YouTube - Dinosaur Extinction Theories and K T Boundary.wmv

YouTube - Dinosaur Extinction Theories and K T Boundary.wmv

This video is my first successful attempt at creating a video and uploading it to youtube. My original goal was to create a "plain English" video that gave an introduction to the K-T boundary and dinosaur extinction as part of an inquiry unit for students. Rather than discussing the video itself, I would like to share things I have learned about creating and uploading videos on youtube:

1. Keep your videos short! The longer and more complex your video is, the more difficulty could arise in creating, saving, converting, or uploading videos. I was using all free software which all came with limitations on the video. Therefore, I kept refining the video down to its most basic presentation. (Which, by the way, could be a great learning tool for students. Higher Order Thinking Skills! Having students create a summary or a "basics" video over your content really forces you to think!)

2. Make sure you video making software and youtube have files that are compatible. I had to create and save this video eight different times before finding a file type that could upload and be processed by youtube that fit the size and audio specifications. Even after reading help pages on youtube, I wasn't sure why I kept running into uploading problems. I used pinnacle videospin software and it worked really well and allowed me to create and save my video in different file types.

3. Patience! Wow! I didn't realize such a "learning curve" existed when creating and uploading videos. However, maintaining a perspective that you will learn a lot by trouble shooting helps you be patient through the development process.

I found youtube to be the most helpful video service on the web. I looked into using teachertube but found the video limitations were even more strict than youtube. I found this true for yahoo as well. Flickr and Picasa have video options but they are very small, a minute at best.

Creating videos can be a great learning tool as well as an assessment, but caution: it takes time!

Edmodo | Home

Edmodo | Home

I will be using edmodo for my final project. I like edmodo for it can be described as a facebook for education. My main two goals or principles in selecting to use edmodo was to improve communication between myself and students and to improve organization. I feel like edmodo provides one website where students can get updates on projects, class notes, assignments, ppts, messages, etc. This will especially be nice if students are gone from my class.

You can try it out by going to: fritzlife.edmodo.com and applying as a student, group identification code is r72gmk, login is whs1 and password is whs1. You can see I have posted some notes, calendars, etc.

Any feedback or ideas on improvement are welcomed and appreciated!

Guiding Principles with Technology, Part II

After advancing my knowledge and understanding of web tools from taking Web 2.0 from Dr. Brunsell, my list of guiding principles in selecting technology to use in the classroom has changed some. First of all, using technology in the classroom can help develop a 21st century technology literacy in our students. This is a worthy goal in itself especially as our society becomes not only dependent upon technology but redefined by our technology. Secondly, many web based tools provide opportunities for teachers to accomplish learning goals as well such as the development of higher order thinking skills, data analysis or even content goals.

The following is a short list of principles to keep in mind when selecting technology to use in the classroom:

1. What is your goal? If a teacher's goal is to increase communication between faculty and students, a teacher mind consider using gmail, blogs, google docs, or twitter. Or, if a teacher's goal is to create some online collaboration between students, he or she might use a wiki, blog or wallwisher. Many nice web based tools exist but be careful to not fall into the trap of "activity mania" where students are active but in mindless or vain activities.
2. Is it user friendly? Teachers know well the diversity of learning capabilities in a classroom. Before "diving" into a new web based tool, be sure students will have a comfort level in using the technology. If adequate help and support are not provided, the student may become frustrated and give up on participation, ultimately missing out on a great learning opportunity.
3. How much will it cost? Again, research all of the capabilities offered by a web tool service. You may be able to accomplish your goals using their "free" version of the tool.
4. Can I kill two birds with one stone? Will the web tool allow me to be diverse or will it allow me to differentiate my instruction to meet student needs?
5. Will it cost me a lot of time? Teachers also know well the limited time available in the education world. Teachers must be selective in using web based tools so that precious time is not lost in creating some learning opportunity for students. Technology should improve efficiency of time use, not waste it!

Implementing technology in the classroom will be a norm shortly as we continue to venture into the 21st century of learning. However, one last admonition to teachers: Do not stop learning yourself! New web tools are always being developed. Follow some blogs and keep updated on new technologies you may use in your classroom!

Reflection on 2.0 Web class discussion

Taking the web tools 2.0 class was beneficial to not only me but a lot of educators this summer. I think it's safe to say everyone has "bought into" the need that students need experiences to develop a technology literacy that will enable them to be successful for the 21st century. Furthermore, one would think a student's motivation would be higher when the opportunity to work with web tools in the classroom arises. Below outlines some of the highlights and benefits teachers gained from taking Web Tools 2.0:

• Web tools exist that make learning and research more efficient and organized. For example, using diigo allows groups or individuals to save and organize websites for research projects. This is one step up from copying and pasting them into a google doc and then sharing with other group members.
• Providing students with opportunities for online collaboration is a valuable skill. First of all, this gives "quieter" students a better opportunity to give and receive input within a cooperative setting. Secondly, online collaboration using wikis and blogs helps prepare future web-based communication skills.
• Many web tools exist that provide students with a greater way to demonstrate learning. For example, rather than writing a lab report, students could post the different parts of the lab on an "online poster" at the glogster website. This also allows for audience feedback.
• In general, using web tools in the classroom can only promote a better learning experience. Whether a teacher uses prezi to "spice" up a presentation or having students participate in discussions online, teaching is changing to adapt to new needs for the 21st century learner.

