Assignment #1 Technology Literacy

I would choose standard four, Critical Thinking, Problem Solving, and Decision Making, as the most important standard for the students that I would plan to teach.
I believe this standard is important to teach because students will always be faced with problems that they do not know how to solve. When students are taught how to use critical thinking, problem solving strategies, and decision making skills they can begin to figure out the problem that is set before them. Furthermore, students will be able to use their knowledge outside of the classroom.
First assignment: for higher elementary grades
For a science experiment
· In groups of 3 or 4 begin an experiment for growing an unfamiliar plant.
· Have the students write about the plant without knowing anything about it (A hypothesis). Example: I think it is going to grow seven inches high and the plant is going to be green with a yellow flower.
· Then after the group has written what they think is going to happen they will research the plant buy using the computer. Example: find where it’s natural habitat is, does an animal eat it, when does it flower ECT…
· Then have the students make two charts on the computer. One with what the plant is suppose to do according to the research they found on the Internet and another Chart with their findings. Example: on the fifth day a little sprout started to push its way out of the earth.
· Have the students take pictures of what they have to do to maintain the health of the plant and the growing process of the plant.
· Have them set up a blog with pictures and the entries about how their plant is coming along.
· For a twist in the experiment have the students plant three of the same plants but give the plant different liquids for survival. Example: #1 plant: water, #2 plant: soda, #3 plant: juice. This way the students would have to think about why each plant grew the way they did.
For Geography project (going to the Grand Canyon)
· Have students figure out which way they are going to get there. (for a car using google map or other websites to know how long it will take them).
· Have students figure out where they are going to stay, what sit seeing events they are going to do while they are down there.
· Produce a brochure of all that they want to do and where they are going to stay.

The NETS I would choose is number two, Design and Develop Digital-Age Learning Experiences and Assessments. I think this standard is important for me as a teacher because I do not want to behind my students in the technology world. If students have questions I want to be able to help them with the adequate information. Furthermore, if I as a teacher is familiar with modern technology it will be easier to create lesson plains that incorporate technology for my students. This will be helpful for my students because they will become familiar with technology because I as the teacher will be assigning them assignments with the usage of technology. Three ways that will help me fulfill this standard:
1. The first way that will help me carry out this standard is by doing all the assignments in this class with the best of my ability. With doing all the assignments I am learning many different technology terms/ways that I can incorporate it into my classroom.
2. The second way that will help me fallow through with this standard is by knowing what the new technology is that is coming out to help students succeed in their studies. One way that I can do this is by reading information on the computer or talking to friends of mine that are in the technology industry. Most of the time I have no idea what new technology is being brought to the table until a couple of years later. Therefore, I think I need to learn to become more observant.
3. Be willing to try new ideas or ways. I often become stuck in my old habits and don’t want to try something new. This class is helping me see new ways of doing activities. If I can try a find new technology that I can try out on my own I think this will be a benefit.
This is my article: “Using Technology to Support Interdisciplinary Learning”

Dorfman, Jay. "Using Technology to Support Interdisciplinary Learning." Education Research Complete. April & may 2007. Web. 18 Jan. 2010. .

Summary
The article talks about how technology can help a classroom learn more efficiently and productively. Throughout the article there were three ideas that teachers can use in the classroom to help it become a technology friendly place which included Creation of Multimedia Artifacts, Display and Delivery of Multimedia Content, and Supporting Asynchronous Learning. The articles focus was more on how a music teacher could incorporate technology while having the students learn about music, but I think that most of the information given can apply to any classroom project.
This article gave me an understanding of how students can become involved with their resources while learning and doing it in a creative way. I think technology lets students use their own talents to create while reaching the goals the teacher has placed before them. I learned that even in music class teachers can incorporate their lesson plans with technology.

The article gave an idea that would utilize the teachers time and the students time. The teacher can assign listening guides with visual aid for homework instead of lecturing in class. As a teacher I would not have to hand out papers or pictures of articles but instead the students are read them online or watch music videos on the topics given. This way it is letting your students discover for themselves. The Students become more independent and excited when the find information on the given topic. Multimedia content is an efficient tool in the classroom. The article gave ideas about creating multimedia artifacts by adding music to a visual aid or staring with a musical work and adding visual elements that the student interprets.

