This article begins with a historical look at computers to illustrate that while American industry was quick to utilize ever-increasing technology, American’s education system was “very slow to accept the new technologies” (p. 4). When schools did begin to use computers in the 1980s, they did so through computer labs those were used infrequently. Along with the internet boom, school began to have students from kindergarten up becoming computer literate. Essential to technology use in school is the teachers’ ability to use it and teach with It; in order for this to happen, schools must provide technical support to classroom teachers. Ronnkvist, Dexter, and Anderson (2000 ) state, “Effective use of educational technology by classroom teachers is dependent upon having educators confident in the knowledge that there is easy access to technical and instructional support (qtd. In Wright & Lesisko, 2007, p.5). Unfortunately, many districts do not provide enough technology support resources. Most technology support personnel have backgrounds in technology but not in teaching. Educators are not trained to provide their own technology support. The authors suggest “two separate professional certifications or educational specialization…one person is needed who can work with the teaching and administrative professionals in designing technology systems…[and a] second professional, the Network Administrator” (Wright & Lesisko, 2007, p. 12-13) who should be responsible for system maintenance.
Wright, R., & Lesisko, L. (2007). The preparation and role of technology leadership for the schools. Online Submission, http://search.ebscohost.com.ts.isil.westga.edu
Sunday, October 18, 2009
Wednesday, October 14, 2009
High school 'to allow mobiles in classrooms to help learning'
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/education/educationnews/6320811/High-school-to-allow-mobiles-in-classrooms-to-help-learning.html
This article comes from the UK, it's about a school that is allowing mobile phones in the classroom to help with student learning. Notre Dame high school would be the first school in the UK to allow students to use phones in the classroom. The school thinks that the students have resources on their mobile phones that go beyond what the school is able to provide for them. Students cell phones contain calculators, voice recorders, maps, digital cameras etc...The school is leaving when these devices can be used up to the teacher so they have control over students using the devices.
I found this article very interesting, I haven't thought very much about the educational uses of cell phones. I can see where they would be useful in some situations but, I can also see students taking advantage of the situation. If certain securities were put in place where students were not allowed to call or text during the school day this idea would probably be more widely accepted.
This article comes from the UK, it's about a school that is allowing mobile phones in the classroom to help with student learning. Notre Dame high school would be the first school in the UK to allow students to use phones in the classroom. The school thinks that the students have resources on their mobile phones that go beyond what the school is able to provide for them. Students cell phones contain calculators, voice recorders, maps, digital cameras etc...The school is leaving when these devices can be used up to the teacher so they have control over students using the devices.
I found this article very interesting, I haven't thought very much about the educational uses of cell phones. I can see where they would be useful in some situations but, I can also see students taking advantage of the situation. If certain securities were put in place where students were not allowed to call or text during the school day this idea would probably be more widely accepted.
Florida Department of Education launches iTunes U Web site
http://jacksonville.com/news/metro/schools/2009-10-11/story/florida_department_of_education_launches_itunes_u_web_site
The Florida department of education has just launched iTunes U. iTunes U is a place where students, parents, and teachers can go to access and share information digitally. The site is in the beginning stages so there is not alot of content at this point. A few school districts such as Duval County (Jacksonville) are still waiting to get access to the iTunes software required to use iTunes U.
This site will be used by K-12 as well as colleges in the state of Florida. The greatest part of this site is that it's free to everyone inside and outside the state of Florida. The site can be accessed at www.floridaitunesu.com.
I think this is definitely a great idea and that Georgia should look into doing something similar, if the program in Florida is a success.
The Florida department of education has just launched iTunes U. iTunes U is a place where students, parents, and teachers can go to access and share information digitally. The site is in the beginning stages so there is not alot of content at this point. A few school districts such as Duval County (Jacksonville) are still waiting to get access to the iTunes software required to use iTunes U.
This site will be used by K-12 as well as colleges in the state of Florida. The greatest part of this site is that it's free to everyone inside and outside the state of Florida. The site can be accessed at www.floridaitunesu.com.
