During our second class of this course, we spent some time talking about our role as the online instructor using the TACCLE resource. We also looked at some online resources that could help us - most of us were familiar with Blackboard and Moodle, but we also learned about some very useful aspects about programs like Join Me, in which an entire screen can be shared easily with other participants. Another very useful part of the class was finding and exploring a rubric for online courses - the one that we used for an assignment was quite long and didn't easily allow us to tweak it - the one found during class at csuchico.edu was much more user-friendly and will serve as a great guide as we continue to develop our online courses.
I had many more "aha!" moments while going through the TACCLE readings for this week (and a few where I wish my administrators had seen it). In Chapter 18, I was a tad overwhelmed at all of the acronyms - and a little more when it said that they are all related, don't all mean the same thing, but are oftentimes interchanged for one another! After getting over that, I was able to grasp the other concepts (just a little shell-shock at first). I did enjoy reading about the Personal Learning Environments (PLE's), as the ideas totally make sense - about it being learner-centered rather than course/institution-centered - I totally relate it to the ways teachers taught when I was in high school and even when I first started teaching eight years ago - what a shift in thinking and in clientel. I was amazed to find out the origin of curriculum as well (race or racecourse - and 1 path to get there - so NOT the case!) I love that they referred to PLE's as not just a computer program, but a PERSONAL CONCEPT and should be designed to fit each individual (similar to all of us having our own filing and organization methods - especially when you look at teacher's desks in our department - I would freak out a little if mine was chaotic - but - maybe that's how other teachers operate!)
After many years of schooling, new-teacher meetings and eight years in the classroom, the idea of chunking material and switching gears a few times within the class period is not new - although some teachers continue to lecture entire class periods with no breaks. I don't know anyone who could stay fully engaged that way - no matter what age they are. These learning objects are designed and intended to be used in bite-size chunks - being much more interesting and to-the-point. We all function best in this way - for example, you hear something on the radio or read it in the news and come up with a question - it's not answered in the story, but it is driving you nuts trying to think of the answer. The course of action? Google it! Perhaps you will want to know more information about whatever or whoever you were thinking of, but usually you aren't interested in every detail of it or them - we want bite-size chunks of info - and at our fingertips (DLO's!)
The text-based DLO hints were mostly things that I had heard of before (with exception of the powerpoint slides containing no more info as what could fit on the front of a t-shirt). We usually see these "don'ts" at faculty meetings - reading word-for-word off slides with paragraphs on them. I must admit that I have done this - mostly because of nerves - but - seeing this as an audience, it is annoying and I tend to lose interest in the speaker. The question also arises, then, that "why couldn't they have just sent this to us in an email?" - especially if the speaker doesn't add anything new. (It's all about respecting the learner!) The main thing with all types of DLO's is to keep them relevant and functional (with descriptive names). Something new to me in this reading was the topic of copyright and copyleft. I'm sure that there are plenty of copyright infringements in every classroom and at every school, but it may be more evident/obvious in an online course (more people can access your materials when online than by walking in your classroom.) I also had never heard of copyleft and am going to see if I notice it on online resources.
One of our assignments was to create a virtual classroom and share some files and videos on it. I used Blackboard and was quite happy that it was fairly easy to upload content. During my session, I was also exposed to many tools within the program - all seemingly easy to use - I am excited to try this with students as "office hours" - showing step-by-step problems with arrows and a calculator in real time. I was only a tad frustrated with it when I couldn't save content, but I found out that if sessions are scheduled, it is possible. Through this experience, I am feeling much more comfortable with presenting in an online environment! :)
Wednesday, January 25, 2012
Thursday, January 12, 2012
CED 502 - Week 1
First, a little background. I teach Chemistry and don't use much e-technology in my classrooom - primarily due to the size of my classes and the space constraints, some of my stubbornness of changing my style of teaching, and to limitations to types of technology in the building. So far through this program, I am excited to physically work on an online course (which has been started) and was very pumped to Skype for the first time and start feeling comfortable with new e-learning possibilities. I know that I will be able to use both of those quite a bit in my classes (Skype which will require only one computer and has so many uses - and definitely a program like Moodle in the very near future, as I believe we may be offering that for the next school year.) I've also found that the social bookmarking and online storage sites can be very helpful to guide students to interesting, applicable and appropriate science websites and can also help teachers find and use great sites and share materials while saving valuable time and avoiding frustration. I'm sure that there will be some more tools that we will cover that will also find its way into an online course or into the traditional calssroom. I'm very much looking forward to learning these new tools!
