3 concepts
First thing I found interesting was that use of podcasts uses many areas of learning. Active learning, student self-direction, group work and team skills are all important aspects of learning. The use of podcasts reaches out to the different learning styles because it incorporates so many areas of learning. It gives students a chance to work with others and use technology. It's a great concept.
The second concept is that the DALO can be used and reused in various learning situations. When kids take notes or listen to a lecture, it's usually stored for a short period of time. With use of podcasts, it is something they can have for a longer period of time and refer back to if necessary. This is especially good for the population I teach. Special education kids always need a little extra. The use of podcasts would benefit them.
The last concept is that podcasts can be used on ipods or mp3 players. Every kid in my class has an ipod. They're always asking if they can listen to their ipod. With use of podcasts, I can tell them, sure listen to your ipod! They can sit there and listen to the podcast. It would work great for my kids. It's something they would always have with them because we all know kids never leave home without their ipods.
Tuesday, July 14, 2009
Sunday, July 12, 2009
Ideas for Vodcasting
1. For a follow-up from my webquest the students could create a vodcast providing examples of stress management techniques. Such as yoga, exercise, relaxation. The students will explain the techniques and how they can be helpful.
2. Students will identify their role model and explain why they look up to this person and explain the "greatness" of this person.
3. Students will read parts of a short story and predict the ending. They can hypothesize the ending based on what they read and the title of the book. It will give them a chance to be creative with their thoughts.
2. Students will identify their role model and explain why they look up to this person and explain the "greatness" of this person.
3. Students will read parts of a short story and predict the ending. They can hypothesize the ending based on what they read and the title of the book. It will give them a chance to be creative with their thoughts.
Tuesday, July 7, 2009
21st Century Skills and My School
So far through my experience with the 21st century skills it has been difficult for me, because I don’t have the access to the new technology for my classroom. Maybe the reasoning that things like the smart board are not issued for my classroom is because I teach emotionally disturbed children and it’s a high risk of it getting damaged. But the school building that I teach in has the updated technology, but only certain classes are allowed to use them. I think that the technology will be integrating into my classroom soon because it seems to me that it has such a high demand in education now. I agree with this because the population of kids I teach will find it interesting rather then displaying inappropriate behavior.
My classroom has four teachers in one room all day so there needs to be constant communicating and teaming daily. My team meets 25 minutes in the morning to discuss issues or concerns before the day starts this way we know whose role is what. We also have 1 hour at the end of the day to discuss what issues may have occurred if any, and if there was any important information that we should know that we where unable to discuss during the day. It also gives us time to plan lesson ideas for the next day.
In terms of 21st century skills dealing with communication my classroom is right on track. Our classroom model is based off of communication and co-teaching. I think we also do a good job when it comes to high productivity, when it comes to real world tools. However, we prepare our students with the tools for the real world without technology. If we could find ways to incorporate technology more, we would have even greater success. Hopefully our school district keeps up the progress it has made so far with 21st century skills so we can continue to provide our kids with the knowledge they need.
My classroom has four teachers in one room all day so there needs to be constant communicating and teaming daily. My team meets 25 minutes in the morning to discuss issues or concerns before the day starts this way we know whose role is what. We also have 1 hour at the end of the day to discuss what issues may have occurred if any, and if there was any important information that we should know that we where unable to discuss during the day. It also gives us time to plan lesson ideas for the next day.
In terms of 21st century skills dealing with communication my classroom is right on track. Our classroom model is based off of communication and co-teaching. I think we also do a good job when it comes to high productivity, when it comes to real world tools. However, we prepare our students with the tools for the real world without technology. If we could find ways to incorporate technology more, we would have even greater success. Hopefully our school district keeps up the progress it has made so far with 21st century skills so we can continue to provide our kids with the knowledge they need.
Wednesday, July 1, 2009
Interactive White Boards
What three key concepts or ideas did you learn?
I think the article made some good points. First stating that the difficulty has been integrating ICT within traditional approaches that are often largely teacher centered. This is a good point because anything new is looked at as scary or bad. So if you are a teacher who is traditional it may be hard to think about incorporating technology into your classroom. But you have to start somewhere.
