Occasionally, I use YouTube to hook and/or inspire students, but I have a problem with what shows up after the video is done playing. It hasn't happened within my class, but it has happened during teacher training sessions. Watch the following two clips or skip to the end. Then, see what happens with the collage of videos being advertised at the end.
Both videos are fine and there aren't any issues with what Mr. Jobs says. The problem comes about once the videos conclude. YouTube likes to advertise other videos that are associated with the original video. However, one of the videos being advertised seems to be completely unrelated.
I like how the first Steve Jobs video is put together, and it conveys his message in a succinct, edited version. However, a video image connected at the end is inappropriate for fourth graders. So, I chose the second version, which isn't as engaging for a 10 year-old.
The following example just demonstrates how teachers need to be vigilant. Two methods to help avoid this issue include the following tips.
Watch the video clips in their entirety
Use SaveTube and save a copy of the video on your hard drive
We have to protect our careers and public image. Here's what I saw.
I have seen worse, but I wanted to voice my concern about this issue. Is there another way around this YouTube problem?
According to Tom Foremski (2007), this is the number of cell phones Americans throw away each day. The following link provides a television-static-like image, which zooms into to show just how many cell phones makeup the image. I'm sure 426,000 grows when Apple comes out with a new phone--currently the iPhone 4S. How many people will upgrade to the iPhone 5 and how many will discard their "old" phones?
Of course, 426,000 is an old number, and numbers can be inaccurate. I am not trying to discredit my information, but the numbers are only important to illustrate my point. My focus isn't on the environmental impact this is having on the world; instead, I want to point to this social fulcrum as a teaching tool. It creates a "teaching point" and cell phones can engage students with mundane content taught merely to appease the standard-police (older cell phone blog post).
Why discard the cell phone from the classroom? Why can't it be used? Put cell phones on silent rather than putting them away. Use cell phones to engage students with the lesson being taught. Lastly, teach students how to use them appropriately within school. Students have been using them inappropriately within class, but now is the time to directly teach how to utilize them effectively. Here is a video of a teacher "getting upset" (understatement) with a student's cell phone usage within class.
After that video, one more cell phones was thrown away, which makes the count 426,001. Who is at fault here? The professor is mad that the student is blatantly disrespecting his lecture, and the student is obviously oblivious to appropriate cell phone etiquette.
With Digital Learning Day, February 1st, approaching, how can the cell phone be used?
Textbook companies need to embrace cell phone apps for the classroom. Apps that can be used within class. Dictionaries, researching, or referencing (for proper citations) apps to assist students with reliable information. Phone companies should sponsor text services, which could allow students to send text messages to the classroom's interactive whiteboard. This could be the catalyst needed to engage students in discussion on a regular basis. With 426,000 cell phones thrown away daily, it is rare to find a student without a cell phone.
This podcast was created to provide students an overview for using Photo Story 3. But most importantly, my 4th grade students are publishing their stories, while participating in digital storytelling.
Connie Malamed provides a great blog post to validate the use of digital storytelling. I am looking forward to engaging students within the world of digital storytelling.
The following grant was written to provide students and teachers with training on digital storytelling. The project was designed to apply 1:1 computing and hands-on technology to enhance student's digital literacy. The program engages students in e-reading, e-writing, and video production, while using the iPad 2 Learning Lab.
Social Bookmarking is like your browser's (i.e. Internet Explorer, Fire Fox, Safari, etc.) favorites button, but it’s on the web. So, you get an on-the-go favorites list. One presenter compared compiling reliable websites to creating digital playgrounds for student exploration. In a sense, social bookmarking provides students with a guide to acquire worthwhile and appropriate information. Basically, it is like a web quest with a sharable URL. Diigo and Sqworl both provide a snapshot of the websites homepage, which follows what research tells us about facing book covers toward students.
With the holidays approaching, my wife and I have been having a difficult time finding a gift for our nieces and nephews. Our nieces and nephew's list has been distributed to several people, and after a purchase is made we find out someone else has already bought the item. This can get annoying; so, I suggested social bookmarking for the kids gift list. Let's see if this works. Now, I just have to train people how to use the web tool.
What other forms of social bookmarking are out there? How are you utilizing it within your classroom?
Here is an instructional unit I developed to improve students' writing in math on the state test. The unit was created using the Kemp model for instructional design. I know it is sad that I have to do this, but tests scores are politician's bread and butter.
Check out Jane Hart's (2011) presentation on the top 100 learning tools. She has posted these survey results for the past 5 years. I thought I would share her work and provide a link to her blog out of respect for her work. I always like learning about a few new learning tools.
Regardless of your preferred word choice, blogs have the potential to globalize education. It offers students the freedom to learn, which is at the heart of life-long learning. Ask students (and yourselves) "What is important to you? Search the blogs and engage in the discussion online." This is what students should be encouraged.
