Internet Workshop

• What did you find most difficult about this assignment and how did you overcome the challenge?

 Overall, I found the entire project to be difficult. I had to brainstorm a lot to figure out a topic to make a lesson plan on. I found that to be time consuming. In the end, I still am not satisfied with my topic. I wish I could have found a better topic. I overcame this challenge by just sticking with my topic and doing the best I could to complete the assignment.

• How can you apply the knowledge learned in this assignment in the future to your specialty/profession?

This assignment benefited me in my future profession as a teacher because it gives me practice in making lesson plans. I feel the more I do it, the better I will get at it. It taught me that there are many steps and details that need to be done for making a lesson plan.

• Briefly discuss the implications of this statement, "Students will become victims of the expansive dark side of the Internet unless we teach the critical thinking necessary to make meaning out of the overwhelming and potentially manipulative amount of information that is now available and growing every day" (November, 2010, p.27).

I think this statement is saying we need to teach students internet safety so they do not accidently fall into the traps of the online predators. It is important to teach internet safety because that way they know how to avoid the people who are trying to steal their information.

Digital Story Reflection

• What would you do differently if you could do it all over again? Are these changes based on feedback from your peers?

If I could do this all over again, I would make my video longer. I felt it was too short and did not get the full effect of a first grade class. If i made it longer, I would have been able to add more pictures and more ofthe music would have been played. This change is not based on feedback from my peers. They felt the timing was fine, however I disagree. I think I could have made it at least 30 seconds to a minute longer.

• How would you implement a digital storytelling project in your class? Do you (will you) have the resources, time, and skills necessary to include such a project in your classroom?

I think the best way to implemet a digital story in my class is for a history lesson. My peers had done their project on the Vietnam War and the 1950s. I thought digital stories worked well for those because you could visually see what happened during that time. They also played music from that time so students watching could have a good understanding as to what happened. In my future classroom, I do not think I will use a digital story. I feel as though I will have the resources because it is easy to find information from books or the internet however, I do not have the time or skills to make a digital story with good components. It took me a really long time to make my digital story, and it was only a 2 minute video. I thought it was an average video and that I could have added more to it. Unfortunately since my skills are inadequate, it took a longer time. I wish I could add a digital story in my future classroom but since I do not have the proper skills or handle on the program, it would take up more time.

• Did you learn anything new from the process?

From this process, I learned that I really enjoy learning through visuals. Some of the pictures used in my peer's video, were good images of what happened in their video. I think some of my future students may enjoy learning with a video as well. Although I do not have the skills or time, I will attempt to make a good video for my students. I will at least try to see if it is an effective way of learning the material before completely blowing it off.

• What did you like most/least about this project?

The thing I liked most about the project was seeing the final project. It took a really long time to coordinate pictures and music onto the program and once it was done, I was really amazed as to how it all came together in the end. Another thing I liked was adding the pictures to the program. It was really simple to load them on and it loaded quickly. Other programs I have been on take a long time to load pictures but this one did not. The thing I liked least about this project was I could not pick a topic. I could not find something which I could portray an actual story. I ended up choosing welcome to first grade because I plan on teaching a first grade class in the future. Another thing I did not like about the project was the difficulty in adding the music. I tried numerous times to upload music but I could not get it to upload. I ended up getting music on my project when I went to class early and had a classmate, Sarah help me upload it.

Three Instructional Technologies

Go!Animate
Glogster
Quizstar

·          For each tool, how will you integrate this tool into your future classroom/profession? (if you have already responded to this question at another location (e.g. on your personal wiki before/after demonstration that of your proficiency with that tool)

I chose Glogster as one of my three technologies because it will provide my classroom with great visuals. Students will also be able to use it and they can express how creative they are. Quizstar is a good technology to incorporate into my future classroom because it will give an alternative way of test-taking. Students may get bored after having only paper based tests so giving a test online is a good way to change it. I also picked Go!Animate as one of my technologies. I feel it will be entertaining for the students and they will be able to focus better by seeing the different animations.

·         What tools did you use? Did you like using these tools? Were they easy to use?

I used the tools, Glogster, quizstar and Go!Animate. I really liked using glogster and quizstar. I thought they were both easy to use. I was able to complete those projects very quickly. However, I did not enjoy using Go!Animate. It was very difficult to use. I thought it was good that they provided a tutorial video, however it did not help fully. Some of the tools would not work properly and it was slowing my computer down. Many times my computer would freeze due to it. It took me awhile to get a handle of it. I ended up having to redo my video a couple times until I was happy with the final product. It 

·         Would you use them in your future classroom? Please explain.

