When I think of how much technology has changed our world just in my 30 year lifetime, I have no idea what to even imagine about what life will look like in even just 15 or 20 years from now. I do know that technology is completely changing our concepts of time and space and creating learning communities in the most improbable places and ways. Just a few years ago, I could never have dreamed of taking my students on a field trip to Canada. Now through videoconferencing, they can not only "visit" Canada but connect with new peers and learn about another culture in a much more meaningful way than just reading a textbook about it. A few years ago I would never have been able to earn a master's degree from Texas A&M-Commerce without ever stepping foot on the campus for a class. But in May I will graduate without ever being in a Commerce classroom. As new Web 2.0 tools come across our radar screen daily, the potential for creative teaching and learning is greater than ever before. Soon we will move far beyond the textbook, pencil and paper methods of instruction that have been an institution for centuries. However, as with any major paradigm shift, the transition does not always come easily.
I think the tools already exist for us to drastically change the way we teach, learn, and work, but not everyone is ready for that change. Human nature is static...we resist change. The unknown and unfamiliar is unsettling. Therefore we cling to what we know instead of what we could know. I think the challenges of funding, of training, of getting everyone on the same page is holding us back. There are so MANY tools and possibilities it can be hard to know where to start and it can be overwhelming.
In my personal situation at school, it seems like we're always missing a few pieces...always missing a few critical links. We get the equipment but don't have the training or support. We get the training and support but don't have the equipment. We get the equipment, training, support, and some brilliant concepts of how to implement...but the network speed is so slow its useless. Therefore we revert back to our trusty textbook, pencil, and paper. The technical difficulties hold me back!! So if I could wave a magic wand, I would make sure every school had fully functioning, up-to-date equipment, hardware, and software; every school had a helpful, knowledgeable technical support team; every teacher could be adequately trained and inspired; and most of all, every school had lightning fast connectivity!! If all of that were in place....oh the things we could do and the places we could go!!!
Saturday, February 27, 2010
Friday, February 19, 2010
Blog Reflection #5
I've known about wikis for a couple of years now, although I haven't necessarily been a big fan. The Library Media Services department for Dallas ISD (my employer) has a wiki on which we can post helpful tips and information, but I never really liked it because it was hard to find the information I was looking for at times. I don't really like the format of wikis because for me it is hard to understand or navigate. However, by going into depth a little more this week in class, I can see how they can be helpful and will try to get more into them by creating my own wiki.
I created my wiki with teachers and librarians in mind. The purpose will be to have a space to post book talks, book trailers, book reviews, and book lists that other teachers and librarians can use, add to, or comment on. So far I have created the pages for these topics, but I haven't started adding actual content. I can't decide if I want to post the full text or just links to other sources.
Wikis can be useful for bringing together a wide group of people for a common purpose or collaboration. However, disadvantages are that someone can delete something that you felt was important or relevant to the project or work or the focus can be changed with too many additions or editings. I think wikis do have the potential to engage digital natives, but at the same time, it is important to continue to emphasize the importance of individual responsbility and meaningful contribution and ethical standards for such projects.
After looking at the elearning wiki, I was intrigued by the idea of "vlogging." I have a good friend who a director of an after school program/ education program for a nonprofit organization. She is currently in Guatemala visiting a college friend for her vacation. She chose two students from the after school program to be "Flat Lamarcus" and "Flat Tatiyana" (in reference to the "Flat Stanley" series) to travel with her to Guatemala. While there, she is going to be using her Flip video to record videos of the things she's seeing and visiting and blogging about it on the after school program blog so that the kids can experience Guatemala with her. She is also using Skype to videoconference with them and allow them to visit with native Guatemalans as well. I thought this was so cool how she was intergrating video, blogging, and videoconferencing to allow the students in the after school program to experience new things right along with her! Anyways, after seeing it on the eLearning site, I would be interested in learning more about how others are using vlogging as well!
What advantages do you see in utilizing wikis? What disadvantages do you see? Think back to the digital natives reading. Do wikis have the potential for engaging them?
In exploring the eLearning Tools Wiki, what other web 2.o technologies did you uncover that you want to explore further?
I created my wiki with teachers and librarians in mind. The purpose will be to have a space to post book talks, book trailers, book reviews, and book lists that other teachers and librarians can use, add to, or comment on. So far I have created the pages for these topics, but I haven't started adding actual content. I can't decide if I want to post the full text or just links to other sources.
Wikis can be useful for bringing together a wide group of people for a common purpose or collaboration. However, disadvantages are that someone can delete something that you felt was important or relevant to the project or work or the focus can be changed with too many additions or editings. I think wikis do have the potential to engage digital natives, but at the same time, it is important to continue to emphasize the importance of individual responsbility and meaningful contribution and ethical standards for such projects.
After looking at the elearning wiki, I was intrigued by the idea of "vlogging." I have a good friend who a director of an after school program/ education program for a nonprofit organization. She is currently in Guatemala visiting a college friend for her vacation. She chose two students from the after school program to be "Flat Lamarcus" and "Flat Tatiyana" (in reference to the "Flat Stanley" series) to travel with her to Guatemala. While there, she is going to be using her Flip video to record videos of the things she's seeing and visiting and blogging about it on the after school program blog so that the kids can experience Guatemala with her. She is also using Skype to videoconference with them and allow them to visit with native Guatemalans as well. I thought this was so cool how she was intergrating video, blogging, and videoconferencing to allow the students in the after school program to experience new things right along with her! Anyways, after seeing it on the eLearning site, I would be interested in learning more about how others are using vlogging as well!
What advantages do you see in utilizing wikis? What disadvantages do you see? Think back to the digital natives reading. Do wikis have the potential for engaging them?
In exploring the eLearning Tools Wiki, what other web 2.o technologies did you uncover that you want to explore further?
