This week on the website EdTechTalk I listened to the show It's Elementary. The topic of the show was Video in the Classroom with guest speaker Mathew Needleman. I was interested to learn about the different ways that video can be productively integrated into the elementary level classroom. I have taken film and theory classes in college and found them to be very analytical while also learning how to use useful technological tools. I can understand the college level film curriculum but wondered about the logistics of younger children benefiting from it.
Mathew Needleman attended NYU and worked for a time as a small filmmaker before becoming a teacher. He has taught K-3 and is currently not in a classroom but is working with grades 3-5. He says that 'film is not the language of the 21st century. It is the language of the 20th century and schools are just now thinking about catching up'. He explains that ignoring this medium only allows for student ignorance which in the real world can be exploited.
Needleman explains that using video in conjunction with writing assignments motivates students. They can watch their ideas come to life as well as share them with other students. He feels that the process of making a video requires a much more thorough analysis in comparison to just writing. This is an interesting way for teachers to reach children that have different learning styles. Students have the option of viewing their work multiple times in this medium. He noted that they really have no interest in doing things that they are told to do but rather want to do what interests them. From Needleman's own experiences his students were able to better recall units that ended with a video assignment.
In regards to genres of classroom film Needleman directs teachers to use the content of their curriculum to guide them with topics. This helps to create a narrative while still offering students a variety of choices. Instead of just watching a video, the traditional option, students should be allowed and encouraged to express themselves through video. Storyboards help structure the creative process and make a more successful video. Needleman references imovie as a tool for convenient video editing. He explains that children have a strong intuition with these programs from growing up in a digital world. Furthermore he encourages teachers to try it, become familiar with it, see what does and doesn't work and develop this medium within the curriculum.
Tuesday, November 3, 2009
Monday, October 19, 2009
Classroom 2.0
On Saturday I joined the webcast Classroom 2.0 with Joyce Valenza and Buffy Hamilton. The topic of the show was 'Copyrights, Creative Commons, and Databases'. Something I think I know very little about so this was perfect. They began the show by asking two poll questions. Have your students used databases to support their research projects? 22% said no and 52% said yes. Are you familiar with 'transformativeness' as a standard for distributing digital works? 60% said no and 12% said yes, I was not familiar with this term either. It was explained that copyrighting is meant 'to promote creativity, innovation and the spread of knowledge'. (US Constitution) Some problems with copyright interpretation are due to the confusing nature of education use guidelines, also these guidelines are not law.
Joyce Valenza introduced some YouTube videos, such as 'Copyright? What is Copyright?', they were informative tools that can be used in the classroom. The website Teachingcopyright.org has examples of transformativeness for the classroom. In Flickrstorm.com teachers can collect various images in a new URL and then give it to students to use. Other similar websites are Beholdcc, Shahi Visual Dictionary, Openphoto, Burning Well, Compfight.com. 'These qualities are merely illusory and consequently the guidelines have a seriously detrimental effect. They interfere with an actual understanding of the law and erode confidence in the law as created by congress and the courts'. (Kenneth Crews 2001)
Buffy Hamilton's segment of the show was very interesting and informative. She explained how to use Delicious to connect to Wiki pages and then create different Widgets. This seems like such a great resource for teaches and students. I also thought her point of embedding students in these webpages by using different bookmarks is an constructive idea. She pointed out that 'getting information off the internet is like taking a drink from a fire hydrant'. (Mitchell Kapor) Great visual!
Joyce Valenza introduced some YouTube videos, such as 'Copyright? What is Copyright?', they were informative tools that can be used in the classroom. The website Teachingcopyright.org has examples of transformativeness for the classroom. In Flickrstorm.com teachers can collect various images in a new URL and then give it to students to use. Other similar websites are Beholdcc, Shahi Visual Dictionary, Openphoto, Burning Well, Compfight.com. 'These qualities are merely illusory and consequently the guidelines have a seriously detrimental effect. They interfere with an actual understanding of the law and erode confidence in the law as created by congress and the courts'. (Kenneth Crews 2001)
Buffy Hamilton's segment of the show was very interesting and informative. She explained how to use Delicious to connect to Wiki pages and then create different Widgets. This seems like such a great resource for teaches and students. I also thought her point of embedding students in these webpages by using different bookmarks is an constructive idea. She pointed out that 'getting information off the internet is like taking a drink from a fire hydrant'. (Mitchell Kapor) Great visual!
