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Week Six - Reflection One

I learned that a lot of teachers believe that technology is beneficial to student learning, but they have trouble using it in the proper way.
 " Coiro identifies three main barriers to integrating digital media more fully into schools:

1. a lack of quality professional development for teachers;
2. a lack of time to explore, apply, and reflect with colleagues on the challenges and potentials of integrating any type of technology into the classroom culture; and
3. limited administrative support about how to use technology effectively to empower learners."

 I also learned that there are negatives to technology such as cyber bullying etc... However, there are far more positives then there are negatives when it comes to using technology in the classroom in the correct way.
I liked the 7 simple ways to involve technology in a classroom which were:

• Have your students blog
• Create a social network
• Podcast
• Use wikis for big projects
• Try social bookmarking
• Post videos
• Explore with Google Maps 

I would use these ideas in a science lesson by having students blog about an interesting piece of matter that they see outside of class and do some research on it and post a picture or video of their discovery for the rest of the class to see then they will present it in class.

Week Five

If you click on my link it will take you to the site that I found my information about the Promethean ActivBoard. On this site it told me the benefits of the Promethean Activboard. It told me that the board helps draw in students who can be easily distracted by other things in the class and gears their focus towards the board. The Promethean Activboard allows you to use two pens at one time, whereas the Smartboard does not. It is compatible with Promethean software, and is compatible with your computer because it has two accessible USB Ports. 

My questions:

• Does the Promethean Activboard  have something similar to Smart Exchange that allows Promethean Activboard users to find free and accessible lessons? 
• Does the Promethean Activboard require a projector or is it a touchscreen like an ipad?
• Is the toolbar and the program set up similarly to the Smartboard?

 

Week Four

The Smart board is pretty awesome tool that can be used in the classroom! I really enjoyed playing around on it looking at all the diverse things on it such as the compass tool, the different types of lines and such. My very favorite thing was all the different options that we get to experiment with when it comes to lessons that are already made. I thoroughly enjoyed the fact that as teachers we can use lessons that previous teachers have already made without having to site them or anything. It makes it really convenient. One thing I fount out that I did not enjoy was the fact that not all of the games and lessons are easy to manage. A lot of the time things you click on do not work or they require persistence. That however is not a very big deal. There is still a lot I have to learn about the Smart board, but it is defiantly an asset that will come in handy in the future. No real specific questions that I have in mind about the Smart board.

Week Three

I thought that the article was interesting. I agreed with most of the points that Marc Prensky was trying to make. One point that stood out to me was the part where Prensky stated that the world is built around progress, and if Digital Immigrants are trying to hold people back to the place where they feel comfortable, then what is the point of progressing as a society at all? It is like someone who rides a horse, is not use to driving a car, and they don't like using cars to get around.  They decide that the next generation who could be more proficient at travel should continue the ways of the past because it is easier to understand. I personally hate that type philosophy. 

I think that kid abuse technology, and it can be seen in Prensky's article as he states  "Today‟s average college grads have spent less than 5,000 hours of their lives reading, but over 10,000 hours playing video games (not to mention 20,000 hours watching TV)." I feel that the point that I'm trying to make is that technology is good for the future generations, but it can be a tool as well as a something that can be misused. 

I learned that right now is the only time things will be like this.  Digital native students are similar to digital immigrant students, they wear similar clothes, they speak the same words, and all that type of stuff. Something that makes me wonder is the fact that kids are forgetting how to use handwriting. They are using technology for everything. What happens if something occurs and technology is not able to be used anymore? It is a scary question, but a real danger.