Journal Assignment #9

Realizing Technology Potential through TPACK
By the SIGTE Leadership and NTLS Program Committee

Technology, Pedagogy, and Content Knowledge (TPACK)

• Each of the three are equally important in making connections to instructional objectives in school.
• Considered the "total package" of elements that are addressed in effective technology integration.
• Melissa Pierson: "A teacher who effectively integrates technology would be able to draw on extensive content knowledge and pedagogical knowledge, in combination with technological knowledge. The intersection of th three knowledge areas could be defined as effective technology integration."

TPACK as a Strategy for Technology Integration
LINKING TECHNOLOGY WITH PEDAGOGICAL GOALS IN DIFFERENT CONTENT AREAS:
Discipline Content Technology Pedagogical Goals
Science Physics Digital Video Modifying Naive Conceptions
Social Studies History Digital Video Supporting Historical Inquiry
Lang. Arts Reading Digital Video Reinforcing Visual Imagery
Math Trig Digital Video Connecting Representations

"Digital Technologies make it possible to select and refine tools to address pedagogical needs in each discipline."

Moving the Framework Forward

• Assistance to teachers can be provided in which reflecting, planning, and enacting instructional strategies based on the TPACK intersection.
• The TPACK framework is a reminder that effective integration requires a deep understanding of content knowledge, and thoughtful exploration of ways in which ew capabilities of emerging technologies may intersect.

Journal Assignment #8

Transforming school Communities
Creating Dialgoue Using Web 2.0 Tools
by Helen Soule

One-way communication systems are no longer viable in school communities. This particular article expresses an earnest cry to school communities about using Web 2.0 tools as a way by which to transition to a two-way communication system. Soule lists the following three components as "critical components of communication" in school systems: advocacy of vision, networking to build formal and informal support, and collaboration with diverse external and internal constituencies.

The following are steps to transforming school communities:

1. Familiarize Yourself with the Tools: It's important to be acquainted with the tools before one can incorporate them with their district's communication plans.

2. Send a Clear Message: Consistency is very important in creating a successful communication plan.

3. Know the Audience: "Use multiple vehicles to gather constituency input and gain an understanding of their attitudes, preferences, and ideas."

4. Match Vehicle, Audience, and Message: The basic message should not necessarily change but the way in which it is delivered should be tailored in a way that fits each audience.

5. Create Opportunities to Educate: "Communication is part education." When people have knowledge about new ideas/ways of communicating thay are more receptive to them.

6. Use Multiple Vehicles: "Publish information in multiple formats across several platforms to increase the chances that the message will reach the intended audience."

7. Make Way for Interaction: Move from one-way communication systems to two-way communication systems that allow for collaboration with parents, students, teachers, and community members.

8. Advocate the Vision: Promotes an unprecedented accountability.

9. Network to Build Support: "Networking through technology can form powerful alliances,
connecting leaders and experts locally, nationally and internationally."

10. Collaborate with Constituents

Q1: What benefits would such a transformation have on any individual classroom?

A1: With such communication tools being used this could make room for less lack of understanding as it relates to expectations of students in behavior and assignments. It also makes room for parents to be better aware of what's taking place in their child's academic career. Communication is further made accessible between students, teachers and parents making a more sucessful collaboration possible.

Q2: What could be some reasons why school communities are not making this transformation?

A2: Lack of knowldge. Lack of funds. Immobility. The list could go on, but I believe these are the most likely reasons.

Journal Assignment #7

Sharing Notes in the Classroom

By Mark Bailey and Steve Rhine

"One of the primary challenges teachers face is to structure learning in the classroom so that the material and process is meaningful and engaging for every student."

Through the use of such tools as SubEthaEdit and Google Docs a classroom dynamic is created "in which all students are continually engaged and collaboratively constructing understanding." Both tools permit for students and instructors to collaborate on a single document simultaneously which furthermore creates an avenue by which a deeper understanding could be achieved more quickly than having to wait 'til the next class session. There are four ways the tools could be used in the classroom:

1. Collaborative note-taking
2. Sharing of linked resources and graphics
3. Supporting small-group discussions
4. Assessing Comprehension

Often times students find it difficult to share notes for many reasons, but with the use of the tools this article introduces to its readers there can be less of a hassle for students to share their notes. Furthermore permitting for more successful and collaborative students.

