Chapter 10

Technology supports the learning of diverse students across the board, whether they are linguistically or culturally diverse. Multicultural education is a strategy in which teachers go about adapting their lessons and everyday activities to fit the needs, talents and interests of diverse students. One way in which this can be done is to create culturally relevant curriculum and instruction. This diversifies the content of the lesson and gives the entire class a new insight on a previously taught time period. Using technology with linguistically diverse students is monumental when it comes to adapting the curriculum to fit the needs of diverse students because of the wide array of resources available on the internet. It would be nearly impossible to have a physical dictionary in every student's language in the classroom, but there are online language and translation services available at all times. There are multilingual web resources that allow for all students to view a website together in real tim without having to pause to translate text, and there are also international newspapers and other resources that offers translations of more than 10,000 news papers around the world.

 Differentiated instruction and universal design for learning are strategies for adjusting the curriculum and instruction for the needs of the students during the same lesson. differentiated instruction is when a teacher may change the lesson for individual students based on their academic abilities. Universal design for learning is also a strategy to accommodate for different student's learning, however it is focused more on ways to benefit groups of students as opposed to individuals, without diminishing or reducing opportunities for any students. the main difference for DI and UDI is that one is for the individual student, and the other is for the class as a whole.

Teachers can adapt their classroom learning environment  by using different levels of technology. Low tech accommodations refer to easy changes that are inexpensive and don't apply digital materials. Mid tech accommodations involve moderate shifts in the organization and delivery of lessons and activities that may include digital materials. Finally high tech accommodations utilize the integration of computers and other technological tools in the classroom. One way a teacher can adapt their classroom learning with technology is through the use of a word cloud. Word clouds are visual representations of text that are engaging to the reader. This can be particularly useful in a diverse classroom because it breaks apart text in an appealing format that is easy to read.

1)If all classrooms applied UDI in their lessons, would there be a need for individualized differentiation?
2)Would the investment of high tech classrooms help or hurt a school in a lower socioeconomic neighborhood?
3) What are ways in which teachers can adjust the writing process to fit individual needs?

Chapter 7

Chapter 7 is different than the past few chapters in that  discusses ways that technology can assist in problem solving. The chapter begins by breaking down the steps to problem solving, starting with understanding the problem, using problem solving strategies and finally checking your results. Adhering to these steps is particularly important when thinking about real-world issues because as the text states, they are often called ill-structured problems; problems that have no clear solution or simple formula to work through.

This being said, it is often these ill-structured problems that are the most satisfying to solve due to their complex nature and provide the greatest learning opportunity. The chapter then explains the differences between hardware and software as both are further discussed as methods/tools to use for problem solving. They key is utilizing technology to problem solve, is to determine what type of software is appropriate for the students needs.
Evaluating possible software and applications is imperative to ascertain the program's validity. Criteria such as, having a complex story line with open ended activities, meaningful and age appropriate characters who are learning companions, and opportunities for replaying the game with different outcomes, are all characteristics of a computer program or game that encourages higher order thinking skills as opposed to playing a game that is more of a time consumer. there are several recommended resources to aid in the selection process such as stopbadware.org which allows the user to determine the safety of the programs being used.

The chapter also discusses the three types of problem solving and inquiry learning software. Composing and calculating software refers to writing and mathematics programs. Writing programs can forgo the immediate use of moving past a pen and paper, but also learning how to write for a website or how to communicate by email. Building inventing and creating software, is related to hands on materials as it provides students with environments for interactive and engaging explorations. Examples of building, inventing and creating software are google earth and kid pix. Visual thinking and concept mapping software are programs that let teachers and students outline ideas visually.

Questions
1) Should the social deficiency acquired in gaming be considered when using educational computer games?
2) How early is it to begin instructing students to build their own software?

Chapter 6

In a world where technology is becoming incorporated more into everyday life it’s only appropriate to continue to absorb technological culture into classrooms. Chapter 6 explores information management by means of URL bookmarking, social bookmarking, information alerts and e-newsletters as was to organize information in the traditional classroom setting.

