Blog #3

Hola!

This week we've been reviewing the ELA Technology standards. There are too many standards to count. And when it comes to teaching, all teachers need a certain set of skills depending on the grade level they wish to teach. I know I want to do k-5 education, either kindergarten, first or second. That being said, I've been reading up on the skills and the most notable ones that I think will be easily replicated, are programs like, paint, word, and animated storyteller websites, because usually those things guide you through the creation process. But, using the Promethean board, and smart boards in general will be more of a challenge.  Tasks like online textbooks, and identifying key educational resources online are also standards that I think I will be okay at. On the other hand. Online graphic may be a little more difficult. As well as audio device usage mostly because these are things I've never used before. I can never seem to get the audio right with anything bigger than a smartphone. Being able to guide my class through an online source to define, characters, plot, setting, etc can be something I easily adapt to. Everything is within my boundaries, but it will definitely take a little practice. More skills are needed the higher up teaching education is even in elementary i'm learning.

In the classroom, there is an abundance of resources that teachers would benefit off of putting into good use. On the CPALMS website, they have an educational toolkit for each grade level K-12. Not only do they have the standards, but they have lesson plans, learning materials that teachers can download, and links to interactive resources like games, worksheets, and stories. The files are highly accessible for the educators and they can benefit so much with so many different options. Depending on who they are and what they they plan on teaching their students that week. One tool I found that would be very helpful in my K-2 endeavors are Element Cards. Essentially these cards can be used to help teachers in planning for instruction of their students. The cards include different teaching strategies to meet the standards and resources that will help the children formulate a deeper understanding. Having these cards can help keep me on track with my teaching in the classroom while making it a fun learning experience, having these cards for future reference to make sure things are getting done according to plan. Organization is key and these cards can help with that.

In other news, we just completed our first bigger assignment, which was the newsletter design. I had so much fun creating this newsletter for my imaginary second grade class. Getting to mess around with graphics in Word helped me to be more familiar with the in's and outs of the program. I not only learned how to make columns in my articles, but I also learned that (simple enough) you could upload images and put the image behind the text or even wrap it around.  I learned that copy and paste doesn't even begin to explain how in depth you can go with making your word document unique and interesting. The only thing I didn't like about the newsletter was making columns. Because whenever I would add a bunch of text at once, it would jump to the top of the page, and irritate the layout of the rest of the newsletter. The hyperlink I had to be extra careful with as well. I put it in a location that could not be accessed at first and had to make sure I was saving it the right way. Once I did, it was easy to remember for the future. Next time I will keep in mind that the hyperlink needs to be of actual use and not just highlight the words I picked. The hyperlink can be a great tool for linking other resourceful articles, or websites/ learning tools. In my future career, creating word documents like worksheets for the kids will be a lot easier because I will have learned the skills that not only change the font and size of the text but also change the layout, and the very essence of the words I'm typing. Creating a way more interesting piece of art that I can reproduce for my students.





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ILP “Design” – Render forest Animations

Link to Animated Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g_V-fcRHnhk&feature=youtu.be



https://voicethread.com/share/12991732/

Bonjour!

For my first Independent learning project, I chose to do a design. I ended up finding a really cool website where you can make short animated videos, or logo's, or anything in that range. I formulated a small lesson plan meant to help elementary schoolers learn how to multiply with zeros. The whole process was really fun, I got to pick out different designs and make the whole thing my own. I then uploaded it on youtube where it can be accessed by anyone. I got to do a lot of designing during this process and I'm glad I got to learn about this website. I had no idea that it could be that easy to create something so unique.



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Blogging About the Basics

Greetings and Salutations, 

In today's blog, we are talking about a scope of things. The first being Microsoft Word and its use. I am a big fan of MS not only does it make writing my book run as smoothly as possible, but it also is so cool to mess around with. It is the homing beacon of my various assortment of essays. It also converts a lot of big documents or articles into a compressed readable version that is easier for me to manage. My teachers in the past have used Word to make and print off documents that we could complete in class, charts, graphs in math, word puzzles, etc. My teachers also used it as a means of assignments. Majority of things I had to turn in online had to firstly be formulated in word and turned to Turnitin to check for plagiarism. Regardless Word has always been the middle man.