Q1: In what classrooms would these tools be most appropriate to use in instruction?

A1: These tools would be most appropriate for high school and college-aged students. Any instructor who seeks to engage their students and to create a smaller gap between pedagogy and hands-on learning would find these tools an essential element to their classroom.

Q2: What is SubEthaEdit?

A2: This is a program most typically used in a college classroom. Also the program only runs on the Apple platform, but it's a program that "allows an instructor to create a document on a computer, and, through the use of wireless connectivity, it enables a large number of users to access and edit the document sinultaneously." All changes made to the document can be seen in real time and each person's edits are marked by their own color.

Journal Assignment #6

Virtual Success

Transforming Education Through Online Learning

by Julie Young, Pam Birtolo, and Raven McElman

Virtual Schools Offer Alternative

• No set schedules: Allow students to complete course work around their own personal schedules (work, family, and other commitments).
• No classrooms: Allow students to stay at home and do course work (especially convenient for stay-at-home mothers).
• Teachers are available 24/7/365.
• Students can relatively work at their own pace.
• The curriculum is delivered via the Internet, and teachers employ innovative instructional practices to offer an individualized learning experience for students.
• Results in students gaining time, more earning-pace flexibility, more engaging course materials, and more individualized attention from teachers.

New Skills to Learn

21st-century skills strengthens the foundation of competence in core subjects:

• English
• Mathematics
• Science
• Social Studies
• Foreign Language

...And even builds an understanding of issues critical to community and workplace success:

• Global awareness
• Business, financial, and civic literacy
• Health and Wellness
• Life skills

Traditional Schools Get Low Marks

Survey results...

• National poll by the Partnership for 21st-Century Skills: 80% of U.S. registered voters say "the public education system is not preparing young people to compete in the global market."
• Survey conducted by Project Tomorrow, a California-based education advocacy group, found similar results: Only 23% of students polled said they "believed their school was doing a good job preparing them for future jobs."

Florida Virtual School (FLVS) Students Outperform Peers

The out performance can be highly attributed to the flexibility provided by online schooling and the teacher-student engagement that is able to take place. Students are able to move at their own pace. Teachers are able to receive a better view of where their students are struggling and then construct an individualized learning plan that will further help each student succeed.

Q#1: Is online learning for all students?

A#1: No. All students learn differently. While online learning is very innovative and allows for a lot of flexibility there are still those students who will benefit more from a classroom setting in which they are able to physically interact with a teacher and with their peers.

Q#2: What is a common thread between virtual and face-to-face education?

A#2: The "authenticity of the interaction." The student-teacher relationship is always essential in determining the effectiveness of the teacher and the success of the student. In both settings, as long as careful attention is being paid to that relationship success is possible!

Journal Assignment #5

Grow Your Personal Learning Network
New Technologies Can Keep You Connected and Help You Manage Information Overload

by David Warlick

"Harnessing these new technologies to create and grow our own PLNs is imperative for educators who want to stay connected to the changing world we are charged with introducing to our students."


The Many PLN Paths...

Pick Your PLNs
1. Personally maintained synchronous connections.

• Traditional network- includes the people and places you consult to answer questions, solve problems and accomplish goals.
• Tools: chat, instant and text messaging, teleconferencing, Twitter, and virtual worlds (ie. Second Life)
• Traditional barriers of geography, background, language and culture become transparent.

2. Personally and socially maintained semi-synchronous connections.

• These are conversations that are not exactly conversations.
• Semi-synchronous refers to the idea that collaboration does not have to happen in real time.
• Tools: mailing lists, wikis, Google Docs, Twitter, group discussion boards and comment walls in Facebook, and commenting on blogs, among others.