After reading section 2 of TACCLE, there were some interesting points raised that I am interested in showing our district, especially dealing with e-learning tools that could be used within a "traditional" classroom. I have taken a few online courses in the past, and I was much more engaged in the content when both sychronous and asynchronous learning was happening. I can remember a particular course where it was just text material and quizzes - very boring AND hard to stay motivated (talk about procrastination-city!) It was also nice in Chapter 15 to point out that just putting content online wasn't enough - e-technologies are part of the toolkit but are not a replacement - we need to vary the content and delivery method. I did appreciate reading in Chapter 14 that the teachers' role has changed to helping students become autonomous learners and TAKE RESPONSIBILITY for their learning. This works in both an online and a traditional learning environment (something that today's parents/students/teachers/administrators need to realize!)
In Chapter 16, the primary focus was on assessment. The idea of giving a clear set of instructions and making sure that assessments have a meaningful purpose was also brought up during our last online meeting when we were discussing the three articles. The part of the chapter that really stuck out to me was the interactivity portion - that tests sometimes are not enough and don't mimic the learning process. In my classroom, some of the greatest joys are when students are able to explain and help teach concepts to others - I always tell them that if they aren't getting something that I've already covered, that they should ask a friend - because, if they can explain it, I know that they've got it. The last part that I found that was particularly interesting was the concept that we are teaching "digital natives," but in most schools, we nix the use of most technologies - mostly because of texting/cheating, the possibility of encountering predators, or (what I think is the main reason) a lack of understanding of how these e-technologies can help. I am a rebel (haha!) and do break the school rule of no cell phones - since my class is heavy in math content, most students don't have or bring a calculator, but ask if they can use the one on their phone (my answer? you bet!). Sure, during a test I am more observant making sure that answers are not texted back and forth, but if they have that technology, I don't want to ban it from learning. (Now, if I can convince the administration that using it is a good thing...any ideas?)
After reading section 2 of TACCLE, there were some interesting points raised that I am interested in showing our district, especially dealing with e-learning tools that could be used within a "traditional" classroom. I have taken a few online courses in the past, and I was much more engaged in the content when both sychronous and asynchronous learning was happening. I can remember a particular course where it was just text material and quizzes - very boring AND hard to stay motivated (talk about procrastination-city!) It was also nice in Chapter 15 to point out that just putting content online wasn't enough - e-technologies are part of the toolkit but are not a replacement - we need to vary the content and delivery method. I did appreciate reading in Chapter 14 that the teachers' role has changed to helping students become autonomous learners and TAKE RESPONSIBILITY for their learning. This works in both an online and a traditional learning environment (something that today's parents/students/teachers/administrators need to realize!)
In Chapter 16, the primary focus was on assessment. The idea of giving a clear set of instructions and making sure that assessments have a meaningful purpose was also brought up during our last online meeting when we were discussing the three articles. The part of the chapter that really stuck out to me was the interactivity portion - that tests sometimes are not enough and don't mimic the learning process. In my classroom, some of the greatest joys are when students are able to explain and help teach concepts to others - I always tell them that if they aren't getting something that I've already covered, that they should ask a friend - because, if they can explain it, I know that they've got it. The last part that I found that was particularly interesting was the concept that we are teaching "digital natives," but in most schools, we nix the use of most technologies - mostly because of texting/cheating, the possibility of encountering predators, or (what I think is the main reason) a lack of understanding of how these e-technologies can help. I am a rebel (haha!) and do break the school rule of no cell phones - since my class is heavy in math content, most students don't have or bring a calculator, but ask if they can use the one on their phone (my answer? you bet!). Sure, during a test I am more observant making sure that answers are not texted back and forth, but if they have that technology, I don't want to ban it from learning. (Now, if I can convince the administration that using it is a good thing...any ideas?)
Saturday, December 17, 2011
Webcams and Online Storage - Week 3
Since I have yet to get my stinkin' webcam to function with my computer, I did look into how it will eventually help in an online couse setting. (Might be spending several hours with it before my conference on Monday night!) At first (and through our discussion on Tuesday night), I thought that they would work for guest speakers and not much else. After doing some research on other ways to use webcams in the classroom, I am feeling much better about using them with students. Some ideas included displaying student work (w/o names, of course - FERPA!) as far as what's great and what's not so much as well as test question discussions after a test, lab set-ups, quick time videos, and showing the view through a microscope. One of the uses really hit home (as it drives me nuts when students don't try the calculations in class!) - to show how to do certain calculations on a calculator. (Most students don't still have the manual, so it helps to have someone show them - in this way, by following the example rather than requiring direct instruction from the teacher - especially if more than one student has the same calculator.) Skyping also has great uses in the classroom, as does linking in to webcams in zoos or in areas of the world that are making news right now. (Some awesome science connections!)
