Tech Club Week 6

This week, we planned to work with students using the video cameras on the computers, but the site that we found last week with Mrs. Mathews did not work this week.  Because of that, we had to find an alternative, which ended up being a math website where we helped students with problems in games.
  The big downside this week was that the technology that we had once again did not work for us.  It really sucked because this is the third week that something like this has happened and we were kind of upset.
  A good thing about this week was that the students really worked with us, they followed rules, didn't create problems, and were genuinely interested.
  I just wish that we had the ability to work with the computers at LaMotte more because then we would have known whether something works everytime that it is used.

EDU Innovations Worksheet

https://docs.google.com/document/d/11gPY7boVMeNEw4T7k7QEQ5Uvr9GlTh1lyVXvuIdNrUc/edit

I think that the Flip Video Camera would be a good tool in a classroom.  It gives students the ability to go on virtual field trips, by giving them the ability to see what is going on or what something looks like without having to leave the classroom.  I think it also gives students a fun way to do projects, which would be good in a high school class where students get easily distracted or think that a certain project is pointless.  It also provides a kind of assessment that students would understand because it links school to the types of technology that they use everyday.

Tech Club Week 5

This has been the best Tech Club we have had so far, in my opinion. We used the Vacaroo podcasting site to have the students create their own stories. Several groups made stories about the Three Little Pigs. And they all used their imagination, by combining different stories together. And they created songs, or told us about the weather. It was nice because we only had 8 kids by the time that Tech Club started, so we didn't have to worry about certain kids not getting attention or help, and the students weren't getting too loud or disobeying what we were doing. We also talked to the after school coordinator this week, about what she wants the students to get out of the program. She told us that she would love it if we had certain things that we have to teach, and that the lesson plans would all be prepared on the first day, so that we wouldn't have to worry about not having the resources that we need or that we would have any other sort of problems.

Tech Club week 4

This week we planned to use Google sketch up because we wanted the kids to be able to do something fun, that they could understand, while also having them work with shapes and demensions. The school computers did not have this program and we did not have the administrator's password, so we couldn't download it onto the computers. Instead, we went to the Classroom Architect website and had students work with shapes and demensions there instead. It actually worked really well, they created what each of their classrooms looks like at their school first, then we let then design their ideal classroom. They had fun doing this. And it seemed to work better than last week because they were all interested in what they were doing, instead of some of them running around, not paying attention to us. It's still hard though, to do this program at La Motte because we never know how many students we will have or what ages they will be. And it's even more difficult because we don't have the ability to show students cool programs like Google Sketch Up.

Tech Club Week 3

This week, we tried to show the students how Google Earth works. The plan was to have them located different places in the country and tell us information about each place. But this turned out to be harder than we thought it would be. The students kept arguing with us and one another. Or they would run around the room and disrupt other kids in the program. And, I think it was just too hard for some of them because they didn't understand what we were doing. It was also hard because there were so many different age groups. We had three older students that knew what they were supposed to be doing, but the rest were all third grade and below so they didn't seem to care.

Week 12 Case Study

Since virtual high schools tend to be based out of public school systems, they should be funded the same way as face-to-face high schools. Taxes are how high schools are paid for, so the tax money that is dedicated to all high schools should also include virtual high schools. I think high schools should have a virtual component. Because there are so many different things that students want to learn about, they should have the option to study those, even if they are offered in a virtual high school instead of the one they attend normally. It might be a little bit harder to do online classes if the child is in a lower grade because they may not stay focused as easily, or know everything that they can do with a computer. There should be several ways to notify parents of opportunities for online courses. There could be an email that gets sent out at the start of each semester or trimester, as well as telling the parents of these opportunities at school events like parent-teacher conferences or some other activity. And there could be an attachment to the online courses on the school's homepage. That way, most parents will have some idea that there are options for their children. I don't know if all teachers need a degree in teaching online courses to teach online courses. If the online class is very hands on and requires that students and teachers know a lot about different things that can be done with a computer, then they should probably have some form of degree. But for teachers that do not do as many things on the computer through the online class, maybe they don't necessarily need a degree: instead, maybe they should have a tutorial or workshop on what they need to know. The fact that this was a very short case study resonated with me. It didn't provide very much of an actual case study, but focused more on the background. I would like to know if the online classes helped Michael get better grades and graduate. I agree that he should have the option to attend an online high school. And that it should be funded the same as a regular public school. Because that is what it is at its core... a public school.