Monday, October 12, 2009
Equal Digital Experiences?
How can teachers provide equal digital experiences for all of their students? This question encompasses many different points and additional questions. Does equal mean the same? What tools should a teacher use? Does this include students without permission to use digital tools?
My interpretation of this question finds it to mean that teachers must be able to use their digital tools as resourcefully as possible. Where every school, classroom, and student are different so must the digital experience. The goal should be allowing students as much exposure to these tools as possible to create familiarity and understanding. “[Our goal is to] shift the focus of the conversation about the digital divide from questions of technological access to those of opportunities to participate and to develop the cultural competencies and social skills needed for full involvement.” From Henry Jenkin's paper, “Confronting the Challenges of Participatory Culture: Media Education for the 21st Century:”
There are a variety of ways that teachers can work to create an equal experience for students. Connecting with parents helps to promote understanding of technological tools. Family nights at schools and blogs give teachers a chance to exemplify the lessons and demystify the tools students will be using. Parental consent and support opens many avenues. What resources are available can be rotated. Such as the use of laptops, by a few children each day, in their classroom centers. Resources can also be shared during group projects. Assignments should reflect the limitations of student resources at home. Understanding that some students will need to use public resources like after school groups and libraries. I do not think that digital experiences should be limited because of the lack of resources at home. Although they should be considered there are many other factors that are out of a teacher's control that impact a student's education.
The importance of providing critical information is discussed by Dave Chamberlain in his post 'What is Equal Access to the Digital World?' (2009) on the website Seedlings. "As has been mentioned in posts, it is not providing the physical equipment, even in school; it is providing the information needed in order to be a member of a digital society. In slightly more concrete terms, in elementary/primary grades we teach many things that the students won't be doing for years to come. Yet, we are providing them the information they will need when the time comes. Providing information on how to be a member of a global society, collaborate with others, evaluate information, are all skills that are needed to succeed in the 21st century whether digitally or f2f."
My interpretation of this question finds it to mean that teachers must be able to use their digital tools as resourcefully as possible. Where every school, classroom, and student are different so must the digital experience. The goal should be allowing students as much exposure to these tools as possible to create familiarity and understanding. “[Our goal is to] shift the focus of the conversation about the digital divide from questions of technological access to those of opportunities to participate and to develop the cultural competencies and social skills needed for full involvement.” From Henry Jenkin's paper, “Confronting the Challenges of Participatory Culture: Media Education for the 21st Century:”
There are a variety of ways that teachers can work to create an equal experience for students. Connecting with parents helps to promote understanding of technological tools. Family nights at schools and blogs give teachers a chance to exemplify the lessons and demystify the tools students will be using. Parental consent and support opens many avenues. What resources are available can be rotated. Such as the use of laptops, by a few children each day, in their classroom centers. Resources can also be shared during group projects. Assignments should reflect the limitations of student resources at home. Understanding that some students will need to use public resources like after school groups and libraries. I do not think that digital experiences should be limited because of the lack of resources at home. Although they should be considered there are many other factors that are out of a teacher's control that impact a student's education.
The importance of providing critical information is discussed by Dave Chamberlain in his post 'What is Equal Access to the Digital World?' (2009) on the website Seedlings. "As has been mentioned in posts, it is not providing the physical equipment, even in school; it is providing the information needed in order to be a member of a digital society. In slightly more concrete terms, in elementary/primary grades we teach many things that the students won't be doing for years to come. Yet, we are providing them the information they will need when the time comes. Providing information on how to be a member of a global society, collaborate with others, evaluate information, are all skills that are needed to succeed in the 21st century whether digitally or f2f."
