ILP "Participation" -- Participate in an education-related twitter chat

I went on Twitter and found a recent Irnchat conversation. I liked how the topic was on creativity. With all of the education and technology talks, it's nice to be able to talk about something else for a change. I think it's neat that Irnchat hosts conversations on a regular basis. I took screenshots for proof. I forgot to use #Irnchat in my responses, but I quoted Irnchat's tweets and responded through there.

ILP "Design" -- Infogr.am

I used the website, infogr.am to create an infographic. The topic of my infographic was the casualties of the World Wars. I can't provide a link because I didn't publish it because this honestly doesn't look good and I've seen better infographics on the World Wars done by professionals. Look at History.com if you don't believe me. Here are two screenshots for proof that I did it. While the graph doesn't look that great, it gets the point across that the World Wars brought a lot of death and despair . Some countries were affected more than others. 

The Last Blog #10

     This week’s assignment taught me how teachers create classroom jeopardy. I never knew it was all on PowerPoint. I like how PowerPoint lets you jump around and make slideshows that aren’t linear. On the surface, it looks like something that simply allows you to make basic presentations, but the ball is really in your court. The one thing I don’t like is how tedious it can be to insert action buttons. To have to insert an arrow to continue on every slide rather than copy paste is a bit of an annoyance. I will definitely go all out on PowerPoint when I become a teacher.

     One thing I found interesting was how most of us analyzed our high school’s websites. Most of us never actually thought about what makes a good website. Sure, we might have thought to ourselves “man, this website sucks” if a site we’re on is downright awful. But I can say that I’ve never said, “This website is great! It follows the proper design mechanics to a tee!” The lesson on C.R.A.P. was very interesting because it was what we don’t necessarily look for, but expect. It was nice coming from class with that knowledge and applying it to a website that is close to us, our high schools. It’s weird to think that our high school’s web design game might not be on point. Mine was okay for the most part but I see that Kyria was underwhelmed with her school’s website.  

     I want to be a high school history teacher. With that being said I think I’ll use Data Collection tools to create syllabi and tests. I don’t see what I could do that would make me have to send out letters. If the situation occurs I’ll be in deep trouble because I sucked in that portion of the skill check. I remember in high school teachers who reused tests from previous years were well known and really easy to cheat from. That isn’t happening to me. I gotta keep things fresh and spontaneous. I will also use web evaluations to check sources and make sure that my material isn’t susceptible to overt plagiarism and cheating.

     One technology-related skill I would like to learn next is Excel. I’ve always sucked at Excel and I don’t know why. It’s not too hard to use as far as the basics go. Spreadsheets are common so learning how to use Excel is kind of a necessity. Especially if I want to be a teacher or any type of professional. From what I’ve seen, Spreadsheets make everything easier and more organized. I know Excel is up next in the curriculum. If I can get by with a good idea of the basics, it’ll be a success.

     I will achieve my technology goals by following a blog on technological advancements on education. That way, I can keep up with what’s new. I will also practice using technology to sharpen my skills so I don’t forget how to do certain things. I will also be open to discussion about educational technology with other teachers and hear what they have to say. Maybe they will know about something that I’ve never heard of. In a nutshell, my ways of achieving future educational technology-related goals are: practice, keeping up on updates and having discussion.

And also, if you haven't already, please take a few seconds to take my survey: https://fsu.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_bd46WUm5Gcx10bP

Number 9

       As seen in Chapter 10, the flipped classroom is a method that changes the conventional methods of classroom learning. It’s a blended delivery model that involves teachers pre-recording their lectures and instructions and having students listen to it before class. That way, class becomes less of a lecture hall and more of a forum. It’s a pretty good idea but it hasn’t been tested yet. I think it’s great but I can see some problems with it. Mostly students not listening to the lectures or reading the class blogs before class, the same way students today don’t read the textbook before class. The flipped classroom method should make it more fun to be engaged with the class material though. For more information on it, watch this video.

      One website I might use for professional development is LinkedIn. It’s like a Facebook for people trying to get jobs. It’s great. Kids aren’t on it running around, trolling the internet. It’s a place for professionals to interact and be adults. It’s grown folk’s social media. I was convinced by a friend to join a few years ago. This was during my junior year of high school. I signed up and didn’t know what I was getting myself into. I quickly deactivated my account. At least, I think I did, I think I still get emails from them. When I’m older and ready to pursue a career I will definitely return to LinkedIn and learn how to use it.

