Tech Savvy

Tech PresentationThis presentation has been created as part of ED 271- Technology Applications for Education assignment. During this semester, I learnt a number of technology tools and media that will be useful in my future teaching. I was inspired by Dr. Cyrus. She always encourages us to explore and use different tools in our assignments.  

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Integrating Technology into the Curriculum

This is my first time to use ASSURE model to create a lesson plan. I think in this assignment satisfies the second standards of NETS*T for teachers, that is Design and Develop Digital-Age Learning Experiences and Assessments. Based on this standards, 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” (NETS for Teachers, 2008).

It is easy to create a lesson plan. However, how to incorporate multi-media into lesson plan is a challenge. I realized that it really takes time to develop a good lesson plan. As a teacher, we have to make sure everything goes smoothly and students understand the task. Originally I am thinking to ask students to create a slide to present their project. Then I did a little bit research, and found a very nice online poster called Glogster. Glogster.com enables students to create their own interactive online poster with images, graphs, photos and videos. It is fantastic! I think students would really enjoy doing this project. With a little editing and revising, I would recommend students to create a five-min presentation using iMovie or other online video tools. Since we may not have enough time to let each group to present, I think it would be a good idea to recommend an online presentation and let students to rate each other’s work. Of course, rubric would be provided.

The presentation would be a little bit challenge for ESL students. However, with the help of Glogster, they could easily create an online poster to present their project. It requires some time to practice the five-min presentation. I think they can handle it. As you can see, there are lots of videos and online games incorporated in this lesson plan. All materials and project are posted online website. For students with deaf/hard-of-hearing students, they can easily keep track of the assignments and read the detail of the project online. I think by incorporating multimedia into the lesson plan, it really benefits students with disabilities.

When I first started with my digital tutorial assignment, Dr. Cyrus reminded us hat we need to incorporate the video into our lesson plan. I was prepared and chose this topic-Pythagorean theorem. However, when I really started with this assignment, I have no idea where to start. I had a hard time to come out with the objectives of lesson plan. Thank you, Dr. Cyrus! She wrote me several valuable feedbacks about my objectives and gave a clue where to start.

This is also my first time to use ASSURE model writing a lesson plan. Again, I am lost. I have no idea what ASSURE model is. I looked over all the sample lesson plans Dr. Cyrus posted and did a research. The ASSURE model is an instructional model for planning a lesson and the technology that will enhance it (Integrating Technology Into The Curriculum, 2011). By reading the definition of ASSURE model, I understood the reason that we use this as template to create our lesson plan. Amazing, I found that ASSURE model allows me to think effectively by integrating technology into curriculum.  

With Wix.com, I was able to create my own website. Awesome! From this assignment, I really learnt a lot. Most important, I enjoy the process of exploring new technology and integrating into lesson plan. With these experiences, I am confident to say that my students would not only learn, but also enjoy this lesson.

Reference:

NETS for Teachers 2008. (2008). Retrieved from http://www.iste.org/standards/nets-for-teachers/nets-for-teachers-2008.aspx

Integrating Technology into the Curriculum. (2011). Retrieved November 26, 2011, from  http://ed205.net/assure_model.html

8 Awesome Technology Tools

1. MOODLE: Open-Source Community-Based Tools for Learning

Rating: 5/5

Moodle is a platform that allows more interaction between teachers and students. Before I took this course, I thought MOODLE just a website to submit my homework. I was so wrong. By using the MOODLE, I can keep track of my assignments. I can easily review my grades. I can even chat with my professor and classmates. AWESOME!

2. Firefox: Made to Make the Web a Better Place

Rating: 5/5

It’s a free website! You can use different templates to display the website. It even has spell checking, live bookmarking, private browsing. You never know how amazing it is until you start to explore! Even more awesomeness!

