Blogfolio

Blogfolio:

1. Intro Video- Upon entering IT 365 the first day, we were able to take part in an activity that met NETS-T standard II, which is to “design and develop digital-age learning experiences and assessments.” By filming each other on phones and uploading them to our new blogs, we were “incorporating contemporary tools.” This, in turn, promoted “student learning and creativity.” The entire exercise jumpstarted the class into the mass of new technologies it would soon become, and it automatically taught us, students, new ways to express ourselves online. This assignment taught me the effect a video can have. It is much more convincing and entertaining to watch a video of one physically saying the things he/she could just as easily have typed. The main problem I encountered with this introduction video was what exactly should be said to introduce myself. I found myself running out of things to say towards the end of the video, and this made me deeply consider what sorts of things people would be interested to know about me. I solved the problem by picturing my future class of second graders on their first day of school. What do they need to know about me? I will integrate the knowledge of the introduction video by answering this very question. It is important to give your class just enough information about yourself while not boring them, which is what this assignment ultimately taught me.
2. TED Videos- The TED videos watched in class could not better be summed up than by NETS-T standard V, which is to “engage in professional growth and leadership.” Every teacher we watched speak through TED offered nothing but advice and constructive criticisms to help out the modern teaching community. Not only does this assist in the “professional growth” of current and aspiring teachers, but it also exemplifies the “professional leadership” of those strong teachers that speak on TED. Every sub-standard listed in standard V compliments the extraordinary speakers we witnessed in class through TED (“participate in local and global learning communities,” “exhibit leadership,” “evaluate and reflect on current research,” and “contribute to the teaching profession”). Embarrassingly, the thing I learned from this assignment was simply that TED offered so much for teachers. I had briefly heard of the program, but had no idea that teacher speakers were featured on the talks as well. The only problem I encountered with TED is the speakers’ content. These speakers are entitled to their opinion, but that does not necessarily have to be accepted. That is not to say that I disagreed with any of the speakers we watched in class, simply that every speakers’ views are not going to align perfectly with mine. I simply solved this problem by considering whether or not the matters they spoke on should/would be implemented in my own classroom. If the answer was no, I respected their opinion the same but did not plan to use the knowledge in my classroom. I will integrate the knowledge of TED in my classroom as a teacher through regularly watching the teachers speak. So many different opinions are offered through this program that can be used to enrich the classroom and provide teachers with many dimensions to learn from.
3. Concept Map- The production of the concept map through Inspiration reflected the principles aligned in the NETS-T standard II. This standard seeks to “devlop technology-enriched learning environments that enable all students to pursue their individual curiosities and become active participants in setting their own educational goals.” This assignment forced us, students, to do just this. We were free to choose our own lesson plan (as long as it aligned with the Common Core principles) in order to explore our “individual curiosities.” By setting up this lesson plan through Inspiration, we developed “digital-age learning experiences” that ultimately produced our own educational goals for our future classrooms. The assignment was extremely beneficial in shaping our minds as teachers while simultaneously giving us the freedom to do so in our own way. This assignment taught me a lot about the physical implementation of the Common Core. Though I had heard of the initiative, I had never thought of how I planned to incorporate it into lesson plans. The concept map assignment threw me into the process and resulted in my learning exactly how to align lessons to the Common Core. The problem I encountered was the one that was expected: how to create a lesson plan for a second grade classroom that held up to the high aspirations of the Common Core. I solved this problem through dissecting the Common Core Standards and simplifying them in order for them to fit a second grade assignment. This knowledge will be integrated into my future teaching in the most obvious of ways, seeing as Common Core is something I will be working with nonstop. However, I will also utilize the Inspiration tool (or some other form of concept map) in order to organize my thoughts and lessons both visually and contextually.
4. DoNotTrackMe- Downloading the DoNotTrackMe download was a perfect reinforcement of NETS-T standard IV, which seeks to “promote and model digital citizenship and responsibility.” This assignment caused all of the students of IT 365 to become aware of how closely our Internet usage is monitored on certain websites. Prior of downloading the software, we were just informed that Google monitors our searches in order to better market us. In the same way, websites monitor what we do on their sites in order to better market us with the ads that are displayed on the pages. The activity clearly brought light to the fact that we need to partake in safe internet searching and research practices. The DoNotTrackMe download does just this by monitoring and blocking websites that are tracking your searching. It even offers the capability of seeing how many and which specific websites are being blocked. From this exercise I learned that nothing online is private. I was clueless to the fact that my Google searches are being monitored so the Google can better sell me off to other online companies. I am pleased to say that I encountered no problems with DoNotTrackMe and continue to use it. I have enjoyed seeing that some sites are being blocked and that I am doing something to prevent getting tracked. This experience is extremely beneficial to the world of teaching, where hundreds of young students will now be exposed to trackers. As a teacher, I would ask permission to get all of the students’ technological devices synced with the DoNotTrackMe so that they will not be marketed while in the learning setting.
