Inquiry project reflection

I found some helpful and insightful information about incorporating technology into my reading instruction. It took awhile to find the articles, read and summarize them, but from doing that I learned a lot. I found articles, although usually much longer than websites, were more helpful in providing me with the information I was looking for. When doing the screencast, I had to record it three times. Once was kind of like a trial run in that it showed me that I needed to talk faster. The second time I had three and a half words left to say when it cut me off. It was a little frustrating but I rerecorded it and finished with 10 seconds left. Even though it was a little annoying to have to rerecord the screencast a few times, now I know how to use it in case I want to use it again in my classroom (and that to say a lot you have to speak very quickly).

Scratch game

I really enjoyed making an interactive game on Scratch, even though it ended up being a lot more work than I thought. It came out better (and a little different) than I had in mind when I started, but it was changes for the better. It was helpful to receive feedback from others, who made comments on things to add that I did not think about but made my game better. I could use this game in my classroom if I teach at the age group. Regardless, I can use Scratch to make games for my classroom. This is a very useful tool to know how to use.

Exit Slip 4/5

Today we had a good discussion about video games and teaching during the ch. 9 presentation. We also talked about the generation gap and the changing workplace associated with changes in technology.

The book suggested children join social networks online. Not only is is a large threat, but it does not help students with vocabulary, correct spelling, punctuation, or grammar, etc. If parents can constantly monitor it, I do think it can be accomplished but this should not take the place of face-to-face interactions.

We also discussed the changing workplace--what careers have been changed an what careers we think may change in the future due to the revolution. Then, we talked about social lives and learning in respect to peer culture and entertainment technologies.

We briefly learned about the implications for education, specifically technology to support learning, funding concerns, and technology-rich education systems. Some goals of education that we listed include: to make our students productive members of society, to be lifelong learners, to teach children how to find what they need (including in technology), and social cohesion. I do not think technology can meet these goals better than teachers can but I agree that they can work hand-in-hand.

In the ch. 10 presentation, we discussed what learning should be like--interactive and engaging, teach to student interests, relate learning to their lives/experiences, etc. People today choose to learn throughout their lives. Internal motivation is one area that needs to be addressed. Individualizing lessons and making lessons more interesting will help students become motivated. Inquiry projects are good ways to do this. For curriculum that you must teach, integrate those areas in a topic that students are interested in learning about and use a variety of materials, centers, etc. to make it more appealing.

We should also rethink what is important to learn, especially in communication and math and careers that have changed (specifically new skills in technology that you need for your career). We should also rethink transitions, especially during high school and from high school to college. The biggest transition I can think of for young children would be transitioning from pre-K to kindergarten.

The book suggests we also rethink educational leadership--they need to be passionate and are experts in technology. Educational leaders should be able to tell teachers about and how to use technology, working in collaboration to create the best learning opportunities for students. Having an administrator on campus, a technology resource teacher, would be extremely helpful so teachers could learn how to use new technology and make their lessons more interesting for students. Maybe colleges could create certifications for all education majors so they can have more access and learn how to use new technology as it becomes available.

Lastly, we should rethink the role of government in education--would it be better to give the responsibility of education back to the federal government? I am not sure. Pros are that there would be a national standard, more money would be available, and equalization. Cons are that it will need to be implemented gradually, it is worrisome that the government will have a lot of power over the people, and those who are already behind may fall further behind.

At the end, they polled the class to determine if at the end of this class we are technology skeptics, enthusiasts or somewhere in the middle. I chose in the middle because it can help supplement teaching and make lessons more appealing to students, but I do not think they should be the only way students learn/experience skills.

It is important to encourage students to be lifelong learners and be sure you are modeling this yourself.

