Book Trailer For Mem Fox's "Time For Bed":
Sunday, September 29, 2013
Blog Post #6
Asking Questions: What Question's Do We Ask? How Do We Ask Questions?
In "The Right Way to Ask Question's in the Classroom",
Mr. Johnson writes that “...as teachers, we need to come to grips with the fact that we really do not know everything, and there is no reason to assume that the students know nothing.” He says that perhaps the most important question to ask is, "What does a teacher asking questions of a class expect the class to learn from the questioning process?" Is it to check for understanding? This benefits the teacher more than the student. Is this question useless? Mr. Johnson thinks so! He believes we are telling students that if they do not ask questions, then they understand completely. But what about students that “do not understand that they do not understand, and if they do not know what they do not know, there is no way that they can ask a question about it.” So how do we check for understanding, correctly? Mr. Johnson says to ask specific questions.
He writes about students’ knowing who is smart, who is not, and who doesn't care. When a teacher asks a question, the students who know they are not smart are not going to take the bait, and neither will the students who do not care. This leaves the smart kids as the only ones interested in answering, and almost before the question is finished, they have their hands up with an answer, right or wrong. The other two groups of kids are perfectly fine with this routine. Most likely, they will complacently say to themselves, "Let them answer the questions so I don't have to." Mr. Johnson has followed students of various grades and found that some students go through a whole day- maybe even weeks and months- and never answer a single verbal question! Just how many general questions do teachers ask in one class period? The results would be astounding. So Mr. Johnson asks, yet again: How do teachers ask a question the right way?
Mary Budd Rowe proposed that teachers simply ask a question, such as "What do you call it when an insect kills itself?" pause for at least three seconds, and then say a student's name: "Sally." By doing this, all the students will automatically be thinking about an answer and only after another child's name is said will they sigh in relief because they were not chosen. Mr. Johnson researched and found that if teachers are “not planning to have all the students answer questions at the same time, then at least we should be asking a question, pausing for three seconds and then saying a student's name in order to get the most effect out of questions. However, if we are satisfied with only some students paying attention and learning in our classrooms, then we can continue as usual.”
My Reflections:
I think that Mr. Johnson has realized a valuable lesson in teaching. The questions educators ask is crucial for students. The way we word questions, the tone of our voice, the effect… these are all crucial in determining the response from students. I hope to further explore Mary Rowe’s proposal of asking a direct question, pausing for 3 seconds, and then saying a student’s name. I believe this is a very positively beneficial method to appropriately ask questions in the classroom.
"Asking Better Questions in the Classroom" By: Dr. Joanne Chesley
In the video: "Asking Better Questions in the Classroom", Dr. Chesley speaks about the difference in closed- and open-ended questions. She says that often instructors find that students are unresponsive and when they do answer a question, their response is monosyllabic (such as "yes", "no", "I think so", "I agree", etc.). But aren't teachers getting exactly what they for when they ask questions that don't invite extended or thoughtful kinds of responses? According to Dr. Chesley, a teacher needs to understand the different ways to ask a question, and utilize an open-ended question approach in order to spark a more elicit response.
So what is the difference between open- and closed- ended questions?
A closed-ended question structures a simple response from the student and can be answered with a word or two.
An open-ended question leaves the form of the answer up to the person responding. This question approach elicits more thinking and yields more information from the respondent.
My Reflections: I think that it is crucial to use open-ended questions in the classroom. I will think of every question thoroughly before asking it to make sure it will spark a thorough and thoughtful answer. Dr. Chesley has given great advice and I believe every teacher should be required to watch some of her videos before obtaining their teaching license, to ensure teachers in the 21st Century will utilize every teaching style and tip available to better the lives of their future students. So when one thinks about Why Teachers Ask Questions, and How We Ask Them, one should think about using their words effectively and being able to create a response from their students' that will show they completely understand the materials being presented.
As Dr. Strange would say: "Questions are more important than answers!"
He writes about students’ knowing who is smart, who is not, and who doesn't care. When a teacher asks a question, the students who know they are not smart are not going to take the bait, and neither will the students who do not care. This leaves the smart kids as the only ones interested in answering, and almost before the question is finished, they have their hands up with an answer, right or wrong. The other two groups of kids are perfectly fine with this routine. Most likely, they will complacently say to themselves, "Let them answer the questions so I don't have to." Mr. Johnson has followed students of various grades and found that some students go through a whole day- maybe even weeks and months- and never answer a single verbal question! Just how many general questions do teachers ask in one class period? The results would be astounding. So Mr. Johnson asks, yet again: How do teachers ask a question the right way?
