How Much Technology?

The times are changing and will continue changing. The world is becoming more technologically advanced. Some classrooms are joining in this change and some aren’t. The articles talk about the benefits to educating students through digital gaming and social networking and argues that in the future, students will be better equipped in the work world where these technologies are used often. The article mentions that if we don’t incorporate these technologies, it might be harder for them in the future when they enter the work world.

I see the advantages and the reasons for incorporating all of these different technologies. Kids are drawn to the computer. I see it in my classroom – they eat up everything they learn when they have Technology as a special. What I am having a hard time wrapping myself around right now is how to incorporate all these technologies and when is the best time? Is it all the time or just some of the time? At school I feel like there’s never enough time for everything and we don’t have that much technology in our classroom. So what’s the most appropriate addition and what age to we begin to incorporate it more?

The last thought I have for right now is in regards from working and learning from your peers. Every so often, our class has discussions about what it means to work in a group or with a partner. The article talks about how children are drawn into the technology and teach each other about it, often becoming each other’s best tech teachers. This idea makes me think about how my student’s would interact differently with partners at a computer than they would in person. It may be an interesting thing to try!

Instant Gratification.. Good thing or not so good thing.. (or does it depend)

When I was reading the article on "using the technology of today" I was struck by Patricia Marks Greenfield's argument that habitual playing of video games results in the development of a new brand cognitive abilities that translate into the key skills for today's tech savvy generation:
• The ability to process information very quickly;
• The ability to determine what is and is not of relevance to them;
• The ability to process information in parallel, at the same time and from a range of different sources;
• Familiarity with exploring information in a non-linear fashion;
• A tendency to access information in the first instance through imagery and then use text to clarify, expand,
and explore;
• A relaxed approach to ‘play,’—the capacity to experiment with one’s surroundings as a form of problem solving

For the past year or so I have really been rethinking my position on technology, and trying to come to terms with the way the world is heading. I can't help but feel like an old woman when I think about how stubborn I am about changing and learning new things, but its so hard to give up ideals I have held onto since I was a little girl!
When I was little I had dreams of becoming a teacher. I couldn't wait to write on a chalk board, I loved the way the chalk felt in my hands, and the way it sounded when I wrote on my little Playskool Chalkboard Easel I had. I would sit down with a red pen and practice making stars and smiley faces on my students (teddy bears) papers. That little girl never imagined that when she would someday be old enough to be a real teacher, chalk boards would barely exist in classrooms anymore; except possibly in rural areas or third world countries. There is just something inside me that can't let go to ideas about what "being a teacher means."
I have similarly strong ideas about the future of reading and books as well! When I saw this commercial that starts out with the words "... once upon a time there were books.."


I freaked out! What do you MEAN once upon a time?! I grew up treasuring books, and still do as an adult and the thought of them going the way of records and typewriters really scares me!

Coincidentally today I had a conversation with my Assistant Teacher about how education and children have changed so much in the past few years. Like Patricia Marks Greenfield says, children of today can process information very quickly, which also means that they expect a lot of input and stimulation in most cases. I see it in my kids at work, they really don't know how to play as well as the generations before them did. They prefer things that give them instant gratification and really need to be "entertained", they have a harder time self regulating and using their imaginations (in my own humble opinion). Maybe all this is a good thing? I don't know, but I am really curious to see what kind of citizens these kids are going to grow up to be. What kinds of things will they value? Will they be able to appreciate the simple things in life? Or will everything need to "do" something, and have bells and whistles and fancy shmancy attachments.

I guess I am just old fashioned.

Sorry for the length, I get very passionate about this subject!

Books Have Their Benefits and so Does Technology

There is nothing I enjoy more than the smell of books and the comfort of something concrete in my hands. However, in trying to evolve as a teacher I am working more and more to incorporate technology into student learning and explorations. As it is stated in the article, "Using the Technology of Today, In the Classroom Today," "Games, simulations, and social networking are already permeating the workplace as productivity and development tools—we may be doing our students a large disservice by not integrating these tools into their education" (p.10). I am aware a number of teachers (at work) perceive technology as invasive, and do not include technology in their instruction. In doing so, they are overlooking the changing society that requires a certain level of computer literacy. Our student population consists of students who are language disabled and require a great deal of repetition before they are able to remember a series of steps, which may include the steps to saving or opening a document. Our students need to be able to improve their skills on the computer and therefore must be provided with increased time to work on the computer as a way to enhance their learning experiences. Not only would they be able to improve sequential ordering skills, but they may find themselves more engaged in learning that utilizes games and other interactive activities. Increased time spent on the computer or using technological resources would benefit our students in their current education, future careers, and social interactions.

Less is More - short writing with social media tools

In the Global Awareness presentation this week, the group mentioned a Facebook project that links US schoolchildren with their Japanese counterparts. Using social media tools can be an immediate and easy way to make a connection to a classroom in another country -- or even just down the street in NYC!

But these tools require concise writing skills. Here are two articles that discuss the benefits of writing less to say more, with some ideas about how to structure that for your students.

