End of Semester Reflection

This semester I have learned a lot not only about technology, but how to use it as a teacher, how children of today learn, and I have also changed my view on technology in the classroom if ever so slightly.

First of all, as a teacher I want to be able to use technology in order to make my life easier, more organized and efficient. Secondly, I want to use it to be a better teacher, to be on the same level as my students and to help inspire them to take advantage of the resources out there in order to become more successful.

At the beginning of the semester, I felt a little overwhelmed at the amount of stuff that is out there! I mean, I couldn't possibly figure it all out and know exactly what I need for which aspect of my life. But then, I realized that I don't need to know it all. If I find something I like and that would be useful to me, then I'll use it until something better comes along (and it probably will). I need to be open to change as far as technology goes because it is ever changing.

Children today are becoming more and more adept at learning technology and the rest of us are struggling just to keep up. They say that children pick up new languages easier than adults do and I think the same goes for learning technology. It's more natural for some than others. Children today have a much shorter attention span which can be attributed to technology and the instant gratification it brings. ADD is on the rise and a lot of that is because we are creating a world where being still and quiet and not having something fed to us continually is not an option. You have to actively seek quiet time; schedule it in. This is the world we will be teaching in. We could try to change it because we don't agree with it, but the more likely thing that will have to happen is to adapt to it and do the best we can for our students.

I think that this class has taught me that though I am not completely gung ho for anything and everything digital, I can balance technology in my teaching and help my students to understand the importance of it in their lives and also to help them familiarize themselves with some of the awesome things that are out there. I really don't know what I'll do without a SMARTBoard! I'll have to go back to the time B.S.B (Before SmartBoard).

This is what I wrote in my NETS assignment at the beginning of the semester:

The NETS I am choosing to focus on this semester is #2: Design and Develop Digital-Age Learning Experiences and Assessments

Teachers design, develop, and evaluate authentic learning experiences and assessment incorporating contemporary tools and resources to maximize content learning in context and to develop the knowledge, skills, and attitudes identified in the NETS•S.

Teachers:
a. design or adapt relevant learning experiences that incorporate digital tools and resources to promote student learning and creativity.

b. develop technology-enriched learning environments that enable all students to pursue their individual curiosities and become active participants in setting their own educational goals, managing their own learning, and assessing their own progress.

c. customize and personalize learning activities to address students' diverse learning styles, working strategies, and abilities using digital tools and resources.

d. provide students with multiple and varied formative and summative assessments aligned with content and technology standards and use resulting data to inform learning and teaching.

Ways I will work on this this semester is,

1) through adapting my learning about teaching to include technology. I can already see this happening in other classes and getting ideas about how to do this or that with technology.

2) to think about how I can use technology to reach students with different learning styles and abilities. Technology can help teach to every multiple intelligence from musical to kinesthetic and I want to be able to possess the knowledge to do that.

3) familiarize myself with the wide span of technology available to me as a teacher. The more I learn about the options out there, the more I realize I don't know! The possibilities are endless, but the more I learn about what is out there, the more I can pick and choose what will be best for my teaching style.

First, I have definitely adapted my teaching style to include technology, mostly through use of the SMARTBoard. Just about all of my projects for other classes this semester involved the use of the SMARTBoard and as I said earlier, it would take a lot to adapt back to not using it.

Second, I think that I have accomplished the task of using technology to reach different learning styles of students. The beauty of the SMARTBoard is that it can incorporate every single muliple-intelligence and I have learned how to do that effectively.

The one thing I have done, but haven't quite mastered is using technology to provide formative and summative assessment. It's one of those things that I feel isn't super critical in the learning process. Formative assessment is the easier of the two to incorporate, but summative, not so much.

Overall, I feel that my students are going to have a good digital learning experience in my classroom. I think that I feel comfortable enough with classroom technology to be able to have a tech-friendly place to learn and grow. I'm excited to see what my students come up with in regards to technology and I'm also excited to see what I can teach them through it.

Reflection #12

What?

I just wanted to take the time to talk about some music listening websites that I have encountered: Pandora and Grooveshark. It's so great that someone out there figured out what I like to call the poor man's ipod. These sites have a mind of their own that strangely enough can access your brain and figure out what kind of music you like. Yes, you are tied down to listening only when you have internet connection, but I don't want to be one of the constipods out there who are continually connected to their music library anyway.

So What?

So, I'm poor and I want an ipod too, but I just can't bring myself to buy one. There are ways to get things for free and I'm satisfied with Grooveshark. I began by listening to Pandora, but after an intense month of studying (the times I listen most) I used up all 40 of my listening hours with about 10 days in the month to spare. So switch to Grooveshark I did! And I like it better. It allows you to listen to any song, anytime, over and over again unlike Pandora. It suggests music for you better than Pandora ever did.

Now What?