5. Augmented Reality- The augmented reality app experience was one that exemplified NETS-T standard I perfectly. This standard is to “facilitate and inspire student learning and creativity” with a heavy emphasis on “virtual environments.” The beauty of the augmented reality apps is that they provide a virtual environment that allows anyone to obtain information about objects that are directly in front of them. The article we read even stated how you are able to scan objects that sit in front of you and learn information about them by clicking on tabs located on the app. In the version I downloaded, I was able to scan labels and take pictures of objects in order to learn their origin, price, scientific name, etc. The augmented reality apps do enhance students’ creativity because they give the kids the opportunity to learn independently. They also offer a great way to broaden technological skills by offering the virtual environment. This assignment spurred my thinking on the importance of a student’s independent learning. Kids are more likely to learn when they are allowed creative freedom and a hands-on interaction. The app itself, however, caused minor problems. It seems that the free version of the augmented reality app that I downloaded was not totally perfected. It was very difficult to focus in on an object and get the app to pick up its description. I solved this problem by downloading other augmented reality applications, but found similar glitches in each of these. The knowledge I obtained from this assignment, however, will be integrated into my teaching through the iPads. If students can master this application in the classroom, it will spur their curiosity to learn at home. They will be able to utilize the augmented reality app towards broadening their learning tools.
6. Voki- The creation of the Voki avatar directly depicted the NETS-T standard I, which is to “facilitate and inspire learning and creativity.” This standard focuses on both “face-to-face and virtual environments.” The Voki website allows for a virtual teacher to speak to the parent and student at the home environment. Not only does this provide the virtual environment that is so desired, it also “promotes student reflection using collaborative tools.” The student and parent alike are able to reflect on all that the student is doing in the classroom; they can also collaborate with the teacher by communicating via Voki. From Voki, I learned that the classroom experience does not have to end with the sound of the dismissal bell. Teachers can create a virtual environment that allows parents and students to connect with them. The Voki process ran very smoothly, the only encountered problem being the upload to the blog. This, however, was easily solved by inputting a link from the Voki website to the blog, rather than simply pasting the URL into the blog post. From this assignment, I take away the knowledge that it is vital to include parents in teaching. This website tangibly showed me a way to integrate parents into the classroom virtually. Especially with the implementation of the Common Core, this is such a resourceful tool to provide parents with the option of viewing all that their child completes in the classroom. It is an extremely objective source to offer.
7. Web 2.0 Sites- By exploring the web 2.0 sites as a class, we met standard III of the NETS-T in several ways. The first of these was by “collaborating with students, peers, parents, and community members using digital tools and resources to support students success and innovation.” As classmates, we were able to collaborate and discuss different modern technologies that could be beneficial for teaching. We were also able to learn ways to “communicate relevant information and ideas effectively to students, parents, and peers using a variety of digital-age media and formats.” We did this by discovering countless digital websites by which we could learn from and teach. And finally, we got to “model and facilitate effective use of current and emerging digital tools.” We modeled them by presenting each to the class, and we taught effective use by stating ways in which the sites could be used in a teacher’s setting. Exploring the web 2.0 sites has taught me that child friendly websites need to be explored in great detail before being presented to a class of second graders. A main problem that I (and the class) encountered was the efficiency of the websites. Some websites would not work at all, others were not compatible with the iPad. Regardless, I will integrate this knowledge into my further teaching by always having a backup plan. There are no guarantees that technologies will hold up in your time of need, so you must always come to your classroom equipped with backup plans.
8. Website- The website assignment met NETS-T standard IV, which is to
“promote and model digital citizenship and responsibility.” The first reason this standard applies to the given assignment is because the majority of the class created their website on the premises of online responsibility and digital citizenship. Secondly, we were taught throughout the creation process how to avoid copyright violations and illegal use of online information. Citing was necessary for every picture, paraphrase, and video in order to model proper use of how to safely use online information. Personally, I learned much about digital citizenship through this assignment. Prior to creating my own website, I was not aware that pictures demanded the same sort of citation that text does. Problems I encountered while creating the website were mainly graphic issues and the process of learning how to use the Google sites application. I solved the problems through exploration of the tool and asking peers how they solved such problems. Solving this simple problem broadened my knowledge of the organization of Google sites and can be applied to later projects. The age I end up teaching will influence how I integrate the information I learned from this website into my teaching. If teaching an older age group, I would absolutely create an assignment around each student making their own website. This would provide a hands-on way to walk students through the different aspects of digital citizenship and how to respect others’ information. If teaching a younger group of students, I would simply take teach the concept of digital responsibility on a more basic scale.
9. Movie- The Movie Maker project directly aligned with the NETS-T standard number I, which is to “facilitate and inspire student learning and creativity.” We were taught new concepts by creating a movie while still having free reign to expand creativity. In this way, the project sought to “promote, support, and model creative and innovative thinking and inventiveness.” From this assignment, I learned the difficulties in technology as I experienced technical problems. Saving and uploading is a process that can always go wrong, even if the two tasks are well practiced.  For a temporary fix, I e-mailed the file to myself, but was not able to get it uploaded to my blog. To avoid this problem in the future, I will save a file in several different forms and on several different devices. I will also remember the importance of carrying a USB drive with me at all times to avoid not having a place to save something.