Weblog or Blog? You can decide, which term you prefer. I kind of like the original term. The "OT" if you dare.
Without blogs I wouldn't have found this inspirational Prezi on 21st Century learning. I wouldn't have found "techy" suggestions for the classroom like 11 Techy Things for Teachers to Try This Year or the 30-Day Challenge. Both inspired me to implement Web 2.0 tools within the classroom. In addition, I offered students the option to create projects online. Blogging is truly a game changer, and places learning into the student's hands. Blogging can be intimidating; yet, it is more accessible than many teachers would think. I encourage all teachers to attempt their own blog. Then, try to include your students in the blog. Again, creating a blog can be scary, but like Nike says, "Just Do It!"
Blog List
Here's a list of various Blogs I have been reading and I found worth some attention. Hopefully, you find them educationally inspiring or just interesting.
At the end of the day, I really enjoyed writing and learning with this blog. It has been an eye-opening experience. From writing my posts and reading others, I have been synthesizing my own learning materials to share with other teachers. Engaging in higher order forms of cognition has left me addicted to the free information floating within other professionals' blogs. I can now relate to tall haired Team-Edward fans or a Justin Beiber fans. I don't have Beiber-fever; I have blogger-fever. We'll see how long it lasts, but momentarily it is engages my once idle mind.
No, I didn't just eat a powdered donut. That's chalk dust all over my clothes. I have always disliked even touching chalk. Some people will argue in favor for chalk because it creates less waste for the environment. I say Bah-Humbug (I'm Mr. Scrooge when it comes to chalk). It is not my favorite method for visually engaging students. Put down the chalk and pick up the digital markers. The following information was compiled to provide teachers with a basic SMART start.
More Dynamic
Interactive Whiteboards engage students visually and kinesthetically. Interactive Whiteboard technologies allow teachers and students (with the right software) to upload Flash Videos, Sound files, Picture, Graphics, Web information, and interactive whiteboard lessons.
My School has used SMART boards for the past five years. SMART lessons can easily be acquired from the SMART Board lesson exchange. Teachers are able to utilize presentation software like SMART Board Notebook, Keynote, PowerPoint, and Prezi on a regular basis. Basically, SMART Boards make it easy to incorporate new and old technology into the classroom. Power Point is an old piece of software that should be used more frequently. SMART Boards take this software and make it more interactive with the SMART Notebook.
eInstruction offers similar products for the interactive whiteboard market. Mobiview is cool piece of ed-tech. Check out the videos displaying the products capabilities within the Mobiview link. With this tool, students can have their own interactive whiteboard, which can be used to respond within class. Being a quiet student, I never wanted to respond in class; so, this would allow all students to engage in the lesson.
Still more interesting is the Epson BrightLink, which is an interactive projector. With Epson's BrightLink, any surface can become interactive. The projected image becomes interactive. On the Epson website, there are pictures of students manipulating the image projected on a regular tabletop. All of these interactive technologies promise a brighter future for learning.
Setting up The SMART Board Tutorial
Here is a video demonstrating how to setup the SMART Board in your classroom.
Basic Tutorial
Here is a tutorial to demonstrate some basic SMART Board features.
Designing Lessons Tutorial
This clip demonstrates cool functions within the SMART Notebook software. It provides some basics for providing students with dynamic lessons.
Engaging and Creative Activities
The following video demonstrates a creative way to engage students with the interactive whiteboards.
This was an interesting video to demonstrate an erasing assessment to provide students with instant feedback.
When learning some new tech, always use YouTube (SchoolTube or TeacherTube) to search for tutorials. It is an overlooked learning tool, which provides ample opportunities for learning.
If you take the time to learn how to effectively utilize a SMART Board or other interactive whiteboard, then you will learn there are many instructional and management-type benefits. Unless I am visited by three ghosts and convinced to return to chalk, I will remain an interactive whiteboard user.
"Jenny! Jenny! Give me that cell phone and you can pick it up from the principals office." Don't be a Fool use Phones with Web Tools in School.
As teachers, we are going to have to deal with smart phones more and more. Why not use this teaching tool within the classroom setting from time to time. Students are so enthralled with their cell phones. So much so, some can't sleep. @EDTECHHULK suggested facetiously to send students homework after midnight, which engages students after hours. Joking aside, with all that is expected from education, we need to extend learning to the home-front.
The following video is an overview of a smartphone project being implemented within the D.C. area.
First of all, teach your students about the danger of texting while driving. I don't want to see a death caused by texting an assignment. Aside from that, the media and politicians would have a field day with this. We know how much they love us already.
