Tuesday, March 3, 2015

ED521 Final Blog #3


Overview of ED521


This is the first course that I have participated in that is paperless.  I mean totally paperless.  This doesn’t mean that we didn’t have assignments.  In fact, we had over 30 required assignments. This course required many hours of reading, researching, and figuring out how the different programs/apps/sites worked.   It took me out of my comfort zone, but I dove into it head first.  I was very frustrated with certain assignments, but after finishing them it was a wonderful feeling to have gotten them done.  I am amazed with how much information we covered in this course.  Most of the technology we covered in this course was new to me.  I now feel comfortable enough to use some of it in my classroom.  Integrating technology into teaching and learning is a class all teachers should participate in.  I didn't realize all the opportunities there are out there and they’re just a click or few away!

Sunday, February 22, 2015

ED521 Final Blog #2


A Success Story Based On Something I Learned In ED521

Before I started the ED521 class, I had two email accounts.  The sendit account is used for my job related emails.  I use the midco account for our home desktop computer.  One assignment for the ED521 course was to get a Goggle+ account.  So, I logged into the computer and clicked away until I successfully set up this account.  Wow, what a surprise it has been.  It does things that I didn’t know an email account could do.
 

I love the features that this account offers.  This free email service allows me to categorize the emails.  I can set up my contacts in circles and communities.  Another feature is Google Hangouts which is a group video chatting service.  I have quick access to the Google Apps: YouTube, maps, play, news, Gmail, drive, forms, calendar, translate, books, wallet, shopping, blogger, finance, photos, and docs.  An unbelievable amount of services!  This free email service is amazing!  In addition, I love that this service is accessible on my mobile device.

Saturday, February 21, 2015

ED521 Final Blog #1

(to be read like David Letterman's top 10)

My Top 10 Takeaways From ED521

1.      T-  Twitter
2.      E-  Edmodo
3.      C-  Calendar (of course Google)
4.      H-  Hashtags
5.      N-  #ndedchat
6.      O-   Oh no, not another ongoing assignment
7.       L-  Listening to podcasts
8.       O-  Ongoing Diigo assignments
9.       G-  Gmail
       10.         Y-  YouTube videos and embedding them

Friday, February 20, 2015

ED521 A18



How Has Technology Changed Your Teaching?

Being a teacher for 26 years, I have seen a lot of things come and go.  Some things have been a gradual change and others have been quick.

 When I first began teaching, lesson plans were written in a “lesson plan” book.  I wrote my plans with a #4 pencil, because I found they wrote crisp, clear lines and left no smudges behind. Lessons were written to follow the textbooks that our school had purchased.  I have transformed to typing my lesson plans using different formats/programs located on computers.  My lesson plans follow our textbooks, but are supplemented with materials found usually on the Internet.  My lessons now follow the state standards and our school’s curriculum.   Both the state standards and our school’s curriculum can be quickly located on the Internet!  I also email all three administrators in our elementary building my lesson plans weekly.

DIBELS testing has changed dramatically due to technology.  I used to have to test the students’ oral reading fluency and accuracy using a book, pencil, and timer.  Once the testing was done, I would have to create line graphs on graph paper for each individual student.  Now, the students still read the passages from a printed book, but I complete the DIBELS testing using an Ipad.  It is so convenient.  It keeps track of the time, errors, data, and creates the students’ records by creating line graphs that can be printed.  Students’ data is readily available at this website.    

The Smartboard and document reader are the heart of my classroom.  We constantly use both of these items throughout the school day.  I use it for all the core subject areas including Time For Kids (whiteboard edition), Google earth, dictionary skills, finding information quickly that the students have questions about, Skitch, Wordle, and the list goes on.  I can’t imagine teaching without these two items in my classroom.

At the end of each quarter, it used to take me a whole weekend, sitting at the kitchen table with an adding machine, to average the students’ grades.  Oh thank goodness for technology!  I now punch grades into our grading system and it does the averaging of the tests and daily grades immediately for me!!  Parents also have access to their child’s grades at this website.  This means no more surprises for anyone, if they choose to take advantage of this website.

