Grade: 10th
Subject: Science
Year: 2072
As my students and I are walking through the Rain forest we videotape the area with our ring-size cameras, compare plants and water resources on our wearable computers, and write collaboratively our document through the use of wiki. We feel the moisture on our skin, watch the sun begin to set, smell the clear scent of flowers, hear animals around us in the bushes, and taste some of the sweetest fruits.
Then we take our masks off and are back in the classroom.
Virtual reality is just around a corner. As a teacher who enjoys integrating technology into the classroom, I hope that most emerging technologies, like virtual reality, will be available to me before I retire. I believe that our role as a teacher will change to give way for technology to move in more actively, yet as supports. In my opinion, a classroom will always have a teacher and kids will always long for the human contact. Technology can never reach the encouraging potential of a teacher's hand on a child's shoulder, the soft smile in return for a good performance, and the tissues that can wipe away tears. But I also think, that technology will continue to enrich and advance our curriculum. We will move from teaching our kids directly to aiding them in their technology quest. The electronic tools will help us to plan lessons more efficiently, and lessons will be taught through electronic tools. The teacher's role will be to facilitate this process. There is no question that technology will take a strong stance and possibly the upper hand when we teach children academics, but to raise strong, confident, and caring humans it takes a human.
Thursday, June 10, 2010
Sunday, June 6, 2010
I can only imagine!!
Here is the scenario! You move into a new classroom and have been asked to put together a technology wish list . . .
I would begin with a Smart board. In my opinion Smart boards are the most versatile, engaging, and interactive piece of technology on the current market. In my classroom, the Smart board would be used on a daily basis, creating 'digital lessons.' I would plan the lesson electronically and save it to a storage device, upload interactive software and manipulatives to create engaging, visually and kinesthetic attractive material, and then print out the lesson afterwards, for students to review similar to notes.
My second wish would be a sound system. I would use the 'Necklace microphone' daily for students to be able to hear my voice, helping to eliminate surrounding sounds and distractions, and increasing educational value to all auditory learners. Students would be able to use the regular microphone for presentations, allowing us to hear all presentations clearly. Research has shown that a sound system aides in a classroom serving students with behavioral issues, eliminating distractions and reminding them of the authority of the teacher similar to the voice from 'above."
My third choice would be a video/picture camera. Reinforcements through pictures and movies are a great way to motivate students. I would have students take pictures and video clips of field trips and events, use their photographs to display them in our classroom for positive reinforcements, depict them working on specific subjects to create schedules or demonstrate their participation to parents, and display their footage on websites, in newsletters, or classroom projects.
I can think of several more technological items that would have great value in the classroom, but these three would be my primary choices to address my visual, kinesthetic, and auditory learners.
I would begin with a Smart board. In my opinion Smart boards are the most versatile, engaging, and interactive piece of technology on the current market. In my classroom, the Smart board would be used on a daily basis, creating 'digital lessons.' I would plan the lesson electronically and save it to a storage device, upload interactive software and manipulatives to create engaging, visually and kinesthetic attractive material, and then print out the lesson afterwards, for students to review similar to notes.
My second wish would be a sound system. I would use the 'Necklace microphone' daily for students to be able to hear my voice, helping to eliminate surrounding sounds and distractions, and increasing educational value to all auditory learners. Students would be able to use the regular microphone for presentations, allowing us to hear all presentations clearly. Research has shown that a sound system aides in a classroom serving students with behavioral issues, eliminating distractions and reminding them of the authority of the teacher similar to the voice from 'above."
My third choice would be a video/picture camera. Reinforcements through pictures and movies are a great way to motivate students. I would have students take pictures and video clips of field trips and events, use their photographs to display them in our classroom for positive reinforcements, depict them working on specific subjects to create schedules or demonstrate their participation to parents, and display their footage on websites, in newsletters, or classroom projects.
