Playing and Staying Safe Online

Digital Story Telling

What is digital storytelling?

Digital Storytelling is a tool used to share an experience or a past event with others through the use of images and sound through technology. According to the website created by the University of Houston called "Educational Uses for Digital Storytelling" this form of sharing ideas, events, and experiences with others is a tool used to capture many senses of a person to make them feel like they experienced what the creator did. I think this is a great tool and a real fun way of grouping images, video clips, and other technological tools together to give the observer a real experience of what you went through. Ways that you can make a digital storytelling skit is by collecting movie clips, using youtube, grouping images, and audio.

http://digitalstorytelling.coe.uh.edu/

Education Blog Following

From the blog entitled 2 cents worth: teaching and learning in the new information landscape, I was brought to the question of what do you call a textbook that is not a book? Bloggers wrote about how future textbooks will not be books. In specific one teacher uses Moodle for the basis of her classroom instruction as her “digital curriculum.” However, the author, David Warlick wrote that the problem with digital books or the sort is that for first year teachers, a textbook is a more uniformly tool. Whereas, a digital curriculum that has been created by the previous teacher may not be as useful to someone that is used to a hardback textbook set of instruction. Many other teachers and people in the education world had comments about the use of digital books, ebooks, kindles, and others and how these tools impact curriculum and classroom environments. I personally find reading articles or chapters off of blackboard to be hard on my eyes, but I would love to have a kindle with all my textbooks downloaded on it to make my pack lighter while on campus.

http://davidwarlick.com/2cents/

Another blog that I checked out was a college blog written by a college student that has completed their first year. Although this is different from the other education blogs that I have been reading I found this to be interesting in that it gives the reader an insight of how education progresses as the years continue on. For instance while reading this blog I just thought about how I have changed since my freshman year in college and how important education is for so many different reasons. I have come to find that when I return how each summer I am so happy that I have been at college because I get intellectual stimulation that I would not get if I were not attending college. When I learn information I feel better about myself because I become more competent in the skills I need to succeed in life. This blog was refreshing because I was reminded of how lucky I am to have completed three years of my college education and to be on track for graduation.

http://blogs.makingitcount.com/yearone/

Education 421a author Staphanie Sandifer brought up good information on technology, coaching, and community. She was reading up on the newly released NETS for Technology Coaches and is so happy with what is included. She states that the NETS-C provides a good framework for the development of educational technology support positions into more effective coaching positions. Apparently the NETS-C includes cognitive coaching, peer coaching, and instructional coaching models, which are highly effective. The author stated that in specific what is needed to be a good technology coach is to know what to ask and how to ask the questions. She emphasis the use of questioning techniques that engage the teacher (being coached) in an environment that does not have judgment, criticism, or evaluation. I find this information to be quit interesting because throughout this class I have found that technology in the classroom is extremely important. However, many teachers are not up to date on the newest and latest technology so they are not sure how to apply the technology to their classroom structure. In order for the students to learn about new technology and be introduced to the technology that they will be using in and outside the classroom for the rest of their lives, the teacher needs to be taught by someone else. I think that technology coaches are a wonderful addition to the education community and I hope that this idea will carry through many districts.