• Less Is More: Using Social Media to Inspire Concise Writing
• Taking More Time to Write Less

- Jessica Millstone

No New Phenomena and Always On

I think this cartoon plays a parody on the “always on” phenomenon…

Although individuals commonly see technology being brought into the classroom as a new phenomena it is clearly not. Teachers have been finding ways to incorporate changing times and tools in the classroom for decades now. No longer do teachers use graphite and paper, teachers have been using calculators, graphing calculators, projectors, transparencies, and typewriters for a while now.

Since teachers often acclimate to changing technologies it is important that we discover all of the beneficial ways that technologies can be integrated into lessons. Technology is now a way of life for modern students. Individuals are often connected to multiple technologies at any given time, giving the idea that students are “always on”. Weather this means carrying a cell phone, laptop, ipad, receiving an email (you don’t even have to be engaging yourself in order to be accepting media), receiving social networking communications, exploring the Internet, and other ways of technological engagement, individuals are constantly connected to technology.

Weather individuals are hanging out, messing around, or geeking out, they are learning valuable lessons on technological communications. Not only does the media technologies, specifically the internet, allow individuals to pursue interest driven networks but also allows them to extend friendships and social relationships. Communities are now not only based on shared location but are now based on shared interest. By pursuing media that is of interest there is an unconscious, individualized-sought-out learning involved. This is invaluable for individuals.

Google Lit Trips

Reading about how Anne Brusca implemented Google Earth and technology into her classroom is just fascinating. Today students seem to be motivated and thus actively engaged in many technological activities that teachers do. However the one problem I see is that often teachers aren’t making sure that this implementation has a purpose. When Brusca set out to use a web quest for her lesson she mostly had a plan to discuss The Family Apart. However she accomplished so much more. Google Lit Review partnered with Google Earth allowed her to use an interdisciplinary curriculum in this ELA lesson. By using Google Earth, Brusca introduced Social Studies, geography, and technology all into one lesson. This is the type of technology based instruction that not only motivated and engages kids but helps to build comprehension with a firsthand basis for understanding. They were able to see the trail of the orphan train and make connections through visuals. This is what “got them to deeper learning” said Brusca. I know that personally as a student and many of my students in the past which be able to relate much more to a novel having seen a path or a map of where the events took place as Brusca created with the journey in The Family Apart.

Googling it...

Its curious to see how "Googling" or I will "Google" it has become an action, and a active part of our every day tasks. I think that tools like Google earth provide a real aspect to what students are studying. I had the chance to use Google Earth while teaching geography however, this tool has so much to offer. I really like the option to use Google for virtual tours, surely schools with limited materials benefit from this resource. I think that providing these resources as educational tools can really engage students of different learning styles as it addresses many of the multiple intelligences.

Google earth trips

I recently taught an extensive unit on various animal habitats. I did use a lot of video from Discovery Streaming. I also spent hours scouring the web for interactive smartboard games. My searches were definitely fruitful - what I ended up with were many different approaches to exploring the different habitats - I am currently compiling an electronic resource list. What i found most effective were the virtual tours that paired photographs/videos of the habitats and interactive activities or games. Many of these resources also had sound, which really brought my students into these different worlds. My regret now - Why didn't I think to use Google Earth?! Google trips make so much sense and would be perfect paired with a science unit like this one.

Google Earth Rocks! + Skype

Bob Coulter's "What's It Like Where you Live?" article made me think back to my student's Community Building elective class, where one of the activity was that they had to memorize their address and phone number by heart. At the next meeting, each student stood up and said his/her address. The teacher typed the address into Google Earth, and students were able to see if the address that they gave was accurate with their actual address. There were many Oohhs and Ahhhs on their faces as they see their apartment building or townhouse pop on the screen with the address that they gave. We tied this activity into Social Studies unit, going on community walks and then mapping out our routes via Google Earth and Map.

Another form of global interactive learning that I've been able to conduct with my students are Skype conferences with people from around the world. Earlier this year on our Asia Unit, my friend was able to Skype to us from Thailand. Even though she couldn't show us the temples or rice fields or market of Nan, she was able to talk to us about her experience there. My students did not stop talking about that Skype conference for weeks! The experience has made me think a lot about distance and place, and how technology can easily help bring that global experience into the classroom.

A Real World Connection

After reading the article, "What's It Like Where You Live?" I realized how it impotant it is to combine that real world experience with the classroom work. This is not a novel idea, but rather one that seems obvious. You teach a lesson, study a subject; then do some work in class and some real world examples. However, the point that I found interesting about this article was that they suggested that the students should have the real world experience BEFORE going back to the classroom to study the topic in other forms, such as technology! I know many teachers and schools who stress that the real world exprience should come as an extension to something learned in the classroom. I find that the hands on exprience that the students in this article had prior to the classroom implentation, gave them the foundation to understand what was being asked of them, to understand the virtual fieldtrips and the multimedia projects. Since they explored their topic of biomes prior to those projects, they had the background knowledge to make the use of media a success. In terms of the types of media used, I found it very extensive. The class did not stop at simply looking at websites, but expanded it beyond to include videos, virtual biodomes, etc. I think this shows how far you can really take the technology component of the classroom!

