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Thursday, August 6, 2009
Chapter 12
Chapter 12 was about the changing standards teachers have to concern themselves with in relation to technology. The key concept in this chapter is to be a lifelong learner, always trying to keep on top of new technologies and finding ways to apply them to the classroom.
One thing this chapter does not cover for further training options that I thought would be obvious is to help other instructors with developing technological competence. This was a topic that came up with my teacher interview in my EDFI 409 class. The interview was with my high school world history teacher, who retires at the end of next year. He said it surprises everyone that his primary method of communication is email, since everyone sees him as the stereotypical ancient (as in his age…not the instructional topic…) history teacher. However, he said one of his main goals, especially within the past few years, has been to befriend the younger teachers so that he can give them the benefit of his experience and knowledge, while learning from them about how to effectively use the technology systems the school offers.
One thing this chapter does not cover for further training options that I thought would be obvious is to help other instructors with developing technological competence. This was a topic that came up with my teacher interview in my EDFI 409 class. The interview was with my high school world history teacher, who retires at the end of next year. He said it surprises everyone that his primary method of communication is email, since everyone sees him as the stereotypical ancient (as in his age…not the instructional topic…) history teacher. However, he said one of his main goals, especially within the past few years, has been to befriend the younger teachers so that he can give them the benefit of his experience and knowledge, while learning from them about how to effectively use the technology systems the school offers.
Chapter 11
Chapter 11 was about potential problems with using technology in schools. The three main categories are legal, social, and ethical. The biggest issue I remember from my time in high school was copyright concerns. Some instructors were very paranoid about potential violations of copyright, so they never bothered showing videos in classes.
The biggest problem I foresee for my future classroom, not forgetting Murphy, comes with software piracy. I hope to use simulations, like civilization building games, for some units if possible. The thing to remember here will be to get the licenses to permit its use in school; after getting school permission, of course.
The digital divide section of the chapter was interesting, but I believe this will be less of a problem for the people in this class than currently practicing teachers. Many that are even slightly older than me did not have computers in the household until later in life. We are now starting to tap into people young enough to have had them at least since their teen years, which I believe will help close the divide quickly.
The biggest problem I foresee for my future classroom, not forgetting Murphy, comes with software piracy. I hope to use simulations, like civilization building games, for some units if possible. The thing to remember here will be to get the licenses to permit its use in school; after getting school permission, of course.
The digital divide section of the chapter was interesting, but I believe this will be less of a problem for the people in this class than currently practicing teachers. Many that are even slightly older than me did not have computers in the household until later in life. We are now starting to tap into people young enough to have had them at least since their teen years, which I believe will help close the divide quickly.
Chapter 10
Chapter 10 is about distance education. According to the history section, this started out as correspondence courses, moving to telephone conferencing, then video conferencing, and finally to internet based classes. Being in this online class, most of this chapter should be pretty obvious.
The thing that surprised me the most about this chapter was the amount of work and planning I had to do to make sure I got work done. I was expecting more of a coast through since there was no dedicated class time, but this was a misconception. According to this chapter my readiness was low.
Having been in Civil Air Patrol and working as a computer construction technician, I particularly liked the Murphy’s Law section. Not enough people plan for backups or leeway time in case a system goes down totally, or if there is a glitch. This is something Mr. Burkett and I have had to deal with recently with, ironically, the activities for this very chapter.
The thing that surprised me the most about this chapter was the amount of work and planning I had to do to make sure I got work done. I was expecting more of a coast through since there was no dedicated class time, but this was a misconception. According to this chapter my readiness was low.
Having been in Civil Air Patrol and working as a computer construction technician, I particularly liked the Murphy’s Law section. Not enough people plan for backups or leeway time in case a system goes down totally, or if there is a glitch. This is something Mr. Burkett and I have had to deal with recently with, ironically, the activities for this very chapter.
Chapter 9
Chapter 9 was about audiovisual technology in the classroom. It talks about technologies like audiotapes/talking books, multimedia kits, oral histories, oral journals, broadcast audio, video, mp3s, DVDs, and digital projectors. Having tinkered with it some in my spare time in the past, the part of most interest to me was the digital video editing and video compression sections. However I did have to laugh at the photo of the kids at the listening center. I have not seen that particular system since about 1988.
As I stated in my chapter 9 activities, I like the idea of using webcams for classes that the chapter presents; it is just difficult to find relevant and readily accessible resources to use them in the field of Social Studies. Occasionally there are digs that are covered, but the sites only last a short time. Another possible use in a social studies classroom might be to arrange an online conference or something with legislators for a unit on civics.
As I stated in my chapter 9 activities, I like the idea of using webcams for classes that the chapter presents; it is just difficult to find relevant and readily accessible resources to use them in the field of Social Studies. Occasionally there are digs that are covered, but the sites only last a short time. Another possible use in a social studies classroom might be to arrange an online conference or something with legislators for a unit on civics.
Sunday, August 2, 2009
Images
The following images are all related to the social studies field, but I tended to bias towards my interest in history...
Trevi Fountain, Rome
Built by the Church to cap the end of an old Roman Aqueduct
Map of the First Crusade
The White House
Mesopotamian relief mural
WWI British Tank with rollover wheels and anti-artillery roof.
Trevi Fountain, Rome
Built by the Church to cap the end of an old Roman Aqueduct
Map of the First Crusade
The White House
Mesopotamian relief mural
WWI British Tank with rollover wheels and anti-artillery roof.
Chapter 8
Chapter 8 deals with using online resources in teaching. It talks about things like blogs, government sites, and other online applications. It also gets into the topic of class websites and the web authoring tools that can be used to make them.
The activity involved rating The Educator’s Reference Desk and the website for the Association for the Advancement of Computing in Education. I had use Educator’s Reference Desk before, so there were no surprises there. However, the other website looked promising for the development of professional contacts and conventions about technology in the classroom that it had links for. The Association webpage also had articles of past articles and journals on the topic of school technology, which could provide some ideas and insights for future classroom implementation.
The activity involved rating The Educator’s Reference Desk and the website for the Association for the Advancement of Computing in Education. I had use Educator’s Reference Desk before, so there were no surprises there. However, the other website looked promising for the development of professional contacts and conventions about technology in the classroom that it had links for. The Association webpage also had articles of past articles and journals on the topic of school technology, which could provide some ideas and insights for future classroom implementation.
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