3. Dynamically maintained asychronous connections.

• Most often connects us with content sources that we have identified as valuable.
• Central tool: RSS aggregator- Google Reader, Netvibes, and Pageflakes.
• This technology has inspired a shift from a hunting-and-gathering information economy to the domestication of the information landscape.

Cultivate Your Network

As 21st-century educators we are often described in terms such as facilitator, guide, coach and curator. These are all terms y which learners are being connected to the world they are learning about. With this in mind, it is even more important for us, as educators, to be learning about new and emerging communication technologies and applications. The image above shows a variety of tools that can serve as strands of a single PLN.

"Preparing children for an unpredictable future means helping them learn to teach themselves. That is why lifelong learning is such a crucial part of the education conversation and why modeling a learning lifestyle is one of the best things that teachers can do today. So fire up your PLN and become the networked learner you expect your students to be."

Q1. Why is it important for educators to develop a Personal Learning Network?

A1. Young people who will make up the students in any classroom will already be immersed in the networks that are made available to them in the world. It is an awesome idea, and should be a requirement, for educators to become familiar with the technologies out there and then work with the one they feel most comfortable with so that when their in front of their students they are well prepared.

Q2. How many types of PLNs are there? What are they?

A2. There are three types of PLNs. They are as follows:

1. Personally maintained synchronous connections.
2. Personally and socially maintained semisychronous connections.
3. Dynamically maintained asynchronous connections.
   

Journal Assignment #4

Getting Girls EX.I.T.E.D about Project Management
by Bjorn Norstrom, Carol Smith, and Annika Haglund

"As opposed to traditional subjects such as math, science, reading and writing, project management is not a skill set schools typically teach and assess."

ORIGINS:
EXploring Interests in Technology and Engineering (EX.I.T.E.) is a week-long summer camp that IBM sites around the world have offered to middle school girls. During the camp these girls have opportunities to work alongside female engineers on a specific project. The goal of the project is to get young girls interested in and exploring possible careers in the fields of technology and engineering. Norstrom, Smith and Haglund all participated in the program and decided to join forces to propose a new program that focused "on teaching the girls project management skills and teamwork through incorporating a variety of educational technologies."

VISION:
The four goals as established through a collaborative process between CMS and IBM:

1. Establish a long-term mentor-mentee relationship between engineers and students
2. Introduce students to the field of project management and connect it to educational technology
3. Encourage girls to pursue further education and careers in science and technology
4. Develop a replicable model that can be implemented in any K-12 setting on how education and corporations can collaborate around educational technology
   

PROGRAM & PROJECT:
The mentors are responsible for fulfilling a sort of dual role. Their first role is to provide support, guidance, and encouragement to the mentee. Their second role involves acting as a customer and investor of the project the girls managed by accepting, rejecting, or even asking for revisions of the work the girls submit.

Phases of the program for the female students involved:

1. IDEA- the girls brainstorm ideas for fulfilling the needs of the project assigned.
   
2. PLAN- the girls write a Statement of Work (SOW) and submit it to their customers. During this phase the girls would normally receive some sort of feedback and revise their SOW accordingly.
   
3. CREATE- this is the phase in which the girls begin to implement their SOW.
   
4. CHECK- the girls check their project against the original directions and discuss lessons learned.

The amount of technology used throughout the completion of the project is limitless and ever-changing.

RESULTS:
A greater sense of confidence was created within each young lady involved in the program. The article talks about how in the beginning sessions/meetings with the girls it was typical of a middle school group, but by the end of their time in the program the young ladies were more assertive self starters who eventually to charge in such meetings. Not only did each young lady gain a deeper understanding in the field of engineering and technology but they also gained a better sense of their roles as leaders.

Q1: How can such a program be used on a smaller level?

A1: I believe a program like this could be designed on a community-based level with prominent community members or even members of the school district. The program would allow for students to develop innovative programs they believe would be beneficial for themselves and their peers.

Q2: What is the effectiveness of mentor-mentee relationships?

A2: When students have someone they can look up to, they strive to achieve more. Also the level of accountability is greater than it was and thus the relationship builds more motivated students.

