Online communication tools provide teachers with varied and exciting ways to present information to their students. Educational software and online programs allow students to communicate with people whom they could never meet otherwise, reinforce prior learning with new ways to practice skills, and have more fun with the learning process by using tools they already enjoy using in their personal lives. Online communication tools are becoming a larger part of day-to-day life and are vital to keeping pace in the business world, social circles, and other areas of personal life. It is the responsibility of teachers to help their students become proficient in both the material in the curriculum and the online tools they will be expected to understand and use as adults.
It is obvious that online tools are extremely valuable in the classroom and their use should be encouraged as a means to aid teachers in effectively instructing their students. However, online programs come with their own batch of risks that must be considered and minimized as much as possible. These risks include various types of malware like viruses, worms, and trojan horses, as well as the dangers that can come with hackers who can steal personal information or alter school sites or online records. My high school had installed various measures to prevent these types of issues in the computer lab.
First of all, every computer in the school is armed with McAfee Virus Protection Software. This software is set to "auto update" so it will constantly have the most up-to-date virus definitions and the utmost protection. The entire district has also set up a site blocking system, so social networking sites, personal email programs, and any other sites that have been deemed inappropriate cannot be accessed from school computers. Each school in the district must also send out an Acceptable Use Policy (AUP) to be read and signed by both students and parents. This lays down ground rules for how computers are to be used in the classroom and for what purposes; it aims to educate students about how to protect their privacy and keep from accidentally infecting school computers with malware. The AUP instructs students to withhold personal information, not download information from "suspicious" sites, not open email attachments from unknown parties, etc.
Additionally, the computer lab puts "holds" on any blogs created for class. This means that teachers are able to read and approve posts before they are displayed publicly. Finally, my high school has synchronized software, which allows individual teachers to further limit their students' computer/internet access beyond the school-wide security measures. This means that teachers can view each of their student's computer screens on a single monitor and can capture/control their screens, block certain sites on either all computers or one individual computer, and write notes to students which will pop up on their screen. This gives teachers much more control over the lab and makes it more difficult for students to access unapproved sites without being caught.
Unfortunately, even with all of these protections in place, there are still areas of concern. Mainly, students have discovered Proxy Server sites, which can circumvent the system and route around the firewalls and system blocks that prevent access to certain websites. Many students are also very technologically savvy and have discovered how to connect their monitor to another teacher's synchronized software in hopes of being less likely to get caught. Finally, new sites are continually being added to the internet, and it is near impossible to block them all until you catch a student using the inappropriate site. Overall, even with all of the risks, schools are getting better at protecting themselves and their students in an effort to reap the many benefits that online communication tools can offer.
Sunday, February 27, 2011
Sunday, February 20, 2011
KIDspiration: Educational Software
This week we explored how various types of educational software can add value in the classroom. There are several kinds of software, including drill-and-practice, problem solving, creative/critical thinking, and tutorial. I wanted to use creative/critical thinking software since I believe critical thinking to be one of the most important skills to learn. These types of educational software help children learn to make connections between related ideas and also discover new knowledge to solve problems.
I researched and tried out KIDspiration, a version of the popular Inspiration software that has been designed specifically for students in grades kindergarten through fifth grade. 30 day free trials of both are available online if you click here. I came across KIDspiration online and was immediately drawn to it; the site described it as "the visual way to explore and understand words, numbers, and concepts by engaging students in a visual cross-curricular workspace". My sister had used Inspiration to create story boards and brainstorm for papers when she was in middle school, so I decided to try KIDspiration out.
I am not yet teaching, so I was unable to try this software out in a classroom. However, after downloading the trial and playing around with it, it's obvious that it has a lot of potential to be great tool when I am teaching. KIDspiration would allow my students to have the reinforcement of both pictures and words when learning new concepts. It also builds on previous knowledge by helping kids define relationships between items they have learned about or adding a visual element to further explain difficult mathematical concepts like place value or geometry.
One of the ways I would use this in an elementary school classroom would be when teaching a lesson on animal classification. In KIDspiration, I would ask students to build a graphic organizer or concept map to organize the information they had learned and collected about types of animals. KIDspiration could assist me in helping them understand these types of scientific concepts, as well as relate new information to previous knowledge. In the Picture View, students can either add symbols by searching pictures already loaded into the program or personalize their concept map by drawing their own using the Symbol Maker tool. I was worried at first that some of my younger students might not be computer savvy enough or have high enough reading levels to take on this kind of activity, but all of the buttons and menus are represented with easy to interpret icons and the computer says the word that goes with the icon that is clicked for further vocabulary/reading development.
I could also use KIDspiration's Picture and Interactive Writing Views to have the "Student of the Month" create and print an "about me" page, give students another way to brainstorm for writing pieces, or analyze books we read as a class. Once students create something in the software, they can export that work to the web or even finalize and print it in a word processor like Microsoft Word. KIDspiration's only downside is that I might have difficulty getting the program placed on school computers after the 30 day trial runs out. I would also need to be careful to use it as a supplement to my lessons, rather than relying on it too heavily. Overall, I'm excited to have discovered it and can't wait to try it out on some K-5 kiddos!