My Podcast

Week 10 Case Study

    To prepare students for podcasting, I think that teachers have to place limits and rules on what is and is not alright.  There should be some sort of rule as to whether students can replace an in class lecture with a podcast, and if they can, how often it is acceptable.  At the same time, teachers should warn students that there is a possibility of inappropriate information being recorded and shared with students, even if it is not wanted.  They should also be checking to see what student's computer access is like.  There are definitely detriments to this type of technology.  It keeps teachers and students from having a good system of communication and interaction because there is not need to talk if everything that needs to be heard can be repeated on a podcast.  But the benefits are important too.  Students have the ability to go back and study information several times over so that they do not miss an important piece of information, it is a great tool for studying.
    I don't know what a student's obligation to the class would be if teachers use podcasts.  I feel like there is a very blurry line with a podcast because students might try to avoid doing what they need.  But at the same time, I think that students should be obligated to listen to a podcast like they would a face-to-face lecture, where they would take notes and have questions.  I think podcasts should supplement lectures because then the obligations that students have would be met by some form of personal communication.
    I think that there should be some options for class attendance, but only in certain college classes.  If there are classes that require interaction, then class attendance should be mandatory on those days, but maybe students could miss up to a certain number of classes a semester by listening to podcasts.  That would still give the students the same amount of time and information learning something, but they would have a little bit of freedom in when they miss a class.  But I only see this being viable for certain classes in college, not in any other academic setting.

I didn't find anything in this case study confusing or misleading, but I would really like to learn more about how this kind of technology could be regulated in the future.  I feel like there are so many things that could go wrong with a podcast, even for college students, and I want to know if there is any way to regulate something like this because I know that most of the other technologies that we can use in a classroom are regulated.  I would also like to learn what high school teachers feel about podcasts and if they find them suitable for their students to use.

Tech Club Week 2

This was my first week of Tech Club, but I was placed at La Motte with one other student, who is in my class.  Because I was not there last week, I mostly just followed along and did what I was asked. 

 My partner had a really good idea for what we could do with the students, he thought that we should have students make a digital story about their lives so that they would learn something and so that we would get to know them.  But it turns out that this wasn't possible.  The laptops that the school has do not have video software and we did not have passwords or anything that would allow us to get the students this software on the laptops. 

Instead, we had to create an entirely new idea on the fly for what we would do with the students over the next few weeks.  We spent time figuring out the computers and what they are capable of, and decided to use google maps to teach students how to recognize different places, but also focus on their interests. 

Because we couldn't start on these things because of time constraints, we just helped the students do another activity, which allowed us to have some one on one time with individuals but at the same time, it kept us from doing anything technological.

Week 8 Case Study

    In this situation, I think that I would do the exact same thing as the teacher.  I think that she took a very simple route to figure out what was going on, without accusing the students of doing something wrong.  After catching the students cheating with their cellphones, I would confiscate them for the day and give the girls "0"s on the test as well. And then to make sure that it doesn't happen again, I would put forth some sort of rule regarding cell phones during tests. like that the phone has to be on the desk at all times so I could see it, or that it would have to be put in a box at the front of the room until the test was over.  I would not ban cell phones, I think that they can be useful if used correctly and sparingly by students.

    The grades that both students recieved should not be changed, on the test that they were caught cheating on, and should be given a replacement assignment for the initial test in order to recoup some of their lost points.  They should continue to be monitored and have this account put on their student records.  And depending on if it were to happen again, they should have a suspension or some other form of punishment.

   Cell phones should not be prohibited in schools because they could be used as resources, if monitored correctly.  And parents should be able to get in contact with their children while at school, although not in classes or when something is going on.  A policy can be enforced by things that we talked about in class last week: keep your phone on your desk, have both hands on the desk, or give students times when using a cell phone is alright because that might stop them from using phones at inappropriate times during the day.

    This case study could be integrated into a classroom by the policies and rules that I mentioned previously.  As long as there is some form of monitoring, especially during tests, having cell phones and other forms of technology in school should not be such a big deal.  If teachers can show students ways that a cell phone is helpful, without making it too reliable or making students think they have permission to use their phones all of the time, it shouldn't be a problem to have this technology in a classroom.

Blog Analysis

      I did my Digital Storybook on the Curse of Rasuputin.  There are two Montana State Standards that apply to my story.  The first is standard 2: Students analyze how people create and change structures of power, authority, and governance to understand the opperation of goverment and to demonstrate civic responsibility.  The second standard that seems to fit my story is standard 4: Students demonstrate and understanding of the effects of time, continuity, and change on historical and future perspectives and relationships.
      The learning objective for students watching this digital storybook would be:
          1.  Students will understand the way Grigori Rasputin's fate foreshadowed the future of the Romanov Family.
          2.  Students will understand how to create a presentation that is eye-catching and interesting, without the use of a lecture or notes.
      I would use this digital story during a lesson on the fall of the Romanov Dynasty to give visual representations of the events that occurred and the intense influence that the life of Rasputin had on the Imperial Family.  The relative advantage of having this technology in my classroom is that it would provide a visual that isn't stark and boring, while also showing students that there are alternative ways to present information besides a paper or a group project.

Week 6 Case Study

1.  In using digital storytelling, students are able to learn new ways of communicating with a large group of people.  They are also being given the ability to create an entire project on their own, with out the limits of something like writing guidelines. This technology also gives people the ability to communicate specific topics in an interesting way, which could help when trying to get a job, or create a presentation.  Digital storytelling also gives the ability to be creative! Instead of focusing on one specific thing, students can take a project in a whole new direction, opening them up to things that they have never thought about before.

2.  The proper training that a teacher needs to be able to implement digital storytelling would be at least one lesson and chance to use digital storytelling on their own so that they can understand how it works.  Then they have the ability to help students out when it comes to figuring out what needs to be done and how to do a specific thing.

