Post #10

PowerPoint 2, Blogs, Skills, Future Goals

     I learned how to make a Jeopardy game with the PowerPoint 2 assignment.  This will be very beneficial to me as a teacher because I plan to make many Jeopardy review games for my students.  I really liked this assignment and felt like it was very useful.

     Some of the topics I found most interesting were the reviews on different web 2.0 tools.  I think that these tools will be useful for teaching and the reviews helped me to determine which I actually want to use.

     I would like to learn how to use Prezi.  In several of my other classes people have used this tool to present to the class and I have never learned how to use this site.  

     One of my future technology-related goals is to make a class website.  I will look up some of the sites recommended by my classmates and determine which is the best.  One of my other goals is to make many Jeopardy review games for my future classroom.  I will use the skills I learned in this class to do so.  

     

      

Post #9

Peripherals and non-computer audio-visual techniques, web-based resource, Exel, and PowerPoint

     There are many ways that I could integrate peripherals and non-computer audio-visual technologies in my future classroom.  I could have my students use a camera to take pictures that represent a novel, and them have them load them on to a computer and make a PowerPoint or collage out of them.  I could also have them create a PowerPoint presentation at home on their computer, then download it onto a flash drive, and then present it in class on a computer.  These methods would integrate peripherals and non-computer audio-visual techniques in a way that would be extremely beneficial to the student.

     A web-based resource that I might use when teaching is One Stop English.  I would like to be an English teacher, and this website would be an incredible source for my students.  It includes resources to help students that are learning English, all the way up to advanced English.  It includes Grammar lessons, skill lessons, and exams to track progress.  I will refer any students that are in need of extra help to this site.

    This web-based resource is very beneficial because it allows students to interact with the material.  It also allows them to pick any areas that they need help in.  The site includes games that will help students learn, while also making it interesting.  

     As a teacher, I will use Exel to track my students' grades.  It will make it very easy to make a graph and see how well the students are doing.  I think it will make it very easy to see if I am making the tests too hard or too easy.  I think that this will help in any grade or subject level.

     I already knew how to make a PowerPoint, but I did learn how to make a Jeopardy game.  I will definitely use this ability throughout my years of teaching.  I really enjoyed this assignment and I think it will be very useful.  Teachers use PowerPoint all the time and it is very important that they are comfortable using it.  

     

Post #8

Presentation Software, Digital Divide, and Educational Technology

     I think that using presentation software is a big advantage. It makes class much more interesting for students and keeps them involved.  It also allows them to visualize the information that the teacher is presenting and allows the teacher to easily show them videos.  I don't think that there are any disadvantages to using presentation software. 

     I am on the side of the digital divide that does have access to, use of, and knowledge of technology.  I think that the digital divide will affect my classroom because if I decide to use adaptive technologies such as Goodreads, it will require students to go on the internet on their own time.  To address this problem, I will recommend that the students that don't have internet access go to the library and use the computers there. 

     I am very interested in the problem of the funding for educational technology.  There is a big debate over whether spending a ton of money on technology for students is worth it.  Some schools spend money buying an individual laptop for each student.  I don't think that this is worthwhile, because some students don't have internet access at home, so the laptop wouldn't be beneficial to them.  I do think it is important that students have access to technology at the school.  Having a sufficient amount of computers in the library and having computer labs is an extremely important tool.  Here is a journal that discusses this debate: The Great Debate: Effectiveness of Technology in Education.

     

Post #7

PowerPoint, Adaptive Technologies, and Web Page Design

     I will use PowerPoint to support my students with factual knowledge by putting important information on slideshows.  I would help them with conceptual knowledge by explaining concepts in detail and going over them in class.  I would help them with procedural knowledge by explaining how to do a project.  I would help them with metacognitive knowledge by making a PowerPoint that helps them to pass the Advanced Placement test. 

     Adaptive technology can be used to support learners in various ways.  They are primarily used to help the students interact with the classroom and to make their learning experience more fun.  I don't know anyone that has used such technologies.  A challenge to using adaptive technologies is that some students may not have a computer at home, so they wouldn't be able to use any programs that require internet access. 

     The Web Page Design assignment was interesting, but I don't think it will be very useful for me in the classroom.  I will be working with high school students, so they will most likely already have a grasp of appropriate web sites to use.