http://ed421.com/

Global Community Education

We connect with global educations in multiple forms now more than ever because of our ever-advancing technological world. I know some ways in particular that I used to connect with children from other places around the globe was through pen pals in Elementary School. I remember specifically having pen pals from Africa that we would write to. In addition, I have found that there are more and more social networking sites where children and teachers can connect with others in an educational reference. For instance, Sun Microsystems has launched two new social networking portals intended to connect the global education community. One is called EduConnection.orgwhich is set up for the Sun’s education sector costumers. However, the Open Source University Meet up is the second social networking site that allows students to communicate between each other about open source programming tools and platforms. According to the website, “Educonnection.org offers a platform for schools to exchange information and best practices that will help them to mitigate the challenges of purchasing and implementing new technology in an era of increasing budgetary pressure. It also provides an opportunity for Sun to directly energize, engage and support the education community.” In addition to social networks, I was able to find a variety of different organizations that are designated for global education. I believe that by reading these websites and blogs, children can learn about schools in other countries and therefore be connected through technology to these schools and places. There is one website that I found for the Global Community for Education which is a website that teaching the public about building schools and changing lives in various countries where schooling is not set up. This website in particular reminded me quite a bit of the book Three Cups of Tea. I believe that because children have so many opportunities to connect themselves with their outside words now through the computer that we can all be connected through blogs, websites, and a traditional form of written print in a book. In addition I think that as a teacher it would be neat to subscribe to some of the newsletter that these various programs have in order to show them to your class. Another tool that I found to be really interesting is called Global EdNet, which is a global education website, blog, discussion board, and email. The website has global education news as well as new ideas, lesson plans, and information on different cultures and education systems globally. Some ways that students can connect are through international video conferences, international education and research network, iEARN. I found that children in rural Washington State were able to connect with international schools through research, art, and ultimately the video conference with thanks to their teacher, Krisi Rennebohm Franz. I found this information athttp://www.edutopia.org/going-global-rural-washington-students-connect-with-world. One place that I found particularly interesting and useful for students to connect with global education is the Student Circle Network. According to author Chika Uwazie, “Students Circle Network, a Kyrenia-area start-up (GirneAmerican University Roots) founded in 2010 - is an educational social network for college and high school students with interests in providing free course resources/materials, live faculty/teacher/lecturer help to students, scholarship offers, study groups and many more students services across the globe for FREE.” Some discussion questions for children can include everything from, “what do other children in other cultures eat, to what books are popular in other cultures and are their translated books that we can read I order to learn about another culture. “ In addition, children should be asked “how are classrooms set up in other countries, what tools do they use, how is our education system similar and different (funding?).

global-ednet@edna.edu.au

Assistive Technology Education

Assistive Technology in Education for children with autism:

Technology can be used to assist education in many ways throughout the classroom. People and students that have disabilities have been aided by technology in various forms. So what is autism? How can technology help? And what is assisted technology education?

Autism is a disability that can be caused by a multiple of reasons and it has a broad spectrum of severity and symptoms. Autism is a disorder of complex brain development. The general symptoms that a child can experience involve social interaction problems, limited interest in activities, and verbal and non-verbal communication issues.

How can technology aid those with autism? Technology can be used to give children an opportunity to interact with other children and people through other ways of communication such as email, globs, or videos. Children with autism can express their needs and desires through different forms of communication. In addition children can interact with other children while working on a project that involves computer work. Some children with autism have a hard time sitting still in class so something like a pair of headphones that they can use to listen to music while completing a writing or creative arts project. In addition children with autism can use digital images, cameras, video recorders, or instruments to express themselves and connect with the classroom.

Assistive technology is something that is extremely beneficial for children with and without disabilities. Technology is a tool to aid learner but it is important to not rely completely on technology for information and learning. Much of autism and other disabilities have relations to communication. Although we can use technology to help us communicate with one another and we need to be sure and teach children how to communicate with each other without technology. I believe that in order to stay up to date with technology teachers should use resources such as the top technology tips for classroom teachers and free technology for teachers (see citations below). When teachers are aware of the latest technology tools that they can have the opportunity to use them. It is important for teachers to stay up with the latest technology and information in order to adapt their classroom to aid the children for their future.

http://www.autismspeaks.org/

http://eric.ed.gov:80/ERICWebPortal/search/detailmini.jsp?_nfpb=true&_&ERICExtSearch_SearchValue_0=EJ542823&ERICExtSearch_SearchType_0=no&accno=EJ542823

Evaluating, Selecting, and Using Appropriate Assistive Technology by Jan Galvin and Marcia Scherer.

www.freetech4teachers.com

http://www.edzone.net/~mwestern/

Tech Tools

I found two really cool tech tools and I could not just choose one to report back on. One of the tools is called Tux Paint. Tux Paint is computer-drawing software for children and could be used in the classroom. This is a really neat program that I thought could have multiple uses in the classroom. In relation the all children having different learning styles, I thought this program is a good way to incorporate visual learning and technology in the classroom. However, the one problem that I found with using this tool is that when you save the picture you created, it is hard to find. It is easy however, to print your creating, but emailing it to someone seems tricky. This program is neat though because it is similar to Kid Pix (a program I used to use when I was young), but has more advanced features. You can blur the picture, add cartoon, add animation, lots of colors, stamps, dialog, fuzz, and much more. This is a really fun program to play with and would be a neat way to introduce children to a new unit because the children would have a blast coloring and exploring their creativity.

