Tuesday, December 1, 2009

Course Reflection

    In this It365 class I have learned many needed tools to help further my future. This class has been a learning experience for me as I did each assignment I took with me another piece of information that I am now able to take into my classrooms and give to each of my students. I have learned what concept maps are and how to use them, I also have learned how to create a web site, I am so excited about that. If I was to graduate right this second I feel that I am more educated about tools that are necessary for my success. I feel that this class pushed me like no other classes before. Not in difficulty, but because it is a very demanding class, your attention and participation is a must to be successful in this class. I feel procrastination is one of my weak points and I have to learn to work on it. :) I plan to teach my students that if you stay on task or ahead of task stress will not be an issue for them. I plan to use technology in my classrooms on every chance that I get. Because I may teach a specal education class the assistive technology activity will be my greatest asset and I plan to use all of these tools provided to me.


     My favorite activities were the web tools. I really enjoyed those activities. I loved creating my own word search puzzle. I love to work word searches so learning of sites that allowed you to create your own for free was really interesting. The worksheets were really fun also. The worksheet site allowed me to search through tons of topics and print one of the worksheets that were already made or I could be creative and make my own. My weak point would have to be the website. At first it was difficult for me to wrap my mind around what I was actually suppose to be doing. I was trying to think to much into it and I was actually making it harder than it really was. In the future I plan to relax and enjoy the activities so that I am able to understand them better because if you go into something with a negative mindset on things then that will be your outcome. I plan to teach my students to enjoy their work and that way they will be able to really get into the learning experience and retain the knowledge. I want to teach my kids to do all of the tools that were afforded to me in IT365. I want to show them how to use Inspiration, Photostory, and many more of the activities that I learned this semester.

My Very Own Artifacts

Monday, November 30, 2009

Introduction

     My name is Daisy Haynes and I created this blog for my It 365 class.  This blog includes my journey through this semester in this class. Starting from the very first assignment to the last. Our final project is this "blogfolio". It will include all of my assignments from this class, the revised versions of course.
     Each assignment that we did in class is very crucial to our educational career. We learned how to do concept maps which are a really easy way of breaking down an otherwise difficult topic and explaining it easier. Using concept maps as a learning tool is very interesting also! We also did an activity where we used the web to create four articles that teachers use often. We made our own rubric, online quiz, worksheet, and puzzle. These items are necessary for basic curriculum in the classroom. Next, we created a blog, that's where this blog originated from. Originally this blog only contained the five NETS-T standards and our comments on them. Now we get to use this blog to create and even further learning experience. We also got the chance to learn to make our very own webpages!! The instructions were to pretend we had already graduated and had our very own classroom...FUN!! Assistive technology activity showed us how to incorporate people with disabilities into our classroom so that no one was left out. It gave us tons of resources that we could use to enable all students to learn. We also learned about the no-no's of plagiarism and how to revise to correct these errors. Finally we had some fun making a movie story on the theme of our choice.

Thursday, September 24, 2009

National Educational Technology Standards for Teachers

Standard #1. Facilitate and Inspire Student Learning and Creativity

Teachers use their knowledge of subject matter, teaching and learning,and technology to facilitate experiences that advance student learning, creativity, and innovation in both face-to-face and virtual environments.

Teachers:
a. promote, support, and model creative and innovative thinking and inventiveness.
b. engage students in exploring real-world issues and solving authentic problems using digital tools and resources.
c. promote student reflection using collaborative tools to reveal and clarify students' conceptual understanding and thinking, planning, and creative processes.
d. model collaborative knowledge construction by engaging in learning with students, colleagues, and others in face-to-face and virtual environments.

Reflection
It is important for all teacher to be knowledgable of what they are exactly doing. This is why intergrating technology into the classroom is so important.  The use of technology in the classroom in  today's time is a must. In past years students could get  by and live a perfectly happy life without technology in their lives, but now it is extremely necessary. Because technology is so important, the teacher or introducer of these new and innovative concepts must be thoroughly educatied in each of the areas addressed with the students. That is why it is very important that we absorb all of the knowledge that is put before us about technology. The photostory activity also is a great example of this because it allows a teacher to take her ideas and put them in a format that others can view and learn from.

