End of Semester Reflection

This semester I have gained insight into the various positives and negatives of technology. I have been encouraged to get my hands dirty and really learn about different types of programs and technologies which will benefit me and my future students. More than anything this class has really "wowed" me with all the possibilities technology brings to the classroom. It works to get students more engaged in the learning process, it brings creativity and fun to the classroom, it changes the roles of the students as well as that of the teachers, and it is a huge part of our new age (so we should embrace it and use it to empower us). Some specific examples of things I have become much more familiar with are the Smartboar, Web 2.0 software, creating my own website, drop box, different types of blogs, podcasts, and many more.

In the beginning of the semester, I touched on some NETS for teachers standards that I really thought were important for me as a future ESL teacher. The standard that I felt were important to adhere to were Facilitate and Inspire Student Learning and Creativity. This standard holds that teachers use their knowledge of subject matter, teaching and learning, and technology to facilitate experiences that advance student learning, creativity, and innovation in both face-to-face and virtual environments. This standard is important to me as a teacher because I want to be a teacher who is fun and keeps learning fun. I want to inspire my kids to use their imaginations and be creative with their learning. I feel like this is something that I should focus on because, as much as it is ideal, being creative and inspirational takes work and is something that a teacher needs to put time into. When I decided to focus on this standard, I outlined three ways that I would work on this standard this semester. the goals I set for myself were: being creative with developing my blog, exploring the different current events in the world (via the internet) and blogging about them, and finally by responding to the posts of my peers. I definitely did work with my blog a lot, exploring all it's amentities and on a simple (but very useful level) I became comfortable with using the blog. In reflecting on the benefits of using a blog this semester, I can go back through all the blogs I posted and see refresh myself on all the new material I learned this semester. Those articles, insights, and reflections are all documented and saved for me to be able to go back and refresh myself on their enlightening messages. The second goal I created for myself was to get involved with reading about the current events online and then blogging about them. I did stay intune with what was going on in the news, however I did not blog about them. That is something I could still work on (being that this blog is mine to keep forever)! The final goal I set for myself was to comment on my peers blogs, which keeps me interacting and informed on new stuff they they found through this class as well. I did do this through out the semester and found that they sometimes approached issues differently than I did, which gave me a better understanding of certain issues. Altogether, this class has provided me with the opportunity to set goals for myself (in line with the NETS for teachers), which will help me be a better teacher in the end, and I am thankful for that!

Reflection # 12 Wired Classrooms

Today I found a website devoted to informing about the downfalls and shortcomings of a Wired Classroom. Wired classrooms work to creat technology-enhanced student centered learning environments. The author of the article I read, Jamie Mckenzie argued that the theology behind Wired classrooms is good, however the classrooms are not set up in a way that they are working to accomplish their goal. For instance, she fears that way too much attention, money, and energy is being pored into technology and not into the teacher development of the technology. Mckenzie wrote the following, "Having witnessed four years of efforts in a fully networked school district which offered its students robust access to the Electronic Highway beginning in 1994-95, I can report no miracles, no amazing transformations and no phenomenal shifts in student achievement which can be traced to the advent of these information technologies." While she believes that technology enhanced classrooms have the potential to transform the way students learn and get them further engaged in our new age, she also feels like the wired classrooms need to be set up differently. There needs to be more computers for the students, students should develop their own projects and when they questions the teacher should start a class discussion regarding their questions, and she also believes that the teachers need to be given more education on the use of technology.

So What: In reading this article, it was interesting to get insight into someone who has seen technology incorporated into the classroom, and has taken a negative viewpoint on it's effects. Mckenzie even went as far to compare the technology craze with that of the gold rush, arguing that the only ones benefitting at this time are the companies selling the technology.

Now What: What I took from this article is the fact that when not used effectively in the classroom, technology can become a hinderence to the students. It can take away from their learning time if they are not actually gaining from it. So, I want to be sure that I know how to use it effectively and in a way that furthers my students understand of technology and of the class content.

