Post #10

Sarah's presentation on Skype in the classroom was intriguing, if a bit hard to navigate. It seems like Skype can almost be the new form of pen-pals, with instant gratification for the students. It also seems like it would be a very good tool in a foreign language classroom to integrate through video chatting with a classroom that is learning English and speaking the language that your students are learning. That would all depend on the school you are teaching in, though, because not all have a computer for every student.

I liked Michael D's perspective on interactive whiteboards, that the teachers who best use interactive whiteboards are those that are already good teachers. Also, that they use multiple media and focus mainly on the content, not the technology.

Julie G's presentation on language learning websites was interesting. I never thought about the uses of websites in teaching students languages. It seems like a more fun and interactive approach that would more fully engage the students and encourage them to work towards proficiency in the language.

Post #8 Portfolios

Bad Example: http://www.quintcareers.com/KH_Teaching/KH_Contact.html
This teacher has the content necessary, but she presents it in a bad manner. The website changes from page to page, which does not give it continuity and makes it look unprofessional. She has a bad photo of herself that is slightly blurry and unfocused.

Good Example: http://www.moussu.net/TP/
This teacher lays out her content neat and cleanly. It is easy to read and follow along with each section. The picture is a good one of her that feels like it belongs with the rest of the pale, soothing theme she selected. The only problem I have is that the pages open in new windows. They should all stay on the same window, as they have links to move between the pages in the navigation.

Technology Article Notebook

I created an online poster on Glogster.edu to present the article: "Boxes with Fires: Wisely Integrating Learning Technologies into the Art Classroom" by Diane C. Gregory.

Glogster Poster

Post #7

I think that interactive whiteboards are a really useful tool for the classroom because of the convenience and the potential for being able to engage students more. I would like to have one in my classroom because it keeps you from having to stay behind a desk to run a presentation. Also, because they can make a lesson more fun and engaging. 


I think an advantage is not being contained behind a desk to teach with the board and that it can be used not only as a touch screen, but as a white board to write on. 


I think some students have the potential to be more engaged, but it depends on the manner in which the board is used. Students in higher grades might not be as motivated as younger children to come up and interact with the board. 

Post #6

1. The group video project was easy and fun, though the process of using Windows Movie Maker was a bit of a challenge after already having lots of experience with much more advanced programs (iMovie, Final Cut).
My partner and I decided on a fun topic that is very relatable to college students, that of using the social networking site twitter. We found valid statistics on its use and the sorts of posts that are made using the site and used those to come up with a movie that would hold viewers' interest. We chose a basically silent movie that would make our student anonymous and therefore relatable to all students and since we were using the premise that twitter is a waste of time, to have the student failing at studying and eventually being kicked out of the library because they wasted all their time that could have been spent studying on twitter. The student was shown in various positions, on a couch, at a desk, and at a computer while flipping back and forth between twitter and studying. We even showed the student using twitter in the bathroom. Finally, we added some student-friendly music that plays along with the movie. 
2. I think some videos have value in the classroom. In the art classroom, movies can be shown about artists or used to demonstrate a technique. It can show the students things in a different way than just lecturing on a topic. 
In the art curriculum, a particular style can be chosen, such as watercolor. Then, to get the students engaged in the lesson, a video on a watercolor artist can be shown, which also can serve as a sort of demonstration in addition to demoing watercolor techniques. Challenges would be making sure the students paid attention so that they learn the information in the video. Also, it would be important to make sure the video had the specific information that the students need to learn. The outcome would be enriching the experience of learning a new technique and also engaging the students. 

Post #5

1. It was surprising the things that can and cannot be copyrighted. I didn't know that titles could not be copyrighted, while the related material to the title can be. It was also interesting to see that all forms of art can be copyrighted. In schools, a lot of teachers copy pages out of books and articles with no copyright information, sometimes without any information other than a title. Students copy pages of assignments out of textbooks rather than buy their own individual copy. Out of school, people are sharing anything they possibly can. Books, movies, music. Anything that is in a digital format can be shared over torrenting sites. 
I think in some aspects it is important for teachers to teach copyright respect, but in art it is a fine line between stealing and appropriation. In most cases, as long as the artist uses the appropriated item(s) in an original way, it is okay to take parts of other people's ideas in art. An art lesson on copyright could show examples of derivative works and the originals, discuss appropriation, and then have the students find an original work and create their own derivative of it. Part 5, Digital Citizenship, seems to cover copyright in relation to technology. 


2.  Chapter Seven opens with a introduction that states that most data on the technologically literate undergrad students has been quantitative, rather than qualitative and Educause chose to do a study that contained by qualitative and quantitative measurements. I did not expect so many of the students to own desktop computers rather than laptops, although I did come to school as a freshman with a desktop and quickly switched to a laptop for more convenience. I also did not expect so many students to use technology for educational purposes first, since the trend at Albright is to use computers (Facebook, Twitter, etc) as a means to procrastinate. Not many of the students seemed to use higher levels of computer software such as Powerpoint or Dreamweaver. It seemed like many of the students surveyed are not of a demographic that would use those advanced tools. I don't think all the answers seemed to be in line with the NetGeners because they are supposed to be super-tech-savvy and use the internet for more than just education. I would assume that many of them are into the internet, most specifically, web design and graphics, but the survey didn't support that. I think I would use similar questions but with a wider demographic so that there is more data to analyze. 