If creative enough, we, teachers, can engage students in learning with an addictive tech-tool. Of course, not everyone can afford these phones, but a grant (written to the phone companies) could offer a solution to this problem.
What else can we do to incorporate phones within school? This is a free tool provided to us by our students' parents. Why not try to use them within school?
Just as there is a need to teach students to use deodorant, appropriate language on the playground, and silent zone procedures in the hallways, teachers have to develop expectations for netiquette. Basically, we, as teachers, need to promote positive digital citizenship. This should be completed at a young age.
Ultimately, teachers and parents can prevent inappropriate issues from occurring all too often, and even save a life. But first, the conversation needs to be started and school policies need to be put into place. Just like in a face-to-face classroom, students need behavioral procedures for working with digital media. Check out the follow links to start thinking about how to teach Digital Citizenship.
Overall, the conversation needs to be started with students. This is a fairly new form of communication, and it should be incorporated within the curriculm. To foster engaging and age appropriate conversations, teachers need to incorporate preventive lessons on Digital Citizenship. However, I bet we will be implementing lessons as a result of unwanted behaviors.
What else is out there? Help add to the conversation.
30 Day Challenge: Day 16 - Little Bird Tales: Your Assignment: Go through the Prezi above to learn about today's tool. Little Bird Tales is just one of many digital storytelling tools...
Who has time anymore? I don't. With Web 2.0 technologies, 21st Century learners need to develop an on-the-go learning network. Information transmission is instantaneous, plentiful, and free. But, locating professionally reliable information that is relevant to your professional interests can become overwhelming. Personal Learning Networks (PLNs) have created a fast and effective way for the acquisition of knowledge and new information. Check out Tim Wilhelmus provides a web binder with more details about PLNs. In addition, Leslie Fisher also provides decent information on PLNs through a PDF file of hers. Then, there are Richard Byrne's slideshows on starting a PLN. There is also a newer post that I wrote after being taken on a journey with my PLN. I could keep going because there are infinite possibilities with a PLN.
Don't worry. PLN's don't have to cost anything. To get started, sign into all of the most popular social networking sites available. However, be more selective about who you"friend." Keep it professional. Here is a list of the different sites recommended for starting your own PLN:
As usual, this is not an exhaustive list, but a starting point to at least entertain the idea of connecting to professional information. If you are looking for certain information, sign up for Google Alerts. These "alerts" will send you an email help on pertinent information of personal interest.
I really enjoyed what the "iCats" did within their school system. To promote social learning, Evansville, IN teachers were provided a 30-Day Challenge to learn about Web 2.0 tools. From this, the winner receives an iPad 2. Of course, the iPad 2 is only for Evansville teachers, but it is easy to follow along. It started on October 17, 2011.
Without a well connected PLN, this challenge would have gone unnoticed, and unless I continue to develop my network more professionally relevant websites will slip by unnoticed. So, connect with your own PLN and advance your personal knowledge to the best of your PLN’s ability. This slideshow will give you a few tips on starting your connections today.
Facebook may be a sore subject for some districts. Facebook for Educators organization may be able to provide useful information for you. Here is a helpful guide for using Facebook.
Not too long ago, I attend a workshop on Project Based Learning. During this workshop the trainer, Dianne Matheis, provided several examples of projects used to engage students in problematic situations. With Project Based Learning (PBL), Dianne stated that all projects must start with a "driving question," which is presented to the students with an entry level document. This document explains the authentic issue and asks the students to work collaboratively to complete the project. On the Buck Institute for Education (BIE) website, the Do-It-Yourself toolkit guides teachers through the process of creating their first PBL. For these resources, an account must be created. I'm not sure if it is free, but Wednesday Webinars are free. If interested, take a look at the DIY toolkit link.
Although the PBL process isn't so linear, the proceeding list roughly describes the PBL process.
Driving question/challenge is presented
Need to know information is relayed to the students
Inquiry-based and student-centered group-work
21st Century tools are utilized to foster students' digital skills
Student voice and choice is promoted
Students receive feedback and revision suggestions (conference with each group)
Publicly present the finished product.
Check out her Website on PBL. On her website, there are several important links with forms and instructions on how to implement PBL. According to Ms. Matheis, the Buck Institute for Educators has provided her with many resources for PBL. Last but not least, I also added her Power Point on Project Based Learning.
Is PBL for you? Can you have students study the content areas subject-matter with a driving question? As long as active student-centered group work does not scare you, PBL might be for you.
Bloom's to Assess Learning and Evaluate Instruction
As instructors, it is our responsibility to incorporate current technologies into the curriculum. Irregardless of the current state or national standards that are behind the times already, students need to utilize the Web 2.0 tools effectively. Many students use the Internet to do lower level thinking activities. To promote higher level thinking skills, students should use the Internet for more than viewing and receiving information. Below is a Web2.0 version of Bloom's Taxonomy.