Speaking of plagiarism another thing that is widely know is Copyright in the class room. I thought copyright was mostly just for products and the music in YouTube videos. But I now know that copyright matters in the classroom. There are laws that prohibit teachers and students from using certain programs. That means the scanning of certain items for classroom use. But at the same time fair use is seen as the ability for these teachers to use these materials if they are doing so for nonprofit. In the past my teachers have always used Turnitin to make sure the kids were not copying other people or each other. We were to always put our name on our work, and to provide the source of any outside information we gained. my teachers would scan worksheets for us, but only to turn right back in to them after they were complete and we claimed none of the work. The programs they used were primarily school provided as to avoid any copyright issues. As a teacher in the future, to prevent copyright I would make sure that my kids created their own work by providing credit for any source of information they received. I would also make sure to abide by the fair use rules, and make sure that  I tried to remain as creative as possible with the programs I used, namely try to use only school provided things, and my own, as well as Pinterest of course!

If I had to deal with (1)Cyberbullying, (2)Academic honesty, or (3)Privacy in the class room I would implement these methods:

(1) I would make sure my students understand the concept of; "treat others how you want to be treated". Anyone caught cyberbullying would be restricted on their internet access and implements would be in place. But to prevent that in the first place, monitoring the students would be a big deal for me. As well as drilling in the meaning of respect. I would also make sure the technological environment the students are in would be virtually impossible to insult others or be insulted. That means internet use only as a group. Limited individual use, unless it was working with myself. Really focusing on that safe environment!

(2) Simply put, I would make sure that the students take credit for no work but their own. I would make sure the students knew what was expected of them and the penalties if they decided to be academically dishonest. Signing an agreement at the beginning of the year is something that worked for my teachers and their students. I would implement that.

(3) I would ensure that my class is a safe space for the students to share their true selves without any information being exposed (unless harmful) complete disclosure. That means privacy In the things they turn in, as well as the activities they react to only for evaluation by myself, not their fellow peers. Keeping the classroom experience as authentic as possible.

My First Journal!

Hello my fellow bloggers,

This is the third week of the fall semester and so far so good in Education Tech. While its only been three weeks I've certainly leaned a lot that about the importance of technology in the classroom. For starters it actually is necessary. I've always disliked anything that had to do with online, and anything harder to work than a phone; but mostly that stems from my notion that technology is scary and that it it will ultimately take over humanity. But alas I am forced to also consider all the good that technology brings to the world. It makes life essentially easier. And if that remains the case then technology is not all that bad.

In the class room teachers use technology for many reasons. For starters common core for students is very involved. At every grade level, there are certain requirements and standardization's all of which are necessary for the growth of the child. So having online resources is notably helpful for teachers getting their point across but also to make sure that the progress of the students is recorded. Teachers use technology for presentations and for assignments, for interactive activities, and just about anything else to make the class run smoothly. All grading is computer based and websites that analyze students work or authenticity are necessary elements and help maintain a successful classroom atmosphere.

A big thing for educators are the ISTE Standards. Standards set by the International society for Technology use in Education they help encourage the future of integrated technology in all areas of education. There are set standards for students as well as teachers. One of the standards I resonate the strongest with is setting personal learning goals and applying approaches made possible by technology and reflecting on their effectiveness. I think it is so important to be able to identify the type of teacher you want to be, and setting goals that will lead you to a better understanding of your teaching methods with technology. As well as how well your intended audience perceives the points you are trying to make. One of the standards that will take some getting used to is: staying current with research that supports improved student learning outcomes and findings from the learning sciences. I have always been a stickler for the notion "if it isn't broken, don't fix it". Meaning if I see a method working it will be hard to resist just letting it run its course and not changing the way I get my point across. But obviously that's the whole point of being an educator, having the patience to do the research, and attempting to find the research that works best. Having to be constantly updated with the latest in technology will be admittedly harder than the other standards in my opinion but I know eventually I will learn how to interpret and administer the new information.

In a recent class we talked about today's youth and the concept of them them being digital natives, Mark Prensky stated: depending on your age, that dictates the technology you grew up around. The newer generations are more applicable to advanced tech. While the older generations have to adapt to this new technology after being so used to things as simple as a land phone. Being the age I am (18) and having professors old enough to be my grandparents who do have different skill sets when it comes to technology. There are many times when they might ask how to do something with technology and a student has to teach them because they just don't understand how to work it. When I have professors like that, they are still great teachers, but the whole teaching situation is just less efficient. Canvas is more tricky for the older professors and it takes longer to see my grade reflected on the site, but that's okay because eventually they figure it out, you just have to be patient with them. In the future I'm almost nervous for my students. They are going to be so advanced in all the ways of tech and ill have to ask them for help. But I will make sure that I try my hardest to do good by them and constantly try to learn the kinks of technology. Hence abiding by the ISTE Standards!


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