Reading Reflections 530

                                                                                          

Story Jumper: Digital Learning Project


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1e0bn4mW-0A

http://www.storyjumper.com/book/index/5516252/Ms-Sorben-the-BORING-classroom#


                                                                                          

Learning in  New Media Environments

                                                                                             
Visitors and Residents
 When it comes to being either a visitor or resident in this new technological internet based world, I believe that I sit somewhere between the two on the spectrum; leaning towards the resident side.  I am on the internet everyday doing the normal things like Facebooking, Pinteresting, and searching YouTube videos.  I also spend time looking up documentaries and blogs that interest me.  I enjoy reading on-line and reading from e-book versions of my favorite books.  I also use sites like Diigo quite often.  I am very handy with writing html codes and understand computers more than I even realize.  I wouldn't consider myself a teach junky, rather I consider myself tech savvy.  However, despite my relationship with technology I do not think that I am a resident, or at least an extreme one.  I do not enjoy things like Twitter, and at this point Facebook is becoming more and more annoying to me.  I am a very private person and in this sense the internet frightens me.  I find it scary seeing people "checking-in" on online places because than anyone has access to knowing where you are at any moment.  This opens you up to attacks from predators and to having your home robbed.  If I am a member of a profile type place I try to make my information as private as possible.  I think that people need to take more seriously the idea that once it is on the internet it is there for life.  For this new generation, they are so quick to post any kind of picture or posts with foul or suggestive language and I do not think they fully understand the potential consequences of these actions.  It seems more and more online safety is slipping away and privacy is going out the window.  Technology is great, and it has a great place in our society, but do I think at some point, and some point soon , that it is going to go to far?  Absolutely.  Do I think in some cases is HAS gone too far already?  You bet!  It is for these reasons I will never consider myself a resident of the tech/internet world.
                                                                                           

iPads in the Classroom

During this semester I had the chance to observe the use of iPads in the classroom. I observed them being used in a physics lab and in a biology/chemistry class.  When I first arrived in the classroom I turned on the iPad to see what types of apps were being used and what type of blocks were placed on the device.  I observed the students doing a physics lab and they used the ipads to connect to Moodle, an online site that has many exciting features for educators.  One of the really neat things Moodle and the iPads allow the students and teachers to see are immediate results.  When a student inputs an answer it is immediately sent to the teacher and recorded in the Moodle server.  Also, if a student was having difficulty with a problem, they were able to “push” their screen to the projector, essentially taking over the screen to show the class their problem and be able to walk through the steps.  When interviewing some of the students it was a bit disappointing to hear that many of them are NOT using the apps provided for them, rather, they are just using the Internet on the device, which is something that they could easily do on a computer.  IT is obvious that because the program is new all the capabilities and ideas for using the iPads in the classroom have not been tapped into yet.  Despite that downfall, it was fascinating to see this new form of technology in the classroom, students seemed much more engaged and excited to work simply because it was done on an ipad.  I do have a question to pose to the group.  What ideas do YOU have for using iPads in an English classroom aside from using it as an e-book reader?  I am curious for your responses.
                                                                                            
Are Grades Necessary for Learning?
 When it comes to grades I think that there are many different ways to look at it.  I think that grades are important to see how a student is progressing.  Though, the way that most schools handle grades leaves room for bias' to enter into the mix.  I have been teaching at Great Oak High School this semester and have been exposed to a very different grading system, standards based grading.  I was quite ambivalent to the grading system when I first came to the school since my form of discipline relied heavily on taking points away for mis-behavior.  However since I have been here I have a much different perspective on GOHS grading system.  The students are assessed based on whether or not they have met the particular set of standards that is being assessed.  There can be multiple standards being assessed on any given assignment and those standards are listed on each handout the students receive so they know exactly what is expected of them.  They receive grades between a 1 and 4 with + and - inbetween.  Although a student may not fulfill the standard the first time they are able to re-visit the standard and achieve a higher score.  This grading system keeps biases out of the grading, and it also allows students the opportunity to achieve.  I think that this type of grading is essential because students need to know how they are doing based on meeting the grade level standards and standards based grading is the best way to assess that.

