3 Key Concepts
The first concept I thought was interesting was how they compared podcasts to TiVo. It's all about convenience. Podcasts are extremely convenient because they can be listened to at a later time. I like the idea of them being transferred to other devices such as MP3 players and ipods. I think 90% of students have at least one of these devices. It's so much easier for them to listen to things on their own electronic devices rather than worrying if they have a computer at home. Kids don't have to be sitting around in front of the computer in one place, they can take the podcasts wherever they go.
The next concept I thought was interesting was how colleges and universities are supplying kids with ipods for access to podcasts. That is a generous idea! I would have loved to have an ipod given to me for educational purposes. I could have listened to lectures as well as read them. It reinforces learning. I always wonder what the future holds in terms of technology. I really see more and more colleges doing this. I really think it will be beneficial for incoming students.
Lastly I like the idea of how podcasts allow student collaboration. I like the idea of the student producers. This is reinforcing the learning because the students are re-teaching what they just learned. This is giving them a chance to be responsible and also build upon the knowledge they just learned.
I didn't know much about podcasts until this class. Reading this article also explained many great reasons to use them in the classroom. I plan on incorporating this into my curriculum.
Tuesday, July 14, 2009
Sunday, July 12, 2009
Vodcasting Ideas
1. For Physical Education I was thinking of having my students make a vodcast and title it "My Personal Trainer." I would have kids choose 5-6 weight lifting exercises and have them describe the proper technique in which to lift properly. They would then share each others vodcast and perform the exercises as directed by their peers.
2. For Physical Education I was also thinking of having the students make a vodcast on the importance of stretching and provide descriptions of different stretches, explaining the stretch and why it's important.
3. For health class I was thinking of having the students make a vodcast as a summary of what they learned about a lesson. Maybe dealing with the importance of diet and exercise to avoid risks of cardiovascular diseases.
2. For Physical Education I was also thinking of having the students make a vodcast on the importance of stretching and provide descriptions of different stretches, explaining the stretch and why it's important.
3. For health class I was thinking of having the students make a vodcast as a summary of what they learned about a lesson. Maybe dealing with the importance of diet and exercise to avoid risks of cardiovascular diseases.
Tuesday, July 7, 2009
21st Century Skills
I think my school is on their way to fostering ideas of 21st Century skills. However, I think they focus on certain subjects more than others. For example, math and english classes tend to get all of the "new" technologies" in their classrooms. They are the classes who have the white boards. We also have something called CFF (classrooms for the the future). I honestly couldn't really explain exactly what it is. All I know about it is that there is a lot of technology ideas involved, but only one person in our building in charge. 21st century skills are extremely important because it's what is going to keep you up to date with this ever changing society.
There are many subject areas that have time to collaborate and team teach with each other. We are given 20 minutes of "Professional Development" in the mornings. Once every 2 weeks my department meets for those 20 minutes to discuss issues. What can be done in 20 minutes? Hardly anything. I think some schools lose sight of the time teachers need to prepare for good lessons. We are so worried about so many other things, that the creativeness in lesson planning loses focus. We should be given more time to collaborate with other teachers and express ideas. On the flip side there are also a lot of teachers who do not get along, and have a hard time accepting new ideas from other people. Some are stuck in their ways and refuse to work together as a team. But you have that everywhere.
Another major issue in achieving the ultimate environment encompassing 21st century skills is MONEY. How can you achieve these goals with the lack of technological resources? I am sure there are many schools who face these issues. It's hard to keep up with the times when you don't have the resources.
College educations spend numerous time educating students on how to use technology, especially in the classroom, however, they lose sight of the fact that their visions include a sense of the perfect world in which every student has a computer, and teachers have all the time in the world to collaborate and formulate these "ideal" lessons. I understand the importance of these courses, but unfortunately some of these ideas get washed away because schools we teach in may not have the resources.
There are many subject areas that have time to collaborate and team teach with each other. We are given 20 minutes of "Professional Development" in the mornings. Once every 2 weeks my department meets for those 20 minutes to discuss issues. What can be done in 20 minutes? Hardly anything. I think some schools lose sight of the time teachers need to prepare for good lessons. We are so worried about so many other things, that the creativeness in lesson planning loses focus. We should be given more time to collaborate with other teachers and express ideas. On the flip side there are also a lot of teachers who do not get along, and have a hard time accepting new ideas from other people. Some are stuck in their ways and refuse to work together as a team. But you have that everywhere.