I am very excited about the online storage capabilities for schools. I tried Dropbox and love it. It's fairly easy to use and it is perfect for what I would need. I don't have a fancy phone and my organizational skills are pretty decent, so I don't really have a need (yet) for notes or lists to go to an electronic device (maybe I am a tad old-school). After reading an interesting article about online storage at a school in Oklahoma, I am sure that it would work in any district. That particular school upped the amount of storage (from 10MB to 100MB for students and up to 1GB for staff and administrators) for a very small price. They managed to maintain the amount of security and are looking at upgrading in the near future to add even more security options, as well as collaborative options between students and teachers. We currently use an online storage system for grades (Infinite Campus), but I think that an online storage system for files would be perfect. I would love it if my files were accessible from anywhere, so I didn't have to remember where I saved particular files to (or had lost a flash drive!). Our district is moving "to the cloud" this next year, so it will be interesting to see how we make the shift and how teachers and students adapt to it!
I am very excited about the online storage capabilities for schools. I tried Dropbox and love it. It's fairly easy to use and it is perfect for what I would need. I don't have a fancy phone and my organizational skills are pretty decent, so I don't really have a need (yet) for notes or lists to go to an electronic device (maybe I am a tad old-school). After reading an interesting article about online storage at a school in Oklahoma, I am sure that it would work in any district. That particular school upped the amount of storage (from 10MB to 100MB for students and up to 1GB for staff and administrators) for a very small price. They managed to maintain the amount of security and are looking at upgrading in the near future to add even more security options, as well as collaborative options between students and teachers. We currently use an online storage system for grades (Infinite Campus), but I think that an online storage system for files would be perfect. I would love it if my files were accessible from anywhere, so I didn't have to remember where I saved particular files to (or had lost a flash drive!). Our district is moving "to the cloud" this next year, so it will be interesting to see how we make the shift and how teachers and students adapt to it!
Sunday, December 11, 2011
CEdO 501 - Week 2
Happy to report that some of my technical difficulties were cleared up for this week's class (darn that webcam!) This week we focused on three major topics - browsers, social bookmarking and FERPA.
I must admit that I am a creature of habit, and after growing up with and using Internet Explorer, I still prefer to use it over a few other types of browsers. For me, it's fairly easy to work in and I am used to the setup and some tricks (and how to deal with its shortcomings). In one of the rooms that I teach in (of which I am only in that room one hour of the day, and the teacher who is in there the most doesn't typically log off, and I primarily just take attendance on the computer during that hour) - the teacher in there the majority of the day prefers to use Firefox (and it shows up as the only option for the web). If I am doing something besides just taking attendance on the computer, it does get a little frustrating because I am not used to Firefox. I know that the majority of internet users are now using Firefox (as of November 2011, 38.1% of users were using it) and are loving it, primarily because it's easy to use and many operating systems support it. After reading some reviews, it does have some set-backs in regards to JAVA and sometimes the options can be overwhelming. I imagine that with Firefox, Safari, Opera and Chrome, it depends both on the system that you have (Windows vs. Mac, etc) and the willingness and time you put in to learning different browsers. For the time being, I am still going to be an Internet Explorer girl.
Social bookmarking seems like a wonderful tool in the classroom, but I haven't had too much success since our last class in really diving into one and exploring it. I love the idea that the bookmarks are not just saved to a single computer, but rather out there "on the cloud" for a person to access anywhere, anytime. I imagine that we have all tried to find materials on the web that could help us create assignments and assessments or provide some alternative resources, but we waste so much time finding sites that are age and material-appropriate. Many times there are some good things, but then it rises to another level (collegiate) or doesn't fully explain how to do something. By using social bookmarking, you can have access to (and tag) particular websites and SHARE them with others (so that they don't have to go through the same struggles.) I am a little concerned with some types of social bookmarking sites (in particular StumbleUpon), as some seem as though it would take forever to find something of relevance. In the classroom, I would prefer that students not use a site like that (where everything is quite random), as it seems as though most students would get completely off task or frustrated that they wouldn't find things that are related (using it today, I kind of felt like the Bing commercials...topic to topic to topic). I am excited to check out some more social bookmarking sites and to see it work on more than one computer!
The last topic that we just brushed on and studied more between classes was FERPA. It seems obvious to have that protection in schools, as the students are still minors (and I couldn't imagine blurting out everyone's grade to the class or anyone else...that's the individual students own business). We take privacy very seriously, even when it comes down to parents/guardians listed and who can receive information on a child and who cannot. I imagine that it will be a struggle for some of us that will be teaching online, as there are still a few things that we might feel we have no control over (a Big Brother-type of situation - who is really out there checking out what we are typing and broadcasting?)