This class has taught me countless ways to incorporate technology into the classroom. Prior to taking this course, I knew very little about what was to be expected of me as teacher technologically, and I was not the biggest supporter of using technology in class. I can now confidently say that I can incorporate the use of technology with the Common Core, use a SmartBoard, teach from the screen of an iPad (while spanning the room), and list several websites that can be used by second graders to interactively learn. I can also confidently say that I support the use of technology in the classroom. Reading countless articles on the pros and cons of technological classrooms has shown me that technology is absolutely beneficial in moderation, and I look forward to adjusting to this new age of technological learning.
My strong points of teaching lie in organization, presentation, order, and explanation. I am strong in these because I have witnessed my mom exemplify these teaching qualities throughout my lifetime, and these traits have inevitably been passed down. I think these qualities will be useful with technology when technology is used together, as a class. My weak points of teaching are relinquishing control of the classroom and allowing independent, hands-on learning. This will be tested as students have control of their own device, as classroom volume begins to escalate, and as small groups begin to form. I know this component is absolutely vital to a child’s learning, so I will minimize unruly student independence by implementing rules. I will need to indicate to students what is considered appropriate device behavior, but I will also need to adjust to my weaknesses by allowing students their set time to complete assignments on their devices independently.
I plan to integrate technology in the classroom in as many ways possible without it overshadowing the students’ ability to learn. What I mean by that is that I will use technology wherever it is applicable as long as time restraints, grading procedures, or inability to access a device do not inhibit students from learning.
I absolutely think that a SmartBoard will be vital, as well as at least one technological lesson a day. Students need to become exposed and familiar with the concept of diverse technologies. In regards to my thoughts on blogs, I think that they are an ideal tool for some classroom settings. As for this college course, the blog is the perfect medium from students to teacher. It allows for a quick transfer of information and one that is permanent once published. For younger age groups, however, I do not support the idea of a blog because of how it exposes a child. Some would say that children need their opinion heard online from a young age. Contrastingly, I still believe the Internet is a dangerous place for young students, because once they publish something it can follow them for a lifetime.

Movie Maker Movie

Could not get it to upload.

