Assignment #1

The Value of Technology...

Technology in today's classroom is becoming more and more valuable. The generations are changing, and although I like to think of myself as decently technological, the truth is compared to the generation after me, I got nothing! I look at my cousins who are 6 and 8, and already they can navigate their way through the internet and know how to type in information - even if it's not not really "Typing." Because of this, technology is going to become an invaluable resource to the next generation classroom.

As a current student, I know that technology has greatly influenced my learning. Classes today that don't have some sort of powerpoint presentation are almost unheard of. Teachers primarily use powerpoint in the classroom, but they expect for more technological use outside of the classroom. Most students cannot survive without their computer - all assignments must be typed these days. Not to mention the online research and the communication that takes place through online networks like Discovery or Blackboard. More and more technological use is being demanded of the teachers, and by the teachers.

As a future teacher... I see my elementary classroom looking far different from the elementary classroom I remember being a student in. Depending on the financial well-being of a district, classrooms could become largely virtual. I think the use of technology will be vital in keeping student's attention, as more and more technology becomes common at home. Students will be more easily bored by the old ways of teaching, and possibly question the relevancy and currency of it. However, if technology can be incorporated in some way to the majority of what they study, their attention will be held better and it shows that the information does apply in a technological age.

ARTICLE

For my article, I chose to read Embracing Emergent Technologies and Envisioning New Ways of Using Them for Literacy Learning in the Classroom. The article was written by a lower grade elementary teacher in New Zealand who realized that she needed to start using technology as an integral part of her classroom. She realized that most students have grown up with technology used in their daily lives and expect it to be used in their learning processes as well. Since that moment, she has made a conscious effort to incorporate technology in different ways, particularly in literacy - reading and writing.

She first got the idea to start a website, and knew that she needed to make sure that it would be used for purposeful learning outcomes. Otherwise it would just be another flashy piece of her classroom with no real learning value. From here she came up with several different ideas to promote reading, writing and editing. One of the first activities the class did was create podcasts. These podcasts were used to reflect on the learning that had gone on during the week. It had to contain more than simply descriptions of activities that the students had done, but had to include what they had learned from those activities. She also went on to describe how they used the website to publish the student's writing on the website, as well as creating an online thesaurus of new words they learned or that they simply enjoyed the sound of. They have also used the website for book reviews - both written and through podcasts - and communication with other classrooms.

I thoroughly enjoyed this article. I loved how it was a specific example from one teacher's perspective. I thought she did a really good job of telling why she believed it is important to incorporate technology into the classroom, and then providing examples of how she has done it. I learned a lot about different ways to use a class website. Creating a website is one of the first things we have talked about in the class, but I have kind of been wondering what we could do with it. Now, I have some solid ideas that I am excited about, that I can use someday in my classroom. One particular idea that I am excited about teaches about perspective in literature. The teacher sends home a stuffed animal, a digital camera, pen, and notebook, along with instructions for the child and for the parents, to one child each week. Their task is to take pictures of this animal and his adventures for the weekend, and write about them from his perspective. I think this is a great tool because children can have a lot of fun with it - taking him different places and writing stories - all the while learning about a key aspect of literature and improving their writing and story-telling skills. It also provides a great way for students to learn about their fellow class-mates.

Overall, I was really impressed with how well the article was written and the depth of information it provided. I would definitely recommend that any teacher who is struggling with ideas read this article to gain some inspiration.

Halsey, Sue. "Embracing emergent technologies and envisioning new ways of using them for literacy learning in the primary classroom." English Teaching: Practice & Critique 6.2 (Sep. 2007): 99-107. Education Research Complete. EBSCO. Hurst Library, Kirkland, WA. 23 Sep. 2008 .

NETS STANDARDS

As I read through the NETS standards, the ideas seemed pretty basic to me. Students need to use the technology available to them to enhance their learning. While they do this they need to practice sound ethics, just like one would hope they would in a physical classroom. Students should use the knowledge of technology that they have, and build on those concepts to learn new types of technology. I felt that the basic idea for these standards was that students should use the technology that they have, learn the technology that they don't know, and use all of it in a responsible way to interact with other classmates and peers around the world.

The standards for teachers were similar. Basically as teachers we need to provide the tools and assignments for students to use the technology meet the standards. We also need to provide a safe environment for students to explore in. Also as teachers, we need to learn the technology ourselves so that we can model how to use it, and provide accurate information regarding technology.

These standards are important because they allow students to see that all schools are being held to using technology, and that it is becoming an more integral part of our world and education. It also forces teachers to learn something about technology and challenges them to know how to use it in their classrooms. I don't think younger generations may have a huge problem with this, but for current teachers who are "immigrants" to this technological age, they are probably a helpful reminder.

