Reflective Post

    When I signed up for this course I had no idea what to expect; al I knew was it had to do with technology and teaching. Now looking back I was actually very surprised with all the work we had to do with technology and websites and using web tools for our blogs. In the syllabus one of the learning outcomes was "The students will develop an Internet-based project that uses technology as both a medium and a goal of K-12 instruction." One of my favorite assignments that we had to do was the collaborative lesson plan. Although it was difficult for everyone to be in touch with one another, one of my group-mates came through and we worked well together and got along well.

    I really enjoyed this course when it came to making things for the blogs, but some of the websites were really slow and didn't work well, an finding websites on our own is hard. I really had fun making the bitstrips and the flyer. I think it's a good idea for people to take this class it's not difficult it's just time consuming. I liked doing these little activities with my blogs because it helped me get my creative juices flowing.

    This course is helpful for those of us that are going to be teachers in the near future because it helped with learning how to make a lesson plan, and websites that can be used for teaching students and making comics for a lesson in a classroom were discovered. This course really gave me an understanding of how technology has really taken over in the classrooms these days.

    Another topic I felt passionate about was the bullying and cyberbullying. I've been a victim and so have many of my friends. As a future teacher I hope students can come to me when they feel that they are being bullied. I will not tolerate it whatsoever. It's horrible and a lot of the outcomes are scary.

Overall as I said many times I really enjoyed this course; it was fun and very different from what I am used to, and it got me out of my comfort zone when I was discovering something new.

Resources:

B. (n.d.). Bitstrips Home. Retrieved May 02, 2016, from http://bitstrips.com/

July 20 event, No Bully Zone, is community effort to stop bullying. (2013). Retrieved May 02, 2016, from http://social.cummins.com/july-20-event-no-bully-zone-is-community-effort-to-stop-bullying/

Lindstrom, A. (2015). Educational Technology in the Classroom. Retrieved May 02, 2016, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K9kdIBlM424

Digital Blog #F

The first concept I will discuss is A Digital Inequality Perspective. I knew that having technology was never an equal thing because not everyone has the money to afford technology in homes. I had a friend first hand that didn't have a computer at home so she had to go to the library to do her homework. I think the government should focus more on what students need rather than equipment for war and things that wont better the future for those who actually are the future. I don't find this concept confusing in any way mostly because I knew someone who had to deal with this inequality. It's just sad that there are kids who have to work extra hard to not fall behind.

The second concept I will discuss is Cooperative Learning and Groupwork. Everyone who has been in school has been put into or has participated in a group work activity. It helps build responsibility and sportsmanship. Groupwork can sometimes be horrible because there's always that one person that becomes the leader and everyone piles everything on that person. Groupwork can be stressful, or it can be a ton of fun. I just want to know if there is a way for a group to actually work equally and put in the same effort as everyone else. Group over the internet is actually very difficult speaking from experience. Sometimes people don't respond to your messages that have to do with the assignment. I think people should be put in groups according to their personality.

The last concept I will discuss is Integrating iPads and Other Tablet Computers. I know that many schools are providing students with iPads or other tablet devices. FSW Collegiate High School hands out iPads to sophomores and the Lee County schools started giving out Google Chromebooks to students last year. Teachers can give students assignments online and the students can use their devices in class to complete these assignments. I think this is actually an amazing idea but also I think teachers should have students physically write notes down rather than type them because anyone can type without thinking, but writing uses a little more thinking. I also believe this is good because not every student can afford a computer at home so for them to be provided with a tablet device can help them and prevent them from falling behind.

Resources:

Bencosme, K. (2016, April 24). Chapt 12. Retrieved April 24, 2016, from http://worditout.com/word-cloud/1598476

Maloy, Robert, Verock-O’Loughlin,Ruth-Ellen, Edwards, Sharon A., and Woolf, Beverly Park (2013). Transforming Learning with New Technologies. 2nd Edition. Boston, MA: Pearson Education, Inc.