I also found it interesting when it stated that when getting used to the whiteboards, teachers keep them mainly to their use. I agree with some of this statement. I think it depends on the teacher. Some teachers may feel they themselves need to be 100% comfortable with it before handing it over to the students. Then there are people like myself who would have no problem learning it alongside the students. I don't mean the students teaching me and taking over, but us learning it together. Not being afraid to make mistakes because we are all in it together.
Lastly I found the point of having a bright and colorful device in the front of the classroom leads to greater attention levels important. I felt the same way when I first saw the board used for the first time in class. I am also excited to see each time someone uses it, what they are going to do, or what else can that machine do. It's very appealing to me. To be honest I am not 100% comfortable in using it, but it does spark my attention.
Do interactive communication tools lead to interactive learning? Why or why not?
I believe they do. I think they provide a great hands-on learning experience for students. The whiteboard gives the students the opportunity to write ideas so everyone can see or help the teacher during the class. It provides an excellent visual for students. Kids will see this big white board with these pens and colors, they are going to be anxious to see what they can do with it. I think the whiteboard will lessen the amount of note taking as well. It provides students with so many other ways of learning information as we saw some examples in class today. I also think it would lower stress levels for kids who have anxiety when it comes to learning something new. I think they would be more excited to learn than be stressed about it. I also think they would be learning and may not actually realize they are learning because they will have fun with it.
How can educators be sure to use interactive communication tools to their best potential? List and describe three ideas.
1. I think teachers would need to go through extensive trainings. Whether it be teacher inservice days or seminars on their own time. I also think at inservices or seminars it would be good to hear what other school districts are doing, how they're doing it, and what is working.
2. I also think teachers should utilize the tools as often as possible. Practice makes perfect. They should try and incorporate the tools into their lesson plans as many times as they can. There are so many methods of technology for the classroom, they should look at the areas they are teaching and see where the tools can be utilized to maximize student success. I think certain tools would work better depending on what is being taught.
3. I also think teachers should work closely with their tech people in their buildings. They are the experts in the field and I am sure they wouldn't mind helping teachers out with ideas.
I think the article made some good points. First stating that the difficulty has been integrating ICT within traditional approaches that are often largely teacher centered. This is a good point because anything new is looked at as scary or bad. So if you are a teacher who is traditional it may be hard to think about incorporating technology into your classroom. But you have to start somewhere.
I also found it interesting when it stated that when getting used to the whiteboards, teachers keep them mainly to their use. I agree with some of this statement. I think it depends on the teacher. Some teachers may feel they themselves need to be 100% comfortable with it before handing it over to the students. Then there are people like myself who would have no problem learning it alongside the students. I don't mean the students teaching me and taking over, but us learning it together. Not being afraid to make mistakes because we are all in it together.
Lastly I found the point of having a bright and colorful device in the front of the classroom leads to greater attention levels important. I felt the same way when I first saw the board used for the first time in class. I am also excited to see each time someone uses it, what they are going to do, or what else can that machine do. It's very appealing to me. To be honest I am not 100% comfortable in using it, but it does spark my attention.
Do interactive communication tools lead to interactive learning? Why or why not?
I believe they do. I think they provide a great hands-on learning experience for students. The whiteboard gives the students the opportunity to write ideas so everyone can see or help the teacher during the class. It provides an excellent visual for students. Kids will see this big white board with these pens and colors, they are going to be anxious to see what they can do with it. I think the whiteboard will lessen the amount of note taking as well. It provides students with so many other ways of learning information as we saw some examples in class today. I also think it would lower stress levels for kids who have anxiety when it comes to learning something new. I think they would be more excited to learn than be stressed about it. I also think they would be learning and may not actually realize they are learning because they will have fun with it.
How can educators be sure to use interactive communication tools to their best potential? List and describe three ideas.
1. I think teachers would need to go through extensive trainings. Whether it be teacher inservice days or seminars on their own time. I also think at inservices or seminars it would be good to hear what other school districts are doing, how they're doing it, and what is working.
