Chapter 10 rethinking education

this chapter basically summarized everything that happened in the book.

chapter 10 presentation

• How much effort did you exert preparing for this discussion?
• What is the value in facilitating course content for your peers?
• How does discussing course content with your peers impact your future teaching?

This was not a difficult task to prepare for. We spent probably 2 hours putting together the slide show and practicing how we were going to present. I love talking in front of people, so once we actually had our presentation, I was confident enough in what we prepared to feel completely comfortable in front of the class. This project seemed intimidating at first, but i quickly realized once we started on it, that the project was easily handled. Another aspect of the presentation was when we were going. I was nervous about going last because expectations are so much higher for us. We stayed away from what appeared to not work in our classroom and stayed  with what we knew was fail proof: good discussion and prezi. This made the overall presentation easier for us to present our topic. All together, I think this project really helped me to explore all the different possibilities of presenting!

The people I struggle with most teaching in front of is my peers. They are the ones who know what is supposed to happen and therefor have a better stance on judging my performance. You also don't want to make a fool of yourself. So when put in a class to present tidbits of information to your peers, it really helps to build my general confidence. Because I felt comfortable in front of this group of my colleges, teaching in front of students should be a lot less intimidating ( although high schoolers are pretty ruthless).Not only did it help presenting in front of my peers, but also working alongside them. Different people have different teaching styles, so having to meld to your group really helped me learn to be flexible. For example, I am a comfortable leader. I love talking in front of people and to people. My other group members definitely had a different teaching style. I had to learn to step back in order to let my co-teachers shine at what they are good at.This was a difficult task, because I always like being the leader, but it really helps me learn to share the floor. It also forced me to look at the course content closer and evaluate what was important in the reading. I will need to do this to help facilitate discussions with all of my students.

This presentation really helped to show me what kind of teacher I am going to become. I felt confident in front of the group and willing to take charge. I definitely need to work on sharing the floor with other people when I co- teach, and that is a big problem for me across the board. I need to accept when other people make mistakes, and make a conscious effort at not always being the person to speak up. As I mentioned earlier, I love to talk, but sometimes I talk a little too much. This will have to be restrained once I am a teacher, because students don't like classes in which the teacher is always talking and the student never gets response time. Overall, I am really happy to have been a part of this presentation

exit slip november 18th

Exit slip November 18^th:

-          Didn’t have to open presentation: waste of time

+      did a good job navigating presentation

+     AWESOME PREZI!!!!!!!

-            Not interactive

+       Full circle ( from beginning of the semester and with the quote)

+       Transitions

-          Watch uhms

+      Enthusiasm (awesome presentation voices… best all summer)

-          Talked over each other

+     We felt really comfortable

+      Self deprecating humor

+      showing how we learned in school versus how we could change it

-           Conclusion ( how does the audience know when we are done)

Timed tests are not good for students. When will they need to use that? What is the point of doing pointless homework? If they can do 3-5 problems then they can do 30-50 problems.

Folk pedagogy: teaching the way you were taught.----This is not a good way to teach. You are not teaching to today’s children. You are teaching to your past. The times have changed, technology has changed.

Pk-18 council of Wisconsin: a whole bunch of people that have something to do with teaching. High school in the 21^st century… the state requires that you have this many credit hours.


I liked the research over the internet for the specific items.

Chapter 10 Wrap up

Click Here

DON'T BE SCARED!

rethinking education: chapter 9

What does it all mean?

what are kids learning from technology?
students can join online groups for things they are interested in.

how has technology changed kids' social lives and learning?

where does this leave us?

exit slip for nov. 11th

Exit slip: November 11^th

Chapter 9 rethinking education----- go to teachnology.com to put on delicious! He recommends the book… everything bad is good for you. ( by Steven Johnson)

Should technology be used in the classroom?

This presentation really helped me evaluate how I should properly use technology in the classroom. I was really opinionated about whether or not video games were appropriate to use in the classroom. I don’t think video games are a good use of time. Whether I dislike video games because I am a girl or if it is because I have seen the devastation to a person’s attention that it can do, I do not support video games.  My brother already had attention problems, and as soon as the computers and video games came into play my brother stopped doing homework and stopped attending school. This is an extreme case, but I do believe that the immediate gratification affects the student’s attention spans.

Dr Boyer says that video games increase reaction time. This has been proven especially for doctors. Some doctors even play video games before they go into surgery because it has been proven to create fewer mistakes.

Plus /delta

-          Do a better job of starting the presentation and getting our attention

+      Good job of probing for more questions and answers

+       Building on what was being shared

-          Too many uhms and uhs

+   Starburst separation

-          Groups of 8. 8. And then 3 people

+    Great opening quote and then had the group revisit the quote

-           Spell check

Look at homework for week ten

Contemporary issues podcast

social networking and attention span podcast

Contemporary issue article

I never knew how easy podcasting was. After making my script, which was by far the most difficult part, all I had to do was record it. Granted it took me 3 times recording until I was able to appreciate what I was saying. I had a little bit of difficulty getting the sound how I wanted it, but i employed one of my tech savvy roommates to help me out with that. Once I had everything recorded and placed where I liked it, I was happy with the final product. I feel like by continuing to make podcasts I can increase my podcast making fluency. This will get even easier the more I do it.