I would use glogster in my future classroom because it provides the students with good visuals. I was able to add as many pictures as possible to my product. I also like that you can add videos and other sounds to it. I could see myself using this in the future. I also would use quizstar in the future. I think it will be easy for both the students and I to use. I think the format of a quiz online will be a good change for the students, rather than a paper quiz. In addition, it is beneficial for the teacher because I would not have to go through and individually grade each quiz, it will do it automatically. I find this program to be very useful in the future. I would not use Go!Animate in the future. It was very time consuming trying to make the video. It took me over an hour to finish my video, and it was only 20 seconds long. I think students would like watching the video, but there is a lot of time that has to be put into making it. 

·         What did you find most difficult about this assignment and how did you overcome that challenge?

I found it difficult to have to teach myself the new tools. At first they were very challenging because I had no idea how to even start. But I overcame this issue by just working through each tool slowly and efficiently. Then eventually I was able to get the hang of it and found them enjoyable to work with. It was also difficult keeping track of all of the usernames and passwords. On each of the tools I had to make new usernames and I kept getting them all mixed up. But to overcome this issue, I just simply wrote down the usernames and passwords.

·         How did this assignment contribute OR not contribute to your understanding of integrating technology into the education process? 

I believe this assignment did contribute to my understanding of integrating technology into the education process. I think having technology will be useful in my future classroom because it tends to be more efficient. However, I know that I cannot rely completely on technology in case it does fail me. I have to make sure I have backups of all the student's assignments and grades. Also, not all students will have access to certain technologies such as computers and I need to make sure I remember that and not rely completely on technology.

Cyberbullying

After watching the videos about cyberbullying, it gave me a lot of insight as to how hurtful it can be. The video entitled “Feathers in the Wind” gave a good meaningful explanation of how gossip spreads. It is almost hard to believe how quickly word can spread. It is important to not talk badly and make things up about other people. The second video called, “You Can’t Take it Back” showed how once something is on the internet, you can never take it back. This video specifically talked about rating people online, and once they made the website, they cannot get it back. This does not have to only be specifically about rating people. It also can include any information you put about yourself on the internet. Once that it is up, it is extremely difficult to get that back out without anyone seeing it. The video entitled, “Broken Friendship” provided insights about who you can and cannot trust with information. It discussed how you could not trust anyone with private information, not even your best friend. After watching the videos, I felt so bad for the students who had been a victim in cyberbullying. It is an awful and degrading thing that happens. The people who took part in cyberbullying must feel awful about themselves. It is rude to deliberately hurt someone in the way they do. The people who do such a thing do not realize the victims have feelings. The victim from, “Broken Friendship” was explaining how she wished she could disappear or move and start over. It is awful to hear such stories, and the trauma of cyberbullying will last with the victims for the rest of their life.

As a future educator, a teacher must not allow cyberbullying to take place. Although it can be difficult because the students are cyberbullying from their homes, it is important to not let the nonsense be continued into the classroom. Once word gets around about a situation, it is difficult to stop it, as described in “Feathers in the Wind.” If a student continually brings up an inappropriate topic, the educator can inform the student’s parents of the actions to hopefully the parents can prevent it from happening at home.

Real Life Stories. NetSmartz Homepage. Web. 17 Nov. 2010

http://www.netsmartz.org/resources/reallife.htm

Plagiarism

I can create a classroom that advocates and practices safe, legal and responsible use of information and technology in many ways. To start, I need to reinforce to my students that taking work that is not their own is considered plagiarism. I don’t want to scare my students into making sure information is properly being cited, however they must also know the side effects of what can happen if you take something that is not your own. In case a student does try to plagiarize, the netknowhow website provides a four step process to which educators can take to get rid of the plagiarism habit. The first step is to inform the student of their wrongdoing. They have to know that plagiarism is cheating and unacceptable. The second step is to detect. They need to figure out if the student has a history of plagiarism and also to figure out if the student essay’s language and style matches up with previous work. The third step is to respond. It is important to communicate with the student and allow them to know the consequences of plagiarism. The fourth and final step is contract. This is a written document which specifies what the student can and cannot do when writing a paper. These will be specific and the student will sign it and have to deal with any consequence in the contract is violated.

As described in the netknowhow website, they suggest many ways in which you can support collaboration, learning, and productivity. It stated, to make it clear to students that you value their ideas, and will support them in developing and refining their ideas and writing skills. In addition, it also believed that educators must shape students' research/writing processes and explorations ahead of time. Providing students with examples of writing can do this, so they have a better understanding as to what is being looked for. Another method to use is to become familiar with the student’s type of writing. In doing so it will allow you to set reasonable goals for the student. Also, encouraging the student in writing there own stuff will also boost their confidence in writing on their own and not copying. There are several other types of strategies that will support the use of outside sources as well.