Mary Budd Rowe proposed that teachers simply ask a question, such as "What do you call it when an insect kills itself?" pause for at least three seconds, and then say a student's name: "Sally." By doing this, all the students will automatically be thinking about an answer and only after another child's name is said will they sigh in relief because they were not chosen. Mr. Johnson researched and found that if teachers are “not planning to have all the students answer questions at the same time, then at least we should be asking a question, pausing for three seconds and then saying a student's name in order to get the most effect out of questions. However, if we are satisfied with only some students paying attention and learning in our classrooms, then we can continue as usual.”
My Reflections:
I think that Mr. Johnson has realized a valuable lesson in teaching. The questions educators ask is crucial for students. The way we word questions, the tone of our voice, the effect… these are all crucial in determining the response from students. I hope to further explore Mary Rowe’s proposal of asking a direct question, pausing for 3 seconds, and then saying a student’s name. I believe this is a very positively beneficial method to appropriately ask questions in the classroom.
"Asking Better Questions in the Classroom" By: Dr. Joanne Chesley
In the video: "Asking Better Questions in the Classroom", Dr. Chesley speaks about the difference in closed- and open-ended questions. She says that often instructors find that students are unresponsive and when they do answer a question, their response is monosyllabic (such as "yes", "no", "I think so", "I agree", etc.). But aren't teachers getting exactly what they for when they ask questions that don't invite extended or thoughtful kinds of responses? According to Dr. Chesley, a teacher needs to understand the different ways to ask a question, and utilize an open-ended question approach in order to spark a more elicit response.
A closed-ended question structures a simple response from the student and can be answered with a word or two.
An open-ended question leaves the form of the answer up to the person responding. This question approach elicits more thinking and yields more information from the respondent.
My Reflections: I think that it is crucial to use open-ended questions in the classroom. I will think of every question thoroughly before asking it to make sure it will spark a thorough and thoughtful answer. Dr. Chesley has given great advice and I believe every teacher should be required to watch some of her videos before obtaining their teaching license, to ensure teachers in the 21st Century will utilize every teaching style and tip available to better the lives of their future students. So when one thinks about Why Teachers Ask Questions, and How We Ask Them, one should think about using their words effectively and being able to create a response from their students' that will show they completely understand the materials being presented.
As Dr. Strange would say: "Questions are more important than answers!"
Sunday, September 22, 2013
Friday, September 20, 2013
My Sentence Videos
My Sentence Is...
"She is an awesome mother, is strong-minded, has great perseverance, and would help anyone that is willing to help themselves."
My Passion Is...
"My family, my education, and my future career as an educator."
"She is an awesome mother, is strong-minded, has great perseverance, and would help anyone that is willing to help themselves."
My Passion Is...
"My family, my education, and my future career as an educator."
Saturday, September 14, 2013
C4T #1 Blog Post
Comments for Teachers:
By: Heather Smith
Liz Davis' Blog "The Power of Educational Technology" is very informative and inspiring!
I read her post titled: "Resistance is Futile... Managing Resistance to Change", written on August 1st, 2013. Basically, she writes about change being hard, fearful, and uncomfortable. She helps faculty and students at Belmont Hill School, of Boston, Maryland, to work through the discomfort of change and view the benefits. She writes three ways to implement success to the notion of change:
1. Celebrate small victories and know that theory doesn't always work in practice,
2. Empathize with difficulties and help to find ways to balance both sides, and
3. Understand not all change is effective, question change thoughtfully.
She believes that, ultimately, good pedagogy is at the core of change and educators will accept it over time if there is enough support for new ideas.
A summary of my comments on this post:
I told my name, school, course, links to all, etc. I then began by thanking her for her informative post. I continued that I have given myself a bit of a self-diagnosis of being unable to easily accept change. I just do not like it, even if I know deep down that it is for the best- I would rather be miserable in a situation rather than having to face a new one. Her ideas have really inspired me to face my demons (so to speak). I find that there have been a few times I have been against or undecided of a change but did not verbalize my thoughts/feelings due to not knowing how to. I like how she worded "I encourage faculty and students to question change as long as they do so thoughtfully." This is an important point that I do not think some people realize: It is alright to question something as long as you are respectful and actually think and try to understand something before being irrational. I ended by asking her a question: advice to respectfully debate change, answered her closing question, and added a thoughtful quote:
Liz Davis' Blog Post "BYOD vs BYO iPad" was written on May 11, 2013. She began the iPad pilot expecting to eventually become an iPad school. During her experience, she has shifted her opinion considerably. She lists three reasons she thought an iPad would be the best device for her school, and how her thoughts soon changed:
1. All have common apps the students could use for projects:
-This was her biggest shift in thinking because she THOUGHT iPad was getting ahead, learning should come first, projects are defined by the tool.
