PRESENTATIONS OF LESSON PLANS

Today, during presentations I saw several very innovative lesson plans. Three of the four lesson plans today used powerpoints (aside from my own), and I definately believe the visual aids of the power points kept the students in-tune and interested. I will definately plan on using power points next time I create a lesson plan. I really enjoyed the Romeo and Juliet slideshow as well as the Washingtons go to Birmingham. Both of these were very creative, well-organized, and student-oriented. The Watsons go to Birmingham presentation had a great idea of sending letters to the bombers in prison, with their thoughts, questions, etc. Even if they weren't actually sent, I think this would be a great way for the students to feel as though their opinion counts, and to write how their feelings on the subject. There was a lot of information on the Watsons go to Birmingham lesson plan, so I feel as though this would be a lesson meant to be used over a couple of weeks (or even longer depending on the teacher). I loved this presentatino and all of the compenents it offered. Also, the Romeo and Juliet fit better for a shorter time restrained lesson plan and had a lot of the same components. I like that it was meant for a summer reading course, perhaps the first day back at school. I think Wesley and my presentation would have been better if the class had not already participated in this before. It would have been a lot more interesting, and not redundant, but I still feel as though it was a great lesson plan for the first day of school for any classroom!

Voicethread

After exploring voicethread, I have decided that this seems like a very professional website that could be very beneficial in my classroom. It contains great safety securities, is free to the students, and a teacher must approve every person allowed in their classrom website. I think that eliminates the fear of predators on the Internet, or at least lessens it. Voicethread also has a great set-up with a lot of beneficial ways to incorporate your classroom w/technology: images, docs, videos, comments, doodling, and sharing (to name a few). I will definately consider using this website in the future as compared to simply creating one that doesn't have safety requirments!

PUBLISHER

- How do you feel about Desktop Publishing? We have created a brochure and a resume. What else do you think we can do with Desktop Publishing? If you have to create one thing for your classroom, what would you create by using Publishing and why?

Using Publisher 2007 was a new and beneficial experience. I just started a new job where they consistently work with this program, and I feel as though it is by far a better program than Microsoft Word. There were many templates to choose from, along with a variety of colors, fonts, styles, graphics, etc. This program seems to exceed Microsoft Word with what all it has to offer. Besides a resume and brochure, I think a newsletter would be really interesting to utilize in the classroom, and would enjoy learning how to create one. I would create either a brochure, or a weekly newsletter if I could choose only one thing to use from Desktop Publisher.

- Is there any muddy point that you need to review?
I would be interested to learn all of the functions of this program, because I am sure there are many more I am not familiar with. This program can be used easily and efficiently, and I believe Publisher has been the best thing we have learned to use in the classroom so far in ETEC 424!

- How did you feel about creating a brochure this week?
Creating this brochure was a simple, and very useful thing to do. I really enjoyed creating it, and feel as though by giving these out on "Parent Night" or "Meet the Teacher Night," the parents and students can get better aquainted with me, my expectations, my experience, and my goals for their children. BEST THING I HAVE LEARNED YET :)

Powerpoint project

Please tell me how your PPT project is going. What topic have you chosen? How do you feel about your partner? Does your partner help you work faster and better than working alone?

So far, our powerpoint project is going well. We have barely started at this point, but we are planning to work on it a lot this week. We have chosen our topic, the number of slides, and talked about designs. We chose "the role of technology in the classroom." I feel as though my partner, Jackie Gattenby, will be a great partner, and very easy to work with. She will also have very inventive ideas! My partner is very dependable, and helps our project to proceed faster as opposed to me working alone.

1. How far should educators go in matching the technology used in instruction and classroom activities to the technology their students use?

Technology should not only serve as a means of instruction, but I think it would be very beneficial for the students themselves to know how to create programs and such. A student needs the hands-on experience, and by doing things themselves it helps their learning process. Using programs such as facebook and myspace (programs students are most aware of), should remain separate from the classroom environment.

2. Are online chats and instant messaging of value in the classroom? Do they add to student learning, or do they distract from “real” instruction?

If the chats and instant messaging are monitored by an authority figure, then they can stay on educational topics. However, the neglect can lead to distractions from education. It is a very tricky situation, and probably should not be used very frequently in order to remain a controlled environment.

3. Are there benefits to asynchronous, text-based communication over synchronous, face-to-face communication? In what situations?

I think the benefits vary according to the student’s preference and learning style. Personally, I prefer a face-to-face communication. However, students may feel more comfortable sharing thoughts, opinions, and asking questions in an asynchronous communication environment. This method might actually create a more personal relationship with the instructor and student, and make the instructor more accessible.

4. Does using podcasts with students really enhance learning, or is it simply a newer version of passively delivering information?

Podcasts seem to be a newly developed, not yet fully researched method. Only time and experiments can fully tell the answer to this question. I believe technology can be over-used, and personally I think this method may be taking the technology dependence too far. We also need to stay in the classroom, and not forget how to write.

5. Does videogame help develop your studying? Why or why not? Explain. What skills can you gain from it? Do you agree with the article? If you have children, would you let them play videogame every day? Why/why not?

I guess videogames that pertain to education might help develop your studies. However, I think that gaming is an abused situation. A teacher should make learning fun, but the student also needs to know how to be disciplined, how to study from a textbook, etc. A student can learn different concepts and practice these concepts correctly through videogames. I see how videogames have potential, I just don’t think the benefits will outweigh the harms. When I have children, I will definitely limit their time on videogames. I feel as though videogames can be brainwashing. What ever happened to playing outside? It is reasons like this that our children in the United States have obesity issues.

Delicious Program

The "Delicious" program has some great advantages. This program makes your bookmarks on your personal computer, or most used computer, available on other computers through the internet. I think this program is a great benefit, but not completely necessary. It would be convenient for those who often use more than one computer. It makes it easily accessible as compared to using a jump drive. If I had some extra time, I used more than one computer often, or even for advanced projects, I would use Delicious.

WIKIS

1. What do think about Wikis? Would you be able to use it in your own classroom?

Wikis could be a useful asset in the classroom. For example, Wiki could be used to create collaberative textbooks, study guides, research projects, collection of data, student portfolios, communication between fellow teachers, and help with organization. It could also be used to create a school or class newspaper to keep students up to date on events.

2. Do you believe that learning by conversing in learning communities can be more effective than traditional instruction? What evidence would we need to confirm (or reject) that belief?

I think a combination between conversing in learning communities AND traditional instruction could be effective in the classrom. We know the outcome of traditional instruction, yet we as teachers have not experimented with learning communities as much. By using BOTH, teachers can cater to students of all types of learning personalities. We could test this by performing experiments, and trying the various methods on the students directly.

3. Do you think that students have different learning styles because of their personality types? According to the test that you have just done, do you think it will help you know your students better? How?

I definately think students with different learning styles can be traced back to their personality types. I think a personality test may not be completely accurate, but it would definately help to better understand the students' needs in the classroom. It will help account for why a student excels in one area, but struggles in another. It is a great thing to do in the first week of classes. Plus, it is interesting for the students themselves.
Stu