I researched and tried out KIDspiration, a version of the popular Inspiration software that has been designed specifically for students in grades kindergarten through fifth grade. 30 day free trials of both are available online if you click here. I came across KIDspiration online and was immediately drawn to it; the site described it as "the visual way to explore and understand words, numbers, and concepts by engaging students in a visual cross-curricular workspace". My sister had used Inspiration to create story boards and brainstorm for papers when she was in middle school, so I decided to try KIDspiration out.
I am not yet teaching, so I was unable to try this software out in a classroom. However, after downloading the trial and playing around with it, it's obvious that it has a lot of potential to be great tool when I am teaching. KIDspiration would allow my students to have the reinforcement of both pictures and words when learning new concepts. It also builds on previous knowledge by helping kids define relationships between items they have learned about or adding a visual element to further explain difficult mathematical concepts like place value or geometry.
One of the ways I would use this in an elementary school classroom would be when teaching a lesson on animal classification. In KIDspiration, I would ask students to build a graphic organizer or concept map to organize the information they had learned and collected about types of animals. KIDspiration could assist me in helping them understand these types of scientific concepts, as well as relate new information to previous knowledge. In the Picture View, students can either add symbols by searching pictures already loaded into the program or personalize their concept map by drawing their own using the Symbol Maker tool. I was worried at first that some of my younger students might not be computer savvy enough or have high enough reading levels to take on this kind of activity, but all of the buttons and menus are represented with easy to interpret icons and the computer says the word that goes with the icon that is clicked for further vocabulary/reading development.
I could also use KIDspiration's Picture and Interactive Writing Views to have the "Student of the Month" create and print an "about me" page, give students another way to brainstorm for writing pieces, or analyze books we read as a class. Once students create something in the software, they can export that work to the web or even finalize and print it in a word processor like Microsoft Word. KIDspiration's only downside is that I might have difficulty getting the program placed on school computers after the 30 day trial runs out. I would also need to be careful to use it as a supplement to my lessons, rather than relying on it too heavily. Overall, I'm excited to have discovered it and can't wait to try it out on some K-5 kiddos!
Sunday, February 13, 2011
Geometry Webquest for Fifth Graders
WebQuests are valuable online tools to guide students through a lesson in a more interactive and independent manner than traditional classroom instruction allows. They aim to use tools from the Web to enhance and even form the basis of a lesson. I created a WebQuest to be compeleted by fifth grade students who are enrolled in a geometry class. My goal was to use the WebQuest to teach students what the various geometric shapes were well enough that they could explain them all in their own words and recognize them in everyday life. It was important to me that they used critical thinking skills to apply their knowledge, rather than just regurgitating what they read.
To start, I put together an introduction with basic questions about shapes to draw them in and pique their interest. These questions are easy to understand but should provide new information for students to take in at the start of the lesson. Next, I found some informative and fun websites where my students could both learn about and practice skills from the lesson including identifying, describing, and giving examples of various geometric shapes. I included some paper activities, like a worksheet about one of the websites I had them visit, but Web-based activities made up the bulk of the activities I chose to incorporate from viewing examples to taking a quiz to creating geometric artwork.
I faced several challenges when creating this WebQuest, as I had never even seen one, much less made one, until this lesson. The first challenge I faced, which I never fully figured out, was how to incorporate worksheets I had created in Word into my WebQuest. I ended up inserting .JPEG images so students could view the worksheets before handouts were passed out, but I know some WebQuests linked to forms that children could fill out and submit online.
I also had some difficulty with the QuestGarden site- it deleted one of my process sections and my entire evaluation section each once before I finally redid them and got the whole thing to save. Perhaps the biggest challenge, though, was coming up with creative online activities and age appropriate websites to use. I found myself stuck in the rut of wanting to use traditional paper/pencil activities that I am familiar with, and I really had to work hard to ensure that I incorporated the Web into my WebQuest! Overall, I think this WebQuest is something my students would enjoy, as well as a tool that will significantly enhance their understanding of and interest in geometric shapes.
URL: http://questgarden.com/119/12/3/110213152608/
To start, I put together an introduction with basic questions about shapes to draw them in and pique their interest. These questions are easy to understand but should provide new information for students to take in at the start of the lesson. Next, I found some informative and fun websites where my students could both learn about and practice skills from the lesson including identifying, describing, and giving examples of various geometric shapes. I included some paper activities, like a worksheet about one of the websites I had them visit, but Web-based activities made up the bulk of the activities I chose to incorporate from viewing examples to taking a quiz to creating geometric artwork.
