digital blog post # k

After reading chapter 6 I found the topic of 'standards connector' very interesting and potentially very useful in the future. To have resources grouped by standard, subject, topic, and grade level very convenient for new ideas or ways of introducing topics to students. Plus with them being published by other teachers or professors makes it a bit more reliable and easier than scouring the internet for hours to find information. This I would think would be good for all schools to set up since many subjects a taught in tandem across the different teachers in a particular grade and school. It would seem easier and better to share the lesson plans and ideas of what works with students and helpful for new teachers to be able to pull from.
The other topics I found interesting were about virtual field trips and skills practice websites. I have never taken a virtual field trip and think this is a great idea for students to be able to experience places and learn unique things without leaving the classroom. Many schools lack budgets and volunteers to do many if any field trips for students and this is a great tool to try and put them back within students reach. Skills practice websites I feel, especially for mathematics, would be a great thing to utilize for my students. Math is not everyone's best or favorite subject and to find 'homework' or 'group work' that they may enjoy or look forward to doing is always a win in my mind. I have looked into some of the websites for my own child, even though she is only 3 she loves playing the simple games of learning on them. I can only imagine to break it would give older students from the traditional paper pencil work.

Resources
Citrino, J. image created via storybird.com http://storybird.com/poetry/poem/3v6agv5bz9/
Maloy, Robert, Verock-O'Loughlin, Ruth-Ellen, Edwards, Sharon A.,and Woolf, Beverly Park (2013). Transforming Learning with New Technologies. 2nd Edition. Boston, MA: Pearson Education, Inc.

digital blog post # J

After reading this chapter I found the idea of democratic classrooms very much interesting. Having subbed in middle and high school grades I find that giving students options within a certain perimeter they tend to choose very wisely and thoughtfully as a whole. Some will still make sarcastic remarks or begrudgingly go along with the chose made, but for the most part, even when it comes to rules and discipline they make very good choices if treated as the age they are and less like 'little children'. I have been dubbed by several students as the 'strict but fun' sub. The schools I work for are not democratic so I and the students must still work within their regulations and standards but they seem to respond better to assignments and lessons when given options about them. I think schools, especially high schools, should become more democratic. From 9th grade on they are gearing to become full adults with the responsibilities of full adults, so why not allow them to practice those rules, standard, and fulfillment responsibilities while still having the support and guidance of their peers, teachers, and administration. We as teachers are always supposed to have higher expectations for our students to learn and grow more than they think they can and more often then not, those students will rise to meet or surpass what is expected rather then fall short.

 I also found that the topic of portfolios for teachers leaves me with some questions. I  find that updating it consistently and evaluation are good necessities for teachers to do. But when the issue of leaving old or older things in one I still think is a good idea for certain things. Like if I was struggling to teach a certain lesson or topic well for a while and had that in my portfolio as a weakness and then realized through student and self- evaluation what to do better in the future and then succeeded in carrying that out and added the new and better information or lessons into my portfolio wouldn't it seem better to show and track the actual growth I made rather then simply writing that I did. it would also serve as a reminder every time I looked at it where I went wrong and how to not get back there and to keep improving. Almost like a digital reminder to always push forward and upward in my skills and abilities. I would also have a bit more respect and find someone who can admit to their mistakes and actions they took to better themselves to have more integrity and humbleness, which are aspects most employers look for, not just in teachers.
I also like the idea of pre-assessments before beginning a new topic but I'm not sure I would do online ones unless it was like a homework assignment with only a grade for completing it. I wouldn't be able to truly trust the answers if done online from somewhere other than the classroom since the internet and other people could help them. I also think that the section on 'test prep' should be taught daily and not just  for testing. It is more a matter of understanding vocabulary and deconstructing the information given down to just what is important and forgetting about what I call the 'fluff'. I try to teach this through word problems and riddles. My students seem to enjoy doing the riddles more since they seem less like 'work' then the word problems, but they both teach the same concept.

Resources

Citrino, J. Picture Via: istudyincanada.com. Created via: Canva.com. www.canva.com/design/DABhkvuEd2I/9IZfjg1Q80yXP0Maj_NP4w/edit

Maloy, Robert, Verock-O'Loughlin, Ruth-Ellen, Edwards, Sharon A., and Woolf, Beverly Park. (2013). Transforming Learning with New Technologies. 2nd Edition. Boston, MA : Pearson Education, Inc.

digital blog post # H

This chapter was a bit harder for me to find things to reflect upon in an inquisitive manner. This chapter is titled " Expressing Creativity with Multimedia Technologies" Maloy, et al (2013, 215) I guess as more of a list of different software programs, video creating software, etc it follows the title and concept of the chapter. But to me it is more just that. A list of programs or online tools to use with research backed findings about the good it does for the students. I do believe that those programs and tools help a student express themselves and what they have learned in a more creative way than a written paper would, but through reading the chapter it doesn't really have any better suggestions on the various types of media to use other than what I, most people my age, and young students already know exists. So in a sense this chapter was just a reiteration of what has been discussed in previous chapters.