This is a great tool for the classroom. For example, I could record one of my lectures and upload it as a podcast for my students to listen to. I could also spread my knowledge of what I learned in the classroom to other teachers, so they would be able to use my experiences to better enhance their learning. There are all sorts of options. I could even have my students listen to posdcasts when they are at home to continue their learning experience. Podcasts are a resource that will slowly become more and more prevalent in the technology era.

chapter 10 and epilogue of blogs wiki and podcasts

what it all means?
-new literacies
-the big shidts

• big shift 1: open content
• big shift 2: many many teachers and 24/7 learning
• big shift 3: The social, collaborative construction of meaningful knowledge
• big shift 4: teaching is conversation, not lecture
• big shift 5: know "where" learning
• big shift 6: Readers are no longer just readers
• big shift 7: the web as Notebook ( or portfolio)
• big shift 8: writing is no longer limited to text
• big shift 9: Mastery is the Product, not the test
• big shift 10: contribution, not completion, as the ultimate goal

Just the beginning

How will this affect my teaching:

This book as a whole, has taught me many options of things I can use in the classroom. I have realized that if I don't embrace technology, then there will be other options for students who need technology to be successful. There are teachers who are working online and information in surplus for students to succeed. The thing that teachers have that computers don't is the human interaction. We need to use this and help to show students how to appropriately use the technology they are given.

exit slip for nov 4

did the in class wiki

If we don’t meet expectations we have a chance to revise our screencast/other assignments. Jeff Boyer’s comments will be trickling in over time. Comments were also posted on our iRLO’s and there are some common problems that we will talk about.

Rethinking Education: chapter 8 - Jackie Haen (slide show on Jackie’s blog) and Emily Gabrielle:

How schools can cope with the new technologies

                                                Surprising tidbits:

- National standards…. HS students can get certificates instead of regular credits.

                                                -Virtual field trips

                                                -Use items like d2l

                                Customization:

                                Interaction:

                                Learner Control:

Pros and cons of national certificate:

                                                Pro’s:   - gets students motivated

                                                                -keeps students in school

                                                                -“Mile wide, but an inch deep” _David

                                                                -you’d be aware of what you wanted to do before you went to college

                                                Con’s:   -lack of exposure

                                                                -too early to decide what they want to learn

Scenario then closing quote

Plus/delta from the presentation

                Plus:

·         feedback to peers

·         movement

·         easily adapt from non working technology/improvisation

·         reviewed the background information

·         scenarios are always fun

Delta:

·         Why didn’t google docs work?

o   We figured out what we did wrong

o   Click on share… change from private to anyone with the link.

·         Need alternative way to represent…. Acting?

·         Choppy ending… round up the conclusion

·         Grouping by geography????

o   Different color candy

o   Card colors and punch one card and they are the group leader

Boyer:

·         go to www.twitter.com/professorboyer

·         click on the link under experimental school gets rid of classes, teachers: NPR

o   This article is fascinating. I have never been so shocked by an institution, and how it runs. I know if I was a student I would probably not learn well in an environment such as this but there are many students who would. The fact that they don’t have any classes, and their evaluations are based on projects was a really interesting way of learning. This kind of teaching environment would be perfect for students who do not enjoy working in school, or with other students.

Should standards be broader versus based on a community/state?

o   End of course exams for across the country?

Scatch/iRLO

o   We should have received feedback from peers. Now we have our iRLO due in 1 month

Consistent issues dealing with iRLO: (remember talking to Prof. Boyer will solve all problems)

o   Is your iRLO reusable?

o   Does everything reset when you hit the green flag every time?

o   Go to control command

§  Choose when green flag is clicked

§  Use different commands

o   For math… are the same problems used every time?

§  Consider having random problems

o   DIRECTIONS

o   What are you supposed to do after clicking on the green flag

§  Verbal directions

§  Written directions

§  Background with directions

o   Have them come up once the green flag is clicked?

o    text on screen should be visible for the time it takes you to read through it twice

o   3 perspective on evaluating iRLO

o   Does it address standard based content

o   Developmentally appropriate for the grade levels

o   Is the project interactive

§  User control and feedback

o   Draggable sprites

o   Click on sprite and under the information ( region right in upper center)  unlock the padlock

You can go to scratch-ed that is an internet community centered on the scratch website. Good website foe questions

Technology Inquiry wiki update (due December 20^th)

o   Take the Yes-Test which he created based on our annotated bibliography

o   It should help keep us on track

o   Is your name and or question  linked to technology wiki page

§  Yes

o   Is your annotated bibliography clearly identified on your page… ie… is there a label, text? font?... it needs to stand out for the viewer

§  Kind of…

o   Did you separate and identify formal and informal sources?