Reflection # 11: Technology brings a change of role

In an article I read entitled, "Effects of Technology on Classroom and Students," the author was suggesting the idea that when a teacher uses technology in the classroom, the roles of both the teacher and the student change. For instance, the learning is now in the hands of the students. If it is online communicating with peers, they take initiative in the communication, choose their own goals, and then execute their plans almost independently. If it is a group project, the same idea applies, in that they have to take initiative and work as a group to learn, understand, and then execute the technology project. This type of learing is very hands on, and puts a new spin on the learning process. In the same respect, incorporating technology into the classroom also changes the teacher's role. In years past, the teacher has mostly served as facilitator of information working to impart that information directly to the students via lecturing. But, with this age of technology, the teacher role changes to that of fostering an evironment where the students are required to take initiative on their own. The teacher is then there to initially explain the projects, and then be available (walking around from student to student) to help if any questions or problems arise.

So What: This change in roles has really worked to positively change the self-esteem of the students. In the article I mentioned earlier, a personal story was posted by a teacher. The story worked to describe a elementary student who was not excelling academically. However, he discovered the computer and a computer program in which he was able to make music. Once he figure this out, and created a beautiful song (staying in recesses to complete the song), he played it for the class and he was able to express his skills in a way not typical of elementary classrooms. When his peers and his teacher saw him in a different light, his confidnece was boosted and he was able to see himself differently as well.

Now What: This story really encourages me to get more familiar with technology. It ca be used as an empowering tool in many ways if it is used correctly. I think that it's awesome that it changes the role of the students to requiring them to take initiative and learn independently. In conclusion, this article really inspired me to learn new ways I can use technology in my classroom..

Assignment # 4

Mckenzie's Education Site is a site I created to be useful to me (when I become a teacher) as well as to my students. Through this class, as well as other education courses I've taken this semester, I've learned the importance of incorporating technology into the classroom for a variety of different reasons. One highly beneficial way to use technology as a teacher is to create a website for your class to better communicate with your students as well as with their parents. In learning about this effective means of communication, I decided to create a website for myself that could be assessible by my future students as well as by their parents. This website has a variety of cool activities to help ESL students engage with the English language through some creative and fun activities. The features of technology that I learned through creating this weebly site are: first and foremost how to create a website of my own. I also was able to learn more about and get better acquainted with the flip video and how to upload it to my website. Other features I was able to use and learn more about were different SmartBoard activities to provide on my site, as well as how to use to the actual Smartbaord in the classroom. Other technology features I used on my website were that of a blog and different pages containing links to articles, more lessons, etc... Through this project, I also stumbled upon a website called Piclits.com which is a creative writing site that provides hundreds of pictures for users to choose from and then creatively describe/ write about the picture. This technology website is great for getting ESL students to have fun with writing.
Some of the issues of I incounterd in doing this project were: intially I was really nervous about what I was going to do for the project. For some reason, the assignment really intimidated me. But, once I started messing around with the weebly website, I began to have fun with it. I did have issues with uploading the links, but after simply playing around with the website for a while, I was able to figure out what I was doing wrong.
This project turned out to be a really great learning experience as well as a great way to get me mroe comfortable with playing with new technology. I tend to have a fear about the unknown, which was the case with this project, but after learning new and fun ways to use technology and incorporate it into my teaching, I've gained an appreciation for its usefulness and uniqueness. The site that I created is something that I will continue to add to and possibly draw from when I am a teacher. Like I said before, I now know how to create a professional website for myself that I can use as a form of communication between my students and their parents. I can put homework, future assignments, callenders, practice activities, etc.. to help the students out with their language learning experience. All in all this project broke me into really enjoying using new technology and applying it to my classroom.
The NETS standards for students that are covered by my project are the following: Creativity and Innovation (students demonstrate creative thinking, construct knowledge, and develop innovative products and processes using technology). This standard is met with the PicLit activities which require students to choose a picture and then creatively write about the picture. Another Standard met is Communication and Collaboration (students use digital media and environments to communicate and work collaboratively, to support individual learning and contribute to the learning of others. This standard is met by the online learning website I posted on my page which I would encourage my students to create an account with. Through this website, ESL students are able to communicate with other ESL students attempting to learn English. They are able to practice chatting with eachother (in English), which is very beneficial to the language learning process. Another standard that my project met for the students is that of critical thinking. I included various activities and games which require the students to think in English and solve a problem (via spell words, correct grammar, and so on...)
The NETS standards for Teachers that I covered in my project are the following: facilitate and inspire student learning and creativity. I did this by providing various activities which I found fun, and thought would be fun for my future students. Another standard that I attempted to meed was modeling digital-age work and technology. I met this standard by the very fact that I created a website in which the students can go to find activities which will coincide with their current lessons and learning, a place where they can read different blogs that I've written, as well as respond to me (their teacher) about anything and everything.