I think this is definitely a great idea and that Georgia should look into doing something similar, if the program in Florida is a success.
Sunday, October 11, 2009
Be the Web "Go-To" Person for Parents!
Hauser, J. (2009). Be the web "go-to" person for parents!. School Library Media Activities Monthly, 25(6), 24-26. http://search.ebscohost.com.ts.isil.westga.edu
In this article from School Library Media Activities Monthly, Hauser relays her experience as an information media consultant for a school district in Michigan where she works with library media specialists and classroom teachers. After spending several years training those professionals in using Web 2.0 tools, she decided to implement a workshop to teach parents about Web 2.0 tools since their students are using them in school. The point of the workshop was not only to teach parents about Web 2.0, but help them see the school library media specialist as the “go-to” person when parents have questions regarding Web 2.0. Hauser’s plan for such a workshop involves several steps. First, she and the library media specialist meet and coordinate the workshop, so they can present the workshop together allowing the parents see the library media specialist as a person they can go to for help. She then suggests starting with a few commonly used Web 2.0 tools; the library media specialist should know how to use the selected tools well enough to answer questions and demonstrate their uses to parents. Hauser suggests starting with blogs, wikis, podcasts, RSS feeds, and social networking sites, and she provides information about each of those tools. Professional development opportunities are available in a variety of locations to help library media specialists become comfortable with these tools. These tools are helpful for library media specialists because they help with work in the media center, are applicable to today’s curriculum, and can be used to educate parents.
In this article from School Library Media Activities Monthly, Hauser relays her experience as an information media consultant for a school district in Michigan where she works with library media specialists and classroom teachers. After spending several years training those professionals in using Web 2.0 tools, she decided to implement a workshop to teach parents about Web 2.0 tools since their students are using them in school. The point of the workshop was not only to teach parents about Web 2.0, but help them see the school library media specialist as the “go-to” person when parents have questions regarding Web 2.0. Hauser’s plan for such a workshop involves several steps. First, she and the library media specialist meet and coordinate the workshop, so they can present the workshop together allowing the parents see the library media specialist as a person they can go to for help. She then suggests starting with a few commonly used Web 2.0 tools; the library media specialist should know how to use the selected tools well enough to answer questions and demonstrate their uses to parents. Hauser suggests starting with blogs, wikis, podcasts, RSS feeds, and social networking sites, and she provides information about each of those tools. Professional development opportunities are available in a variety of locations to help library media specialists become comfortable with these tools. These tools are helpful for library media specialists because they help with work in the media center, are applicable to today’s curriculum, and can be used to educate parents.
Tuesday, October 6, 2009
Instructional Technology Article #1
http://www.gainesville.com/article/20091004/ARTICLES/910049952/1002?Title=Local-teachers-incorporate-technology-into-classrooms
This article tells about a school in Gainesville, Florida that is using SmartBoards with kindergarteners. Each student check's their own name every day on the SmartBoard for attendance instead of the teacher calling out each name. This article goes on to tell about how technology and computers are being used as early as K-2/K-3 programs. The author notes that 2 and 3 year olds are being taught how to move a mouse and work a keyboard as well as watching interactive stories on a screen. I thought this article was relevant to instructional technology because students are using technology earlier and earlier these days. As instructional technology specialists we must ensure that our students are exposed to the most relevant and most useful technologies.
This article tells about a school in Gainesville, Florida that is using SmartBoards with kindergarteners. Each student check's their own name every day on the SmartBoard for attendance instead of the teacher calling out each name. This article goes on to tell about how technology and computers are being used as early as K-2/K-3 programs. The author notes that 2 and 3 year olds are being taught how to move a mouse and work a keyboard as well as watching interactive stories on a screen. I thought this article was relevant to instructional technology because students are using technology earlier and earlier these days. As instructional technology specialists we must ensure that our students are exposed to the most relevant and most useful technologies.