Post #4

#1 Incorporating Microsoft Excel into the Curriculum

     1. Can be used to keep track of supplies used and track trends so budget money can be spent more economically.
     2. If there is a SMARTboard in the classroom, an interactive Jeopardy game can be played for review sessions for all content areas.

     3. Can be used to create self-marking quizzes for simple assessments. Templates are available online.

     4. It can be used for interdisciplinary topics, such as incorporating writing into math by assigning a project that requires research as well as collecting and analyzing data.

     5. Can be used to create a fundraiser for a club or class by surveying what students prefer and then budgeting for how much of each item is necessary, planning how much profit they want to make, tracking costs and profits, and overall how the fundraiser did. It can also be used to track finances for a club.

#2 Google Docs vs. Microsoft
     I think that we should stick with using Microsoft for our word processing and spreadsheets because while Google Docs is convenient and simple, it does not contain all the features that can potentially be needed. Since Google Docs is only available online, if a student does not have internet access at home, and not all do, they will not have access to their document at home. All computers, however, do come with at least a basic word processor that is used offline. Also, if there are any network problems in the school, there will be no way to get online to access Google Docs. Again, since regular word processors are offline, there will be no problems accessing the software. The method for printing from Google Docs is also more difficult to use. The document needs to be opened in a program other than Google to allow it to be printed. In Microsoft, all that is necessary is clicking the print button. Therefore, I believe we should stick to using Microsoft for our word processing needs.

Post #3

Social Bookmarking is saving links to websites, images, and other items on the Internet and posting them to a site where they can be shared with other site users or made private for only personal use.

As a student, social bookmarking can be used to store links in a location that can be accessed with multiple computers. This can be useful for someone who doesn’t want to carry their personal computer from their dorm/home to campus where there are computers for students to use. It makes the links so that all the student needs to do is log-in and can view and add to their link collections. Also, for someone like me who has an iPod, some of the sites, like diigo, have an app that can be used to store the bookmarks and download particular books to be read online or offline. This is useful for when you know you won’t have Internet access and can download a site to look at while offline.

As a teacher, social bookmarking can be useful for sharing links to resources so that students can access them at home without having to remember or write down all the links. For example, for art, a Flickr account can be used to have a collection of images that students need to review, and diigo can be used to save the link for easy access. Students can also share sites that they find while doing research on a topic so that the rest of the class can see the sites too. As Digital Natives, perhaps the students find sites that a teacher wouldn’t have found on their own.

Post #2

1. I have lived through the evolution of technology, and therefore, my perspective on the language of it is the same as the students I will be teaching's perspective. There will be some differences, because I have seen how technology evolved from some of the earliest Apple computers. My first computer was an Apple II, so I know what it's like to use and understand the older technology, as well as having the newest possible technology now. The students will only have known some of the newest technology, and probably won't know that there used to be computers that only ran on command prompts, or even what those are, let alone believe that computers didn't always have hard drives. I think it will give me a better perspective on how these students learn because I know how they feel about always needing to be connected to their devices.

I think being on the fringe between the older generations and the Net-Gen gives me a unique look at how the students want to be taught, because I feel those same needs as the students that were described in the Educause text. I am a part of a community service fraternity on Albright's campus, I too am bored by teachers only throwing facts or reading off a Powerpoint, and know what it's like to not be able to buy something because a store only takes checks or cash.

2. GoogleDocs is a nice feature to Google. However, I prefer using Microsoft Word and then uploading the document because I am used to all the features that are available in Word that Google does not offer. It is okay for anyone who only needs a basic word processor, but for more features, a regular word processor is necessary. I do like the feature of being able to have the document linked to my Google account and shareable with just a few clicks.

Post #1

I believe that the Net Gen/21st Century learners do learn differently. They are used to a different lifestyle than people born prior to the 1980s are, the major factor being that they grew up with surrounded with technology. I grew up with the technology that the reading was talking about, and I know what it is like to grow up with parents who understand nothing about the things that I could pick up much more rapidly. Even as early as elementary school, my school was using computer games to teach reading, writing, and math in a more fun manner, and immersing my fellow students and I in the emerging technology. My mother is a Digital Immigrant, because she is always wanting to learn about new technology and will usually want whatever new digital device I have after she's seen mine. For example, she purchased an iPod after she had a chance to try out mine, and loves using it, though she has difficulty adding music to it even though iPods were designed to be simple to add music to. Now that I have an iPod touch, she wants one too, rather than the simple Nano she has right now. My dad is almost completely against new technology, and only grudgingly uses his old cell phone that still has a green screen. 

I agree with Prenksy's thinking that anyone who can memorize all the characteristics of over 100 Pokemon can learn other facts that involve the real world. However, the way they are learning the Pokemon characteristics doesn't involve them reading from a big book full of text. It's in little snippets contained on a card or popping up on a video game screen. They're fed it in little bits over and over and they learn it quickly so they can use the information in the game. 

The ideas surrounding the Net Gen learners are also very relevant. I'd rather learn in a team as opposed to alone, because then I can see what others think and they might know something I don't. For example, in one of my classes, we've been teamed up to teach various chapters in our textbook using lesson plans. I've never used a lesson plan before, and having someone else's input helped me see how to be able to write one on my own.

These new concepts make a lot of sense to me as someone who has grown up with the technology surrounding them and actively using the concepts in my own life. 

Practice Post

This is a test post.