Thursday, December 10, 2009

Digital Ethnography

Intriguing video

Ed Tech Website

My website features a lesson plan I made along with the a Web2.0 feature that I incorporated. The Web2.0 feature that I incorporate was Video Downloader. I used this to present a video from Youtube to my class that was related to the unit topic they had been studying.

Ed Tech and You

INTASC Self-Evaluation

Basically, I'm awesome.

Lesson Plan with Technology

Daily Lesson Plan

 

Name              John Penewit                                                       

                           

Unit Topic: Sea Turtles                     Lesson Number: 10                        Date: 11/23/09          

Lesson Title: Sea Turtle Report

State Standard:

Writing Applications: Expository Writing: Research Reports/ Multi-media

Presentations (4-HS): Write narrative, expository, and persuasive texts, using a

variety of written forms—including journals, essays, short stories, poems, research

reports, research papers, business and technical writing—to express ideas

appropriate to audience and purpose across the subject areas.

 

NET Standards

1. Facilitate and Inspire Student Learning and Creativity

Teachers use their knowledge of subject matter, teaching and learning, and technology to facilitate experiences that advance student learning, creativity, and innovation in both face-to-face and virtual environments. Teachers:

a.

promote, support, and model creative and innovative thinking and inventiveness.

b.

engage students in exploring real-world issues and solving authentic problems using digital tools and resources.

c.

promote student reflection using collaborative tools to reveal and clarify students' conceptual understanding and thinking, planning, and creative processes.

d.

model collaborative knowledge construction by engaging in learning with students, colleagues, and others in face-to-face and virtual environments.

 

Benchmarks:

-EL.04.LI.04

-EL.04.RE.02

-EL.04.RE.01

-EL.04.WR.25

 

Objectives:

-SWBAT find information on sea turtles using a computer

-SWBAT paraphrase information they have found in their research

Materials:

-Student pens or pencils

-Whiteboard markers

-White board eraser

-Sea Turtle Report Graphic Organizer

-Student Sea Turtle Report Graphic Organizers

-Encyclopedias

-Turtle books

-Several Internet research articles about different types of sea turtles printed

-27 writing templates for final copies of turtle reports

-27 green 8 1/2x11 papers for turtle reports

-27 white 11x17 papers for turtle reports

-Planet Earth sea turtle video from videodownload.com

Anticipatory Set:

Time 1-5 min

Explain that they will be finishing their sea turtle reports.

Learning Activities:

Time 65 min

*Before class begins, set chairs in front of the board to set the stage and so that students cannot lean against the board.

A.    Anticipatory set

B.    Have outline written on board, explain to class

1.               Work on sea turtle reports

2.               Closure

C.    Have the students work on their sea turtle reports. Have them use the sea turtle graphic organizer and begin writing their rough and final drafts.

1.               Check to make sure their interesting facts are more than common knowledge. The facts need to be things they have researched. Also, if something is already listed in another category, they can’t use it twice.

a. An example of an interesting fact is that sea turtles travel thousands of miles to return to the same place they were born to mate and lay their eggs.

b. An example of what I’m not looking for is what color their turtle is.

1.               They should have 5 paragraphs: Introduction, conclusion, interesting facts, life-cycle and reasons that turtle is endangered.

2.               They should draw a picture of their turtles in their natural environments.

3.               They should write a rough draft and have the teacher correct it for errors and then write their draft.

4.               Have model final copy made for students to see. The writing template is pasted onto the green paper, which is pasted onto the white paper. On the side of that on the white paper will be their drawing.

5.               If students have finished the report, have them read their books or work on other projects.

D.   Show students sea turtle video from videodownload.com.

Closure:

Time 5 min

Tell the students to begin finishing up and put their things away when there are about 3-5 minutes left. After, have them put their reports and other things away. Tell them they need to finish the project by the following day for me to grade it. I will ask them to again tell me ways how they can help the plight of sea turtles.

*Possible answers:

-Don’t buy plastic bags

-Don’t litter

-Don’t let your dog or cat loose at the beach

-Teach others about the plight of the sea turtles

-Don’t build your house near the beach

-Don’t buy jewelry or other things made from sea turtle shell

-Don’t buy food made from sea turtles

-Don’t disturb areas that are protected reservations for sea turtles.

Management Concerns Addressed:

The information I have printed for the sea turtle reports may be confusing or overwhelming so I have highlighted important information for them. I am concerned that many of the students won’t finish by the end of the period. To address this I will have them take the assignment home to work on it.