URL bookmarking is a way to collect websites that are frequently visited in a single simplified list format. These lists can be used as a way to quickly go through a routine. For example if the class has a song on YouTube that they use as a part of their morning routine and then the class immediately jumps into an online based activity, the teacher can simply go to the bookmarked pages and easily jump from site to site.

Social bookmarking is similar to URL bookmarking but the lists are shared by a community of users across many computers.  Social bookmarking creates a public list of websites that the contributors can add or remove from.  Contributors can also decide whether or not set pages are viewable by all participants. This can be utilized by several teachers in the same school building who use a set list of approved websites.

Information alerts and e-newsletters go out to groups of individuals regarding information related to curriculum or an individual’s interest. They may appear automatically through an email subscription or through another platform. A science teacher may be teaching about the lifecycle of a plant or butterfly and can receive weekly e-newsletters about the progress of a butterfly sanctuary in another state.

Is it appropriate to share lesson plans online?

Should teachers ‘add’ parents on social media for the purpose of sharing information about the students?

Chapters 4 and 8

Chapter 4: Designing Lessons and Developing Curriculum with Technology

Chapter four discusses ways for teachers to plan engaging lessons while integrating technology with the actual plan and design of the lesson. What stood out the most in the chapter was how lesson design and development, essentially the elements needed for a lesson plan, can and should utilize technology. Academic content, teaching goals methods and procedures, and learning assessment, are the three main components in the structure of a cohesive lesson plan. Academic content, in other words, what you are teaching, is often dictated by the school you are teaching via the curriculum but even in those guidelines there is always some type of wiggle room to incorporate technology. Some examples of appropriate and useful technological tools include, search engines, electronic databases, blogs and wikis.

                Teaching goals, methods, and procedures, or how to teach, is the vehicle in which your lesson is delivered. The text describes goals as the reasons for teaching the lesson, methods as the instructional strategies teachers use to convey the topic, and procedures as the scheduling and grouping of students and the timing of each activity.  Each of the three components supports each other in the actual teaching of the lesson and can be utilized in the forms of presentation software, intelligent tutoring systems, teacher developed websites and through many other platforms.

                The final component in the structure of lesson planning is learning assessments. Knowing what the students have learned is supports future lessons because they are the determining factors of whether or not you were successful in teaching the learning goals. As a teacher you must adapt for those who are unsuccessful, those who are, and those who have sped through the lesson. Integrating technology into the learning assessments is something that I think is most common in my student teaching placement. In the math and ELA classes most of the assessments that signify the end of a chapter or unit are all online and taken on laptops. In science, lessons are often based off Brainpop activities, mainly Tim and Moby videos. Assessments made during lessons to check for student progression are often informal and verbal.

Chapter 8: Communicating and Collaborating with Social Media

                When reading the title of the chapter I immediately barred social media from the future of my classrooms only because I believe that there should be a barrier between a teacher as an authority figure and being ‘friends’ on Facebook. However on the second page of the chapter, there is a list of possible social media platforms that can be used as bridges for communication between teachers and students such as email, teacher or classroom websites, blogs, or online discussions. In college I have had professors give out their personal phone numbers along with a business line on the syllabus for a more direct line of communication to their students.

                Integrating social media platforms into your teaching has several benefits listed in the text as teaching beyond the school day, engaging students, sharing information with families, building learning communities, publishing student work and energizing student writing. Each of these benefits adds a fresh twist on the classic classroom environment and allow the student to be able to contribute and excel in their academics in ways that are not only convenient outside of the physical school setting but also differentiated for each students individual abilities.   

Chapter Five

Chapter five discusses the engagement of learners using digital tools, as the title states. The chapter discusses different search engines and how to use them, how to properly evaluate online sources, and how to appropriately use the internet as, as the texts states primarily on page 117, “digital citizens”.

Search engines can be used for different types of inquiries such as an information search, information research and retrieval, a free text search, a keyword/ exact match search and a boolean search. These inquiries can be used to research topics or further student learning in and outside of the classroom. 

Although there can be many useful websites online, a search engine may produce a website that can be age inappropriate or may have information not exactly relevant to the student’s inquiry. Several strategies to conduct effective searches include introducing search engines designed specifically for students, to use visual tools and to teach students to critically evaluate search results.