      I believe this will be good for students because it helps them learn how to present themselves to employers. High school is the perfect time to teach kids how to build resumes and write cover letters. There are many classes for adults on that stuff, so starting kids early is best for them. LinkedIn will also show students that they’re going to have to be mature and professional at some point their lives. During 9th and 10th grade kids tend to take things lightly and goof around a lot. LinkedIn can be a good reminder that pretty soon they’re going to have to straighten up and be serious. This website is a great way to get your name out there and network with potential employers. It makes job hunting much easier. Here’s a link to the website! (https://www.linkedin.com/)

     This week’s assignment taught me how to use Jing. I never heard of Jing until this week so having an assignment involving it was a big deal. I didn’t use Jing for anything other than the video recording of my presentation. I didn’t get to play around with it so I can’t really critique the app. I had a bit of a problem getting my slideshow to work while I was recording and that pissed me off at first. It took me three short takes to get it right and afterwards I was rocking and rolling. The main thing I could’ve done to make my assignment better is being more animated in my narration. My video presentation was nasally and dry even though it was on a topic I enjoy discussing. It was just weird for me to talk into my laptop and act like I was addressing a class. Besides, I don’t like the sound of my voice on recordings. Once I get past that hump, things will be a whole lot better.

Blog 8

         I believe cloud computing holds the biggest promise for the future of education. Cloud computing can be used for the exchange of research. Rather than printing out class notes or getting the notes from a friend, students can access them from the same source. It makes it easier for students to access the most basic applications regardless of what technology they bring to class. No mass installations are needed with cloud computing software. What’s also great about it is there’s one source, meaning maintenance and repair is simple. We live in a digital age and cloud computing is the best representation of the future of education.

        There isn’t a future technology I can think that wasn’t mentioned in the textbook. The textbook had everything that’s in the COE Sandbox and then some. They listed educational games, 3D printing, e-readers, multi-touch technology and more. So many evolving technologies were mentioned in that short chapter it was ridiculous. I don’t even think there’s a technology out there that they didn’t mention.   

        The digital divide is the gap between demographics and regions that have access to modern technology and those who either don’t or have restricted access. It used to define the division between people with and without access to a phone. Now the technology includes phones, TVs, PCs and the internet. The divide is common between the cities and rural areas. I’m on the side of those who have access to modern technology. In my house we have multiple TVs, a few PCs including a home desktop with decent internet connection and we all have cellphones. I don’t think the digital divide will affect my future classroom. For the most part, schools aren’t too diverse in the demographic of kids who have internet access and those who don’t. It’s fairly homogeneous. If I have kids in my class who has restricted or no internet access, the school will accommodate him or her through the media center and computer labs. I as a teacher will do my part by making sure the curriculum and class activities aren’t tech heavy. 

Blog 7

If I were to teach Bloom’s taxonomy using a PowerPoint presentation I would go over the three domains: Cognitive, Affective, and Psychomotor. I’d spend a little more time going over the cognitive domain because it’s the most used. Then I’d give the Affective domain some attention by stressing the importance of values. I feel it’s important for students to receive and analyze the values of others. With values comes better understanding of each other’s differences. The Psychomotor will get the least bit of attention. That domain wasn’t even completed by Bloom.

Adaptive technologies can help students with exceptionalities. They can also help students who are gifted. Technology helps students with special needs by helping them overcome their disabilities. For example, screen magnification software and screen readers assist students who are blind or visually impaired. Talented and Gifted Students, commonly referred to as TAGs, can be challenged with social media and internet projects that can connect them with kids similar to them. Adaptive technology also benefits culturally and linguistically diverse students through visuals, cooperative tasks, and hands-on activity. Some challenges I see with using adaptive technologies are making sure that the students who need them use them while those who don’t still learn something and finding ways to interpret them in the curriculum without spending too much time focusing on them.

From the web page assignment I learned how to professionally blog as a teacher. Weebly is much easier and better looking than the pbworks wiki page we had to use for last week’s assignment. The one problem I had with Weebly is the formatting errors. There were times where we would type something out and when it was published the words were overlapping or in a different color. That seems to be a problem with a lot of free blogging sites because I have the same issue with Blogger. Overall the assignment was one of the most fun and least stress inducing that we’ve done so far. 

Blog #6 Website evaluation

I visited the website of my high school, Coral Springs Charter. The website class list includes classes and teachers and it also has years and semesters to choose from. There is a teacher contact form for people to send an email to teachers. Homework and submission links are also available. CSCS is a middle and high school, so the grades of these classes aren’t properly specified. The current class list mostly caters to middle school. 

               

            I would most likely use apps as a teacher. It’s the 21^st century and there’s an app for everything. The kids are on their phones anyway so I might as well put them to good use. According to textbook, apps are great for assisting students and providing teachers with grade feedback. When I was in high school my AP Stats teacher made us download an app that had us answer questions based on the material covered that day and a survey of how well we understood the lesson. It was very similar to iClicker.

            

           From the web evaluation assignment I learned how in depth teachers look for the legitimacy of the sources their students use. I learned how to make an evaluation sheet and rubric through this assignment. I also learned how to collaboratively post something on wiki. I never used wiki for anything more than research before this. Now I know how to make a wiki page, edit and add to it. If there were anything I would change about the assignment I would make sure that my group members and I were all on the same page as far as what to do and how the work is divided.