-Now she thinks projects should be defined by the goals and students should find the best tool for that. This also frees those technologically uncomfortable faculty from having to know all the tools. Because each device has different options, students choices will be more varied, and perhaps even more interesting and creative.
2. The iPad has a low profile, making it less of a barrier to class discussions around a table.
-She states that almost 75% of her students purchased a keyboard for their iPad, therefore they still get in the way.
3.The iPad touchscreen and size allows for reading and annotating books/articles.
-According to Mrs. Davis, the iPad is better for reading and annotating but really, two devices are needed: the iPad and an e-reader.
-She realizes now, though, that some students prefer to read the "old-fashioned way"- using a pen and a highlighter.
A summary of my comments on this post:
I told her I enjoyed reading her post. I then wrote: "I have a Samsung tablet, and absolutely love it, but it has a few quirks that I just don't care for at all! I really believe that students should be given the option of which tablet to use. If you force a student to do everything your way, their creativity and individuality goes out the window. I love the idea of BYOD, though. My daughter's school was the elementary school chosen in our county for the pilot program. This is the second year and they are still working MANY kinks out, but I (personally) believe this is a great resource and tool for educators to get students more involved and use technology and things they enjoy (computers, apps, pretty much anything to do with technology) to better their education and knowledge. Hopefully your program will work all the issues out and the faculty will be able to find that happy medium!"
By: Heather Smith
Liz Davis' Blog "The Power of Educational Technology" is very informative and inspiring!
1. Celebrate small victories and know that theory doesn't always work in practice,
2. Empathize with difficulties and help to find ways to balance both sides, and
3. Understand not all change is effective, question change thoughtfully.
She believes that, ultimately, good pedagogy is at the core of change and educators will accept it over time if there is enough support for new ideas.
A summary of my comments on this post:
I told my name, school, course, links to all, etc. I then began by thanking her for her informative post. I continued that I have given myself a bit of a self-diagnosis of being unable to easily accept change. I just do not like it, even if I know deep down that it is for the best- I would rather be miserable in a situation rather than having to face a new one. Her ideas have really inspired me to face my demons (so to speak). I find that there have been a few times I have been against or undecided of a change but did not verbalize my thoughts/feelings due to not knowing how to. I like how she worded "I encourage faculty and students to question change as long as they do so thoughtfully." This is an important point that I do not think some people realize: It is alright to question something as long as you are respectful and actually think and try to understand something before being irrational. I ended by asking her a question: advice to respectfully debate change, answered her closing question, and added a thoughtful quote:
"I accept chaos. I am not sure whether it accepts me."
-Bob Dylan
1. All have common apps the students could use for projects:
-This was her biggest shift in thinking because she THOUGHT iPad was getting ahead, learning should come first, projects are defined by the tool.
-Now she thinks projects should be defined by the goals and students should find the best tool for that. This also frees those technologically uncomfortable faculty from having to know all the tools. Because each device has different options, students choices will be more varied, and perhaps even more interesting and creative.
2. The iPad has a low profile, making it less of a barrier to class discussions around a table.
-She states that almost 75% of her students purchased a keyboard for their iPad, therefore they still get in the way.
3.The iPad touchscreen and size allows for reading and annotating books/articles.
-According to Mrs. Davis, the iPad is better for reading and annotating but really, two devices are needed: the iPad and an e-reader.
-She realizes now, though, that some students prefer to read the "old-fashioned way"- using a pen and a highlighter.
A summary of my comments on this post:
I told her I enjoyed reading her post. I then wrote: "I have a Samsung tablet, and absolutely love it, but it has a few quirks that I just don't care for at all! I really believe that students should be given the option of which tablet to use. If you force a student to do everything your way, their creativity and individuality goes out the window. I love the idea of BYOD, though. My daughter's school was the elementary school chosen in our county for the pilot program. This is the second year and they are still working MANY kinks out, but I (personally) believe this is a great resource and tool for educators to get students more involved and use technology and things they enjoy (computers, apps, pretty much anything to do with technology) to better their education and knowledge. Hopefully your program will work all the issues out and the faculty will be able to find that happy medium!"
Thursday, September 12, 2013
Blog Post #4
Why Podcasts?
How Do We Do a Podcast?
