Chapter #7 History Education in the Digital Classroom
The foremost online resource I would use is the link to the standards website. When I explored the link, I saw that it further broke down the different standards, explaining each one thoroughly. I also noted that the additional breakdown included specific targets for grades 9-12. I feel like I could really use this to help design course content, assignments, and rubrics. I think this will be particularly useful in my first few years of teaching as I try and determine how to approach teaching different areas of history.
Additionally, there were multiple sites in the online resources that gave lesson plans for different topics and I feel that these could be useful guidelines to use in my classroom. I use the term "guidelines" because I feel that outright using the lesson plans as they are could prove to be faulty. I think instead it would be best to pick the best parts of these provided lesson plans and then tailor them to fit my students and the standards and needs of my school/district. Another key idea here for me is that it would also allow me to adapt the lesson to whatever technology I have available to me. For instance, if the lesson plan calls for the students to do research and then present their findings in an essay, I could change it to have my students present their findings in a blog that incorporates multimedia.
On the subject of research, I really enjoyed that some of the sites were essentially databases of useful, credible historical websites and resources. The besthistorysites.net, for example, is one I think I'll actually use in the future. The large subject area that it covers could allow me to give each student a different topic without worrying that they'll have trouble finding information if I can't give them immediate help. Meanwhile, the large network of links could also aide me in creating a thorough lesson plan myself. The fact that it includes primary and secondary sources is wonderful for discussion on historical perspective and how different organizations influenced our interpretation of history.
Sunday, January 12, 2014
Saturday, January 11, 2014
Prompt #9
Issue #1 Blogging
Blogging can be a sensitive topic in teaching. This is probably because blogs can easily be used for appropriate or inappropriate purposes. Regardless, I side with the pro-blog stance of this issue. I believe the first paragraph where the writer stressed that a blog carries the same amount of risk as any other social media platform is quite correct. On that same note, I feel blogs are also a "lesser evil," so to speak, for teachers to use when teaching students about digital citizenship. Blogs come in many formats and a teacher could reasonably find a blog system that could fit their students' needs. For example, many programs these days now have an option where teachers must approve the work before it can be made viewable. Thus I think a blog can be a good starting place for students to learn to use technology safely and responsibly.
In the case of individual blog use by teachers, I still agree that blogs are worth the risk. In the case of the speaker who disagreed, I would like to point out that the source of the interview was from 2009 with the speaker saying that the event had happened in the year before (2008). In 2008, I remember just occasionally hearing things about blogs on the news (usually in a negative light). Now several years later, many of the people I associate with (professional adults, professors, etc.) now often reference blogs in conversation or even have a professional/personal blog of their own. Really, I can't help but feel like the anti-blog testimony I read may just have been a case of a person ahead of their time. I think that now, while personal blogs may still be looked at with suspicion, a professional blog is viewed by most institutions as an asset and a chance for professional collaboration.
Blogging can be a sensitive topic in teaching. This is probably because blogs can easily be used for appropriate or inappropriate purposes. Regardless, I side with the pro-blog stance of this issue. I believe the first paragraph where the writer stressed that a blog carries the same amount of risk as any other social media platform is quite correct. On that same note, I feel blogs are also a "lesser evil," so to speak, for teachers to use when teaching students about digital citizenship. Blogs come in many formats and a teacher could reasonably find a blog system that could fit their students' needs. For example, many programs these days now have an option where teachers must approve the work before it can be made viewable. Thus I think a blog can be a good starting place for students to learn to use technology safely and responsibly.
In the case of individual blog use by teachers, I still agree that blogs are worth the risk. In the case of the speaker who disagreed, I would like to point out that the source of the interview was from 2009 with the speaker saying that the event had happened in the year before (2008). In 2008, I remember just occasionally hearing things about blogs on the news (usually in a negative light). Now several years later, many of the people I associate with (professional adults, professors, etc.) now often reference blogs in conversation or even have a professional/personal blog of their own. Really, I can't help but feel like the anti-blog testimony I read may just have been a case of a person ahead of their time. I think that now, while personal blogs may still be looked at with suspicion, a professional blog is viewed by most institutions as an asset and a chance for professional collaboration.
Prompt #8
Issue #3 Podcasting
It's a big "NO" to podcasts for me. I agree with the idea that podcasts limit the amount of students a teacher can reach. Students who aren't audio learners struggle with podcasts. Podcasts that are introducing new material, like the pro-podcasts stance had suggested, are particularly tricky. These podcasts often aren't going to have notes or homework assignments that a student could refer to if they're having trouble, nor can they stop and ask questions. Podcasts form a difficult medium for students to find supplementary material to aid them. There's no graphs, no written out examples of technical jargon, and only a part of their teacher for reference.
