Assignment 6

Don't Teach Your Kids This Stuff? by Dr. Scott McLeod

Wow! What a thought provoking blogger! The one thing about his post is that it gets people thinking and they all passionately express their views to him. Some do not agree with him, but others do. In his assignment Don't Teach Your Kids This Stuff he expresses his aggravation with internet blocking. It would be nice if teachers had the authority to unblock sites needed for assignments. We already have our hands tied when it comes to the lack of technology in the schools, but to have it and not be able to use it is really frustrating. I have added Dr. McLeod to my PLN and my twitter account. He immediately responded to me when I asked to follow him on twitter. I like the way he so openly expresses his opinions, even though I don't necessarily agree with everything he says. He is not afraid to "stir the pot" and does a wonderful job of getting people fired up about the discussions in a good way!

Dr. Alice Christie's Website

Dr. Christie's site has literally everything you need to implement technology in a classroom. Not only does it offer resources and links for teachers but it also provides tools for students to use for research, homework, or simply learning about the internet. This website is wonderful, it's organized , it's easy to navigate, and it's one of the most useful sites I've come across so far in this class. I love the way you have access to so many tools in one site.

It can definitely help me in my future career as an elementary teacher. I now have a place that not only contains teaching materials but tools necessary for my students to research easily and safely. It also provides a place for me to learn about the new technology available for me to use personally or in the classroom . For example, I was unaware of the Internet Public Library or the existence of electronic portfolios. The Internet Public Library will provide a place for students to access books or research materials for assignments. An Electronic Portfolio will better prepare me for the job market because it will give employers an easier more efficient way to view my records and resume rather than keeping up with a huge file filled with a huge stack of papers.These are just two of the things I found useful on this site but I'm sure that upon further browsing I will be using this site and its tools, applications, and resources for years to come!


iTunes University
(click on title for a link that lists the best of iTunes university - I found it very useful)

iTunes University can be great for teachers and students. As a student I can find useful podcast and videocast on basically any subject. iTunes U is free for anyone, so that can be a positive for college students or in my case - stay at home moms. I found a videocast showing students how to study smarter. This vodcast can improve a students study habits and possibly help students make better grades. Although I have already graduated from college, this is very helpful for future students and my own children.

iTunes will help me as teacher as well. I can find different ideas that other teachers use. iTunes University has podcasts that give tips on how to use Microsoft power point, excel, and the other Microsoft office tools. You can search basically any topic that you need to learn about. I never realized that iTunes could be used as a tool to further my education. I thought it was a place to download and listen to music. All of the links under categories can be helpful to students, but the link that stood out to me was teaching and education. Universities and colleges can also be a good link to use to find interesting information.


iPod Uses at Duke University (click on title for article)

In 2004 Duke University wanted to test if iPods could be used on their campus for educational purposes. In 2004 Duke University handed out 1600 iPods with voice records to first year students to study the impacts and outcomes the iPod had on students and teachers, and if it could be successfully used as an educational tool. The outcomes of the implementation of the iPod were very interesting. A total of 1228 Duke students, and 48 courses total Incorporated iPods into learning. Foreign language and music classes used the iPod the most which was expected, but also some unexpected courses such as engineering, and other social science classes reported they used the iPod for educational purposes. The iPod aided more audio related courses because students could play songs back. At first most believed the audio play back on the iPod would generate the most feedback, but this was not the case.It turned out that recording was the number one tool used on the iPod for educational purposes, and 60% of the first year students used it. By the end of the experiment Duke University came up with several educational uses for the ipod. One was the portability factor of an iPod incorporated with education.

With the iPod students were able to access lectures, speeches, music, and podcasts through iTunes. It was also used in the classroom to record important information like lectures, class discussions, guest speakers, and verbal feedback.Research also showed that the ipod was greatly used outside of the classroom to capture field notes, interviews, environmental data, and audio data that could not be found in a classroom or lab, but could only be gained through outside experience. Next, the iPod helped students study. Students would record notes, facts, and information and then re-play it to learn by hearing it. The iPod in the case of Duke University improved not only student interest and engagement, but also teachers and faculty members were showing interest with the experiment. As a whole Duke University was feeling the positives of using iPods for educational purposes.

Who is a technology literate teacher? Wikispace

I enjoyed reading Dr. Strange's Wiki about technology literate teachers. I liked the collaborative aspect of it and completely agreed with a majority of the comments and discussions posted. I also searched for other related wiki's. I am learning so many new tools in this class and hope to one day be a technology literate teacher. The only thing I could think to add to his wiki is as follows:

Who is TL teacher?

	sherikbutler A teacher who knows how important and powerful knowledge is, and can show students the importance of knowledge, as a tool to achieve success. Success is not how much money we make; success is when one knows how to find the answers one seeks. Technology is a wonderful tool for which to seek knowledge.

Comment4Kids Week 6

This week I commented on a post by a 5th grader named Selina from the PT school of England. Her blog post was called Scary Movie. It was a very short post about her going to a scary movie at night with her mom and her brother. She said it was boring at first, but then the movie called Paranormal Activity became more thrilling. She also added a very interesting graphic that looks like she drew it on the computer and even created slides that depicted a ghost moving. I would like to know more about how she created this graphic. What a great way to get kids motivated about writing and I loved the way she used the computer to show her artistic abilities.