Tech Jain

The Thing I found most frustrating and time consuming in getting started.  After numerous failed attempts to copy K12 Learning 2.0…I asked Shelly and like magic I was in!  I enjoyed previewing the other sites so I was so motivated to custom make my own pageflake.  Unfortunately, I never got a chance to tailor the page to my needs due to family obligations and schedule.  Ironically, I feel that this is what my next step is…to customize my pageflake to needs of the Enrichment Center.  So many possible ideas have been flooding forth-section and links to  study skills tools (quizlet, 30 Boxes, etc.) , imbedding a video on what the EC is and how students can use the EC, section or blog for students to write me-need help, ideas, etc. section to share ideas with colleagues…i thought I could go onto Ning site our school has and direct them to my pageflake.  I would love to use visual media-flickr…not sure how I could but need to explore the possibilities and it may just be a personal reflection of interests/hobbies.   My hope is offer students help, gather additional resources and encourage me to take risks in learning new technology.

 I began web 2.0 with much excitement and anticipation that I would learn to be a techie or least comfortable with all the new possibilities.  I experienced many frustrations especially as we learned new tools.  Often, I felt like I was forgetting the tools I had just learned.  At times, I would just want someone sitting next to me –do the collaboration in person and not through email because I knew if I could ask a question I wouldn’t have spent as much time figuring out task.  Of course, reflecting on this statement as an educator you realize learning is a process and you should go through stages to fully comprehend and feel comfortable with content.  The mistakes I made actually helped me learn a tool better because I would have to start from scratch and review the steps over. I look forward to going through tools I have learned and fine tuning them to my particular needs.  I also learned to become resilient with technology given often times the edublog site was down. I ended up just creating a Word document that included my reflections and I would cut/paste as soon as I had time again and site was working..two things that would not always be in synch!

Even though, I spent the least time working on pageflake, in some way I feel that is my next step.  I need to create a page for the Enrichment Center that  would suite the needs of students who need help with writing skills, time management/organization skills.   I see it as being a site I can continually update, add latest research, offer tools/sites to students, their families and have a section for my colleagues to share ideas with me and others.

• Comment 1 / Slide 1: Share your thoughts about Web 2.0 and 21st Century learners. Do you believe the world is changing for our students? Do teachers (and schools) need to consider and address these “shifts?” How can we teach students to be responsible, effective users of these tools?

We are exposed to limitless amount of information and perspectives given the web and latest gadgetry. Teachers do need to be at the forefront of new trends and knowledgeable on possible tools.  The key is to continually explore and refine tools to meet the needs of students you work with.  As an educator, you need to ask yourself  how can I use this tool in a developmentally appropriate and pedagogical sound way?   This framework creates opportunities to model  to students the responsible way to be able to critically think and analyze information that they are exposed to.

• Comment 2 / Slide 2: While I know there have been challenges along the way, I hope there have also been discoveries made, and ideas sprouted for each of you. Please share the “top” one or two tools, ideas or resources from the course that you felt were most valuable for you in your classroom or professional role. What was valuable about them? Are there any tools or resources you have begun using or plan to use in the future? What was the best discovery?

Top tools –Thing 14-exploring polldaddy, quizlet, 30 boxes.  When I shared these with students, I learned to define exactly what need this tool would serve best as well as what student would benefit from using a given tool based on their learning style.  Also, it allowed me to discover other tools that may serve a particular need better (i.e quizlet and flashcard machine).

Another resource that stands outs for me was the Primary Access presentation “Student Creation of Digital Documentary in History Class”  which I learned about when attending on-line conference.  I felt that I could not only share this resource with my children’s classroom teachers and also, colleagues in my work place.  A powerful and meaningful way to learn historical content . 

The drive to challenge myself as a learner was something I realize I have been craving for and this course has given me some technology knowledge so I can  offer new, creative ways of sharing strategies.  I  plan to create a  site for the Enrichment Center with the hope to be able to share organizational/writing tools, interesting sites, and anything else that fits with needs of students and families I work with . So, what does this mean for me?   I need to keep exploring, experimenting,  reflecting and most importantly, learning..YAY!

I found myself  thinking   another site to post educational materials given wikis, blogs..how do I choose which technology options to focus on!  I know my defensiveness came out of place of feeling a bit overwhelmed given I never feel I have enough time to read my own email, google reader, blog, etc.  Given our task was to simply explore the Classroom 2.0,  I just skimmed over the site.  I looked through the tool section and clicked different areas of interest:  elementary related topics- math everyday program, getting ideas from other educators on where to start using technology.  I also went to the connecting content/technology group, there I viewed video on visual learning and folding paper!  In the end, I felt it was sort of a pageflake – but one for a community of educators which I think is of essential value.  Some ideas I previewed were ok and others stood out as exemplary.  Overall, I do see the benefit of Education Ning in that you create a forum of discussion for specific interests and gather ideas from colleagues.  Our school has group ning site that I previewed and has only a handful of colleagues as members.  It is in the beginning stages and, I can already can see the great potential for collaboration among colleagues.  Ning is an effective tool to share ideas, ask questions, gather more resources and post reflections.  Yes, my next step… I just need to sign up!