2. I also think teachers should utilize the tools as often as possible. Practice makes perfect. They should try and incorporate the tools into their lesson plans as many times as they can. There are so many methods of technology for the classroom, they should look at the areas they are teaching and see where the tools can be utilized to maximize student success. I think certain tools would work better depending on what is being taught.
3. I also think teachers should work closely with their tech people in their buildings. They are the experts in the field and I am sure they wouldn't mind helping teachers out with ideas.
Dewey
One important idea is that society exists through a process of transmission. There is a communication of habits of doing, thinking and feeling. Older people are passing their ideals, hopes, expectations, standards, and opinions to the youth just coming in. This is similar to what we do as educators. We are getting them ready for the real world. Especially in special education there is a major focus on life skills.
Another important idea is the balance of formal and informal education. In special education I think the informal education happens most often. The population I work with are difficult. They don't have stability at home, so therefore we often teach them things they should have already known. How to communicate, proper ways to behave etc. These are the concepts that are enforced in our classroom. We do formal education as well, but these kids are not your typical student. They have tough backgrounds and their education requires consideration of that. There is definitely a need to balance the two.
Lastly, persons do not become a society by living in physical proximity. I think this is important because you can't just be living near someone and be a society. There needs to be communication in order to be a society. A society is a group which share the same ideals. If there is no communication of what is expected then there isn't a society.
Another important idea is the balance of formal and informal education. In special education I think the informal education happens most often. The population I work with are difficult. They don't have stability at home, so therefore we often teach them things they should have already known. How to communicate, proper ways to behave etc. These are the concepts that are enforced in our classroom. We do formal education as well, but these kids are not your typical student. They have tough backgrounds and their education requires consideration of that. There is definitely a need to balance the two.
Lastly, persons do not become a society by living in physical proximity. I think this is important because you can't just be living near someone and be a society. There needs to be communication in order to be a society. A society is a group which share the same ideals. If there is no communication of what is expected then there isn't a society.
Bloom's Taxonomy
In my secondary education I experienced Bloom's Taxonomy in a few of the levels. The majority of my classes were remembering and understanding. Then applying when it came to the test. Trying to apply what we learned by writing it word for word in an essay or memorizing facts for a history test. This wasn't necessarily a good thing, because I studied only what I needed to know for a test. I would say the higher level thinking skills came when I attended Vo-tech. This was much more hands on and active learning. I experienced much more evaluating and creating. I believe this is because of the nature of the classes. I can remember experimenting and designing projects.
In my post secondary education I experienced the lower levels of Bloom's Taxonomy and some higher levels. I remember writing papers constantly, taking notes, and taking tests. Once I entered into Sport Management I felt like it became more relevant to me and I was able to think about things in more detail. This was probably because it was interesting to me. It allowed me to apply information learned in real life.
I feel like this is true because many of my teachers were older and were set in their ways. They didn't try to reach out to us and push us too hard, they rather cover the material that needed to be done and move on.
In my post secondary education I experienced the lower levels of Bloom's Taxonomy and some higher levels. I remember writing papers constantly, taking notes, and taking tests. Once I entered into Sport Management I felt like it became more relevant to me and I was able to think about things in more detail. This was probably because it was interesting to me. It allowed me to apply information learned in real life.
I feel like this is true because many of my teachers were older and were set in their ways. They didn't try to reach out to us and push us too hard, they rather cover the material that needed to be done and move on.
Tuesday, June 30, 2009
Technology
Integrating technology into the curriculum is something all educators should do. It helps students who are visual learners especially. Computer based assignments can take students step by step to what they need to do. It makes it much easier for them to know what is expected of them and it's very hands on. It helps meet the needs of many learning styles. Technology also helps in researching things much easier. I believe it is a time saver when searching for information also. It's much easier to get on a computer and look for what you need rather than opening books and reading to find the information you need. Again that helps with people who are visual learners. This generation relies on technology in everything they do, we as educators need to provide them with what they are used to in order to promote learning. Technology is only going to get more popular in education so we need to step up and start now.
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