Another major issue in achieving the ultimate environment encompassing 21st century skills is MONEY. How can you achieve these goals with the lack of technological resources? I am sure there are many schools who face these issues. It's hard to keep up with the times when you don't have the resources.
College educations spend numerous time educating students on how to use technology, especially in the classroom, however, they lose sight of the fact that their visions include a sense of the perfect world in which every student has a computer, and teachers have all the time in the world to collaborate and formulate these "ideal" lessons. I understand the importance of these courses, but unfortunately some of these ideas get washed away because schools we teach in may not have the resources.
Wednesday, July 1, 2009
IWB
What three key concepts or ideas did you learn?
I found this article interesting. I thought there were many good points raised in this article.
1. The IWB does not naturally encourage an increase in learner autonomy: I agree with this statement. I think the IWB is a great tool, however it allows for only a few students to be using it at once. I also think that in the beginning, the first time kids see it, a teacher will have maximum attention of students. However, once the novelty has worn off you are back to kids zoning off etc. It's different if each student has a laptop or is working with a partner with a laptop. It's more engaging. With the whiteboard you can only have a certain amount of students involved at once. I have a traditional white erase board in my room and find it easier to have many students up at once with different color markers.
2. The use of presentational software such as PowerPoint is common in the early stages of IWB: I don't think there is anything wrong with that. My opinion is that the IWB is just a different method of presenting information. Also allowing for many other presentation tools to be incorporated. As with the idea of researching things on the Internet being so quick and easy, you can't forget about the traditional way of research which comes from reading through books and journals. I think the same thing goes for presenting information. There are so many ways to present, it's just a matter of finding the best method to get across to your students.
3. A bright, colorful, dynamic device at the focus of the classroom provides opportunities for greater attention levels and more sustained engagement: As I mentioned earlier, I think once the novelty has worn off you lose a little bit of that excitement. I'm sure people were excited once the erasable white boards came into existence. Now they're old news. The IWB is just the first model of more to come. And things in the future will be bigger and better. That's just the way things go in society.
Do interactive communication tools lead to interactive learning? Why or why not?
I think they obviously help with interactive learning. However, I don't think they are the only way to engage your students in a lesson. I can think of numerous hands-on activities that I do in my health class that do not incorporate technology at all. Whether it be them moving around the room to different posters, or coloring and making posters. I sometimes find that with activities that don't incorporate technology I have better participation. I have had many instances where my kids are using the laptops and they aren't doing the assignment, they're searching the Internet, wanting to download music, asking if they can listen to their ipods, etc. It's like the laptops aren't enough for them, they want that and more. I do however believe that it can lead to interactive learning if there is enough to go around for all students. Obviously it's impossible to have a white board for every student. But there are other methods out there to incorporate more students at one time.
How can educators be sure to use interactive communication tools to their best potential? List and describe 3 ways.
1. Taking graduate classes such as this one to further their education on the new tools that are available.
2. Teacher Inservice: Schools should provide inservice days dedicated solely on integrating tools into the classroom. My school does this sporadically through the year. We get a new laptop every 3 years, so we have a technology training when we get the new ones. They show us the basics at first and then throughout the year there are trainings for different programs such as garage band, making videos, i movies, etc.
3. Collaborating with colleagues: I think discussing ideas with colleagues is a great way of transferring information and ideas. You can also put together sample lesson plan ideas and run through them with each other in order to get comfortable with the methods.
I found this article interesting. I thought there were many good points raised in this article.
1. The IWB does not naturally encourage an increase in learner autonomy: I agree with this statement. I think the IWB is a great tool, however it allows for only a few students to be using it at once. I also think that in the beginning, the first time kids see it, a teacher will have maximum attention of students. However, once the novelty has worn off you are back to kids zoning off etc. It's different if each student has a laptop or is working with a partner with a laptop. It's more engaging. With the whiteboard you can only have a certain amount of students involved at once. I have a traditional white erase board in my room and find it easier to have many students up at once with different color markers.