Virtual field trips?! What an awesome idea!

Coming from a school that is field trip heavy, whenever the opportunity occurs, we take our students to explore different parts of Manhattan to enrich their understanding and learning of the world around them. But what happens when classrooms are studying about people and places far from New York City? How can that be brought to life for our students?

Coulter’s article made me think of a social studies unit that I did with my students last year on different life zones or biomes around the world. Coulter offers information on the Evergreen Project, which is an online tool that teaches about 12 different biomes around the world. While I was looking at that website, it was interesting to think about how this could have added to my classroom. The research might have been conducted in a more student-driven way where each group of students studying a different biome could pinpoint what exactly makes up that biome, including the plants and animals that live there.

To actually be able to see visually as if the class was on a field trip what life is like in another part of the world is such a powerful tool and could spark interest for the future. I’m looking forward to learning more about different tools from the groups presenting today!

Cell phone novels

I have been intrigued about alternative uses for cell phones ever since hearing poet and New Yorker reporter Dana Goodyear give a talk about Japanese cell phone novels. In this arguably new form of literature, authors (often young women) compose entire novels out of tiny cell phone texts. These texts are all sent to websites where they can be viewed publicly, and in fact some have been conventionally published and sold quite well. The nature of texts lends itself to episodic storytelling, and the visual aspects of texts becomes very important. For example, a lot of text with many capital letters evokes a different feeling than a text containing a singular word (such as "lonely"). This type of novel can start heated discussions - is it saving literacy or killing it - and it is related to the use of cell phones in education. (The subjects of the stories, incidentally, bring up interesting questions about the role of women in society, but that's another story). Ms. Goodyear wrote a very readable article about this for the New Yorker that I highly recommend: http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2008/12/22/081222fa_fact_goodyear. In addition, she is a co-founder of Figment, an online community for teen writers. It looks like it could also be appropriate for middle school: http://figment.com/.

Finally, after our discussion about copyright and the web, I wanted to bring to everyone's attention these resources about Joi Ito, founder of Creative Commons. In a speech at Japan Society in 2008, he gave a great, short rundown of the history of the internet and explained the six different types of creative commons licenses. The summary is here: http://www.japansociety.org/content.cfm/creative_commons_the_sharing_economy. From the same speech, here's a clip where he explains how Niconico douga (a site similar to youtube), got kids engaged in the government and critiquing politicians.

Google Lit Trips

I had never heard about or known of Google Lit Trips until reading this article. I can see this tool being very useful, especially in a classroom with children that may have learning disabilities. Many of my students have a hard time visualizing what it is they are reading, and using Google Lit Tools may help students connect with what they are reading. This tool may also help general ed students have a more interactive and different approach to learning and reading.

I decided to take a look at one of the books, Make Way for Ducklings, and I was amazed at how detailed and interactive the program was. It not only shows real pictures of the places, but it also has a set of questions that students can think about and answer as they explore the "online book." I can see how and why Brusca's students were enthused by Google Lit Tools. This tool is pretty amazing and can make reading and literature much more engaging, interactive, and fun for students and teachers.

Virtual Field Trips

I try to go on a decent amount of field trips with my students throughout the year, especially because we live in New York City and there are so many opportunities to enhance what students are learning with real life experiences in some of the many famous museums, buildings, and social systems that exist around the city. However, it can be difficult to find experiences that allow students to truly envision and enter into the mindset of a suburban or rural community. Many of my students have exclusively experienced urban living. When we read texts about children living on a farm, in the woods, even on a deserted island, my students really struggle to connect to the experiences the author is describing. It is as though they are reading about a completely alien landscape. I never thought of how useful it could be to allow students to take a virtual field trip or a Google Lit Trip before. This would be a perfect way to help students visually enter into the worlds of some of the texts they are reading. This, in turn, would increase their connection to the text and their levels of engagement.

Virtual Field Trips

I agree with Coulter when he says, “The key is for inquiry to drive the technology implementation and not vise versa.” I too think that first hand experience is an essential component of inquiry and only after these first hand experiences should technology be used to expand student knowledge. Last year, my 4^th grade class studied the Dominican Republic. They learned all about the daily life of the Dominican people through pictures and articles. At the end of this unit, we took a field trip to Washington Heights in order to explore Dominican Immigration to the United States. As I reflect on this unit of study, I realize how important student exploration was to their understanding of how Dominican Immigration impacted the Washington Heights area. I think about all the technology we could have used to help strengthen student understanding of life in the Dominican Republic. I wish I had known about virtual field trips at the time and I am excited to use them in the future.

