technology would also allow for the students to learn in a fun alternative way.

Tech Future
   I think that the hardest part about integrating technology into my class room will be to integrate real world experiences to my curriculum. Because the children are so young, it is hard to find a way to incorporate an article that is in the news or to have them look up information. Print Page in IE

Avatars in Education

Avatars are a fun way for students to communicate throughout class on a daily basis. Besides avatars being fun to design, avatars are a great way for shy students to be heard. Avatars allow for students to say what they want with out having to speak out loud.  Print Page in IE