Take Away 3/14/2013

 Today's class discussion was interesting. The rubric you provided us was helpful in thinking about how to choose websites for our WebQuest and for our students in general. If a teacher follows those few guidelines on the rubric then they will most likely always choose appropriate websites. The virtual field trips were proven to be not as useful as an actual field trip, but it is worth using in order to at least show your students something visual so they can make a connection to the topic.

 

1. Chapter 4 states that there are two ways that teachers use technology as a necessary means of integration. One way is through the teacher's mindset and the other is through multiple pathways. Personally if I am not into the technology I am using, or if I am not 100% sure how to use the technology I will not feel that comfortable or prepare or organized to teach my students by using it. Many schools encourage using new technology, however then the school should teach the teachers how to use this new technology.  Do you believe that a teacher needs to have the correct mindset to use technology in the class efficiently, or can the teacher be forced to used technology and still use it successfully?

2. Chapter 4 said a very important fact on page 85: " technology integration does not mean computer technologies replace non-electronic resources in every teaching situation." I personally do not use much technology in my English class. I teach 10th grade ELA and the only time I really use technology is when I want to show the students a picture, or a scene from the book we are reading so they can visualize the text. Do you use more technology in your classroom, or more non-electronic resources and why? 

3. On page 145 in Chapter 6, the text states that the internet can be used as a starting point to then learn what books to get from the library or where to search for more in depth information. Unfortunately, I think the internet is used for the complete opposite. The internet is used more for the starting and ending point. Students and teachers, even people in general go right to the internet to learn all they need to about a topic. Do you use the Internet as a "starting point" or do you use the internet as a whole? Do you have your students only use the internet, or use the internet and other sources? Explain. 

In Chapter 6 I actually learned something new about the internet, I never knew that social bookmarking existed, nor did I know what it was. I found out that people not only individually bookmark their favorite sites, or information, but that information can be shared publicly and can be accessed by many people. This makes it easier to find information because you can look in bookmarks that people have already found based on things you have in common.   

March 7,2013 Class

 

WebQuest: Educational journey online

-       build the gateway

-       interactive/ can be self-contained

-       quest= questions

-       web based exploration

-       challenge

-       assessment

-       plans, activities, and resources

-       should be steps to the webquest to follow

-       Web: engagement, search engine, links, highlights, setting, connection to worldcreating a gateway for students to use internet sources that are educational

This WebQuest webpage on dinosaurs was AMAZING! I really wish to one day be able to use a WebQuest in my classroom and teach my students based on one. It would be such a fun and interactive way for them to learn. Not only can they do the WebQuest alone but can also work with partners. I will definitely try one day in the future to make a WebQuest and have my students use it. I think that the WebQuest also is more monitored then letting the students go out on their own to research the topics, they have all the links in front of them. The students probably will wonder off but it does decrease the chances.  After seeing the demonstration in class today of how to make the Web Quest, I am excited to start mine and will make it based on what I am currently teaching my students in their 10^th grade Honors class so that I can hopefully use it during my teaching!

2.22.13 Class: Is Wiki Bad?

After this long, detailed class discussion I realized that Wiki is not as bad as others make it to be. It also opens a door for students to see information and do more research to see if the information is factual or no. It is not only a good site for their research that they need to get done but also makes them do further information.
I did not know that the .com, .org, or .net had specific meaning. I thought people just added which one they thought sounded good with their website, I never gave it much thought. This was a fun little fact to learn in class.
The 5 W's of the website evaluation was very helpful. I copied down this simple checklist for students to follow when they are evaluating a website, or even when I am evaluating a website for them students to use or for myself.

CHAPTER 5: Research and Evaluating Internet Information

1. Chapter five states "Almost all teenagers (94 percent) use the Internet at least some of the time to do research for school" (pg 114). This is an extremely large percent of students that are using the Internet for academic based research. I always wondered how I would in my own classroom teach my students how to properly use internet research, what sites to use, how to use them, how to tell what information is necessary or true, etc. My first thought was to have a list of scholarly websites that they are allowed to use for the task at hand, and if they found other websites they would need to in advance give me the link so I could evaluate it. How will you, or how do you in your classrooms have your students use internet research? How will you teach them to use it properly? Lastly, will you only have your students use the Internet for academic research?