Using your fingertips to discover the world

When students go on a field trip, they enter a “new classroom,” where their minds are unlocked, ideas become tangible, and curiosity is stirred. As I was growing up, I loved when my classmates and I went on excursions to see firsthand the artifacts and/or live objects that we had learned about in our textbooks. Now that I’m a teacher, I strive to find ways to make abstract components of a curriculum more concrete for my students. I want them to internalize the material, not just memorize it. As I read the articles regarding virtual field trips, I became amazed at the endless possibilities that technology can offer teachers! As Bob Coulter pointed out, children who live in urban or suburban areas may be unaware of a rural lifestyle, since they’ve never experienced it before. When I was student teaching last year, I actually had the opposite situation; I was teaching second grade children, who lived in a rural town of Pennsylvania, two stories which were located in NYC’s Chinatown and Italy. None of the students had traveled on an airplane before and many had not visited this area of Manhattan. By using the Internet, pictures of my study abroad trip to Florence, and the SMART board, I was able to supplement a first-hand experience by using technology as a guide. In turn, these tools provided my class with personal connections to the material so that they could actively participate in the stories and use this knowledge to question characters’ actions.

Even though there are many technological resources available in the education field, I agree with Lilian that Bob Coulter raised a valid point: “the key is for inquiry to drive the technology implementation and not vice versa.” Often, I discover a technological tool and think to myself, “that is fantastic! I would love it in my classroom.” Yet, it is important for me to first look over my curriculum and then decide which additional aides could enhance my students’ comprehension, provide text-to-world connections, and help break down the information in a way that is meaningful.

As I glanced through the comments section on the edutopia site, I came across a recommendation from another teacher, which I’d like to share with you. On www.stratalogica.com teachers can see clips of the features offered through the program and download a free 30-day trial. I’d recommend this since the packages offered for a five year license cost around $499-$899. However, the resources were incredible; you can see 3D buildings, reference maps, and age appropriate atlases that can enhance any virtual field trip. It is definitely worth checking out! I would have loved something like that during my student teaching semester!

Google Lit Trips

I found the article on Google Lit Trips to be extremely interesting. I had never heard of it before, but it seems like an incredible tool to use in the classroom. Students will become more engaged in their literature if they are able to use Google Lit Trips since they will have a way to more directly relate to the characters and places in the books they are reading. Instead of it being a book they have no relation to, students can actually get a sense of what the setting may have looked like if they are able to see a virtual tour of it. It opens up the learning possibilities for any give book, as well as keeps the students more interested and engaged. I think it also could be a great tool for students who learn better when information is presented to them in more than one way. A student who has trouble comprehending a book enough to create a picture in their own mind, can use Google Lit Trips to help them better understand the story.

Field Based Experiences

I think one of the biggest challenges in teaching is making sure the content connects to the students’ lives, community, city, state and world. We want students to make text-to-self and text-to-world connections but they are often not provided with the appropriate tools to be successful and to make these lasting connections. Making connections in all subjects is pivotal for the students’ overall understanding. After reading this week’s article, I find using technology (FlipShare and other cameras) on field trips will help students extend their thinking and make very important connections with the content. For this reason, I see how important it is to establish relationships with other schools in other states/countries. Students can share their findings with other students via video. Students can also go on virtual fieldtrips in order to enhance their understanding of a science/social studies unit. Coulter describes how first hand experiences are important part of inquiry. Incorporating technology such as Google Lit Trips will allow students to have those “field-based” experiences.

Learning by inquiry: a spring morning

Inquiry is a powerful term to develop significant learning in our student. It was one of the biggest issues that I had to discuss when I was studying in Chile and also here at Bank Street. Why is it important? Why our student should learn through this process?

                It was a spring morning in Chile and I was with my group of 3 and 4 years old. The theme to develop for the next two week was “the spring”. I explained them that something was happening in the nature because the spring was coming. I asked them what happen when the spring is coming. They knew a lot of information but at some point a group of kids just stop and got very busy looking into the floor. I did not pay attention because the rest of the class still had some ideas but after a while all the kids were looking the floor. What happened: they found a line of ants going to a hole.

                I was so concern trying to explain what spring meant that I never realized how many thing they would be able to learn if we had just taken a moment to look the ants.  Learning by inquiry is to let our student to discover the world. Learn by inquiry is to realize we do not need sophisticate material to explore the world. Learning by inquiry is to make an experience significant and unique.

                I never thought before that technologies can also help teachers to develop this process in students. Materials are a big part of learning by inquiry and tools as Google earth, for example, can help our student to discover the world. Student can make comparisons between neighborhoods; they can take a trip to Italy and discover how a street looks like in Rome. It is our job as teachers to discover different materials and different tools to develop this kind of learning. The question is what am I going to discover to engage my students in learning by inquiry?

http://beajaque.blogspot.com/2008/04/webquestuna-estrategia-de-aprendizaje.html

Bridging the Continental Divide Through Flip Share

Just this past week I saw the immense potential for using technology to build global awareness and develop connectedness between distinct cultures. Each Friday I lead a group of thirty fifth graders through some sort of activity, sometimes we read and discuss the reading, other times we watch movies and interpret the significance of certain lines and the cinematography. This week was a bit different. I had the opportunity to share videos with them of students in Nicaragua who were introducing themselves to initiate a combination video and written pen pal project. The students from Nicaragua shared stories about themselves and their families in both English and Spanish. When the information was communicated in Spanish, students from our class translated for their peers who are not bilingual. I feel that this video project is a significant and important element of the education of our students. Through these videos students are being exposed to different cultures, communicating through multiple media, and collaborating at a local and global scale. I am excited to see how this project develops over the course of the year and interested in pursuing a similar opportunity with my own students.

