Enhancing Learning Through Technology Week One

The articles that I read this week were very informational. I will start off with the Meta Analysis article on Teaching and Learning with Technology. This was a difficult article to read because I have never really read research articles before. After getting the major point of the article, a lot of the gibberish started to make sense.

The main underlying theme that I think the authors were getting at that even though technology is great for enhancing student learning, instructors must incorporate it in a way that challenges students and brings the students to use the technology to learn. In classroom settings that I have witnessed, teachers like to use program such as PowerPoint to "entertain" students. Instructors need to be trained in how to effectively use the programs to enhance learning.

Our school district is starting to use a variety of programs such as Sentios and Smartboards. While this are cool devices, and VERY expensive, I am not seeing the major applications that teachers are getting for students. Teachers I have seen use them as entertaining modes for their students. Is that what we are really trying to "Teach"?

The second major thing I pulled out of the article is the comments the authors made about lack of research into some of the technologies being used. There is not a lot of research into the use of technologies in our classrooms. While this article does a good job of shedding light on it, there is still not enough funds being distributed into the research of the programs. If we want to move further into the technology world, dedicated instructors, like ourselves, will need to spend restless nights to finding solutions to our technological classrooms.

The other article that I looked at this wek talked about Teaching Principles. When I read this, I tried relating it technological usage in our classroom. Teachers must identify the specifics as to why they are using certain programs in their classroom and the affect the said technologies are having on the students. Without clear objectives and assessments for Technological Usage, teachers are doing a disservice to the students because the underlying question of "Why are we doing this?" still lingers.

The final article that I read was about Learning Principles. When I read this article, the main theme that came to me was students need to know what they are doing and what purpose it has for their learning process. By implementing Technological devices that have clear and concise purposes, students learning will increase.

Finally, the textbook that we are reading is very interesting as I just finished a class where I read Classroom Instruction that Works. The materials in the first three chapters offered me a insight on how I could use technology to better the lessons that I have already integrated from my other course.

Final Submition for Internet Learning Resources

This week was another great experience for me. I really like our investigations and comments about ethics/privacy and internet children safety. Privacy is something that we will all fight the rest of our digital lives. While I know people that burn or shred every document they collect, I have different methods of disposing of these. I have a feeling the more sophisticated the criminals become, the harder it will be for our governmental agencies and agencies around the world to policy the issue.

As for child safety, this is one that I deal with a lot with in our digital imaging courses. A variety of my students have Flickr and PhotoBucket websites where they post their own personal picture. I feel that if I allow the students to do this during school time, they are exposing themselves to potential predators. While I don't allow the students to use these services in my computer class, studnets still use the services outside the classroom. I think we need knowledgable high school kids that understand the possibilities that are out there.

Internet Resources Week Three

Well a variety of different programs really spurred my desire to implement online courses into my teaching assets asap. Of all the programs that we looked at this week, two of them stood out over the others. The first one was 280 Slides. 280 Slides is an online presentation program that gets it right. I have used Empressr before, but sometimes it took me a lot of resistance from smashing my computer screen. When working with 280 Slides, it was a lot easier to bring in pictures, draw tables and diagrams, and impose PowerPoints. This ease of use has me hooked and I will continue perfecting my 280 Slide Skills.

The second program that I really like was Google Forms. Google Forms is an awesome feedback tool that all educators should use, because it is so easy. I can complete a survey in five minutes about a unit and have students tell me whether they understand the content, instead of nodding their heads. No more running down to the copy machine, wasting time, when I have all the access at my fingers tips. I am going to pass Google Forms onto my teaching staff because I think the shear ability will better the classroom environment.