The other tech tool that I think is really neat is called Story Jumper. This is a website (http://www.storyjumper.com/) that allows anyone to create their own storybook. I remember for one of my literature classes, we all had to create our own children’s book. I made my book on shutterfly because I was unaware of other ways to get a bound hard covered book that included pictures. I was able to draw and make pictures and then scan them in on the computer and place the picture in the picture section of the book. However, this website would be most useful with second or third graders. What is really cool about this site is that I was recommending the commoncraft videos to one of my friends that is a fourth grade teacher and she replied by showing me this website. This is a website developed for the use of teachers in order to make writing and reading interesting and fun. This is a great way to incorporate technology while sticking with the fundamental skills of writing and creating art.

Blog following!

I chose to look at May, Sheng, Sarah, and Brianna's blogs this week. I found that all of them had red the same copyright article called, Copyright 101: for Educators. All of them were surprised and interested in the Teacher's Act. I found that all of the bloggers noted some new interesting finds about copyright and they also read some information that they already knew about. Here is a story I have written in response to the blog readings:

Once upon a time there were four girls that lived in a magical digital world. Every week the three girls would meet through a special reading in order to learn more about the world they live in. One week, Sarah, Brianna, May, and Sheng became interested in what a person has to do in order to make their idea protected. In addition, the girls wanted to learn what other people would have to do in order to give other people credit for their ideas and creations. In order to do this all the girls read the same article, "Copyright 101: for Educators." Not only did they find out what copyright was and how to get your personal ideas copyrighted, but they also found out about the Teacher's Act. All four of the girls wrote letters to each other about what they learned. Now the girls are training to become teachers and they will teach students the information that they have learned.

The End

sharing videos

I shared the commoncraft videos with two teachers, one friend, and my mom. I found that both of the teachers thought that the videos were basic and informative but not all that interesting. Not to say that they did not like them, just that the teachers already knew how to do most of the tasks and the description was just bland and boring. However, one of the teachers responded by sharing a website with me: www.storyjumper.com. I checked out this website a little bit and found that you can create a story book from scratch. THe teacher that shared this with me said that she has used this with her students and that she got a great response form the children. She recommended that I use this with 2nd or 3rd graders.

My mom, liked the idea of the videos however, she seems to lack the interest and/or patience in learning a new computer skill, so she did not give the videos much time. I find that with my mom's generation, it seems that people find new technology too intimidating or just not worth the trouble.

Copyright Readings

What did you chose to read or watch?

I chose to read The Purpose of Copyright by Linda Pallas Loren, Copyright 101 For Educators: Winter 2003, and Copyright for Educators. I found that The Purpose of Copyright by Linda Loren was very informative about the technicalities of copyright and what copyright is and how it works. I found that Copyright 101 for Educators was interesting when learning what sources one needs to site and how to teach our students why sopyrighted material is important and what the appropriate use of this copyrighted information may be.

What is the Teach Act?

The teach act is something that allows teachers to teach online to class and share images, videos, and other media to the class without dealing with copyright. For example when in a blackboard shell class, I can watch these videos that Lee has assigned us to watch and has shared with us through the shell. However, if I were to paste this video on face book or some other online site and claim that the video or pod cast was my own, this would be a copyright violation.

What is something new that you learned?

Based on the information from The Purpose of Copyright by Linda Pallas Loren, I found out that copyright is not to protect music of artists and inventors but rather to “promote the Progress of Science and useful Arts, by securing for limited times to Authors and Inventors the exclusive Right to their respective Writings and Discoveries." I have always thought, as addressed in this article, that copyright was to make sure that artist, inventors, and discoverers were protected and given credit. As addressed in Copyright for Educators, the copyright law does NOT say that if you use 10 seconds or less of a video or any multimedia that you do not have to site the source. I thought that if you used such a small portion of a piece of music or movie that I would not have to site it.