Artifacts
Future Learning Goals
It is my goal to stay on top of the game because technology is changing everyday. I plan to learn more software programs specific to my particular class age also. Although we have been taught how to use concept maps and Photostory, I feel that there is still much more for me to learn about these tools. I am sure that there are other features in these softwares that I am unaware of so I plan to learn more things about them.

Standart #2. Design and Develop Digital-Age Learning Experiences and Assessments
Teachers design, develop, and evaluate authentic learning experiences and assessment incorporating contemporary tools and resources to maximize content learning in context and to develop the knowledge, skills, and attitudes identified in the NETS•S.

Teachers:
a. design or adapt relevant learning experiences that incorporate digital tools and resources to promote student learning and creativity.

b. develop technology-enriched learning environments that enable all students to pursue their individual curiosities and become active participants in setting their own educational goals, managing their own learning, and assessing their own progress.
c. customize and personalize learning activities to address students' diverse learning styles, working strategies, and abilities using digital tools and resources.
d. provide students with multiple and varied formative and summative assessments aligned with content and technology standards and use resulting data to inform learning and teaching.

Reflection
It is crucial that students be involved in the learning process. Hands on experience is the best experience. When participation is included in activity the students are more likely to remember it, that's why it's necessary to bring technology into the classroom so that the students can have first hand experience with these tools.  Activities like online worksheets and online learning games are examples of this. These technology tools are not only educational but they are also fun and make the student want to play which also helps them learn.  This standard also addresses personalizing the learning experience for the child. This brings in the Assistive Technology assignment because some students will have disabilities and it will be necessary for the teacher, me, to accomodate that student just as I would any other.

Artifacts
Future Learning Goals
It is essential that technology be put in the hands of the students so it is my goal to include at least one technological activity per subject per day in my classroom. I can do this by using concept maps in subjects like science and history to make things easier for my students to understand. Use of worksheets is also a great way to make my goal.

Standard #3. Model Digital-Age Work and Learning

Teachers exhibit knowledge, skills, and work processes representative of an innovative professional in a global and digital society.

 Teachers:
a. demonstrate fluency in technology systems and the transfer of current knowledge to new technologies and situations.
b. collaborate with students, peers, parents, and community members using digital tools and resources to support student success and innovation.

c. communicate relevant information and ideas effectively to students, parents, and peers using a variety of digital-age media and formats.
d. model and facilitate effective use of current and emerging digital tools to locate, analyze, evaluate, and use information resources to support research and learning.

Reflection
This standard touches on the fact that teachers need to be able to teach and lead technology into the students homes where possible. This means involve the parents in the school work. Teachers can also allow the students to interact with each other in online discussions and this of that sort. Some examples of putting this standard into action would be the teacher website and the class rubric.  Creating a custom rubric allows the teacher to taylor the rubric to her class' needs and stray away from the generic standard. Using tools line the rubric creating tool allows the teacher to open doors otherwise closed to some students. The classroom website is also a very great example of this standart.  This brings the classroom into the home and allows the parents to participate in the learning experience.

Artifacts
Future Learning Goals
I plan to always incorporate teacher created rubrics into my lesson plans because the standard is just so... standard. I also plan to create my very own real classroom website and now I have all the tools to make that possible. Using the create your own rubric site is a great tool because it allows me to set the bar for what and where I want my students to be.

Standart #4. Promote and Model Digital Citizenship and Responsibility

Teachers understand local and global societal issues and responsibilities in an evolving digital culture and exhibit legal and ethical behavior in their professional practices.