Software Review: Learning.com

Web Browsing:
Research and Citing Sources
Grades: 6-8

Click on the image below to access the page for the main website:

ISTE NETS Standards for Students

Browsing Basics

5.	Digital Citizenship
	Students understand human, cultural, and societal issues related to technology and practice legal and ethical behavior. Students:
	a. advocate and practice safe, legal, and responsible use of information and technology.

6.	Technology Operations and Concepts
	Students demonstrate a sound understanding of technology concepts, systems, and operations. Students:
	a. understand and use technology systems. b. select and use applications effectively and productively.

URLs

1.	Creativity and Innovation
	Students demonstrate creative thinking, construct knowledge, and develop innovative products and processes using technology. Students:
	a. apply existing knowledge to generate new ideas, products, or processes.

2.	Communication and Collaboration
	Students use digital media and environments to communicate and work collaboratively, including at a distance, to support individual learning and contribute to the learning of others. Students:
	a. interact, collaborate, and publish with peers, experts, or others employing a variety of digital environments and media.

6.	Technology Operations and Concepts
	Students demonstrate a sound understanding of technology concepts, systems, and operations. Students:
	a. understand and use technology systems. b. select and use applications effectively and productively.

Web Searches

3.	Research and Information Fluency
	Students apply digital tools to gather, evaluate, and use information. Students:
	b. locate, organize, analyze, evaluate, synthesize, and ethically use information from a variety of sources and media. c. evaluate and select information sources and digital tools based on the appropriateness to specific tasks.

4.	Critical Thinking, Problem Solving, and Decision Making
	Students use critical thinking skills to plan and conduct research, manage projects, solve problems, and make informed decisions using appropriate digital tools and resources. Students:
	c. collect and analyze data to identify solutions and/or make informed decisions.

5.	Digital Citizenship
	Students understand human, cultural, and societal issues related to technology and practice legal and ethical behavior. Students:
	a. advocate and practice safe, legal, and responsible use of information and technology.

Validity and Sourcing

1.	Creativity and Innovation
	Students demonstrate creative thinking, construct knowledge, and develop innovative products and processes using technology. Students:
	a. apply existing knowledge to generate new ideas, products, or processes.

2.	Communication and Collaboration
	Students use digital media and environments to communicate and work collaboratively, including at a distance, to support individual learning and contribute to the learning of others. Students:
	a. interact, collaborate, and publish with peers, experts, or others employing a variety of digital environments and media. b. communicate information and ideas effectively to multiple audiences using a variety of media and formats.

5.	Digital Citizenship
	Students understand human, cultural, and societal issues related to technology and practice legal and ethical behavior. Students:
	a. advocate and practice safe, legal, and responsible use of information and technology. b. exhibit a positive attitude toward using technology that supports collaboration, learning, and productivity.

MINI REVIEW: This series of tutorials did a great job at relaying basic web browsing skills. Browsing Basics taught students basic information about how to use a web browser to find information on the World Wide Web, including the use of URLs, links, home pages, scroll bars, and navigational buttons. The lesson on URLs taught students the basic makeup of a URL and the lesson also touches on bookmarking pages and basic troubleshooting of error pages. The lesson on Web Searches taught students effective Internet search strategies using keyword and phrase searches as well as truncation. The lesson also teaches students how to determine the relevancy of information found with a web search. The lesson on Validity and Sourcing taught students about information privacy, website credibility, copyright and fair use laws, and sourcing. There are no evident barriers to success when using this program in the classroom. It is very engaging and would prove to keep the students attention. I would recommend this program to any teacher that desires to mix up their lesson a little bit by getting the students involved in using technology in the classroom.

References:
1. (2009). Learning.com. Retrieved February/March 2009, from website: http://www.learning.com/home/index.htm.
2. International Society for Technology in Education. (2009). ISTE's Educational Technology Standards for Students. Retrieved March 2, 2009, from http://www.iste.org/Content/NavigationMenu/NETS/
ForStudents/2007Standards/NETS_for_Students_2007.htm.