I have learned alot during this instructional techonlogies class. The thing i enjoyed the most though was the presentation on the uses of the smartboard. I had no idea the extent the smartboard could be used to create lessons for student. The interactivity was just amazing. Many times smartboards are used simply to show powerpoint slides in classrooms. This I found out was a waste of a lot of good technology.
I really want a smart board in my classroom when I become a teacher because I want to use the interactive qualities to make sure my students are engadged with the lesson and are learning effectivly. I know that if there had been smartboards in my classrooms as a student and the teachers had used them to their full potential I wouldn't have disliked school as much as I did. I will remedy this in my own classroom.
Thursday, May 5, 2011
Robots and computers and tv's, Oh my!
The world of technology is the fastest growing area of our lives(except for the population). It seems like every time I get a new computer for example it is obsolete in a year or two. The rate at which technology is growing while annoying at times can also be exciting. If we have this much technology now that we can use in the class room just think of what we could be able to use in the classroom in a few years.
Some of the most usefull things for teaching are technologically based. Smartboards are becoming more prevelent in class rooms allowing more student involvement with the lessons. Computers allow the teacher to show video clips to illustrate what they are teaching. Teachers can save their curriculum electronically from year to year saving lots of space in the classroom. Technology is so usefull to teaching and growing so fast that it may be hard to imagine what it will be like in even just a few short years.
Some of the most usefull things for teaching are technologically based. Smartboards are becoming more prevelent in class rooms allowing more student involvement with the lessons. Computers allow the teacher to show video clips to illustrate what they are teaching. Teachers can save their curriculum electronically from year to year saving lots of space in the classroom. Technology is so usefull to teaching and growing so fast that it may be hard to imagine what it will be like in even just a few short years.
P's and Q's of the world wide web
Lets say your at a fancy dinner party. Your going to act differently in this public venue then you would act when you are home alone. This is because there are certain ways that you are supposed to act to be polite to other people. This attempt to be polite is expected by everyone around you as well. Sadly this is not the case in another public venue called the internet.
When people are online they often are far more abrasive then they would be in a physical environment. They are often less likely to show respect to others and hardly ever care what another person thinks. This doesn't mean that you have to be this way online. In fact proper etiquette online is essential for teachers. As I have stated in previous posts proper online etiquette is essential to any teacher that wants to keep his or her job for any length of time.
When people are online they often are far more abrasive then they would be in a physical environment. They are often less likely to show respect to others and hardly ever care what another person thinks. This doesn't mean that you have to be this way online. In fact proper etiquette online is essential for teachers. As I have stated in previous posts proper online etiquette is essential to any teacher that wants to keep his or her job for any length of time.
Your just a bully
Your just a big bully! One kid yells at another after he is pushed down. This kind of activity is not uncommon at schools around the world. People are constantly trying to prevent this type of activity but with every new class the same lessons have to be taught all over again. The problem now is that bullying isn't just kids beating eachother up on the playground. With the influx of all the new technology kids can bully eachother with out lifting a finger. Well they have to lift fingers to text but thats it.
This type of bullying is becoming more and more popular. It is also almost impossible to police. Without children making an effort to show teachers what is going on entire fights and feuds can be instigated and continued without any knowledge of it getting to the teachers. We as teachers need to be on top of this whenever possible due to the difficulty of policing it. Cyber bullying is a real and present danger to children everywhere.
This type of bullying is becoming more and more popular. It is also almost impossible to police. Without children making an effort to show teachers what is going on entire fights and feuds can be instigated and continued without any knowledge of it getting to the teachers. We as teachers need to be on top of this whenever possible due to the difficulty of policing it. Cyber bullying is a real and present danger to children everywhere.
Cheaters!
What is the cardinal sin of students in every grade all across the world. Cheating. Or at least that is what the teachers would like the students to think. Unfortunately many students do not feel the same way about being honest on their school work. Teachers are constantly trying to prevent students from copying other or stealing tests in higher grades. Granted not all students are that way but it never surprises me to hear a story of a student cheating on an assignment ot test.
How is a teacher to prevent this kind of activity in his or her classroom? Teach the students the value of Academic honesty. Show them why it is important. If the students can figure that out they will hold themselves to a higher standard and police themselves better than any teacher ever could. The trick is to get the students to realize the importance of academic honesty for themselves.
How is a teacher to prevent this kind of activity in his or her classroom? Teach the students the value of Academic honesty. Show them why it is important. If the students can figure that out they will hold themselves to a higher standard and police themselves better than any teacher ever could. The trick is to get the students to realize the importance of academic honesty for themselves.
Online citizenship for teachers
In my last post I talked about digital citizenship for everyone. In this post I want to talk specifically about digital citizenship for teachers. Many schools have policies about what a teacher can and cannot do online. Some say a teacher cannot friend his or her students on facebook. Some say a teacher cannot have a facebook account at all. While these measures may be unnescesary in some cases they are implimented for a reason.
Teachers are much more suceptable to loosing their job for some comment on an internet chat room than a kid would be suceptable to being kicked out of school. Teachers are held to a higher standard and should be. We are supposed to be professionals and are supposed to help the students not cut them down. There are many examples of teachers who have lost their jobs due to a misguided comment. If you are a teacher don't do this.
Teachers are much more suceptable to loosing their job for some comment on an internet chat room than a kid would be suceptable to being kicked out of school. Teachers are held to a higher standard and should be. We are supposed to be professionals and are supposed to help the students not cut them down. There are many examples of teachers who have lost their jobs due to a misguided comment. If you are a teacher don't do this.
I'm so much cooler online
I'm sure all of you have been to someform of an internet chat room or something fo the kind. I mean facebook even has a chatting aplication on it. The problem with being online is that you can make sure that no one knows who you are or what you are like. This means that you can pretend to be a completely different person online. I for example could pretend that I am a 6 foot 4 body builder and anyone who hasn't met me wouldn't know if I was telling the truth or not.
This example is fairly harmless except my ego when someone finds out the truth. But the reality is that there are people out there who use this anonymity for worse reasons than what I just said. People tend to become bolder online then they would be if they were standing face to face with someone. Insults can be given without reprocussions from the person recieving them due to the fact that they don't know who is saying it. This can destroy peoples lives and in some cases it has. We as christians should refrain from this type of activity because God calls us to be better than this. Be good online citizens.
This example is fairly harmless except my ego when someone finds out the truth. But the reality is that there are people out there who use this anonymity for worse reasons than what I just said. People tend to become bolder online then they would be if they were standing face to face with someone. Insults can be given without reprocussions from the person recieving them due to the fact that they don't know who is saying it. This can destroy peoples lives and in some cases it has. We as christians should refrain from this type of activity because God calls us to be better than this. Be good online citizens.
AHHH i got a virus
Ok i didn't get a virus on my computer but it is easy to get them if you go to the wrong site on the web. You always have to be carefull of this. This is just one of the reasons why you should always check the valididty of the site you are going to. There are lots of other reasons why you should check the validity of your sources as well.
One other reason is that the information on the site you visit could be false. One such site is the site for dehydrated water. http://www.buydehydratedwater.com/
This is an awesome site that tells about all the benefits of dehydrated water. Unfortunately dehydrated water does not exist. Don't be fooled by what you find on the internet.
One other reason is that the information on the site you visit could be false. One such site is the site for dehydrated water. http://www.buydehydratedwater.com/
This is an awesome site that tells about all the benefits of dehydrated water. Unfortunately dehydrated water does not exist. Don't be fooled by what you find on the internet.
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