"Kids Can't Compute" and "A Conversation with a 'Bad' Teacher" Reflections

Mike Elgan makes the point that kids today have grown up in the era of computers, yet they know less about them then older generations. He says that it is the assumption that this generation can work a computer better than any other, but they were exposed to such ease in using technology that they did not take the time to figure out the anatomy of it. He gives his personal example of owning cryptic computers in which you had to learn and memorize how computers worked in order to use one. These days, a child can pick up an iPad and work it with ease; therefore, they have no reason to be curious about how it works. Elgan brings up a point in this article that I had not previously thought of. If none of the younger generation is learning how to build/work these technologies, who will continue to produce them? Another thought this article spurred was that of too much ease for these younger generations. The fact that they have grown up receiving everything from a click of the mouse will likely result in a more spoiled nature of children than those that got entertainment from playing outside. Not only will they not know how to work the technologies, they will become a victim of the technologies. John Owens, an employee of a magazine company at the time, one day decided to go back to school in order to become a teacher. Once in the school system, he quickly realized that this school in the South Bronx did not care to see students succeed. Their main priority was showing data and proving that the students were passing. Owens only lasted a year but posted about it online. The post went viral, he was set up with an interview with MSNBC, and he later wrote a book on his experiences. This article records a short interview taken with him on the experience. Though this school differs from many found in Mississippi or Alabama, I fear that schools here will soon be behaving like this with the implementation of the Common Core, which puts a heavy emphasis on test scores and retention rates. I fully agree with Owens in that teachers should also be teaching good behavior and good character, rather than solely forcing them to pass. I was most shocked by the little girl who approached the teacher with the rape story. Legally, and much less morally, I am not sure how she was able to ignore that. If society has gotten to the point that we are willing to ignore cries of help simply because we are trying to prove a point, that is not a world I am interested in teaching in.

"From Advisees" Reflection

The advisees listed several things that would be beneficial for a teacher to know how to utilize. The first of these was the ability to work an LMS. The doctorate students believe that each aspiring teacher should know how to create a class from one of these in order to benefit their students in the future. Secondly, they recommended extended knowledge of how to work a SmartBoard or other kind of electronic whiteboard. Aspiring teachers also need to consider how to handle the concept of BYOD in the classroom, seeing as it is an extremely new concept to teaching. Finally, they recommended being very familiar with the SAMR model. Most of the concepts and tools listed I was already very familiar with. However, the SAMR model interested me because I knew so little about it. Upon researching it, I found that it is simply a model to illustrate the progression of technological learning. It offers a framework for teachers to follow as they integrate technology in the classroom and line up with the guidelines. The four aspects of the model are substitution, augmentation, modification, and redefinition. One aspect of the advisees I particularly liked was how they distinguished between teachers being given tools and the actual use of the tools. Teachers are taught to manipulate all kinds of technological tools, yet few of them are relevant or useful to teaching. I agree with the advisees in that teachers should learn to use tools that align with their classroom age and learning content.

"EDUCAUSE Sprint 2013: Beyond MOOC's" Response

This article defines the transition most higher educational facilities are making to MOOC's, which are basically massive online classrooms. It is stated that these classrooms offer more versatility and room for change than do the old, lecture style classrooms of college campuses. The benefits of MOOC's are the immediate response of a professor, the ability to work on the class at any hour, and the incorporation of simulated aspects that can supplement learning. It also states that these MOOC's offer the possibility of finishing a class based on competency rather than time. An accelerated student may finish in 3 weeks whereas one that struggles may finish in 20. The article makes clear that we have taken a shift from being the "informational age" to the "connected age." Whereas I do agree with some of the beneficial aspects of the MOOC's, there are some glaring negatives that were not mentioned. As I am currently in an online class, the most inconvenient aspect is the inability to get in contact with the professor. If your professor is not communicable by email, you have no way of getting in touch with him/her because you are not able to meet face to face. Also, I, personally, have felt that I have learned nothing from my online class, whereas I absorb substantially more information from my face-to-face lectures. Finally, I am concerned about the ability to finish a course based on competency. I would love this transition for myself, but I must say it creates a distinct division among students. Those that are not quite as fast of a learner will be notably left behind in college. Whether that is fair or not, I do not know, but it would be a definite change in how things are run.

