Blog 5#

My intention is to work with High School Students in the General Science Subjects.
I have learned many technologys this year that I can use with the students in my classroom. I could probably use every technology in my classroom but I am posting the 3 that I feel I would use the most or would be the most useful to me.
1. Powerpoint: Powerpoints are a good way to demonstrate information to students in a interesting and colorful way. I also think that powerpoints are useful because you can insert graphics and videos to help the students understand concepts better than they could if you were just using a projector to write words.
2. Inspiration: I believe that Inspiration is a very useful tool because it allows students to use concept maps and other useful tools to connect different topics and it really helps to connect them in the students minds
3. Excel: I think in Science classes excel is a very useful tool because students can use it to make graphs for different experiments and to really understand concepts better because they can see data on a graph instead of just comparing it in their heads which isn't easy for visual learners.

I will probably not use kidspiration in the classroom because it is directed toward younger students and since I will be working with High School Students it doesnt seem like it would be very relevant to them. I also do not think I will be using Google earth in the classroom although it is a very interesting tool, it doesnt really have that many practical uses towards physics, chemistry, and biology.

Blog 4#

I believe in my classroom I would use many of these activities. I think games are always a good way to relate to students and to help them learn. In a way, you can show students how learning is fun and how certain concepts are easier than they think. Interactive white board activities are also useful because the students have to use their brains and work to connect certain concepts. I feel like when decribing how certain things work in science its good to have the students do "simulations". You could have them act like the different organelles of cells or you could also have them act like atoms or planets and move in the ways these items do. I dont think I would use virtual reality or virtual worlds in my classroom just becuase I feel like there arent that many high school science virtual world related things but I suppose it is always a possibility.

A interactive whiteboard activity I could use in the classroom would be filling out an inspiration concept map and having students write in or select subcategories for certain science related things. They also could conect certian things which would help them to relate concepts together. I think I could use games by having students work in groups to talk about different science topics and to compete against each other for candy, extra credit points or other prizes. As I stated above, I think that using simulations is a good thing to use in science classes to help kinestetic learners to understand concepts better. When you have a student actually practicipating in a experiment or a demonstration they start to understand it much better.

In conclusion, I will use alot of the things I learned in ETPT to help teach my students.

Blog #3

I think Digital Nation trys to show a very unbaised veiw of digital technology in teaching. Its beneficial because by using technology, students can learn in different ways that they were unable to learn in before. There are programs that can help teachers to show students things they would have never been able to imagine before using this technology. Students also get excited about technology and they understand technology which helps them to take a more active role in their education. In the video, they talk about how after they provided students in the bronx with laptops, students grades and participation started going up because students were significantly more interested in what was going on and could grasp the concepts easier.
Digital Nation also talks about the downfalls of this technology.  At MIT they recognize that college students try to multitask more than they should during class and because of this they don't focus as much as they should and that leads to them not learning as much as they could if they were only focusing on the lecture. They also talk about how students who think that they are good multitaskers really aren't. Technology also is a downfall because of all the distractions on the internet when your trying to do homework and how the effects of google and such give you "instant gratification" when trying to answer questions.

Overall, My view on technology in teaching is a positive thing. I went to a high school where you were given laptops and I think it helped alot with my ability to learn inside and outside of the classroom. I think that students should be limited in the technology that they use in the classroom to prevent distractions and when using computers, certain distracting websites should be blocked. Overall though I think technology is a great tool in the classroom when used properly.

Blog #2 Students use word processings to construct meaning

Tell us the level of students with whom you plan on teaching as well as your content area or the content area you have chosen for the newsletter. Tell us the standard you are working with. Then, describe the benchmark and/or grade level indicators you were working with on the Newsletter assignment. Most importantly, reflect on how your newsletter activity represents a learner-centered activity where your future students (on their own or with younger children, working with the teacher) would be able to construct meaning regarding the benchmark or grade level indicators by using the technology of word processing.

I am planning on teaching high school students science education and for this praticular project probably a biology or a natural or geographical science class. Im working with the Benchmark "Describe how human activities can impact the status of natural systems". The task was to create a newsletter describing how human activities impact natural systems to someone who had no formal knowledge in the topic.

I think this represents a learner centered activity for several reasons. First of all they have to go out and find their own information weather on the internet or in books which makes them have to be proactive in their own education. They have to learn to use word processing or a type of technological program to make the newsletter and this helps them to learn about the program by actually using the program.

I think this project is mostly constructive because to teach something to other people you have to understand it very well and because the students are basically teaching others through their newsletter they have to understand the topic very well. I think that having students teach other students or anyone in general is a good way to learn expecially since they are usually using word or powerpoint to teach which helps them to understand how to use different technologys.

Blog #1

Q:From an educational perspective (as a both a current student and a future teacher) is Wikipedia a blessing or a burden? As a future teacher, what would you tell your future students about Wikipedia's role in education?

A: I think when debating this topic you have to ask yourself "How reliable is the information I get on other internet sites that are not Wikipedia?" I did a project my junior year about stomach pH and its effects on the dissolving of different pills. I went to a lot of different websites to find out what the pH of the average stomach was and I found a huge range of answers. I was pretty amazed because all of these websites seemed pretty legitimate and none of their information was the same. I began to think about the accuracy of the information you get on the internet and when you think about it anyone can make a website, post facts, and seem like a reliable source when really its not. I'm not saying that every website doesnt have correct information because alot of them do but you have to remember that ANYONE can post pretty much whatever they on the internet. Wikipedia however is a website that combines information of alot of people from around the world into one website. Yes I am aware that people joke on it and that things aren't always 100% accurate but alot of things are the internet are not totally accurate. When you compare wikipedia to a encyclopedia, wikipedia will obviously not have the accuracy that an encyclopedia has but it will have more terms with a collaboration of opinions. However when you compare wikipedia to a random website chances are wikipedia is just as if not more accurate and it is a pretty good reference when you want to know basic information on a random topic.
            I think I would tell my students that wikipedia is a good source to start out with but not to use it as your number one source. I personally would require my students to use outside resources that aren't websites when it comes to research so using wikipedia as their internet source would not bother me. I would make sure students know that wikipedia doesnt always have 100% accurate information so it's important that they look at other sources. I would definitly let my students use wikipedia for a starting reference as long as they had other references to use as well