3. Google apps: More Than You Thought!

Rating: 5/5

Google apps include: Gmail, Google Groups, Google Calendar, Talk, Docs and Sites. Again, it’s free! It offers the same amount of storage as regular Gmail accounts. Now, I can store all my assignment in the Google apps and don’t worry I will lose any of them.

4. Wix: Free Website Builder

Rating: 5/5

With wix.com, you can create your own free flash website. It offers tons of templates that you can edit, create your own stunning flash website. Creating your own website in a second! That’s Wix.com! 

5. Voicethread: Group Conversation with Image, Document and More!

Rating: 5/5

VoiceThread is a collaborative, multimedia slide show that holds images, documents, and videos and allows people to navigate slides and leave comments. It is so cool that you can create a video with your own document and share with your friends and students from anywhere in the world.

6. iMovie: Create Your Own Movie

Rating: 5/5

I just became a Mac user recently. And I love iMovie. It allows you create and edit your own movie. I am now a producer of my own. iMovie allows you to incorporate sounds, pictures and videos easily. It is terrific!

7. LiveBinder: Online Binder

Rating: 5/5

How to organize your own stuff? If you still have no idea, try out LiveBinder. It allows you to gather and organize your knowledge, whether it's a website links or files.  You can even install the bookmarking tool in your browser tool bar. Next time if you want to save the website, just by clicking the tab and it’s yours. How easy it is!

8. Glogster: Create Online Poster in 90 Seconds

Rating: 5/5

Again, it’s free! With Glogster.com, you can make your own interactive poster online just in 90 seconds. You can also mix with images, graphs, photos and videos into your poster. Be creative! And don't forget to share with your friends! it is fantastic!

Pythagorean Theorem Lesson Plan (ASSURE MODEL)

That’s not cool! Don’t let your finger do all the talking.

 

This week, our awesome group E mates and I gave a presentation concerning sexting and textual harassment. It is really a meaningful project. We live in a information society. Nowadays, who doesn’t have a cell phone? I have my cellphone since I got accepted into college. My parents gave it to me as a college gift. If I don’t have this project, I never would know such a wonderful communication tool also could cause the dangers of texting, it may even take people’s life.

Here are some interesting numbers we did research on cell phone. According to a recent Marist Poll conducted by the Marist Institute for Public Opinion, 87% US Americans said that they own a cell phone. 94% of Americans under age 45 have cell phone. (Watershed Publishing, 2009) Cell phone is so widely known and used. When we walk into campus, we will see most of our students own cell phones. It becomes so common that sometimes we ignore the problems cell phone may cause. 

What are the problems that cell phone usage may cause? The answer is sexting and textual harassment. Textual Harassment is phone calls and messages that are used as a form of bullying. And sexting is the act of text messaging someone in the hopes of having a sexual encounter with them later, initially casual, and transitioning into highly suggestive and even sexually explicit content. (The Line, 2011) Here are some statistics among teenage students. 33% of teen boys and 25% of teen girls say they have had nude images that originally meant to be private but shared with them. 3 in 10 young people have been involved in sexting. More than 50% of those who shared a sext shared with multiple people. Sexters are 4 times more likely to consider suicide in the past years than those who don’t.

That’s not cool! Most teenagers are still immature. They didn’t realize the risks from sexting. Once you decide to click the send button, it’s gone forever. You have no control over who can see it and you can’t take it back. Sexting and textual harassment can be a form of bullying. It can impact on the victim having low self-esteem, truancy, eating disorder and ever suicide. As a teacher, we should be aware of the danger of sexting and textual harassment. Teach students to respect each other and give them a lesson on the danger of it. It is necessary to make sure that students think before the finger does the talking.

During the preparation of our presentation, we also had some trouble. In that week, I happened to be off-island. It became really hard for me to communicate with my group mates and keep track on the progress of our presentation. When I came back from California, I immediately contacted with my group mates. Frankie told me that we did go through a hard time to create our presentation. Fortunately, we pulled through and had a wonderful presentation. Group E members, job well done!

