home

GENERAL GUIDENCE FROM DREW

 * 1) === This is a jumble page. Notes and brainstorm ideas so we know what direction we are all heading. ===
 * 2) === Next is a list of the questions and more direct questions asked for this week. ===
 * 3) I left the original page instructions up to help anyone in posting. I hope my frame works helps, if not change it.
 * 4) How about we all pick a color to write in so we all know who wrote what?
 * 5) Drew Pakalski- Dark Green
 * 6) Nicole Fox - purple
 * 7) Jeff Puglio- Red
 * 8) Shirley Thomas- Black
 * 9) Mohamed Sy

= BRAINSTORM IDEAS =
 * Ideas for vocabulary, get out of the boring.
 * Scoring methods

= TECHNOLOGY RESOURCES: = The dictionary defines a resource as an available source of wealth that can be drawn upon when needed. A technology resource is also a source of wealth, information wealth, and students should be able to take from that resource whenever they need it.

What is technology? Technology seems to be anything that enhances the classroom environment digitally. To simply say that computers and the internet are the only technology resources would be extremely dated (Thornburg, 2004).

"Technology is the branch of knowledge that deals with the creation and use of technical means and their interrelation with life, society, and the environment" (dictionary.reference.com). Technology can have different meanings depending on which era people are talking about. Today people refer to technology as to the newest invention in cell phone, computers, video games, cameras, medical equipment, and much more.

Technology is the application of math, science and art for the benefit of our lives; it has helped form and change our culture. I use calculators, and other technical tools for my science lab on a constant basis. I also use computers and an overhead projector with transparencies on a regular basis, but now I just got a LCD projector.

How do I use Technology? There are endless ideas and strategies when integrating technology into your classroom. One of the main things to keep in mind is you are not “doing things different” you are now “doing different things”. Technology is just a resource to help you in this metamorphosis (Thornburgh, 2004).

My school district is limited in technology. I have a Smart board and one computer in my room. I am constantly finding new material to use with the smart board. I use United Streaming, interactive games, websites, and more to help enhance my lessons. It is the teachers responsibility to use technology to support classroom instruction and prepare students for their future.

I have limited experience with smart boards, and to be honest I didn't like them. It seems to be little more than a presentation board that goes online. I would prefer my laptop and a projecting screen. I can work on my material anywhere and anytime without needing to download everything to different computers and smartboards that the district to put where they think is best. Also I notice many smartboard users spend a lot of time turning away from their students to work with the board. If there is an advantage to these things, let me know.

Specific Technologies:
 * Favorite websites and tech tools
 * Quizlet.com is a great site for vocabulary. Make your own lists and let students play games with vocabulary.
 * [] Thesis builder helps create a well written essay.
 * Blackboard
 * Blackboard is a great tool in any classroom. The course is set-up almost identical to what we use here at Walden. The students log into their classroom select their class and they are ready to begin. Much like our courses, the students will find tabs they can click on, on the left hand side of the page. Instead of finding Weeks they will find Units. For example, it may say Unit 2-Cells. The students should then click on that tab and they are in the correct Unit. There are digital journals they must do daily. Several lessons with web activates linked to them. As well as Virtual labs and experiments that we could not do otherwise. Each unit is completed with an Essential Question and a blog topic. The students must use complete sentences and information from the Unit to respond to their blog topic.
 * SMART Boards
 * Smart board is an interactive whiteboard. It combines a whiteboard with the computer. The touch screen connects to a computer and digital projector to show what is on the computers screen. Teachers can type their lessons on the computer using any of the computers applications (Word, PowerPoint, Excel) or features and display it on the screen for the class.


 * ** The LCD projector is a type of projector that can be used to project videos, notes, images and data on a screen or a flat surface. **
 * **Computer and Internet access**
 * []

= REPLACEMENT IDEAS =
 * New look at old ideas
 * I hate rubrics! Students do not want to evaluate a table for a grade, they want a score!
 * Blackboard
 * Less direct instruction.
 * Can not forget or lose your homework!
 * Collaboration between the students. Students responsible for their learning and edcuation.
 * Questions asked become more detailed and direct to the content.
 * Students are able to work to their ability level.
 * SMART Boards
 * Smart boards will replace the outdated chalk boards, dry erase boards, overhead projectors, and transparencies. Smart board combines these elements and many more into one. Smart board will engage learners by:
 * using interactive text, images, sound, and video files to enhance lessons - makes lessons come alive
 * uses a variety of learning styles
 * incorporates differentiated instruction
 * students show an increased motivation and enjoy interacting with the smart board
 * it captures the attention of the learners and encourages involvement
 * Outmoded practices this technology might replace
 * Notes can be printed or emailed from the smart board as a review for students. This also benefits students when they are absent. It's like they never missed the lesson. Smart board uses digital ink that allows teachers to write over existing applications on the screen. Lessons can be saved and changes can be made to keep the lesson up to date without recopying papers or transparencies.