"Ghetto Text Messaging" affects on students' self-worth

While listening to the podcast about using cell phones in teaching, I was interested that the teacher was looking at students and what they could use as an educational tool. The podcast stated that 80% of his students had a phone. There is an "assumption that they will not have these tools" but 20% actually do not. Therefore, I think about the 20% who do not. He asked the students how to address this problem and they came up with "ghetto text messaging." However, I wonder how that makes the students who have to participate in "ghetto text messaging" feel. I wonder about the repercussions of this. For example, do these students feel bad about themselves because they do not have the technology to participate with their classmates because of financial reasons? Do they go home and try to pressure their families into buying them cell phones because they "need" them to participate in their classes? These questions make me question cell phones in classroom. Yes, I can see the advantages for the 80% of the class, but the teacher needs to see the disadvantages it may have on the other 20% first of all not even having a cell phone to participate with, but also not being able to learn from this technology like the rest of the class is able to.

I checked out his website and was intrigued by all the research that has been done about cellular education. One things I found is that motivation = success. This is true in no matter what you are teaching. If students are motivated to learn, there will be success. Increased participation is also another wonderful outcome of using cell phones in the classroom. Because they are using a tool they are familiar with, students will be more likely to participate using this tool. Lastly, the concept of this technology being free is wonderful. First year and veteran teachers alike love free resources because money for tools usually comes from their own pockets.

Teacher's Website

Google Earth and Social Studies

This weeks readings about integrating technology as a way to support virtual field trips was really exciting to hear about. Being that I teach high school students, I’ve been able to see how much knowledge older children lack when it comes to basic map skills. My students aren’t aware of the relationship between where they live and how the rest of the world is set up. I feel like using tools such as Google Earth, would make subjects like Global Studies more meaningful to them. Currently, they are able to remember most events, dates and the significance of these events in history, but when teaching them about conquerors or wars over land, this technology could help students see the importance of land space, and being located near water during these periods in time.

Virtual Tours & Cell phone use

Perhaps my favorite quote from Coulter's article is when he argues, "The key is for inquiry to drive the technology implementation and not vice versa, despite pressures to integrate technology into the classroom." I find it incredible that in our generation today, we are able to take virtual tours to broaden our students' horizons build on their interest. Using technology in this way is a great way to help our visual learners, who may not understand something simply through reading but through viewing videos or maps on the internet. I know that in my first grade classroom, as soon as I turn on the computer, the children get so excited to see what's in store for them! Because first grade studies community, I see myself using virtual tours in the way where they can see their own community through a site such as Google Map. At the same time, we can pick another community in another part of the world and compare ours with theirs without ever having to actually go there.

As for cell phones, I enjoyed the podcast and found it interesting. However, it is difficult for me to believe that cell phones would be a great use of technology in the classroom. I think everything else has a beautiful way of being implemented into a curriculum. Cell phones, however, I must argue is a stretch. Perhaps it is because I teach a very low-income area, or maybe it is because I am in early childhood. I am open to the idea for older students but if there are other options, I think other tools would be much more useful to use.

Tools to further understanding

Technology is a wonderful way to further lesson plans with hands on applications that are not possible without the medium. For example, if students from the city are unable to visit farmlands to study the agriculture, they can do a virtual tour of the lands. With technology, lessons learned in school are supplemented by hands on experience. These virtual field-trips are a safe effective way to further understanding. I tend to seek this type of information myself. Generally if I am interested in a topic or I need further guidance on material learned in a classroom setting I would seek virtual media to assist my understandings.

I also use my cell phone as a tool for learning. Generally if I need to quickly look something up like a definition of a word or location on a map I will just type it in to my phones web browser to locate information. I also use my phone for spell check often. Outside of the classroom I use my phone to gather other sorts of information, I have used resources like cha cha before but I text google A LOT! It is an easy way to obtain a phone number and address of a location. I also tend to use my note pad function to write to-do lists, calculator, and specific apps to do certain functions. The cell phone can be a very useful tool to employ in the classroom and as the author of the podcast claims they are generally available tools.

Inquiry and Inspiration

The podcast and articles intrigued me in two very different ways. The podcast made me question what appropriate use of technology is, while the two articles inspired me to use technology as a way to connect various academic areas to student's daily lives.

Specifically, I felt that the podcast brought up a number of classroom management issues. One teacher (Katie?) mentioned that she was so happy if a student called in that she automatically gave them a passing grade. When the use of technology as assessment is not used to enhance student thought and growth I don't believe it is serving a purpose. However, Katie made a valuable point. Rather than using the phone as a final assessment tool, it could be used as a tool for preparation. Being able to record a future presentation and constructively criticize it is an excellent way to improve public speaking and student confidence. The podcast ultimately lead me to believe that the use of cell phones as a learning tool takes a great amount of scaffolding, and may not always be an appropriate tool for learning.

