Thursday, April 16, 2009

Out of the Box Voki


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Wednesday, April 15, 2009

Tuesday, April 14, 2009

Technology Interview Reflection

I chose to do my technology interview at Springville High school, where my dad teaches. He arranged the interview for me with one of the computer technology teachers. Her name was Shauna Binkered, and was very helpful and knowledgeable.

The one piece of technology that Mrs. Binkerd was very excited about that I didn't get to put into the form online was what she called a 'Mobi". These Mobi pads are electromagnetic digitizing technology which delivers high resolution, providing superior performance for fine annotations, manipulating of images/resources and handwriting recognition. Mrs. Binkerd said that they were going to receive these Mobi pads in their classrooms next year, and were attending conferences on how to use them. They seem to be a really awesome tool for teachers and for students that can greater expand the use of their current technology.

Looking at what was available to teachers in the classroom made me really reflect on what I could use in my own classroom as a teacher. Here is a list of a few things that I think would be useful for me to have as a Health, Anantomy and Biology teacher:

Projector
Laptop
Demonstration table camera, connectable to the Projector
Interactive whiteboard
Microscopes
Microscope cameras
pH measurement probes
Electronic thermometers
Electronic blood pressure cuffs
Manual blood pressure cuffs
AED
this is just a short list, but I am sure there is more that I could utilize in my classroom. Having technology such as this would be very helpful in my classroom in making what could have once been complicated demonstrations much easier. Using this technology in my classroom could also help me address many more different kind of learning intelligences within my classroom.

Sunday, March 29, 2009

Reaction: Week 13

This week we watched the movie called Three Steps.
I really liked how the video said that you should make your classroom beautiful, comfortable, and student centered. I really believe that the aesthetics and comfort in the classroom are very commonly overlooked. To me, I believe that I learn best in a beautiful classroom. When I eventually become a teacher, I will do my best to make my classroom aesthetically pleasing for my students. I believe this will also assist me in being a better teacher.
Also, comfort is often overlooked. If our students are uncomfortable, they will not be able to learn very well at all. I also want to be comfortable with my students in my classroom in order to better open up the communication between student and teacher, as well as student and student.
I also liked the 3 C's that were taught in Step 2. Competition, Cooperation, and Collaboration are 3 important keys to helping our students learn well in the classroom environment. These three C's help student remain self-motivated and help them to learn to interact well with their peers.

In relation to the WebQuest assignment we are beginning this week, we are learning to use these guided internet quests in our classrooms to create a self-guided and safe internet learning experience for our students.
I really like Webquests, and I believe that as long as they aren't unnecessarily redundant with the same information, students will be motivated to guide themselves through them in order to have a self-guided learning experience. I would probably like to use them in my future classroom, although not necessarily in excess. Maybe only one or two per year.

Sunday, March 22, 2009

My Beliefs

I believe that using technology in the classroom is very important to the success of students in the world today. When students encounter real life experiences post-high school, they will need to know how to utilize the technology around them. It is my duty as a teacher to help them learn how to use technology to their advantage.

As health is my primary area of study, using technology, especially the internet, is very important to keep up to date with changing health policies, regulations, and standards. Through governement websites especially, I can help my students know where they can turn for the most accurate and up to date information to assist them in their lives, even after they have left my classroom.

Lessons Learned

In our changing technological environment, it seems to me that it could seem quite overwhelming to a teacher. However, I had no idea quite how quickly the world is changing. I learned that students are expecting a lot out of their technological experiences. They all learn so quickly as new technology is introduced, and they want an environment that reaches them at the level they are learning.

I have many concerns regarding the way the world is changing without me. I have noticed that just since I have gotten out of high school, I am already out of the loop on many things, and I am only 21 years old! It will be a challenge for me to succeed in the technological arena in my classroom the older I get.

Strengths & Weaknesses

My Strengths and weaknesses discovered in this assignment were many. When taking the surveys, I surprisingly found myself to be mearely an apprentice in the majority of the areas! This was shocking to me, as I have been using a computer in every aspect of my life for the majority of my life! I earn a living using computers! To me, this really showed me how much I do not know. I have realized that even though I may feel I am better than the average computer user, I still only really can use or fix the basics. One of my weaknesses is my complete ignorance of any technology to assist special needs children in the classroom. I know that there are many things out there to assist them, but I am really quite unaware of it. One of my technological strengths, however, I feel is using correct terminology in my daily life. I use it in oral and written communication, and if people are trying to communicate something technology-related using correct terminology, I can understand them.

Some goals I have for my classroom as a future educator include being able to relate techologically to my students and going beyond the basics of technology. I would like to learn how to better use technology as an aid for my students who have special learning needs. This may be anything from a unique learning style or anything as severe as a deaf or blind student. I know that the technology exists out there, and I want to be able to be a resource for kids to learn about this type of technology if they need it.

A couple of seminars that I could attend to assist me in learning more about technology for special needs children are listed below. They would help me achieve my goal of assisting special needs children with technology in my classroom by better learning what is available to me as an educator to better improve their educational experience.
1. The 2009 Accessible Technology On-line Seminar Series
More information may be found here:
http://www.ada-audio.org/Webinar/AccessibleTechnology/Schedule/

2. The Introduction To Assistive Technologies - Webinar Series from "Ability Net"
More information may be found here:
http://www.emagister.co.uk/introduction_to_assistive_technologies_webinar_series_courses-ec170000930.htm