Teacher-Based Teacher Webpages

In the article, "Teacher-Based Teacher Webpages," Steven Moskowitz explains how at his school, all of the teachers took a survey based on technology. The survey asked various questions such as how they felt about technology, how proficient they were with technology, whether they were inclined in learning to use technology, etc.
In effect, he learned that many teachers from his school showed an interest in learning more about technology. Furthermore, their school discovered that the computers were being under used because of a lack of technological skills from the teachers. In order to address this problem, their school decided to start a year program that would teach them how to use technology. The idea behind this program, was to make the teachers feel more comfortable with the idea of using technology in their classrooms. After training, the school created their own website which enabled teachers to assign homework online, post test results, send out newsletters to the parents, etc.
I feel that this is a wonderful idea because many teachers from older generations haven't been exposed to technology very much. When new teachers come join the school, they are usually equipped with more technological skills and are able to incorporate more into their classrooms. By training all of the teachers to know how to use and feel comfortable with computers, their school is doing everything possible to give their students the best education.

1. Will training older teachers about technology become a requirement for all teachers in the future? I don't think that this will become a requirement because teachers who have already finished school, shouldn't be forced to go back to school to keep their job.

2. Will all schools in the future incorporate technology in their classrooms? Yes, because teaching new teachers about technology is already a requirement.

Another View on Mentoring

In the article, "Another View on Mentoring," Anissa Lokey-Vega and Laurie Brantley-Dias discuss an experiment that they tried in one of their classrooms. The two women were colleagues and decided that it would be beneficial for them to help give constructive advice to each other.
Vega decided to put a video tape in her classroom to record herself teaching a lesson. Afterwards, her and her partner went over the video tape together in order to learn how to improve the lesson. At first, Vega said that it was difficult to watch herself on the video and kept overly criticizing herself. However, with the help of her partner Dias, Vega was able to overcome self criticizing and was able to use the video tape as a useful tool in the classroom.
Vega and Dias learned that by going over the tapes, they could analyze the entire lesson and find areas that needed further clarification. By filming the lessons, Vega was able to learn each time from her mistakes and was able to become a stronger teacher. Later on, Vega felt so comfortable with her tapes that she even felt inclined to show her administrator.
I feel that creating these video tapes of her lessons was a truly inspiring idea. Once a person is able to get past the idea that they are watching themselves on film and wanting to overly criticize themselves, it becomes an extremely useful tool. I would love to incorporate this technique into my classroom one day because I feel that it allows a person to be the best teacher possible.

1. Would you have to get concent from the students' parents prior to filming them in class? Yes, the parents should be informed and asked permission prior to filming.

2. Would it be a good idea to film every lesson? No, because there wouldn't be enough time to film every lesson and go over every tape.

Lessons from Costa Rica

In the article, "Lessons from Costa Rica," Arlene Borthwick and Irina Lobo share about their experience in Costa Rica. Rather than travel there for vacation or sight seeing, the authors traveled to explore the teaching infrastructure in Costa Rica. Costa Rica is very advanced in technology despite it's vast rural living environment. The education systems are thriving and are based upon incorporating high end technology into their classrooms.
The authors went to observe several schools in Costa Rica and were able to witness students excelling in their computer based programs. Specifically, CREATE Together was a wonderful multimedia program that was being used throughout many Costa Rican schools. The authors witnessed that the computer lab fostered a learning environment where both cognitive and social learning were taking place. Students were interacting amongst each other and were engaged in high levels of thinking.
I feel that Costa Rica is an excellent example of how incorporating technology into the classroom is very beneficial. The students are learning efficiently and show that they are genuinely interested in learning. Technology opens new doors for students and allows them to interact with more resources. Having technology in the classroom enables students to explore different ideas and concepts that they wouldn't necessarily be able to research in depth otherwise.

1. How long has technology in Costa Rica been very prominent? The surge of technology began around 1988 with FOD.

2. Will the U.S. be able to incorporate as much technology into their classrooms as Costa Rica? Yes, I feel that the U.S. is heading in that direction and will soon have much more technology.

No Longer a Year Behind

In the article, "No Longer a Year Behind," Valerie Stokes discusses how beneficial it is if schools adopt the Measure of Academic Progress (MAP) program. This program allows schools to test their students as many as four times a year in different areas. Rather than consisting of a written test that the students have to fill out, this test is a computer generated test. Students who take the test are asked questions that are at a lower level. Then, as the student answers questions, the computer generates questions that are easier or harder, depending on their level. This allows the results to record the true level of the student based on their abilities.
The teachers are then able to use the results to determine where the student needs more attention and aid. The computer results can precisely determine what areas the student is behind and where the student is excelling. Furthermore, the school can use this data by looking at the accumulation of all the test results to discover what weaknesses and strengths the school has as a team. The testing results will determine what areas the school needs to pull more resources in to better meet the standards.

1. How many schools use the MAP program? I would assume that only a few schools use this program, but I feel that its usage will increase over time.

2. How effectively does the computer generate the appropriate test for each student? The computer generates fairly accurate results. It has the ability to narrow down a student's level more accurately than a written test.
I feel that this is an excellent program because it closely monitors students and what they have learned. It is an ongoing assessment that serves as a tool to better enhance the learning experience for the children and the school has a whole.