The world around us is changing. Jobs are becoming obsolete, while others are proliferating. Let's stop fighting the economy and accept change. In doing so, teachers, trainers, and instructors can prepare students and digitally-illiterate adults for this changing economy and job market.
The following list provides information on Bloom's Taxonomy. Although Bloom's Taxonomy is focused on students' cognitive processes, it is essential to utilize when creating instructional objectives, which should be used to assess students' digital work. Additionally, instruction should be evaluated to judge its effectiveness. Instruction should be looked at as a hypothesis for accomplishing the overarching instructional goal(s). A question to become familiar with is, "Was the instruction effective in accomplishing its goal?" Use the following resources to become much more familiar with Bloom's taxonomy.
This was made in 2009, but it is important to realize how the world is changing into a digital playground and workplace. Learners need to be prepared for the 21st Century.
What is thin, shiny, and popular? It isn’t the outdated fade of wearing “bling-bling.” Instead, it’s "them-there" smart phones, tablets, and eBook readers.
With the advent of the wireless Internet, it was only a matter of time before the Internet became mobile. Now, all the telecom companies’ commercials are promoting their 3G/4G capabilities. Too often, teachers, parents, and society have looked at teenagers with disapproval as they network, surf, and play games with their mobile devices.
Well, if you can’t beat them, join them. It was only a matter of time before schools started to look toward using this once distracting technology. To better enhance our Personal Learning Networks, we, as professionals, need to “plug into” the same tech students interact with on a daily basis. Instead of mindlessly surfing and texting, let's make meaningful learning and creating experiences out of these mobile devices.
Smart Phone
Of course there are more "smart phones," but the iPhone4S and Android-based phones standout among the rest. According to Consumer Reports, the iPhone 4 had some reception problems and now the version 4S has fixed this static. They went on to state, "the newer phone did not display the same reception flaw, which involves a loss of signal strength when you touch a spot on the phone’s lower left side while you’re in an area with a weak signal." Consumer Reports also stated that the iPhone5 with iOS 5 will fix the iPhone4S "bugs."
As a result, Android-based phones are the performing better and receiving better reviews than the iPhone4S. Two phones that score higher with consumers are the Samsung Galaxy S II phones and Motorola Droid Bionic. Apparently, battery-life is an issue with the latter; as a result, I would suggest the Samsung Galaxy S II phone through AT&T, which is priced $50 dollars cheaper than the Droid through Verizon.
Tablet
Tablet Wars I is a video-podcast from the blog website netbooknews. This website provided a decent amount of information on a wide variety of tablets.
Price: $499-$829 from Amazon 4/5 stars (425 reviews)
Pros
This is the champion. It has proven itself as a powerhouse with great educational potential.
Cons
If your not a Mac person, this product might bug you. One issue many people have with the iPad 2 is the lack of a USB port. Adapters have to be bought to connect another out of the ordinary.
Verdict: This tablet provides one stop shopping. Students can use a word processing app, video apps, recording apps, note-taking apps, science apps, geography apps, dictionary apps, etc.
Price: $229-$274 from Amazon with 4/5 stars (566 reviews)
Pros
HP Touchpad has mixed reviews that add up to 4 out of 5 stars, and it is fairly cheap.
Cons
Released in July, it seems a little too new for me. Additionally, on the TouchPad’s homepage, there is a section entitled Five ways to get your webOS table working again. So, this tells me there are issues, which is almost always the case with new products. The initial round of a new product usually has problems. That is why there are versions like 1.0, 2.0, 3.0, 4.0, or even 4.0S. These versions usually work out all of the “bugs.”
My Verdict: Again, too new to buy on a large scale.
It’s cheap small and easy to use for reading and Internet usage. As compared to the iPad2, USB ports are always a plus.
Cons
However, Kindle fire is not out yet. Again, I would not want to wait for the first round of Kindle Fires. Instead, I would wait to see how this tablet performs. Sure the Kindle Fire has popular apps like Angry Birds and Plants vs. Zombies, but these apps don’t have educational value. Nook is making a comparable tablet that may be cheaper and better.
My verdict: These tablets from Kindle and Nook have the most potential for educational use, but they are theoritcal right now. In theory they have the many perks. Without real-world reviews, it is difficult to trust this product.
Android app market place offers 150,000+ apps. Many people swear by the Android 3.0 Honeycomb operating system. After watching a few demonstration videos, the system looks extremely easy to manipulate. Websites, windows, and apps are easily stored in the Honeycomb organization system. It has a USB port that can connect to several devices. So, an external keyboard would easily connect to the Samsung Galaxy. Finally, it is compatible with Adobe Flash. This means, many Flash-based educational websites that are off limits to Apple operating system are completely open to the Samsung Galaxy.
