My first technology autobiography
I still feel like I could know so much more than I do now, but I am amazed at how much I have learned in this one class. This class has exposed me to my technological biases. It opened my eyes to how things I was already using for personal usage (blogs, movie maker, etc.) could be used in the classroom. And most exciting for me, it opened my eyes to new technology and new tools that I can both update my old lessons by using and create new ones. This one class, only 10 full days, has really gotten me excited about teaching. I have all kinds of ideas about what I'd like to do and change in my classroom.
Thursday, July 5, 2007
Thursday, June 28, 2007
Letter to Administrator
Dear Mr. Sieg,
I have found yet another technology gem I would like to try out in my classroom. When I first looked at web based inquiry projects, I thought that they were unorganized because it was very open ended. However, after looking more closely at the examples available on the web, I can see many possibilities to use this teaching tool to further my instruction. There are many things to love about web based inquiries: they promote student-centered learning, encourages basic research skills, and it promotes high level critical thinking through the questions that the teacher asks her students to explore.
Over the summer I've done a lot of reading on teaching philosophies. One thing that keeps popping up in all the critical pedagogy theories I read is that we need to build on student's prior knowledge and that student's will thrive when they are active participants in their education. Because web based inquiries are entirely student-centered, they reflect this best practice. Students are hooked to a given topic, given a question (the muddier, messier, and more arguable, the better I believe) and are then encouraged to take that inquiry into whatever territory they see fit. It allows them to sit in the driver's seat and be in charge of their own learning. And as I have read again and again, student constructed learning, because the student has ownership of the knowledge, is an effective way to teach.
Furthermore, web based inquiries encourage basic research skills, because students have to go out and explore the topic in order to answer the question. Students will have to apply those research strategies we teach at the beginning of the year to find information. This will also be a great time for the teacher to monitor and reteach anyone who is struggling.
Finally, the types of questions that lead to the best web based inquiries promote that critical thinking. These questions are not easy. And the product will not be a single answer. Rather students will be encouraged to consider multiple sides of a given issue, research until the feel comfortable enough to formulate and give their own opinion on the given topic.
I hope we can use web based inquiries in our school, and if we do one, you are more than welcome to stop by and see how it is going.
Respectfully,
Ms. Furlong
I have found yet another technology gem I would like to try out in my classroom. When I first looked at web based inquiry projects, I thought that they were unorganized because it was very open ended. However, after looking more closely at the examples available on the web, I can see many possibilities to use this teaching tool to further my instruction. There are many things to love about web based inquiries: they promote student-centered learning, encourages basic research skills, and it promotes high level critical thinking through the questions that the teacher asks her students to explore.
Over the summer I've done a lot of reading on teaching philosophies. One thing that keeps popping up in all the critical pedagogy theories I read is that we need to build on student's prior knowledge and that student's will thrive when they are active participants in their education. Because web based inquiries are entirely student-centered, they reflect this best practice. Students are hooked to a given topic, given a question (the muddier, messier, and more arguable, the better I believe) and are then encouraged to take that inquiry into whatever territory they see fit. It allows them to sit in the driver's seat and be in charge of their own learning. And as I have read again and again, student constructed learning, because the student has ownership of the knowledge, is an effective way to teach.
Furthermore, web based inquiries encourage basic research skills, because students have to go out and explore the topic in order to answer the question. Students will have to apply those research strategies we teach at the beginning of the year to find information. This will also be a great time for the teacher to monitor and reteach anyone who is struggling.
Finally, the types of questions that lead to the best web based inquiries promote that critical thinking. These questions are not easy. And the product will not be a single answer. Rather students will be encouraged to consider multiple sides of a given issue, research until the feel comfortable enough to formulate and give their own opinion on the given topic.
I hope we can use web based inquiries in our school, and if we do one, you are more than welcome to stop by and see how it is going.
Respectfully,
Ms. Furlong
Wednesday, June 27, 2007
Chapter 6
Do you know those people who annoy the heck out of anyone around when they are reading a really good book because they want to talk about it whether you've read it or not. Well, that's me. And I'm like that about this class, Teaching With Technology. I've already emailed my principal and our IT head guy about circumventing the firewall to utilize some of the cool stuff we're learning about in class.
So when I read about social bookmarking, I thought, this is really cool (because I'm sold, simply on this class and this book and anything that Ms. Berry says.) I think I'd have to use furl though. On account of my last name and all.
I feel like I wasted time in the classroom last year by NOT using some of this cool stuff.
So when I read about social bookmarking, I thought, this is really cool (because I'm sold, simply on this class and this book and anything that Ms. Berry says.) I think I'd have to use furl though. On account of my last name and all.
I feel like I wasted time in the classroom last year by NOT using some of this cool stuff.
Tuesday, June 26, 2007
MORE POD
Just one more reason why Joe and I should never be in a group together:
Our techno Podcast. (just push the play button)
Our techno Podcast. (just push the play button)
Thursday, June 21, 2007
Richardson Ch. 8
Okay, so I know this probably occurred to the rest of you, but I'm slow on the uptake. I realized as I was reading about podcasting how the different tech strategies of learners not only target different levels of Gardner's multiple intelligences (visual for d.s., aural for podcasts, etc.) but also that they CAN kind of address multiple views of philosophies of teaching. Wikis are extremely constructivist, blogs are humanistic, etc. This made the dork inside of me (okay, outside) very proud.