Contemporary Issues:
A theme park attraction to encourage children to explore careers in math and engineering: to encourage children to want to design roller coasters as their career. You can do this with machines by the roller coaster. This is really interesting! This is VERY motivating for children.
The effects of the Internet on social interactions: a study found that people spent less time with their families and others while depression increased. This is an important issue because times are changing from when I was young. Trying to go without technology for a week, students were "bored out of their minds", went crazy and really did not know what to do with themselves. I think students need to learn how to entertain themselves and play outside with others. This is a parenting issue because many parents allow their children to play more video games or games on the computer than outside. I know this is partly due to the threats outside the house.
Math Anxiety & Technology: Girls can learn math anxiety from their female teachers due to the way the teacher acted (worried, etc.). Researchers say that early childhood/elementary teachers should have to learn higher math than they do now. I disagree with this because I had to take higher math that I do not need to know. Also, I am confident in the math skills I need to teach my students (addition, subtraction, etc.). I think it is the feeling of anxiety that is transmitted, not because of gender. 90% of elementary teachers are women.
Using search engines to do homework: I am sure this is happening. Students need to learn the skills to efficiently find information on the Internet. It also may be difficult to find the specific information they want.
IMing and texts affecting student writing: It can reinforce students' use of bad grammar, punctuation and abbreviations but this is not necessarily the case.

Cool Tools:
Draw anywhere: create organizational charts or diagrams. Downsides are that the logo will print at the bottom and students can view others' charts on any topic.
Google lit trips: It is organized by grades (nice!). You need to have Google Earth downloaded on your computer for this to work. Also, there are not many books listed because teachers must upload the information. The only threat is that anyone can contribute, which means some information may not be reliable.
Flickr: You can use this to upload pictures. It is not totally free. Teachers could use this to document field trips or in class learning for parents and other family members (grandparents, etc.) to see. You must get permission from parents and not ID children by full names. A threat is that it is public so you must change it to private.
Gabbly: It creates a pop up chat room. Anyone can join the chat unless you make it private. To create the chat, type 'gabbly.com/' in front of the URL. Students can chat together while they are on the same website on different computers in different locations.

We learned about screencasting using Jing. You are creating a video of your screen that you share with the world (the class in this case) with a voice recording explaining in greater detail the information displayed on the screen. During the screencast, you can scroll up and down, highlight text, etc. I hope this will not be too difficult to do but it does not seem too bad.

Ch. 10 Reflection

The chapter begins by pointing out the gap in education equity that currently exists. The author hopes that the development of technology will help bring equity back to society by rethinking several issues. One such issue is learning as many avenues for learning are available outside of the classroom. The book suggests developing games to teach subjects and provide resources for society. I wonder if this is possible—not for review but to teach skills from the beginning, like teachers do in schools. The authors have made it clear that they are advocates of lifelong learning and I agree—you are never too old to learn. Ways they suggest people do this are through social networks that provide guidance and advice and learning how to judge the quality of learning venues (i.e. are they reliable). I think social networks can do this but I question that they can be the sole way people receive guidance and support. The book said reliable information sites are supplanting financial aid centers, guidance departments, tutoring, etc. but I question the validity of this statement.

Another area to rethink is student motivation. The book says students are often bored at school and that they do not develop intrinsic motivation to learn. To fix this, the book suggests changing the teaching and learning processes and the reward system for students’ successful completion of school. The authors argue that video games can peak gamers’ interests about topics from the game and encourage them to check out books to learn more. This may be true for some but I do not know any people that have done this. The chapter also argues that schools teach everyone the same thing at the same time but that using technology in the classroom will individualize learning for all students. Teachers are taught to individualize education for their students and meet them where they are, since no two children think the same or have the same interests or experiences. The book also states that teachers can be available to support students if they need more help than the computer can give them, revealing that teachers are important and needed. I do think the book makes a good point when it says that we need to learn what turns adults and children on to learning so that we can provide positive motivational experiences for them—teach to their interests!

Another area to rethink is what is important for students to learn. Currently schools teach a liberal arts curriculum, but the authors believe they should teach to prepare students to live in a technological age and use technological resources. These resources affect communication in that the boundaries of literary practices and production and presentation practices are blurred. The book says gamers can play massively multiplayer online games and use basic literary practices to develop applied literary skills but I wonder how they will first learn the literacy skills they are building on when playing these games. The answer is in school. Technological resources also affect mathematics in that the resources complete algorithms so that students’ time is better spent solving real-world problems; I agree. With the abundance of information available online, students are moving from learning by memorization to learning the skills to find what they want/need on the Internet.

Yet another area to rethink is careers. The book says schools have aimed to teach students about their political responsibilities, but now they must focus on career preparation. I argue that college preparatory schools and schools with special tracks for specific careers already do that. The authors also assume that most people will change jobs multiple times throughout their careers. I do not agree with this. The book suggests that students should be given time after high school to work and then go back for higher education so that they will do better in school. I disagree that people think once they have finished school they have also finished learning. Most people must take continuing education courses or tests and must learn new procedures and machines as they become available.