I felt while reading this chapter I had a few more questions than answers. I find it very beneficial to incorporate these applications and usage in my future classroom, especially with the subject of math being the subject most students dread learning about. But while this book goes on to discuss how we must prepare our students for the 21st century learning and careers, it does not discuss how the transition of using all of these applications during the K-12 years will or does transition to college learning or teaching at such a level. My degree right now is for secondary education, but my masters and doctorate will be for college level teaching. So far in all of the colleges I have been to and in all of the college courses I have taken, most of these technologies are not currently incorporated.

So my questions are: has technology not caught up to the college level yet? Or with the huge amounts of material needed to be covered in a shorter time frame ( then a regular school year) are they dismissed for the 'old-fashioned' or 'traditional' ways of teaching and learning? Will all of this use of new technology and interactive approach in the K-12 years effect students in a bad way once they get to college and find that the classes are more paper pencil exams, lessons, and multi-page written papers?

I will try and incorporate visual displays of the math concepts I am teaching, like youtube videos, I am partial to the Kahn Academy videos myself and will more than likely incorporate those as well. I love the idea of my younger students (6th-12th) making posters to describe their understanding of math vocabulary and it's application, but I think paper posters may be better then digital so they can be put up around my room for all to see when they enter instead of on a class website.

Resources
Citrino, J. (Oct.22, 2015) Mindmapping. Cacoo.com/diagrams/WOqvYENjUbl4ivxs

Maloy, Robert, Verock- O'Loughlin, Ruth-Ellen, Edwards, Sharon A., and Woolf, Beverly Park. (2013).  Transforming Learning with New Technologies. 2nd Edition. Boston, MA : Pearson Education, Inc.

digital blog post #G

     The first concept that caught my attention was about Differentiated Instruction. There are so many different reasons for having different lessons, lesson plans, and activities for students to showcase what they know or have learned. This variation in lessons, lesson plans and activities within the lessons to very important to be able to teach and have the information reach as many students as possible within the same class and class-time setting. I interpreted that by practicing differentiated instruction with the focus of 'accommodations instead of modifications' on a daily basis makes full-inclusion possible, an easier transition, and more successful for all involved Maloy et al ( 2013 pp  248-250).
     The second concept that I found interesting was about the Universal Design for Learning. The three terms used to define it are things that I apply daily to every classroom that I sub for without ever knowing that it had a 'name'. The definitions of ' multiple means of representation', ' multiple means of expression', and ' multiple means of engagement' pretty much have the same meanings but for each topic. They say to give students many different options to learn from, to display the knowledge they know and to find out their interests in order to increase motivation, understanding and meeting challenges. I have always used the motto that I would rather have someone ask me the same question 100 times requiring 100 different answers until they understand then to never ask at all. I think this applies to the universal design for learning in the fact that you need to allow as many different ways to reach students and their learning potential as possible since all students are different, learn differently and at different paces.

   
The third concept that I found interesting was about all of the different types of accommodations  and assistive technology and levels of accommodations and assistive technology. I knew about things like interpreters, and personal aids, but I had no idea about all of the different levels of each accommodation or assistive device. I didn't realize that simple things like calculators or handheld dictionaries were classified in these catagories. During my research for topic discussion #3 on Assistive/Adaptive technology I found quite a few different types of accommodations and assistive items for the deaf or hard of hearing students that i never knew existed. Some of these included very small personal hearing devices to very eleborate devices that all many students to use to hear at once. I also liked the statements " The goal is to create accommodations through which students with special educational needs have different ways to access the regular education curriculum.... It is important to avoid modifications, where students receive educational experiences that are less substantive than those done by the regular education students in the class." I feel those statements sum up my entire viewpoint on having accommodations and assistive technology in the classroom. As long as nothing interferes too much with anyone's education in particular then I am open to all types and levels of each in my room.

