New technology in the classroom

Ipads in the classroom...

Some classrooms are under the impression that students can use iPads in the classroom and it can be a good thing. One school is making students purchase iPads for the classroom. They are using the iPads for their textbooks and other school related task.

The Bad...

Obviously the bad in having students purchase iPads is that they are expensive. There will always be some students who struggle to find the funds to have a luxury like this. The other bad is that when you give students with in the ages of 9 and 10 the temptation of messaging others or playing games while school is in session.

The Good...

The first thing to notice is that these students do not have to buy text books. Instead the books they use are able to be downloaded to their iPads. I find this to be beneficial because of all of the complaints of students carrying heavy textbooks. Another important factor is that students are so involved with technology and have been raised with smartphones, HD TV, and computers in their households. The biggest benefit is that students should feel comfortable with the technology and staying acclimated with what they already know. The fact that the books are on the iPads is huge. This means that when the curriculum is changed, it is much easier to get newer versions of books or a different book altogether. It also means students can take quizzes and play games related to the material covered that day in the classroom.

My opinion...

I am not a huge fan of having a ton of technology in the classroom for fear that someone isn't going to be able to use it. In this case I support it though. If every student is on the same page, they wouldn't need the instruction from me to get help, they can simply ask their neighbors. By having iPads it also eliminates two primary excuses from the classroom. The first one being I forgot my homework, this is no longer a problem if they can submit in through their iPads. The second excuse of I forgot my book. Even though there is the temptation to be distracted, students would be more distracted by not having assignments or a textbook too. Times are changing, and I am glad that the classroom is keep up with it.

Distance Learning

Is Distance Learning a good thing?

The Bad...

Distance Learning gets a really bad wrap. It use to be thought of as a terrible substitute for getting a real education. This is understandable, there are so many people who take online classes because they don't have to go listen to lectures and they are supposedly, "easy". I can see where they are coming from, from the outside they look like a joke, just sign into you class, take a quiz where you have the answers, and you are done for the week. The problem with these views is that they are incorrect.

The Good...

Distance Learning is good because it allows students to get use to using technology in association with schooling. I am personally taking an online class and before I could do anything in the class, I had to get acclimated with their server and technology. After being in two online classes for only 4 weeks this summer it dismissed the ideas that they are "easy". These classes that I am taking are harder than most classes I take in the classroom. My online professors are really interactive and expect a lot from me. They both have weekly assignments, quizzes, discussion board responses, research papers, book reviews, and test. I feel like by having these classes online it allows me to do my classwork on the weekends when I have time. I know that it is sad that at the age of 22 I am doing classwork on the weekends, but it is happening.

Overall...

Distance Learning is huge in my opinion. It is allowing me the opportunity to take classes that weren't offered here at Auburn. More importantly it is giving me a change to graduate in August instead of December. Being able to graduate in August has given me the opportunity to get a job. (which happened yesterday) These online classes have let me take classes that I was not able to on campus because of time conflicts and has allowed me the chance to make some money, instead of losing even more with another semester in college.

Digital Media at Home

There have been studies done recently that look into parents perception of digital media within their home. It amazed me to find out that most parents still prefer reading a book or watching TV with their kids over playing video games with them. Video games have almost taken over the ability for children to be socially and physically active. In recent years, children would rather sit in their room alone and play video games instead of going outside and playing football or something like that. This article shows something different though. It shows that there are parents who haven’t jumped on board with the video game era. These parents are still semi old fashioned and I appreciate that.

There has to be a reason why the parents aren’t supportive of the internet and video games. The article said that parents are scared that they harbor a sedentary lifestyle and this could endanger their child’s privacy or ignorance. The main thing parents are worried about is what their kid is being exposed to. This is baffling to me. These parents are worried about what they see, but they have no problem with watching TV with their kid’s. Maybe it’s just me, but half of the things I see on TV are vulgar and not appropriate. This is almost hypocritical by the parents, how are you worried about what you child sees but watching TV is fine?

