Saturday, July 23, 2011
Sunday, July 17, 2011
blog post 14
For the choice of this blog I chose to read Psuedoteaching: MIT Physics. We will start out with the question of " What is Psuedoteaching?" Psuedoteaching is when you yourself as a teacher are giving a lecture and just feel as if it is so phenomenal and that your students are getting a great lesson taught to them and yet you look at your students and realize that they have not comprehended one word that you have just said. Bummer huh?! I am a hands on learner and sitting through class lectures does not help me. Seeing a teacher actually do what is being taught helps me learn better. When I think back of high school, I had many psuedoteachers. I would always wonder, "well they showed me in class how come I STILL don't get it?!" Pure example now that I look back.
In this blog was given an example teacher and video of Professor Walter Lewin who teaches Physics at MIT demonstrating some excellent lectures and movements of Physics. Lewin put in 40 hours for one lecture and would then practice the lecture and demonstrations three times before doing it in front of his students. For all the time put into the lectures you would think that the students would have gotten something out of it, but they didn't. With Lewin's attendance rate dropping everyday don't you wonder if he ever thought to himself of why it was dropping.
What did MIT do about the large percentage of drop rates and failing? They created TEAL, which stands for Technology Enhanced Active Learning. With the usage of TEAL, the classrooms got rid of chalk boards and replaced them with white boards. With the white boards the students would also have white boards and be able to interact with the teacher and work problems out and such. With the help of white boards, being a visual learner like myself is better for learning than just hearing what should be done.
I think that with students being interactive in the classroom environment it will make them want to learn. Even with SMART boards today and being in the classroom when the teachers use them, the students are eager to get up and go answer a question or move something or write on it! Having students sit at their desk for seven hours of their day and being taught bores them. Children have very little attention spans, but having the children interacting with you while you do your lecture or lesson is what will make the students more involved. I say all of this now, and hope that I stick to my word in having children being involved in the classroom and me not falling back into the category of a psuedoteacher. Wish me luck guys!
In this blog was given an example teacher and video of Professor Walter Lewin who teaches Physics at MIT demonstrating some excellent lectures and movements of Physics. Lewin put in 40 hours for one lecture and would then practice the lecture and demonstrations three times before doing it in front of his students. For all the time put into the lectures you would think that the students would have gotten something out of it, but they didn't. With Lewin's attendance rate dropping everyday don't you wonder if he ever thought to himself of why it was dropping.
What did MIT do about the large percentage of drop rates and failing? They created TEAL, which stands for Technology Enhanced Active Learning. With the usage of TEAL, the classrooms got rid of chalk boards and replaced them with white boards. With the white boards the students would also have white boards and be able to interact with the teacher and work problems out and such. With the help of white boards, being a visual learner like myself is better for learning than just hearing what should be done.
I think that with students being interactive in the classroom environment it will make them want to learn. Even with SMART boards today and being in the classroom when the teachers use them, the students are eager to get up and go answer a question or move something or write on it! Having students sit at their desk for seven hours of their day and being taught bores them. Children have very little attention spans, but having the children interacting with you while you do your lecture or lesson is what will make the students more involved. I say all of this now, and hope that I stick to my word in having children being involved in the classroom and me not falling back into the category of a psuedoteacher. Wish me luck guys!
Friday, July 15, 2011
Thursday, July 14, 2011
Final Report on PLN
I would have never known that something such as a PLN even existed. Even being able to open Safari and my own personalized Symbaloo comes up as my home page with my most frequently visited web sites helps tremendously. Having all of those web sites such as EDM 310 class blog page, my own blog, Facebook, Twitter, Tweet Deck, Compass, all of my e-mail accounts, and other websites that I visit frequently. Having this also makes me think that I could personalize a symbaloo for school websites, such as blogs, and other websites that I have found that can be helpful in the classroom. Having a PLN is something that I would have never gotten if it were not for EDM class.