T. (2010). Problem Solving Groupwork. Retrieved April 24, 2016, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NKbXn99tD3Q

What is Cooperative Learning? (n.d.). Retrieved April 24, 2016, from http://serc.carleton.edu/introgeo/cooperative/whatis.html

Digital Blog Post #E

    The first concept I will discuss is Learning Assessments (Knowing What Students Have Learned). I've had several classes where we would take pre-tests and then take the same test again after the lesson to see what we learned. Teachers would also summarize what was taught and like not complete the sentences and we (us students) would have to fill in the blank of their (the teacher) sentences. I believe this is a good idea in terms that it helps teachers and students know what the student might be having trouble with. The thing about pre-tests and post-tests is that there are students that no matter how much they study or how much they know they're not good test takers. Bad test takers won't help anyone know what is being learned or not learned.

    The second concept I am going to discuss is Multimedia Technologies In Schools Today. My generation grew up using multimedia technologies in the classrooms. Teachers used PowerPoint presentations, discs with videos that went with the lessons, etc. Today technology has advanced so much and it's only been two years since I graduated high school. There are so many multimedia technologies out there to help teacher in classrooms. I want to teach first grade therefore, multimedia technologies would be a big help on how to capture the attention of the youngins in my class. The only thing about multimedia technologies that I have an issue with is that teacher may use them a lot more than they should and wont come up with their own ideas to help their students learn.


    The final concept I will discuss is Democratic Schools and Classrooms. I never attended a democratic school and only a fraction of the classes I have ever been in were democratic. Mostly the teachers that were more laid back and not as strict let students. Democratic schools and classrooms are a good idea if I'm being honest. I believe teachers and students should work together to decide what is best for the students and the school. As a teacher I will do my share of letting students vote on what learning activity they wish to practice. The only problem with this is that teachers may feel like they can ignore the students because they are children and not adults. I think that's wrong, but not all teacher value the opinions of their students.

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Resources:

http://democraticeducation.org/index.php/library/resource/bringing_democratic_education_to_your_classroom_and_school/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t4zrgOLNC58

Maloy, Robert, Verock-O’Loughlin,Ruth-Ellen, Edwards, Sharon A., and Woolf, Beverly Park (2013). Transforming Learning with New Technologies. 2nd Edition. Boston, MA: Pearson Education, Inc.

Digital Blog #D

    The first concepts I am going to discuss are synchronous and asynchronous communications. I actually didn't know what these were. I've never heard of these terms to describe the forms of communication technology before. Most people tend to use synchronous communication (texting and phone calling) because it is faster and more direct, but in some cases asynchronous communication is used. Asynchronous communication takes longer to wait for a reply because this form of communication is practiced through the use of emails, discussions, or blogs. I feel that information is probably usually passed synchronously because it gets around a lot quicker that way. As a teacher I know that I will be using both of these forms of communication technology by phone calling parents, emailing them, and by passing out grades.

    The second concept I will discuss is teaching beyond the school day. I have had to go online onto my teachers' blogs for my classes to check what was for homework, links for what my teachers wanted us to learn, and what was to be expected in the upcoming week at school. School is only about six hours long when you're not in college and even in college classes are about twice a week for about an hour and a half. There's literally not enough time to teach everything which is why electronic communications can really come in handy. As a future first grade or kindergarten teacher teaching beyond the school day will mostly be for parents to access to work with the children.

    The last concept I wish to discuss is engaging students. I know that students get easily bored if they are not engaged in some sort of activity. I know that teachers can give students website that they can use as an engaging activity that connects to the given lesson. I believe teachers and students all benefit when students are actively engaged in the class. As a future teacher engaging my students will be one of my biggest and most important mission. There are many ways students can be engaged whether its worksheets in the class or a website that is given to them, and I believe they are all effective in the way students want to learn.

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By kbencosme | View this Toon at ToonDoo | Create your own Toon
 
Resources::

Bencosme, K. (2016, March 06). Digital Blog Post #D by kbencosme - ToonDoo - World's fastest way to create cartoons! Retrieved March 06, 2016, from http://www.toondoo.com/View.toon?param=9815880

Maloy, Robert, Verock-O’Loughlin,Ruth-Ellen, Edwards, Sharon A., and Woolf, Beverly Park (2013). Transforming Learning with New Technologies. 2nd Edition. Boston, MA: Pearson Education, Inc.

