I have many different feelings and beliefs on the integration of technology. I can see how beneficial it can be, but I can also see issues along with that too. Technology is great because it is how people live today. It can get students more active and engaged in their learning. It also can simply make learning fun. It makes communication with parents, colleges, and students much easier, etc. These are great things, and they are things that I want in my classroom.
With that being said, I am still through all I have learned fairly skeptical about the use of technology, especially if not carefully monitored. One students can easily get distracted on things like the internet and it can make learning much more difficult. Another reason (and this is big to me) is simply having the supplies accessible. One things that I learned really well in field is that computer time is not something easy to come by. There's only so many computer labs in a school with a lot of classes, and trying to get time to do projects can be hard. If you're in a less wealthy school you may not be able to use many forms of technology without spending the money yourself.
Over all I think that technology integration is a great idea and should be used whenever able. I just think that it can be hard to come by, and maybe through more experience, I will have more ideas of integration that would be easy and cheap to use with the curriculum. Who knows we have an ever changing technological world.
Monday, December 6, 2010
Lessons Learned
It absolutely blows my mind at just how much our world is dependent on technology. Its like children are programmed from little babies to handle these things, and they are incredibly smart! I liked how the WWW article talked about the reasons to be cautious but also talked about how if incorporated properly, just how effective technology can be. It is very possible to get children more involved and to make learning fun.
I also was intrigued by the "Did You Know" video. Although this video is a few years old, it still gives a pretty good eye opener at how fast technology is changing. I look at what this video was saying about the technology changing in 3 years and think, Wow, it really is different. A lot of things are the same but the abilities of technology keep increasing so fast. I can see this being difficult with students using technology that teachers have no idea how to use unless they keep up on technology.
Lastly, I enjoyed the "Teens See Disconnect Between Personal and School Writing". This was interesting to me because it really explained my teenage life. I was one that never enjoyed english and writing, but I always would write and message friends. The first paper I wrote that I truly enjoyed was my college persuasive essay; this was because I could actually put my opinions and feelings into it, and research what I wanted to learn. This is a good example of integrating technology into the education system. It works.
I also was intrigued by the "Did You Know" video. Although this video is a few years old, it still gives a pretty good eye opener at how fast technology is changing. I look at what this video was saying about the technology changing in 3 years and think, Wow, it really is different. A lot of things are the same but the abilities of technology keep increasing so fast. I can see this being difficult with students using technology that teachers have no idea how to use unless they keep up on technology.
Lastly, I enjoyed the "Teens See Disconnect Between Personal and School Writing". This was interesting to me because it really explained my teenage life. I was one that never enjoyed english and writing, but I always would write and message friends. The first paper I wrote that I truly enjoyed was my college persuasive essay; this was because I could actually put my opinions and feelings into it, and research what I wanted to learn. This is a good example of integrating technology into the education system. It works.
Strengths and Weaknesses
According to the UNI survey I am at the levels of novice and apprentice. I have a pretty good basic knowledge of the computer and its programs, as well as how to use them. With the NET standards I do know some ways of integrating technology into the classroom and why it is important. I also know the different issues of using technology in the classroom, which is why in some areas I still and somewhat skeptical.
Some goals that I have for integrating technology are one, becoming more familiar with different uses for it in the curriculum. Another would be to not only learn about the uses out there but the technology itself, such as how to use certain programs and become more knowledgeable with them. There are different ways to go about accomplishing these goals and building more strengths, this can be through educational articles, teacher workshops that districts hold, and even teacher videos that can be found on youtube or teachertube etc.
By using these different resources of knowledge, I can learn from other peoples experiences and get a more hands on experience with the technology out there. I will be more well rounded as a teacher and hopefully be a better teacher in general.
Some goals that I have for integrating technology are one, becoming more familiar with different uses for it in the curriculum. Another would be to not only learn about the uses out there but the technology itself, such as how to use certain programs and become more knowledgeable with them. There are different ways to go about accomplishing these goals and building more strengths, this can be through educational articles, teacher workshops that districts hold, and even teacher videos that can be found on youtube or teachertube etc.
By using these different resources of knowledge, I can learn from other peoples experiences and get a more hands on experience with the technology out there. I will be more well rounded as a teacher and hopefully be a better teacher in general.
Monday, November 29, 2010
Reflection #13 11/25/10
WHAT:
This week we only spent two days in the classroom with the holiday, so we didn't see much technology used. The only thing that happened was the kids took a math test in the computer lab.