After all, isn't that what a podcast is? It's like a small sound bite taken from an interview with a teacher. When we communicate, only part of communication is verbal, the rest comes from body language and interaction. A teacher essentially risks turning themselves into a textbook reading when they use podcasts. For a podcast to be used effectively, a teacher would have to be an excellent speaker and truly know their audience and material.
When podcasting a teacher will need to be sure to speak in a way that will captivate and make up for the lack of body language. They also need to be completely certain that the microphone and system they're using doesn't produce annoying feedback sounds. Simultaneously, the teacher must be anticipating what kind of struggles and questions the students will have while recalling from prior knowledge what challenges the material naturally gives. All of these potential problems just lead to the simple fact that teachers are human.
A teacher can't always anticipate what parts of a subject each new generation of students will struggle with. They might not have access to quality technology or know how to use it. Similarly, not every teacher is a fantastic speaker. Some have teaching styles that are better suited to live demonstrations or student-lead discussion. Just as every student has a different style of learning, every teacher has a different style of teaching. This leads me to say that while podcasts might occasionally be successfully used as supplementary materials, they are not the main teaching tool of the future.
It's a big "NO" to podcasts for me. I agree with the idea that podcasts limit the amount of students a teacher can reach. Students who aren't audio learners struggle with podcasts. Podcasts that are introducing new material, like the pro-podcasts stance had suggested, are particularly tricky. These podcasts often aren't going to have notes or homework assignments that a student could refer to if they're having trouble, nor can they stop and ask questions. Podcasts form a difficult medium for students to find supplementary material to aid them. There's no graphs, no written out examples of technical jargon, and only a part of their teacher for reference.
After all, isn't that what a podcast is? It's like a small sound bite taken from an interview with a teacher. When we communicate, only part of communication is verbal, the rest comes from body language and interaction. A teacher essentially risks turning themselves into a textbook reading when they use podcasts. For a podcast to be used effectively, a teacher would have to be an excellent speaker and truly know their audience and material.
When podcasting a teacher will need to be sure to speak in a way that will captivate and make up for the lack of body language. They also need to be completely certain that the microphone and system they're using doesn't produce annoying feedback sounds. Simultaneously, the teacher must be anticipating what kind of struggles and questions the students will have while recalling from prior knowledge what challenges the material naturally gives. All of these potential problems just lead to the simple fact that teachers are human.
A teacher can't always anticipate what parts of a subject each new generation of students will struggle with. They might not have access to quality technology or know how to use it. Similarly, not every teacher is a fantastic speaker. Some have teaching styles that are better suited to live demonstrations or student-lead discussion. Just as every student has a different style of learning, every teacher has a different style of teaching. This leads me to say that while podcasts might occasionally be successfully used as supplementary materials, they are not the main teaching tool of the future.
Prompt #7
If we're supposed to be skating to where the puck is going to be then we need to first make sure our students know where the puck has been. This is why it's important to give our students a firm base in technologies that have already begun to be implemented and used like cloud computing. Cloud computing is already used quite a bit so I think students should leave school knowing it well. Similarly, I think we need to equip students with tools to help them skate on their own. For example, we often tell students to look for key words when trying to comprehend new material. We should also be doing this when teaching students about technology.
Some of the featured Web 3.0 technology was backed by companies like HP or different government agencies. These are names we should teach our students to watch for. While smaller companies may produce new ground-breaking technology, it is often the bigger companies with staying power that turn the technology into some consumers can use. Thus our students need to be prepared to take cues from the professional environment that produces the technological puck they're skating for. On that note though, it would seem that the majority of the Web 3.0 items all seemed to be focusing on collaboration and so I believe we should teach our students to be skating towards methods that involve inclusion, not exclusion. Programs like Etherpad and different mobile programs would be good ways of promoting collaboration.
Some of the featured Web 3.0 technology was backed by companies like HP or different government agencies. These are names we should teach our students to watch for. While smaller companies may produce new ground-breaking technology, it is often the bigger companies with staying power that turn the technology into some consumers can use. Thus our students need to be prepared to take cues from the professional environment that produces the technological puck they're skating for. On that note though, it would seem that the majority of the Web 3.0 items all seemed to be focusing on collaboration and so I believe we should teach our students to be skating towards methods that involve inclusion, not exclusion. Programs like Etherpad and different mobile programs would be good ways of promoting collaboration.