Generation IM

The article “Generation IM” informed me of new social networking sites that I have never heard of before. I believe in high school or junior high one class used moodle, but I have never heard of the other two. I think it is important that these websites are safe for all elementary students. Facebook is more careful about what aids they put on their sites, but Myspace has a lot of graphic advertisements that I would never want my child looking at. I agree with the teacher that was talking in the article about how using the website to post syllabus is a way to incorporate parents at home who want to be more involved in their child’s learning process. However, sometimes I think teachers can become a little too carried away with using websites such as blogs. Teachers need to make sure that what goes on, on the website is also talked about in class. Otherwise two classrooms start to form; one face to face and another online. This article was very informative and gave teachers ideas on how they can associate these online resources into their classrooms.

white boards and how they help teachers around the world

http://education.smarttech.com/NR/rdonlyres/C399AB73-E2CB-4236-AD50-727DA0D86319/0/reducing_stress_wp.pdf

This article informed me about what teachers think about white boards. Throughout the article there are statistics about how much the white boards help the teachers in the classroom. The article received its data on research from North America, Europe, Asia, and Australia teachers. The researchers wanted to know the teachers working conditions to demonstrate the positive impact they have with using this interactive whiteboard. The main theme about the article is how much stress teachers have and how this new technology helps them relive some of it. Secondary teachers have said that it saves them two hours a week and primary teachers state that it saves them more than two hours per week. “Saving and revising digital lessons and sharing them with other teachers are, in many cases, reducing planning and preparation time for teachers, particularly those in primary schools” (Kitchen, Finch and Sinclair, 2007). However, if teachers are not given sufficient training this new technology can cause additional stress for these busy teachers. But on the other hand these white boards have been shown to have a positive influence with planning and delivering lessons of material. Teachers can use the white boards for every subject. From graphs in math and sentence structure in English the white board helps in every way. Overall, the white board gives the teacher new ways to prepare lessons in a more efficient way.

Classmates' posts that I have commented on

Bethany
Jordan H
Natalie D.
Alice
Devon C
Inna

1st Reflection Regarding Technology

Already in the first week I have learned that teachers need to adjust their teaching to associate technology in the classroom. I was not aware before this class how much technology can be used in the classroom. So much of the time my first thought about technology in the classroom is negative. I think it is this way because I have such a negative feeling about students who abuse technology in the classroom when they log onto websites that are not associated with the education topic being taught in the classroom. However, by reading the first article in our assignments it has changed my mind about how I think technology should be used in the classroom. Now I see how important technology is in the classroom setting. In the elementary classroom, I believe students need to begin to use the fundamentals of technology. Each student will be at different levels of knowledge just like students are with reading levels. Therefore, the teacher will have basic concepts for some while others more difficult challenges. Teachers can assign assignments require students to use the computer to find research. Technology can be intertwined into most assignments in school subjects. I believe the same technology can be used in the elementary school as high school just in different emphasis and levels of technique in the classroom.

Turning on the Lights

In the article "Turning on the Lights", it was interesting to see how the students so casually said that their classes were so boring without even having to think twice. While reading this article it made me think of something my pastor said during church one Sunday. “People come to church ready to be entertained and if they are not then they think the sermon was not interesting/worth their time.” Sometimes I think students/kids these days think they have to constantly be entertained. For example, I was babysitting four kids the ages five through ten. During the five hours I was there, they were not able to be on the computer or watch any TV. After three hours went by, the two older boys were starting to get out of hand, because they did not now what do with their minds. The eight year old boy started going a little crazy. They were all so use to being entertained all the time. I think students have to realize that not everything in life is just going to be handed to them in a fun and exciting way. Yes, if it does enhance their learning it is beneficial but at the same time not everything in life is going to be exciting and entertaining.

Last spring when I was volunteering in a 5th grade classroom the teacher was having the students make videos with a flip camera about what they were learning in class. The students were really enjoying their project because they were able to be with their friends while using technology. After they made the video they were able to edit it and add music. After the movies were all complete different awards would be handed out. Sometimes I get the feeling from these articles that there are no teachers that are adding technology into their classrooms, but there are.

The article also mentioned that when students enter school they have to power down. I think students abuse the technology that they have for school. For example, students are not paying attention in class because they are always texting; therefore, that is why teachers want their students to put their phones out of sight. Computers are very helpful with learning about new information, but especially in high school, students log onto sights that have nothing to do with the education process. Therefore, I think this might be a reason why students have to “power down” when they enter their classrooms.

My Decision to be a Teacher

When I was around the age of 10 a missionary came to my church and talked about being on the mission field in China. I went home and felt really touched by God. I prayed to God as a child and I felt that God had called to me to become a missionary. When I went on a mission trip in sixth grade we worked in an orphanage and God kept confirming to me that this is what I was called to do. I have been involved when kids my whole life because my mom ran a home day care. Also, because I was homeschooled I was able to help teach a preschool that my mom, sister, and I held at our house for two years. Throughout the years my passion for being a missionary has only grown. Therefore, I wanted to pick a major that I could use on the mission field. Since I have been surrounded with children my whole life and have had many opportunities to teach, I felt teaching fit my goals for the future. My goal is to teach first in the United States until I become married (if that is what God has in stored) and then in the future join a Christian ministry to teach over seas. When I teach in the United States I would like to teach to the grades 3rd through 5th. This semester I hope to learn how to feel more comfortable in front of the classroom, be able to equip myself with useful tools for the future, and became familiar with new technology that with help my future students be able to learn to their full potential.