![]()
C4T4
For this comment for teachers blog I was assigned to Hadley J's blog of Middle School Matrix. The first blog entry that caught my eye to read was "If I Could Craft Your Summer." In this entry she has put together a wish list and a list of goals for her students over the summer. Her first wish is for boredom and silence for her students because she thinks that activities are always filling the students minds, and they need to just clear their minds for once and use their imagination. The next two Hadley wants her students to take time out of their day to go outside and just listen to nature itself and for the students to read whatever they please for five to fifteen minutes daily. The last wish is for her students to have fun and just relax and enjoy your time off from school. For my comment, I agreed that those few wishes she had are something that every student should fulfill during their summer time. Kids enjoy being on the go all the time and playing sports, but every once in a while students need the rest and relaxation of not being in school.
For my second time to go back to Hadley's blog, I decided to read her entry " The Unknown World of The Encyclopedia." In this blog she has given her students three people to think of who they would like to research.They end up at the library for her students to explore in books and what not to narrow their searches. Come to find out when she would tell her students to look it up in an Encyclopedia or World Book they would steer away from the book shelf because it was all one click away on the computer. She then tells the students the Encyclopedias are just like wikipedia and they get excited and start to use them. She said in a couple years we went from teaching and looking up things in books to now using the internet. She is totally true, who wants to get an Encyclopedia when they can stay in the same place they are and look it up on their phone or laptop?! Technology is taking over everything including the schools, so yes books may still be helpful but with technology it is faster and what most people prefer.
![]()
For my second time to go back to Hadley's blog, I decided to read her entry " The Unknown World of The Encyclopedia." In this blog she has given her students three people to think of who they would like to research.They end up at the library for her students to explore in books and what not to narrow their searches. Come to find out when she would tell her students to look it up in an Encyclopedia or World Book they would steer away from the book shelf because it was all one click away on the computer. She then tells the students the Encyclopedias are just like wikipedia and they get excited and start to use them. She said in a couple years we went from teaching and looking up things in books to now using the internet. She is totally true, who wants to get an Encyclopedia when they can stay in the same place they are and look it up on their phone or laptop?! Technology is taking over everything including the schools, so yes books may still be helpful but with technology it is faster and what most people prefer.
Wednesday, July 13, 2011
blog post 13!
While watching "Top Ten Tips For Using Technology in The Classroom," it only made me realize how important technology is in the classroom. This video also proves to me that I will be able to apply the technology and the ten tips into my own classroom. Also in this video it backups everything that Dr. Strange has taught us in EDM 310. From watching this video and almost completing EDM it helps me have a better understanding of how technology is to be used in the classroom.
For a few of his tips I agree with using Skype and music. Not that I don't agree, with the other eight tips but I am all for introducing and including music and Skype into my classroom. I have said before in many of my blog post that I want a "buddy class" for the usage of Skype. Ever since watching the one class Skype with another and make poems via Skype on a teachers blog I was assigned to, I have been fascinated. I wish as if I could go into the classroom now and start it. With music, it is a great way for the students to get motivated in doing their work. Even having music for a quick dance, or even the Alphabet song, the students will be involved because anything is better than sitting at a desk for seven or eight hours straight. Using technology in the classroom can be entertaining but also help you achieve the goals you want to achieve in your lesson plans. Technology is great, where would we be without it?!
For a few of his tips I agree with using Skype and music. Not that I don't agree, with the other eight tips but I am all for introducing and including music and Skype into my classroom. I have said before in many of my blog post that I want a "buddy class" for the usage of Skype. Ever since watching the one class Skype with another and make poems via Skype on a teachers blog I was assigned to, I have been fascinated. I wish as if I could go into the classroom now and start it. With music, it is a great way for the students to get motivated in doing their work. Even having music for a quick dance, or even the Alphabet song, the students will be involved because anything is better than sitting at a desk for seven or eight hours straight. Using technology in the classroom can be entertaining but also help you achieve the goals you want to achieve in your lesson plans. Technology is great, where would we be without it?!
Sunday, July 10, 2011
blog post 12
Read Education World: Integrating Technology in the Classroom: It takes more than just having computers. and of the twenty ways that it list to integrate technology into the classroom, pick a minimum of three and describe why you chose each.
