Lesson Planning: The Experience Thus Far

So far I have found lesson planing to be a bit more of a struggle than I thought it would be. First finding the science/english standards that I need to incorporate was a bit of a shock. my original thoughts were that science standards would be separate from the other standards. However, it is just a sub branch of the english standards which reinforces what Professor Wenzel said which is “we are all english teachers” a fact which I now embrace. Then finding ISTE standards to include with the lesson is also tricky considering that I have spent most of my time learning without gadgets.

Also looking at the different parts of a lesson plan was a new concept for me. I knew there would be a goal at the end but the other steps were unfamiliar to me. As far as assessing my students I will more than likely give them a test with three definitive parts. Part one will be multiple choice. Part two a fill in the blank. Part three will be a problem solving and math oriented section.

Overall I think this practice run has been helpful for me. It has brought to light some of the difficulties that come from lesson planning. For myself I found the most difficult part to be incorporation of technology. When I learned much of this material it was through text rather than by digital access. This makes it a little difficult for me to pioneer new ways to teach the material. No doubt I will be faced with this challenge a lot in years to come. It is what it is. I will adapt and find what works best for my students.

Multimedia Madness

With the advancement of technology in the last twenty years there are limitless opportunities for teachers that are hip to these new ways. Two such examples of this are podcasting and video creation. These new technologies can serve great purposes in this new age of teaching with technology.

The first technology of podcasting is one that I am relatively new to. After having created my own podcast through pod bean I can say its pretty simple and easy to adopt. This can be used in the science classroom to re teach previous lessons. Students who feel they need a refresher on a certain part of a lesson can simply listen to the podcast and listen to what they don’t understand. It can also be used for students who are sick so that they can still hear the lesson. Also if a teacher is sick they can send a sub in who will play the podcast of a recorded lecture.This is just a few ways that i might incorporate podcasting into my classroom.

Multimedia videos could also fill a major role in my future classroom. In the science classroom equations can make up a major part of a lecture even at the college level. Like many of my peers I find myself lost. Well in my future classroom if i simply video the process of using the equation students who don’t understand or weren’t in class can view it multiple times in order to better understand. I could also video in class demos and experiments for students who miss them in class.

New technology will allow me as a teacher to better teach my students and give them better opportunity to succeed. This will in turn increase the my students scores on tests. All in all these new ideas are worth a shot.

My Education Technology Philosophy

In todays ever advancing world of technology it is important to realize that everything will continually change. This is the nature of advancement. As a future educator it is my job to adapt to these advancements and determine how they can be effectively used in the classroom. It is also my job to know what should be used and what is not necessary. All technology has a purpose however if it does not improve upon the antiquated methods of yesteryear I find it illogical to bring in the new simply because it is new. For myself I plan to incorporate the new technology that does work in order to better teach my students. It will take time to learn these new tools that will continually change the ways in which I teach. However, it is a necessary evil in order to provide the best possible education for my future students.

For some these new advancements bring a sense of fear. However, these new technologies are not to be feared but welcomed. For it is through technology that my students will find the benefit of self-education. In a largely digital world my students will learn so much long before they even step into my classroom. I must understand this learning style and work with it to teach my students in the best possible manner. Though not everything that they bring into class will be correct it is a foundation upon which to build. By teaching students with these new technologies it will give them limitless opportunity to learn.

The goal of education is to teach. Through new and innovative technology this will happen. As a future educator I must never cease to learn in order to teach my students in the best possible way.
http://www.podbean.com/media/player/xmg2f-5cc403

Jeopardy Labs:Web 2.0 Part III

The third app that I am reviewing is JeopardyLabs. This is a app that allows a teacher to create their own jeopardy games for their students. I personally have taken part in these and they are a very fun way to review and cover a lot of material.

This app meets the standard for “collaborative work” the reason for this is that students will usually work in groups as they try to answer these questions. By working in teams it can give students who normally don’t care a chance to try because they now have a group to think about.

Before using this  site a teacher must have the questions that they want to ask planned. One of the strengths of this app is that it can provide a review for students without making them just sit there and listen. It is interactive. As well it can also give a teacher back immediate results of what the students know. A weakness is that it is time consuming. Another weakness is that the students who usually have the answers are the ones who answer and the others just sit back.

There  are no real limitations with this app because it can be formatted for any group. the reading level would be tailored to each group that it is used to teach. I would recommend this for middle school and higher. Elementary would not get the same level of benefit because they may not understand the game as older students would.

Survey Monkey: Web 2.0 Part II

The second web 2.0 site that I found interesting is Survey Monkey. Survey Monkey allows the user to create surveys and get responses to your questions. In the business world this is used to get feedback on products and services. With the classroom it can be used in a variety of ways. This could range from a way to quiz students on basic content or get feedback that will help the teacher to improve their teaching.

This application would meet the standards of “customizing and personalizing” and “promoting student reflection”. The first is met because this option of quizzing might better help some students to remember information better for a real test. The second is met because this application can be used as an end of unit reflection survey. By looking back at the things that intrigued the students and getting their responses a teacher might be able to better prepare their lessons.