I think teachers in general are grateful for the "forced exploration" to learn new web tools that will make teaching, learning and assessment more fruitful for everyone. Incorporating web tools in education can create a "win win" situation for everyone.

Edmodo | Free Private Social Platform for Education

Edmodo | Free Private Social Platform for Education

WOW! Edmodo is a great way to develop a SAFE social network between teachers and students. With a user-friendly sign-up for teachers and students, teachers can easily organize communication and classroom activities with students online. Edmodo is like combining twitter, facebook and the use of google docs all in one!

Teachers can create a calendar for students to follow classroom activities as well as due dates. Teachers can post messages for students to read and comment. Teachers can assign assignments and have students upload these assignments right on edmodo.

With the ease of facebook and twitter, edmodo can be the answer many teachers are looking for in developing a social network in the classroom!

Wikis and Blogs in the 21st Century Science Classroom

In an ever growing dependence on social learning on the web, students are needing more experiences in the classroom with 2.0 technology to develop the necessary skills to be successful. Wikis and blogs can be two useful tools to accomplish this goal in the 21st century science classroom.

Blogs are simply online journals or diaries that post entries in reverse chronological order. Blogs could be used by students or teachers. Teachers could start by posting their own blogs and having students comment on the blog. OR, students could create their own blogs to share insights gained from classroom activities, results of experiments, relevance of content to real world or current scientific events. Blogs could be used as learning tools or assessment tools.

Wikis are more interactive than blogs. Wiki pages are pages that give the author more freedom and choice to decide the page's purpose. For example, wiki pages could become a center for social networking between groups in a class or classes outside the school district. The wikis could be used for learning tools as well as assessment tools. The following is a list of ways wikis could be used:

• Students posting research to be shared within a group or with other groups
• Students discussing experimental results and conclusions
• Students posting discussion comments about classroom content
• Group collaboration on some activity
• Students obtain resources posted by the teacher
• Parents obtaining information from what is being taught and learned in class

One of the great benefits of using blogs and wikis is that both are user-friendly. Most sites are free and provide tutorials for easy setup and use. Furthermore, research is showing that student participation in wikis and blogs is increasing classroom participation. Wikis and blogs will provide the opportunities students need to develop 2.0 literacy in today's classroom!

Challenge Based Learning

Challenge Based Learning

Today's employment needs go much beyond just having a degree. People need to effectively converse with one another, work as a team, identify problems and solutions to those problems, develop and implement improvement plans, effectively communicate to an audience, manage projects, etc. The skills necessary for these job requirements cannot be learned through traditional teaching methods such as the "lecture, notes, worksheet, quiz...." format. Students need to be in situations where they are first of all interested, taking ownership over learning something new, creating a plan to act on what has been learned.

Challenge based learning is a concept that teachers can try to promote to develop such learning and skills previously mentioned. Teachers need to start becoming more creative in encouraging students to take creative ownership in learning and then challenging themselves to act on what has been learned to better themselves and society. Challenge based learning offers this vision! Learn more...

Using Online Data in Inquiry - Is Iowa's climate changing?

Data for this graph was obtained from:

http://mesonet.agron.iastate.edu/climodat/index.phtml?station=IA2203&report=17

The above website allowed me to research yearly rainfall totals for the Des Moines, Iowa airport for the last one hundred years. You can easily change what type of data you would like to see as well as changing your location within the state. Access to this data provides students with the opportunity to research and collect data, analyze the data, organize the data in tables or charts, and create conclusions the data supports. These are all necessary thinking skills in the inquiry process.

For example, I copied and pasted monthly and yearly precipitation totals in excel and had excel graph yearly totals over time. Above is a graph showing my results and I also had excel add a trendline with the equation to see if the yearly amounts of precipitation are changing in the state of Iowa. The access and work with this data would be a great activity for students to generate an argument for global warming and climate change.

Note: I had to do some formatting in excel as well as saving the graph as a jpeg image before uploading to blogger. These skills may take some direct instruction for students to develop these skills.

Astronomy Labs and Inquiry

Engaging Students in Astronomy Inquiry using Online Data Summary

http://www.uwyo.edu/capersupport/docs/Astronomy_Inquiry-2010-1ed_Oct22-2009.pdf

This is a great resource to have students engaged in inquiry. The structure of the labs and activities is designed after a "backward faded scaffolding" approach to inquiry. The students start off in the inquiry process in a structured manner to eventually collecting data from their own investigation to answer their own generated question to arrive at a conclusion.

More specifically, the scaffolding looks like:

1. Students start with examining data and deciding if the conclusion provided for the data set is supported by the data

2. Then, students are provided with a structure to collect data and determine a conclusion that the data supports

3. Then, students must collect data on their own with the goal of creating a conclusion to a researchable question

4. Then students can generate their question to research

This model not only works for astronomy but students could easily be engaged in this process in any scientific area. Furthermore, this a great way to introduce students to inquiry over a period of time.

Also, keep in mind this process will definitely be aided by having the data sets online researched in advance to be available to help the scaffolding!

VoiceThread - Group conversations around images, documents, and videos

VoiceThread - Group conversations around images, documents, and videos

This link will take you to an online discussion where educators are sharing their ideas on how they are using voicethread in the classroom. Go to the link add your input.

Some of the topics include:

1. Assessments in foreign language with the audio option posting

2. History projects - posting real pictures or postcards from family history

3. Book projects

4. Poem analysis

5. Undergrad work -online discussions

6. Archives

7. Higher Order Thinking Development

Others?