The articles have truly motivated me to think of how I can integrate science into my math class and utilize the Internet as a tool for exploration. Google Lit Trip is also something I could use in my language arts class to further engage learning. Although the school requires teacher directed learning, this would be an appropriate avenue to provide students the structure of teacher directed instruction, but permit students the freedom to explore at their own pace and focus on what interests them.

Digital Storytelling -

I feel as if I have been using digital story telling since I first discovered sights like “Edheads.org”. Even prior to having a Smart board I would set my students up on a learning center in my classroom or in a computer lab on either of these sites, and allow them to follow a lesson and activity. I feel that “Edheads.org” followed the element of digital story telling that the article referred to as economy. Economy being “to simply put, using just enough content to tell the story without overloading the viewer with too much information. “ Edheads always starts their activities or lessons with a brief but extremely concise overview or story about the topic. Their language is very consistent with what I use in my classroom so it has always made sense for me to use it as a complimentary piece to what I was teaching or a segway into a new topic.

Another element of digital story telling that I have I have also been using over this past year is dramatic question. A dramatic question is “a question that will be answered by the end of the story.” Recently my class used Comic Life to create their own dramatic questions. It was a long process but at the start they choose a type of word problem (percents, multiplication, division, or fraction) they wanted to solve. Next they choose the comic characters they wanted in their comic solving the problem. We had Optimus Prime turning fractions into percents to save his fellow Auto bots, Sponge Bob teaching Patrick about the importance of knowing his multiplication tables, and many more. I must say that this by far anyway was the best product my students produced all year and was certainly a worthy learning experience. Outside of it reeling in students who are typically disengaged, it was also a more enriching math experience. My students really needed to understand the math if they were going to have a comic character solve the equation.

Becoming a teacher who values change

I saw this post on Weblogg-ed, a blog by a former teacher named Will Richardson who writes quite a bit on the subject of using technology and Web 2.0 tools in the classroom. I think it gets to the eternal questions of WHY we should be using these technologies with our students. It's not that the old ways of teaching certain concepts don't work anymore - they do - but also we have a responsibility to introduce the new tools to the people who will be using them in their daily lives. Worth a read ...

http://weblogg-ed.com/2011/valuing-change/

-Jessica

Google Lit Trips

Lit trips are a great tool for stories. I've used this tool for a read aloud and the kids absolutely loved it. Foreign seeming places work best I've found. I loved how on the Flotsam example had supplementary pictures and information added. For alot of kids this tangential information can lead to new interests and maybe get them excited in some form or fashion. This tool is also another way to incorporate different learning styles into a read aloud. It adds a visual component and can be linked to short videos.

Digital Storytelling

Before reading the articles, I was not really sure what digital storytelling was. After reading more about it (and hearing about in the presentation on Monday night), I think it is a great tool to use in the classroom. All of my students love having stories read or told to them. Digital storytelling is a way to make a story that much more interesting. What I like most about the idea of digital storytelling is that it enables people to hear stories from all over the world. I think it's incredible that I can sit in New York and hear the story of someone living in India, or anywhere else in the world.

Blog Reflections

I found the idea of using blogging to promote reflection among students instead of just using it as an add-on, newsletter type of activity an intriguing proposition. In a culture of constant multitasking and abbreviated responses via text or chat, it often seems unrealistic to ask students to sit and reflect in a manner that is foreign to them and not genuine. As teachers, we want to develop the metacognitive skills - higher level thinking that meaningful reflection encourages. Why shouldn’t it be approached with students’ cultural context in mind?
I also like the idea of mixed media means of expression during reflection such as audio podcasts interspersed with blog posts and self made video reflections. These are authentic ways for students to reflect on and monitor their own growth. They offer various types of learners access to reflective, creative and analytical writing.

Thoughts on Digital Storytelling...

I believe that there are many factors to consider before using digital storytelling in your classroom. The lack of technology in a number of schools might make it difficult for some students who may not be familiar with the technology or programs used in the digital storytelling. If a school is not properly equipped that can hinder the process. However, if the situation were different and there were technological resources available then there are other factors to take into considerations such as the time, building prior knowledge, teaching how to use the technology and of course the storytelling background in itself. I think that when all these factors are in place digital storytelling can be a wonderful tool as it is an endless creative outlet for diverse learners. It would definitely approach some of the multiple learning styles and can be uses as an informal or formal project. Digital Storytelling has the potential of strengthening the engagement in the classroom and could potentially support literacy acquisition. I guess it all comes down to surpassing the technological hurtles many schools face. In an idyllic school setting digital storytelling would be a great resource.

Using the same tools to communicate & reflect ...