§  YES… but make the bottom of the page more clear

o   Did you include 3-5 formal (peer reviewed) and 3-5 informal (non peer reviewed sources)?

§  Yes… but should work on it more

o   Did you consider the design of your wiki? How does it represent me? Is it fun to read?

§  No… L

§  Look at the number of fonts used... have only 1 or 2 fonts

§  One or 2 different colors to help add emphasis and separate

§  White space … think resume… readability

o   Did you use proper APA citation

§  No…

§  The title of a journal article should not have  every letter of the Title capitalized

·         Title of the Journal is all capitalized

§  Do not include retrieved from _____ database

·         Cite source as a print journal and not an electronic source

o   Did you include 2 Paragraphs for each annotation?

§  No

o   SPELL CHECK! GRAMMAR CHECK! PUNCTUATION CHECK!

For homework expectations go to lab agenda for this week.

rethinking education: chapter 8

How schools can cope with new technologies

• customization, interaction and learner control are needed to effectively incorporate technology into the classroom
• customization: providing people with the knowledge they want when they want it and supporting and guiding people individually as they learn.
• interaction: the ability of computers to give learners immediate feedback and to engage learners actively in accomplishing realistic tasks
• learner control: refers to putting learners in charge of their own learning whenever possible, so that they feel ownership and can direct their learning whenever their interests take them

performance based assessment:

• national certification and skill based assessment system
• develop a set of national credentials that could be administered on a computer.
• certifications developed in 3 areas:
• academic skills
• generic skills
• technical skills

New Curriculum design

• computer technologies open new regions for curriculum development
• students encouraged to stick with a particular curriculum for a long time

This makes me nervous. Standardized testing/learning is something I have never been a fan of. In fact it is the one part of teaching that could possibly sway me away. The fact that we would use this in conjunction with technology, although efficient, it does not allow for well rounded people. I don't realy know how I could apply this in the classroom. I am a fan of teaching with technology, but I guess I would be forced to use standardized testing. Maybe technology could use it fast enough that I would not have to take too much out of my fun class time to go through it.

SCREENCAST ON JING!

ScreenCAST on SKYPE

• How much effort did you exert preparing for the screencast?
• How does creating and sharing a screencast with your peers impact your future teaching?

I LOVE SKYPE! i love everything about it. So when choosing a cool technology tool to do the assignment on, SKYPE was what I wanted to do it on. This made writing the script extremely simple. I knew the pro's, I have experienced the cons. I have been brainstorming ways of using this in a classroom since I first started using it.So... the script was easy peasy. Plus I got to learn new features of skype that I have never used: i.e screen sharing, and skype managing. This was all fascinating. I didn't start struggling till I realized i had WAY TOO much fun information to talk about. I think I re-did the jing around eight times just trying to figure out everything I wanted to put in the screencast. That and avoiding saying the uhms..... but after 3 hours of work, it is finished. ALthough not perfect, it is done and I am happy with the outcome! FINAlly!

This whole screen cast sharing has really lit a fire in the field of technology and education. I feel like "If I was able to do this then I can do ANYTHING!" I also hope that my screencast will help them to see all the things they can do with skype. I am sure many people already know, but maybe this is the little push they needed to get it started in the classroom.I want to continue doing these activities all through my teaching technology crusades!

Ch. 9: Blogs, Wikis, and Podcast

How does this reading impact your thinking about technology's role in teaching and learning?

What will you do differently as a future teacher as a direct result of this new thinking?

This was a chapter I could personally relate to. Since entering the education program I have been trying to "clean-up" my facebook profile. Not that anything inappropriate was on it, but there are things that could be misunderstood. So this chapter really helped to give me insight into how to look at facebook from a teachers standpoint. In addition to facebook, the information about ning was spectacular!!! I have never heard of ning before, except for once from a vlog I used to watch weekly. This would be a phenomenal website for older students. There are many options of how to use this appropriately in your classroom as well. Unfortunately, the population of students I plan on teaching, first through fourth hopefully, probably should not be exposed to facebook and ning yet. Both of these networks approach an unsure area for younger students. Already, in my opinion, students are entering the social network system too early. There are many mistakes that could be made on a network such as this. I am unsure of the age students normally start participating in facebook since it was not created until I was a junior in high school. If this is something younger children are participating in, than perhaps I would consider having a ning for the classroom. It is more a matter of how advanced students will be in their ability to uderstand how to use a website such as that than my willingness. If I was in a high school, and I got appropriate approval from administration, than I would without a doubt have a classroom ning. What a great class activity. Plus the ability to make it private is pretty cool.