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Okay, so I have learned many things from this class that will be useful to me in the future. Honestly, I do not think that there is one thing that we've learned that I won't have a use for. Some of the projects that I had really like were: Inspiration, Filamentality, Newsletters, and i Movie. These thing will make teaching a lot easier and supplemented for better understanding. It will also make learning a lot easier for the children. This will help the information be able to be conveyed in a nice, clear, and organized manner. Especially things like the i Movie project and the data base program. The i Movie can help wether it's to help me teach a lesson or if its for the students to do a project. The database assignment can help to track and organize your students and classroom. There was just so much good info that we have learned that it is hard to point it all out!!

Improvements... I'm not really sure that there are any. The only thing that I can think of is maybe changing the class so that the assignments can be due before class rather than the night before @ 11:30 pm. Sometimes there has been times where I get off work and I am rushing to get the assignments done. Other than that I really enjoyed this class and I can honestly say that I have learned a great deal. How sad :( it's over!!!

i Movie

I thought that learning i movie was an awesome tool to further use in my teaching career. I had never done this before. This was the neatest thing to me that you can actually go back and edit what you filmed and change things around into different sequences. In the end the video looks so professional. My group really did not run into and filming problems. We really did not run into any problems until we started editing. When we started editing it was then when we had problems with the clips and the subtitles and the timing. It was definitely a learning experience.

After reading the article "Splicing Video into the Writing Process" it made me relly understand how the filming and editing are similar to the process that you must go through during the writing process. For instance there is the preproduction step in filming which s similar to the Prewriting step and then there is the Production part in filmin which is similar to the drafting step in writing. I think that the thought process is the same it's just the end product that is different. I could definitely see myself incorporating this type of project into my classroom. There is just so much learning going on. This is definitely in my opinion a higher way of teachin and learning.

Data Bases

The three articles were interesting in the fact that they had all discussed different points of views between databases and the web. It is amazing how more and more educational facilities are trying to become paperless. We as students are experiencing that here at CSUSM since we are now just about as paperless as it gets. This in a way drives me crazy because I like the fact of physically handing in my papers and physically getting them back. Web CT is great and all but there's nothing like having the real thing in your hand. Oh well...we are just trying to save the environment.

This brings us into how grand databases can actually be. Not only are they paperless, but they can store large amounts of detailed info on many individual people or items. This will be great when we get into the classroom, we can use databases to keep ourselves organized with all of our students. This is great for the students as well. I never learned about any of this type of thing when I was in school. Now there are programs out there that are made so user friendly that it is said that kindergartners will soon be using databases. The age that kids start becoming technology smart is becoming younger and younger. Kids won't even be able to spell but they will be setting up databases.

However, I found that I can really find a use for using a database in my classroom. I really want to keep track of all of my students. This will also help me to organize data in terms of grades, age , learning styles, favorites (foods, colors, etc.). I can do sooo much with this type of program. I am definitely excited to involve this technology into my classroom. I never knew that there were programs out there like "InspireData" that makes the database system so easy to use and user friendly. Thank goodness technology is constantly growing!!!

Wiki Wiki......

Filamentality link: http://www.kn.att.com/wired/fil/pages/listworldbise.html

Ok, so I thought that the whole Wikipedia thing was pretty nifty. I had no idea that people could just go in and change things though, and all this time I was thinking that it was a reliable source. Even though people can go in and change the info I still have not seen anything crazy like people just making up lies or stories, at least not anything obvious anyways. This could be bad in the fact that anyone can change things but it can also have advantages such as keeping the information up to date. This is especially good when it comes to anything medical or technological.

I also thought that it was such a neat feature how it can be used to create a web page collaboratively with others. This might make group work a lot easier to handle. This is nice because no one has to meet up and things can easily be changed and reverted back if things aren't to everyones liking. It is hard enough to get together so this can save everyone a lot of time. This will definitely be a grand tool for most of us since we are entering the teaching field. We can use this in our classroom or with our colleagues. We can keep parents up to date or even just each other. I had no idea that Wikipedia had so much to offer. I just thought that it was an on line encyclopedia.