Scaffolding for Struggling Students

In "Scaffolding for Struggling Students, " Sara Kajder and Glen Bull discuss how students are becoming less inclined on reading. With the way that most classrooms are becoming geared towards testing, reading has become a chore rather than an enjoyable activity. By making reading a tedious and boring experience, students are being turned away from the notion that it can be a pleasant experience.
The authors discuss how after graduation, most students will never pick up a book again. This is a very depressing thought because even though a person's formal education has ended, a person's education should never cease. By continuing reading throughout one's life, a person is able to grow and learn continuously.
Poetry slams were more popular in previous decades and brought social groups together to share their writing and thoughts. This was a wonderful idea because it allowed people to discover their inner creativity and associate pleasure with reading. Without having an outlet such as poetry gatherings, people may never experience reading in a different light. If one is to judge reading based off of just what they know from school, they may very well never want to pick up a book after graduation.
Nowadays, a new reading phenomenon has risen in the form of blogging. Blogging allows people to write about anything and everything that they find interesting and worthy to share with others. Technology has opened up a new outlet for people to come together by reading and writing about common interests. By encouraging students to become active bloggers, you are encouraging them to find joy in reading!

1. Will teachers assign blogging as homework in the future? I feel that high school teachers may assign blogging as homework in the future.

2. Will blogging sites encourage students to read more? Yes, because as they write their own blogs, they will be curious to read other blogs.

See Jane Read...See Johnny Write

In the article, "See Jane Read...See Johnny Write," Lynn Howell demonstrates an excellent activity for both high school students and younger grades. Ms. Howell had her high school students create children's stories by partnering up with a younger student. She arranged her classroom to correspond with her sister's second grade classroom.
Ms. Howell begins explaining how she used to do this project before the use of computers and technology. She would have her students write letters to the other younger students who lived in a different state. The high school students would ask personal information about their partners in second grade and then would use that information to create a book about them. In the end, the high school student would send their book to the second grader to keep.
After awhile, Ms. Howell decided to incorporate technology into the assignment. Rather than send letters back and forth to each other which took a long time, the students corresponded via e-mail. Furthermore, rather than hand write the book and personally create illustrations to go along with the story, Ms. Howell had her students use powerpoint to create their stories. In result, they were able to send copies of their finished stories to the second graders while still being able to hold onto a copy for themselves. Ms. Howell discovered that through the means of technology, she was able to enhance her assignment.

1. How long does this assignment take? This assignment should take about three weeks due to technology.

2. Would the second graders ever be able to participate more? Yes, if the teachers allowed the second graders to send their own drawings to be part of the book.

Learning.com Self Quiz

Browsing Basics: Grades 6-8
NETS Standards:

• Browsing Basics
• K-12[5] Students understand human, cultural, and societal issues related to technology and practice legal and ethical behavior.
• K-12[5.a.] advocate and practice safe, legal, and responsible use of information and technology
• K-12[6] Students demonstrate a sound understanding of technology concepts, systems and operations.
• K-12[6.a.] understand and use technology systems.
• K-12[6.b.] select and use applications effectively and productively
• 6-8[7] Select and use the appropriate tools and digital resources to accomplish a variety of tasks and to solve problems.
• URLs
• K-12[1] Students demonstrate creative thinking, construct knowledge, and develop innovative products and processes using technology.
• K-12[1.a.] apply existing knowledge to generate new ideas, products, or processes.
• K-12[2] 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.
• K-12[2.a.] Interact, collaborate, and publish with peers, experts or others employing a variety of digital environments media.
• K-12[6] Students demonstrate a sound understanding of technology concepts, systems and operations.
• K-12[6.a.] understand and use technology systems.
• K-12[6.b] select and use applications effectively and productively.
  
• 6-8[7] Select and use the appropriate tools and digital resources to accomplish a variety of tasks and to solve problems.
• Web Searches
• K-12[3] Students apply digital tools to gather, evaluate, and use information.
• K-12[3.b] locate, organize, analyze, evaluate, synthesize, and ethically use information from a variety of sources and media.
• K-12[3.c] evaluate and select information sources and digital tools based on the appropriateness from a variety of sources and media.
• K-12[4] Students use critical thinking skills to plan and conduct research, manage projects, solve problems and make informed decisions using appropriate digital tools and resources.
• K-12[4.c.] collect and analyze data to identify solutions and/or make informed decisions.
• K-12[5] Students understand human, cultural, and societal issues related to technology and practice legal and ethical behavior.
• K-12[5.a.] advocate and practice safe, legal, and responsible use of information and technology.
• K-12[6] Students demonstrate a sound understanding of technology concepts, systems, and operations.
• K-12[6.a.]understand and use technology systems.
• K-12[6.b.] select and use applications effectively and productively.
• Validity and Sourcing
• K-12[1]Students demonstrate creative thinking, construct knowledge, and develop innovative products and processes using technology.
• K-12[1.a.] apply existing knowledge to generate new ideas, products, or processes.
• K-12[2] 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.
• K-12[2.a.] interact, collaborate, and publish with peers, experts, or others employing a variety of digital environments and media.
• K-12[2.b.]communicate information and ideas effectively to multiple audiences using a variety of media and formats.
• K-12[5] Students understand human, cultural, and societal issues related to technology and practice legal and ethical behavior.
• K-12[5.a.]advocate and practice safe, legal, and responsible use of information and technology.
• K-12[5.b.] exhibit a positive attitude toward using technology that supports collaboration, learning, and productivity.
• K-12[6]Students demonstrate a sound understanding of technology concepts, systems, and operations.
• K-12[6.a.] understand and use technology systems.
• K-12[6.b.] select and use applications effectively and productively.