By: Heather Smith
Podcasting with First Grade:
After reading Podcasting with First Grade on Langwitches Blog written by Silvia Tolisano, it was apparent that skills that are being taught are what are important, not the technology that is being taught! Langwitches encourages podcasting with younger elementary students. She writes about first graders listening to a podcast about animals and being thrilled that the second graders from the podcast had received so many comments from around the world. They were eager to record their own podcast and have their voices put "into other people's computers and iPods". The class read a chapter book called Vacation Under the Volcano from the Magic Tree House series by Mary Pope Osborne. They pretended they were interviewing Jack and Annie (the two main characters) about their adventure. They read one chapter at a time, discussed what they were reading, and came up with a script of questions and answers. They then began to record. The students were rotated as the interviewers, jack, and Annie. She was amazed at how cooperative and attentive these first-graders were. Several students took an interest in editing the podcast. These students were really coming out of their shell. They began to emphasize words, demonstrate different sounds of their voices, and agreed not to read off the script- to use different acting voices. Lastly, she added music and sound effects and let the students listen to their podcast. I was amazed at how informative this post was, but even more at how many skills this assignment/podcast addressed: listening, speaking, presenting, comprehension, storytelling, performance, voice acting, oral fluency, media, and technology!
1st graders Create Their Own Read-Along AudioBook:
Tolisano, the creator of the blog Langwitches, hits on Podcasting with First Grade (as summarized previously) in her blog post First Graders Create Their own AudioBook . In this post, she more thoroughly describes her end of the process of creating a read-along. She pulled students to record while their teacher read one chapter at a time out of Vacation Under the Volcano and created the interview script to be recorded by the students. By the time the last chapter was recorded there were ten written scripts that she decided to create a little booklet for the students to be able to follow along while they listened to their podcast. She even added a special sound in the podcast to indicate a new chapter. Once they listened to the podcast, she asked them to write down a few sentences about their experience. It is so amazing how students can be so engaged and be perfectionist's.They experimented with their inflection, pitches, emotions, volume, and speed. Tolisano lists several steps she would like to take in order to make the podcast/word document streamlined into a mp3 file with an attached word file in order for the children to scroll through the chapter readings at their own pace as they are playing and pausing the audio file. This would be amazing if this could be accomplished cost-effectively, or even for free.
Flat Stanley Podcast:
I also read Flat Stanley Podcast on Langwitrches blog, in which she writes about a first grade class that read the book Flat Stanley by Jim Brown and sent paper Flat Stanleys to their relatives around the country in order to receive images and stories back. The six-year-olds then wanted to create their own recording of the book. They brainstormed a storyline and they were flattened by their SmartBoard to be mailed around the world. Each student picked a location and researched it in order to write a short script which included: The location (city, state, country, and continent), how they got there (transportation), what they done at the location, and how they got back home. They were also reminded to think about senses and sound effects that could be used to help portray the mood in the recording.
Why Podcast? How Do We Podcast?
After reading Langwitches blog, I have realized that there are several reasons to podcast. By the way, if you are wondering what a podcast is- it A is a digital recording of someone talking and giving instruction. They're downloadable through the internet and iTunes. People of ANY age can reap the benefits of contributing to a podcast. Share your creativity. Let the world hear your voice. Give yourself the opportunity to be heard! Learn from others. Use podcasts in lesson plans. All you need to start your podcast is a computer, a microphone and an internet connection. It doesn't get any easier than that, right? You're only limited by your imagination. And it is easy, even if you aren't technologically savvy! You basically just plan what you will be discussing/ recording, then talk into a microphone, and last publish. It is a little more advanced than that, but this is basically how you create a podcast! Please read Langwitches Blog and search for more information regarding podcasts so your voice can be heard across the world, too!
How Do We Do a Podcast?
By: Heather Smith
Podcasting with First Grade:
After reading Podcasting with First Grade on Langwitches Blog written by Silvia Tolisano, it was apparent that skills that are being taught are what are important, not the technology that is being taught! Langwitches encourages podcasting with younger elementary students. She writes about first graders listening to a podcast about animals and being thrilled that the second graders from the podcast had received so many comments from around the world. They were eager to record their own podcast and have their voices put "into other people's computers and iPods". The class read a chapter book called Vacation Under the Volcano from the Magic Tree House series by Mary Pope Osborne. They pretended they were interviewing Jack and Annie (the two main characters) about their adventure. They read one chapter at a time, discussed what they were reading, and came up with a script of questions and answers. They then began to record. The students were rotated as the interviewers, jack, and Annie. She was amazed at how cooperative and attentive these first-graders were. Several students took an interest in editing the podcast. These students were really coming out of their shell. They began to emphasize words, demonstrate different sounds of their voices, and agreed not to read off the script- to use different acting voices. Lastly, she added music and sound effects and let the students listen to their podcast. I was amazed at how informative this post was, but even more at how many skills this assignment/podcast addressed: listening, speaking, presenting, comprehension, storytelling, performance, voice acting, oral fluency, media, and technology!