Digital Blog #C

The first concepts I will be discussing are cheating and plagiarism. Cheating is a topic that has been discussed with students since I can remember. Cheating has always been around; back then it was passing notes, writing the answers on your hand, signaling, and so many different methods. Today people use technology to cheat. Sending pictures of a test with the answers to someone who hasn't taken it yet, using the internet to look up ways to cheat without getting caught, texting each other the answers. I know that some ways to keep students from cheating are to make them put their belongings up in front of the class, to have all items except the test and a pencil on the floor, and to give out different versions of the test. Plagiarism is also another topic brought up to our understanding that it is not okay to take someone else's work and take credit for it. It has gotten easier to detect plagiarism, but it is hard to tell whether or not someone is cheating at home on an online course. Some teachers make you take exams on campus where the test takers can be monitored, but not everyone does so. My question is, how do professors who don't make students take their tests at a testing center know if their students are cheating or not at home? Do they even care?

The second concepts I will be discussing are cyberbullying and bullying. I'm pretty sure the majority of people my age have experienced some sort of cyberbullying or bullying in general. But the people in the generations behind mine are facing it way worse than those of my generation. Cyberbullying and bullying are both very serious and dangerous actions. They have very horrible and negative impacts on the victims and a vast majority of victims consider or go through with suicide. I think anyone who cyberbullies or bullies anyone to the extent where the victim feels the need to end their life should be given some serious consequences. No one should feel like they need to end their life to get away from how other people make them feel about themselves. I want to know why cyberbullying and bullying in general are still going on everywhere. These things shouldn't be a problem for anyone these days. We've all seen the movies and the videos. We've all had friends who have gone through it and we've even gone through it ourselves. This needs to end.

The last and final concept I will be discussing is digital games for learning. There are so many websites out there that have educational games for students to play to learn things such as math, science, reading, etc. We've all played these games at some point in our lives. I know that these games can be helpful to students especially the math ones. I believe all lessons being taught in schools should have a game so that students continue to learn while they are having fun. I just wonder why digital games are not actually enforced in the lesson plans of teachers. I think these games are great ideas.

Resources:

Bencosme, Kyanna. "Blog Post #C By: Kbencosme." Blog Post C. 21 Feb. 2016. Web. 21 Feb. 2016. <http://flipquiz.me/u/kbencosme/blog-post-c>.

Maloy, Robert, Verock-O’Loughlin,Ruth-Ellen, Edwards, Sharon A., and Woolf, Beverly Park (2013). Transforming Learning with New Technologies. 2nd Edition. Boston, MA: Pearson Education, Inc.

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Digital Blog #B

I strongly believe school should be a place everyone enjoys. When students get older school suddenly becomes less fun. Teachers don’t try as hard to make sure you enjoy it. The first concept I wish to discuss is how student engagement in the U.S. is a very big problem. In the statistics found by the Indiana University on their HSSSE survey, two-thirds of high school students reported to feeling bored in class every day. I honestly don’t blame them. In middle school I could never imagine myself falling asleep in class. I don’t blame them; I was constantly bored in class every day in high school so I know the feeling very well. Also students drop out of classes because they lack in engagement and stimulation for the students to want to stay. I have to admit I did fall asleep once in a blue moon in my classes because of the boredom. It’s also said that the lessons that included the use of technology was satisfying for the students, and it’s true I also enjoyed using the computer or smart board in class because it got us up and doing something other than listen to the teacher lecture. I think teachers should still try hard to make their class a bit upbeat and fun for the students even if the students are not in elementary anymore. No one likes a boring class, am I right?

The second concept I will discuss is the barrier to technology which is the lack of access to it. In the textbook I read that even though schools have internet access the ratio of students to computers is 1:3 and even with that ratio schools still have less technology than what is normal. I know there are schools across the U.S. that cannot afford computers for all students but thankfully I went to schools that had enough computers around for everyone and now students are given Chromebooks that they can take home. I believe that all parents should try harder to help raise money as best as they can to help the schools around them for their own children’s education and for the education of all the other children. Children are the future, and they should all have the privilege to go to schools with technology and computers for everyone. I wonder how much it would cost for this and I wonder why the people in the government haven’t made this one of their priorities.