After reading this article, it has come to make me realize that something as small as the weather can be shown to the students with technology and that it may actually be more enjoyable than the pictures that you have in your classroom for the weather. For the ones that I chose that would be interesting but yet fun for the students would be; provide online reading comprehension practice, access an online weather forecast, introduce a word of the day, provide a URL in the place of a quote, and send the students off with a smile. For the first one of providing online comprehension practice, I chose this one because I was and still am a student who has to read something many times in order to comprehend it. I like to be hands on in class, and not "burp back the material" as Dr. Strange says. I feel as if there are many students who are just like myself, but yet feel as if they can not pass anything because they do not get the material right away like others and they actually have to work for their grades. Having the help and practice online, may help and ease themselves in knowing that they may be able to comprehend and learn better with practice. For the second one of accessing an online weather forecast, I think that would be great. I have already decided that I would like a "buddy class" to Skype with, and how awesome would it be if they were somewhere up North, and we could compare our weather forecast to how theirs is?! I feel as if the students would find it interesting that we may be in a sweater, when they are bundled up in a snow storm. For the word of the day, I think that is a great idea whether technology is around or not. Just being able to introduce a new word to the students and enhance and broaden their vocabulary is a small step, but in the end it will pay off. I am one for having quotes everywhere; in my car, my room, Facebook, everywhere. I love to be surrounded by positive things, and having positive quotes in the classroom may make the students feel as if they can do whatever they put their minds too. For the last one of send your students off with a smile, just to end the day off on a good note tell the students a joke and get a laugh or two out of them. Lighten the mood for the students know that it is almost time to go home. I am so glad I found this website because with the twenty ways listed and then over fifty other websites that you can go to and visit for other ways is awesome and I plan on bookmarking it and using it when I get into the classroom atmosphere.
After reading this article, it has come to make me realize that something as small as the weather can be shown to the students with technology and that it may actually be more enjoyable than the pictures that you have in your classroom for the weather. For the ones that I chose that would be interesting but yet fun for the students would be; provide online reading comprehension practice, access an online weather forecast, introduce a word of the day, provide a URL in the place of a quote, and send the students off with a smile. For the first one of providing online comprehension practice, I chose this one because I was and still am a student who has to read something many times in order to comprehend it. I like to be hands on in class, and not "burp back the material" as Dr. Strange says. I feel as if there are many students who are just like myself, but yet feel as if they can not pass anything because they do not get the material right away like others and they actually have to work for their grades. Having the help and practice online, may help and ease themselves in knowing that they may be able to comprehend and learn better with practice. For the second one of accessing an online weather forecast, I think that would be great. I have already decided that I would like a "buddy class" to Skype with, and how awesome would it be if they were somewhere up North, and we could compare our weather forecast to how theirs is?! I feel as if the students would find it interesting that we may be in a sweater, when they are bundled up in a snow storm. For the word of the day, I think that is a great idea whether technology is around or not. Just being able to introduce a new word to the students and enhance and broaden their vocabulary is a small step, but in the end it will pay off. I am one for having quotes everywhere; in my car, my room, Facebook, everywhere. I love to be surrounded by positive things, and having positive quotes in the classroom may make the students feel as if they can do whatever they put their minds too. For the last one of send your students off with a smile, just to end the day off on a good note tell the students a joke and get a laugh or two out of them. Lighten the mood for the students know that it is almost time to go home. I am so glad I found this website because with the twenty ways listed and then over fifty other websites that you can go to and visit for other ways is awesome and I plan on bookmarking it and using it when I get into the classroom atmosphere.
Saturday, July 9, 2011
final project progress report
For the final project I am in a group with Emily Kinney and Christy Hayes. We have yet to decide on what we are going to do but are meeting Monday to talk it over and start working on our project. We plan to meet as much as we can when we all are not working to get the project completed before it is due!
Wednesday, July 6, 2011
blog post 11!
