Throughout our blog entries this semester it is apparent that the availability, access and experience with technology varies widely between each of us as well as in the school districts that we are most familiar. The “Digital Divide “is a social issue referring to the differing amount of information between those who have access to the Internet (specially broadband access) and those who do not have access. The term became popular among concerned parties, such as scholars, policy makers, and advocacy groups, in the late 1990s.” This “divide” is also apparent in the availability to technology that students might have available to them at home or in their schools. What are your thoughts on this “Digital Divide” and how it can be bridged in classrooms and school districts?
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As we all know there are two different areas of the computer world that we mainly have to deal with. These are Mac's and PC's. There are multiple pros and cons to both but we find that schools have a variety of different options of both types and some even combine both. In your opinion, which one is better Mac or PC? Which one should our students be learning on? Should we be teaching them how to use both? The article below compares Mac vs. PC
http://www.diffen.com/difference/Mac_vs_PC http://chronicle.com/article/A-Positive-Solution-for/134498/
We touched briefly on how the resourcefulness of the internet can be dangerous for students if the information that they are taking isn't properly cited, if even cited at all. There are many tools that educators are now using as a solution for plagiarism. One of them that I am familiar with is Turnitin.com. What is your take on positive solutions for plagiarism? Have you ever had to use Turnitin or another program, and do you think it is an effective tool? The above article gives a good tips on how to solve plagiarism issues. http://common-core-and-tech.wikispaces.com/
As a classroom teacher in Missouri Public Schools, a huge focus is the Common Core State Standards. (They are now being known as the Core Academic Standards-Who knows what we will call them next…) Schools are also under a large budget crunch, which is impeding our growth in technology advances. One of the largest concerns our district is facing is: How are we going to accommodate the technology standards as well as the testing online, itself? What are your thoughts and/or suggestions for this push and need for technology? The link provided will give you some background information on what schools in the U.S. are facing. Be sure to click on the slideshow to view. What do you think is the future of educational technology?? What would you like to see or be improved in the future to help you more in the classroom? Can you think of any new products apple might blow our minds with?? Here is an article you can read from Steve Jobs about technology and how it's changing and how he thinks about technology. Please respond to the previous questions about the future of technology.
http://ncara.edublogs.org/2011/10/06/educational-technology-lessons-from-steve-jobs/ What about video games makes them good for learning? Games are everywhere now, such as video games, board games, and online. Kids seem to love playing them. They are now entering the classroom. Why do you think students like learning from these type of games? Do you use them in your classroom? How do students respond when using them? Do you have a way to track their learning through computer games? What are your feelings about using them?
Here is an article I found about what this website author thinks about games and learning: http://labyrinth.thinkport.org/www/library/learning.php Do you agree with what the article says? We've been talking about how some schools have been moving forward by introducing more technology into their schools and we've also talked about the two generations of teachers/educators that are tech savvy and the one's that are old school notebook/pencil teaching. As a teacher, what would be some of the reasons you would or would not integrate technology into your teaching curriculum. What percentage of your curriculum would involve some sort of use of technology? Attached is a link on some of the reasons why educators integrate technology into their curriculum.
If I were to teach a subject it would be physical education. So my use for technology wouldn't be the same as to a science instructor. I would probably use about 10-20 percent technology in my physical education class. Reasons why I would integrate some technology into my curriculum would be to post quizzes about different sports I've taught, different links that my students could look up the rules, history of sports and to post grades online my students can always check anytime to see what their grade is. http://www.edutopia.org/technology-integration-introduction MOOCs (massive open online courses) are all the buzz in the higher education community right now. According to Donna Randall, President of Albion College in Albion, Michigan, “MOOCs, in many cases are offered, for free, by top faculty at some of our nation's most prestigious universities including Harvard, MIT and Stanford, are now attracting millions of students worldwide. Individual courses may have enrollments of 20,000 or more students. Though not offered for academic credit, they have the advantage of being accessible to anyone with an Internet connection, regardless of the student's age, location, or ability to pay.” (Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/donna-randall/small-colleges_b_2042838.html.)
Many say that MOOCs are going to revolutionize higher education, while others are not so sure about all of the hype. What do you think? Find and read an online article about MOOCs. Then share what you learned in your post. Please include a link to the article you read, making sure not to use the same article already listed by your classmates. |
Student BlogThis blog is for class conversations for ED 514 at Central Methodist University. These post are by the students of ED 514. We invite input form other teachers about how they use technology in their classrooms. Archives
March 2015
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