Improving Instruction with Interactive White Boards

I read the article Improving Instruction with Interactive White Boards by D. Schaffhauser.
I found it very interesting to see how a specific principal decided to use the white boards and the effect it is having on the school. It was also refreshing to see that this particular example was not a "rich" school district - it really seemed pretty average. Though the principal wasn't sure how they were going to get the funding, she truly believed that introducing Smartboards was the right way to go and made it happen.

At the end of the article, the principal told how she was funding all of the Smartboards, and really she simply re-organized her budget. She cut out things that were no longer necessary, some of which she didn't even know what it was anymore. She also cut costs on the way the Smartboards were set up. All of this shows that with some smart planning and re-evaluating, most school districts could slowly afford to uprgrade their technology.

All in all, the article provided some good insight into a real example of how Smartboards are coming into action in one school. It really shows that Smartboards do make an impact.

html

So last week in class, we learned how to do html. It was so much fun! All of this stuff that seemed like nonsense before... suddenly I was able to use it to do what I wanted it to. I still have a lot to learn and figure out, but now it's not near as daunting.

We also created our own websites using Google Sites. I thought it was really confusing. It was fun to know that I was creating my very own website, but the program wasn't very easy to use. I'm still not sure how to do exactly what I want to, but I'm slowly figuring it out. Here is the link to the beginnings of my site:-)

School Website

So I just checked out the website for the school I am student teaching in, Olivia Park Elementary. Overall I thought it was really good. The format seems pretty basic - it could definitely use some creative artistic input - but most of the information was really good. The links were all easily accessible on the left hand side, and I only found a couple links to outside websites that were no longer accessible. It had links to the teachers' webpages (if they had any), as well as a directory for the staff's e-mail. There were also some resources listed, for teachers, parents and students, some which looked really helpful. So, except for it being a somewhat boring presentation, the website was very informative and easily navigable.

What I want to learn...

What do I want to focus on this semester? It seems almost an overwhelming question, since there seems to be so much I don't know yet. With that in mind, I think that I would like to generally have a better understanding of the technological world. I mean, how do you find out about this stuff anyway? There seems to be new stuff appearing every day, that I know my students will have access to... how do I not fall behind? and how do I get ahead , when I feel like I'm already somewhat behind? That is what I hope to gain this semester. A better understanding of what is available, how to use what is available, and how to incorporate it into my classroom. This goal seems pretty vague and general I know, but I really can't think of another one when I feel that I don't even know where to begin...

"Generation IM: Getting Through to Today's Teched-out Children"

I read the article "Generation IM: Getting Through to Today's Teched-out Children" by Curwood, 2008, and was surprised to see how much of myself I recognized in it. At the very beginning of the article it talks about children being able to media multi-task, something I do every day. It's something I have almost always done - listened to music while doing homework and IM-ing a friend all at the same time. For me it is weird to think of NOT having a lifestyle like this.

That then made me think about some of the kids I babysit for. They are exposed to so much more technology than I ever was. I remember playing video games after school and watching TV, but the level at which kids today are able to do such things is ten times greater than when I was that age. With those thoughts in mind, I was able to really understand and agree with the majority of what the article said.

Today's generation does need to be taught in a new way - incorporating the technology that they are already so familiar with, but also giving those students who might not have the access to technology at home, a chance to learn and keep up with their peers.

However, while I agree that technology does need to be incorporated in the classroom, and their exposure to technology has definitely changed the way their minds process information, I don't think that we can completely discount traditional education techniques. Children still need to be able to function in hands-on activities, with person to person contact. I think it is important that we not take either side to the extreme, but that the key is an integration of the two worlds.

How I got here

Hello all, and welcome to my page!



To start things off, let me tell you a little bit about myself and how I came to be an education major at Northwest. Never in a million years did I ever think that I would be in education, but here I am today.



Growing up, I always thought of myself as not any good with kids, and I really didn't enjoy them that much. I hated babysitting and always accepted jobs begrudgingly. However, that began to change when my aunt had three children and decided to use me as her main babysitter. I soon came to love them more than I ever thought possible, and over time realized that kids were actually pretty fun.



As high school graduation approached, I shunned the idea of ever becoming a teacher. Several key people in my life always told me that I would be a great teacher, and that I would probably love it, but I just smiled politely and told them, "probably not". Not really being sure what I wanted to do, I decided to take my mom's suggestion and head in the direction of physical therapy. Soon however, I realized that I despised science.

To make a long story shorter... I then transferred to Boise Bible College after deciding I wanted to learn more about ministry and the Bible, and from there God lead me to the realization that what I wanted to do more than anything was impact the lives of young children, their parents, and my peers.

So here I am at Northwest, studying to do just that and loving every minute of it!