I must admit that I am a creature of habit, and after growing up with and using Internet Explorer, I still prefer to use it over a few other types of browsers. For me, it's fairly easy to work in and I am used to the setup and some tricks (and how to deal with its shortcomings). In one of the rooms that I teach in (of which I am only in that room one hour of the day, and the teacher who is in there the most doesn't typically log off, and I primarily just take attendance on the computer during that hour) - the teacher in there the majority of the day prefers to use Firefox (and it shows up as the only option for the web). If I am doing something besides just taking attendance on the computer, it does get a little frustrating because I am not used to Firefox. I know that the majority of internet users are now using Firefox (as of November 2011, 38.1% of users were using it) and are loving it, primarily because it's easy to use and many operating systems support it. After reading some reviews, it does have some set-backs in regards to JAVA and sometimes the options can be overwhelming. I imagine that with Firefox, Safari, Opera and Chrome, it depends both on the system that you have (Windows vs. Mac, etc) and the willingness and time you put in to learning different browsers. For the time being, I am still going to be an Internet Explorer girl.
Social bookmarking seems like a wonderful tool in the classroom, but I haven't had too much success since our last class in really diving into one and exploring it. I love the idea that the bookmarks are not just saved to a single computer, but rather out there "on the cloud" for a person to access anywhere, anytime. I imagine that we have all tried to find materials on the web that could help us create assignments and assessments or provide some alternative resources, but we waste so much time finding sites that are age and material-appropriate. Many times there are some good things, but then it rises to another level (collegiate) or doesn't fully explain how to do something. By using social bookmarking, you can have access to (and tag) particular websites and SHARE them with others (so that they don't have to go through the same struggles.) I am a little concerned with some types of social bookmarking sites (in particular StumbleUpon), as some seem as though it would take forever to find something of relevance. In the classroom, I would prefer that students not use a site like that (where everything is quite random), as it seems as though most students would get completely off task or frustrated that they wouldn't find things that are related (using it today, I kind of felt like the Bing commercials...topic to topic to topic). I am excited to check out some more social bookmarking sites and to see it work on more than one computer!
The last topic that we just brushed on and studied more between classes was FERPA. It seems obvious to have that protection in schools, as the students are still minors (and I couldn't imagine blurting out everyone's grade to the class or anyone else...that's the individual students own business). We take privacy very seriously, even when it comes down to parents/guardians listed and who can receive information on a child and who cannot. I imagine that it will be a struggle for some of us that will be teaching online, as there are still a few things that we might feel we have no control over (a Big Brother-type of situation - who is really out there checking out what we are typing and broadcasting?)
Sunday, November 27, 2011
After Week 1 (CEdO 501)
In 2007, I started my journey in getting my master's degree in Instructional Technology from Cardinal Stritch. Each course and class taught me something new - most of which were ideas and programs that I had never tried before. After the start of this year with the notion that one of the classes that I teach at Hale would soon be moving towards Moodle in the near future, I realized that I still have a LOT left to learn!
In this course (and the next one), I am hoping to learn how to use programs like Moodle in a much more comfortable way. I know that Chemistry might not be the easiest thing to transfer to a Moodle-type set-up, but I am excited to find out how it can be done. Despite some technological difficulties on night one of class, I really am hoping to have it resolved (and to provide troubleshooting tips to students who might eventually use programs like the ones we are using!)
Currently, I don't use a ton of technology in my classroom - partially because of availability (and resources that I know of), and partially because I am used to teaching Chemistry in a particular way and only vary my assignments and style of teaching occassionally. Since my students (and future students) are and will be more tech-savvy, I know that I must change some of my ways and learn how to connect to my students in an updated way (those 21st-century skills!)
In this course (and the next one), I am hoping to learn how to use programs like Moodle in a much more comfortable way. I know that Chemistry might not be the easiest thing to transfer to a Moodle-type set-up, but I am excited to find out how it can be done. Despite some technological difficulties on night one of class, I really am hoping to have it resolved (and to provide troubleshooting tips to students who might eventually use programs like the ones we are using!)
Currently, I don't use a ton of technology in my classroom - partially because of availability (and resources that I know of), and partially because I am used to teaching Chemistry in a particular way and only vary my assignments and style of teaching occassionally. Since my students (and future students) are and will be more tech-savvy, I know that I must change some of my ways and learn how to connect to my students in an updated way (those 21st-century skills!)
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