In addition, I think that a classroom without grades would be a classroom without goals.  Students need to see what their final goal is so they know what they are supposed to complete and how.
                                                                                                 
PLN Cultivation Reflection:  
So far I have participated in a few ed\\#edchats via twitter as well as communicating with my colleagues, classmates and re-tweeting relevant information.  I am still ambivalent towards twitter.  I did enjoy answering some peoples questions during the chat and some of the tweet had relevant sources but for me it is still too much to fast.  On Pinterst however, I am constantly searching for educational resources and I find many things that I myself have tweeted out.  I think that Pinterest is a much easier way to communicate and to find what you are looking for with regards to educational sources.  I also really enjoy Diigo.  I think than it is a great resource to bookmark your sites and to find others who have found great sites.  As far as Twitter goes I don't think that I will ever be a huge fan, it's never been my thing and is not a way i would choose to communicate with others. Though it is fun to mess with Jeff every once in a while. :)
                                                                                                   
Visitation Reflection:

During my visit to Oceanside high school I saw many great uses of technology in the classroom.  One of the first things that I did was sat down with another student and began exploring the iPads and seeing what types of apps the students were using.  I started a conversation with the students next to me asking them to show me how they were using their iPads and telling me what they thought about them.  They said that the majority of their work was done on moodle and that they used the iPads mainly to connect to the internet and work within the moodle shell.

1.      The technology from the iPads was integrated into the classroom in a few different ways.  The students would use the iPad to connect to the internet to gain access to any bell work or labs they were working on.  In the different cases I saw, the iPad did not necessarily enhance the lesson thought it may have made it more interesting for the students to complete.  Much of there work was completed on a sheet of paper by hand and they simply plugged their answers into the iPad.

2.      The features on the iPad that I found exceptionally neat for a classroom were that students could “push” their screen to the front projector so that their iPad screen would be projected and thus, if he/she was confused on a problem they could solve it as a class and he could plus everything into the equations in real time for everyone to see.  Another feature I really liked with the iPads was that you could see in real time if students were getting answers right or wrong and you can see the specific step(s) they may have made mistakes on.  The teacher was able to assess the student’s progress in real time which makes the iPad integration exceptionally appealing.

3.      The first thing that I learned, or rather realized was that we still have a long way to go when it comes to integrating iPads into all classrooms.  I also realized that for English classrooms, the room for iPad integration is very small as we have not yet figured out a way to properly use them in an English class that makes the cost worth while.

                                                                                                                   
Disrupting Class:
Chapter 1: Why Schools Struggle to Teach Differently when each Student Learns Differently
1. Explain the difference between interdependence and modularity.  How is education currently organized?

-Interdependence products have an architecture or design.   Interdependence occurs when one component is designed and made to depend on the way other components are made.  You cannot know ahead of time how to build a particular part of a design or product without building both together.

-Modularity- It does not matter who created the components, they can all fit together in the end without a lot of work.  These components can be developed independently and put together for a final project.

I think that education is a mix of the two.  I think that there are a lot of components of education that require interdependence, such as creating core standards.  To create standards it must be collaborative work and it is best being built together.  Also, education uses modularity because many people create texts, ideas, programs, that are being implemented in education on their own and their component is placed into the bigger picture.  I think that both work well, however I believe education should be interdependent, I think that all people need to be involved and contribute and we need to work together to accomplish things in education

Chapter 2: Making the Shift:  Schools meet Society’s need

2. Explain the disruptive innovation theory.  What does this have to do with schools?

-The disruptive innovation theory explains why organizations struggle with certain kinds of innovation and how organizations can predictable succeed in innovation.  Disruptive innovations take root in simple, undemanding application in what...is a new plant of competition.

-What is unique about public schools is that laws and regulations make them a virtual monopoly, which models to compete on the new measures.  In the public  agencies consistently move up-marked, away from initiatives that are politically important and toward those that are more important. (52)

-The disruptive performance measures--in essence assigning them new, primary jobs to be done. (53)


Chapter 3: Crammed Classroom Computers

3.  Why doesn’t cramming computers in schools work?  Explain this in terms of the lessons from Rachmaninoff (what does it mean to compete against nonconsumption?)

-Computers are not customized to students' type of intelligence.  Computers have become an activity center for children that they can opt to use.  Also, teachers are still lecturing so students are simply using  computers to word process and take notes. (81-82)

-The idea on nonconsumption is really interesting because it eludes to the fact that, while technology has its place for many things, we still need to absorb things organically.  For example, orchestra music, we still need to absorb the music live rather then simply playing a video otherwise the industry will likely die.


Chapter 4: Disruptively Deploying Computers

4. Explain the pattern of disruption. 

-Disruptions first compete against non consumption in a new "plane of competition."  Next the technology begins drawing applications from the original plane of competition into the new one.  This transition is neither abrupt nor immediate...It almost always follows an S curve.  The initial pace is slow; then it steepens dramatically, finally, it asymptotically approaches 100 percent of the market. (96-97)

5. Explain the trap of monolithic instruction.  How does student-centric learning help this problem?-The monolithic trap is when teachers are unable to customize their instruction.  The teacher is forced to try and convey a message to a multitude of students, assuming they all learn the same way, at the same pace.  This does not allow for differentiation nor does it allow for students to mis-understand anything.

Chapter 5: The System for Student-Centric Learning

6. Explain public education’s commercial system.  What does it mean to say it is a value-chain business?  How does this affect student-centric learning?

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