When students are able to evaluate search results they are able to avoid troublesome internet content such as misinformation, malinformation, messed-up information and mostly useless information.they should be evaluating for several different characteristics, but the characteristic that stands out above all in my opinion is accuracy. If a site cannot pose facts with accuracy then they cannot be a credible source therefore other criterion is immediately thrown out. With these evaluating factors in mind students are able to further evaluate a website’s credibility by the URL.

I think the value of internet users behaving as responsible digital citizens is seriously under credited in our society in a multitude of different contexts. On one side there is the disservice of plagiarism and cheating; both allowing the student to cut corners and deceptively pass off information as their own, and then there is the issue of being able to hide behind the computer screen. Over the last few years there are more and more cases of cyberbullying that are becoming so serious that students are choosing to take their own lives rather than face the torment of their peers. There are arguments that cyberbullying isn’t as severe as bullying in the real world, but what students don’t understand is that once something goes up on the internet, there is no deleting it. Students must be taught, above all, to be responsible online and how to safely and effectively use the internet and technology.  

Chapters 1&2

Chapter one starts off by describing two new teachers and their paths leading up to becoming teachers, and their interactions with technology thus far. It's only fitting that I describe mine as well.  Ever since i could remember I always wanted to be a teacher. I knew that it was a great fit for me and I never looked back. Growing up, there was always a computer in my house available for home work or just to play games with. I didn't get my first phone until the 7th grade and got my first smartphone as a junior in high school. Its an amazing shift to see the differences between those growing up in my generation versus children growing up now. 

How I imagine my nephew sees me trying to operate the technology
 he is used to seeing every day

As a student teacher I notice that my fifth grade students all have smartphones and tablets that enable them to lead, as the text mentions on page three, "multi-media saturated lives, constantly exposed to images and information from televisions, computers" and "video games". This however, begins at a much earlier age noting that my 4 year old nephew can perfectly use our family iPad and all of our smartphones. The text notes that children in his generation are deemed the iGeneration; meaning that they have grown up using computers, the Internet and other digital media as a consistent component of their everyday lives. 

Personally I see this as being both a positive and a negative. Positive of course because the more immersed a child is in the technology of their generation, the greater the chance that they will be at the forefront of any type of new or revolutionary technology. The downside of children being so immersed in technology at such a young age is that many parents plop their child in front of a game controller or an iPad and the child fails to develop social skills in real time.
I think that if technology is used as an aid or to promote higher order thinking and not as a distraction technology can play a vital role in a child's education as well as their every day lives. In relation to their education, children can benefit from  technology added into classroom instruction, outside- the-classroom activities as well as outside and inside in the form of activities. The main goal I obtained from this chapter as a new teacher is to create a highly interactive and inquiry- based learning environment for my future students.

Like chapter one, chapter two begins with a discussion several young future teachers were having but instead focused on their perspectives on technology. I think that as a new teacher, or even as a veteran teacher, it is extremely important as the years pass to become more open and ready to integrate different types of technology into your every day lessons such as web or computer based learning games, online information research and online tutoring programs.
 I found it interesting how the text included obstacles that may prevent a teacher from being able to utilize technology.

In the school that I currently student teach in, there are several classes that integrate technology into almost every single lesson. Most of the mathematics assessments are online, and the science lessons often include brain-pop  and other multimedia videos. English is often projected, along with all of the other subjects, on the SmartBoard or on the ELMO Projector. Interestingly, despite the different technology used in these classes, they are often limited to just these. The fifth grade curriculum often has no wiggle room and is difficult to integrate new and possibly time consuming forms of technology that may take the students several lessons to master. Personally I think that the value of the students being able to explore different types of learning formats and supports across different platforms greatly over shadows the possible curriculum time 'lost' in learning it.

I Have No Idea What I'm Doing But I've Gotten Pretty Good at Faking It

Hello! My name is Nesrin Jusuf, I am a senior at St. John's University studying childhood education and I'm planning to get my masters degree in special education. I feel like I am the turtle in a sea of doves. It might take me a minute for things to 'click' but once I find my way I am strong and steady (even though I may fumble on my way there). I want to find my fellow turtles in my future classroom and push them to find their own ways despite the feeling of being surrounded by a sea of doves.