Cons
Tiger Direct provides this sales pitch video on YouTube. Of course, they are trying to sell the Samsung to you, but it is a fairly informative video and website.
I found the following video entitled Top Tablets for 2011 on YouTube without commentary. This video reviews the tablets based on hardware and features in a table format. Try to overlook the geeky music and watch for the differing features.
There are more and more companies creating their version of the tablet. The proceeding list is not an exhaustive list of tablets, but it lets you know that there are options.
ACER Iconia Tab A500
Apple iPad 2
ASUS eeePad Transformer
DELL Streak 7
EXPOC
Hewlett-Packard TouchPad
HTC Flyer
Kindle Fire
LG G-Slate
Motorola Mobility XOOM
Nook Tablet
Notion Ink ADAM
RIM BlackBerry Playbook
Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1
Toshiba Tablet
eBook Reader
Kindle is owned by the Amazon company and is limited with its capabilities. The Nook is a Barnes & Noble product, which has kept there business alive. Unfortunately, Border's CEO didn't get the eBook memo. Let me just say that this just demonstrates how much the world around us is changing for the 21st Century. Again, these eBook readers have limited capabilities. Nonetheless, these two eReaders are cheap compared the iPad2's $500 ($499) starting price. There is a version of the Kindle selling for $79, which a little over $1400 could get you a class 20 Kindles.
iPad i-book is one of the most expensive versions of an eBook reader, but it offers much more than the regular Kindle and Nook. The iBook app provides much more than the regular eBook readers. The iBook app offers readers more text manipulation features. Of course, like all tech items it isn't perfect. A problem with the iBook app is compatibility with PC products. The following article by Consumer Report's provides a wish list for the iPad, which hopefully these issues are corrected with the iPad 3.
Because the first two eReaders have been out for a while and they are cheap, some people have all three of the above products for digital reading, but the lack of compatibility between eBook files can be frustrating.
Recommendations
If I had to choose one from each category, the following is a list of what I would buy.
Smart Phone = Samsung Galaxy S II
Tablet = Currently, I would recommend the Apple iPad2. That doesn't mean that other tablets are horrible. At the moment, it is one of the best I have experienced. iPad 2 offers a veritable mountain of educational potential. Like a fine cheese, it seems to get better with age.
Because of its price, the Kindle Fire seems to have the potential to engage students in an eBook with more dynamic capabilities. I would like to try the Kindle Fire and the Nook Tablet; however, if you are a PC-type person sent to destroy Apple's business. Then, Samsung Galaxy would be more beneficial to your taste. The Samsung would be my second choice.
eBook Reader = Kindle if looking at price, but iPad 2 if money isn't an issue. The iPad 2 provides one-stop shopping for tablet features. There is probably an app for just about anything you want the iPad 2 to do.
Verizon must like teachers. Unlike the makers of the movie Bad Teacher, Verizon has done teachers a favor by creating Thinkfinity. Thinkfinity has around 10,000 lesson plans for teachers in the K-12 school setting. Thinkfinity doesn't just use their resources. They also partner with several other reliable websites for the teaching profession. If you do a keyword search and click the little red plus button, Thinkfinity will expand their search from their partners to several "reviewed" resources on out-of-network websites. Look at the picture below to find the red plus sign that reads, "INCLUDE PARTNER REVIEWED RESOURCES."
When I clicked on this feature my search grew from 25 to 175 resources. As you can see, the first resource was from the tried and true National Geographic organization. From this, Thinkfinity attempts to provide teachers, parents, and learners with a myriad of opportunities to locate worthwhile resources. In its most basic form, Thinkfinity is an amazing search tool for educational resources and information on the web.
How to Locate Activities Aligned with State Standards
An interesting "new" feature on Thinkfinity is the the ability to search content by a state's standards. Since my class is currently working with products, factors, and multiples, I decided to search resources using the 4.2.5 (Use a standard algorithm to multiply numbers up to 100 by numbers up to 10, using relevant properties of the number system) state standard that drove my instruction. This search resulted in 19 different online sources from the Illumination website. I enjoyed the times table tool, which allows students to find products from 0-9. Another cool tool was the Primary Krypto that was within the listed resources. The rules for the Krypto are as follows "Combine five number cards using the four arithmetic operations (+, –, ×, ÷) to arrive at a "target" number. This online version of Primary Krypto uses the numbers 1–10 only" (NCTM, 2011). These would be great tools for an interactive white board. In addition to these tools, there were many multiple-lesson units related to this standard as well. Here is a list of the units aligned with this one Indiana State Standard.