I can think of several more technological items that would have great value in the classroom, but these three would be my primary choices to address my visual, kinesthetic, and auditory learners.
Sunday, May 23, 2010
I love technology - NOT!
Oh, the wealth of software programs. Unique little installation items for your PC to make work more managable and life easier. Most of us have experience with several of them. We have dabbled in Word, Publisher, Excel, and Outlook, we have installed Adobe Acrobat ( sometimes freely - sometimes without a choice), and we have uploaded pictures, music and possibly videos into its corresponding application to create albums and DVDs.
Most of us have not studied the instruction books you can purchase for an additional prize at local bookstores. We know just enough to be dangerous. We can manipulate the applications to aid us in everyday tasks until . . .IT'S A NEW TASK. We are in need of a formula we have never used in Excel, we want to see if the picture can be rotated in a 30 degree angle instead of a 45 degree, and we want to organize our music by theme, not by artist or album.
Suddenly our everyday helper becomes the most frustrating tool on the market. None of the keyboard features allow you to get the information just so, you end up erasing something that you actually needed, and all of it seems to take FOREVER. An anticipated 15 minute tasks turns into a several hour project with the identical outcome: It did not work.
My advice: Talk to the expert. A 10 minute conversation on the computer or by phone can save hours of self-learning strategies, even though it may seem more complicated, initially. Go ahead and invest in those books. Having a reference in the home can be very helpful and the $12.99 may save you from a nervous breakdown. In addition, use the help features as much as you can, that are built in, in most software programs. These functions are build around most asked questions and will most likely address your need.
The bottom line: Continue to work with your software applications, because the more you use it, the more sophisticated you will become within the programs.
Now, where do I need to go to insert a graphic for this blog???
Most of us have not studied the instruction books you can purchase for an additional prize at local bookstores. We know just enough to be dangerous. We can manipulate the applications to aid us in everyday tasks until . . .IT'S A NEW TASK. We are in need of a formula we have never used in Excel, we want to see if the picture can be rotated in a 30 degree angle instead of a 45 degree, and we want to organize our music by theme, not by artist or album.
Suddenly our everyday helper becomes the most frustrating tool on the market. None of the keyboard features allow you to get the information just so, you end up erasing something that you actually needed, and all of it seems to take FOREVER. An anticipated 15 minute tasks turns into a several hour project with the identical outcome: It did not work.
My advice: Talk to the expert. A 10 minute conversation on the computer or by phone can save hours of self-learning strategies, even though it may seem more complicated, initially. Go ahead and invest in those books. Having a reference in the home can be very helpful and the $12.99 may save you from a nervous breakdown. In addition, use the help features as much as you can, that are built in, in most software programs. These functions are build around most asked questions and will most likely address your need.
The bottom line: Continue to work with your software applications, because the more you use it, the more sophisticated you will become within the programs.
Now, where do I need to go to insert a graphic for this blog???
Thursday, May 13, 2010
Blogging is one of the more innovative technological tools used in education. The main advantage of blogs is its ability to engage students in a create way to work together and share information. The blogger is expressing his/her opinion by filling a space on the Internet, becoming more and more in depth in his/her writing and personal style of expression, through the feedback of the other students. The non-bloggers are exposed to several different opinions and writing styles in a very short period of time, allowing for them to grow in their area of analytical thinking, to differentiate styles, and improvement in writing conventions through practice.
As a teacher posting additional information on the blogs allows students to review information taught and resources in a specific area to enhance learning.
As blogging is such a versatile means to spread information and resources, its popularity and community of followers is growing, resulting in less and less youth being unfamiliar with blogs. All these options combined make blogging a cutting-edge teaching tool.
As a teacher posting additional information on the blogs allows students to review information taught and resources in a specific area to enhance learning.
As blogging is such a versatile means to spread information and resources, its popularity and community of followers is growing, resulting in less and less youth being unfamiliar with blogs. All these options combined make blogging a cutting-edge teaching tool.
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