The 2Learn.ca Education Society Presents NetKnowHow.ca. Web. 17 Nov. 2010. <http://www.netknowhow.ca/NKHPLRRU.html>.

The 2Learn.ca Education Society Presents NetKnowHow.ca. Web. 17 Nov. 2010.

http://www.netknowhow.ca/NKHPLWID.html

Concept map

I had a difficult time trying to figure out what type of concept map to make. I kept thinking back from when I was in elementary school to see if there were any concepts, which could be described through a concept map. In the end, used a topic from the classroom that I am tutoring in right now. My concept map shows the three types of burns. There are 1^st degree burns, 2^nd degree burns as well as 3^rd degree burns. If someone were to get a 1^st degree burn, they would have a sunburn. The burn takes place on the top level of the skin, which is the epidermis. This burn is the least harmful. Another type of burn is a 2^nd degree burn. This burn breaks through the epidermis into the next layer of skin, which is the dermis. This burn will make the skin blister, turn red and it will be painful. The last type of burn is a 3^rd degree burn. This burn is the most serious. It destroys both the epidermis and the dermis. There are no blood vessels left once a 3^rd degree burn occurs. This concept map is simple but is used for more advanced students.

Concept Map Reflection

The type of program is used to make my concept map was bubbl.us. At first, I did not like this program at all. I could not figure out how to use it. I had to start over many times because my map would not meet my needs. The layers of the map would keep being deleted and I was unsure as to why. However, I eventually got the hang of using this program. In the end, I really enjoyed using it. I would use it again in the future. I also believe that both teachers and students can use it. For students, it is a good way to organize notes. For example, I am tutoring now in a special education class, and the students were learning about burns. However, they were getting confused as to which burn had which effect. This program would have helped them keep track of which burn had which effect.

The most difficult part about this assignment was trying to figure out how to use bubble.us. The website did not provide much instruction as to how to use the program. However, by continually trying I managed to figure out what each of the buttons mean. In the end, I was able to make my project. Another difficulty I had was trying to figure out what to use as my concept map. I could not think of many topics that would need levels of detail. However, I eventually remembered the students I was tutoring had struggles with learning about burns and I realized I could incorporate that into my project.

My knowledge of learning this assignment will help in the future for my profession because all students learn differently. Some do better with just listening and taking notes, others need to see a visual diagram. In the future, I can use this to benefit the students who need to see a visual in order to learn the material. This program keeps notes very organized and I think my future students will benefit from me using this program with them.

Bubbl.us - Free Web Application for Brainstorming Online. Web. 01 Nov. 2010. .

Jo Fool or Jo Cool

On the cyberquiz on Jo Cool or Jo Fool website, I received a 17/20.

I think Jo Fool or Jo Cool is a good website for young students. It is a good way to show the differences between reliable and not reliable websites. It shows how some websites can scam students into giving their personal information. For example, it may seem as though some of the websites are going to be beneficial. They could help you win raffles, download music, meet new people, etc however, not all the websites are being truthful. They are scamming students into getting their information and people will fall for it. This websites provides good insights on how to tell a real website from a website that is trying to get your personal information. Going through the cybertour, it has you pick whether Jo is making a good choice-cool or a bad choice-fool on the website. Once you pick, it provides a good explanation on why Jo made a cool or fool decision. These explanations give solid reasons for children as to why they should or should not trust a website.

I thought the teacher’s page did not provide as much useful information. It suggested few activities that could be done with the students but I had already thought of someone of them while doing the student part of the website. The information is useful but I think the students will get more out of the website then the teachers will. In addition, no matter how many times I tried, the website would not let me click onto the teachers guide page. The link may have been down.


"Jo Fool or Jo Cool | For Teachers." Media Awareness Network | Réseau éducation Médias. 2010. Web. 01 Nov. 2010. .

Online tools

I think I would consider integrating quizstar into my future classroom. It seems like it would be very beneficial. For one, making the quizzes online is a very simple process. They also get graded automatically. For a teacher, quizstar is very efficient. It will cut down on a lot of time. From the students point a view, I also think it will be beneficial. Students will be able to take their time on quizzes and not feel the in class pressure. Some students, when they physically get the quiz in front of them tend to draw a blank on everything they had just learned. For quizstar, the teacher can make the quizzes have unlimited amounts of time so the students can calm down and take as much time necessary. They will have more time to really think about the question and come to the correct conclusion.