Future of Education and Technology

In doing research on the future of education and technology I was really encouraged by the possibilities of the future. One statement that stood out to me was that of Gordon Moore's, the founder of Intel. He predicted "the exponential growth of technology. Moore's law postulates that the processing power and speed of any electronic calculating device will double every 18 months. At the same time, the price for that technology will decline approximately 35% a year relative to the power." The idea that technology will continue to expand is common knowledge; however, it is shocking to realize the rate at which it is continueing and growing.

An interesting fact that is telling of the emphasis that our schools are placing on education is that schools are being judged based on the ratio of students to computers. This ratio is further instrumental in classifying the schools as being able to provide a “quality” education. This fact struct me as particularly interesting because I graduated from High School not too long ago, and I don't hardly remember using computers in High School. This just goes to show the rate at which technology has already influenced education in the last couple of years.

Other interesting research that I found was that of schools becoming dependent on online learning. I did a reflection on this subject a couple weeks ago, and then we further talked about it in our technology class about it. In brainstorming ideas about the benefits of online learning, we (as a class) came up with this list: online learning is beneficial for students who need extra time with learning, have special needs, have a learning dissibility, are advanced learners and want to get their school work done in their own time, etc...

These are just a few of the topics I found when researching the future of technology in education. As a future educator, it is so interesting to learn about and think about the new things which will be available to use in education.

Reflection 10: Using Youtube in the classroom

What: Lately, I have been realizing how often Youtube is being used in my classes by both the teachers and the students. In my Instructional Design class, we are learning how to create lessons and further experimenting with developing out our lessons. In almost every lesson, a clip from Youtube has been used as an attention getter tool prior to the presenter giving the lesson. Another class of mine where Youtube has been used quite often recently is Methods and Materials for TESL. In this class, we have been asked on two different occasions to choose a song and play it to the class via youtube. We are then asked to create an activity that goes along with the youtube song and video.

So What: This use of Youtube in the class is very new and interesting. I've found that as a student, using technology to incorporate a musical activity into the classroom really makes learning more fun. Although we are taking time to watch the video and listen to the song, we are then responding to the music and getting something educational out of it.

Now What:In paying attention to the dynamics of a class when technology and music are brought into the curriculum, I'm encouraged to use it when I become a teacher. The Youtube activity really broke up the classroom time, and in a sense, gave us students a little break from having to think too much while listening and watching the music video. After the video finishes, the students are refreshed and again ready to continue the lesson and educational activities.

Microsoft Word, Excel & PowerPoint

Word: I use Microsoft word for everything! The specific features that I use are:
* spell check, Synonyms, font variations (size, collor, type, underline, bolding, italicize), edit undo, copy and paste, cut, spacing, save as, open file/ document, new paper/ file, insert footnotes, header, footer, and probably many more than I even realize.
Excel: I actually don't use Excel for anything. At one point in my education, I was in a statistics class, so I was forced to dabble with excel, but that was years ago and I don't even remember the basics.
Power Point: As timid as I am to admit this, I haven't used Power Point in years either. However, I am giving a presentation on Thursday and I think that a Power Point will really add to my presentation. So, I will experiment with it tomorrow, and attempt to create a power point presentation.

Some possible projects that I could give to my students in which they would be required to use these three sources of technology are:
Word: Write a research paper on the affects of exercise on the body.
Excel: Create a basic timeline of your life so far (track birthdate, special events, tragedies, happy times, etc...)
Power Point: Creat a power point based on the research paper on the affects of exercise on the body.