1. Identify and briefly discuss 5 advantages of distance education.
1) Flexibility: Students can take and do assignments and their learning at their own pace instead of having time restrictions in a physical classroom.
2) Variety of Classes Offered: online classes can be more varied than physical classrooms because it is virtual.
3) Low Costs: Transportation costs for the parents is lowered because they don't have to take their child to and from school. Material costs for the school districts is lowered because there are less physical materials...assignments are turned in digitally instead of on paper.
4) Avoiding Bad Weather School Cancellations: School doesn't have to stop just because the bus can't come! Unless of course, your electricity goes out, and in that case you probably deserve the day off anyway.
5) Can Hold a Job and Go to School at the Same Time: High school students have the opportunity to arrange their school and work schedules to provide a balanced lifestyle.
2. Identify and briefly discuss 5 disadvantages of distance education.
1) No physical spaces like Libraries, Gyms or Playgrounds: Students learn in one exact place the whole time..in front of their computer. Occasional and infrequent field trips cannot compare with PE every other day in the Gymnasium.
2) No Face to Face Interaction with the other Students: Especially for younger students in the primary grades, learning new faces, hearing new voices is mentally stimulating. Lack of these might potentially harm the learning of young students.
3) No Interaction with the Teacher: Students sometimes need to have the intimading presence of a teacher to get them going on assignments, this role could probably be filled by involved parents but the likelihood of that always occuring when needed is significantly lower for online schooling.
4) Behavior Issues aren't focused on, only Ignored: The students who use online schooling because of behavior issues aren't being helped..their problems aren't being dealt with...just worked around by using online schooling.
5) Decline of Physical Writing Skills: The legitimacy of students writing might go down if they never actually write anything, only type answers onto the computer to submit. People will always need to write legitimately.
3. How you would determine the readiness of students to participate in distance education?
You would have to determine their ability to work and complete assignments on their own, stimulate their own thinking, use technology expertly and have the work ethic to be a good online student. To do this, stuents would probably need to take some sort of diagnostic assignment/unit lesson which they complete online in the same sort of way they would do their online learning. Then, the online school administrators would determine if the students were capable of excelling in the online schooling environment. Paremt involvement would be CRUCIAL for determining if their child would be capable of doing well using online classes.
4. What would you need to do to be ready to teach in an online environment?
As a teacher, I would need to have taken specialty courses in how to teach in the online school environment. I would need to have a super fast, very smart computer also. And programs like skype downloaded and be proficient with such programs. I would also need to have massive amounts of time to dedicate to answering student e-mails/questions/ grade assignments.
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
Wednesday, October 7, 2009
Engaging Students with Concept Mapping Activities
1. 2-3 paragraph summary of the 3-5 ideasexplored for how you could use Concept Mapping within your future classroom.
Concept mapping is a graphic organizer that has many benefits, including helping recall, assisting in understanding visually, and organizing the thoughts of students into meaningful parts. Concept mapping can be fun for the students and visually more appealing than just a basic list.
The first interesting concept mapping idea I came across was a “Main Idea Mountain”. The “Main Idea Mountain” was a triangle with four boxes at the bottom that diverged into two boxes, which then diverged into one top box equaling the main idea. The second interesting concept mapping idea I found was the “Topic Flower”. The “Topic Flower” was a circle with 5 petals. The circle was the main idea, the petals were 5 relating ideas.
The third interesting concept mapping idea I stumbled across was the “Topic Turtle”. The “Topic Turtle” was basically a picture of a turtle from above. The turtle had a head, four feet and a small tail. His shell comprised of the boxes you write the ideas in. The shell had a heptagon (7 sides) in its center and 7 sections spreading from that. The heptagon was where the main idea went; the 7 sections were relating ideas or sub-topics.
The fourth interesting concept mapping idea I found was the “”Character Body”. The “Character Body” was a picture of a person. The head was the character’s name, the chest/torso was a short physical description, the left arm was where names of the character’s friends went, the right arm had the names of the character’s enemies in it. The two legs both have things the character said and did in them.
The fifth interesting concept mapping idea I found was the “Question Hand”. The “Question Hand” asked who, what, when, where, why and how of something. The palm of the hand was the how description, the thumb was who, and the four fingers were the what, when, where, and why questions.
The first interesting concept mapping idea I came across was a “Main Idea Mountain”. The “Main Idea Mountain” was a triangle with four boxes at the bottom that diverged into two boxes, which then diverged into one top box equaling the main idea. The second interesting concept mapping idea I found was the “Topic Flower”. The “Topic Flower” was a circle with 5 petals. The circle was the main idea, the petals were 5 relating ideas.
The third interesting concept mapping idea I stumbled across was the “Topic Turtle”. The “Topic Turtle” was basically a picture of a turtle from above. The turtle had a head, four feet and a small tail. His shell comprised of the boxes you write the ideas in. The shell had a heptagon (7 sides) in its center and 7 sections spreading from that. The heptagon was where the main idea went; the 7 sections were relating ideas or sub-topics.