I think Pandora was the first website to come up with this concept (correct me if I'm wrong), but it just comes to show that technology just improves upon itself as time goes on. We are so quick to jump on whatever new stuff is out there, but if you just have a little patience and do some research, you can find something that you are just as happy with and you have a couple extra bucks in your pocket to spend on your garden gnome collection. Do I still want an ipod? You betcha, but maybe that'll have to wait until I'm a rich teacher. . .

Reflection #11

What?

I recently read this quote:

"Do not confine your children to your own learning, for they were born in another time." -Chinese Proverb

I know that sometimes I think that because I learned a certain way and it worked for me that it must be the best way to learn. I recognize in myself that sometimes I don't understand why someone can't learn something that came so easily to me.

So What?

When the time comes for me to start teaching children from a different generation and I can't figure out why they can't just get it, I need to think about this proverb. We are from different times and the world around us shapes us more than we know. Most likely, the children I teach will be digital natives; they will think differently and will have a bent towards technology.

Now What?

I have to make a conscious effort to get to know the kids I will be teaching - know what they are surrounded by day to day, how much of their time is spent with technology, how they can use technology as a creative outlet and even know how they respond to new information.

Reflection #10

What?

I just got a nanny job for the summer and I thought it would be cool to have the kids help me with a journal of our summer adventures. Since I am now familiar with the blogging process (thanks to Tech in Ed.!) I thought doing a blog would be the best way to go!

So What?

One of the kids I am nannying is 5 and will be going to kindergarten this fall. I think it would be a valuable experience for him to already know about blogs and communication through the internet as he enters school for the first time. He can help me pick out the layout and also dictate what he wants to say in the blog. This goes for his sister too who will be going into 2nd grade. I can have them each pick a font color and the girl's story will be in her color, the boy's in his. We can post pictures and videos of things we do and it will help the parents feel like they are not missing out on their children's activities. I know the father works a lot and this will be great for him to see.

Now What?

Well, now I just need to run it by their parents. I think that parents would be open to this because not only is it great for the kids, but they can share their adventures with other family members and friends and it is also a great way to look back over the years on their favorite summer with their nanny, Bethany! It will be a good creative outlet for the kids and a good rainy day activity.

Assignment #4

The project I am doing is centered around an ongoing class project throughout the year called Geobears. We will send out teddy bears with travelers and instruct them to pass them on to others. As information comes back, we will track the geobears and learn about other countries and cultures. The technologies I decided to use in my project are a class blog, the SMART Board and Google Earth. I am actually planning on doing this project when I am a teacher and am very excited about it!

The features in the technology I will be using are:

Google Earth: This program is fairly easy to use, but there were a few things I had to familiarize myself with and I'm still not very proficient at it.

• different features on the map (roads, places of interest, street view)


• record a tour - allows you to show "flight" from one place to another and record it


• zoom - in and out


• adding placemark - shows where the school is, marks where Geobear has been to
  

SMART Board: The SMART Board will be used as a base to store all our information about the Geobears. There will be a link to our blog, a link to Google Earth and also maps for each bear and their journey as we track it. The class can also look up information on the internet about the places Geobear travels.

I have learned so much about the SMART Board. One of the most helpful things I have learned is how to make a link to a website, but also how to paperclip things to the presentation. I was able to paperclip Google Earth to it so that I don't have to exit out of the presentation to get to it. This would be incredibly helpful and time saving.

Another thing I learned was how to group objects together. Sometimes I would have several objects together, but would have to move them to another page or place on the page. It was extremely painstaking to have to move each individual object and get them back in line. So what you do is hold down ctrl, select all objects you want together and then hit g to group them all together to make one object. It's very easy to ungroup them as well. Other features I will use are:

• links


• paperclip


• gallery


• toolbar
• object transparency
• grouping tool
• lock/unlock objects

Issues:

Some issues I encountered with this project were that I wasn't sure if I should do a website or a blog for the project. I actually made a whole website for it and decided to just make it simple and do a blog instead. The issues with the website were that I didn't know if I should have a special website for the project in addition to the classroom site or just combine them. The nature of the project involves strangers from all over the world, so I didn't feel comfortable having all this information available to just anyone. The website was absolutely wonderful, but it was just too complicated for what I wanted to use it for. The blog just felt safer to me mostly because I'm familiar with it and can screen comments from people.

Another issue was finding a map that I could use on the SMARTBoard to track the geobears. Ideally, I would have liked there to be a globe that you can spin AND track travels on. I guess there's not an app for that. :( That inspired me to use Google Earth just to show students what the actual places are like (I LOVE Google Earth and could spend hours just exploring the world and would encourage my students to as well). On that program you can tag places with an icon of choice and you can also record a journey from tag to tag.

What this means to me:

This project is something that I have wanted to do with a classroom for a long time, so as a teacher it will mean a lot to me! I love geography, maps, globes, cultures and travel and want to inspire my students to as well. I think this is the perfect way for them to "see" the world! I will probably change the project to make it simpler or more complicated depending on what grade I end up teaching. A lot of it can be student created and led. All I have to do is be the administrator of the blog and I can let the students do the rest!