Sunday, October 11, 2009
Website Evaluation
How and why do teachers need to evaluate websites for use in the classroom? We were shown some great examples of questionable websites in class over the past few weeks. We had to look closely to understand their true content and it is understandable how challenging this would be for children. Some were very professionally put together while others offered convincing photography. Some of these websites were in regards to Martin Luther King, the Fisher Price airplane, the Tree Octopus, the History of Sliced Bread and two websites about Dihydrogen Monoxide. It was very helpful to figure out which websites were fictitious or accurate and to then discuss the opinions formed from their information.
It is clear that teachers must take the time to closely inspect the websites that they choose to use as tools in their classrooms. Briefly scanning over a website's content is not a valid assessment. To ensure student safety teachers can limit students to certain websites. Beyond this sources must be checked and the use of multiple sources is always helpful for students to decipher accurate information.
I found Kathy Schrock's Guide for Educators had some very helpful tools for website evaluations. This website offers classroom handouts and a variety of evaluation formats for teachers. Such as Critical Evaluation Survey: Elementary, Middle, Secondary School Level, Teacher Sites, Virtual
Wednesday, October 7, 2009
october 7
Learning how to use Diigo, bookmarking everything. Finally writing down all my usernames passwords. I had to make them all a little bit different lol.
Chapter 11
Chapter 11 introduces networking tools such Flicker, Furl, Facebook, Worldbridges, Livemocha, Mixxer, Moodle,
The tool ChinesePod stood out as an interesting concept. It was originally 'developed to teach Mandarin Chinese through online podcasts, which are so popular that hundreds of thousands of people visit the Web site each month to browse, listen to, or download them'. The success of this website thrives on conversation and dialogue from everyday topics such as dating and restaurants to more cultural topics such as sports and business. ChinesePod prides itself on the fact that it makes learning Chinese easy and engaging. In addition to liberating learners from traditional settings to those that are more accessible. ChinesePod 'constructs learning around the learner's needs, giving real-life practical language that's authentically designed to teach Chinese as a second language, and building and sustaining a very vibrant community that energizes and motivates learners'. The success of this website has lead to alternate branches such as SpanishPod, FrenchPod, and ItalianPod.
KanTalk is a website that develops English language skills by speaking, listening and watching video of other speakers. 'With KanTalk, you can make recordings of your voice, listen to others, watch English videos, and have Skype discussions or mentoring sessions.' ECpod is a similar website that deals with English and Mandarin. These websites go beyond audio and integrate video into the learning process as well.
The author also discusses websites and companies such as MentorNet, AskOnline, Tutor.com, SMARTHINKING, TutorVista, Growing Stars, StraigherLine, FriendsAbroad, Languagelab, About.com as other related resources.
Chapter 7
Chapter 7 discusses several Web 2.0 tools such as Chinswing, dotSUB, YackPack, and YouTube. All feature online audio technology in various formats. YouTube stood out for its ability to let people view and generate content. The author reviewed several different beneficial examples of this tool in use.
Common Craft 'explains emerging and complex technology in extremely simple ways using hand gestures, cute sayings, metaphors and easily understood steps'. We were able to watch one of these videos in class regarding Social Networking in Plain English. The simplified explanations were very helpful. 'Hundreds of thousands of people have viewed their Wikis in Plain English and RSS in Plain English videos through YouTube.
Matt Harding's story was interestingly involved with YouTube. He became an online phenomenon by sharing videos of himself dancing in different locations around the world. He caught the attention of so many people that a more trips were planned and sponsored. Amazingly, in 2008, 'the United Nations asked Matt to participate in a mission to
Karl Fisch's life was changed when he put his PowerPoint presentation Did You Know? on YouTube. Various professors have shown this video in a few forms in classes I have taken. The content is very thought provoking. 'For instance,
These examples show the versatility of YouTube as an educational tool. 'As Matt Harding stated, "YouTube is still a massive storage vault for video content. It can be explored, researched, and referenced, and for that it's a useful tool."
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