MAY 2 CLASS TAKEAWAY

This last class was very eye opening. We got to watch a few more videos, all of which were interesting.   I particularly liked that one group made a cooking video, it was informative and took a different direction than what the other videos shown in class. Having this as the last class is somewhat bittersweet, I realized that I am really going to miss coming to this class and that the class chemistry was very unique in that regard.

Although many students may have had their reservations about taking a technology intense course at the start of the semester, I do think it helped us learn technology in the classroom better than we would have otherwise.

4/25 CLASS TAKEAWAY

I enjoyed this class very much so. We got to watch three of the classes' videos and receive/give feedback. It was interesting to see the differences in topics and see how everyone approached the project differently. I am anxious to work on the portfolio due at the end of the course and see how it turns out.

CHAPTER SEVEN

I did not enjoy reading chapter seven but it did touch on the fact that educational resources do need to be evaluated properly. The rubric on page 181 to me could potentially be useful as a parent in deciding what video games to purchase for my child. My cousin is nine years old and plays call of duty, grand theft auto, and all types of violent games and it is reflective in his behavior. His mother does not monitor his behavior or care but the fact that he gets in trouble at school everyday and is allowed to be exposed to extremeley violent entertainment at a young age may suggest a correlation. Not to say I wasn't exposed to bad things as a child, but I at least was told what was wrong or right about them. The whole concept of video games in the classroom still doesn't sit well with me but perhaps something will change my pespective in the future.

The section on google earth was cool because I actually never used it in the classroom but was amazed by it when it first came out. Something such as that can graviate a student's attention towards it without being overly stylized and violent.

QUESTIONS:

1.What is your opinion on the potential use of video games in the classroom?

2.How do you plan to evalute which educational resources to exploit for your classes?

3.Off the top of your head, can you list any educational resources you will DEFINITELY use in the classroom? (ex. powerpoint,excel,etc.)

CHAPTERS 8 AND 9

Chapters 8 and 9 discuss communication through web based programs primarily. After reading chapter 8, I saw a lot of pros on sharing information online for classroom use but am still not sold completley. The whole concept of building learning communities is amazing in principle and with the right personalities involved, could become very entertaining and refreshing in the right context. This may be a very arbitrary example, but I loved twitter during the presidental debates because it allowed me to see how much my friends really knew about politics and made the debate much more entertaining and enjoyable than it otherwise would have been without the implemation of social networking. The email and instant messaging portion brought up a grave concern that I've always had, and that is that one day most people will only be able to communicate in textspeak instead of real words. Sometimes, I, myself get lazy and do this but I have never written a paper or formal email of any sort using textspeak.

The discussion of powerpoints in chapter 9 was intriguing. I have known how to use powerpoint ever since it was created when I was in elementary school since our school decided to have a computer class since I was in kindergarten. It did not hit me that sixteen years later it would still be relevant to my life. I think powerpoint and webquests could be very useful if implemented creatively and effectively.

QUESTIONS:
1. Despite its benefits, how do we combat textspeak inevitably being the potential standard for our society?

2.In what ways would you create interactive media for your classroom?

3.Discuss the pros and cons of social networking being used in the classroom.

4/18 CLASS REACTION

Today's class was very informative. I had not learned about assistive learning until tonight and it was a very eye opening discussion. Assistive technology will become more relevant as technology becomes more affordable and it will be intriguing to see how the students become more educated as a result.

APRIL 4, TAKEAWAY

Today's class was very intriguing. The whole conversation about English inevitably being a universal language because of the internet was eye opening. I had never really given that idea much thought until today. Also the idea of being responsible on the internet was a fun conversation. The term "facebook famous" was funny. I am excited for the video project because the examples looked interesting.

CLASS REACTION 3/21

Today's class was very informative. The peer review for our webquests was an interesting in class assignment because we got to see how everyone is progressing with their ideas. I regret not spending more time with the webquest so far because of time constraints but it was still good nevertheless. I look forward to tweaking everything to the best of my ability and seeing how everyone does with their project as well. I liked the first video we had to do and enjoyed doing that project and hope to enjoy the webquest just as much even though it is a different creative medium.

CHAPTERS 4 & 6

Chapters 4 and 6 were interesting but they basically just touched on the same things we've been discussing in class previously. The inclusion of technology in the classroom seems as though it will inevitably have to happen in every class by they way they described the scenarios in chapter 4. It was bizarre that they mention the website "goodreads" in chapter 6 because I recently just signed up for it. Social bookmarking could become a useful tool if the students can distinguish between helpful resources and ones that are not as good better. The virtual field trips was interesting, we got to see the use of that in class this past week as well. I think it is an interesting tool but I don't think it can completely substitute for going to a real place.

