Digital Blog Post #D

In chapter 5 the first thing that caught my attention was the section titled "Evaluating Online Information". As someone who has gone through high school and some college, I do have a basic understanding that you shouldn't believe everything you read on the internet...however, I'm embarrassed to say I didn't know how careful you needed to be. In school you need to research and report on that research, so it has to be accurate. There were a couple things I didn't even realize I needed to look out for. One being, websites that have messed up information. This would be a website that is poorly organized or cluttered with distractions like random graphics. Another one is websites that have mostly useless information. The list goes on to explain what seems useless to one is useful to another and that censorship in school is tricky because of our society, which is a free one. As a student I never thought to be careful of what website I got my information from (excluding Wikipedia of course!), but as a student who wants to become a teacher, it makes me think more deeply of it. It will be my job to deem what is appropriate for my students to use and what isn't. I think it's something that will take some work and practice to really know what the signs of a non-credible website are.

As I was thinking about the work I'll have to put in as a teacher to promote positive web researching, I read the next passage that goes over criteria for evaluation web resources. Perfect! The book lists five things to look for

1) Accuracy- this one describes how the information looks, that it is information that is reliable and gives clear credit to the author.

2)Authority-you check this one for the credentials of the author, are they a knowledgeable person on the subject?

3)Objectivity-for this one you'd look if the information is non-biased or not, which includes checking for ads as they can reflect the bias in the article.

4)Currency-this is when you'll make sure the information you're reading about is up-to-date. Especially in this time of life, things are changing every day.

5)Coverage- and this one describes if the website is easy to view and read.

This section was perfect because I was thinking to myself "where do I begin to learn what is acceptable and what isn't?". That list helped me so much to think about every detail on webpages I view and use as research now, as a student and a teacher. This web link gave another good overview of the above topics.


The last section in the article talks about cyber bullying. This section is very important to me. I have never been affected by bullying but so many other people I know have as kids and adults. In 2016 the internet and social media have become the most important things to a child's life. It also works as a way for people to put on a different persona, a braver one. Online bullying gives you a way to say a lot of things you would never say to someone's face. It can also make you anonymous. I am going into teaching at a time when the internet is so huge in everyone's life, especially kids. Cyber bulling is one thing I can almost guarantee I'll have to deal with at some point in my career. It will be important for me to teach my students to use the internet positively and to think before they....type. The book emphasizes the important of teaching kids the consequences of bullying before it happens. When I was a student in middle school we had a program called peer counseling. This was students who got together to help others who were having problems with each other work it out. For me, it was more face-to-face problems but I think it would be a great tool for online problems as well.

T. (2012, September 20). Don't Play with Plagiarizing! Retrieved September 25, 2016, from http://talknerdy2me.org/dont-play-with-plagiarizing/

    S. (2012, March 22). THE CYBER BULLYING VIRUS. Retrieved September 25, 2016, from           https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-5PZ_Bh-M6o

 Teachers ' Guide on How to Evaluate Web Content. (n.d.). Retrieved September 25, 2016, from http://www.educatorstechnology.com/2012/07/teachers-easy-guide-on-how-to-evaluate.html

Maloy, R., O'Loughin, R., Edwards, S., & Woolf, B. (2013). Transforming Learning with New Technologies. 2nd edition. Boston, MA: Pearson Education Inc. 

 

Digital Blog Post #B

The first idea that caught my idea was titled "Key Issues for Technology-Using Teachers". It asked six questions to survey your current thinking about technology in educating. Three caught my eye,

1) What are your reasons for wanting to use technology in teaching?
2) What are your goals for the types of technologies you will use in the classroom?
3) What are your views of the barriers teachers face in using technology in the classroom?

I tried to think of my personal answers for these questions, as I prepare myself to become an educator. The reason I want to technology in teaching are pretty much to stay current and to create something fun and unique using technology. By the time I become a teacher, around 2019, who knows where technology will be. Students already rely so heavily on it now outside of school and the resources we will have as teachers to create something exciting with technology shouldn't be wasted. There are a ton of programs available to bring the lesson plans to life using at home computer assignments, learning games, ect. My goals would be to use technology for good and to teach my students what can be (positively) done using the internet! I think that should be a goal for every teacher of young children and on, in now-a-days society, to make sure their students are learning how to use the internet and their technology for good. In my classroom (elementary school) I would want to use the internet for homework assignments, a way to gain extra insight to the lesson plans and for games to help drive the lesson in. Growing up my favorite learning game played in school was jeopardy so that'll be a big one I use! The barriers teachers face using technology in the classroom now is probably just a disconnect in the teachers knowledge versus the students. Kids are learning so quickly now that if a teacher doesn't actively try to keep up, they wont be able too. It's important to make sure your knowledge is on par so that the technology you're using doesn't seem stale.

The next point is one that talks about levels of student engagement. Students reported that they felt least engaged during lecture classes, while feeling the most engaged by group projects and lessons that used technology. This hits home to me because I could not agree more. Teachers have to remember that they are talking with a group of students, not at them. I will firmly stand against lecture, as it ends up just being run on sentences and students will just day dream because they are not being stimulated whatsoever. The book states that in 2011, only 75% of high schools made it through all four years and a key reason for them dropping out was plain and simple, a lack of stimulation. 25% of students dropping out is way high of a number. One thing I'll try to remember when I'm a teacher is to look at every lesson and ask myself "how am i connecting this to the real world?". Each day can't be the same way of teaching, or the class will become stale and repetitive, thus losing the interest of the students. I'll have to hang that number of 25% up somewhere so I never forget what my goal is-lowering that number!

The next key issue is an important one to me. It is teacher-centered teaching Vs. student-centered teaching. Teacher-centered focused more on a formal conveyance of information from a knowledgeable teacher to novice students. They instructors use test scores and quantitative measures to determine if the lesson has been learned or not. Student-centered, however, view teaching as creating experiences for their children. They believe lessons should be used with puzzles, questions and conversation, therefore learning the skill through exploration. The struggle for teachers in this generation is the want for one (for most teachers I should say) and the push by officials to be another. The biggest complaint we are hearing from educators today is that they are being told to teach to pass a test, not to learn. This is more teacher centered because the answer to "are students understanding?" is based SOLELY on test scores. This is definitely not the best way to learn because of things like test anxiety which many students suffer from. I would guess most teachers go into the profession wanting to be student-centered and make their classroom an exciting one...I know that is my goal. I fear however, that it will be turned into a teacher-centered classroom based on the expectations that will be set on my students and me as a teacher to make sure they pass the multitude of standardized testing that are given out nowadays.

In conclusion, this chapter, like chapter 1, makes me really think about my upcoming career as a teacher. It makes me nervous, excited and determined as ever to create a classroom that uses all the resources available to me. It makes me want to dive into everything there is to learn about technology and how I can apply it in my classroom, I feel so determined to create a classroom that is student-centered. I wonder if this is ignorance or not, is my idea of a modern classroom skewed? This book is really making me think and I am so excited about that!

Maloy, R., O'loughlin, R., Edwards, S., & Woolf, B. (2013). Transforming Learning with New Technologies. 2nd Edition. Boston, MA: Pearson Education Inc. 

Ellis, Jessica. "Untitled Powtoon 2 Jessica Ellis." YouTube. YouTube, 11 Sept. 2016. Web. 11 Sept. 2016.

Whetzel, By Lauren. "20 Things You Do When Sitting in Your Most Boring Lecture." Her Campus. N.p., n.d. Web. 11 Sept. 2016.