Cyberbullying Website

https://sites.google.com/site/cyberbullyingforkids411/

Web

Erika: Bubbl.us- free concept map site. Account login is required. Very similar to Inspiration. Has the feature of importing pictures. Linoit.com- free memo website. Offers a way to post notes, pictures, videos, Word documents, and dates. Contains a calendar. This site functions off of the use of boards, and a multitude of various boards can be created. Very useful for teachers as far as agenda and planning features. Madeline: Photobucket- account required for login. Combination of Instagram and Pinterest. You are able to upload pictures and people can like or comment on them. There is also a feature that allows users to see what pictures are trending. You can search specific pictures or themes as well as share these. Free to upload a certain amount, but after that point you will be charged to buy more storage. Another tool featured is the "Edit" feature, which allows users to alter or crop their uploaded photos. Quintura Kids: search engine that is kid oriented. Maybe not the best search engine because it has very limited information. The website has potential, but it does not have access to enough information. Limits searches to kid friendly sites, but does not provide extensive topics. Callie: Duck Duck Go*- search engine tool. Easy teacher use. Directs all searches to information that is specific. It contains a filter bubble that pulls up valid resources rather than blogs. Has more extensive information than Quintura Kids. Go Gooligans- search engine for kids and teens. Simple, safe, and kid oriented. Pop-up accessible keyboard for people with disabilities. However....it will not go through with a search. Overall it does not work and needs to be revised. Rebecca: Padlet- basically a blank wall. Students go on website and post their comments. Notes can be posted on this site. Text2mind map- concept map. Able to type an outline and then "create" the map. Not alot of customizable options. Brittany: Stormboard- you can create different boards, invite users Social Studies- teachers can post questions and kids can answer and like them. Ally: Instagrok***- mixture of a concept map and a search engine. Creates a concept map out of your search. Very useful for teachers and classrooms. Offers videos, pictures, facts, etc. You can slide the difficulty button in order to set appropriate age range for the data. Journals offered at top bar. Quizzes are offered bases on the subject you search. Only downside is that ads are displayed on the side. Kidtopia*- search engine developed by a school library. The website offers many different subjects that specifies a search. Victoria: Slime Kids*- School Library Media Kids. search engine website that is a directory for various search engines. Kids Click! was her favorite search engine offered. An authors page is offered to take you directly to popular children's authors website. Games and book trailers also offered. Wiki Summarizer- takes search and summarizes the wikipedia results of that search. Develops a sort of concept map that you can edit. You can also display results in a tree view or a keyword cloud. Tommi: Pearltrees*- A place to college and share everything you like on the web. combination of pinterest and a concept map. Collecting ideas via a pearltree. You can create a category or select a website. This is a way to store websites that you favor under topical categories. I think this would be beneficial for projects to collect sources and information and store it in one location. NetVibes- "Dashboard Everything." combination of pearltree and a google search. you have dashboards that correlate to whatever you search. It saves the searches, so if you are doing a project then you can refer back to it. Mary Catherine: Glogster- online poster boards. You can create a timeline and drop images and information into the timeline space. Audacity- a free download. record music or any type of audio, such as speeches, reading, etc. one of the best free music/recording editing sites. Used often for bands. Could be used in the classroom by students making songs or other projects. Lauren: Vimeo- create and share videos. Similar to YouTube. You can also search videos on the site. Word Press- blog site where you can create and follow blogs, as well as find friends. more difficult but allows more flexibility. Allows you to reblog. Deanna: Ever note- Save ideas, tasks, projects, files, and more. Makes them available where ever you go. Has an accompanying app. You can search within your notes. Seems very beneficial for college students. Nicole: Compfight**- similar to Google images. free to download. allows you to download different sizes of the pictures. has a creative commons license. Diigo- you can build a library, organize and share info, have friends. Would work to share info with teachers. Emily: Blabberize- allows you to insert an image and construct a mouth to talk for the image. Could be used for school projects. Easel.ly**- create vhemes or visual themes. similar to a graphic organizer or concept map. Allows you to visually publish ideas. could be used for meetings, to show the class something, etc.. Britneii: Animoto*- upload pictures to create a video and allows you to add your own background to them. You can also add videos and text. The free version allows only 30 seconds. You can add your pictures to pre-made template backgrounds. Book Builder- allows you to create your own book. You can read books, create them, or share them. It allows kids to explore multiple languages. Weebly- helps people make their own website and blogs. can insert audio and videos. slideshows are included. highly recommended. Storyboard*- offers a section called education themes that offer videos people have made for classroom use. "Storyboards" are basically videos/moving images. Tiffany: Tagul- just like Wordle. This website isn't as limited as Wordle. You can make the words into any shape offered. You can also choose different fonts and colors. You can buy merchandise with your creation. Edmodo*-basically a facebook for teachers. Different categories are offered, such as Computer Technology. Teachers can ask questions and offer comments to assist one another. Socrative***- website that teachers can use to create quizzes, tests, and games for their students. Jonathan: Podbean- kind of like iTunes podcast. You can publish them and look them up. A teacher could post lectures if they taught college level. If you use enough of it, you have to pay for it. You can also post videos. Pixton- make online comic strips. you can allow characters to interact. Would be beneficial for english classes to tell stories and stuff. iCloud- same thing as on the phone, but you can also access the website. You have access to pages, numbers, and keynote via the website. Infogr- you can make charts and stuff. Would be very beneficial to make comparisons as a teacher.