Little Kids... Big Potential
Watching this video about Mrs. Cassidy's First Grade classroom made me think that anything is possible. When first starting EDM 310 I was doubtful in the way that such young students would be able to use technology like we use today, but by watching this video it proved me wrong. In Mrs. Cassidy her students are working with blogs, wikis, webpages, Nintendo DS, making videos and also Skyping to share with others there education progress. On the students blogs they do their classwork and even show improvement by each blog. With the students being able to blog they said other family members such as uncles and grandparents could see their progress in their school work. What an awesome idea! Not only on their blog, but Mrs. Cassidy has the student webpage and the students can go to it and click on the many exercises that are listed and they can work them at their own pace. For the students to have other classroom blogs and classrooms that they Skype with and share their ideas really shows collaboration with others, which is never a bad thing. The students to seem to really enjoy working and being engaged in activity with technology. Their progress for only being in the first grade is also about the same level that I am on in college. Also, Mrs. Cassidy went outside of the regular teaching methods, and I am sure that the students enjoy being able to use all of the technology.
Skype Interview with Mrs. Cassidy
While watching the Skype interview, it seems as if Mrs. Cassidy is all about her students learning how to properly use technology to learn in the classroom. She went to many lengths for technology to be used in the classroom, which means she was determined for her students to have and learn it. Mrs. Cassidy also says that "students and technology go hand in hand." I think she is correct, and that students do begin to shut down with learning the old way with books and paper and pencil. She is also very cautious of how her students do their blogs and the information that they display. She does not allow the students to post pictures with their face, but yet mix up the pictures with the students names. With the approach that she takes to technology she is very cautious and does not seem as if she will be letting technology go in her classroom, but only further more use it.
Using blogs and webpages seems to be a great idea while in the classroom. I like the idea of using the webpage and the students being allowed to go home and work on the lessons at their own pace. I also really LOVE the idea of using Skype. I hope that in my classroom I will be able to find a classroom that could be our "buddy class" and we could Skype maybe once a week to see what is happening. Sharing ideas is something that I think can help further education and just our own learning purposes by others. I hope that my classroom can be half of the classroom, speaking about technology, as Mrs. Cassidy's classroom is.
Watching this video about Mrs. Cassidy's First Grade classroom made me think that anything is possible. When first starting EDM 310 I was doubtful in the way that such young students would be able to use technology like we use today, but by watching this video it proved me wrong. In Mrs. Cassidy her students are working with blogs, wikis, webpages, Nintendo DS, making videos and also Skyping to share with others there education progress. On the students blogs they do their classwork and even show improvement by each blog. With the students being able to blog they said other family members such as uncles and grandparents could see their progress in their school work. What an awesome idea! Not only on their blog, but Mrs. Cassidy has the student webpage and the students can go to it and click on the many exercises that are listed and they can work them at their own pace. For the students to have other classroom blogs and classrooms that they Skype with and share their ideas really shows collaboration with others, which is never a bad thing. The students to seem to really enjoy working and being engaged in activity with technology. Their progress for only being in the first grade is also about the same level that I am on in college. Also, Mrs. Cassidy went outside of the regular teaching methods, and I am sure that the students enjoy being able to use all of the technology.
Skype Interview with Mrs. Cassidy
While watching the Skype interview, it seems as if Mrs. Cassidy is all about her students learning how to properly use technology to learn in the classroom. She went to many lengths for technology to be used in the classroom, which means she was determined for her students to have and learn it. Mrs. Cassidy also says that "students and technology go hand in hand." I think she is correct, and that students do begin to shut down with learning the old way with books and paper and pencil. She is also very cautious of how her students do their blogs and the information that they display. She does not allow the students to post pictures with their face, but yet mix up the pictures with the students names. With the approach that she takes to technology she is very cautious and does not seem as if she will be letting technology go in her classroom, but only further more use it.
Using blogs and webpages seems to be a great idea while in the classroom. I like the idea of using the webpage and the students being allowed to go home and work on the lessons at their own pace. I also really LOVE the idea of using Skype. I hope that in my classroom I will be able to find a classroom that could be our "buddy class" and we could Skype maybe once a week to see what is happening. Sharing ideas is something that I think can help further education and just our own learning purposes by others. I hope that my classroom can be half of the classroom, speaking about technology, as Mrs. Cassidy's classroom is.