Friday, January 10, 2014
Prompt #6
The speed of technological advancements seems normal to me until I start looking at the dates. I mentioned in an earlier post that my family was one of the last to get a home computer in my area, this fact seems to have influenced my life more than I had previously realized. Growing up, I was always the last one to get on the technology train. As the last one of my peers to get a computer(and a cellphone, laptop, etc.) I quickly became used to being media illiterate. As such I've always taken any new technology in stride and never realized just how new and cutting edge some things were. I always assumed I was hearing old news just like I always had.
With help from my classes I've become a bit more media literate recently, so I'm starting to understand how fast technology changes. As mentioned earlier, the dates have really put things into perspective for me. The world's first computer is three years older than my dad. In my dad's lifetime we've essentially gone from no computers to multiple computers per family. I now understand why my elementary teacher were so excited to go from one computer lab to two and why changing from floppy disks one year to flash drives the next was such a big deal.
In middle school we got a couple of movable SMART Boards that the teachers could borrow for occasional use. By the time I graduated high school, on average, half of my class rooms had mounted SMART Boards for use each day. From what I've heard when I go back home, that number has continued to increase. Just that little bit of fast placed growth has taken place in my life time. This make me realize that as a teacher I can not precisely measure the level of technological skill my students will need. I can see where technology is going in the next five years, but not necessarily what it will look like in the next twenty years. I must teach my students to be flexible and adaptable. My lesson plans need to challenge and motivate my students to use technology, to stay on top of technology.
With help from my classes I've become a bit more media literate recently, so I'm starting to understand how fast technology changes. As mentioned earlier, the dates have really put things into perspective for me. The world's first computer is three years older than my dad. In my dad's lifetime we've essentially gone from no computers to multiple computers per family. I now understand why my elementary teacher were so excited to go from one computer lab to two and why changing from floppy disks one year to flash drives the next was such a big deal.
In middle school we got a couple of movable SMART Boards that the teachers could borrow for occasional use. By the time I graduated high school, on average, half of my class rooms had mounted SMART Boards for use each day. From what I've heard when I go back home, that number has continued to increase. Just that little bit of fast placed growth has taken place in my life time. This make me realize that as a teacher I can not precisely measure the level of technological skill my students will need. I can see where technology is going in the next five years, but not necessarily what it will look like in the next twenty years. I must teach my students to be flexible and adaptable. My lesson plans need to challenge and motivate my students to use technology, to stay on top of technology.
Monday, January 6, 2014
Prompt #5
To enhance my teaching and learning process, I will first enhance myself. I cannot meet the first four standards until I partake in the fifth standard of professional growth and leadership. If I expand my professional community and abilities then I'll be able to model digital age work and digital citizenship to my students. Additionally, I'll be able to design and develop digital age learning, to integrate into my classroom, as I learn more about it. This will allow me to facilitate and inspire my students as I give them new opportunities while being a real life role model for them.
Prompt #4
The ISTE standards for students can easily be met by students' current technology use. The sixth standard of technology operations and concepts is the easiest for students to meet. This could be simply done by exposing students to a variety of different technological systems. From there, it is a matter of encouraging the students to find ways to continue using the systems as they discover ways to use them efficiently. For example, I could have students try e-mailing other students for outside classroom collaboration on a project and then on the next project have them try instant messaging (all common types of technology that students may already use from day to day). On a third project, I could allow them to chose their method of communicating. This method also allows them to work on the second standard of Communication and Collaboration.
The fifth standard of Digital Citizenship is also an easy standard to strive for as it is applicable to all student use and can be incorporated into any lesson. For example, if my students are using programs like Second Life (where they can innovate through simulations and meet the first standard for students) we can discuss in class how just as a physical classroom has rules for smooth day-to-day operation so does a virtual classroom. In that same situation with the simulations, students are gathering information and analyzing it (the standards of Research and then Critical Thinking) which they then make discuss with each other over social media.
The fifth standard of Digital Citizenship is also an easy standard to strive for as it is applicable to all student use and can be incorporated into any lesson. For example, if my students are using programs like Second Life (where they can innovate through simulations and meet the first standard for students) we can discuss in class how just as a physical classroom has rules for smooth day-to-day operation so does a virtual classroom. In that same situation with the simulations, students are gathering information and analyzing it (the standards of Research and then Critical Thinking) which they then make discuss with each other over social media.
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