Online Resources Aplenty!

One of my favorite things to do as an educator who is interested in technology is to find new and useful online resources. There are times when I spend hours at a time looking at different sites and applications, wondering if and how I can use them in the classroom. What I have found out is well...there is a lot out there and it seems like more are added by the day. At times it even seems a bit overwhelming, and I can only imagine how people who are not all that interested in technology feel. But the reality of today's world, and especially moving forward into the future, is that technology will not stop moving at the speed it going. Online learning resources seem to keep moving with everything else.

In my classroom I use online learning resources frequently and find many of them very valuable. My attitude is that the more the better and I enjoy keeping up and discovering new resources. Many people I work with get frustrated and see online learning as just another passing fad. They could not be more wrong. A lot of the resources that I find and use present content in a much better way than I believe I ever could. Some people seem to be scared of being replaced by a computer it seems like. I truly do not think that teachers will ever become irrelevant but there is not doubt that our jobs are changing in large part due to online learning. Learning how to become more of a facilitator and co-learner will become essential skills for educators rather than being an encyclopedic source of info ourselves. It is my hope that this year I can have some meaningful conversations about this with some colleagues.

Finding Info: An Art or a Science?

The "treasure chest" of information called the Internet certainly is a valuable tool for everyone who uses it. It has revolutionized the dispersal of information, movement of people and goods, and communication. More people have more access to information than ever before but an important step that educators, students, and well...pretty much everybody must take is understanding how to search and use the information. While there is an unlimited amount of information on the Net, it may come as a shock that not all of the information is credible and up-to-date.

Many websites use information that either unconfirmed, out-of-date, or severely biased. Internet users, with the overwhelming amount of information, must be careful to use the most credible information they can find and know what to discard. I have seen articles and quotes that question if the Internet and technology are threats to democracy due to the large amount of inaccurate information that is available and accepted. As an educator I do my best to direct my students to information that is from a credible source but they also need to be able to evaluate for themselves. Teachers only have control over the information their students use in a very limited and controlled basis. One of my goals is to teach my students how to look critically at information and make informed decisions about what they see. In many ways their and our future depend on this.

Internet Learning Resources

Starting a new class is always an interesting and exciting experience and a course on Internet Learning Resources is right up my alley. It is my firm belief that one of the biggest impacts of the Internet is that it makes information easily accessible to anyone. One of the biggest issues that people have always had in education is universal accessibility.

People's place in life is often determined by their level of education and for the most part people are educated at their neighborhood school. For most that means that they are left to whatever teachers and facilities they end up with. Although many argue that people all have a chance to make it and everyone has access to education, I don't know if that is necessarily the case. Internet Learning Resources have a chance to even the playing field for many people.

With all of the great sites out there it is possible for people to have access to knowledge that they previously couldn't have imagined. And not only that, for the most part there is something for everybody. Information is available from a variety of resources and presented in a variety of ways. With Web 2.0 tools becoming more popular it is now possible for people to discuss and interact with these resources as well.

Moving through this program, and I am still early in the process, has led me to believe that it is possible to offer and equitable education to all. The Internet gives nearly universal access to information previously only available to a select few. The next step will be finding a way to get everyone on board...

The Class Experience

Using Productivity Tools Effectively (CEDO 515) has inspired a great deal of thought and reflection into my teaching practices. The first two classes in the program were more focused on learning some basic skills but this course has involved more instruction on how to actually implement technology-based activities. What I have found out is that even though I have used technology for various purposes in the classroom, it has not been utilized to anywhere near its full potential.

The textbook has provided me with a great deal of very useful tips on creating technology-based activities that are student driven. What I have found in the classroom is that when students do not have a lot of structure and clear step-by-step procedures they tend to become frustrated and struggle. This summer I have attempted to use many of the tips from the textbook for my summer school courses. I have found my activities have been more organized and have found myself doing a better job facilitating the students rather than continuously providing direct instruction.

Even though I have always thought of myself as someone who knew a lot of what is on the web, there have been many tools throughout the class that I had not fully explored. It is my belief that the web and technology are going to be at the center of education in the future. My hope is to play a leading role in helping my school integrate these tools. It has been valuable to learn important steps that districts must take in training staff and selecting the software to be utilized by the district.

I already have a great deal of passion and interest in technology in education. My classroom will have better technology-based activities and I will be able to play a bigger role in my district's technology leadership due to the knowledge and skills learned in class.

Building a Website

Something I have considered doing several times but have not pulled the trigger on is building a classroom website. I have used a Web 2.0 tool (Edmodo) in my classes for a couple of years but feel a course webpage would be a good complement. Edmodo has provided a great place for me to share files and facilitate online discussions but I would like a course webpage to keep important files such as a syllabus and contact information easily available to students and parents. I can post those materials on Edmodo but it shows the newest materials near the top and the older stuff tends to get buried. Plus, a username and password is required for Edmodo so a webpage would allow more accessibility for parents.
Google sites would offer a good solution for my need to have a course page. The computer classes at the school have offered to build and maintain a site (through dreamweaver I believe) but I would like to have unlimited accessibility and editing ability. I have played around with Google Sites a little in the past but have not took the step to completely construct a usable site. This should give me a better communication tool with parents.

In Time Videos

The In Time video I watched was about class project that involved students creating a CD-ROM that profiled their community (Manson, Iowa) in detail. It involved many of the key components of a good technology-based project including organization, scaffolding, authentic assessment, multiple-disciplines, and multiple software and hardware usage. The project was comprehensive and ongoing. Students learned the content and skills necessary to complete the project throughout the course and were given time to work on it. The end result was a technology-driven product that displayed student achievement according to the learning product. The product was shown and/or given to community members, thus making the assessment truly authentic.
At my school, my department has spent a great deal of time revising curriculum and getting up-to-date on the best practices in social studies education. I have felt that in order to properly measure student learning that a comprehensive and ongoing project would be something that should be included in most classes. I have struggled with teachers who have a difficult time moving away from the traditional lecture and then test model of teaching history. A project along the lines of the video I watched would be something I could take to my department and potentially build on as it is my hope to integrate this type of project in my classes.

Spreadsheets and Evaluating Software

Although I have had a good deal of experience using spreadsheets I had never explored the formula functions. I have used them mainly for recording and organizing basic data (student textbook numbers, assignment tracking, etc.). With more knowledge of the formula function I may be able to expand my use of the tool. There are also several places that I could potentially integrate spreadsheets into my teaching. In my geography class the students work with a lot of demographic and statistical data and spreadsheets would be a good way for students to organize and sort the data that they research.
It was interesting to discuss the ways that districts evaluate software. In my district I believe that it would be beneficial for technology coordinators and administrators to seek more staff input. There are not any specified procedures for teachers to do this. Districts should have a policy and procedures for software and give teachers and opportunity to test out and provide feedback  before decisions  are made. My district has spent hundreds of thousands of dollars on software that many teachers feel is unnecessary and teachers were not given the opportunity to evaluate the software before purchase. Giving staff more input would be better and more efficient for my and other districts.