When I first started teaching, I met a student who was afraid to express herself. During writing, she would not lift a pencil; she was quiet, shy, intimidated by all the other classmates and terrified of her own voice. I wanted to reach her so one day after school I took a piece a paper and I wrote her a small note, “How was your day? I enjoyed lunch today. How about you?” She replied with short sentences at first. We continued this correspondence every day for the next two months. This dialogue eventually helped her to begin to write and speak up in class. She was able to overcome her shyness and express herself in a personal and unique way.
Helping this student helped me reach and connect to all students creatively especially to the ones who needed a little more compassion and encouragement. My teaching experience is largely due to my love of theatre, the dramatic arts, and sports. For example, when I teach history, we do not only learn history; we re-enact the period and to a certain extent, live it. The children look forward to role-playing and throw themselves into it with great enthusiasm. I am constantly striving to provide a positive environment for my students where individual development can grow within a supportive and friendly framework.

Reading these articles this week challenged me. As I reflected on my own technology development, I realized that I have a lot to learn. I realized that where I am in my technology development is a direct result of my experiences and interactions with my students. I learned a lot from my teaching experiences and yet I realize how much I still need to learn. Having the opportunity to reflect on myself has given me perspective and the excitement to learn how to best reach people in their own way of communicating through technology.

Jennifer Bieber
(posted by Jessica Millstone 3/21/11)

Blogging as Collaborative Reflection

I really appreciated the Boss article on reflecting through the use of technology. I can't even count the number of times my students have rushed through reflection activities after a project or unit because they just wanted to the project/unit to be over. They had already been thinking about the work for a number of weeks. They'd read about it, written about it, spoken about it with partners. Now I was asking them to reflect on their process, and most of them either responded with one word answers or with hurried responses that they thought were in line with what I wanted to hear about their experiences with the unit.

I've used blogs to respond to reading in the past, but never thought about the possibility of letting students keep year-long blogs as an electronic portfolio. What a great way to personalize the portfolio experience even more, not to mention increase student engagement. Students could alternate between video and written responses to their work throughout the year. Additionally, having the student portfolio online allows students to access all of their entries from any computer. No longer is the portfolio a file folder locked away in a closet somewhere, only shared with students when they are being asked to add a new response. Instead, it is a living piece of work that students can constantly re-read and reflect upon.

To Blog or Not to Blog...

I always considered myself a very reflective person and I strive to include reflections in the classroom in an ongoing basis. I think student reflections can range from simple thoughts about what they understand in a given lesson to what they are proud about that they learned in the past week at school to explaining to their grown ups what they know about the unit in math they just finished and what kinds of questions they still have. All are reflective on learning and all are great ways to keep thinking about yourself as a life long learner.

We do a lot of reflecting in my third grade classroom - mostly in writing and some in video form. Reading about the different uses of reflection in George Mayo’s classroom, it made me really think about how to differentiate the kinds of reflections we do. My students are always so eager to do anything technology related and it’s a shame we don’t do so much of it in my classroom. Perhaps it would be really awesome for our students to blog or even just type up a reflection, but is it worth the amount of extra time it would take to do that on a regular basis? At what age do we start including these kinds of reflections or assessments into the classroom?

I understand how blogging can be such a powerful tool. Some children have a difficult time with the writing process or even just the act of writing. The computer and the blog can motivate students in a way that a pencil and paper won’t always, just as it did for the student in Mayo’s class. As wonderful as blogging about reflections is though, I also wonder how necessary it is to do all the time and how to balance blogging with handwriting. What’s wrong with responding on paper? This balance that needs to be created in classrooms is one that needs reflective teachers to think about the needs of their students in their classrooms to be determined.

Digital Storytelling as Avenue for Imagination and Creativity

As aspect of my second and third grade students’ writing that I have been trying to hone this school year is the need for more details and creativity (of their characters, storylines, settings) in their writing. At times, it is like pulling teeth to get my students to imagine the characters and plots of their stories. What is the character wearing? What are they doing? How are they interacting with each other? Who starts the conflict? What is everyone else doing while this is going on? What does the house look like? I think a lot of this can be attributed to the overall increase of technology (video games/television) usage of children in general – which is why I think digital storytelling can be a very valuable tool for students to engage that intertwines the imaginative creativity and storyline that were traditionally created through just pen and paper.

In The Educational Uses of Digital Storytelling, Robin quotes Riesland, who “challenges the educational community to reconsider what it means to be literate in the age of technology and argues that teachers must equip their students with skills that will enable them to understand and communicate through visual modes, and ‘thrive in increasingly media-varied environments.’” I completely agree with this quote that times have change and our mindsets also need to change about how to educate children in their time.

A feature of storytelling that I love is the oral aspect of it. Many of my students will tell me elaborate stories, but when it comes time to write it down, they freeze. To tell their story orally is much less intimidating than having to gather their thoughts and writing it down (worry about spelling, grammar), and therefore, will encourage them to explore and expand on their ideas in a learning environment (use of technology) that they are more use to in their generation.