SO WHAT:
As I said in a prior blog, this school uses computers a lot in their teaching/testing. I feel that this is very beneficial with the speediness of getting scores back, and it shows the students exacty what they missed and what the right answer should be. I did find a problem with it though. I don't like how easy it is to make a mistake. Many kids new the correct answer but they didn't click right on it, or didn't push hard enough, and therefore they got it wrong. It just left me with some mixed feelings. I need to start thinkiing about the pros and cons now so that I will be more prepared later.
NOW WHAT:
Now that I have seen this I need to start thinking about if I would want to use computers like this for my tests and if so for which ones. I feel that it is important on many things in math to show your work, and you can't do that with computers. I need to also become more accustomed to using these online testing sites and knowing how to set them up. If I know how to do it now, it will only make it easier later, thus allowing me to be a better educator for my students.
This week we only spent two days in the classroom with the holiday, so we didn't see much technology used. The only thing that happened was the kids took a math test in the computer lab.
SO WHAT:
As I said in a prior blog, this school uses computers a lot in their teaching/testing. I feel that this is very beneficial with the speediness of getting scores back, and it shows the students exacty what they missed and what the right answer should be. I did find a problem with it though. I don't like how easy it is to make a mistake. Many kids new the correct answer but they didn't click right on it, or didn't push hard enough, and therefore they got it wrong. It just left me with some mixed feelings. I need to start thinkiing about the pros and cons now so that I will be more prepared later.
NOW WHAT:
Now that I have seen this I need to start thinking about if I would want to use computers like this for my tests and if so for which ones. I feel that it is important on many things in math to show your work, and you can't do that with computers. I need to also become more accustomed to using these online testing sites and knowing how to set them up. If I know how to do it now, it will only make it easier later, thus allowing me to be a better educator for my students.
Friday, November 19, 2010
Reflection #12 11/18/10
Field Response Service Learning Project
Emilee Williams, Alyssa Wilson
3250: 01
a. Central Elementary School is a Title I school located at 95 North 400 East Pleasant Grove, UT 84062, in Utah County. The community has approximately 39,000 people and Central Elementary itself has around 570 students. It was established in 1893—three years before Utah was granted statehood. It is known greatly as “The Space Center” in which over 265,000 people have attended over the years, embarking on missions and adventures through space. We are in a classroom of twenty-four students. Our cooperating teacher is Jenny Woods, who has been teaching for four years.
b. Our relationship with our cooperating are both formal and professional. During class time it is very professional; we call one another by our titles and it’s all business. We make sure our teacher knows she’s the one who is in charge and we are there to help. During lunchtime and before school we are able to hang out and its less formal. We call each other by our first names and talk about personal things. Overall it is a very relaxing and easy-going relationship where we all understand boundaries and lines in and out of the classroom.
c. Our teacher was very impressed with what we did. She felt it was appropriate to the criteria we had been teaching all week and it was a good wrap-up to the lesson. She noticed how intently the students payed attention during it. She also enjoyed the music we chose for it.
d. We feel our teacher approved of all the lessons we taught. They all tied into the core curriculum and tied into one another. She used some of our ideas and lesson plans to teach the other classes their social studies. One lesson plan she really liked was our photo analysis. She liked the group involvement, technology use and the enduring understanding taught.
e. Our teaching session went rather fast. she was no novice when it came to creating digital stories. She explained when she first began teaching she had made a bunch. Since she is so familiar with the process, we just did a quick run down on how to use Photo Story 3. She really liked the applications such as the voice recorder and the fact you can make your own music or take some off a file.
f. Being able to teach an actual teacher something useful was good for our morale. We felt like even though we are novices to the program we still have a lot to bring to the table due to what we learn in our classes. Last year I was going over technology workshops available to teachers and I found they can get pretty pricey. Being able to use one another as resources and experts in the field is all the more better for collaborative teaching and learning.
g. Our cooperating teacher was able to learn a different program that is free to download. She also saw how easy and quick it is to Photo Story. From seeing our digital story she was able to learn from it and get more ideas on how to teach mountain men in the future. In being able to be taught from us she didn’t have to pay for a workshop that takes all day.
h. In being able to create a digital story we got to see what its like step by step and the hard work and creativity that goes into it. We gained a better sense of teamwork and how to work with a partner to collaborate and compromise our visions. We learned a fun and easy program to create digital stories. From here on out we have the knowledge we need to make digital stories to enrich out lessons with technology.
i. Our digital story wasn’t as hard and time-consuming as we thought it would be. In working together we were able to split the work. We both had the same ending goal so it was easier on us. We feel this assignment was overwhelming at first but when we broke it down into steps and worked step by step to get it done the overall process went smoothly. We fell it was worth it because of the reactions of the students. They all loved the digital story and got really into the music. Also, the fact that we used pictures from our first lesson plans (which they sorted as a class), they were more engaged. Overall, a very rewarding assignment.