So anyway, back to the point. In chapter 8 of Blogs, Wikis, Podcasts . . . Will (we're on a first name basis now that he responded to my blog) talks about some really neat tools that I'm excited about using at school. I'd done podcasting in Kajder's class (she's awesome if you haven't had her yet), but I like that he walks you through how to do it. Kajder explained it to me because I'd expressed interest, but I'm bad at listening and being able to then "do" when it comes to technology. I'd love to do book talks with podcasts when we do literature circles. I think the kids would eat it up.
Also, screencasting sounded super neat. Right now, I'm working with two other LA teachers, Lauren and Beth to develop a website to act as a resource to our students that provides frontloading material for books, will steer them to resources for these books (internet articles, and such) and will provide a space for them to discuss the books with kids from our three schools. (That is our vision anyway). I see potential for screencasting to be a useful multimedia tool for something like this that is a sight intended to promote student-centered learning. (Of course podcasting would be great for this sight too)
So anyway, back to the point. In chapter 8 of Blogs, Wikis, Podcasts . . . Will (we're on a first name basis now that he responded to my blog) talks about some really neat tools that I'm excited about using at school. I'd done podcasting in Kajder's class (she's awesome if you haven't had her yet), but I like that he walks you through how to do it. Kajder explained it to me because I'd expressed interest, but I'm bad at listening and being able to then "do" when it comes to technology. I'd love to do book talks with podcasts when we do literature circles. I think the kids would eat it up.
Also, screencasting sounded super neat. Right now, I'm working with two other LA teachers, Lauren and Beth to develop a website to act as a resource to our students that provides frontloading material for books, will steer them to resources for these books (internet articles, and such) and will provide a space for them to discuss the books with kids from our three schools. (That is our vision anyway). I see potential for screencasting to be a useful multimedia tool for something like this that is a sight intended to promote student-centered learning. (Of course podcasting would be great for this sight too)
Movies
I was so impressed with the class movies! People did things with them that I have not ever even thought of.
Everytime I do something in MovieMaker, I learn more about this useful tool. And I think my products get more sophisticated too. This time, I tried to create a visual picture book, so I used the multiple media and transitions to try to convey this to the audience (page flips, etc.). As with most of my products from MovieMaker, I could have tweaked and tweaked my project for forever, but I'm pretty satisfied with where I ended up.
For my classroom this year, my students created picture storybooks that they shared with 1st graders at the elementary school down the street. I liked this activity because it gave them a real audience, my kids worked in pairs and got to play on their strengths (illustrator, author, creative, etc.) and for my poorer readers, they read out loud to a very nonjudgemental group of kids. For next year, I'd love to incorporate digital storytelling into this assignment and give them the option to do it via computer, or to make a storybook.
Everytime I do something in MovieMaker, I learn more about this useful tool. And I think my products get more sophisticated too. This time, I tried to create a visual picture book, so I used the multiple media and transitions to try to convey this to the audience (page flips, etc.). As with most of my products from MovieMaker, I could have tweaked and tweaked my project for forever, but I'm pretty satisfied with where I ended up.
For my classroom this year, my students created picture storybooks that they shared with 1st graders at the elementary school down the street. I liked this activity because it gave them a real audience, my kids worked in pairs and got to play on their strengths (illustrator, author, creative, etc.) and for my poorer readers, they read out loud to a very nonjudgemental group of kids. For next year, I'd love to incorporate digital storytelling into this assignment and give them the option to do it via computer, or to make a storybook.
Monday, June 18, 2007
Ch. 4
I have to say as an English teacher and a person who really values knowledge, I did have a bias against Wikipedia. Don't get me wrong, I personally use it all the time, but I often would steer my students in a different direction because I was afraid they would not have the same ability to look discriminantly at the information as I.
After reading this chapter, however, I kind of changed my mind. One thing that struck me was when Steve Jobs called wikipedia "one of the most accurate encyclopedias in the world". I also liked the quote that writing in a wiki "is to compose within a living organism." As a teacher, I often harp on the notion that every student can contribute, that more minds are better than one. My bias against wikipedia was kind of hypocritical to what I was telling my students. Also, our encyclopedias are out of date because the world continues to change, this medium allows for the knowledge contained to evolve as change occurs.
We are always looking for ways to get authentic audiences to look at our student's work. Why not a wiki?
After reading this chapter, however, I kind of changed my mind. One thing that struck me was when Steve Jobs called wikipedia "one of the most accurate encyclopedias in the world". I also liked the quote that writing in a wiki "is to compose within a living organism." As a teacher, I often harp on the notion that every student can contribute, that more minds are better than one. My bias against wikipedia was kind of hypocritical to what I was telling my students. Also, our encyclopedias are out of date because the world continues to change, this medium allows for the knowledge contained to evolve as change occurs.
We are always looking for ways to get authentic audiences to look at our student's work. Why not a wiki?
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