Digital Storytelling

After reflecting on tomorrow's readings and the posts on this site, it's inspiring that there are so many educational uses for digital storytelling. Thinking back on my own experiences growing up, a highlight was making a video adaptation of Romeo and Juliet starring Cabbage Patch Kids and complete with a cassette tape soundtrack playing in the background. New technology has not only removed some of the technical barriers we faced, but also has provided many exciting possibilities - such as more easily combining video, photo, written and spoken text and graphics and also allowing for easier collaboration. Thinking about my current work, I am wondering if it would be possible for us to create digital stories to put on our website for educators. We currently provide written essays, videos and pictures, but digital stories would be another way of presenting the material - and one that I had never considered before. When thinking about students using the material we currently provide to make their own digital stories, I wonder if there are different ways we should be presenting the resources so that they can be more useful.

Perhaps this is indicative of my age, but I was unsettled by George Mayo's quote toward the end of "High Tech Reflection Strategies" in which he proposes, "Imagine if you started blogging in kindergarten and blogged all the way through high school." He notes that there would be a great record of reflection. I wonder, however, how private these blogs would be. While I certainly am supportive of reflection, I worry about children reflecting in a public or semi-public place. When rereading journals I occasionally wrote in while growing up, they are more often than not cringe-worthy and certainly nothing I would want to share with others...or at least not without a disclaimer. In regard to children and blogs, this further emphasizes the need to teach responsible digital citizenship.

Digital Storytelling

I thought this image was informative in terms of accounting for the 3 main aspects to digital storytelling: creating the story, choosing the media, and creating the project. Through the readings I found there to be many beneficial aspects to digital storytelling but a few include: the natural emphasis on reflection it provides (Boss), the exact nature of evidence (Educause), and the idea that it is very UD compatible.

• Reflection is very important in the process of learning. When individuals are able to reflect on past work and evaluate themselves they can really experience a revelation of their own learning processes. It is also very important to reflect in order to re learn and see information in a new way.
• The exact nature of digital story telling is very important to avoid information lost in translation. When messages are replicated information can be lost or transformed. If the initiator or primary source can be the purveyor of information the message can remain clear and concise over time.
• The use of digital technologies allow many different kids of individuals to communicate without certain barriers. For example, illiterate individuals who cannot communicate by reading and writing can disseminate messages through video/audio outputs. Also digital technologies allow the use of certain assistive communication tools like pictures, music, and linked references.

I believe that digital storytelling is useful for students for personal narratives and for instructional/informative endeavors. I think they are very practical to implement into many different school districts with varying access (provided that some access is available like a laptop cart/local library/est.)

Digital Story Telling (Pros and Cons)

What was interesting to read about was how simple and uncomplicated it is to create a digital story. Students are entertained and are able to be creative allowing them to tap into their own learning style. Students are given a voice and are allowed to express themselves openly enabling them to share their culture. Along with freedom to express their ideas, students are actually engaged! Instead of writing a personal narrative (like we do in the 4^th grade) they can create a digital personal narrative utilizing images and voice recordings of family members or themselves. Digital Storytelling is also accessible and can be done on any computer using Microsoft Word and PowerPoint. Great for Public School teachers!

Although digital storytelling has so many benefits, I see that it is very time consuming and may also be an arena where students can just latch on to other students’ ideas and not be creative. I find the time constraints the most difficult because public school teachers are required to cover so much of the mandated curriculum. How can I start using digital story telling as a tool in my classroom when most of students have little to no experience using computers? How can I build my students up to digital storytelling?

High Tech Reflection Strategies Make Learning Stick

                When I think about the relationship between an experience and an educative experience, the word reflection comes up to my mind. Sometimes, as educators, is hard to distinguish when we are proposing educative experience to our student and when it is just an experience. In my opinion when the student is able to reflect about what she or he did, the experience becomes educative.

                It is interesting how this teacher encourage their student to reflect and also find a way to do it interesting for them. “The goal of highlighting reflection in the classroom is to encourage students to begin to reflect more frequently and naturally in their day-to-day lives.” I do not believe that there is a single teacher who does not think how important the reflection is. But I do believe that there are a lot of teacher who do not think in the best way to develop this important skill.

                If teacher cannot find a way to encourage their student to do this, they can start asking what they do when something important happen in their lives. The answer probably will be “change my face book status”.   The idea to reflect is present in everyday life and the idea of writing that experience or leting other people know about it, is also something that even I do very often. Teacher need to understand that the best way to discover what motivate their student, is probably ask and observe them.  

                But, what can an early childhood teacher do? Probably reflection would take a different shape in an early childhood classroom and in a high school classroom. The important thing is that it has to be present in both. A six year old is probably more interested in draw his experiences than write it on a blog, but how interesting would be if that child started blogging as soon as he is ready  and then have the possibility to review it 10 years later.  At the age of 4 and 5 children verbally reflect about their new learning, how about if we record them in videos and we create a blog with their videos reflections? They will be able to review it at any time and see a couple of years later, how much their change or not their thoughts.

                The Internet is a surface without limit. It can be used as a resource for teachers and for student. I deeply believe that if we are encouraging our student to reflect it is important, as a teacher, to do it also. Imagine have the possibility to review some reflection of your teaching that you did 5 years ago. Starting to write or video record our experiences as a teacher, can be a good way to show and model our student. We can use this tool not just because we can review it 5 years later, but also because we can use it to encourage our student to do it too