Final Course Reflection

In this class, I have learned how to use numerous amounts of tools to help myself in my home setting and to use as teacher and student. I have also learned how to research more promptly and how to effectively find things on the web. Also, the tools we have been introduced to will help use greatly in our own classrooms and will help gather ideas and information. My strong points are following directions very specifically, I tend to read the directions quite a few times to make sure I did not miss anything. Also, I enjoy doing projects and creating things I like to think of myself as creative. Some of my weak points are research, for some reason I have a hard time finding the right data. I guess I do not dig deep enough into the information and am lazy about it. Another weak point of mine is writing, I like to write about experiences and thoughts but writing long blogs is not my cup of tea. I like to address the main points and be finished, not in a detailed manner. Some future learning goals that could help myself in weak points would be to do more research and maybe think outside the box for details. Details are important for instance in books, it would be boring if the book just gave you the beginning and ending. I plan on integrating technology in my classroom with tools I have learned in this class. Including, concept maps, quiz let, Google site, and google groups. With myself wanting to teach younger grades like first and kindergarten, some tools I cannot use in my classroom. I would love to have a pramethemoen board in my classroom. This tool can be used in all grades and is great for interactive learning and engaging students to learn. It is a tool every school wants but they are very expensive. Most schools down here have them because after the hurricane, they were donated. Many tools can be used in the classroom and I will further my knowledge of technology and make sure my students are always using to newest tools to create fresh ideas.

Assistive Technology

           This is a great tool for people who are disabled in some way. There are many different tools with assistive technology for different disabilities like the stick key, sound when keying, and the high contrast option. Also, the screen print key is very helpful and I did not know how to use it before this class. It is great to see there are tools out there for the disabled with technology because technology is such a big part of our daily lives. Soon, we won’t even need keyboard and we can just verbally talk to our computers and make it easier on everyone.  The NETS tied to this tool is about the easy use of technology. This tool does act as an advocate to those who use these tools to help navigate technology easier.

 Assistive Technology Presentation

Concept Map

         Concept mapping is a great tool to use in many subjects, but extremely useful in education. When using the map, you are getting a visual view of the information and it is displayed in a different way for learning. They are intriguing tools, because of the different styles and pictures you can use to teach the information. Kid Inspiration is an exciting way to create lessons and pictures for all ages in elementary. It has great techniques to use symbols and pictures to where it will captivate student’s attention. One of the first standards listed is to facilitate students learning, creativity and in a virtual environment. Both concept mapping and Kid Inspiration are great tools to help kids express their ideas and designs. Like I did say in my movie blog, NET-S lists: “NETS: Students demonstrate creative thinking, construct knowledge, and develop innovative products and processes using technology.” With this standard in mind, the concept mapping is a great tool to innovate information is a creative display. Prompting children’s creativity is the most important factor in my opinion because they can discover ideas more naturally and it is fun for the students.

Web Site

The Google Site is a great tool to use for many ways like a personal website like we created, or for a business, organization, company, etc. In today's world, almost the whole world in technology based, and with website this gives us easy access to information across the globe. NETS-T states that using online technology promotes a great deal of learning because the world is at your fingertips. Like in my earlier post, people use Google for almost anything multimedia wise. To know you can also create a FREE website is phenomenal. In today's world, nothing is free so this does help us citizens in this economy to not have to pay for something to can greatly help us with our job, business, or organization. The website was slightly difficult for me to use and I am caught up on the technology skills of today. It was very detailed and could have contained more instructions and help on where to find things and how to apply certain things to the website. Overall, it was free so that is the best part but it was hard to navigate with building the site. The NETS tied to this tool is also the important of communication was technology. Of course, this is a great tool used for mainly communication to the world about your information you want to share.

Google Site

Google Groups

Google groups is a great tool to use for all sorts of use like school, work, organizations, and socially. I am sure many businesses and clubs use this tool for communication not only because it is easy but because it is free! Before taking this class, I was not aware of all the tools Google offered and we did use quite a few in the classroom this semester. I found it very useful to use for our class because it gives our class the opportunity to communicate about questions, assignments, etc. Like NETS-T states, communication is a great way to use multimedia. Google is the far best example for this standard because it sets the bar for multimedia and the internet. Google has the web, images, videos, music, blogs, etc. That defines multimedia what I just listed. Furthermore, Google is an outstanding tool to use in many, many ways in which I use every day for email and to browse the web.