The prerequisites for this app would be that the user needs to be able to think of questions and decide upon the format that they would like to use. The app is free however there is a second option for a pro membership. Some of the strengths of this application are that it is free and that it can be used to gather statistics that might help a teacher. Some of the weaknesses are that all the students would need to have a device that can access the quiz. This is a simple fix by taking them to a lab but that can sometimes be problematic.

It has no limitations as far as reading level. This is because the questions are written by you. However, I would not recommend this for students that are in elementary school simply because it might be harder for them to access comparatively to older students. By this I mean that It might take more time.

Open Science Framework: Web 2.0 Part I

The first web 2.0 site that I will be discussing is Open Science Framework or OSF. OSF is a site that allows an individual or group to work in collaboration. It allows this group to begin a project that can be accessed and organized in the app. It also takes each section of the project and puts them into separate folders. So once a part of a project is complete it can be stored for safe keeping out of sight and ready for when it is needed.

This site meets the standards for collaboration as well as demonstrating a fluency in technology. The collaboration is due to the ability of the students to work as a group and come together to create a project. By accessing the site and navigating through the files and folders that it stores the students will become more technologically fluent.

As far as the knowledge necessary to begin using this site there is no need to know more than the basics of web navigation. The reason for this is that the site has a built in tutorial video to help get you started. Kinda nice for people who like me don’t really understand a lot about technology! By doing this it makes the site simple to work with and if you have questions that arise it is still possible to review the tutorial. This is also one of its strengths. due to the simplistic nature it allows students to learn how to use it at a high pace. It may seem similar to Google drive, but unlike drive it allows the worker to save different sections separately once they are done. So instead of trying to edit a entire document or project at once it can be chunked into smaller pieces.

The only limitation that I can think of off the top of my head is that it has many different files and folders and folders in folders. This could cause some to lose track of a file if it is misplaced. As far as age groups I would recommend this to be used at the high school level because of the general straight forward design of the site.

Sexting & Relationships

In the video Overexposed: Sexting and relationships Ms. Fenland is trying to teach her students about sexting. She approaches this by asking the students to be as mature as they possibly can. They are all equipped with iPads and use them in order to write down their responses and share them in class without having to voice it. This also allows each student the opportunity to thin critically about the situation. The students like the iPads for this same reason where they do not need to voice their opinion outlaid. The use of the iPad in this situation is good because it gives each student an opportunity to have their opinion heard. It also makes it easier for all the students to participate where a Q&A session would have only allowed some to participate. All in all the incorporation of the iPad into this lesson plan has made it a more effective lesson for the students.

Copyright: They’re Always Watching

Ever since childhood I can remember hearing about copyright and copyright infringement. Only recently have I found out the true meaning of copyright. Copyright is used to protect the thoughts and ideas of an individual from reproduction without their consent. There is also fair use rules which are as follows 1) The Purpose of the use (What it will be used for) 2)The kind of work being copied 3) How much is being used 4)The economic effect of its use.

When talking about copyright the media involved matters because the rules for each form of media change. Its similar to how the rules change in different sports. If you try and play soccer with the rules of football it won’t work out well. So when trying to use media check the rules that accompany the media you are trying to use. If you follow the rules then there will never be an issue. However if you try and break them just remember there are always people waiting and watching.

Powerpoint Problems

In a world that seems to be taken over by the powerpoint presentation a lot of use are caught in the trap of making bad powerpoint presentations. Take heart for you are not alone. This has become an increasing issue among all presenters. There are ways to fix this issue by changing a few elements of the slides. One thing that I was already aware of was that less can be more when it comes to the construction of slides. By taking the number of extra things on a slide you increase focus on what you really want. Something that I learned is that 3-D is not a great idea for the presentation as it may distort your data. Also adding pictures seems like a great idea but at times its just adding more unneeded stuff for a viewer to take in. Its the simple things that can make a major difference in the presentation stick to the bare bones.

As far as the classroom goes this can help students give better presentations. By teaching students simple foundations of powerpoint presenting the students will have learned a skill that can be utilized throughout their entire life. The way that I would Incorporate this into the science classroom would be to have students get in groups and develop a presentation. Then after presenting the class could then discuss what they found worked best to convey their message. By doing this the students will make the connection on their own. In my personal career this can help in how I convey new material to my students through powerpoint. In a world where technology and presentation materials are constantly misused I will be better prepared and ready for the task of making my presentations count.

The Truth Of The Matter

In this age where finding the truth isn’t always an easy matter there are constant debates about how to find out what is actually true on the web. The first step in finding the truth is becoming information literate. This means that as a consumer of information you are responsible for finding out whether or not the information you use is truthful. I know its a major shocker but not everything you read is true. Being information literate means that you can sift through everything and find the truth. There is hope though. As teachers we have the power to better equip our students and train them to be information literate. By teaching students to cross reference their sources as well as other techniques they will be better prepared when they need to research. One might argue that with the constant change it is impossible to prepare students. My response to that is thank you for the that ray of hope. It may be true that everything is constantly changing, but as long as we keep adapting we will overcome any adversity that faces us.