The students’ writings still follow the 7 traits of writing.  However, now the students use technology for researching topics, taking notes, making outlines, completing graphic organizers, typing essays, and publishing their work. 

I used to contact parents through  mail or phone calls.  Now, I am able to communicate with parents and students using email, texts, Google calendar, Remind, and Google hangouts.


Using technology makes teaching more exciting for both the teacher and the students.  

Tuesday, February 17, 2015

ED521 A19


Libraries and Librarians in 2023

A media center in the year 2023 needs to be a media-rich area for people to learn.  It needs to be a place for people to collaborate and share their work.  The media center will have no deficiency of technology.  The technology that will be available will have access to online databases, the catalog, and the Internet.  The media center will have print and electronic resources available to students and staff.  Online availability to the library will be possible when the person cannot get there physically by using the media’s website that connects them to the media center.

The librarians will support the efforts of the classroom teachers by meeting with them to introduce resources and plan on how to incorporate these resources into the curriculum.  They will develop relationships to help the staff form a community.  They will remain flexible.  They will guide students to evaluate resources for correctness and reliability.  They will offer a justifiable, accountable strategy for sharing resources across grade levels.  Librarians will address essential reading, information, and technology literacies to the students.


Media centers and librarians do not look much different today than what I’m predicting they will be like in 2023.  I must remember that education challenges of tomorrow will require explanations that go far beyond today’s solutions.

Monday, February 16, 2015

ED521 A17


Future of Textbooks

At the higher education level, students are finding and selecting digital replacements to traditional textbooks.  Students prefer digital research options to print resources. Most college students believe that interactive content is a valuable learning asset.  They like the digital resources, because of the lower cost and they are more portable.  Paperless classrooms or classrooms that are using less paper are slowly changing at the elementary, middle school, and high school levels.  Laptops, iPads, tablets, and cell phones are now widespread in the modern classrooms.  Most students use these tools to access course materials, to take notes, create papers, email, schedule events, and the list goes on.  Textbooks can be very valuable when planning a curriculum.  They can be used has a framework that can guide a teacher with an outline of what should be taught within that class.  However, students do not want to spend hours reading and answering questions from a textbook for the whole year.  Boring!  Using technology tools correctly in the classroom can benefit students’ learning.  Teachers need to be trained and need time to plan activities that require students to be engaged.  The school that I teach at relies heavily on textbooks to meet the state standards, but a teacher can supplement the textbooks by using a variety of technology tools.  The following is a short list to bring existing textbooks come to life.  Students can post links to a sticky board site, like Padlet, that relate to the chapter’s topic from the textbook.  Students could add images/photos that describe/show the topic being studied in the textbook to the Instragram class account.  Students could use a variety of graphic organizers to engage them with the information from the textbook.  Students could create short videos of the information their studying to make readings come to life.  Technology should be used to empower teachers and improve students’ learning.  The main advantage of using digital textbooks is the updating feature of things happening now can be added to the existing form.  The language function makes it possible for students to toggle between different languages.  Another advantage of using digital books is the lower cost.  However, technology doesn't promise better student achievement.  If the teacher doesn't know how to use it, it’s not going to make much of a difference.  So, what’s in store for textbooks in the future?  I guess we’ll have to wait and see and be willing to accept the changes as they occur!  

Saturday, February 14, 2015

ED521 A16


 21st Century Skills


The 21st century learner constructs meaning by going through a process and creating a product.  They know that the sky is the limit (meaning there are no limits).  They understand that there is no right way to learn new skills.  21st century learners use technology to enhance learning and like to have immediate gratification.  They are open to changes that are happening and constantly happening.  They love to experiment to find the answers.  Teachers need to use social media to break down the barriers of time and space.  People are able to connect with each other and collaborate with each other without being face to face in the same room.  Information and technology is changing so rapidly that people need to stay connected to people who have been successful and are willing to share their information and ideas.  Students still need to learn the basic skills to be successful citizens, but they also need to communicate, create, and collaborate.  The 21st century learner needs to learn with the technology tools that we are using now, but be flexible to change and maybe relearn using different tools, because technology is changing so rapidly! We want to prepare our students to be learners for life.