Presentation

Story

Social Community

NETS: Students use digital media and environments to communicate and work collaboratively, including at a distance, to support individual learning and contribute to the learning of others. - See more at: http://www.guide2digitallearning.com/ideas/making_connection_common_core_and_national_educational_technology_standards#sthash.lOfN4pqZ.dpuf

NETS: Students use digital media and environments to communicate and work collaboratively, including at a distance, to support individual learning and contribute to the learning of others. - See more at: http://www.guide2digitallearning.com/ideas/making_connection_common_core_and_national_educational_technology_standards#sthash.lOfN4pqZ.dpuf

NETS: Students use digital media and environments to communicate and work collaboratively, including at a distance, to support individual learning and contribute to the learning of others. - See more at: http://www.guide2digitallearning.com/ideas/making_connection_common_core_and_national_educational_technology_standards#sthash.lOfN4pqZ.dpuf

NETS: Students use digital media and environments to communicate and work collaboratively, including at a distance, to support individual learning and contribute to the learning of others. - See more at: http://www.guide2digitallearning.com/ideas/making_connection_common_core_and_national_educational_technology_standards#sthash.lOfN4pqZ.dpuf

NETS: Students use digital media and environments to communicate and work collaboratively, including at a distance, to support individual learning and contribute to the learning of others. - See more at: http://www.guide2digitallearning.com/ideas/making_connection_common_core_and_national_educational_technology_standards#sthash.lOfN4pqZ.dpuf

NETS: Students use digital media and environments to communicate and work collaboratively, including at a distance, to support individual learning and contribute to the learning of others. - See more at: http://www.guide2digitallearning.com/ideas/making_connection_common_core_and_national_educational_technology_standards#sthash.lOfN4pqZ.dpuf

NETS: Students use digital media and environments to communicate and work collaboratively, including at a distance, to support individual learning and contribute to the learning of others. - See more at: http://www.guide2digitallearning.com/ideas/making_connection_common_core_and_national_educational_technology_standards#sthash.lOfN4pqZ.dpuf

NETS: Students use digital media and environments to communicate and work collaboratively, including at a distance, to support individual learning and contribute to the learning of others. - See more at: http://www.guide2digitallearning.com/ideas/making_connection_common_core_and_national_educational_technology_standards#sthash.lOfN4pqZ.dpuf

NETS: Students use digital media and environments to communicate and work collaboratively, including at a distance, to support individual learning and contribute to the learning of others. - See more at: http://www.guide2digitallearning.com/ideas/making_connection_common_core_and_national_educational_technology_standards#sthash.lOfN4pqZ.dpuf

My Movie

        My movie was a great tool to learn how to implement into my classroom because you can incorporate memories and lessons into live action, which will capture the audience’s attention. With using this is in the classroom, students will engage more with the lesson with capturing their attention and make them want to learn. Common core lists how important communication and collaboration is in the classroom. With this specific movie tool, teachers can share with others around the world and show how their classes are learning or projects their classes have done on certain subjects. Common core says using technology in the classroom interreges and prompts students learning but, teachers do have to realize the content they are adding into the movie and remember to cite sources because teachers can only use 10% of data. Also, adding students pictures is a delicate thing and teachers must get parents’ permission at all times. Creativity and innovation are listed in NET-S and with the my movie tool, this opens the door for creativity and ideas on how to express different kinds of information.

Dr. Parker I have tried several computers and internet connections and I could not get my movie to pull up. I know you can understand how frustrating it is when technology does not work.

Web Tools

The web tools assignment was a great way to help us learn how to incorporate those tools with our teaching. You can use those tools for just about anything and I am glad I know how to use them now especially as a student. The quiz let will be great for learning words and the rubric website looks like a lifesaver for teachers! I actually just used the crossword puzzle for another class to incorporate in a lesson of mine. I also used in my thematic unit a concept map and it was the perfect tool because I was able to use pictures to help make it more fun and interesting for children. Another tool I used in my science class was my quizlet account. It makes it extremely easy to use and you get a great studying tool with hardly any effort. I would much rather use quizlet than write out my own note cards every time for a test.

In the common core standards, it tells us that technology is a great tool to use in the classroom. All of these tools we have learned can be greatly implemented in our classroom and we can use these tools to broaden our students horizons with finding information from different sources. Technology is growing tremendously and our students need to be on board with todays generation, which means us teachers need to be aware of the technological changes and to always be up to par.  