Assessment:

Time: 5 min

Their assessment will be their reports.

Adaptations: (ESOL,TAG, Special Needs, Other)

There are six ELLs in my class and few students with low reading levels. I will use visual aids such as outlines and written instructions on the board to give them another way to understand what I want. This outline will be concise and written in different colors to give emphasis to the important parts and so that it is easily readable. I will also try to speak clearly and concisely during the class. One student has trouble staying focused so I will use sticky notes to show him where his place is when he is reading. Another student has autism and has trouble with writing clearly. To help him we will allow him to type out his report. Another student has emotional anxiety and to help both he and the student with autism to cope with working for long periods, they will be given periodic breaks.

Lesson Evaluation:

I will be able to evaluate how well the lesson went through the quality of their reports.

Lesson Reflection:

Today’s lesson was fun and simple. The students continued to work on their sea turtle reports. I didn’t have to do much teaching because they already knew what they needed to do. I just reminded them of the objectives for the lesson, the order in which they needed to do their report and what to do if they finished early. After they didn’t have any questions left, I released them to their work.

 

I’ve been trying to make my outlines more clear by using different colors to highlight the main topics or things of importance. I’ve also tried to make them more concise but still comprehensive so that they are easier to understand at a glance. The students for the most part seem to be more informed of what I’m looking for and I have been getting less questions. However, they could be asking the other teachers in the room or their classmates for help without me knowing about it. I think having a more simplistic outline is good too in that it is less intimidating. Some of the students have a hard time focusing on reading for long periods so this is important in that it’s approachable for them too.

 

The students seemed to be interested in the report and the quality of work has been impressive. I’ve found that other students want to always be done and work as quickly as they’re able whenever they have new assignments. This often produces work that is disorganized and lacking necessary details. Still others are naturally good writers and organizers and are able to finish their assignments quickly but while retaining quality as well. I sometimes have a hard time trying to motivate the students who try to rush through their work to slow down but through this assignment, they have been doing a good job.

 

About half of the students had finished their projects by the end of the period, which means that some of them had to do other things. Most of them have finished their newspaper reports and even the extra reading I assigned. The homeroom teacher had the students working on their past assignments as well. A few students had finished everything and were able to free read. I had one student explore more research on the green sea turtle, her choice for her report. She seemed to enjoy this and what she found was interesting. She was able to see a small video of the turtles too.

 

I sensed that the students were a little squirrely today and I had to remind them to work quietly and to stay on task. I think they were coming off of the weekend and they know that in three days they’ll be on a four day vacation. They worked hard though and I was happy with their progress.

 

It’s hard to believe that the two weeks are over. The students have done an incredible job of acclimating to my teaching style and lessons and they seem to have enjoyed what I’ve taught. It’s hard to believe it’s already over.

 

 


Monday, December 7, 2009

Oregon Technology Standards and Requirements

1. How would you explain the big picture of what these standards are trying to accomplish?
2. Describe some strategies you could implement at your grade level(s) in order to accomplish this huge task. Please relate your strategies/activities to some specific standards.
3. What are some challenges?

1. Facilitate and Inspire Student Learning and Creativity
Teachers use their knowledge of subject matter, teaching and learning, and technology to facilitate experiences that advance student learning, creativity, and innovation in both face-to-face and virtual environments. Teachers:
a. promote, support, and model creative and innovative thinking and inventiveness.
b. engage students in exploring real-world issues and solving authentic problems using digital tools and resources.
c. promote student reflection using collaborative tools to reveal and clarify students' conceptual understanding and thinking, planning, and creative processes.
d. model collaborative knowledge construction by engaging in learning with students, colleagues, and others in face-to-face and virtual environments.

The whole point of teaching is to “inspire student learning and creativity,” as the standard asserts. Using technology is a way to help inspire the students. Many students are familiar with and enjoy using a computer and are very proficient and creative in using them. Why can’t we utilize some of the features of various forms of technology to help inspire the students, especially the ones who struggle with traditional forms of learning? An example of this would be using the paint program on an IPod touch for drawing to help inspire creativity with a student. A challenge is that it takes some thinking to make the use of the technology about learning and not just about having fun. Also, some school’s rules and policies may be in contention with the use of certain technology.