Sunday, February 14, 2010
Blog Reflection #4
The article I chose for the journal presentation related closely to the AFL principles we read about in the class reading. However, one that wasn't specifically addressed in the article but that stood out to me was the following principle:
AFL should take account of the importance of (and foster) learner motivation
This stood out to me because I feel that the forms of assessment that we too often focus on actually tend to de-motivate both teachers and students rather than motivate them. Too often we depend on high-stakes testing, benchmark testing, common assessment testing (all in the same TAKS format usually) make up our assessment regimen, but both students and teachers quickly grow weary of this constant routine of multiple choice questions and scantrons. However, I think that portfolio assessment is much more motivating because students can visually see progress, rather than try to interpret complicated data graphs and charts and scores. Students can take pride in their work in the form of portfolios and they exhibit a wider range of learning activity.
I'm looking forward to learning more about the e-portfolio concept through this course. I think it will be a great way to reflect what I've learned and also be something that I could consider for my own students in the future, should I return to the classroom setting.
AFL should take account of the importance of (and foster) learner motivation
This stood out to me because I feel that the forms of assessment that we too often focus on actually tend to de-motivate both teachers and students rather than motivate them. Too often we depend on high-stakes testing, benchmark testing, common assessment testing (all in the same TAKS format usually) make up our assessment regimen, but both students and teachers quickly grow weary of this constant routine of multiple choice questions and scantrons. However, I think that portfolio assessment is much more motivating because students can visually see progress, rather than try to interpret complicated data graphs and charts and scores. Students can take pride in their work in the form of portfolios and they exhibit a wider range of learning activity.
I'm looking forward to learning more about the e-portfolio concept through this course. I think it will be a great way to reflect what I've learned and also be something that I could consider for my own students in the future, should I return to the classroom setting.
Friday, February 5, 2010
Information Literacy
It is a coincidence that this particular topic was our focus for the week because I happen to be starting a series of lessons in my middle school library over the very same concepts this week. I am going to do a complete series of lessons over considering sources when doing research online and how to find reliable information on the Internet. We began this week with a lesson over looking at the URL's and domain names for clues, very similar to what we did in the MAPing activity. However, I really loved some of the resources within our class activity for the week and definitely think I will be incorporating this into the series of lessons I already have planned. Because I have been planning this series of lessons, I think I was already pretty familiar with the concept and what the MAPing activity was trying to point out. I did really well on the information literacy quiz, just because I've been brushing up on all of this recently!
I decided to start focusing on this with students because I am noticing that when students have to do research, they go straight to Google or Wikipedia, print the information out or cut and paste straight into their documents. They have so little concept of how to find reliable or authentic information and even knowing how to properly cite sources and avoid plaigarism is sadly lacking. Along with these lessons, I am simultaneously teaching the use of state and district online databases, but students still need to know how to evaluate the information they find through those mediums as well. Students always want to take the easy way out, but I have told them that professors will laugh in their face someday if they cite Wikipedia as a source for their research! It does take a lot of critical thinking to evaluate these sites, but these are exactly the types of thinking skills that will benefit students in other areas as well.
Just a few notes on the other activities this week....I'm having trouble with my computer when I attempt to follow a blog. After I sign in and press the "follow" button on the blog, my computer goes crazy and starts opening anywhere from 50-60 windows faster than I can click them closed! Very strange. I am going to have to try to use another computer to see if I have the same problem. Therefore, I haven't managed to follow the whole class yet, but I will continue to work on it. I already had a personal blog as well as two blogs for my school library on Google, so I want to organize my Google Reader to keep the updates from the ETEC 524 blogs separate from the personal blogs I follow. I haven't figured out how to do that yet, but I will play with it this week.
As for Delicious, I was introduced to that in another course and to be honest, I wasn't a fan of it then, and I am not a fan of it now. Honestly, too many bookmarks in one place gets overwhelming to me. I've never been big on bookmarking anyway, although I know this is something that can help keep one organized, it just hasn't come naturally for me. I will try to use Delicious more to see more of the advantages, but so far, I'm not really fond of it.
Thanks for a good week!
Rachel
I decided to start focusing on this with students because I am noticing that when students have to do research, they go straight to Google or Wikipedia, print the information out or cut and paste straight into their documents. They have so little concept of how to find reliable or authentic information and even knowing how to properly cite sources and avoid plaigarism is sadly lacking. Along with these lessons, I am simultaneously teaching the use of state and district online databases, but students still need to know how to evaluate the information they find through those mediums as well. Students always want to take the easy way out, but I have told them that professors will laugh in their face someday if they cite Wikipedia as a source for their research! It does take a lot of critical thinking to evaluate these sites, but these are exactly the types of thinking skills that will benefit students in other areas as well.
Just a few notes on the other activities this week....I'm having trouble with my computer when I attempt to follow a blog. After I sign in and press the "follow" button on the blog, my computer goes crazy and starts opening anywhere from 50-60 windows faster than I can click them closed! Very strange. I am going to have to try to use another computer to see if I have the same problem. Therefore, I haven't managed to follow the whole class yet, but I will continue to work on it. I already had a personal blog as well as two blogs for my school library on Google, so I want to organize my Google Reader to keep the updates from the ETEC 524 blogs separate from the personal blogs I follow. I haven't figured out how to do that yet, but I will play with it this week.
As for Delicious, I was introduced to that in another course and to be honest, I wasn't a fan of it then, and I am not a fan of it now. Honestly, too many bookmarks in one place gets overwhelming to me. I've never been big on bookmarking anyway, although I know this is something that can help keep one organized, it just hasn't come naturally for me. I will try to use Delicious more to see more of the advantages, but so far, I'm not really fond of it.
Thanks for a good week!
Rachel
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