I think either zoomerang or surveymonkey will positively impact a student’s learning. On these cites, they both talk about giving students surveys. I think this will impact a student positively because taking surveys are anonymous. Students do not need to feel pressured into voting a certain way. This is also good because it will keep the students involved. They will enjoy taking surveys because it is an easy way for them to feel connected with the classroom. It is a positive way for students to participate in the classroom and not have to fear embarrassment for giving a different answer.

Screencast Reflection

I thought our group worked together very well. Everyone was positive and we all got along. The only negative part was that nobody wanted to speak right away in the video. But other than that, everything worked out. We were able to work efficiently to finish our project. I am very satisfied in how our screencast came out.

Most of the feedback received on the google form was positive. There were many high ratings given to us. I believe the feedback was useful because we know for next time what we will need to improve. There was one comment which stated they were already familiar with our artifact, so they gave us a low rating. I did not find that to be fair because we were suppose to only show the basics of powerpoint and we did not know how advanced everyone was. I believe if we were to do the screencast again with more advance tools, we would have addressed their issue.

The process of creating the challenge artifacts was very easy. The videos provided an easy step by step process. The only difficulty was the different computers and versions of programs. My Microsoft excel is an older version so when trying to do that screencast, I had a hard time finding where buttons were located.

The screencasts created by the other groups were useful. I had already been familiar with the challenge artifacts but it was a nice review. In the excel artifact, I was not sure how to use the formula to compute the numbers into letter grades. I think that will be helpful for when I am a teacher because it is more efficient.

I believe anyone can really benefit from the use of screencasts. As a future teacher, I believe I will be able to show a screencast video to any of my students and they will be able to use it. Screencasts are very good visuals to provide students. They can be used in many different subjects as well.

I really like screencasts because they are helpful in doing step by step processes. I like that I can pause the video, do the step and then play it again. It is also helpful because you can replay the video as many times as you need. I will definitely consider using screencasts in the future. They are extremely beneficial.

blogs vs wikis

Blogs and wikis are both used as different tools on the internet. Anyone can use either tool in a variety of ways.
Blogs can be used as the news. It does not have to be formal news as found in a newspaper article but as personal news as well. As explained from the video, blogs are considered news to anyone who did not know the information before hand. Blogs are spread all over the internet and anyone can find and read them. In addition, people can comment on blogs. As quoted from the “Blogs in plain English” video, “blogs make the news a two-way street.” People will continue to comment on the blog and discuss the topic. One classroom activity for blogs is to propose an argument and allow students to comment with their own opinions. For example, the teacher can write in their blog saying “pizza is the best tasting food in the world.” Students can comment on the post either agreeing with the statement or disagreeing.
Wikis are very different from blogs. Anyone can go on a wiki and change the information on it. Whereas a blog, only the one user can change the information, unless stated otherwise. As quoted from the “Wikis in plain English” video, “It’s as easy as erasing a word and rewriting it.” As also explained from the video, wikis are a good way to add on or eliminate information. They are good for providing information to people. It can coordinate an event or just give out general information. One classroom activity for wikis is organizing a class trip. Students will have to use the wiki to say who can go, what they need to bring and who can bring what. Also, the students will have to show links as to where good places to go are.
Although there are many differences from blogs and wikis, there are many similarities to the two tools. Both tools take place on the internet. There is no hard copy of anything, unless printed out. Also, both tools are used to provide readers with information. Lastly, blogs and wikis are similar because people can update them at anytime they want.

Animoto Video

Create your own video slideshow at animoto.com.

technology in the classroom

I like the idea of having a classroom website. The most important part to having a website is the student page. If a student misses something from class they can look on the website to find it. For example, if they need to re look at what the homework is suppose to be, a syllabus can be provided for them. It can also have links to activities that would be good reinforcements to the material that was covered in class. Also, the link can have rubrics on them so the student knows exactly what needs to be done on assignments.

I do think teachers should integrate technology into their instruction. The students are eventually going to have to learn the technology in everyday life, so it would not hurt to start during class time. However, the teachers should not hold the students responsible to getting the latest technology. Some students would not be able to afford it and it could be difficult to buy.

hello!

Hi,


My name is Ashley Ruggiero and I am a sophomore at University of Hartford. I am majoring in Elementary and Special Education. I am in Relay For Life and plan on joining CAT. I live in Manchester and I commute to school. In my spare time I enjoy running. I am hopefully running a marathon in two years.