Class February 24

Today in class we talked about what we will be doing for our interactive white board lesson and how we can professionally label our lesson plans. We also went over garage band on how to be familiar with it when using it for our podcast.

Chapter 8: Podcasting, Video, Screencasting, and Live Streaming

There are many things about our schools and society that are quite different from the way it was for my parents growing up. A major difference is computers and with those computers comes the internet. The internet brings lots of new things, and most of these things can be brought into the classroom. In chapter 8, it talks about podcasting, and using video and screencasting to enhance one's learning. Students of all ages can use these tools to help them learn.

Elementary students can use podcasting to reenact a scene from a book they just read, or to explain how to do something they just learned. Middle school students can use them to create public service announcements and to keep others informed of current issues either in the school or in the news. High Schoolers can use for the same reasons as the last two but with music and more added effects. College students or businesses can use them to keep people informed about what is going on at their school or company. Video, like skype (which is an example of live streaming), can be used to bring culture into the classroom that may be miles or countries away. A relatively new tool, Screencasting can be used to annotate work, create internet tours, explain math problems step by step, or show your friends how to use new tools on the internet. Recently, our professor attached a screencast to an assignment telling us how to attempt/complete it. Imagine how much easier it would be too show people how to do things via the internet instead of trying to explain it in an email.

This information all seems so interesting. There are three very important things that make them possible though: a computer, some sort of video camera, and a microphone. Now I know for me, a microphone and video camera are built right into my laptop for no extra charge. I assume that all computers being sold now adays have that as well, but I wonder what it is like to do these things on the old computers? Do you have to attach a microphone and a camera?

I look forward to looking through my research to learn more about these. I think they all can be very beneficial to the classroom and I'm exciting to learn how to use them!

Chapter's 4 and 5-Wiki's and RSS Feeds

Wikipedia. It has always been a constant cringe word for teachers. Most hate it and refuse to use it as a resource. The fact that anyone could update it is what scares most people away. What about the fact that it has been proven that wikipedia is edited more by people that want to do right than wrong? In 2004, University of Buffalo professor Alex Halavais tested this by created 13 errors on various posts on Wikipedia, all of which were fixed in a couple of hours. What about the other fact, that wikipedia is well used news source that updates faster than most sites and most newscasts? For example, the Wikipedia entry created about the Indian Ocean earthquake that struck just after Christmas 2004 and created a tsunami that killed more than 175,000 people was able to turn from just a simple post, to a mass read thing able for viewing across the world for anyone with a computer or internet access. Wikipedia is just an example of a Wiki. Wiki can be edited and viewed by anyone. Great for using online to let families know what's going on in your school or in your classroom. Lots of teachers use PBwiki.com which is a site to help people get used to the wiki world.

Another helpful tool to use for a classroom teacher is a RSS feed. This allows teachers to see several helpful sites on one page (like the newsfeed on facebook that shows current statuses) and to see what is used most and most recently. This can be done on Google Reader. You can set up your own settings for what you personally want to see and how you want it to be organized. Try it out today! Just go to www.google.com/reader to subscribe!

2/17 Lab Reflection

We started out class by evaluating each other's blogs and sharing comments. We also discussed the credibility of websites today and shared our views by using polleverywhere.com. We then learned about Triangulation. Triangulation is the surveying of many different sources. This is important to do when finding out if a site has credible sources. I learned the impact learning about credibility of websites before allowing students to go on the internet. I also learned how to design a lesson for the smartboard. It will be exciting and fun!

Site Mistaken Identities and How to Avoid the Mishaps

As stated in previous posts, although the internet can be a useful tool, it can be dangerous as well. When teaching a class about the internet, it is very important to make it clear to your students that anyone can use the internet and create websites. Websites are not screened for credibility before they are put out into the worldwide web. This can cause confusion when trying to get to certain websites. Some people follow certain rules when looking for credibility such as "if it has .org at the end, it's credible." But that is not always true you see. As I read in 20 Things I Learned About Browsers and the Web, I learned about some key tips to look for when trying to decide if a website is credible or not. It is important for example to pay attention to the host name or the place where the website resides. This is the first part of a website. For example, for the link of this page: http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=7378417695609754806, the host name is blogger. As you notice, there are several other components of the link, but the area where this post is held is at blogger.com. It is important to look up that host name to see if it is credible. If you google "blogger" for example, you learn that blogger is a free weblog publishing tool from Google for sharing text, photos and video.