Tolisano, the creator of the blog Langwitches, hits on Podcasting with First Grade (as summarized previously) in her blog post First Graders Create Their own AudioBook . In this post, she more thoroughly describes her end of the process of creating a read-along. She pulled students to record while their teacher read one chapter at a time out of Vacation Under the Volcano and created the interview script to be recorded by the students. By the time the last chapter was recorded there were ten written scripts that she decided to create a little booklet for the students to be able to follow along while they listened to their podcast. She even added a special sound in the podcast to indicate a new chapter. Once they listened to the podcast, she asked them to write down a few sentences about their experience. It is so amazing how students can be so engaged and be perfectionist's.They experimented with their inflection, pitches, emotions, volume, and speed. Tolisano lists several steps she would like to take in order to make the podcast/word document streamlined into a mp3 file with an attached word file in order for the children to scroll through the chapter readings at their own pace as they are playing and pausing the audio file. This would be amazing if this could be accomplished cost-effectively, or even for free.
I also read Flat Stanley Podcast on Langwitrches blog, in which she writes about a first grade class that read the book Flat Stanley by Jim Brown and sent paper Flat Stanleys to their relatives around the country in order to receive images and stories back. The six-year-olds then wanted to create their own recording of the book. They brainstormed a storyline and they were flattened by their SmartBoard to be mailed around the world. Each student picked a location and researched it in order to write a short script which included: The location (city, state, country, and continent), how they got there (transportation), what they done at the location, and how they got back home. They were also reminded to think about senses and sound effects that could be used to help portray the mood in the recording.
After reading Langwitches blog, I have realized that there are several reasons to podcast. By the way, if you are wondering what a podcast is- it A is a digital recording of someone talking and giving instruction. They're downloadable through the internet and iTunes. People of ANY age can reap the benefits of contributing to a podcast. Share your creativity. Let the world hear your voice. Give yourself the opportunity to be heard! Learn from others. Use podcasts in lesson plans. All you need to start your podcast is a computer, a microphone and an internet connection. It doesn't get any easier than that, right? You're only limited by your imagination. And it is easy, even if you aren't technologically savvy! You basically just plan what you will be discussing/ recording, then talk into a microphone, and last publish. It is a little more advanced than that, but this is basically how you create a podcast! Please read Langwitches Blog and search for more information regarding podcasts so your voice can be heard across the world, too!
Sunday, September 8, 2013
Blog Post #3
Blog Post #3:
How Can You Provide Meaningful Feedback to Your Peer?
After watching the video What is Peer Editing? and the Slideshow Peer Edit with Perfection Tutorial, I realized that I have not always edited a peer’s paper correctly! The video and tutorial outline three steps for peer editing: compliment, suggestions, and corrections. When editing someone’s paper- you should always compliment them: stay positive; give detailed suggestions: such as word choice, details, organization, topics, or sentences; and make corrections: such as grammar, punctuation, or spelling.
After watching Writing Peer Review Top 10 Mistakes , I realized that there are so many instances which people think they are helping a peer, but actually they are being a “Picky Patty”, “Jean the Generalizer”, or “Pushy Paula”. We should care about what others think, but when someone is mean, loud, pushy, or disrespectful t is hard to view their criticism as constructive. On the other hand, one should not be off task, uncaring, or overly defensive. It is hard to edit for anyone, but especially one’s peer. These are people that are your same age, that you interact with daily. In so many instances people do not give adequate feedback because they do not want to hurt anothers feelings. On the flip of that- sometimes people think they are close enough to be bluntly honest and this is not a good decision, either. Finding that thin, positive, line is hard for some, but it is beneficial for all involved.
Critique of Group Members:
Brianne Smith’s Blog Assignment #2 is thorough and well thought out. She incorporates many pictures and her post flows well. She uses headings to break-up the text into categories which is very organized. I could not find any spelling or grammar errors. Her post is well written.
Amanda Weller’s Blog Assignment #2 is also very thorough and well written. There are no grammar or spelling errors. She also incorporates many visual aides. Her organization is thorough and astonishing.