Within each of these units there are student objectives, activity sheets, interactive games, and links to other sites for more information. Just think of what materials you can find regarding any particular state standard.
Content Providers with Integrity
I have been using two of Thinkfinity's partners for the past several years. Read Write Think is one of them, and this site was developed by the International Reading Association (IRA) and the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE). On Read Write Think's website, teachers are given research-based lessons, Web 2.0 tools, and other resources, which aid in distributing quality education across the country. Illuminations is the other partner I turn to for professional advice on math instruction. Illuminations was designed by The National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM), which is an extremely trustworthy source of information. Again, this website also provides research-based lessons, Web 2.0 tools, and other resources. Both sites' Web 2.0 tools will work perfectly with an interactive whiteboard. But wait there is more! Thinkfinity provides a direct link to these interactive games under their Games & Tools tab. All these games will work well perfectly with interactive whiteboards.
Just take a look at all of Thinkfinity's content providers/partners. In an age where anyone can create a website overnight, these are all reliable websites to follow.
Professional Development for Teachers
It is crucial that teachers become familiar with this free site. If professional development is what you crave, register with the site. Did I mention it's free? Oh yea, I did. Clicking on your state will provide you with Verizon Thinkfinity's State Educator Partner, which is The Indiana Department of Education (IDOE). Since 2009, the IDOE has aligned state standards with Thinkfinity online resources. Additionally, you can email Meri Carnahan for information on more information on Thinkfinity and professional development opportunities. Below is a picture of the tabs associated with professional development opportunities.
I started touring this website with a quick Webinar on the ins-and-outs of Thinkfinity. The webinar was prerecorded and taught by Mark Moore. At the time of the webinar only 5 people were present, but at least it was recorded to share with users until the end of the year. Especially because it makes you register, signing in for a webinar would be a great starting point for someone new to Thinkfinity.
To Thinkfinity and Beyond
I'm sorry Mr. Dewey but gone are the days for hunting through a library with little success. To add insult to injury, Mr. Dewey didn't have a single search result on the Thinkfinity website. It does have the following information and resources.
In the Classroom (Lesson Plans, Student Interactives, 21st Century Skills, Today in History, and Standard Alignment)
The following information, links, and videos were compiled after attending the Indiana Computer Educators (ICE) conference. Take a look at what is written below. Investigate what makes you want to advance as a professional and leave the rest for later.
Blogging and Podcasts
In my first 60 minutes at the ICE conference for 2011, we created a teacher blog using Google Blogger and a brief podcast using Photo Story 3 software. It was extremely easy and I can see these skills being especially useful in the classroom. Utilizing Blogger through the Gmail service, people within the ICE workshop were engaged in creating an easy to construct and manage Blog. It doesn’t hold much information, but the ease of use would allow more teachers to access the site’s functions. The trainers Tim Wilhelmus and Jerrad Gleim and Playground Advocate Blog.
If you want to engage your students in responded on a blog, students can first watch Tim and Moby's BrainPOP video explaining blogs. Before, during, or after the video, ask your students to engage in this graphic organizer provided by BrainPOP. There are several suggestions on using blogs within the classroom. It is a way to extend teaching writing skills after school hours.
As for the podcast, attendees were asked to engage in pre-production techniques. Because of the lack of time, pre-production involved compiling various pictures from the web for a story. Then, we narrated a slideshow of photos that were supposed to tell a story (digital storytelling). Again, we used Photo Story 3 software, which was extremely easy to use. The software is free and guides the user through the production process.
I have been actively researching digital storytelling. With a podcast, pictures, and video clips students can create Ken Burns-like storytelling. If you have ever seen Ken Burn's Civil War PBS special, then you have watched a digital story. Of course, Ken Burns is a professional filmmaker, but with free video software students can create basic published stories. Check out Bernajean's Digitale website.
This is an ABC Digital Story or report on mammals. It sounds like an older student's project, but a project like this could become a class production (elementary level). The next was completed by an adult; nevertheless, it is an excellent example. Her video was completed as a tribute to her father, Calvin.
Digital projects facilitate higher order thinking processes in classroom instruction. I encourage you to research this highly engaging publishing technique. Students are able to present to a larger audience than their teacher.
To podcast or not to podcast? That is the question. Podcasts are an easy way to integrate technology into the classroom. Through the regular use of a class podcast, teachers can incorporate digital literacies in their 21st Century classroom. Many schools are allowing their students to create podcasts as news program. This might be a scarey thought for a not-so-tech-savvy teacher, but podcasts don't have to be created by the students or the teacher. There are so many already created that students could benefit from subscribing to educationally appropriate podcast programs. From these episodes students could learn valuable information from their coveted iPods. Instead of going deaf with pop-music's leading Lady Gaga, students can review information being assessed on a test. The following is a list of benefits to using podcasts in the classroom.