Now, lets use this knowledge to try out other sites for credibility. We will start by testing: http://zapatopi.net/treeoctopus/ The site looks believable, it will tell you lots of facts about the endangered Tree Octopus. Yet how do we tell if the Tree Octopus exists? Let's check. The host name of this site is zapatopi. If you search zapatopi, you find that the description is: Website of Lyle Zapato: creator of MindGuard, maker of icons, scourge of the forces of mind control and humble servant of Lord Kelvin. Now I don't about you, but I'm pretty sure that if that is the source that is information is coming from, this information is NOT credible.

Interesting discovery? I think yes. Make sure to double check by searching the host name to see what you learn about it. Sometimes, though, sites can get sneaky and not provide a lot about their host name. So it is important to also look for FAQs or things About the Site. These can usually be found on the web home page or at the bottom of the page. If they are not even listed, they probably also aren't credible. This site: http://martinlutherking.org/ looks credible, yet when you try to look up information on where the information for the site came from, it is nowhere to be found. Another site that looks credible from the outside is: http://www.allaboutexplorers.com/, yet when you look at the About This Site you learn that this site was made by teachers to test if their students were using credible sources.

Make sure to use these tips when testing internet sites! You never know what someone might put out there on the internet!

2/10 Class Description

Today in class we became even more familiar with Interactive White Boards or SMART Boards, (which is a type of one) as most people ususally know them. We were given time to explore lesson plans with them and to learn how to use them with different age levels. We also spent a portion of the class evaluating each other's blogs and commenting on things they can improve on. It was an exciting class because I got to see things that I personally could use in my Early Childhood classroom when I am a teacher. I can't wait to use this type of technology in my own class in my own school. It was fun to get a taste of what that would be like and I look forward to more classes.

The Internet, the Scapegoat of Our Lives

I can't believe how one invention has taken over our lives so much. The average user uses 8 3/4 hours per week. Social interaction is more common in front of a screen than face to face. This invention used so frequently is the internet. Even this information that I am putting out into the world will only be viewed through the web.

I recently watched a short documentary for class called Growing up Online. It was very interesting. It hit a lot of great points about the internet that I never thought about. For example, I never thought of sites like Webkinz or Game sites with any form of chat as a stepping stone for young kids to get used to the open world of the internet and the random people or postings they could meet or use. I have always understood the worry that comes from parents and administrators with the children of this time using the internet, but I think it is important to know what length parents should try to protect or overshadow the dealings happening there. In the documentary, a woman talked about how discretion is a thing of the past. Back in the old days, people were much more private. Don't get me wrong, I'm sure there were always secrets kept from child to parent and the other way around, but society was less willing to put themselves out there. To show pictures of their bodies publicly, talk to strangers, share interests and relationships. I think it is so interesting that most people aren't aware of changes in relationships or don't think to talk about them until the information is up on Facebook or myspace or some social networking site. If it's not listed, people assume you are unavailable or in some cases unsure of what sex you prefer. These sites spark conversation, on and off the web and are constantly on the minds of people these days. When people aren't on them, they are thinking about the pictures they will look at later, or how to make their statuses sound uniquely clever. 

Media is constantly flowing through society. People of this generation are used to getting answers at the click of a button, and get bored quickly when they have to wait for entertainment. Teachers now a days have to learn how to be a performer, learn how to move quickly from subject to subject so students don't loose interest. Schools should be using technologies available to them to capture that attention. There was a school in the documentary that had smart boards in every classroom and had podcasts given out as homework and sites like spark notes studied and explored. I guarantee these teachers had children's interest in the palm of their hand, much more frequently than the monotone preaching teachers I've spent my school years with.

While the internet can be very useful, it can be dangerous as well. Parents try to capture control of protection by limiting houses to only one computer and putting that computer in a high traffic area. They try to attain passwords to spy on their own children instead of asking them what's going on. Parents also need to understand that most kids and teens need an outlet, just like parents need an outlet from their children. Yes, there are stalkers and predators out there, there is no denying that, but most young adults and children know what they generally act like and what to do if they are put in that situation. As parents, I think they should concentrate less on protecting their children and more on making sure they know how to act in certain situations they encounter in life. Allow your children to have some secrets and they might be more willing to open up. 

I realize I am no parent, I am just a college student, but I feel like I was raised by great parents who I am comfortable sharing any information. As a child living in this generation of constant overload of media and technology, I have to pass my wisdom and information on the only way I know how...through the internet.