Blog L

The idea of digital inequality was probably not expected to happen with the rapid rise of technology in the past 30 years. While it's main purpose is probably to help people obtain information, stay up to date with news, and to reach out, technology definitely does seem to cause quite the stir among friends, family, and social groups. The idea of children having smart phones and other devices no longer seems to surprise me, though it can be a big deal for their peers. It's not too rare for me to hear a student talking about their iPhone and an adult walking by saying "I don't even have one!" or "I didn't have one until I was 40!", though the latter had different circumstances not growing up with them! Children are naturally drawn to technology today and often inquire about their peers' devices. Unfortunately, cliques seem to arise even from what brand of technology you may have.

I like to think of owning technology as similar to having a favorite sports team. While the two couldn't be more opposite, they do cause people similar feelings. iPhone owners might cringe at the thought of using an Android, while a Windows user might poke fun at both the other two for their choice. Usually it is harmless, playful teasing, but just like in sports, people can get very competitive and lash out at others. This fine line between playful and harmful shows just how big or how little a form digital inequality can come in.



At first when reading about one/two/three time I didn't think I'd know what it was! The idea of centers has always been in lower level classrooms and students seem to really enjoy it. To them, it's not learning, it's playing and freedom within the classroom. They rotate through a number of "centers" or activities to further develop their mind in a variety of ways. I know right now, my school is highly recommending students use programs such as Discovery Education, iReady, and FASTT Math. These approved, educational computer programs promote science, reading, and math and can be accessed from home or school my students. During one/two/three time, students feel independence and success as they do activities on their own and without adult explanation. I think along with expanding their knowledge of academic content, this helps boost their confidence and independence levels.

Resources:
Maloy, R., Verock-O'Loughlin, R., Edwards, S., & Woolf, B. (2013). Transforming Learning with New Technologies. 2nd Edition. Boston, MA: Pearson Education Inc. Saad Irfan (2011). Android eating Apple. Flickr.com. Web. Accessed 29 November, 2015.

Blog J

While student assessment is obvious to happen in a classroom, it's often forgotten that teachers are assessed as well. Right now with my small amount of experience in the field, the thought of being observed and graded on my teaching skills seems very frightening! There is so much that goes with teaching that many people do not even realize. During a lesson, the educator must decide on the spot how to deal with things like interruptions, questions, unrelated comments, and bickering, all the while keeping it together so the students cannot tell there is any issue at all. Pointing out interruptions may distract more students causing a snowball effect. While monitoring a certain child's choices and continued behavior during a lesson or activity, teachers must decide in their head how they must deal with any given situation.

I've often heard in this field that it is extremely important to choose your battles. When you are in charge of 20 students, many situations come up at any given time. Knowing how to correct a student's behavior and let them know you do not appreciate it is an important task teachers must accomplish frequently. Most of the time, a simple look or silent gesture will do. These options notify the child to stop while keeping the rest of the class's attention on the activity with little to no distractions. For a teacher, knowing which situations to address aloud, which to speak privately to the child with later, or which to ignore will help the classroom run much more smoothly.

Resources:
Ksmith19 (2015). A Teacher's Day. 8 November, 2015. Web. Made using Gliffy. http://www.gliffy.com/go/publish/image/9382793/L.png

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

Blog I

While teachers are told what students should be learning and may even be given the tests to assess them with, the choices are nearly endless when it comes to deciding what technologies should be used to teach the material. Many teachers use software such as PowerPoint to present their topics. This is a great tool to use because of its great customization. Any subject can be taught using PowerPoint and its many features. Charts, graphs, pictures, or even strictly text can be presented in whatever way the teacher wants/needs.

I have also seen the site BrainPOP Jr. used for note-taking. This site offers videos teaching a variety of subjects for all different levels of learning. When I saw a teacher using it for his first grade class, the students learned science and had the video paused often to further discuss topics or write down key elements. This was interesting to me because I originally thought they'd discuss what was learned after the short video had ended. This teacher's way proved to be much more successful than my way, as the children got to ask questions and get answers before they'd forgotten they'd even had one! Writing the information down as they went also helped the students by further reinforcing the new content learned.

Something else I found interesting when assisting in the classroom is the way things were sometimes taught. Due to current standards, students must always draw a picture to help solve their math problems. While the students were not told they HAD to draw one, the teacher highly suggested they should and that it would help them the most. The result was that everyone drew their pictures and it gave these students an element of fun where they could choose what to draw that might help. As long as students weren't spending too much time on the picture (sometimes it became an art project to some!), drawing the picture aided them through their math processes.

Resources:
BK. Flickr. What the teacher is, is more important than what he teaches. 21 August, 2013. Web. Retrieved 1 November, 2015.
Maloy, R., O'Loughlin, R., Edwards, S., & Woolf, B. (2013). Transforming Learning with New Technologies. 2nd Edition. Boston, MA: Pearson Education Inc.