I give class notes to students on the blackboard or on transparencies using the overhead projector. I constantly have several students who say that they cant see the notes and have to relocate to copy notes. Now I can type my notes on PowerPoint and make the font size much bigger to accommodate their needs. As part of the curriculum, we have a site called [] that contains small video clips, interactive activities and simulations. It was always a challenge to run the program to engage all the students as the computer screen is small and it is hard to view the simulations and participate in it effectively. The class can now as a group benefit from the interactive nature of the simulations, videos and imagery using this technology. In addition, as the computer is connected to the LCD, we can at the touch of a button use the Internet to see images and video stream from any other site as well.

= RESEARCH = The documented benefits of Blackboard were found at [|www.blackboard.com.They] are listed as follows: This article basically talks about the benefits of online learning and how they applied to the “Green” classroom. Teachers now can save paper on handouts because all of their course materials are online. This cuts down on paper cost because teachers are making trips to the copy room less often. Grades are kept in the course as well as attendance. This cuts down on time and paper resources. If the teacher chooses they can administer their exams through Blackboard. Cuts down on the need for paper based tests and the questions can be randomized for each student taking the test. You do not need different forms of the exam. This is a nice feature because the programs will auto-grade all the multiple choice questions that are provided.
 * Ideas!
 * Enhancing student-to-student and faculty-to student communication.
 * Public forums created in courses to allow for the teacher and the student to have ongoing communication and collaboration.
 * Teachers are more accessible.
 * Students have a sense of equality with teachers.
 * Enabling student-centered teaching approaches.
 * Accommodates different learning styles.
 * More opportunity for exploration.
 * Students learn by doing.
 * Providing 24/7 accessibility to course materials.
 * Explains itself.
 * Providing just-in-time methods to assess and evaluate student progress.
 * Conceptual reinforcement.
 * Reducing "administrivia" around course management.
 * Time is saved in class.
 * Time is used more efficiently. Students enter class, log-in and begin working. No time lost to handing out papers. Attendance can be checked while students are working.
 * Link to Article: []
 * Summary:

Another nice feature with Blackboard is the anti-plagiarism feature that is included. If you have an opened ended type questions, lab, or any assignment that requires a written response Blackboard will check the work. The program goes out into the Internet and finds if the students have copied and pasted material from some other source. Also, it will check back to the student responses and determine if 2 submissions are identical or if they are extremely close to being identical.

Teachers have access to a variety of electronic sources that help integrate the latest educational technologies into their lessons with a smart board. Smart board offers accessories and other learning devices that can also help enhance lessons. Smart Classroom Suite, Smart Notebook SE, Smart Response are just a few. Smart board offers downloads, templates, and lesson plans that teachers can use. Smart board is used to enhance pedagogy, increase clarity, and degree of detail through presentations.

Summary Link to article: http://education.smarttech.com/NR/rdonlyres/A90BE6E9-1BB4-4E0C-AA90-6A6706E7BD97/0/Int_Whiteboard_Research_Whitepaper_Update.pdf Interactive Whiteboards and Learning: Improving Student Learning Outcomes and Streamlining Lesson Plans. The article is about interactive whiteboard research and case study from the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. The article addresses several questions: What is an interactive whiteboard, How can it be used in the classroom, and How does it engage and motivate learners. After explaining these questions in details, it gives examples of how teachers in United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia use their interactive whiteboards in the classrooms. The research shows that interactive whiteboards have a positive effect on students motivation, engagement, and incorporating several learning styles. Some studies show evidence that students grades have improved by using interactive whiteboards, but others believe there is not enough information. With all the features, capabilities, and programs that interactive whiteboards offer, teachers are able to enhance their lessons to provide a more engaging and overall productive learning experience.

In a time and culture when it’s all about technology, nothing captures the attention of the children more, as much as the technology does. The children are captivated and captured by large imagery that they do not need to struggle to see, as most middle school children have difficulty seeing but refuse to wear glasses that they very much need. The LCD projector used in conjunction with a computer and the Internet does indeed make this a powerful unit. The computer is an amazing machine that is capable of doing numerous things for us; it can collect, store, and process informations. The present day most popular use of technology is in communication, when using the computer and Internet, we have access to an enormous amount of information from all over the world and it is literally at our fingertips. The Internet allows us to communicate globally as we are connected to the whole world; these are indeed important tools, and a critical resource that we are all dependent on. National Science Foundation has funded the researchers at Technical Education Research Centers (TERC) to study how to scafold scientific reasoning for students, which led to the development and designing of the Foss modules. []