Promoting reading fluency
Creating a sense of audience by posting to the Internet (more meaningful purpose for writing)
Retelling and summarizing literature and content area information
Reviewing/Evaluating books systematically
Sharing directions for a project
Sharing a student's experience on a field trip
Narrating their writing in a podcast adding sound effects to enhance the listeners experience
Reviewing content area information prior to testing (absent students could review)
Interviewing students on what they have learned in class
But, what is a podcast? A podcast is a recorded episode similar to a radio program or television show (without the video). Warlick likens podcasts to radio program created from home, which use nothing more than a computer, microphone, sometimes free software, and a website to post the program. The program can be listened to through the Internet or MP3 player (i.e. iPod). Who knew an iPod could be used to promote knowledge. Check out the apple website for a quick tutorial on finding and subscribing to podcasts.
With the Power to Learn website, Jim Lengel (2010) posted an article entitled 50 Ways to Make a Podcast. On this site, Lengel also posted several additional articles on podcasting. One tutorial demonstrated how to upload these podcast files to Blackboard, which is according to Lengel (2010) the most popular Learning Management System in schools and colleges.
Of course, understanding a podcast is much easier by previewing a few recorded for education. The first has to do with reviewing children's literature. Emily Manning's Chatting About Books is a great series of podcasts that chats with kids, parents, authors, and teachers about children's literature ages 4 through 11. As I write this, she has recorded 39 podcast reviews. Her "discussions include reading tips and fun activities to do with children before, during, and after reading." (Manning, 2008-2011)
An example of utilizing podcasts in a fifth-grade classroom can be found at Mr. Coley's Coleycasts. To extend his instruction outside of the classroom, Mr. Coley records presentations on science, social studies, and reading. In addition, with a podcast, his students review various books they read. It is extremely similar to Emily Manning's podcast series, but it's an awesome example of utilizing podcasts in the classroom. On Teacher Tube, I stumbled upon a similar example of students making a fourth-grade podcast about reading. Within the podcast, there are a series of pictures related to the commentary, which makes listening and watching the information more engaging. The quality isn't the greatest, but I can guarantee the students enjoyed producing the video-type podcast.
The next podcast is Grammar Girl, which provides quick and dirty tips for writing grammatically correct sentences. What's the difference between "affect" and "effect?" Well, grammar girl knows the answer to this question. This podcast can be downloaded from iTunes. Recently, her true identity was exposed by USA today. Grammar Girl is really mild-mannered, former technical writer, Mignon Fogarty. As you may have guessed, her podcast has become her full-time job. So, check out when to use "further" and "farther" with Grammar Girl.
After reviewing education-based podcasts, I was a little disappointed in the selection provided through iTunes. From this selection, nothing really caught my eye. I was thinking about podcasts that would assist in teaching my fourth-grade students. There weren't categories to discrimintate grade-level; instead everything was grouped under the overly general topic of education. However, for me, I really liked the Coffee Break Spanish podcast, which can be found on iTunes under the education podcast section. I subscribed to help review my Spanish.
The last great example for student-based podcasts was constructed by Tony Vincent. His Our City Podcast has allowed several cities from around the country to provide their own description and history. Contrary to having adults produce information on the cities, students (usually elementary level) answer several questions to provide an overview of their city. From Tony's site, I was able to find many other examples of elementary student recording productions. One that I really enjoyed was from Radio WillowWeb. WillowWeb students interview other students about what they have learned. Unlike a traditional news report there are transition sound effects, music, and jokes. After checking out these podcasts, check out Tony's website to learn a little more about podcast production.
In the end, I am not a professional podcaster, but the links provided here should be enough to get you started with podcasing. This digital tool has been around for a while. Do we have to utilize this in the classroom, of course not. But, learning how to integrate new technologies into the curriculum can sometimes make teaching easier. Who knows maybe one day teacher podcasts will be mandated, but you will be miles ahead of the game. Then, you can answer: What has podcasting done for you?
Facebook in education can be a scary thought. But of course, it is possible. With lots of preparation and precaution, teachers can include Facebook to extend learning outside of the classroom. According to Karen’s (2009) blog many Canadian students and teachers are using Facebook to extend instructional time.
One way I have used Facebook in the classroom is by using it to provide information. I have asked my students to pretend certain concepts were people. What would the concepts Facebook page look like. Then, students can answer questions like...
Where would it work?
Who would it be friends with?
What groups would it be part of?
What would it "like?"
What is its profile pic?
What would its Info page look like?
The following is a list of potential benefits for using Facebook with K-12 students.
