Reflection #8

I saw this posting of a project on someone's Facebook feed and thought this was so visually effective.  What more could happen if projects were shared on blogs or the 'cybersphere'. Could science fairs become technologically accessible?   What a great way to showcase health issues than with a simple picture or nowadays there are memes that address so many issues.

Is this torrent of information desensitizing us to the messages that they present?  There are times where I will come across something and find something interesting, then I would move on to the next story.  With information being less readily available in the past, people seemed more starved for news--messengers would be revered, the limited resources would force others to spend time on the quality of their publications. Now it takes only a moment to give millions of people access to your information and whereabouts.

Week 10

Bloom's Taxonomy, this link may not work as I retrieved it from NU's site. 

TechLearningBloomRevision is another one that I pulled up.

Bloom's taxonomy refers to the order of thinking starting with the basic knowledge then building into comprehension, application, analysis, synthesis, and ending in evaluation. As technology has moved greatly in the past decade, we can see how it has also surfaced in education in the same linear movement as Bloom's taxonomy. While technology had previously been used to introduce information, it has certainly reached the peak of helping students and users, evaluate themselves in that arena (in both a positive and negative manner)

Technology has first introduced our ability to access information. This information made it possible for us to understand the definitions of things (through the world wide web). This made it possible for users to use that information as solid points of research. Information has then moved to the interactive piece, where others were able to offer their perspective and knowledge. Along with this, we saw a greater rise of online journals and blogs where people attested to being knowledgeable about specific topics. With the rise of technology and user ability, we found that information could be falsified, inciting the need to first analyze then synthesize the information. Finally we know that many people have created their own identities in technology. This has allowed others to not only evaluate information but themselves in the context of technological abilities.

Krathwohl, David R. "A Revision of Bloom's Taxonomy: An Overview." Theory Into Practice 41.4 (2002):212.  Psychology and Behavioral Sciences Collection. Web. 23 Mar. 2013

Reflection #7

Prom Invites

Hmm.  This may not be related to education but could lead into a discussion about the rising creativity of students.  If students are creative in ways that do not harness technology, think of how greatly this could be expanded with the use of technology.  It seems that there is such a big increase in videos being uploaded on youtube with parodies or small comedy sketches by younger children.

Musical Sessions by Kids:
Lennon and Maisy (cups)
Lennon and Maisy (I Won't Give Up)

Lego Clip not by a kid:
Stop Motion

I came across videos made with a stop motion program (ikitmovie).  It would be interesting to set up, in the higher levels of elementary ed or middle school, a video recording station where students could create video scenes of what they have learned.  Perhaps students could create a stop-and-go lego production of a historical event.  I remember there was an A/V Club in our school, but they still worked with very bulky cameras then.  With video devices being cheaper, more portable, and easier to access, students could express their creativity in so many ways.

Week 9

Caught on Video

First question: What are the parameters of security/privacy for recording in a classroom?  Would a waiver have to be signed even for recordings to be made of the student while presenting in a classroom even if the video is only streamed to their parents or classmates?  It seems that there would be many privacy waivers at the beginning of the year and precautions to take.

I love the idea of presenting clips from the classroom of student work.  It seems that it would give more focus on how the student actually is performing versus a recap from the perspective of a teacher. When Professor Adair showed videos of student projects, I was surprised by the quality and detail that went into their work.  Integrating recordings into the basic outline of the class would bring a stronger sense of ownership for students.  I wonder though how certain students would feel if they needed accommodations in case they have a social anxiety.  It seems that students could either feel more comfortable having to only speak to a video or having the ability to control the environment for videos.  That would make me question though again the parameters for which we could record students.

Comments

Comment to Yuliya's Reflection 4
Comment for Erin's Week 8
Comment for Ilona's Reflection 3
Comment to Jeff's Week 5
Comment to Heather's Week 7
Comment to Nicole's Week 4

Reflection #6

School in a Cloud
Sugata poses a question of how the school structure is not broken but that it is made for a different time.  He had noticed that wealthy parents called their children special as they were able to maneuver their way through computer programs.  Next door, there were children who could not afford a computer.  Sugata  gave the poor children computer with no instruction (hole in the wall: computer inside) Months later, they became proficient in using it and learned English as the computer's information was in English.

"Punishment and tests are seen as threats...brains shut down...and we say perform!"  Speaks about education needing to go from threats to pleasure. "Learning is a product of educational self-organization...The teacher sets the process in motion and stands back in awe."

SOLE (self organized learning environment) : broadband + collaboration + encouragement/admiration.
Curriculum of big questions.

This was an interesting TED talk as Sugata desires for the educational system to re-evaluate for what purpose it was built.  With his studies, he had found children to do well on their own in exploring different ideas and subjects.  Although he is a bit of an idealist, his ideas border those of the ones in the AVID program.  The main question in both AVID and Sugata's vision is the idea that we need a curriculum of big questions.  In this way, teachers are given less responsibility to produce students who know; students become responsible for their own learning (with one prompt/question from the teacher) and excel.  My question is whether Sugata is being unrealistic about his vision and if education moves toward this direction, if the job of teaching would become obsolete just as he poses "knowing is obsolete."

Week 8

Before Class: Find a website that uses games to teach about reading or writing. Add a link to the site on your blog. Write a post describing the site and how you might use it in your classroom situation.

Harrington's Pinterest

Surprisingly I came across a pinterest that had different ideas for reading/writing games.  It seems that more teachers are using pinterest to express ideas for classrooms.  This is a great forum to share ideas and effective methods of teaching.  In Ms. Harrington's pinterest alone, I have found many activities well-worth trying and adapting for a classroom.  I imagine there are many other activities or classroom ideas on pinterest to explore.  Here are a couple that I found to be such great ideas:

Donut Words (Students have a donut with a blank spot/the hole as a missing vowel.  Students move the donut to incorporate the vowel on a page and sound out the word)
Digital Picture Frame (Students cycle through sight words that display through a slideshow)

Also as a child, I recall playing Word Munchers that helped me.  I know that games are an effective way to draw the child into the material.  My only concern would be that it builds children into only associating learning with games so there would have to be a good balance within the classroom.

Week 7

Mr.Avery's Blog

Mr. Avery's blog was very engaging and incorporated videos, facts, memes, visuals, etc.  I appreciated that his blog was very dynamic.  Having a blog that incorporates many mediums engages students who might be reading this blog.  Also for him to include a how to leave a comment video on the right suggests this openness to communicate.  This encouragement of conversation helps this blog to be interactive.  In one of his posts, he also tracked other classrooms of which he had formed professional relationships with the teachers. Together, they tackled a project that was hosted by a third party, but this meant a collaboration with teachers from all parts of the world.  It was a sharing of currency that related to this math class while exploring how each currency is used in different cultures.  This project seemed so well thought to incorporate these two topics with a world aspect so that students could grow from their interactions. Mr. Avery also placed reflective questions after each blog to challenge the reader.  Overall, his blog models one that I would like to have of my own.

Reflection #5

I found this absolutely amazing site by chance.

National Gallery of Art

This site provides parents and educators different ways to "play" with art with technology.  The fun textures and different mediums just instantly captured my interest.  Any site that introduces a way to explore art deserves recognition.  There are programs that even use found items as a collage on the page, making it seem 3D or realistic.  There are different styles of art that can be created with their programs, guided by the styles in art (ie. folk art, collage realistic, abstract, 3D models, etc.).  This site also gives other resources so that the educator or parent may have cd-roms of info/programs, magazine articles, guides to projects, and notable events or exhibits.  Having the realistic aspects of art heightened by technology will not only foster interest from students but integrate learning into play.