The thing that throws me for the biggest loop is that the parents don’t prefer video games, but they think that help foster students abilities that help in academic development. This is ridiculous. Video games do not promote anyone to be social being. Instead they keep people inside of their homes away from other people. The closest thing it does to being social is some games allow for communication between other “gamers”. I think it is important to realize that it may do that, but who are they talking to? They are talking to someone else who is in their room alone, in front of the TV. Maybe I am just old school, but what happened to the days of getting a group up to go shoot ball, swim, or even walk through the woods. I find it ridiculous that kids nowadays are so convinced that sitting inside the house is the way to do things, and even more ridiculous that parents support it.

Texting in school might not always be so bad...

Texting in School

The idea of texting in school is always followed with negative connotations. Since cell phones began appearing in the classroom, so did the temptation to text, browse the internet, and play games, instead of listening. In some circumstances who can really blame a student, some teachers just aren't that interesting. As technology continues to improve, the idea that school should be taught with only a blackboard, is out dated.

There is good news though, maybe students could text in the classroom. I'm not talking about high school students telling their boyfriend of two weeks that they love them, but texting answers to questions during class. In Dallas, Texas there are schools that have now incorporated texting in class. The teacher will ask a question on the board and the students will text in their response. This does a couple things. The first thing it does is it makes the classroom a social environment. It isn't the traditional social environment, but students are interacting with each other and the teacher.

There are a couple potential downfalls to this learning method though. What if students don't have smart phones? Well in this classroom there were ten laptops in which students could use if they needed one. What about the oldest question there is? What if students aren't paying attention and are texting other people? Now that is a good question. In this classroom, if a student is texting other, or playing games on their phone there are consequences. If you are caught, then you are fined $15 dollars, no questions asked. Will this eliminate texting altogether? Maybe not, but not many kids want to pay money out of their pockets, and more importantly they wouldn't want their parents to hear they cost them money because they weren't doing their work.

Will this be the new way of teaching within the classroom? Maybe, maybe not. It has a lot of upside though. Having students do something that they do anyways is a great idea. I would venture to say that almost every kid knows how to text. So why not apply it to the classroom? I like the fact that students get fined for being off topic. This could be something that is used within a classroom and is very successful. The key thing to remember, a truly great teacher can teach with or without technology. They know their students interest and are willing to center their subject around the students and not themselves.

Prezi

http://prezi.com/

What is it?
Prezi is a program that is designed to create PowerPoint presentations for teachers and other professionals. It has some features that make it differ from the traditional Microsoft's PowerPoint program. Prezi is more attractive and allows the user the ability to manipulate the entire template. By using Prezi the author is able to change the fonts, text sizes, colors, and even rotate the word however they would like. It also has a traditional presentation format. When creating a presentation it still allows for the author to customize where they want titles and body to go. It is something newer than the traditional PowerPoint and can be a great tool to bring something new into a presentation or classroom.

How would I use it?
Prezi has strong implications on my profession as an educator. After teaching all of last semester, I quickly realized how boring the regular PowerPoint's are. This program is easy to use and allows for teachers to insert as many videos into their lessons without having to click the URL. Prezi puts every bit of information into one large area and then the user can pick which order they want them to go into. With my future job being teaching 8th graders I feel like Prezi would be more effective and interactive for my students. At that age group the students have a hard time paying attention to lectures. By using Prezi I would be able to keep their attention better and it would also keep my lecturing time down.

Standards?
Using Prezi in my lessons would help me meet the technology standards for my students. Prezi would allow my students to meet the Creativity and Innovation standard. It requires that students create original works and by having students do a presentation with this program they can be both creative and expressive. Prezi would also allow my students a chance to meet the Communication and Collaboration standard. This would be a great program for students to use for explaining a project or researched material. Prezi is not only a great resource for me as a teacher when designing presentations, but it also gives students a chance to apply new knowledge formed with technology.