What is Copyright?

Copyright, according to Copyright for Educators, is what legally protects the work of someone from others taking their idea. This is something that becomes extremely complicated when money is involved and the reuse of commonly used images and media. For instance the image of Obama with the red, blue, and white is a hot topic these days because the print that was made by the artist looks like it was made from a photograph taken by another artist. For this reason, the initial photographer needs to be credited and asked for permission to use this image.

What are you going to do differently based on this information?

I found that the different sources gave me an insight to the different resources out there. What I found especially interesting was from the video, Copyright for Educators where a person from the audience spoke about her elementary students sitting photographs. I know that I personally use google images for multiple power points and other presentations, but I have trouble remember to site the sources.

Lesson Idea: Recycling Promotion Poster

Name: Joanna Lende

Grade Level: 4^th grade

Subject: Social Studies

Learning Goals: At the completion of this assignment and lesson the students will have made a poster that promotes recycling in an appropriate yet creative manner. The students will have advanced their knowledge of recycling, the environment, and technology.

Digital Photography Used: Digital photography will be used to enhance the posters that the students make to promote recycling and keeping our environment clean. Digital photography will be used in order to make the posters more personal, creative, fun, and something that the children can really be proud of and want to show their friends and family.

piZap!

I found a really fun digital imaging website called piZap. This is a neat website that allows you to docker up your image by adding crazy eyes, fun hair, talking bubbles, borders, and much more. This website is free and you can upload your own images and save them back on to your computer when you are done!

Digital Citizen reflection

I found the digital citizen article to be informative and interesting. I guess I have just never thought about the norms or technology and how they change. While reading this article I was thinking about some technology use norms that I am aware of. For instance I am a firm believer in putting away your phone when you are talking to someone. I think that texting while having a conversation with someone face to face is rude and that we should all learn that the text can wait. I have noticed that more and more today I come across signs at the library or counters of stores that say, "we will be with you when you finish your conversation" accompanied by a no-cell phone sign. I love technology but I do not think that technology can replace face to face interaction and contact. I believe that the advances in technology make communication easier and more accessible however, we have to be careful to not let technology push personal communication away. In addition I was pleased to see these social norms with technology to be listed because I do not believe that everyone that uses technology knows these norms. However, when a person is texting while you are trying to speak to them face to face, how can we blame them if no one has taught them that rule or the proper phone etiquette?

Blog Visits!

Blog Visits:

http://education.change.org/

--This blog is pretty neat because it is designed for education petitions. In other words there are petitions and comments on those petitions posted on this website for various school related topics. Some of the top petitions that are up today include: save first place daycare for homeless toddlers, tell scholastic to stop pushing corporate PR in the classroom, and tell your senators to save the Pell grants. I found this blog easy to use and I even signed one petition that I felt especially attached to. This blog is very useful because not only can you sign petitions and learn about the politics of education but you can also post your own petition to get support from other blog followers.

http://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/rural_education/

I found this blog especially appealing because it pertains to rural teaching and education. The blog contributors post news articles and information on rural education and how we can better the education of our students. Some hot topics include the availability of resources in rural classrooms and the different grants that are available for rural schools.

http://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/college_bound/

I found this blog to be more like the reading a novel in comparison to an assigned reading. In particular I found that this blog talked about the interests of college students and the new college news. For example scholarships are posted on this page, college testing strategies, and ideas on ways to cope and excel in college. The blog also has information on new and different majors that are offered and great internship and abroad opportunities.

http://educationtechnologyblog.com/

This website is a really neat resource for teachers. I found some of the apps and software that the blog recommends to be extremely interesting and exciting. I like this blog so much that I have bookmarked it so that I can stay up on the technology in order to meat the national technology standards for the teachers. On app that the blog featured was the swipe tap tap app, which is a puzzle game that could be used in the classroom to work on the concentration of the children.