1.As an educator, what do you think is the most effective way of incorporating technology in the classroom in an organic manner?

2. What is the most important element of social bookmarking in your opinion?

3.What are the pros and cons of virtual field trips? Do you think it should be common?

MARCH 14 CLASS REACTION

Today's class was very enlightening in terms of looking at how to integrate technology in the classroom. The rubric for different aspects of how to judge references gave me a whole different perspective for what to include on my WebQuest. Almost as much thought that I have to give in assigning the project, I will have to give in suggesting resources. The interactive field trip websites we went on were interesting but they have their pros and cons.

CLASS REACTION 2/21

Today's class was intriguing and really helped elaborate upon the topics discussed in the chapter. I learned a lot about how wikipedia was created and why exactly which broadened my perspective on censorship and the use of wikipedia for research. I thought the discussion about censorship in China was very interesting and had not previously heard about the school stabbings. I am intrigued to see what the next chapter holds and hope it is just as interesting as chapter five.

It is interesting to think about how much information is out there in contrast to five to ten years ago just because of the internet. In some respects I am thankful that America doesn't have such a defiant stance with censorship as China does but I comprehend both perspectives. Sometimes news within a country may reflect poorly upon the country's society and culture. People that watch the news everyday in America may be numb to violence and controversy because some news programming may focus primarily on those subjects.

I am against censorship but obviously the first amendment protects speech that may be in poor taste so it makes sense that you should be allowed to say outrageous things on the internet in America. I don't agree with the vast majority of things I read on twitter so I am not against the censorship just because it is interesting to see how people really think whether right or wrong.

We used stjohns.edu for the five W's.

Who: Stjohns.edu is a website intended to be used by St. John's students and faculty members.

What: It contains content used to post information for particular classes, reference when different parts of the campus are open, and other helpful links for students.

When: Whenever the information is needed.

Where: www.stjohns.edu

Why: Because a website that all the information needed to attend and contribute to class must exist.

CHAPTER FIVE:THE DILUTION OF CREDIBLE SOURCES

“Believe nothing, no matter where you read it, or who said it, no matter if I have said it, unless it agrees with your own reason and your own common sense.” -BUDDHA

Chapter five was a very intriguing read that definitely made me think about how difficult it may be in the future to distinguish a credible source from one that is not credible since there is so much information on the internet. Much of what is on the internet is opinion based and it is important for the students to do extensive research on whatever topic they choose to develop their own opinion and not simply copy and paste one's opinion off of a website. It ultimately will rely on the individual to distinguish what they choose to believe or not to believe. It is still healthy to question the teacher or a book as much as the internet so I am not using websites as a scapegoat.

I remember in high school my teacher telling the class that Malcolm X's famous phrase was "whatever it takes" and manipulated a lot of what he said to be consistent with his own opinion on the man. I told him the phrase was actually "by any means neccessary" and he told me I was wrong. It made me very irritable when a group in class did a presentation on him and used the phrase "whatever it takes" and cited things in his life that did not even happen without reading his autobiography or doing proper research. Therein lies the problem, not only must the student be aware that not everything they read or hear may be correct, but the educator must also properly distinguish what to say or not to say.

I enjoyed the list of credible websites used that was shown in chapter five but I really enjoyed reading about wikipedia. When I was in middle school, I would go to the library and use the encyclopedias to do basic research on whatever subject I was assigned. The information was usually presented in an unbiased manner and was legitimate for the most part. Wikipedia can be useful to get a basic overview of a subject but it is not entirely credible and a student should not cite it as a resource. There will be many websites in the future that will be used as a similiar medium that we must monitor. A student must form an individual voice for their opinion and it is bad if they use these mediums as a crutch.

QUESTIONS TO PONDER:
1. Before preparing a lesson, will you give the class a list of places to get credible resources from or simply tell them what NOT to use?

2.How do we combat plagarism going forward? Do you believe it will be more prevelant or less prevelant since it may be easier to monitor when papers or submitted through turnitin.com and other mediums?

3.What is your opinion on censorship on the internet?

CLASS REFLECTION WEEK 3

Class today was very refreshing in terms of going over the different assessments a teacher can give their students. I like how the lesson transitioned into the different learning theories and perspectives of students to keep in mind how students take in information. It is important to know the student's perspective of how they learn before we as educators can test them on the information. I am intrigued in what chapter five holds and how I can piece together the introduction video that is due after break. I also would like to look further into the constructivist perspective because I had not previously learned about it and it does intrigue me.