Sunday, October 4, 2009
Technology Integration Made Easy
http://www.educationworld.com/a_tech/tech/tech146.shtml
This online article at educationworld.com provides teachers with "20 easy and painless ways to integrate technology into [their] daily routine." As an instructional technology specialist, you must remember that most of your teachers are not extremely comfortable using technology in the classroom. In order to use technology effectively in the classroom, teaches must become very familiar with the technology first, and that of course, requires a lot of time, something most teachers don't have. The tips for integrating technology provided in this article are very simple and easy to use. This would be a great article to to show teachers or a great article to create a presentation from to help teachers ease into using technology in the classroom. For example, one tip suggests accessing an online weather forecast. Since elementary teachers often discuss the weather each day with their class, this is a great way to make that activity more engaging, and you could also check the weather in another part of the world to tie the lesson in with social studies.
This online article at educationworld.com provides teachers with "20 easy and painless ways to integrate technology into [their] daily routine." As an instructional technology specialist, you must remember that most of your teachers are not extremely comfortable using technology in the classroom. In order to use technology effectively in the classroom, teaches must become very familiar with the technology first, and that of course, requires a lot of time, something most teachers don't have. The tips for integrating technology provided in this article are very simple and easy to use. This would be a great article to to show teachers or a great article to create a presentation from to help teachers ease into using technology in the classroom. For example, one tip suggests accessing an online weather forecast. Since elementary teachers often discuss the weather each day with their class, this is a great way to make that activity more engaging, and you could also check the weather in another part of the world to tie the lesson in with social studies.
Digital Storytelling in the Classroom
Ohler, J. (2008). Digital storytelling in the classroom: new media pathway to literacy ,learning and creativity. Thousand Oaks, Ca. Corwin Press.
As I have mentioned previously, my school/system does not have a person on staff who helps the teachers learn how to integrate technology into the classroom. When I am looking for articles, I try to find ones that I can share with my colleagues since I have taken it upon myself to help them learn about integrating technology. This article is especially relevant to me and my fellow English department memebers as it deals with digital stories. If I were working with teachers in an instructional technology position, I would love to share this with them as a great project for their students to complete. Ohler (2008) describes digital storytelling as the use of “personal digital technology to combine a number of media into a coherent narrative” (p.15). He then goes on to talk about the kind of digital stories that students can produce which can be anything from narration combined with still pictures to actual movies produced by the students. Since the beginning of my teaching career, I have assigned students storyboard assignments; they would be required to write a storyboard as their own version of a text we just read or modeling a type of literature, etc. Since I now have more technology available to me in the classroom, I have begun to think about them creating digital storyboards with Movie Maker. While I agree with Ohler that the “rapid evolution of digital technology is both exciting and inspiring, as well as intimidating and confusing,” (p. 16), allowing your students to create digital stories opens up a whole new world of learning opportunities for them.
As I have mentioned previously, my school/system does not have a person on staff who helps the teachers learn how to integrate technology into the classroom. When I am looking for articles, I try to find ones that I can share with my colleagues since I have taken it upon myself to help them learn about integrating technology. This article is especially relevant to me and my fellow English department memebers as it deals with digital stories. If I were working with teachers in an instructional technology position, I would love to share this with them as a great project for their students to complete. Ohler (2008) describes digital storytelling as the use of “personal digital technology to combine a number of media into a coherent narrative” (p.15). He then goes on to talk about the kind of digital stories that students can produce which can be anything from narration combined with still pictures to actual movies produced by the students. Since the beginning of my teaching career, I have assigned students storyboard assignments; they would be required to write a storyboard as their own version of a text we just read or modeling a type of literature, etc. Since I now have more technology available to me in the classroom, I have begun to think about them creating digital storyboards with Movie Maker. While I agree with Ohler that the “rapid evolution of digital technology is both exciting and inspiring, as well as intimidating and confusing,” (p. 16), allowing your students to create digital stories opens up a whole new world of learning opportunities for them.
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