2. I found one part of the chapter extremely interesting and worth debating a little. On page 117 the text states, "Is time spent online reading really reading?internet critics say no, contending that reading printed books is the time-honored, proven path to intellectual and personal growth." When I read this quote I really stopped and thought about what the text was saying, and personally I had to agree with it. Reading off of the Internet or on  an Ipad, or Nook, etc., is not really reading because you are taken by the technology part of it and not just focused on the reading aspect. Some things, like reading from a book should be kept traditional and not changed. Do you believe that reading from the Internet is not really reading? Will you have your students read more from books or online?

3. The text states that to be IT fluent a teacher must be able to use the application of computers and other technologies in the classroom in all subject areas. This made me think what exactly does it mean to be able to use technology and the computer in the classroom, does that mean a simple slideshow, a projector, a film, etc. or is it more. To me being IT fluent is the ability to navigate the computer, use search engines, online grading, slideshows, a smartboard, video, and some educational websites. What does it mean to you to be IT fluent? Do you believe you are IT fluent? 

Week 3 Class Reflection:

Today in class I learned what constructivism is. It is the theory that students should learn by doing hands on activities and discovering the topics they are learning. I thought this to be a great idea and also thought why more high school sin America are not structured like this. The high schools that are called "trade schools" function in this way but they are looked down upon by society. In Europe students choose a path in their careers and then go to the high school that will set them forth on this path. I think this is a great idea and should become more implemented in the USA.

Topic for Video and WebQuest: ELA- Essay Writing and thesis statements   

Chapter 3: Developing Lessons With Technology

1. Understanding by design (UBD) was a concept I learned about while reading the text, and after I read it I realized I had been using this method for many of my lesson plans. UBD is the "backward planning" of a lesson. You begin with the main idea, the desired results/assessment, and lastly fill in the step by step instruction, objectives and methods. I use this form of lesson planning because I feel that it keeps me concentrated on my goal of what to teach the students. When I just write the methods/steps first and then the main idea and assessment last I feel that it keeps me away from wanting to make sure the students learned from the lesson and I feel as if I am just throwing in an assessment. Do you write your lessons using the UBD or do you write them by completing the objective and methods/steps first? Which do you believe is a better method and why?

2. Norm-reference tests v. criterion references tests

Norm-reference tests compare students to one another on a ranking scale; while criterion references tests compare students' performance to specific objectives and standards, and not to other students. I believe that students should be compared to one another and should be compared to standards and objectives as well. There is nothing wrong with having a little competition among students so that they know where they stand among peers. For me personally I am extremely competitive and the want to be the best for myself and among others is what keeps me going and achieving. This can have a negative effect as well on students and bring down their self esteem to see themselves not ranked well on a scale. But, is it truly better to keep them blinded by this fact, is that really helping them? I personally think it is more harmful than helpful. If students are not being ranked against one another, they are being ranked on a scale against objectives and standards, which in reality is still ranking them.  Is it wrong to have students compared to one another and ranked on a scale? Should students only be held accountable to objectives or standards alone? 

3.  I believe that paper based or "traditional" means of assessment are not a bad thing, though they should not be the only means of assessment. Students need to also be assessed based on their every day actions, their participation and achievements in class from a day to day basis. This however puts a lot of power on the teacher to assess students. The teacher can pick favorites, or grade at a lower scale to have more of their students achieve, etc. Also, every teacher has a different idea of what students should be taught and how. This is why there are the standardizes tests, even though many teachers hate them. How could a teacher assess a student other than by a paper test? How do you believe the education system can implement the standardized tests and also show a students progress from day to day? Would technology help in any way?