2. Design and Develop Digital-Age Learning Experiences and Assessments
Teachers design, develop, and evaluate authentic learning experiences and assessment incorporating contemporary tools and resources to maximize content learning in context and to develop the knowledge, skills, and attitudes identified in the NETS•S. Teachers:
a. design or adapt relevant learning experiences that incorporate digital tools and resources to promote student learning and creativity.
b. develop technology-enriched learning environments that enable all students to pursue their individual curiosities and become active participants in setting their own educational goals, managing their own learning, and assessing their own progress.
c. customize and personalize learning activities to address students' diverse learning styles, working strategies, and abilities using digital tools and resources.
d. provide students with multiple and varied formative and summative assessments aligned with content and technology standards and use resulting data to inform learning and teaching.

This standard is referring to helping students to have authentic experiences through the use of technology that once again help inspire learning. The use of the technology also helps meet different learning styles. I think the use of the technology itself is catering to diverse learning preferences as most students are familiar with and enjoy using computers and other forms of technology. One way to use technology for these purposes is to facilitate a video conference between two different classrooms in a different country so students can learn about another culture. A challenge to this would be finding a class that is willing to participate in such an activity.

3. Model Digital-Age Work and Learning
Teachers exhibit knowledge, skills, and work processes representative of an innovative professional in a global and digital society. Teachers:
a. demonstrate fluency in technology systems and the transfer of current knowledge to new technologies and situations.
b. collaborate with students, peers, parents, and community members using digital tools and resources to support student success and innovation.
c. communicate relevant information and ideas effectively to students, parents, and peers using a variety of digital-age media and formats.
d. model and facilitate effective use of current and emerging digital tools to locate, analyze, evaluate, and use information resources to support research and learning.

I believe this standard is saying that teachers need to be familiar with the particular program, application or hardware they are teaching their students about. In some ways this can be related to having content knowledge. If the teacher is going to teach, he or she should know about what it is the topic is on. In the same way, teachers should know how to use the technology they are dealing with. One example of this might be using Google Documents to keep a running journal blog the students make that they, their peers, their families and others can follow and comment on. One challenge to this would be if families don’t have internet access in their homes.


4. Promote and Model Digital Citizenship and Responsibility
Teachers understand local and global societal issues and responsibilities in an evolving digital culture and exhibit legal and ethical behavior in their professional practices. Teachers:
a. advocate, model, and teach safe, legal, and ethical use of digital information and technology, including respect for copyright, intellectual property, and the appropriate documentation of sources.
b. address the diverse needs of all learners by using learner-centered strategies providing equitable access to appropriate digital tools and resources.
c. promote and model digital etiquette and responsible social interactions related to the use of technology and information.
d. develop and model cultural understanding and global awareness by engaging with colleagues and students of other cultures using digital-age communication and collaboration tools.

This standard refers to the proper and safe use of technology. Basically, there are emerging and developing laws about internet usage and students need to be informed about them. Piracy, copyright infringement and plagiarism can be big problems with internet use. I might teach students about the price differences between countries for CDs and DVDs, why that is and if they think it is fair. We could then have a debate about it. I think helping the students to understand things like plagiarism is a difficult task because it’s so easy to do now with the copy and paste feature and the internet.


5. Engage in Professional Growth and Leadership
Teachers continuously improve their professional practice, model lifelong learning, and exhibit leadership in their school and professional community by promoting and demonstrating the effective use of digital tools and resources. Teachers:
a. participate in local and global learning communities to explore creative applications of technology to improve student learning.
b. exhibit leadership by demonstrating a vision of technology infusion, participating in shared decision making and community building, and developing the leadership and technology skills of others.
c. evaluate and reflect on current research and professional practice on a regular basis to make effective use of existing and emerging digital tools and resources in support of student learning.
d. contribute to the effectiveness, vitality, and self-renewal of the teaching

profession and of their school and community.
This standard is saying that teachers to familiarize themselves with the use of technology and its ongoing development. They also need to serve as leaders in the community and participate in local and global learning communities that explore the use of technology use in the classroom. I think this is a great idea in that teachers ought to be continuously learning about new applications of technology and how it can benefit the students. Technology use in the classroom is inevitable in this age and we should be utilizing it rather than fighting against it. One way to use this standard is to participate in a forum about “technology use in the classroom” with other teachers from around the world and in the community. A challenge to this would be not only finding such a forum but also the language barrier between certain countries and cultures.

Saturday, November 14, 2009

My Life Pre-Willamette MAT

If you've ever wondered what I was doing back when I was making money, here's a link to my original blog.
http://johnnyp2006.blogspot.com/

My OTHER Willamette Blog

Here's a link to my other Willamette Blog from another course I took. It discusses my journey in education.

http://johnpenewitmat.blogspot.com/