Here is the link to our presentation:

http://www.wix.com/fgmcjohn/sextingtextualharassment

Reference: 

Watershed Publishing. (2009). Employment & Age Top Factors in Cell-Phone, PDA Use. Retrieved Monday, November 7, 2011, from http://www.marketingcharts.com/interactive/employment-age-top-factors-in-cell-phone-pda-use-9678/

The Line – Australian Government. (2011). Fact sheet: TXTing/SEXTing. Retrieved Monday, November 7, 2011, from

http://www.theline.gov.au/factsheets/text_sext

Assistive Technology: the Key to Success

We all agree that every student is an individual unique person. When we create a lesson, we not only have to consider about the class as whole, also we have to look at individual student to make sure no child left behind. However, are we really doing that good? How about the students with disabilities?

The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), Public Law 105-17 (1997) mandates that children with disabilities have the same opportunity to receive education, like other children. However, in our school system, students with disabilities sometimes are part of groups that being neglected in the classroom. Most of teacher are concerned about they do not have time and training they need to fell confident to teach students with disabilities. But what if there is a better way of assisting and training students with disabilities to success and pursue their dreams?

In the video Enable Dreams, assistive technology plays a crucial role in the life of students with disabilities. Susanna Martini, a students at University of Washington, said, “Technology is the major foundation of my life, without it, I couldn’t exist as I am today.” Because of technology, Susanna is able to go around, jog, and call friends and family for help, do her homework by herself and do research. Because of technology, Lukea Bratcher, a student at Mead High School, is able to pursue her music dream. Assistive technology (AT) can be defined as technology that modified, or customized used to increase, maintain, or improve the functional capabilities of individuals with disabilities. (National Institute of Standards and Technology [NIST], 2011) For example, powered mobility, communication devices and word processing program, and speech recognition system. The use of assistive technology for students with disabilities can provide an individual with an opportunity to experience leaning productivity and motivation. The video Enable Dreams is really inspirational and provoked.  I will suggest teachers look at this video and rethink what we can do to help students with disabilities to accomplish their dreams and fulfill their abilities.

Just like Sheryl Burgstahler in the video said, “it (Assistant Technology) is not that much implemented into our school system.” Most of teacher are not aware of technology is available for disability students and also it is not always included in the plan. As a future secondary math teacher, I would like to get to know my students, especially students with disabilities, before I create and plan my lesson plan. In my opinion, knowing your students is the first step of creating and designing an activity or a lesson plan. I would consult with colleagues and look over students’ record and go online to find more information for students with disabilities for providing an appropriate curriculum, particularly in secondary math classroom. While including students with disabilities, the article Students with disabilities in mainstream classrooms: A resource for teachers suggests some other advice that I would also like to implement in my future classroom:

1.  Use visual supports such as diagrams, pictures and visual timetables;
2. Use assistive technology such as software to read the text aloud;
3. Introduce more variety into ways of assessing student performance. (Shaddock, Giorcelli, Smith, 2007)

I believe assistive technology would give me an opportunity to create a new approach towards learning math. Like I learnt in this class, I would like to use digital tutorial as extra curriculum for all students to look over. I would also use multimedia, such as Prezi, PowerPoint and iMovie to improve student access.

I would also like to use alternative assessments to assess student performance. I think alternative assessments make it easier for many students to demonstrate their learning. In the traditional math class, test and exam seem to be the only way of assesses students and determines their ability. I don’t agree with it. Like I said in the beginning, every student has his or her own learning way. I would like to create a platform for students to demonstrate their learning and improvement.

Meanwhile, I would like to use rubric and portfolios to assess the appropriateness of the activity and performance of students with disabilities. Sometimes a score can’t tell you everything, but using a rubric to assess student’s performance may be another good choice and excellent tools to accurately reflect student’s learning.

We are setting goals for all of our students. We have to keep in mind that every child can learn and is able to learn. What we need to do is to give them the key and let them explore the adventure of learning. Assistive technology is the key for students with disabilities to capture their dreams and can put an engine on their efforts of pursuing their dreams.