Lisa Smith’s Blog Assignment #2 is also well written, but there are a few minor details that I would change. I have commented on her post and made her aware of my feelings concerning this. My comments are: “I think you done an amazing job summarizing "The Networked Student". I love the details! I just had a few concerns I wanted to share with you. Please look at this as positive criticism and if you have any questions feel free to email me! I think you should change some of the colors (such as all the titles of each post) or at least make all of them bold and unified. It gets a little hectic reading the blog with some things bold and others not. Also- there are a few words that were edited but the text was never changed back to all black (like endings of a word in red). I like the pictures the group chose to incorporate. Overall your blog looks really good, I just think these minor details would really bring the actual writing out- instead of paying attention to the mistakes. Thanks for listening!” And you can find my comment here.
Offering Suggestions: After pondering Dr. Strange’s question: Will you offer suggestions (peer blog post assignments) publicly or privately? I have had a hard time making this decision because I feel there are valid reasons for each choice. I have ultimately chosen publicly, though. You never know when others need assistance or have similar problems/ questions. If you are critiquing someone in private then others can not improve from you, only the single person you are privately speaking with. When you are critiquing publicly, though, other people can read your advice and hopefully take something from it- improving multiple people’s blog (hypothetically speaking, of course!). I know there will always be negative counterparts to publicly criticizing, even if it is constructive, due to language barriers and lack of tone. I will just have to try hard to put emotion into my words and convey my feelings positively and enthusiastically in order to not offend someone, but rather uplift and help better them.
Thank you for taking the time to read my post! Hope you have a wonderful day! Thought this last picture was perfect to close with...
After watching the video What is Peer Editing? and the Slideshow Peer Edit with Perfection Tutorial, I realized that I have not always edited a peer’s paper correctly! The video and tutorial outline three steps for peer editing: compliment, suggestions, and corrections. When editing someone’s paper- you should always compliment them: stay positive; give detailed suggestions: such as word choice, details, organization, topics, or sentences; and make corrections: such as grammar, punctuation, or spelling.
After watching Writing Peer Review Top 10 Mistakes , I realized that there are so many instances which people think they are helping a peer, but actually they are being a “Picky Patty”, “Jean the Generalizer”, or “Pushy Paula”. We should care about what others think, but when someone is mean, loud, pushy, or disrespectful t is hard to view their criticism as constructive. On the other hand, one should not be off task, uncaring, or overly defensive. It is hard to edit for anyone, but especially one’s peer. These are people that are your same age, that you interact with daily. In so many instances people do not give adequate feedback because they do not want to hurt anothers feelings. On the flip of that- sometimes people think they are close enough to be bluntly honest and this is not a good decision, either. Finding that thin, positive, line is hard for some, but it is beneficial for all involved.
Critique of Group Members:
Amanda Weller’s Blog Assignment #2 is also very thorough and well written. There are no grammar or spelling errors. She also incorporates many visual aides. Her organization is thorough and astonishing.
Lisa Smith’s Blog Assignment #2 is also well written, but there are a few minor details that I would change. I have commented on her post and made her aware of my feelings concerning this. My comments are: “I think you done an amazing job summarizing "The Networked Student". I love the details! I just had a few concerns I wanted to share with you. Please look at this as positive criticism and if you have any questions feel free to email me! I think you should change some of the colors (such as all the titles of each post) or at least make all of them bold and unified. It gets a little hectic reading the blog with some things bold and others not. Also- there are a few words that were edited but the text was never changed back to all black (like endings of a word in red). I like the pictures the group chose to incorporate. Overall your blog looks really good, I just think these minor details would really bring the actual writing out- instead of paying attention to the mistakes. Thanks for listening!” And you can find my comment here.
Offering Suggestions: After pondering Dr. Strange’s question: Will you offer suggestions (peer blog post assignments) publicly or privately? I have had a hard time making this decision because I feel there are valid reasons for each choice. I have ultimately chosen publicly, though. You never know when others need assistance or have similar problems/ questions. If you are critiquing someone in private then others can not improve from you, only the single person you are privately speaking with. When you are critiquing publicly, though, other people can read your advice and hopefully take something from it- improving multiple people’s blog (hypothetically speaking, of course!). I know there will always be negative counterparts to publicly criticizing, even if it is constructive, due to language barriers and lack of tone. I will just have to try hard to put emotion into my words and convey my feelings positively and enthusiastically in order to not offend someone, but rather uplift and help better them.
Thank you for taking the time to read my post! Hope you have a wonderful day! Thought this last picture was perfect to close with...
Sunday, September 1, 2013
Blog Post #2
What Will Teaching in the 21st Century be Like?