My intro video topic will focus on BLACK HISTORY MONTH 
I feel as though there is a lot to cover in a short amount of time in regards to this topic and it is relative to where we are on the calendar right now. My concentration in education is in adolescent social studies so I feel as though it is very relative to what they may be learning.

CHAPTER 3 REACTION

This chapter on lesson development I found particularly intriguing because the concept of online learning assessments was brought up. I feel as though some of this could be very useful in the future and present such as having students perform a diagnostic test to better prepare what to go over in a lesson plan or students using a poll or survey. However, I feel as though tests and quizzes are still a grey area in regards to the fact that having an online test yields itself to having the student potentially looking up answers to multiple choice questions online if a computer is already in front of them. I think the online evaluation rubrics is a good idea because a student can monitor their progress and see how they stand in the class.

The whole approach to a lesson plan is arguably made easier with the progression of technology. A teacher can be better organized with their materials on a tablet or computer in regards to planning their student learning objectives and designing a lesson plan. I would most definitely make use of the technology available as a teacher in some capacity but since it rapidly progresses, I would have to see what is available at the time of class. Not too long ago Ipads did not exist and many programs that are seen as pretty standard today. We will inevitably make us of what is available in the future.

1. Do you believe having students perform a diagnostic "test" or "quiz" online before a lesson will better prepare you as an educator for your lesson the next day?

2.How do you feel about potentially converting all tests and quizzes to online assessments? What are the positives and what are the negatives in this regard?

3.What if the same resources are not available to you as an educator in one school as they are in a school with better resources? How would you potentially adjust?

CONCEPTS TO PONDER FROM CLASS DISCUSSION

-The whole idea of a teacher being an instructional designer really gave me a different perspective on the occupation of an instructor.

-The role of the teacher discussion was extremely interesting and informative. I like how we had to consciously think about all the different "hats" a teacher must wear in the classroom and broadened a lot of different ideas in my mind.

-I need to keep this venn diagram of different types of knowledge in a special place as a point of reference in the future.

- Learner, Content,Tasks....the list is simple yet so complex of what we are designing.

DESIGNER

WHO ARE YOU DESIGNING FOR?
A group of individuals that may or may not have an interest in the material before they enter my classroom. All of them have very different personalities and different ways that they best learn information.

WHAT ARE YOU DESIGNING?
An environment that fosters the concept of absorbing and retaining information yet simultaneously keeping an open mind. A place where students will be mentally engaged in the material and look forward to learning new things every day.


WHAT IS THE FINAL PRODUCT OF YOUR DESIGN?
Microcosm of society.

INSPIRING STUDENT LEARNING WITH TECHNOLOGY

The first chapter of the book contained a lot of information that I found useful but just like technology, some of the information may be obsolete by the time I become a teacher. I am somewhat conflicted on the subject on using technology in the classroom. I feel as though young people in general are very visual learners and the use of technology may make them more engaged in the material. However, I would not want to use it as a crutch or overwhelm the student by making the class completley technology based because there is likely going to be technology classes available for quite some time going forward.

In the book, something I found very intriguing was a quote from the 1960s from Phillip Jackson that said teaching responsibilities consist of 200 seperate and interpersonal interactions every hour, 6 hours a day, for 180 school days each year. That is very overwhelming when you take in to consideration that now technology is implemented within the classrom.

When I observed classes last semester I noticed that one teacher would do something different every single day and he did incorporate technology in his lessons. One day he would use a power point presentation to convey the lesson, the next day he would show a video, and the day after that he would show a video with questions and have the students answer them. I asked him after class what made him construct the class in this fashion and he said that students will get bored if you do the same thing everyday no matter how fun it may seem, so everyday he changes it up a little bit. I feel as though this is a good approach when it comes to technology in the classroom.

I am excited to explore the rest of the book and see how my perspective changes or stays consistent throughout the semester through this blog. Thank you for reading and I will react to the next reading shortly.


DAVID

THE GENESIS

Having not taken a technology based course since high school (if my memory serves me right), this course serves as both a personal challenge to me while simultaneously stimulating my interest in the subject. Obviously, with the inevitable and current progression of society, teachers must adjust the way they teach classes at least in some capacity, with the times. I do not think every class should completely change in the way it is taught as a result, however, I do believe teachers will need to have knowledge of how to incorporate technology in the classroom. Once I receive the textbook in the mail I will post a blog on my reaction to the chapter we are assigned to read. Thank you for your time.