Resources:

Citrino, J. (2015) Word Cloud created via Worditout.com with credit given to Maloy et al for quotes. worditout.com/word-cloud/1181652/private/86ad23f9a38442a79208214d550e6753

Maloy, Robert, Verock-O' Loughlin, Ruth-Ellen,Edwards, Sharon A., and Woolf, Beverly Park (2013). Transforming Learning with New Technologies. 2nd Edition. Boston, M.A: Pearson Education, Inc.

digital blog post #d

     While reading chapter 5 there were a few concepts that I found very interesting. The first concept was about students usage of e-readers and online e-books. Students usage of these types of reading materials has increased over the years which seems to simply correlate with the growing popularity of the devices, increasing variety and availability of e-books, and the ease of access to obtain both the devices and online books thru programs like kindle and e-reader. It does not surprise me that the popularity has been passed from adults to students with these items. They are light weight, rechargeable, and contain access to hundreds of books in varying genres in one place instead of having to carry around or buy multiple physical books. But with the growing use of these items the less that seems to be going into actual print. This does not seem to help keep places like libraries and book stores in business, which does not benefit those that cannot afford said devices. This seems to keep the digital and literacy divide growing instead of shrinking. There are pros and cons to both sides of these devices, but somehow we need to find the median ground that can benefit all in this area.
     The next concept that I found to be good was about electronic note-taking. I find both pros and cons to this concept as well. The book talks about how programs can make note taking easier, keep them organized and some can even record audio for later reference. While these are great tools to help students, I feel like these are still skills and abilities that students need to physically learn and master as well. Learning organizational skills with school work can and does cross over into other areas of their lives. Organization skills will be needed in all job fields and is part of time management skills. An electronic device will not be able to organize all aspects of ones life and relying on a program to keep school work and notes organized from as early on as elementary school, such as suggested in the text book, does not assist in teaching a student to do this for themselves. I believe the same types of cons go with being able to take notes as well. For instance, during a college lecture, which is still the most common form of college learning, a student would either go through a terabit of storage trying to record all lectures or spend the entire class trying to type in their notes words for word if they haven't learned how to properly take notes. If a student does not learn to discern important verbal concepts from other conversational audio during a lecture or how to write/type shorthanded then they will spend hours re-listening to the audio tracks or pouring through pages of written information to find and learn what they need. Especially since, at least so far in all of my on-campus classes, you are not allowed to bring in or at least use a phone, computer, tablet, or kindle device during the class. That leaves one to listen and remember the lecture word for word or write physical notes on paper. If a student has never done so in any grade before, this would be a very time consuming a difficult concept to master quickly enough in college to stay up in their assignments.
     The last concept I found interesting was about plagiarism and cheating. These have been issues ever since I can remember, even before electronic devices. The growing problem is that electronic devices and the internet make these two things easier to do. Having so many different resources at ones fingertips for writing papers, copying word for word information is very easy to do and a bit harder to catch without a program to do so. And quick and simple things like texting or sending pictures via cellphones for answers on tests between students makes cheating easier and quicker to do without getting caught. The book has a few suggestions to curb these activities but most seem to point towards preventing plagiarism more so than cheating. I found some of the suggestions to be helpful but a bit obvious. I found the suggestions from a previous source, '6 Pros and Cons of Technology in Your Classroom', to have better, more precise, and usable ideas.

Citrino, J. (2015) How to Curb Cheating and Plagiarism. Via Piktochart. Https://magic.piktochart.com/editor/piktochart/8096720#

Maloy, Robert, Verock-O'Loughlin, Ruth-Ellen, Edwards, Sharon A., and Woolf, Beverly Park.(2013). Transforming Learning with New Technologies. 2nd Edition. Boston,MA: Pearson Education,Inc.

Montano, Jean. (Mar. 6, 2015). 6 Pros and Cons of Technology in Your Classroom. Tophat blog. http://www.blog.tophat.com