The fourth interesting concept mapping idea I found was the “”Character Body”. The “Character Body” was a picture of a person. The head was the character’s name, the chest/torso was a short physical description, the left arm was where names of the character’s friends went, the right arm had the names of the character’s enemies in it. The two legs both have things the character said and did in them.
The fifth interesting concept mapping idea I found was the “Question Hand”. The “Question Hand” asked who, what, when, where, why and how of something. The palm of the hand was the how description, the thumb was who, and the four fingers were the what, when, where, and why questions.
2. Discuss what you see as the impact of the use of Concept mapping might have on student learning within your future classroom. Give some details to support your statements.
Concept mapping can have a significant positive impact on student learning. Student who are visual learners will excell with the use of concept mapping. Concept mapping is a good way to organize lots of information into basic parts. For example, the above "Photosynthesis Process" concept map only has a small amount of text, but the arrows and pictures provide lots of information and simplify the process. Sometimes, simplifying a process in science and breaking it down into basic parts BEFORE delving into specific details can help students get a clear understanding of the general ideas.
3.Discuss at least 2 criteria that you would use to decide whether or not Concept Mapping activities would be part of a lesson for your students.
The first criteria I would use would be "Can this lesson be best taught using technology like concept mapping?" If it is something like the photosynthesis process, then yes,of course your students can benefit from using a concept map. If it is something like math lessons where you are explaining Long Division, then probably your objective is not going to be met while using a concept map. The second criteria I would use would be "Can this topic be broken down into meaningful parts or will this topic be too complicated for a concept map?" If the topic is theoretical or contains many complicated ideas, would a simple diagram be adequate enough to use? These are things I would take into consideration before starting a concept mapping activity.
Wednesday, September 30, 2009
Reflections on Using Teacherweb
1. Describe at least 2 ways that the use of a class web site like TeacherWeb could be used to support your future teaching. Provide some specific details for each example.
One way you could use Teacherweb is to have communication between parents and yourself. You could provide information like the lunch menu, a calendar of classroom events, what to do in the event of a school closure, what projects your students are working on, etc. This allows parents to have another avenue of being involved in their children's academics.
Another way to use Teacherweb is to use it as a resource for future years of your teaching. You could have a calendar of events that could help keep you on track throughout the semester or year. Having pages dedicated to lists of Lessons you have done, in the order you did them, can help you repeat and implement successful lesson plans or units in future years. This will also be a good resource for other teachers in your building to know what you are doing throughout the year.
2. Identify 2 ways students could use a class web site like TeacherWeb to enhance their learning. Provide some details for each way identified.
One way students can use Teacherweb is as an organizational tool for themsekves. By checking back frequently (if you post things frequently and keep things updated!) students can use this if say they forget their agenda at school and have no idea if they have homework due the following day.
Another way students can use Teacherweb is as a place where they can check their grades and progress more often than the report card that are sent home twice a year or the progress reports that are updated every month or so. Students could go online weekly or after they turn in a major assignment to see how that affected their grade. When students know what their grade is on any given day, they might be more influenced to actually DO more things in the classroom.
One way you could use Teacherweb is to have communication between parents and yourself. You could provide information like the lunch menu, a calendar of classroom events, what to do in the event of a school closure, what projects your students are working on, etc. This allows parents to have another avenue of being involved in their children's academics.
Another way to use Teacherweb is to use it as a resource for future years of your teaching. You could have a calendar of events that could help keep you on track throughout the semester or year. Having pages dedicated to lists of Lessons you have done, in the order you did them, can help you repeat and implement successful lesson plans or units in future years. This will also be a good resource for other teachers in your building to know what you are doing throughout the year.
2. Identify 2 ways students could use a class web site like TeacherWeb to enhance their learning. Provide some details for each way identified.
One way students can use Teacherweb is as an organizational tool for themsekves. By checking back frequently (if you post things frequently and keep things updated!) students can use this if say they forget their agenda at school and have no idea if they have homework due the following day.
Another way students can use Teacherweb is as a place where they can check their grades and progress more often than the report card that are sent home twice a year or the progress reports that are updated every month or so. Students could go online weekly or after they turn in a major assignment to see how that affected their grade. When students know what their grade is on any given day, they might be more influenced to actually DO more things in the classroom.
Wednesday, September 16, 2009
Blogs and Wikis In Education
1) I searched the Yahoo, Google and MSN search engines for "Eduational Blogs". The results for Google and MSN were nearly identical, Yahoo was mostly the same results with a few new options. Specific sites like Top 100 Education Blogs | OEDb, and Kathy Schrock -- Educational Technology Blogs were both the top results for Google and MSN (Bing), while Educational Blog Education Articles Schools RSS Feeds ... was the first results for Yahoo.
2) 3 interesting ways blogs and wikis are being used are 1) they are a resource for teacher's professional development, 2) they can let teachers communicate with each other and bounce ideas off each other about situation, or just one experienced teacher giving advice to others and 3) they introduce teachers to actual ideas, tools, products and other physical resources that teachers can use for educational activities, or just for fun. I navigated to Tammy Worcester's Tech Tip of the Week. This site is extremely useful because it has technological based "tips", ideas, and descriptions of tools that teachers can use.