Now on to the reading. It's crazy to think that technology still is not being learned about in schools, hence the digital gap. This is where schools need teachers to bring in and incorporate technology in the classroom. This is very important. Kids should feel that computers are more than just an extra, or a reward for doing something good. Computers should just be integrated into the curriculum regardless if you have three computers or three hundred computers. There needs to be a way that children are more involved and comfortable with technology. It is the way that our society has come dependent on. If students have to share a computer then so be it, but we as future teachers need to make that a goal to make sure to integrate technology in the classroom. It is a must!

Web Quests

First of all I think that Filamentality will be an excellent resource for us upcoming teachers to use. This is a great way to link interactive learning as well as being exposed to technology. This tool will keep the children engaged and gets them away from the ol' fashioned "go look it up in the book." This allows the student to stay active and learn to sort and look through information while also keeping the information in range and related to the topic at hand. This is also a great way to include the content standards into the curriculum.

On another note another great tool to use is the almighty WebQuests that we all hear so much about these days. No one really understands the power that they have until they actually use them. They were developed in 1995 at San Diego State University by two men by the name's of Bernie Dodge and Tom March. What WebQuests do is structure students to analyze a variety of information and resources so that they can analyze it and use their critical thinking skills to come up with a solution. Often real world wide problems are used and at the end there is usually some form of project or assignment to complete. This would be how the teacher would assess the students comprehension and skills. There are many ways to utilize WebQuests either you can create your own or you can search for ones that are already made. Remember, like anything else, there are always thorough ones and there are always bad ones out there. One way to narrow your search down is to use appropriate search engines and become advanced at learning how to use advanced searches. Some examples of some great WebQuests are an example of a teacher using a pumpkin patch as part of her WebQuest in hopes to link her inner city kids back to mother nature. Another great one was one that involved learning about Anne Frank, with it based upon the children of the Holocaust. There are no limits to WebQuests. They can be totally done on the computer or you can mix like the pumpkin patch and integrate some real life activity to the Web. The sky is the limit and like one of my professors once told me "Why try and reinvent the wheel?"

Excel

I really think that Excel is a nifty program because it can be used for so many things. So many professions can utilize excel and make it make their life easier. As a teacher it can be used to input grades, chart individuals progress, look at the class' progress as a whole. This can be very useful as a teachers tool. As a teacher you will always know where your students are at and you will always be able to tell them as well. This will even help you personally as a teacher to track how you are doing. This can also show you if most of the class is just not getting it that maybe you should re-evaluate you r teaching strategies. You can also always gage what that student will need so that they might get the grade that they want. Excel is also excellent in it's ability to make calculations for you instead of you sitting there with the calculator trying to figure everything out. This makes life a lot easier. So I definitely recommend using Excel to help organize your business or profession.

On the flip side I wanted to also comment on the assigned article that we were to read this week. I had never really stopped to think about what's the best way to search a topic? Or how credible that source may in fact be. I usually just thought that if a site looked like someones home page then I had better not trust it. Otherwise, if the site looked professional then I usually trusted the content within it. This article gave some great advice on how to search and how not to search for content on the web. It had also listed some great resources for both students and teachers. I in fact found things out like searching for the same subject in different search engines will yield different results.This is why we should pay attention to which search engine we choose for certain content, anyways, the list goes on and on showing how to uncover valid information when trying to research a topic. I found this article very useful especially since I am going into the teaching profession.

Evalutech

This web site seems like a useful web site. The only thing that I did not like about it is the way that it is set up. There is just so much information on it that my eyes hurt to look at everything all over the page.
On another note it is very useful especially to anyone who wants to teach or enhance the learning process. Some of the things that I had stumbled on where lesson plans and intersactive learning games that the children could learn and play with on the computer. To me the lesson plans were great because anytime as a teacher you can get ideas or any other kind of input on how to teach a grade level or subject that info is golden. I was stumbling around the web site and I really liked how you can click on the lesson plans and resources--->then it brings you to topics--->then you can click on whatever subject you are looking for. This area is full of ideas resources and help. It even offers enrichment material for whatever you are looking for. This would be great for parents to use with their children as well. I also thought that the little interactive computer games will also help the children be exposed to technology in the classroom, as well as get them excited about wanting to learn more. Overall this would be an excellent resource to use it has so much information to use and it would definitely enhance your and the students learning experience.

