Presentations

When I was putting together my final presentation it had me thinking about ways to use some of the technologies we have been learning about. I have decided I prefer to use the Smart Notebook over Powerpoint, although I do have a better understanding about Powerpoint. With the Notebook I can incorporate different games and other applications into my lessons to make them more interactive and engaging for students. I enjoyed watching other presentations using the same or similar technologies. Through watching other presentations I was able to look at different ways that the technology could be applied. I also learned some interesting facts from the presentations also. 

Podcats

I am unfamiliar with podcasts. I have heard about them but I personally have never listened to one nor made one. When making one I found it relatively easy, especially using Audacity. I enjoyed how I could overlay different sounds in the background in order for it to work well with the audio track I recorded. I feel as though podcasts could be applied in various ways throughout the classroom. I think it would also be fun for students to create their own and share with other students in the class. 

Websites

I have never known how to create a website before. I knew that there were ways for teachers to create their own websites for their classrooms but I was unsure how to do it or if it would be easy to develop and maintain one. As we attempted to use the Google hosting site I was getting frustrated at having limited control over what the appearance of the site was. In order to have slightly more freedom regarding the appearance I decided to switch over to the Weebly hosting site. 

Weebly was not only appealing to my visual tastes, as far as layout and setting adjustments were concerned, and it was very simple to use. I enjoyed setting up my own website for my hypothetical classroom. I think a website for a classroom or teacher is very helpful for students. Many, if not the majority, of students know how to access websites on the Internet. Therefore, students could use a classroom website as a resource in they have any questions, particularly if the teacher keeps up to date on the website and posts homework and other resources. Although a website can be very useful, it also requires quite a bit of work on the teachers end in order to keep it up to date on what is occurring in the classroom.

iPads

iPads are a useful new technology that can be incorporated into the classroom in a variety of ways. They can be both useful for teachers to use apps to take notes regarding how the classroom is running behavior wise or students using different educational apps that may have games to facilitate more learning and discovery or reinforce the learning that is already occurring in the classroom.
I have used iPads for a number of different reasons for both the before and after school program and the summer camp I work for. One way I have used them is I was involved in running a fitness program and was allotted the use of an iPad which I downloaded a number of free games that all focused on healthy food choices for students to take turns playing. In addition there was also some fitness apps that we recorded different data into upon completing different physical activities. The app I had the most fun using was a free silent films app that I used with a class I taught over the summer about silent films. The kids worked in groups and created their own silent films which all turned out to be funny and cute. The kids enjoyed doing this activity and the app I used was pretty simplistic and it allowed the groups to record their skit and then alter it to include text descriptions and music. With all of these activities the kids really enjoyed being able to use the iPads!

Excel

I have used Excel in the past but not extensively, and only in terms of using it as a spreadsheet. I never knew that you could  create something like a seating chart or a timeline using Excel. I liked creating the seating chart. It was relatively simple once I figured out all the tools and how to use them. This is a great use of the program! I work at a before and after school program and I have had to remake seating charts a few times, where I always have to redraw the layout which can be both annoying and time consuming. However, if I use Excel it does not take long to draw out the layout and I can print out a new layout without having to redraw it! This is one use of the program that I can foresee myself using often to help make my job easier!

Cyberbullying

For this research paper I choose a topic that is sadly increasing and a serious issue both in and out of our classrooms: cyberbullying. There have been countless instances where our children have gone as far as suicide as a direct result of the bullying they have received throughout school. But now with the increase in technology, the bullying does not stop when students leave school.  Although cyberbullying may not occur while our students are sitting through our class educators must work with society to take action against this dire issue before it results in the loss of more lives. In many schools some form of education about bullying occurs in hopes of discouraging students from taking an active role in it, but many times little is taught in terms of cyberbullying. Society has focused on teaching our children about how to stay away from predators but little is taught about how to treat or react to their own peers. 

Bullying needs to be eliminated in order to ensure the safety of our students! And now with the advancement in technology we must get ahead and help keep our students safe online as well as in the classroom!

This research has solidified for me the need for awareness among educators about all the technology available to our children; in addition, we need to be made aware of all the negative ways our children are using it. As educators we are focused on all the positive was that technology can help benefit our classrooms but what happens when our students walk out of our classrooms and schools and turn on all the technology they aren't using within our schools. Kids can be cruel to each other and now they are more connected to one another than ever before; therefore, allowing the cruelty to continue even when they are not together. 

With awareness and education we can end this unnecessary cruelty and loss of lives, but we must take action to do either!

How Difficult Can This Be

This video was a very informative one. I particularly like how it was as if we were able to watch as people could experience the learning disabilities that their students may or may not have been experiencing. I have always thought that it is one thing to study and read about learning disabilities in an attempt to better understand them so we as educators can help the students facing them. But to actually have an experience where it is as though you have a learning disability yourself and to be able to go through the same feelings that our students are faced with on a daily basis is something that brings an enlightenment to us that no amount of research and study could ever do. These individuals were able to understand on a deeper and more personal level what a student with a learning disability experiences on a daily basis in and outside the classroom. I wish more of these experiences were offered to people both in and out of the education field so that as a society we could better understand one another. 

There were many parts of the video that struck me as interesting, one of which was when the participants were asked to identify what the poor quality photo was of. This was a simple activity but has a wide variety of was that it could be applied to student learning. A student may be told the information but may not be able to make sense of it or understand it, just like the participants were confused and could not identify what the image was. Some of the participants began to get creative and try to come up with their own idea of what the image portrayed, despite their lack of understanding. This is similar to when students are try to learn and instead of actually understanding the content they make up their own understanding of it, which in many cases is misled and inaccurate. However, as soon as the professor used a visual aide and took the time to show each individual participant suddenly it was as though a light bulb went off in the participants head that allowed them to understand and comprehend what they were seeing. This is one way that we can help our learning disabled children, by simply providing them with the extra tools for them to use in order to help turn the light bulb in their minds on with the understanding of the content. 

It is important for all educators to have a understanding of their students, to know their strengths and weaknesses. With a clear understanding of our students we as educators can alter our instruction and use different tools that will help each of them as individuals to reach their full capabilities. When we have the knowledge of what may work best for one student we can alter our lessons to help that student, and in turn it may help other students as well. Learning disabilities are challenging , especially for the students who must live with them. So as educators we must try to help these students overcome their disabilities and continue to learn and grow, which can only be done if we understand what these students are going through.