Reform and Upgrade It is important to differentiate between reform and upgrade. Dr. Jacobs mentioned well the need to upgrade a curriculum instead of writing programs that are independent from older programs (Laureate Education, Inc., 2010). In fact as Dr. Jacobs recommended we need to go from assessments, contents, curriculums that exist already, gather new information and data that need to be changed and adapt them with the new trend of knowledge and job market. This means that it should be a continuous process made by teachers and educators but not a reform that leads usually in new programs that may be used many years ending up to be out dated. Instead instructional curriculums should be changing continuously in other words upgraded to follow new trend and use new tools such as 21st century technology. When teachers and educators may join anytime through educational chat rooms it make it easier to generate accurate organizational and instructional tools for a better curriculum that is renewed in a permanent basis (Laureate Education, Inc., 2010). The technologies that I believe need to be fully integrated are computer science technologies and the internet at all level as these technologies are very useful simplifications of the way instruction will be provided and allow students to work on many projects through the year. The actual era proves also a general tendency of use of modern technology in almost every business. Students use most of their fun time also through text messaging, internet surfing and electronic games. The use of these technologies in schools will facilitate instruction, accommodate students as they recognize themselves in these technologies and prepare them better for the job market, ultimate goal for educators. For example with the interactive board a math teacher does not need any more to go check answers when practicing with students. Students' answers appear on the board and are already checked right or wrong. A tremendous time saving that would be invested in more practice and other curricular activities. All that will be possible through continuous teacher upgrade, no reform will be able to follow the fast paced technological invention without generating unnecessary and huge cost. Despite my advocacy for instructional upgrade and the use of latest technologies I would agree with many of my colleagues that it is very challenging coupled with the state and national standards. That is why the success will depend on a concerted program from state, districts, to school, and individual commitments. References Laureate Education, Inc. (Executive Producer). (2010). Upgrading the Curriculum. Teacher as Professional [Motion Picture]. Baltimore, MA: Dr. Jacobs, H. H.

This is copied from the Question and answer section for our class
=You will contribute to your group’s wiki by providing the following information for each of the three sections listed above: =

=__Technology Resources:__=

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">• //What is it and how do I use it?//


 * <span style="background: white; color: #00b050; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">Quizlet.com is a great site for vocabulary. Anyone can set up a free account and create multiple vocabulary lists. Then you let students work through the list using games, quizzes, and making printable flash cards. Most words already have definitions in the system. **

//• Provide a description of a specific technology that supports 21st century skills. Include the basic knowledge and steps necessary to begin using this technology.//

==<span style="background: white; color: #00b050; font-family: Cambria; font-size: 12pt; font-weight: normal; line-height: 115%; margin: 10pt 0in 0pt;">I have repeatedly used quizlet.com to prepare for state testing, literary devices, power writing words, and root word exercises. ==

• How might this resource replace outdated elements and/or provide a more engaging and motivating learning experience?
==<span style="background: white; color: #00b050; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-weight: normal; margin: 10pt 0in 0pt;">It is often a struggle to get students interested in learning. When I use quizlet.com my students compare scores and even brag to me about how well they are doing. Once I had a student say I was cheating by making class fun. == =• Provide an explanation of the kinds of outmoded practices this technology might replace.= =<span style="background: white; color: #00b050; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 14pt; font-weight: normal; margin: auto 0in;">My brother (back in 1980) was taught to write all words five times, and then do it again. I have helped my kids work through the same practices for homework. These practices never go past low level root memory. There is no understanding of terms involved. =

• What are the documented uses and benefits of this resource?
· Fun in learning: o http://670.wikispaces.com, LMF Analysis – Schnaider This is a wiki that provides evidence of the value of learning motivation fun.

• Post a link to at least on one article, essay, or web-based paper that provides classroom examples, best practices, or research about the use of this technology.
· <span style="color: #00b050; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Marni Jones, Learning Specialist, Shippensburg University, PA [] o <span style="color: #00b050; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Promote students’ desire to learn a fun and effective new study strategy o <span style="color: #00b050; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Illuminate the advantages of active learning versus passive studying o <span style="color: #00b050; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Teach and entice students to independently use the online study tool


 * ==Include a brief one-paragraph summary of the information contained in the article, essay, or web-based paper.==

Getting Started
Manage Wiki **and** Invite People
 * Click on the edit button above to put your own content on this page.
 * To invite new members, click on
 * To change your wiki's colors or theme, click on
 * and**
 * To set who can view and edit your wiki, click on
 * and**
 * To set who can view and edit your wiki, click on
 * and**

Need Help?

 * Click on the help link above to learn more about how to use your wiki.