Sunday, July 3, 2011
special assignment 2
Part 1
The Khan Academy is a "free world-class education for anyone anywhere". One day he was teaching cousin and thought that it would be more useful and time consuming if he could put his lecture on the internet for others to see and his cousin to view on his own time. So he did and the number of views of his lectures starting growing. He created the Kahn Academy, after himself and now creates videos on certain topics and posts them for others to see for free.
iTunesU is similar to YouTube and also the Khan Academy. On iTunesU you can upload your own videos and lectures for others to see such as; teachers, students, faculty of schools, and anyone interested in it. For viewing purposes you can upload or import the videos to your iPod, iPad, MacBooks etc, and also your iPhone.
TED was started as technology, entertainment and design being brought together as one. TED main focus is " Ideas Worth Spreading." TED also has a wide variety of topics to chose from since their is to change the lives of others.
Part 2
TED seems as if it would brighten up a lecture. With the many different options and genres of videos on the website it makes each lecture seem a bit more interesting as if the teacher were teaching it because it is someone different. Another positive thing about TED is that the material may be more up-to-date with the time and have correct facts and entertain and even teach you the teacher something new.
With Kahn Academy, the first thing that comes to mind is parents being involved while the students are at home doing their homework. With this the parents can watch and help their children to understand and comprehend the concept that is being taught in the video. Also with Kahn Academy, the lessons are stacked on to one another so once a lesson is learned and the concept is grasped the student can move on to the next. Great building blocks where the material is not all thrown in your face at one big time.
On iTunesU any of the schools and resources on the list can be viewed or heard as far as the lectures go. Along with the other two, they all share the same concept of sharing lectures and educating students online. With any of the three they may also be used for those who have missed class, or who did not understand the lesson the first time, they can go back and watch or listen as many times as needed until they find the point the lecture is trying to get across.
Part 3
For TED, I watched as Michelle Obama went to the United Kingdom to share her plea for education. I could have watched a school lesson, but was more interested to see what she had to say about education. Michelle Obama Plea on Education. In this video Mrs. Obama is talking to an all girls school about how they need to start taking school more seriously because they are the new future and that they are the age that is going to change the education gap in what it was and what it should be. Michelle thinks that women help make a difference in the education department and most everything such as family, and jobs.
Age Word Problem by Mr. Kahn is the video I chose to watch from Kahn Academy. I chose this problem because these problems to me seem more than Algebra, but also a great brain runner. While watching this video, I had to actually get a piece of paper and a pen to do the work myself. These problems would be great brain warm ups or a quiz at beginning of class for students to keep as bonus points for when they please. I think that when students have to use their brains with problems such as these that it actually gets their brains started and thinking.
On iTunesU, I chose to watch "Digital Art." It was a project that the children got to chose their own pictures, add a little spunk to them, and make them into CD covers, TShirts, and other items that pictures can be screened or drawn onto. The idea behind this video was for the students to use their creativity while coming up with something that they enjoyed and thought looked great but still be able to use the different art tools and technology used today.
Part 4 and 5
For iTunesU, it seemed a bit complex for me to navigate through, but that is because I have not spent all the time in the world exploring it, but with all of the different topics and channels to chose from the possibilities are endless. For the Kahn Academy it is hands on done step by step, well in the few math ones that I have watched they were, and very detailed where maybe the "slower learners" could get on and actually comprehend the material. TED being with such a wide horizon makes the possibilities endless on what topic to do and also to see what others may think of the topic you are learning or teaching but yes also being critiqued by others. This assignment surprised me, but at the same time it didn't. Without this class I feel as if I would be slacking in the technology department in my classroom. This class has opened up my eyes and broadened my horizon to things and technology that I would have never thought would. For instance this project and reading teachers blogs and reading the input that they get from others can be so uplifting at times. Anyone can be a teacher, you just have to believe in yourself. This project has made me want to try out some lectures, put them onto iTunesU and put them on my iPod just to see what it is like. I can not wait to try.