digital blog post # C

    While reading chapter 3 there were a few points that stuck with me. The first being about Information and Internet Literacy on pages 55-57. I believe both are extremely important to teach current and future students. Too many times have I personally seen articles shared or posted on the internet that people believe are real or contain true information when in fact they do not. You cannot always believe what you read at face value without further and independent, in-depth research on the subject matter. Anyone with even the most basic knowledge of website or blog building skills can put anything on the internet for everyone to read. It needs to be shown and taught to students that you must question where information comes from, whether its' from a reliable source or a satire type source, or whether it's just someone's opinion or factual information. Too many times people either don't seem to know where the information originated from or how to distinguish the information's source. This will be very important when finding research and statistical evidence for papers in school, college, and even in the work environment.
     The next topic that stuck with me was the concept of Digital Citizenship. Maloy, et al (2013 pp 65-69) I think this is also a very important concept to teach all students to actively practice daily. Quoting resources, avoiding plagiarism and conducting oneself in a respectful and non-harmful manner are all skills or personal traits students will need to master and showcase for their entire school and career lives. Students need to understand that the internet can make people feel more secure and they may post writings or drawings online that they may not feel confident enough to do in a face-to-face situation, but they need to make sure they use that for good and it is never supposed to be used to harm or exploit anyone else in any fashion. Used in those ways can be considered digital bullying or pirating and are harmful to those on the other end of their actions.
     The third topic that stuck with me was about the research on the science or learning and the outcomes of that. "The contemporary view of learning, what the editors call 'constructivism', is that people construct new knowledge and understandings based on what they already know and believe." Maloy, et al (2013 pp 47) I believe in that statement. I also think it holds very true in subjects like math, which I plan on teaching. It is very hard to introduce the concept of trigonometry to someone who has no knowledge of algebra or geometry. That would be very hard for one to grasp without prior information or practice. I also believe this can apply to almost every area of our lives. Without prior use of technology like a computer or software I do think one could normally use a computer for the first time and write computer code. At the very least you would have to do some research of some type to begin a task you have never encountered before. This is just like the scaffolding concept, which I also believe is very important to use with students and to try and relate more undesirable subjects, like math, to more real-world applications to help expand the understanding, retention, and active engagement a student may have pertaining to the concept being learned.

Citrino, J. Sept. 19 2015. Via Bitstrip.com Via facebook.com app
Maloy, Robert, Verock-O'Loughlin, Ruth-Ellen, Edwards, Sharon A., and Woolf, Beverly Park (2013). Transforming Learning with New Technologies. 2nd Edition. Boston, MA: Pearson Education Inc.

digital blog post #b

     The first point of chapter 2 I'd like to reflect on the when the book describes the term 'technology'. It describes technology "as an innovation designed to solve problems and extend human capabilities." Maloy, et al (2013 pp 24) I think this is true in almost every sense it can be conceived. By this I mean personally it can aid those with various disabilities run their personal lives more independently, it allows an endless amount of information to be at ones' finger tips, it enables a sense of personal connection through social medias and messaging forums, and most importantly I believe it can help teachers reach and teach every student in all of the different ways students learn like teacher could never quite do before. Visual learners can learn from videos and power points, auditory learners can listen to podcasts and educational concepts put to music or lyrics, kinesthetic learners can play educational games and operate field trips with the google 360 viewer and feel like apart of the interaction. Technology devices can offer an amazing array of aid to teachers to help reach each and every student. I as a future teacher can only hope to learn enough at all times to stay on top of this curve and bring the best possible learning devices and programs to my students.
     The second concept that resonated with me in this chapter were the results from the High School Survey of Student Engagement Survey done by Indiana University. I found those to be very eye opening. When I was in high school, mind you not even that long ago, technology was not a major part of learning or teacher usage in the classrooms beyond maybe a power point presentation and the old style overhead projectors that used transparency sheets. all of my classes were mostly lecture based and I as an auditory and visual learner enjoyed that teaching style. I did not enjoy group projects or technology based projects. Mostly because in group projects I would end up with most of the work and since I didn't have a computer in my home until I was 15 did not enjoy research or technology based projects. The survey results are the complete opposite of what kids today enjoy about school and what I did. This makes me feel both very apprehensive about my ability to catch up and surpass the technology needs my students have while at the same time lighting a fire in me to make it become a personal challenge to do just that.

     The third concept was about the digital barriers, divides, and participation gaps among kids and access to technological devices and the abilities to use them. This concept may sound new, due to technology being a newer front that schools are using but to me sounds like the same concern when access to books, and kids reading levels were in question. The textbook said "digital divides and participation gaps affect mainly low-income, nonwhite, urban, and rural youngsters, and occur when students do not have access to the latest technologies at school or at home. Lack of access to new technologies is a contributing factor to academic achievement gaps." Maloy, et al (2013 pp 32). I do not know yet of a way that schools or districts, or even states can provide enough funding so that every student can obtain some type of personal digital device, like an ipad, to gain equal access to technology like other students have, but it makes me think there is something that is being over looked somewhere along the way. Unless we can get those students to tools they need as teachers and faculty I am not sure how to close this gap. It is an age old gap that just keeps increasing as rapid as technology does. But I am hoping to be able to help curb some of this gap in my classroom by using the techniques I read in my articles for our discussion # 2 post.

Citrino, J. Sept.13, 2015. Created via ToonDoo.

Maloy, Robert, Verock-O'Loughlin, Ruth-Ellen, Edwards, Sharon, A., and Woolf, Beverly Park. (2013). Transforming Learning with New Technologies. 2nd Edition. Boston, MA: Pearson Education, Inc.