Teachers:
a. advocate, model, and teach safe, legal, and ethical use of digital information and technology, including respect for copyright, intellectual property, and the appropriate documentation of sources.

b. address the diverse needs of all learners by using learner-centered strategies providing equitable access to appropriate digital tools and resources.
c. promote and model digital etiquette and responsible social interactions related to the use of technology and information.

d. develop and model cultural understanding and global awareness by engaging with colleagues and students of other cultures using digital-age communication and collaboration tools.

Reflection
This may be the most important standard of them all because it is about integrity.  If a teacher has no integrity, she isn't a teacher. It is mandatory that student be taught the rules and regulations of safe and effective technology use. This idea has become even more true since the growth of the internet. Bringing the internet into the classroom is inevitable and because of this students must be taught the proper way to use technology. Ethics and morals must be drilled into to their little sponge brains until it is understood that technology it not a toy, it is a tool just like with regular tools, you can get hurt. This is also why it is improtant for teachers to be properly educated themselves.
 Artifacts
Future Learning Goals
I plan to enstil upon my students that morals are not an option they are mandatory.  I also plan to learn more about the net standards. The turnitin exercise taught me that it is so easy to plagiarize and not even know it. Most of the time when people plagiarize they do it with no intentions on doing so. These two activities taught me that it is simple to give credit where it is due to keep from doing anything illegal. I plan to teach these things to each of my students.

Standard #5. Engage in Professional Growth and Leadership

Teachers continuously improve their professional practice, model lifelong learning, and exhibit leadership in their school and professional community by promoting and demonstrating the effective use of digital tools and resources.

 Teachers:
a. participate in local and global learning communities to explore creative applications of technology to improve student learning.

b. exhibit leadership by demonstrating a vision of technology infusion, participating in shared decision making and community building, and developing the leadership and technology skills of others.

c. evaluate and reflect on current research and professional practice on a regular basis to make effective use of existing and emerging digital tools and resources in support of student learning.

d. contribute to the effectiveness, vitality, and self-renewal of the teaching profession and of their school and community.

Reflection
Teachers must involve themselves in learning situation to keep of with the growth of technology. That is why studying the technology standards is good.  If a teacher does not know what they are teaching, how can they teach it? Teachers also need to keep up with the growth of technology because they need to be able to bring it to their students this is where the blog that we created comes into place. The blog allows the teacher to interact with the students as well as the students to interact with each other and to help each other learn.  The blog is an open forum for people to discuss their ideas and what they know individually with on another and this also helps with the learning process.

Artifacts
  • Blog (Here)
Future Learning Goals
I believe that I've been given the tools that I need to keep up with technology. Thanks to this class I know how to accomodate a student with special needs, as where I had no clue before. I also know where to find the answer to something if I don't know the answer.
These standards have been set in place to provide a guideline for teachers and educators to follow.  Standards are needed because there needs to be some form of boundaries or guidelines for teachers to follow. Since technology changes and grows by the minute there should always be something that the educators can go back to and be reminded of the all over goal and these standards are the perfect set of rules to be followed.

About Me

My name is Daisy Haynes and I'm a junior at the University of Southern Mississippi. My major is Elementary Education. I graduated from Jones County Junior College with my Associates degree in Marketing and Management. I would love to teach kindergarten or either highschool, can't really see myself teaching anywhere in between. If I decide to teach kindergarten technology will play a part in the curriculum by inroducing the basics of a computer to the kids.  By the age of five, which is kindergarten age, most children have already had some exposure to technology in the home. As their teacher it would be my job to show them the benefits and positive aspects of using technology as a learning tool. As a highschool teacher without technology the class would probably be extremely boring. There would be no powerpoint presentations, no online work to do, no way to email last minute questions or discussions. Another really good point about technology is that it is good for the environment. With computers we can help to save trees. By posting assignments online and communicating online we are able to save paper. I believe that technology is a major part of education. In today's world, technology is key. From the time I was in kindergarten to now there has been a major growth spurt in technology education. I feel that without technology as a part of the education process the students will be lost.I am enrolled in IT365 and out class social network is http://it365yuen.ning.com/.