The Khan Academy is a "free world-class education for anyone anywhere". One day he was teaching cousin and thought that it would be more useful and time consuming if he could put his lecture on the internet for others to see and his cousin to view on his own time. So he did and the number of views of his lectures starting growing. He created the Kahn Academy, after himself and now creates videos on certain topics and posts them for others to see for free.
iTunesU is similar to YouTube and also the Khan Academy. On iTunesU you can upload your own videos and lectures for others to see such as; teachers, students, faculty of schools, and anyone interested in it. For viewing purposes you can upload or import the videos to your iPod, iPad, MacBooks etc, and also your iPhone.
TED was started as technology, entertainment and design being brought together as one. TED main focus is " Ideas Worth Spreading." TED also has a wide variety of topics to chose from since their is to change the lives of others.
Part 2
TED seems as if it would brighten up a lecture. With the many different options and genres of videos on the website it makes each lecture seem a bit more interesting as if the teacher were teaching it because it is someone different. Another positive thing about TED is that the material may be more up-to-date with the time and have correct facts and entertain and even teach you the teacher something new.
With Kahn Academy, the first thing that comes to mind is parents being involved while the students are at home doing their homework. With this the parents can watch and help their children to understand and comprehend the concept that is being taught in the video. Also with Kahn Academy, the lessons are stacked on to one another so once a lesson is learned and the concept is grasped the student can move on to the next. Great building blocks where the material is not all thrown in your face at one big time.
On iTunesU any of the schools and resources on the list can be viewed or heard as far as the lectures go. Along with the other two, they all share the same concept of sharing lectures and educating students online. With any of the three they may also be used for those who have missed class, or who did not understand the lesson the first time, they can go back and watch or listen as many times as needed until they find the point the lecture is trying to get across.
Part 3
For TED, I watched as Michelle Obama went to the United Kingdom to share her plea for education. I could have watched a school lesson, but was more interested to see what she had to say about education. Michelle Obama Plea on Education. In this video Mrs. Obama is talking to an all girls school about how they need to start taking school more seriously because they are the new future and that they are the age that is going to change the education gap in what it was and what it should be. Michelle thinks that women help make a difference in the education department and most everything such as family, and jobs.
Age Word Problem by Mr. Kahn is the video I chose to watch from Kahn Academy. I chose this problem because these problems to me seem more than Algebra, but also a great brain runner. While watching this video, I had to actually get a piece of paper and a pen to do the work myself. These problems would be great brain warm ups or a quiz at beginning of class for students to keep as bonus points for when they please. I think that when students have to use their brains with problems such as these that it actually gets their brains started and thinking.
On iTunesU, I chose to watch "Digital Art." It was a project that the children got to chose their own pictures, add a little spunk to them, and make them into CD covers, TShirts, and other items that pictures can be screened or drawn onto. The idea behind this video was for the students to use their creativity while coming up with something that they enjoyed and thought looked great but still be able to use the different art tools and technology used today.
Part 4 and 5
For iTunesU, it seemed a bit complex for me to navigate through, but that is because I have not spent all the time in the world exploring it, but with all of the different topics and channels to chose from the possibilities are endless. For the Kahn Academy it is hands on done step by step, well in the few math ones that I have watched they were, and very detailed where maybe the "slower learners" could get on and actually comprehend the material. TED being with such a wide horizon makes the possibilities endless on what topic to do and also to see what others may think of the topic you are learning or teaching but yes also being critiqued by others. This assignment surprised me, but at the same time it didn't. Without this class I feel as if I would be slacking in the technology department in my classroom. This class has opened up my eyes and broadened my horizon to things and technology that I would have never thought would. For instance this project and reading teachers blogs and reading the input that they get from others can be so uplifting at times. Anyone can be a teacher, you just have to believe in yourself. This project has made me want to try out some lectures, put them onto iTunesU and put them on my iPod just to see what it is like. I can not wait to try.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)