Technology standards are currently so broad and all-embracing that embedding them into a semester of Science was a natural fit. I think this reflects the fact that the tech standards define themselves as tools for a set of skills that are universal (as far as education is concerned).
For example, communication is a standard that probably exists in every content area. In the case of science, communication is one of the important parts. After all, it's been said scientific research is worth very little if it isn't communicated to others. So meeting the communication standard of technology is easy. The added bonus of blogs and similar technology is that students can communicate their experiments to others who have not witnessed their experiments. In my current classroom, communication is somewhat artificial because the students and I conduct the same experiment and all know what our results. My hope is that by communicating with a classroom of students who were not involved in the same experiment, their communication becomes more authentic. I would hope students to see what it means to explain procedures and results clearly and why it's necessary.
The standard of collaboration was also an easy fit for science experiments and one that seems applicable to many school assignments. 6th grade science is not an one-student affair. Students work with a partner to conduct experiments. Linking two classrooms with blogs allows my students to solicit feedback about hypotheses and experimental designs from other students with different perspectives. Collaboration in 6th grade science has a chance to expand outside the classroom walls.
Ultimately, embedding a technology standard into a non-technology course is as natural as embedding a standard about students using language (e.g. how to explain, persuade, etc.) into any course besides English. Technology, or language, gets used across the curriculum regularly without standards being identified, because technology or language is a tool. The technology standards are written in a way that makes them easy to identify as being used in a content area classroom.
Thursday, December 10, 2009
Tuesday, December 8, 2009
Managing Technology Peripherals
Aside from the SmartBoard, my most frequently used technology peripherals (from the perspective of the Tech and Info literacy) are cameras and cell phones, which I use with my students for identical purposes--taking pictures and capturing video. It turns out students these days are likely to have cameras on their cell phones, which has been a great help, since students are not as likely to leave their cell phones at home as they might their digital cameras. Students also won't have parents worrying about them taking the family camera to school.
As with all technology devices, there are some details that I have learned to be aware of while using cameras and cell phones.
1. In general, transfering the pictures/videos to computers can be a hassle.
A. Often these devices store data on memory cards. Computers need card readers to be able to access this data. Sometimes the memory card does not fit the card reader, but students have fortunately turned up with adapters. In either case, a test is necessary because some computers cannot read the data even when they "see" the memory card. Other times students need cables to transfer the data from their camera/cell phone to computers.
B. There are similar issues with the data, but the need for a cable requires students to keep track of one more item besides their camera/cell phone. Ideally, all phones will eventually connect to the internet at which point images/videos can be posted directly online or emailed.
2. On many cell phones, image quality is an issue when a video is used on a computer. I've seen videos that looked spectacular on a cell phone turn to a jerky, accelerated, pixelated mess. We didn't make much of an effort to fix this problem, just tried transfering it a few different ways, none of which made a difference. Fortunately, there are many cell phones that work fine, and I expect they will only improve with time.
Areas where I have not focused as much time with peripherals are the typical class management areas. Typical class management that one would associate with any piece of class equipment, for example, a technology peripheral before computers had the monopoly on the word technology. A microscopes is the main one I use through science class. And every teacher knows that class management specifies all sorts of appropriate procedures for the use of such equipment: proper usage, storage, maintenance, etc. In the case of cell phones and digital cameras, my use has been casual and that has led to occasional chaos regarding who has whose memory card, cable, adapter, etc. It's time I used appropriate procedures for the use of equipment with which students are so familiar.
It's also about time I fully integrated a document camera into my teaching. It replaces the overhead projector and allows students to display their paper directly to the class without the use of plastic transparencies. ISBangkok has purchased some for the teachers and I have one at my disposal. Jonothan Steenwijk, fellow ISB teacher and COETAILer, blogges about the power of his in his math lessons. It is a low maintenance peripheral with relatively simple management since students barely touch it. I imagine that I only need to set it up, and after that there would be no further management issues. Hopefully, when I blog again, I will have already integrated it to my lessons.
As with all technology devices, there are some details that I have learned to be aware of while using cameras and cell phones.
1. In general, transfering the pictures/videos to computers can be a hassle.
A. Often these devices store data on memory cards. Computers need card readers to be able to access this data. Sometimes the memory card does not fit the card reader, but students have fortunately turned up with adapters. In either case, a test is necessary because some computers cannot read the data even when they "see" the memory card. Other times students need cables to transfer the data from their camera/cell phone to computers.
B. There are similar issues with the data, but the need for a cable requires students to keep track of one more item besides their camera/cell phone. Ideally, all phones will eventually connect to the internet at which point images/videos can be posted directly online or emailed.
2. On many cell phones, image quality is an issue when a video is used on a computer. I've seen videos that looked spectacular on a cell phone turn to a jerky, accelerated, pixelated mess. We didn't make much of an effort to fix this problem, just tried transfering it a few different ways, none of which made a difference. Fortunately, there are many cell phones that work fine, and I expect they will only improve with time.
Areas where I have not focused as much time with peripherals are the typical class management areas. Typical class management that one would associate with any piece of class equipment, for example, a technology peripheral before computers had the monopoly on the word technology. A microscopes is the main one I use through science class. And every teacher knows that class management specifies all sorts of appropriate procedures for the use of such equipment: proper usage, storage, maintenance, etc. In the case of cell phones and digital cameras, my use has been casual and that has led to occasional chaos regarding who has whose memory card, cable, adapter, etc. It's time I used appropriate procedures for the use of equipment with which students are so familiar.