Group: Raphael
Video Introduction:
"Mr. Dancealot"
By: Lisa Smith, Heather Smith, Briann Smith, and Amanda Weller
Mr. Dancealot is unfortunately a typical class for many students. The professor lectures but the concepts are never thoroughly explained or covered. Students are expected to listen to directions rather than be taught the steps of the dance. Some things must be taught physically, rather than verbalizing a physical movement. Using these teaching methods will display serious negative consequences. PowerPoint presentations should not be the only learning tool that your Professor uses. There should be activities for hands on experience because statistics show that people learn better by actually doing it rather than just being told about it. During the times that Mr. Dancealot did present to the class a dance move, he had a desk blocking his movements and he taught from a far distance. This is not a good teaching method. Teaching, especially a class as physically involved as dance, should be hands-on. He also did not allow movement or talking in his classroom. Mr. Dancealot failed as an educator, failed to realize the proper way to teach dance, and he failed to educate a single person in his class. Mr. Dancealot is a prime example of how a teacher’s teaching technique can hinder a student’s ability to learn and understand information. He gave poor instructions and expected the class to follow along. The lesson he gave was rushed and lacked the adequate information that the students needed to prepare for the final. For the dance lesson, Dr. Dancealot should have created an in-class activity that allowed the students to practice using the dance steps and participate in a mock test. By creating an in class activity, the students would have been able to rehearse the dance steps and get an idea of what the final would include. The in-class activity would also give the students a chance to ask questions about any of the dance material that was confusing to them.
Teaching in the 21st Century
By: Heather Smith
Teaching in the 21st century means realizing you are not the only source of information to students. Knowledge can be found anywhere at anytime. Educators have shifted from supplying knowledge to filtering it, according to Roberts. Being technologically savvy will result in better learning and communicating with students. People may question the negative aspects of using vast amounts of technology, but as Roberts stated, tools provide temptation, but they are not the source of negative behavior. These technological tools were viewed as entertainment alone, but now they are more than that. Entertainment is using creativity of others, engagement is using the creativity of the participant. Lessons need to be relevant, challenging, and engaging, regardless of what tool used to accomplish this. Teaching in the 21st century, according to Roberts, means there is a necessity for devices. 
A necessity to use any and all means available to a teacher and student in order to obtain the maximum amount of knowledge. This means teachers should use every possible resource available, including devices and their software, apps, blogs, sites, etc. I agree totally with Roberts thesis. If there are options available that will enhance the learning experience, then they should be used. If there are options that will allow students to better remember, understand, apply, analyze, evaluate, and create- then use those options! As a future educator I believe teaching will incorporate the use of all available tools on the web available. I think it will take more time than should be allowed, but educators will soon realize that things are evolving and the teaching methods used today must evolve as well to handle the need for a “teacher”.
Flipping the Classroom
By: Amanda Weller
Flipping the Classroom discusses the importance of the old learning techniques, learning online, and bringing homework into the classroom. Its purpose is to bring learning to a whole new level. Flipping the Classroom was created and modified by Dr. Lodge. His creation is going to allow more creativity and students to get a more hands on experience with technology.
What a student does in the classroom can now be done at home. It will give teachers more time to teach, ask questions, and spend more time with the class. As of now, Flipping the Classroom is only being used for mathematics and it is being used for any grade level.
So far the expectations are high and students are coming to class with questions about material they are unsure of. Teacher's are finding this new technology very useful because they are able to see what activities the students are doing and how they are doing. Flipping the Classroom is a new and exciting experience that is going to help change and promote a higher level of learning!
The Networked Student
By: Lisa Smith
The networked student uses information from teachers, fellow classmates, and the internet circle to further their career's in learning. It starts with the student’s ability to learn new technologies and to think outside of the traditional classroom. The student is given an enormous amount of information that he or she will have to absorb and begin adapting to this new way of learning. The student must have access to the internet and have proper technology for this system to work. It will also take many hours of research to get the required information/learning material all in one spot for study. In the end it is up to the student to change their way of learning by becoming the networked student.
First you will get the guidance from your teacher on what topics you need to know about. Then you would ask any questions that you may have about the topic and she will give you feedback so that no one is confused. You will then be instructed to surf the internet and find material to help you on your subject matter. Every time that you locate beneficial material you will add a bookmark to that page. In the end you will put all of your bookmarks into one folder and this will create your textbook for your subject.
Having all the resources at the touch of a fingertip is amazing. It is like no end to learning new things. It is very exciting to know that my own children get to use some of “The networked Student,” ideas in their classrooms now. Through the use of Smart Boards and other handheld devices I can see the changes already beginning to take place. Welcome to the future of learning!