NETS for Teachers:

1. Facilitate and Inspire Student Learning and Creativity - As a teacher, I will be using my knowledge of geography to facilitate learning by the use of technology. I will be encouraging student creativity by having them write blogs and control the smartboard and Google Earth. I will be promoting student reflection by getting them to think about the places we are learning about and through researching places that Geobear is traveling to.

2. Design and Develop Digital-Age Learning Experiences and Assessments - As a teacher, I will use technology to help develop knowledge and skills by deeply incorporating several types of technology into the project. These technologies can be used as a class or individually by the student. They can be used in direct instruction by the teacher or by exploration by the student. The project will be very personalized as students name their bears and make presentations involving them and track them.

3. Model Digital-Age Work and Learning - I will be modeling technology throughout the project, demonstrating it to students so that they can learn to use it themselves. I will collaborate with students and parents for new ideas in how to best use the technology.

NETS for Students:

1. Creativity and Innovation - Students will use technology to show innovation in learning and applying what they are learning through Google Earth and SmartBoard presentations. Students can use the tracking of the geobears to show trends in travel. Students will think about and predict how the geobears will get back to the school on time.

2. Communication and Collaboration - Students will use technology to communicate ideas. The nature of the project is to develop global awareness and learn about other cultures through technology. Students will be able to show what they have learned in the project by presenting it to others.

3. Research and Information Fluency - Students will use research through digital tools gathering information from a variety of sources: Google Earth, the internet, maps, books, and videos.

Extra info about the project (in case you want to know!):

We will have 5 different geobears at the beginning of the year that we will outfit with backpacks that include a luggage tag with our school name and address, self-stamped and addressed postcards, a picture of our class, the blog URL and instructions for travelers. The bears will be sent with people we know who are traveling somewhere in the country or world. That traveler will pass the bear onto another traveler they meet and each traveler will send back a postcard or log onto the blog to leave us a message/ photos, etc. As the class gets information back, they log it and map out where the Geobear is on the SMARTBoard.

As we get information back about the travelers, we will get onto Google Earth to see where they are in the world. This program is amazing and we can "fly" from our classroom to where Geobear is at the click of a button! At the end of the year we can record the Geobears' trip on Google Earth to show the sequence of travel they have done. I would love to just do one bear since there will be so much more work with 5, but the reality is that many bears never return or don't send back any postcards, so we will track all 5.

Ideally, there will be lots of communication between the travelers and the class - the more, the better - so that we can learn as much as we can through this project. Hopefully, travelers will follow instructions and not steal the bears. There will be instructions to get the bears back by the end of the school year and hopefully this will happen as well!

Week #14 Entry

The Future of Technology and Education

Most of the information I learned talked about how classrooms in the future are going to be all but centered around technology.

One article I read was talking about a 5th grade classroom in which every student had a PDA that they would use in class everyday and this was in 2003! This article said that handheld devices would be very beneficial in the classroom and I can't help but think about how much more advanced they are these days with things like the iPads coming out. The article suggested using these devices for students who are bad spellers solely because they have bad handwriting. If they can use a computer their spelling would show to be much better because they have gotten over the handwriting obstacle.

A blog I read listed 30 trends that shape the e-learning environment - something that many are going towards to meet their educational requirements. Among the 30 trends were video (flip cameras, mobile devices), social learning (facebook, wikis), social sharing (dilicious, stumbleupon, diigo), and one that I thought was interesting: short attention spans.

Another blog talks about how Web 2.0 is the future of education. The author goes as far as to say it "will culturally, socially, intellectually, and politically have a greater impact than the advent of the printing press." At least I am aware of it and have used it now! I feel so much more with it. The author states that Web 2.0 is creating a publishing revolution that gives everyone the opportunity to publish something on the internet through blogs, wikis, and social networks. It helps to inspire creativity for students and makes it even more appealing because it involves technology.

From my research, I have found that the general outlook on technology in education is positive and that people want to use technology to make the learning experience more meaningful and creative.

Reflection #9

What? The new iPad Tablet. Could be awesome for schools. My teacher-roommate and I were discussing this the other day and how the iPad could revolutionize schools in the textbook/paperwork area.

So What? Imagine if all your textbooks were on your iPad. No more lugging books around, you still have the ability to highlight pages. If you could somehow just upload all the worksheets students need right onto their individual iPads, you wouldn't have to hand out papers or collect them. I don't even know if all these things are possible yet, but I think they COULD be! I also know it's a glorified laptop and only does 80% of what a laptop can, but the technology is there and hopefully it will just impove as time goes on.

Now What? The issue as always is cost, but it seems that once you buy them, you've got em. You wouldn't have to spend any more money on textbooks. Technology is always expensive when it first comes out and all the kinks haven't been smoothed out, but I say wait a couple years, give them suggestions for the education model and maybe one day we will see them in the classroom at every desk.