Reference

National Institute of Standards and Technology. (2011) Assistive Technology. Retrieved October 12, 2011, from http://standards.gov/assistivetechnology.cfm

Shaddock. A., Giorcelli. L., and Smith. S. (2007). Students with disabilities in mainstream classrooms: A resource for teachers. Retrieved from

http://www.dest.gov.au/NR/rdonlyres/D3113371-7E2C-49FE-8017-8495030736BF/19755/InclusiveClassroomTeacherResourceFinal1.pdf

Pythagorean Theorem Digital Tutorial

Yan's Digital Tutorial Link:
http://voicethread.com/share/2307853/

Questionaut-An Incredible Secondary Educational Game

“Online educational game” is our first group project. This is my first time to explore online games from the educational perspective. In this project, I was exposed to different things. The first I learnt from this project is that there are a lot of good educational online games. Before, I was a person that says “NO” to all kinds of games. In my opinion, games are only waste of time. But this project totally changed my view to the educational online games. It is true that not all games are good and educational. That is the reason that as a teacher, we have to carefully evaluate the game before we introduced to our students. The game rubric is a perfect tool that would help a teacher to assess games. Therefore, of the NETS*T Standards listed in the NETS for Teachers website, I felt Standard 2A greatly applied to this assignment: "design or adapt relevant learning experiences that incorporate digital tools and resources to promote student learning and creativity ."("NETS for Teachers," 2008).

In this assignment, our first decision is to decide how to create a good and suitable game rubric. Before we started to create a rubric, I asked myself what is rubric. A rubric is an assessment tool that describes student’s work (Andrade, 1997). In our case, the rubrics is to score the game from its layout and design, navigation, objectives, rules, goals, feedback, interaction and subject. In the each criterion, we started to brainstorm the descriptions of criteria from unsatisfactory, average to excellent. We want these descriptions to be as concise as possible. We have to make sure that these descriptions explain what makes a good game and a bad game. I think this is the most challenging part of creating the rubric. After two classes, we had a complete version of game rubric. I copied it into the Word document and used a template to make it look nice.

Our second decision is to choose a good educational game. As a secondary education major, I was trying to find something that most of middle and high school students can play with. Thanks for Celes’s video “25 INCREDIBLE Online Educational Game Sites”. After reviewing her video and tried several games, I found Questionaut is really the most incredible game for middle and high school students. Questionaut is an educational game made by Amanita design, a company that has designed several games for BBC’s Bitesized games. The game itself tells a magical journey of helping friend to find his hat. In this game, there are eight stages testing student’s knowledge of English, math and science. The layout of the game is really attractive and colorful. The background music is also nice. In each stage, student is exposed to different learning subjects. Therefore, it is a good game for a secondary teacher to use as a group activity. I think I would like to use this game in a review lesson. I would like to show students that math could be also really fun to play with.

Questionaut provides a detailed feedback to wrong answers, and also to correct answers. That is the reason that I think it would be a great game playing with when we have a review lesson. Unfortunately, this game doesn’t have specific and detailed directions. Students need to guess about what to do next. Therefore, it needs a teacher to guide and walkthrough with them, and provides necessary instructions and help. I would use this game as a group activity, and count as an extra credit toward students’ grade.

In this group project, I enjoyed exploring the different educational online games that can be used in the secondary education classroom. I look forward to introduce this game to my students in my future classroom.

References

NETS for Teachers. (2008). Retrieved October 10, 2011, from http://www.iste.org/standards/nets-for-teachers/nets-for-teachers-2008.aspx

Andrade, Heidi Goodrich. (1997). Understanding Rubrics. Retrieved from

http://learnweb.harvard.edu/alps/thinking/docs/rubricar.htm

Game Rubric-Group E

Practice First Trial

Hey ya, today is tuesday. it's gonna be an awesome day!!!!

uog website.....