Week 13: Meaningful Learning

                Technology based rubrics are extremely helpful, but only under certain conditions (specifically for math teachers). They are helpful in that they guide both the teacher and the students in their work. Teachers can remember all that they are looking for and assist in grading, while students can know exactly what they need to do and what is expected. As stated in the text, however, they are time-consuming to make and require a lot of pre-assignment hours for the teacher. However, once they are made, they can be continually reused and modified fairly quickly, another benefit thanks to technology. One may also use rubrics made by other teachers, but the teacher who is searching for one will have to make sure they find one that is specific to their needs. I believe that the benefits outweigh the negative aspects. They are a great way of organization, and there are several tools available online for teachers to use to make rubrics which makes the process easier.

             Clicker technology is useful, but is very limited. In math, I do not see many practical applications for it in math. While clicker technology does eliminate the need for raising hands and talking to each other in class, it also limits the students to either what can be typed on a keyboard or selected form a bank of questions. In math, where I strongly believe in critical thinking through written work, clickers have little use. In other settings, it is more usable. Some perks are that it (usually) supports anonymity; that is, students can answer question and not have their answers, right or wrong, be linked to themselves. Also, clickers allow ALL students to answer, not just ones that would typically blurt out the answer or raise their hand first. If there are more ways in which this type of technology can be used in math, then I would really like to use it. After all, math is response-heavy class and students could answer questions anonymously without fear of being right or wrong.

            Inspiration and Kidspiration seem like good ways to organize and collect ideas and thoughts. This could be either a drawback or a benefit in math. Students could use the visual maps to connect theorems and formulas to certain conditions and applications. Unfortunately, I could not really think of many other uses. Inspiration had little or no in depth math applications. However, I attribute this to the whole concept of math: you have to use and apply it to learn it. Otherwise, Inspiration seemed like a great way for visual learners to get the information. They can see the material and connections within it.

            Overall, while all these technologies may be helpful in most classes, their uses are limited in math. I doubt I would use them, but if I did, it would likely not be often. Electronic rubrics could be used when doing projects; that is, students could know exactly what type of data they need to collect, how to organize it, and all the smaller details that may be involved. As with clicker technology, I might try to make a bank of questions that requires students to really think about the question before they answer. I might make all the answers so similar that students would feel weary just trying to guess. They can work on problems at their desks, then answer them when they get an answer. For Inspiration, I do not think I would use it. I just do not see a practical use for it. It would require a lot of time to prepare something, or to get students to prepare something, and it does not support math very well.

Reference:
Jonassen, D., Howland, J., Marra, R., & Crismond, D. (2008). Meaningful learning With Technology (3rd Edition). Columbus, OH: Pearson/Prentice Hall.

Week 9: Podcasting

    I personally do not use podcasts, just because I have never needed to and never come across one that was that interesting. However, I think they can be useful for giving students that little bit more of access to information. My nine year old niece already has an iPod, so I know that students are becoming increasingly tech savy and having accessibility to it. Many students do not prefer to go online and read information, even if the teacher gives it to them. However, if they are able to listen to it on the computer, and even better, download it and listen to it anywhere, than they may be more motivated to actually utilize a resource!
    The one difference I see about podcasting from other Web 2.0 technologies is its portability, as mentioned earlier. Students (and teachers) would not just be limited to listening to a podcast at home on the computer, but they can download it during their down time and listen to it, say, while doing a workout or waiting for class. Also, another difference is the user-created aspect. The information that is being podcasted is not necessarily put their by some company or higher-up; anyone can make and share a podcast.
    I do own an iPad, but they are typically not compatible with PCs, the standard of most high-schools. I just use it as a replacement for a laptop, since I don't use one one the go that much. However, there are several great apps available to educators, like Dropbox and an Outline creator. There are also several specific purpose apps, such as ones about the US Constitution, the Solar System and Galaxy, and a Periodic Table. If I am not mistaken, there is a cable sold that lets you hook up an iPad to a data projector. I do not think I would use it in my math classes, as the only external resources I would need are already readily available (calculator and projector, internet access, etc.).  I do believer that the advantages of online communication tools outweight the disadvantages. I would rather have lots of information readily available and be able to share things rather than having to go to great lengths to get it.

References:

Jonassen, D., Howland, J., Marra, R., & Crismond, D.  (2008). Meaningful Learning with Technology (3^rd ed.).  Upper Saddle River, New Jersey:  Pearson Education, Inc.

Chapter 6

    Wikis and blogs are great tool for sharing information. After all, I often browse certain Wikis that are based on points of interest. However, why would you share information in a math class? The only time I can see this as useful is if the class is doing a project in groups and can post things online. If anyone has ever tried to write anything in a mathematical way with a keyboard and computer, they would know how hard it is. Overall, it seems inadequet for my class. In any other class, it can be used to share ideas and get students more involved.
    Bookmarking itself is extremely useful. My whole browser is filled from left to right with buttons of bookmarks. Social Bookmarking is a good means for users to share resources without having to give actual copies of something to others. Again, being a math class, using the internet itself will be sparce. However, Social Bookmarking can be used to share some great links to videos I have found (that I referenced in a earlier post). Also, if we are ever doing a math or any other project, I and my students can use Social Bookmarking as a way to show and share resources and useful sites.
    Tapped In seems like a great way for teachers to communicate and share ideas more easily than meeting in person. After all, teachers often have very tight schedules. This way, they can simply get on and look up or share at their convenience. The book is right when it mentioned how teachers are isolated and rarely share ideas. (p. 128) If they (we) can gather our collective thoughts and share our experiences, I am sure that the teaching community will gain a better understanding of the student learning processs as a whole. I am still a little confused as to how it works and how to get involved with it, but I plan to do more research to do so.