I read the techlearning blog about teaching administrators to use Wikipedia I have understood  reservations given the nature of  how information is written.  Yet, at the same  I myself have used Wikipedia and felt it provided a good basis and was another tool /  resource to getting more information on a topic.   I thought the blog was effective argument for using Wikipedia especially given the analysis done on a number of topics using history tabs and discussion tabs. 

I think the key statement that I left with from this post was : “How are you using Wikipedia to teach information literacy and critical thinking?”

I had heard of google docs in the initial introduction to Web 2.0 class at my school.  At that time, I felt it would be an effective tool especially for documents that I needed my colleagues direct input.  My spreadsheet for tutors and students tutored in our class was a perfect example.  I tried it just before break and it was great.  Got immediate feedback and changes made by middle school learning specialist which she did right then.  We also tried to chat with our 2.0 leader about how to sort several headings.  We could sort only one column at a time.

I really like how you can choose to have others either view or edit.  You have complete control and ownership given your audience.  When I copied the spreadsheet back to my excel document -in order to share with faculty in the building, the formatting was off…I know I need to play around and found it more time consuming than I intended.

I have made up calendars for my children as I can keep updating and sharing with my husband if he needs to add to calendar.  The autosaving feature made it confusing for me on how to save a new calendar with same template…not sure if I was to use save as- but did not explore yet. 

I will continue to use google docs for documents where I need colleagues input based on their perspective.  For example on the Enrichment Center’s Vision statement, how to “use” the EC, or my reflections on students.  

I had a bit of tricky time looking for videos that would be relevant to my professional needs.  But I came across a promo for the writing center that students had done Writing Center, Rm 810 , Both Lunches.  It was clever and fun and served the purpose of letting students know times and purpose of the center.

I thought I could create one for the Enrichment Center  with some of my regulars!

I embedded the Knowledge Navigator –Thesis writing software for me to possible use and share.  We have Inspirations and this is another possible software to use for writing organization.

My “how-to”video also was a funny one about improving study habits in taking tests. “How to Improve Your Study Habits”

Some great tips (MEATO)  Matching study and classroom environment, Elaborate (adding own notes, connecting) Associate (making connections with other concepts) Take Breaks (break up reading ) Organize

Video was done in a clever, clear way loved the acronym (MEATO)!

I just saw SlumDog Millionaire so for my “fun” videos I went through interviews of Danny Boyle.  Fun to get the director’s insights into a terrific movie. 

I “attended” the Primary Access presentation, “Student Creation of Digital Documentary in History Classroom”  and what I thought was most beneficial was the research connected to the digital documentary.  The goal of students’ understanding of content was demonstrated, evaluated, and also compared to another  more conventionally used tool, the power point.   What it clearly illustrated to me was why students using this medium would benefit and learn historical content in a comprehensive, connected way.

I also attended “We like our Blogging Buddies: The Write Stuff With our Blogging Mentors.”  What struck me about that conference was how many students can have access to university resource and educators without having to physically be present.  All the students in the classroom got equal and quality time with their buddy.  The first grade students reflections were so effective in demonstrating why writers write.  The  writing buddies allowed for first grade writers to understand audience, editing skills, and the interactive element of writing.  

I liked having the essential questions and using voicethread through texting to see and contribute opinions. 

I definitely cannot wait to explore more of the topics (classroom blogging) offered through on-line conference.  I plan to this next week I have off.

The possibilities of using podcasting in education are quite limitless.  I previewed the Education Podcast Network, PBS Podcasts (actually had already added to my Reader early on), Learn out Loud, and Online Education Database ,OEDb .   I found each of these sites to be very enticing and for different reasons.  I am drawn to some for personal issues , others because of the content driven nature of the podcasts.  The ability to listen to first hand / primary sources feels a concrete way to make learning alive.  It can add another layer of authenticity and empathy in exploring the historical significance of speeches, documents.   It is essentially another way to access information and whether you want to learn vocabulary, listen to a book,  study better, or gather more tools for the classroom, you have so many resources at your fingertips to use.   WOW! In my current role , the OEDb would be a site I would definitely refer to often. The goal I have is to become knowledgeable and comfortable about educational podcasts and letting students know what learning guides and resources are available to them.

   For podcasts that were more like talk shows I was definitely influenced by the speaker/host and whether they made me want to listen more or skim.    The powerful component is the potential to engage listeners to express a variety of opinions and share in a larger community.   It made me realize that the speaker(s) do have a large role in capturing and retaining their audience.   

Very quickly explored Library Thing.  First thing came to mind was how often I say…”I am looking for a book that….” Now, you have ways to share, sort, search a ton of libraries.  Often my searches would send me to Amazon where you get some recommendations but i never felt fully satisfied with the reviews.  Always wanted more. 

Educational what a great way for teachers & students to do a author study or subject study and research on -line through suggestions of others as well as know what book events are going on in your area. Another way to connect readers with other readers and get multiple perspectives.

I was reading from Techlearning blog a piece about whether a computer can lecture better than a human.  In taking this course, I have personally loved the little demos.  I know if I was sitting in a lecture hall with this same info, even with writing it down I love being able to hit rewind.  “I got this part a, but can you say the other part b again”…i would be doing this a lot in class and annoy others who already got part a, b and want to move onto part c. As the blog says, “a human has created the video so it is not devoid of human input “and “lecture” just in a more effective form for me.