2. The use of presentational software such as PowerPoint is common in the early stages of IWB: I don't think there is anything wrong with that. My opinion is that the IWB is just a different method of presenting information. Also allowing for many other presentation tools to be incorporated. As with the idea of researching things on the Internet being so quick and easy, you can't forget about the traditional way of research which comes from reading through books and journals. I think the same thing goes for presenting information. There are so many ways to present, it's just a matter of finding the best method to get across to your students.
3. A bright, colorful, dynamic device at the focus of the classroom provides opportunities for greater attention levels and more sustained engagement: As I mentioned earlier, I think once the novelty has worn off you lose a little bit of that excitement. I'm sure people were excited once the erasable white boards came into existence. Now they're old news. The IWB is just the first model of more to come. And things in the future will be bigger and better. That's just the way things go in society.
Do interactive communication tools lead to interactive learning? Why or why not?
I think they obviously help with interactive learning. However, I don't think they are the only way to engage your students in a lesson. I can think of numerous hands-on activities that I do in my health class that do not incorporate technology at all. Whether it be them moving around the room to different posters, or coloring and making posters. I sometimes find that with activities that don't incorporate technology I have better participation. I have had many instances where my kids are using the laptops and they aren't doing the assignment, they're searching the Internet, wanting to download music, asking if they can listen to their ipods, etc. It's like the laptops aren't enough for them, they want that and more. I do however believe that it can lead to interactive learning if there is enough to go around for all students. Obviously it's impossible to have a white board for every student. But there are other methods out there to incorporate more students at one time.
How can educators be sure to use interactive communication tools to their best potential? List and describe 3 ways.
1. Taking graduate classes such as this one to further their education on the new tools that are available.
2. Teacher Inservice: Schools should provide inservice days dedicated solely on integrating tools into the classroom. My school does this sporadically through the year. We get a new laptop every 3 years, so we have a technology training when we get the new ones. They show us the basics at first and then throughout the year there are trainings for different programs such as garage band, making videos, i movies, etc.
3. Collaborating with colleagues: I think discussing ideas with colleagues is a great way of transferring information and ideas. You can also put together sample lesson plan ideas and run through them with each other in order to get comfortable with the methods.
Dewey
1. Mature educating the immature: Everyone has a story. People are constantly influencing younger people because of their experiences. This is how society is. We learn from our elder. Everything is passed down. It's interesting to think about what makes up society. This goes back way back, it's not something recent.
2. Communication is educative: We as humans learn through experiences and people we come into contact with. It's not necessarily just learning in a school setting. I would say that the majority of things are learned by listening to others experiences. As educators we are the facilitators of communication. Without communication there is nothing.
3. There needs to be a balance of formal and informal education: Obviously school is important in educating the youth of our future for business opportunities. However without informal education there would be no successful formal education. Informal education is the basis for formal education. Growing up you learned many things from your parents and friends outside of school. This is the basic human contact, which is something that is not necessarily taught in schools. You learn this prior to going to school. It's your base and it continues to grow with every person you come into contact with. I believe educators have strong informal education backgrounds because we are responsible for communicating many things to our youth. As stated in class we are more than teachers teaching subjects, we teach manners, proper behaviors, we serve as mentors, we teach life skills. There are many aspects to teaching.
2. Communication is educative: We as humans learn through experiences and people we come into contact with. It's not necessarily just learning in a school setting. I would say that the majority of things are learned by listening to others experiences. As educators we are the facilitators of communication. Without communication there is nothing.
3. There needs to be a balance of formal and informal education: Obviously school is important in educating the youth of our future for business opportunities. However without informal education there would be no successful formal education. Informal education is the basis for formal education. Growing up you learned many things from your parents and friends outside of school. This is the basic human contact, which is something that is not necessarily taught in schools. You learn this prior to going to school. It's your base and it continues to grow with every person you come into contact with. I believe educators have strong informal education backgrounds because we are responsible for communicating many things to our youth. As stated in class we are more than teachers teaching subjects, we teach manners, proper behaviors, we serve as mentors, we teach life skills. There are many aspects to teaching.
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