3.  Digital storytelling is useful when working with shy students who are not outspoken because it gives them the ability to be just as expressive as other students.  It does not require them getting up and giving a presentation, which could make them very uneasy.  It also works with outspoken students because it puts them at the same level as those shier students.  It also gives them the same ability, where they can explore new things and be creative in a different way than they are used to.

I would integrate this case study into a classroom by creating a balance of technological devices that help students bridge the gap between things that they are and are not interested in, and the content materials.  Using old school ways of teaching something may help in one specific area of the class, without needing to grab the students attention in a different way.  But for other things, I would be sure to use digital storytelling in order to show the significance of something that is not overtly interesting, or by having students create their own stories to put a twist on a subject or show what really gets their attention in a class.

Week Four Case Study Response

Discusson Questions:

1. Mrs. Walker could have handled the plagarism sutuation differently.  Instead of teaching the entire class how to properly cite something, when some of them may already know, she could have asked students individually whether they knew how to cite a source.  She also could have had the students work in groups on a computer to help each other if they need to see how something is done properly. 

2.  I feel like wikis should not be used until students are in at least high school.  If they are used before students are mature enough to understand the responsibility of having an online account, there is a possibility that the privilage could be abused or used in the wrong way.  Also, for the reasons in the case study, students should be in high school.  In most high schools, information about plagarism is drilled into student's minds right off the bat and is constantly reviewed, so teachers wouldn't have to worry as much about whether or not the student knows what they're doing in regards to citing a source.

3.  To ensure that all students are involved in the writing and editing process, teachers can make sure that all students have the information and ability to work on a wiki.  A way to ensure this would be to make sure that all students have the login information so that they can work on the page.  Another thing would maybe be creating class time for students to work on the wiki.  Taking all of the students to a computer lab would give them all equal possibilities to work on it because some of them may not have computers at home or may not feel like they can contribute when they are on their own.

4.  I feel like it could be a touchy situation when it comes to plagarism.  There is a possibility that some of the students genuinely may not know that they plagarized, even if they are in high school.  But if they know how to cite something properly and didn't, then school rules regarding plagarism should be enforced.  Rules should be enforced especially if the students have been told what they were and weren't supposed to do prior to the day that they were caught by their teacher.  For the students that may not know how to cite something properly, they should be given taught what they are supposed to do and then should be held to the same standard as everyone else.

5.  I don't really know what other concerns I personally would have with the use of wikis.  The only things that I can think of are the things mentioned in the case study.  I think that plagarism is very important and needs to be monitored.  And the fact that wikis give students the ability to comment and change things on other's pages could be a problem if that ability is abused. But other than that, I don't see any problems with the use of wikis for school purposes.

Additional Question:
    The thing that really resonnated with me isn't mentioned in the case study very much but I think is important because it is not.  It doesn't say that there was any way to monitor the amount of work each student contributed  so there is not way to know which of the students was responsible for plagarizing in their presentation.  I think that the inablity to see what is going on, to a certain extent, could be damaging to individual students because they could all get in trouble as a response to what one student did.  I do agree with the use of wikis in the classroom because they seem to be good learning tools but I'm not sure how much I would use them.  I worry that certain students could be disadvantaged as a result of wikis used by groups.

Week 2 Case Study Response

Social Studies and Digital Timelines

Contextual Information and Background Info Questions:
  The after school intern provided enough contextual information  in the contextual factors section.  A very important piece of information included in this section is where the resources to complete the timeline are coming from, instead of making people assume that the cameras are coming from the elementary school specifically.  I do not think that the intern is missing any information in this section, she has all of the basic information recorded. There is research provided to show how the technology will help enhance teaching and learning.  Using cameras and computers in a fifth grade class to help with the technological literacy of students is very important because they are expected to be able to use technology by the eighth grade.  What is missing, is the way that this is going to help teachers teach their students, because it seems to be a very one sided lesson, where the teacher will not be showing students what is necessary or important technologically.

Activity Plan Questions:
  This activity appears to be easy to replicate in some ways.  It may be harder to do this exact activity plan in another area, where there are not as many artifacts of the Civil War.  Other than that factor, everything could be recreated.  The activity is laid out in a way that each thing that must be done is broken down enough to give students an easy outline of what they must do.

Technology Integration Rational Questions:
  The incorporation of technology gives the advantage of comfort to teaching and learning, by allowing both teachers and students to explore the benefits of doing a timeline on a computer and also giving people the experience they need to find something using a camera or computer.  The way that the intern uses technology tells us that the content may be easier to understand if students are given the ability to use something that they are interested in, to learn about a given subject, like the Civil War.  The use of technology increases opportunities for student interaction with content and ideas by allowing them to look online or in a museum for something that interests them while also creating a connection to the subject that they are learning about.

Additional Question:
  There were not any things in this activity plan that were confusing or misleading, but I would like to learn more about timerime.com and the other wikis that are just mentioned.  I've never seen or heard of a timeline that can be created on the computer and am wondering how that would affect the way that information is retained.  Also, whether this type of resource is easier to use than a handmade timeline would be to create.