References:

Jonassen, DJ, Howland, JH, Marra, RM, & Crismond, DC (2008). Meaningful Learning with Technology. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Pearson.

Chapter 10 Discussion

Assessment activities are a way to evaluate student progress. Authentic assessment Jonassen, Howland, Marra, & Crimsond, 2008, as defined in the text, “means that learners engage in educational tasks that are meaningful and directly related to real tasks they may need to perform in the future” (p. 219). As such, an effective way of assessing students which goes along with authentic assessment is by performance assessment (Jonassen, Howland, Marra, & Crimsond, 2008, p. 218), which assesses a student’s progress by having them perform or engage in what they have learned. While portfolios are a good way of evaluating progress and generating feedback, I don’t see as the most effective method for a math class, which I plan to teach. I would most likely use teacher-created (not multiple choice) tests to evaluate, then go through an in depth-review of it so students know where they went wrong. After all, math classes (especially high school ones) are meant to teach students things they will likely use in other math classes, not necessarily how to use it in real life.

                An e-portfolio is a collection of digital artifacts, which showcase a student’s progress throughout a period of time. They may include typed text, videos and graphics, and other types of multimedia. As portfolios are a great way to monitor and assess student progress, an electronic portfolio makes compiling different works easy and fun. The teacher can place criteria on the portfolio to meet any need, be it time or material. So, students are not only compiling their ideas and work, but in a form that benefits them to the digital age we live in. I am not a fan of computer based tests, considering they are essentially the same as non-computer-based ones. In fact, a computer based test is less effective than a normal one because it eliminates a lot of students’ thought processes and quite often supports luck. Even though I have never had an effective computer-based test, I can see the potential for them. After all, video games are becoming more interactive, so why shouldn’t tests.

                I do not think that I will be using e-portfolios or computer-based tests that much, if at all. I believe  that students need to be able to do certain things (like calculus and algebra) before they incorporate technology into it. In my math classes, we are not even allowed to use a calculator except for large, complex numbers and equations. As such, since math tests should NOT be multiple choice, I doubt I will use computer-based tests. After all, I want to see the students work out problems, not just be able to figure them out on the computer, or worse, guess right.

References:

Jonassen, D., Howland, J., Marra, R., & Crismond, D.  (2008). Meaningful Learning with Technology (3^rd ed.).  Upper Saddle River, New Jersey:  Pearson Education, Inc.

Copyright and Online Safety

Copyrights and fair use rules are put in place to respect the authors of published and unpublished works. They are meant to allow people to enjoy these works and use them to a certain extent without abusing the privilege and taking credit away from the authors. Thievery is illegal and immoral, and using something without permission, such as those protected by copyright, goes against the fundamentals of human morality, as well as the laws of the U.S. (and other) governments. After all, if you go through the time to write something and make a profit from it, you do not want people to cheat the system and steal it. To teach this to my students, I would start out by going over the legal consequences of violating copyright and fair use laws. Then, I would have them research the rules regarding copyrights and what they can do. The cyberbee quiz was also very helpful, and I could use that in class. When doing assignments, I would have them use a reference guide when needing to use an outside source of information.

Online/cyber safety refers to protecting yourself or others from online predators. Cyberbullying refers to being harassed by others online, which may sometimes be unintentional. While they are different, there are some similar characteristics. For example, both are dangerous and can overwhelm your students.  Both should be brought to the attention of a higher authority, such as you (the teacher), parents, and in drastic cases, the police. In fact, when someone thinks they are being bullied by someone online, this “bully” may actually be a predator seeking to harm the person. The best way to protect our students is to advise them on several things. For one, if you are doing research for the class, never register for anything unless the teacher gives you permission. If you see that registering or accessing something requires questionable information about yourself, do not do it. When accessing sites that only require a name, such as a public forum, use an alias. You may even have the class choose one to use universally for the class.

While I did know the importance of copyrights and fair use, I had no idea that the rules were that extensive (and I’m sure my previous teachers don’t know either). I thought that educational facilities had permission to use several resources online, and while they do, the amount that they can is limited, and cannot be taken outside the educational domain. Everything about cyberbullying and online safety was fairly commonplace to me. I was planning on being very careful where students got their sources from the beginning, although I do not plan to do anything that requires resources that much anyways. Growing up using the internet, I realize the importance of online safety and the danger of cyberbullies. I feel that I can present the dangers from my students, and at least give them sound advice on how to avoid potential dangers.

References:

U.S. Copyright Office. (2011). Copyright. Retrieved from http://www.copyright.gov/.

Cyberbee. (2011). Copyright Interactive Tool. Retrieved from http://www.cyberbee.com/cb_copyright.swf.