Power Point n' Bloom

I definitely think that a power point presentation can completely enhance a lesson in the classroom. This is a great tool, it can be very interactive and can grab a student's attention at any age. One thing that I found out to be the greatest thing was the creative aspect of using power point. This was demonstrated last class when I saw how you can use power point to play a creative interactive game of jeopardy. This keeps the children more organized as well as the teacher. I think that the children would respond much better to this because you could project the game up on the screen and it looks huge like a real game show, this is something that couldn't be created as well on paper and with the same feel. Not only is this great for the use by teachers, but this is a great tool for children to learn how to use. Students can definitely benefit from using this program as well. This is a great way to teach your class how to give a presentation and make it look professional.

On another note I thought that the Bloom's Taxonomy was a bit interesting and perhaps true. Most tests are set up so that the student must memorize a bunch of facts and material and then they are asked to repeat it back in some form. Learning this way I really don't think that students are really learning the material. Chances are that if you ask them a question on the material weeks later they might not even be able to answer the question because they have already forgotten it. I like Bloom's approach because he proposes that there are different levels in which we learn when most tests only address on aspect of it. I like how it is broken up into different competencies with different skills that should be demonstrated by it. This is a neat theory and every teacher should at least take this into consideration. There is a whole entire hierarchy of learning and we should take advantage of it so that we know that our students are really getting to know the information.

Pretty Nifty...

This to me is a great example of how technology can be used or should I say integrated in the classroom. What a neat teacher. How much fun would it be to put science into action like that. I find it amazing that a sixth grade class would get to partake in something that neat. The students must also feel really special in being involved in collecting data and putting it in such a big data base.
Something that was also nice to see was how the students weren't the only ones learning but the teacher was learning as well. I also liked how the teacher noted how she is willing to do the same thing that she asks of her class on a daily basis. This is also being a great model for the class as well. It shows the students that we as human beings never stop learning and that is important. It also shows how as technology evolves we must evolve with it, and how although the teacher is the teacher, the teacher does not know everything. I often think that sometimes students look at their teachers as if they know everything, as if they are some sort of God. This is a great example of how to show kids that we are constantly learning new things. No matter how much education you have had or how old you are, there are always new things to know and learn! Those students are definitely lucky to have a teacher that is so interactive.

We've Come a Long way!!

This article was really interesting to me to see really how far we have come in technology advances in the classroom. Since most people in my generation started using computers in elementary school it is amazing to see what they are doing today in the classroom! One of the things that I didn't know was that the computer had first been used in the classroom back in 1974, in Oregon. Also at this time the only thing that computers were used for was for the teachers to make automated flash cards and multiple choice exercises. We as a society have come so far in regards to that... now students are researching, learning, communicating around the globe. I read a statement where a student was even starting to write their own program on the computer. Technology has made leaps and bounds since good ol' 1974. It was stated that computers give students 'ease and speed" instead of always using pencil and paper. One student said that he loved it because his papers always looked neat and clean. I find this OK as long as their penmanship stays legible because they may not always have a computer at their side, so we must be able to read the students handwriting. One other thing that the article had said was that"Teachers must only use technology only if it's useful and appropriate," I liked this statement, and in most cases isn't it true? 9 times out of ten we are using technology for the mere fact that it is. Also in the supplemental reading that came along with this article I thought that this line was great..."picture computers becoming tools in a learning environment..." This is great because that is what we overall want. We want the children to use these computers not to just get answers, but to learn things along the way of their research. Whether it be learning things about the computer or about the content they are researching, it should be used as a wonderful tool!! And yes, we will look back on all of this technology let's say ten years from now and most likely have another epiphany.


****At last one thing that I learned last week was to always check web ct. I went to class and sat in there for about 10 minutes and logged in to web ct finally and found out that we did not have class that day. Since I had been in class all day I would have never of guessed, so that was in my most honest words what I did learn last week. Always check it, that's some good advice.******

#2

Ok I am extremely upset at the moment.This blog program has got me all confused. I went to add to my blog and it will not let me so I am starting all over again. i know wah wah!!!
Any way, about the article I thought that it was great and very informative on how and why technology is so important in the classroom and in the learning process. I loved the reference to the world being flat and using that as a reference because that is all that we would know. Very similar to what children would think without being exposed to technology. Although the article seemed to be a little on the shallow side when it came down to the details.
I could not believe all of the tools out there that are designed to help us teachers and future teachers. This will make our lives so much easier. There are tools to help not only the learning process but also to help teachers. I think that the assessment tools are awesome!!! This was a great informative article. Great reference.