It's also about time I fully integrated a document camera into my teaching. It replaces the overhead projector and allows students to display their paper directly to the class without the use of plastic transparencies. ISBangkok has purchased some for the teachers and I have one at my disposal. Jonothan Steenwijk, fellow ISB teacher and COETAILer, blogges about the power of his in his math lessons. It is a low maintenance peripheral with relatively simple management since students barely touch it. I imagine that I only need to set it up, and after that there would be no further management issues. Hopefully, when I blog again, I will have already integrated it to my lessons.
Wednesday, December 2, 2009
Classroom Laptop Use & A Best Practice to Add
Laptop carts are a classic case of an area where students might accumulate, linger and get rowdy. With each cart being accessible to realistically only two students at a time (even that many constitute a crowd), when more than two students try to get laptops from the cart, there is inevitably conflict. I should say that I'm speaking of 6th and 7th graders. To minimize crowding and potential conflict, I ask that students take turns to collect laptops, with students waiting until the group before them has collected their computers.
With my students, there are also issues of proper care, so I have assigned them a number which corresponds to a computer on a particular cart. Students know that they are accountable for their particular computer and if theirs is not properly stored or located, they will have to check the entire cart before leaving on the following day.
As we at ISBangkok are not a one-to-one school regarding computers, we share the carts between classrooms. Often computers arrive non-functional or without a charged battery. Sometimes one computer's wireless card isn't working. Sometimes one computer does not load a student's profile. Rather than solve the problem by asking students to double up, I make sure to have extra computers on hand so that a student can use a back-up computer if necessary. I'd say that the need for extra computers comes up at least once each class.
Beyond these basic practices of mine, I've gotten some new ideas from a blog post at Design 4 Learning called 23 Things about Classroom Laptops. One has been to not use labtops like textbooks. When I've done some writing activities, I've asked students to use a Word Document because I feel they spend more time and give the writing more care than if they handwrite it. But I'm missing out on the opportunity for students to include images, videos and links to various related websites. In other words, I've been using the laptop a bit like a textbook, when I should be maximizing it's usage and letting kids "go digital," which would no doubt be more engaging to them. I could imagine that a student would take more pride and more stake in the writing portion of an assignment if they were generally more motivated in the assignment because it included multimedia.
With my students, there are also issues of proper care, so I have assigned them a number which corresponds to a computer on a particular cart. Students know that they are accountable for their particular computer and if theirs is not properly stored or located, they will have to check the entire cart before leaving on the following day.
As we at ISBangkok are not a one-to-one school regarding computers, we share the carts between classrooms. Often computers arrive non-functional or without a charged battery. Sometimes one computer's wireless card isn't working. Sometimes one computer does not load a student's profile. Rather than solve the problem by asking students to double up, I make sure to have extra computers on hand so that a student can use a back-up computer if necessary. I'd say that the need for extra computers comes up at least once each class.
Beyond these basic practices of mine, I've gotten some new ideas from a blog post at Design 4 Learning called 23 Things about Classroom Laptops. One has been to not use labtops like textbooks. When I've done some writing activities, I've asked students to use a Word Document because I feel they spend more time and give the writing more care than if they handwrite it. But I'm missing out on the opportunity for students to include images, videos and links to various related websites. In other words, I've been using the laptop a bit like a textbook, when I should be maximizing it's usage and letting kids "go digital," which would no doubt be more engaging to them. I could imagine that a student would take more pride and more stake in the writing portion of an assignment if they were generally more motivated in the assignment because it included multimedia.
Tuesday, December 1, 2009
Relevance of NETs for Teachers and Admins
How relevant are the NETs for Teachers and Administrators to being a "Good Educator" today?
The NETs for Teachers is as general as the NETS for students, in that if you removed the technology piece, those standards could come from an Ed Psych textbook from a teacher prep program. Insert the word digital or technology and you have NETs for Teachers. Few people would argue with their validity.
Who could imagine being a Good Educator without facilitating learning or inspiring creativity? The same is true for authentic learning experiences; modeling the use of a tool or a skill; citizenship or responsibility; and professional growth. This list comes directly from the NETs for Teachers.
As in the NETs for Students, technology is a cross-curricular vehicle for these qualities of a good educator.
I haven't read any literature on educational administration, but once again, the list of NETs for Administrators reads like a commonly-accepted list of qualities of good administrators: vision, a culture of learning, professional learning, school improvement, and citizenship. Just insert technology and you have good DIGITAL qualities of administrators. Would anybody argue with those?
Honestly, NETs almost seem too simple to be Earth shattering. Technology has always been a tool/means for humans to meet objectives. I don't believe NETs is proposing anything new in that respect. ISTE seems to be steering clear from the fact that educational technology is an end in itself. It's just the most current means to achieve the ends that education deems appropriate. Am I missing something here?
The NETs for Teachers is as general as the NETS for students, in that if you removed the technology piece, those standards could come from an Ed Psych textbook from a teacher prep program. Insert the word digital or technology and you have NETs for Teachers. Few people would argue with their validity.
Who could imagine being a Good Educator without facilitating learning or inspiring creativity? The same is true for authentic learning experiences; modeling the use of a tool or a skill; citizenship or responsibility; and professional growth. This list comes directly from the NETs for Teachers.
As in the NETs for Students, technology is a cross-curricular vehicle for these qualities of a good educator.
I haven't read any literature on educational administration, but once again, the list of NETs for Administrators reads like a commonly-accepted list of qualities of good administrators: vision, a culture of learning, professional learning, school improvement, and citizenship. Just insert technology and you have good DIGITAL qualities of administrators. Would anybody argue with those?
Honestly, NETs almost seem too simple to be Earth shattering. Technology has always been a tool/means for humans to meet objectives. I don't believe NETs is proposing anything new in that respect. ISTE seems to be steering clear from the fact that educational technology is an end in itself. It's just the most current means to achieve the ends that education deems appropriate. Am I missing something here?
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