Sample Module 6 - Assignment Example

             A few key qualities are needed for an individual to be a good reader and writer.  Besides the obvious (proper spelling, grammar, mechanics, syntax, etc.), one of the most important traits a person can have is the ability to keep their writing organized.  It is hard to read a piece of authored work that is messy; often times, this makes it harder for the author to get their point across.  Likewise, a good reader needs to be able to recognize an author’s organization in order to enhance their grasp of the central ideas within a variety of authored works.  Good writers also need to avoid repetition, since this makes for a boring read.  I know from personal experience that when I read an authored work that repeats itself over and over in a redundant fashion, I have a tendency to put the work down and find other things to do.

            Good readers can’t just skim through four pages and claim that they are “done”.  I think one of the most important things a reader can do is take the time to go back and re-read elements of a text that they did not understand the first time around.  A good reader makes it a point to keep a dictionary at their side, ready to look up words that the author had found to be particularly useful.  This helps a good reader facilitate a deeper comprehension of not only the central point that the author is trying to make, but also the author’s point of view. 

            It is important to remember that while good reading and writing takes time, practice, patience, and effort, good readers and writers have developed these tools in order to become exponentially better at reading and writing.

Week 10 - March 29, 2012

            After reading the blog focusing on the use of “paper blogs” in order to introduce the concept of blogging into the classroom for primary education students, I found a number of ideas that could also be implemented for secondary education students.  I found the use of 3x3” post-it notes to simulate online comment threads to be interesting; it is a good way for students to become familiar with comment threads and the purpose they serve.  The blog also mentions the use of a “7^th-grade blogging rules” contract that needs to be signed.  In secondary schools today, bullying is a large issue that, with the advent of social networking, makes it way outside of the school and into a student’s life.  The use of a contract can prevent bullying within the blogs, so long proper discipline is applied when the contract is breached.  I think the use of a contact is an excellent way to scaffold the foundations of online responsibility.

            An idea that I had found especially important was the creation of a rough draft for the paper blog prior to its actual creation.  While online content can be posted, edited, reposted or deleted on the fly, it is good for students to know what they want in the realm of cyberspace as well as on paper.  The integrity of postings in both the digital and physical world will not be compromised if students sort out what they want to say before they actually say it.  I feel it is good for them to learn to not give in to the instant impulsive actions that online forums can provide.

Week 9 - March 28, 2012

     One of the most challenging facets in the creation of a technology-infused unit plan lies within the fact that technology is not wholly and completely integrated in classrooms on a day-to-day basis...yet.  As a result, there is no set precedent; I feel as though we as a class are learning an entirely new way to teach our students.  I find the creation of a technology-infused unit plan difficult simply because we've learned to plan units without technology; with technology; the entire classroom environment is altered.

     While this is the case, I do find the use of certain elements of technology useful for students, especially in the case of the flipped classroom.  Through the creation of wikis with the use of WikiSpaces and the use of instructional videos with tools like Jing, students can learn at their own pace and come to class prepared to work.  I also find Blogger to be a useful tool for assessment; I think it'll work well as a way for students to complete written responses and other assignments of that nature in a way they might find more comfortable.  This is especially when considering the fact that compared to our generation, future generations are going to be much more integrated with technology in their day to day lives.

Week 6 - March 8, 2012

     After reading the information on cell phones in the classroom and the various uses they can present in the classroom, I found that TextNovels seemed like an excellent idea for students to compile information about a particular topic for themselves.  For instance, if they're getting ready to compose an essay about Ancient Mesopotamian cultures, they can use this resource to lay out their main points about Mesopotamia and how the culture had changed over time.  They could do this just as easily with a sheet of paper and a pencil; however, teenagers love their cellphones and using cellphone based technology would likely encourage them to retain their focus on the topic.
     In addition to textnovels, Twitter can be used as an excellent resource for answering questions in class; specifically, for preassessment.  Not all students have smartphones, but twitter is also accessible via text message.  By limiting answers to 160 characters, students can quickly give brief responses to a central twitter account run by the teacher.  This would be a great way to discover student's misconceptions of a particular topic prior to its introduction in the classroom.