The Digital Classroom
By: Briann Smith
A Day in the Life of a Computer Teacher
The "Harness Your Students’ Digital Smarts is a great video on involving the use of technology in the classroom. The video included a day in the life of a computer teacher and her class in Georgia and how the use of technology has connected them to places all over the world. The teacher, Mrs. Davis, helps her students to understand technology and to become comfortable using it. In her class she teaches on how to use blogs, computer software, and also how to collaborate with people from all over the world by the use of technology. She not only teaches how to use blogs, but she is a blogger herself on the awarded Cool Cat Teacher blog, which has about six thousand readers.
The Brainstorm Team
Mrs. Davis also strongly believes in student involvement and she encourages students to brainstorm and find answers on their own. She describes the pride and empowerment her students feel when they figure out something for his or her self. Mrs. Davis expects the students in her class to use their personal strengths and to think about how they can improve and use their technology skills. She customizes the class’s curriculum by their ability and strengths. In her computer class, her students are currently learning about Open Sim, a virtual life program. In Open Sim , the students create their own avatars, which are digital representations of a user in any virtual world or any online community. The students also create their own blogs. One student, a girl named Virginia expressed how proud she was of her most recent blog post, a post on rights and responsibilities. The blog post was a collaborative project with other students from around the world on Digi Teen.
The Digi Teen
Digi Teen is a global collaborative platform for student bloggers around the world. The global platform was founded by Mrs. Davis and Julie Lindsey, a teacher in Qatar. Students and teachers from all over the world use Digi Teen to post blogs, connect, and to share ideas.
The Flat Classroom Project
Mrs.Davis and Mrs. Lindsey also founded the Flat Classroom project. The Flat Classroom Project provides a place for students to learn and experience from other students about the trends in technology. The students can collaborate on reports and make videos on the trends in technology. So, they get to experience first hand on the new trends and how to use them.
Technology's Impact in the Classroom
Mrs. Davis’s class is a great example on how the use of technology can really impact a student’s education and a school’s connection with others. The use of technology in a classroom is so important in today's world. It provides students and teachers with a way to learn about new technology and to connect and share with others from all over the world.
Group: Raphael
Video Introduction:
"Mr. Dancealot"
By: Lisa Smith, Heather Smith, Briann Smith, and Amanda Weller
Teaching in the 21st Century
By: Heather Smith
Flipping the Classroom
By: Amanda Weller
Flipping the Classroom discusses the importance of the old learning techniques, learning online, and bringing homework into the classroom. Its purpose is to bring learning to a whole new level. Flipping the Classroom was created and modified by Dr. Lodge. His creation is going to allow more creativity and students to get a more hands on experience with technology.
The Networked Student
By: Lisa Smith
The networked student uses information from teachers, fellow classmates, and the internet circle to further their career's in learning. It starts with the student’s ability to learn new technologies and to think outside of the traditional classroom. The student is given an enormous amount of information that he or she will have to absorb and begin adapting to this new way of learning. The student must have access to the internet and have proper technology for this system to work. It will also take many hours of research to get the required information/learning material all in one spot for study. In the end it is up to the student to change their way of learning by becoming the networked student.
The Digital Classroom
By: Briann Smith
A Day in the Life of a Computer Teacher
The Brainstorm Team
Mrs. Davis also strongly believes in student involvement and she encourages students to brainstorm and find answers on their own. She describes the pride and empowerment her students feel when they figure out something for his or her self. Mrs. Davis expects the students in her class to use their personal strengths and to think about how they can improve and use their technology skills. She customizes the class’s curriculum by their ability and strengths. In her computer class, her students are currently learning about Open Sim, a virtual life program. In Open Sim , the students create their own avatars, which are digital representations of a user in any virtual world or any online community. The students also create their own blogs. One student, a girl named Virginia expressed how proud she was of her most recent blog post, a post on rights and responsibilities. The blog post was a collaborative project with other students from around the world on Digi Teen.
The Digi Teen
Digi Teen is a global collaborative platform for student bloggers around the world. The global platform was founded by Mrs. Davis and Julie Lindsey, a teacher in Qatar. Students and teachers from all over the world use Digi Teen to post blogs, connect, and to share ideas.
The Flat Classroom Project
Mrs.Davis and Mrs. Lindsey also founded the Flat Classroom project. The Flat Classroom Project provides a place for students to learn and experience from other students about the trends in technology. The students can collaborate on reports and make videos on the trends in technology. So, they get to experience first hand on the new trends and how to use them.
Technology's Impact in the Classroom
Mrs. Davis’s class is a great example on how the use of technology can really impact a student’s education and a school’s connection with others. The use of technology in a classroom is so important in today's world. It provides students and teachers with a way to learn about new technology and to connect and share with others from all over the world.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)