Sunday, November 14, 2010
Reflection #11 11/11/10
WHAT:
This was my second week out in field, and I observed the use of technology in the testing system this week.
SO WHAT:
This school does a weekly AYP test in the computer lab as practice for the end of year testing. It will include information they've learned as well as stuff they haven't gone over yet. Also at the end of the year, their year end testing is then taken in the computer lab. They believe that by doing this they can get faster results and the kids won't be as intimidated for the end testing because of the AYPs. This is important for me to know now because I need to be learning how to work these things and become more computer literate to better help my students academic needs. I also need to start doing things like this in my field lessons and try to incorporate computers more.
NOW WHAT:
As a future educator I really need to understand where our teaching is coming from. Kids today are so much faster with finding things on the computer and even more important, we can use this to our benefit. I like the idea of getting the testing results faster. I also like the idea of getting the students used to this style of testing so that it's not so intimidating in the end. I was a horrible tester because I had anxiety. This helps kids become accustomed to it so its not as big a deal. I want to learn more about the different programs being used so that I can become more familiar with them via field and other experiences. This way I can be a better teacher for the students of this generation.
This was my second week out in field, and I observed the use of technology in the testing system this week.
SO WHAT:
This school does a weekly AYP test in the computer lab as practice for the end of year testing. It will include information they've learned as well as stuff they haven't gone over yet. Also at the end of the year, their year end testing is then taken in the computer lab. They believe that by doing this they can get faster results and the kids won't be as intimidated for the end testing because of the AYPs. This is important for me to know now because I need to be learning how to work these things and become more computer literate to better help my students academic needs. I also need to start doing things like this in my field lessons and try to incorporate computers more.
NOW WHAT:
As a future educator I really need to understand where our teaching is coming from. Kids today are so much faster with finding things on the computer and even more important, we can use this to our benefit. I like the idea of getting the testing results faster. I also like the idea of getting the students used to this style of testing so that it's not so intimidating in the end. I was a horrible tester because I had anxiety. This helps kids become accustomed to it so its not as big a deal. I want to learn more about the different programs being used so that I can become more familiar with them via field and other experiences. This way I can be a better teacher for the students of this generation.
Sunday, November 7, 2010
Reflection #10 11/4/10
WHAT:
This week we spent out in field, in our 4th grade class. I am learning a lot about management techniques through observation of our teacher. Currently we haven't stared teaching yet so we are just helping with tutoring the students and doing odds and ends that the teacher requests of us.
SO WHAT:
The time we spend in the classroom is very useful to me. I am learning so many different things that I wouldn't have known just by going to a college class. I am also applying the different things that we are learning about in school. I am at a title one school, so I was excited to see what different kinds of technology they would use. Our class has an overhead camera, which I thought was really cool. With this, they don't have to make overhead sheets. This just shows a book or regular paper (or whatever you're filming) and displays it on the screen in the front of the room. I love seeing all the new techniques that are out there, that I never had growing up. Learning about these also give me ideas of other ways of showing things, for presentations and things like that, that I would have never otherwise known about.
NOW WHAT:
the experiences I am having by student teaching is so valuable to me and my students as a future educator. I am learning different management techniques for transitions in the classroom, along with learning different techniques of teaching with things such ass technology and the arts. I really am enjoying being out in the field and I know that by learning and experiencing these things now, I can see how they are used and use them later to improve my own teaching abilities; thus aiding in the learning of my students.
This week we spent out in field, in our 4th grade class. I am learning a lot about management techniques through observation of our teacher. Currently we haven't stared teaching yet so we are just helping with tutoring the students and doing odds and ends that the teacher requests of us.
SO WHAT:
The time we spend in the classroom is very useful to me. I am learning so many different things that I wouldn't have known just by going to a college class. I am also applying the different things that we are learning about in school. I am at a title one school, so I was excited to see what different kinds of technology they would use. Our class has an overhead camera, which I thought was really cool. With this, they don't have to make overhead sheets. This just shows a book or regular paper (or whatever you're filming) and displays it on the screen in the front of the room. I love seeing all the new techniques that are out there, that I never had growing up. Learning about these also give me ideas of other ways of showing things, for presentations and things like that, that I would have never otherwise known about.
NOW WHAT:
the experiences I am having by student teaching is so valuable to me and my students as a future educator. I am learning different management techniques for transitions in the classroom, along with learning different techniques of teaching with things such ass technology and the arts. I really am enjoying being out in the field and I know that by learning and experiencing these things now, I can see how they are used and use them later to improve my own teaching abilities; thus aiding in the learning of my students.
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