Week 5 - March 1, 2012

http://www.sascurriculumpathways.com/portal/Launch?id=32&bhcp=1

     The link above is a link for an interactive document analyzer containing four documents on the Mexican-American War.  I'm currently creating a unit plan for another class on the Mexican-American war with the use of a primary source document reader; I think these documents in conjunction with the primary source document reader would provide a more interactive and entertaining experience for students.  Additionally, this SAS Curriculum Pathways resource provides a few videos providing background on the war as well as a video providing directions on how to analyze primary source documents.  I may even consider using this resource in conjunction with the unit plan I'm currently designing in order to give this idea a test run to see how effective it can actually be.

http://americanhistory.si.edu/timeline/index.cfm

     This link was a link I found through Thinkfinity; I found it rather interesting.  It's an interactive map of American History, provided by the National Museum of American History on behalf of the Smithsonian Institute.  It provides an interesting overlay of Cultural and Political elements of American History in an organized format by year and era.  I would use this in the social studies classroom; while I might not use this for a lesson, I think it would be a great resource at the beginning of the year for a U.S. History course for students to get a general idea of what they're going to be covering for the year.  It's also a good way to keep student interest in what they're learning; sometimes interactive materials can help to break up the monotony in the classroom.
   

Week 3 - February 9th, 2012

     Copyright infringement in the classroom is something that is done on a frequent basis.  While it typically goes unnoticed, I feel like teachers should consider the moral and ethical concerns regarding the use of copyrighted material in their classrooms to modify or share with their students, especially since teachers are inherently seen in some communities as important role models who promote qualities of upstanding citizenship for their students.  In the face of a new digital era, it is also important for students to learn and understand the legalities they face when working with copyrighted materials so that they can understand what they can and can't share, change, use as their own, or utilize in order to turn a profit.


Since materials that fall under the Creative Commons license terms are safe to share with students as well as for students to share (provided that the licensing terms are not violated in the process), I'd like that they knew the terms included with the 6 variations of Creative Commons licensing.  I'd also like it if they stuck with those terms.  In the classroom, I'd probably teach the laws, rules, and ethics of copyrights in a way similar to that which we had learned in class last night.  The activity made for a simple and amusing way for all of us to understand the different rules of Creative Commons licensing; I found it to be a smart way for students to make sense of what's up for grabs.

Week 2 - February 2, 2012

     I think the Flipped Classroom is a great way for students to initiate a greater capacity for self sufficiency.  By learning outside of class, what was learned in class is not forgotten the next day; instead, what is learned outside of class is brought into class in addition with any questions the material posed.  I think the Flipped Classroom makes the learning process more efficient in the sense that an instructor can spend more time helping students with what they do not understand.  In a normal classroom setting, teachers might find themselves spending time teaching the material only to have their students fail to understand it without any time at the end of a class session to correct any misunderstandings.


    I feel like creating the videos for the Teaching Software assignment is going to be an effective way for this class to learn more about the potential for software in the field of education.  I noticed that I had a relatively easy time in today's class learning about Diigo; anything I needed to operate it was right in front of me thanks to the video and the audio file instructions.  I was able to repeat instructions without having to waste anybody else's time.  I look forward to seeing how everybody else will operate in the Flipped Classroom setting, and I hope everybody can use the software we're being exposed to in order to come up with innovative ways to manage class materials as teachers.

Week 1 - January 26th, 2012

Sup internet?

What I hope to learn from this class is a number of methods that can be used in order to increase the amount of uses for technology in the classroom in order to provide a more comprehensive learning experience for students.  There are a number of students who have a genuine disdain for learning in a classroom environment; I strongly feel that the use of traditional paper-and-pencil, top-down lecture methods are the reason for a large portion of negative attitudes concerning education amongst students.  Last week in class, I learned that this is exactly what I'll/We'll be learning.  I'm enthusiastic over the prospect of enhancing the amount of collaboration in classrooms of the future in order to ensure students' proficiency in the 21st century environment and beyond.