I faced several challenges when creating this WebQuest, as I had never even seen one, much less made one, until this lesson. The first challenge I faced, which I never fully figured out, was how to incorporate worksheets I had created in Word into my WebQuest. I ended up inserting .JPEG images so students could view the worksheets before handouts were passed out, but I know some WebQuests linked to forms that children could fill out and submit online.
I also had some difficulty with the QuestGarden site- it deleted one of my process sections and my entire evaluation section each once before I finally redid them and got the whole thing to save. Perhaps the biggest challenge, though, was coming up with creative online activities and age appropriate websites to use. I found myself stuck in the rut of wanting to use traditional paper/pencil activities that I am familiar with, and I really had to work hard to ensure that I incorporated the Web into my WebQuest! Overall, I think this WebQuest is something my students would enjoy, as well as a tool that will significantly enhance their understanding of and interest in geometric shapes.
URL: http://questgarden.com/119/12/3/110213152608/
Sunday, February 6, 2011
Online Communication Tools
I have always been well aware that online communication tools exist, and I even have extensive practice using the more common forms like email and instant messaging. However, it never occurred to me just how valuable these tools could prove to be in a classroom, especially with elementary school children. While I am not yet teaching in my own classroom, I can confidently say that I would not have been making use of most of the online communication tools available to me.
Before this course, I did not have a clear understanding of what a wiki, VoIP, or microblog was, much less how to use them in an educational setting. Upon further research, I realized that I had already used these resources in my daily life without ever knowing what they were. For example, I created a Twitter account for a marketing internship (microblog), looked up all kinds of things on Wikipedia (a wiki), and Skyped with my friend in Canada (VoIP). These technologies are becoming more and more commonly used, and it is important for teachers to help their students understand and utilize popular technologies so they will be prepared to succeed as adults.
I was also hesitant to use online communication tools because I thought they would be more difficult to apply in an elementary school classroom. Students are younger and have less developed reading, writing, and computer skills than older high school students would have. In reality, this is when we most need to be incorporating technology into our lessons. Young children learn unbelievably quickly, and they also crave attention and the opportunity to have their thoughts and opinions heard.
One of the easiest (and most effective ways) to utilize online tools is by creating a class blog. Blogging can give students a more active role in their learning immediately. I hope to teach fifth grade, and they are old enough at that age to be responsible for their own blog and its contents. Many blogs even exist solely for use in an instructional setting, like 21classes.com and blogmeister.com. To prepare students for this assignment, I will start off by making use of a classroom blog that I create. I will show them how I enter information and allow them to start off by posting responses like questions about assignments. They will be responsible for frequently checking the blog and sharing its contents with their parents.
After they feel comfortable with what a blog is and how it works, I will create accounts for each of them (using only first names or pseudonyms to avoid sharing their personal information online). From that point, I will activate the setting that allows their information to post only after I have approved it. Once I feel they have the hang of it and are being responsible, their blog will be their own. I will monitor them, but overall, the blogs will be discussion facilitators and a project students can own and take pride in. We can incorporate this tool in the class for keeping class journals, responding to critical thinking questions about novels we are reading, keep up on current events, and more!
Before this course, I did not have a clear understanding of what a wiki, VoIP, or microblog was, much less how to use them in an educational setting. Upon further research, I realized that I had already used these resources in my daily life without ever knowing what they were. For example, I created a Twitter account for a marketing internship (microblog), looked up all kinds of things on Wikipedia (a wiki), and Skyped with my friend in Canada (VoIP). These technologies are becoming more and more commonly used, and it is important for teachers to help their students understand and utilize popular technologies so they will be prepared to succeed as adults.
I was also hesitant to use online communication tools because I thought they would be more difficult to apply in an elementary school classroom. Students are younger and have less developed reading, writing, and computer skills than older high school students would have. In reality, this is when we most need to be incorporating technology into our lessons. Young children learn unbelievably quickly, and they also crave attention and the opportunity to have their thoughts and opinions heard.
One of the easiest (and most effective ways) to utilize online tools is by creating a class blog. Blogging can give students a more active role in their learning immediately. I hope to teach fifth grade, and they are old enough at that age to be responsible for their own blog and its contents. Many blogs even exist solely for use in an instructional setting, like 21classes.com and blogmeister.com. To prepare students for this assignment, I will start off by making use of a classroom blog that I create. I will show them how I enter information and allow them to start off by posting responses like questions about assignments. They will be responsible for frequently checking the blog and sharing its contents with their parents.
After they feel comfortable with what a blog is and how it works, I will create accounts for each of them (using only first names or pseudonyms to avoid sharing their personal information online). From that point, I will activate the setting that allows their information to post only after I have approved it. Once I feel they have the hang of it and are being responsible, their blog will be their own. I will monitor them, but overall, the blogs will be discussion facilitators and a project students can own and take pride in. We can incorporate this tool in the class for keeping class journals, responding to critical thinking questions about novels we are reading, keep up on current events, and more!
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