3) RSS Readers or Aggregators are basically a way to maintain an idea of what is going on in the websites you frequent the most. Instead of having to individually search for the new things that have happened on your favorite sites, you can just use a RSS Reader to see if any new posts, updates, etc have occurred on the websites. You could use RSS Readers and Aggregators in your classroom by using them to keep on top of topics that you could be going through with your students. I navigated to Tammy Worcester's Tech Tip of the Week. This site is extremely useful because it has technological based "tips", ideas, and descriptions of tools that teachers can use.
4) 3. The Pros for using blogs and wikis in education are numerous. We live in a technological based world and integrating technology, especially the internet and its resources into the classroom will introduce students to these tools in a safe learning environment. Using blogs and wikis in your classroom can also simplify communication between teacher and parents, and have another way for students themselves to communicate with their teacher. The Cons for using blogs and wikis, in my personal opinion, stem from the problem that not all students and parents have access to the internet on a regular basis so that a teacher can become "dependent" on blogs and wikis for communication between parents and the teacher, or between the teacher and their students.
4) 3. The Pros for using blogs and wikis in education are numerous. We live in a technological based world and integrating technology, especially the internet and its resources into the classroom will introduce students to these tools in a safe learning environment. Using blogs and wikis in your classroom can also simplify communication between teacher and parents, and have another way for students themselves to communicate with their teacher. The Cons for using blogs and wikis, in my personal opinion, stem from the problem that not all students and parents have access to the internet on a regular basis so that a teacher can become "dependent" on blogs and wikis for communication between parents and the teacher, or between the teacher and their students.
Wednesday, September 2, 2009
Multiple Intelligences in the Classroom
1. Discuss which of the core characteristics best describe you and your learning style.
When I completed the Multiple Intelligence survery, my results showed I was strong in the Kinesthetic category. The core characteristic that best describes me and my learning style is Sensory.
2. Discuss what students with this type of intelligence enjoy, are like, or tend to do within classroom settings.
Students with this type of intelligence interact readily with their environment and enjoy doing hands on activities. Students with strong Kinesthetic and Sensory intelligence characteristics usually prefer to work up out of their seats and are active learners.
3. Discuss how you will support this type of intelligence within your classroom and within your teaching.
I will support this type of intelligence in my classroom by providing hands on activities and interactive situations. I will encourage and stimulate learning with manipulatives in math and science. Physical representations of concepts or ideas will be incorporated into my classroom on a daily basis.
4. Discuss what technologies stimulate thus type of intelligence.
Types of technology that will stimulate Kinesthetic and specifically sensory intelligence include, but are not limited to real life items students would see in their own households like kitchen utensils and construction tools and manipulative materials like perhaps building blocks and counting sticks.
5. And finally, discuss how you might impact student learning by applying your understanding of learning styles and multiple intelligences within your classroom.
I will positively impact student learning by using what I know about my own strengths, in this case specifically the Kinesthetic and sensory intelligence to foster the use of this intelligence in the minds of my students. Practically speaking, I can use this knowledge to set up my classroom in a more optimal learning environment because I will now provide kinesthetic intelligence technology like dining or place settings, manipulatives for math instead of just a white board and an oral explanation, and hands on learning centers where students can take instruction and knowledge and "do something".
When I completed the Multiple Intelligence survery, my results showed I was strong in the Kinesthetic category. The core characteristic that best describes me and my learning style is Sensory.
2. Discuss what students with this type of intelligence enjoy, are like, or tend to do within classroom settings.
Students with this type of intelligence interact readily with their environment and enjoy doing hands on activities. Students with strong Kinesthetic and Sensory intelligence characteristics usually prefer to work up out of their seats and are active learners.
3. Discuss how you will support this type of intelligence within your classroom and within your teaching.
I will support this type of intelligence in my classroom by providing hands on activities and interactive situations. I will encourage and stimulate learning with manipulatives in math and science. Physical representations of concepts or ideas will be incorporated into my classroom on a daily basis.
4. Discuss what technologies stimulate thus type of intelligence.
Types of technology that will stimulate Kinesthetic and specifically sensory intelligence include, but are not limited to real life items students would see in their own households like kitchen utensils and construction tools and manipulative materials like perhaps building blocks and counting sticks.
5. And finally, discuss how you might impact student learning by applying your understanding of learning styles and multiple intelligences within your classroom.
I will positively impact student learning by using what I know about my own strengths, in this case specifically the Kinesthetic and sensory intelligence to foster the use of this intelligence in the minds of my students. Practically speaking, I can use this knowledge to set up my classroom in a more optimal learning environment because I will now provide kinesthetic intelligence technology like dining or place settings, manipulatives for math instead of just a white board and an oral explanation, and hands on learning centers where students can take instruction and knowledge and "do something".
Wednesday, August 26, 2009
Welcome to My Blog!
Hi there! Welcome to my awesome blog. I will be using this blog for my Ed tech class at WSU.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