Pros:
Upload and share educational pictures
Send messages on classroom “walls” or to student/parents inboxes
Chat with students and parents
Watch educational videos
Create and join groups related to the classrooms instructional content
Provide students with questions to answer
Provide students answers to their questions
Provide opportunities to discuss instruction or issues in the classroom
Provide students with links to educational resources
Provide opportunities for social learning
Provide social networking etiquette
Teach students about digital citizenship
Teach students about cyber-bullying and preventing it
Teach students about posting appropriate comments
Teach students how to protect their privacy
Teach students to use profiles strictly for education (don’t friend everyone)
This is a fairly long list that could be added to, but it takes a constantly vigilant teacher to monitor the classroom’s Facebook wall. If the wrong content is posted, shared, or liked, teachers can face monumental problems.
So, regardless of Facebook’s potential in the classroom, it has several flaws that cannot be ignored. The following is a list of various issues with this websites use in the classroom.
Cons:
Possibly lose your job if students do something wrong
Teacher may be held responsible
The wrong picture, comment, or person gets in to potentially destroy the dynamic
Some students may not heed your warnings outside of school
Students can fall victim to online predators
Facebook is a marketing tool that analyzes your personal information
Negative stigma attached to the site
Administration may not agree with its use in the classroom
Parents may not agree and would love to provide you with a “I told you so.”
Problems could arise from the wrong relationships on Facebook.
All in all, Facebook could be a valuable tool for the classroom, but it provides many challenges to a teachers responsibilities. With over 300,000,000 (Underhill & Kurit, 2009) users, it’s most well known by parents and students. Unlike other less know social networking and blogging sites, Facebook commands the social networking market. Basically, many parents and students do not need instruction about signing up for a free account. There is definitely a long list of potential benefits for using Facebook, but it might not be every teacher’s first choice for online instructional use.
Nevermind what I say. What do you think? How can Facebook be used to enhance learning for K-12 students?
Facebook may be a sore subject for some districts. Facebook for Educators organization may be able to provide useful information for you. Here is a helpful guide for using Facebook.
I find Facebook to be a bit of a waste if used personally. Nevertheless, many people use it and that is their prerogative. It is nice to reconnect with old friends, but the site has a very “who is looking at my profile?” feel to it. I think many people like to stalk other user’s photos and profiles. Kids don't get this.
Recently, my wife found a student's site because there was a strange picture tagged on my niece's wall. His comments and photos were suggestively suicidal. As a result, my wife contacted her sister about the incident. Then, her sister contacted my niece. My niece then called the depressed "friend." He was completely confused by the fact that so many people saw his posts and photos. My niece stated he seemed upset and confused that her uncle and aunt saw his posts. For him, this cry for help became too public. My point is kids and some adults do not understand how public their posts and photos become. As Mary Schmich (2011) states Facebook "multiplies all the problems that come with relationships." Especially if it was a page for my classroom, I would hate for an inappropriate post or photo to make its way onto my Facebook page.
Facebook isn’t as professional as Linkedin. With many old “friends,” who knows what they want to say on your “wall.” In addition, they may post the wrong picture of you from your past or the weekend. Within the media and community, teachers are constantly scrutinized and can be fired for doing things that are “immoral.” This was just stated at my last union meeting. What is immoral? Each person has his or her own point of view on morality.
Currently, my Facebook page is extremely limited, and I constantly remove my tag from photos. If being used for my professional life, I would have to create a whole new profile purely geared for educational use. With Facebook personal and professional Facebook profiles need to be miles apart. This is because I cannot trust other people that are considered to be your Facebook “friends.”
Check out the following link about social networking on Thinkfinity.
Twitter
I find Twitter too restricted. With only so many characters allowed, a “Tweet” can only provide a follower with so much information. If I want to find information for research’s sake, reliable information can be tricky to locate. Sometimes, it’s possible to stumble upon a reliable link on someone’s Twitter posting. There are some important users to follow. But, there is a lot of nonsense out there.
Although Tweets are restricted, this could be used to teach students to become succinct. Students would be forced to respond with a limited number of characters, but still be understood.
Twitter is great for businesses to get their information on the web, which makes it a valuable marketing tool. Also, it is a great website to provide links to other sites without limitation on the number of characters. Overall, Twitter is a great marketing tool to promote a business, a personal website, or valuable information on other sites.
I post occasionally , but go ahead and follow me @hoosier_teacher.
Linkedin
Of the three social sites, this is the one I feel an affinity toward. It is much more professional and provides like-minded professionals to connect with one another. By monitoring your connections, it is beneficial for teachers looking for jobs. If a school system is in need of a well-rounded educator, they might to find one just by browsing Linkedin’s users. Additionally, user’s are able to view local job postings and apply for various jobs. In my opinion, this website provides the most valuable resources for professional gain.