The third and final concepts I want to discuss are the teaching philosophies. I know that there are two different types of teaching philosophies and the one I agree most with and believe in the most is the student-centered teaching. This concept is very important for me because I wish to be a teacher and I want my classroom to be student centered because I believe a teacher should be someone who engages in conversations with the students and encourages them to learn by exploring and doing things hands-on. I think all students should have a say in how they want to learn something and that not all teachers know what is best for the learning of their students. I think teachers should get to know their students and know their interests that way the students are involved in the planning of what they are going to learn. I wonder why some people believe in strictly teacher-centered teaching. I mean, didn’t they go through a time in school when they didn’t like how something was being taught?

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Resources:
Kahoot! | Play this quiz now! (2016, February 07). Retrieved February 12, 2016, from https://play.kahoot.it/#/k/254c48ec-9ae1-4ab6-ade5-3cfb3063ca76 Maloy, Robert, Verock-O’Loughlin,Ruth-Ellen, Edwards, Sharon A., and Woolf, Beverly Park (2013). Transforming Learning with New Technologies. 2nd Edition. Boston, MA: Pearson Education, Inc.

Digital Post #A

Everyone can agree that technology has taken a great toll in the lives of young children today. The first concept I want to reflect on is Today's Students and Technology: The iGeneration of Technology Users. As a teacher, having students who depend on technology and don't know how to live without technology will be a little tricky. Most kids just stare at a screen for the majority of their day and don't really know how to not be on their little devices. Growing up I watched a lot of tv, but I wasn't very big on video games and using the internet. I mostly played with my Ariel Barbie doll. In school I obviously wasn't provided with a chrome book to take home to do my homework like most kids are given today. I believe technology is beautiful and can really help children learn, but I also feel students should interact more with one another rather than stare into the screen of an electronic device. As I teacher I plan to have my students use their technological devices for learning purposes, but I also want them to know how to go about in school without relying on the internet such as doing more crafts in the class.

The second concept I'm going to reflect on is Technology And The Work Of A Teacher: Technology-Based Learning Environment. The internet has made teaching outside the classroom real. When I was growing up we had computers at school and I had a computer at home. Teachers would give us websites to log onto to practice to the FCAT, but it wasn't until high school that teachers created blogs where students were able to check what was for homework and communicate with their teachers. Vanderbilt University has a Teaching Guide article on teaching outside the classrooms and how it is easier for students who have smartphones to go online and check for assignments. I'm going to be a kindergarten teacher and if it comes down to It I will use the internet to communicate with the parents of my students so they can be aware of what is going on in class and what I want the students to be working on at home, so that parents are involved in the learning of their children.

The third concept I will reflect on is Teaching 21st Century Learners with 21st Century Technologies: Strategies for Learning New Technologies. I want to reflect on this concept because when smart boards were introduced to schools, many teachers had to take a class on how to learn how to use them. By watching teachers, students caught on with the use of the smart boards and started teaching other teachers how to use them. Learning how to use this new must-have technology was very important back then and with technology's rapid increase it will be even more important when I become a teacher to learn how to use the must-have technologies to enable me to better teach my students. I feel very excited to learn about new technologies when I become a teacher because I remember what it was like to have a teacher not know what she was doing when using the smart boards and it held up the class.

In conclusion, I have to say that technology really is moving fast and not slowing down for anyone. It's been quite an immense progress even for someone who kind of grew up with the iGeneration. Teaching outside the classroom and getting parents involved is one thing I will for sure use to make sure all my students are successful. Although still have trouble learning my way around the internet and using devices, I'm more than willing and excited to see how technology advances in the next few years when I get closer to becoming a teacher.

Resources:

Claiborne, L., Morrell, J., Brandy, J., & Bruff, D. (n.d.). Center for Teaching. Retrieved January 24, 2016, from https://cft.vanderbilt.edu/guides-sub-pages/teaching-outside-the-classroom/

Maloy, R., O'Loughlin, R., Edwards, S., & Woolf, B. (2013). Transforming Learning with New Technologies. 2nd Edition. Boston, MA: Pearson Education Inc.
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NmYSFTVHC1k