The book thinks we should rethink the support given when students are transitioning between learning and work. It applauds the efforts of colleges but thinks high schools are in need of better guidance centers that would be federally funded. I wonder where the government will find this money. The book also claims that students who do not go to college or leave college before graduating enter the workforce unprepared. Most of the time it is their choice to leave but I can see where they may run into problems.

The authors also suggest rethinking educational leadership so that various educational resources can be accessed by all. They advocate integrating nonschool resources into learning environments, which will support families, and building wired learning centers in communities. I think this is a good idea, but it will cost a lot of money (e.g. to build the community center, to pay for teacher training, to decide what to integrate, etc.). Again the authors are pushing the creation of video games to teach children skills because their parents will be so busy that they will not have the time to do this. This occurs only in some situations. The authors also want to allow students and their parents to choose what educational track to follow after 8th grade and that students should be in contact with a counselor once they turn fourteen. I wonder how these “other tracks” will be established, who will develop them, monitor them, etc.

Lastly, the book suggests we rethink the role of government in education because the states do not have the resources and funds to correct the inequality in the education system. The book proposes that the government provide machines, inexpensive computers, and tutoring, as well as set up apprenticeship programs. Again, where will they get the money for this? The book also suggests that the states end the requirement to fore students to stay in school until sixteen, but allow them alternatives. Who is going to develop this, how will it be monitored, who will pay for the extra personnel, counselors, etc.?

In closing, the book suggests that for schools to function better in this new age, they need to give up some control of the learning process and that leaders need to work in collaboration with educators to create new opportunities for students to learn; I agree. I am willing to integrate interactive games to review skills and build on base skills I have taught in my classroom as well as collaborating with leaders to develop the best opportunities for students to learn as possible.

Ch. 9 Reflection

The chapter begins by saying that because of the knowledge revolution and the alternate ways to learn with technology schools and learning are beginning to no longer be synonymous with each other. I disagree; I think they are still synonymous, but that there are other, newer avenues that are also beginning to be synonymous with learning as well. However, if the equivalent of Senate Bill 6 is passed in the Florida House of Representatives, this may no longer be the case in Florida because teachers will really teach to the test for fear of losing their jobs.

I agree with the book when it talks about parents worrying about their children playing violent video games for too long to the detriment of their health (i.e. sitting and playing a video game instead of playing outside). Obesity is a BIG concern for Americans in all walks of life, especially children because they can learn unhealthy eating habits young that can be very hard to break later in life. The book promotes video games because children can learn problem-solving and communication skills while playing them. This may be true, but this should not be the only time they are learning and practicing these skills. To “bridge the technological gap” between parents and children, the books suggests parents play video games with their children. I think this is a good idea, but parents should watch the clock to ensure that they do not spend hours doing this.

The book also suggests that parents should encourage their children to join online communities of people who share their interests. I do not think this is a good idea for young children—too many threats—without careful parental supervision. It does mention a community of children—if I were a parent I would research the community to make sure it was safe for my child and supervise the child before suggesting this.

The book tackles the issue of children playing video games and missing out on reading time by mentioning that video games can be used for vocabulary development in context. This may be, but can they teach children to read like books have proven to do? The book also says this new gaming generation may change the future workplace by having them include more virtual aspects–an interesting thought.

The author also brings up an interesting topic when saying that entertainment technologies developed pop culture and that now pop culture has become a “powerful economic engine” by generating many jobs and money worldwide. The author poses the question, “If pop culture can generate substantial economic growth around the world, how will familiarity with pay off?” (i.e. will sitting around the T.V. or playing video games turn into good jobs?). The author then lists several examples of participatory media, such as 24, Lost and reality shows. These spark viewers to create website to discuss plot twists, favorite characters, etc.

The chapter ends with the notion that changing schools’ core practices may not be the answer because researchers have not found the influence of technology in the classroom. Instead, outside forces (students, families and central offices) are pushing technology. The author also adds that schools may change their practices to receive increasingly scarce federal funding that other institutions which incorporate technology are receiving. I think that schools can change and incorporate technology into their classrooms. I know I will incorporate it into mine.