Rubric

 Quizlet

Worksheets
 

Turnitin and Plagarism

I am glad we were assigned this lesson because plagiarism is a growing problem in all schools today.  It was a very big issue when I was in school and is still today. Turnitin is a very easy tool to use by just submitting it to the website. Using the turnitin tool allows you to see what has been plagiarized and copied. I had to problems with using this tool. Today in schools and jobs for that matter, using your own words and thinking outside the box is what students should strive for. NET-T standards on plagiarism include the following:

NETS-T

  4A: Advocate, model, and teach safe, legal, and ethical use of digital information and technology, including respect for copyright, intellectual property, and the appropriate documentation of sources.

This is a perfect example of a tool that can advocate honest writing and teach safe writing that shows mistakes and needed changes. Also, when you properly source information, it does not show up in Turnitin. This is a very big problem, that student forget to cite their sources, not giving credit to those work.

 

Turnitin

 

Standards

         Encouraging students to learn with their full potential would be my main standard in the classroom. In reading these standards, they set the tone that guides teachers to do their best. Hands on teaching are pushed throughout our text readings and some include technology, which makes it very important to be available in schools. Communicating with the student is the most important objective. If there is no communication, the teaching will not succeed to its fullest. These standards listed are great guidelines to keep teachers on track and to remember what is most important in the classroom. As reviewed in this class, technology takes a big part in the classroom as well. Standards do set the bar for the classroom but us as teachers have to incorporate technology in our lessons to help students flow with the new world around them. Their generation will become more and more tech involved and they will need to know how to use majority of it growing up in the classroom.

1. Facilitate and Inspire Student Learning and Creativity

Teachers use their knowledge of subject matter, teaching and learning, and technology to facilitate experiences that advance student learning, creativity, and innovation in both face-to-face and virtual environments.

a. Promote, support, and model creative and innovative thinking and inventiveness
b. Engage students in exploring real-world issues and solving authentic problems using digital tools and resources
c. Promote student reflection using collaborative tools to reveal and clarify students’ conceptual
understanding and thinking, planning, and creative processes
d. Model collaborative knowledge construction by engaging in learning with students, colleagues,
and others in face-to-face and virtual environments

2. Design and Develop Digital Age Learning Experiences and Assessments

Teachers design, develop, and evaluate authentic earning 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.

a. Design or adapt relevant learning experiences that incorporate digital tools and resources to promote student learning and creativity
b. Develop technology-enriched learning environments
that enable all students to pursue their individual
curiosities and become active participants in setting their own educational goals, managing their own learning, and assessing their own progress
c. Customize and personalize learning activities to address students’ diverse learning styles,
working strategies, and abilities using digital tools and resources
d. Provide students with multiple and varied formative and summative assessments aligned with content and technology standards and use resulting data to inform learning and teaching
3. Model Digital Age Work and Learning

Teachers exhibit knowledge, skills, and work processes representative of an innovative professional

in a global and digital society.
a. Demonstrate fluency in technology systems and the transfer of current knowledge to new technologies and situations
b. Collaborate with students, peers, parents,
and community members using digital tools and resources to support student success
and innovation
c. Communicate relevant information and ideas effectively to students, parents, and peers using
a variety of digital age media and formats
d. Model and facilitate effective use of current and emerging digital tools to locate, analyze, evaluate, and use information resources to support research and learning
Effective teachers model and apply the NETS·S as they design, implement, and assess learning experiences to engage students and improve learning; enrich professional practice; and provide positive models for students, colleagues, and the community. All teachers should meet the following standards and performance
indicators.

4. Promote and Model Digital Citizenship and Responsibility

Teachers understand local and global societal issues and responsibilities in an evolving digital

culture and exhibit legal and ethical behavior in their professional practices.
a. Advocate, model, and teach safe, legal, and ethical use of digital information and technology, including respect for copyright, intellectual property, and the appropriate documentation of sources
b. Address the diverse needs of all learners by using
learner-centered strategies providing equitable access to appropriate digital tools and resources
c. Promote and model digital etiquette and responsible social interactions related to the use of technology and information

d. Develop and model cultural understanding and global awareness by engaging with colleagues
and students of other cultures using digital age communication and collaboration tools

 

 

 

5. Engage in Professional Growth and Leadership

Teachers continuously improve their professional practice, model lifelong learning, and exhibit

leadership in their school and professional community by promoting and demonstrating
the effective use of digital tools and resources. a. Participate in local and global learning communities to explore creative applications of technology to improve student learning
b. Exhibit leadership by demonstrating a vision of
technology infusion, participating in shared decision making and community building, and developing the leadership and technology skills of others
c. Evaluate and reflect on current research and professional practice on a regular basis to make
effective use of existing and emerging digital tools and resources in support of student learning
d. Contribute to the effectiveness, vitality, and self renewal of the teaching profession and of their
school and community