Saturday, December 17, 2011

Reflections

This course has helped me to become more technology savvy and to explore so much more than what I was use to.  I have learned to blog, create wikis and to do podcasting, things I never dreamed I would be doing.  I know how important it is for me to keep up with the things happening in society to help get my students prepared for the 21st century and beyond. I must continue to get them ready for what lies ahead and for what is expected of them when they leave high school and enter the work force. I do not feel I have to be an expert in all of the technological advances, but I need to know enough to be able to guide my students in the direction they need to be guided in and assist them in understanding how important it is for them to be creative, self starters with good decision making skills and able to problem solve. I am encouraging them to take the lead in class and to tell me the kinds of things they are interested in as well as to engage in meaningful dialect with their fellow classmates.  I am making sure they are exposed to the standards but I am making it as real world as I possibly can and I want them to see the need for the lesson.  I am reading articles, and working hard to keep informed about all technological advances and I am making sure I am keeping myself current. Many of the questions in the checklist have changed and will keep changing as I continue to embark on my journey with technology.

One of my long term goals are to get students involved in developing wikis with other students in other high schools and be able to continue with them after high school to develop net works with students in other places. The other long term goal is to have students make their own sites to have as long as they choose to and to update them and make them work for them.  I hope to have access to all kinds of technology in the classroom so my students can get that much needed exposure. I am also working with my students to teach them the importance of appropriateness on the computer and reminded them that once they publish information good or bad it is out there for the whole world to see.

I will continue to plead with my colleagues to add technology to their lesson plans and to do different things to get and keep the attention of the students. I am not sure how I will approach the obstacles from the district, but I will certainly  work to find ways to make sure my classroom is filled with students involved in enriching real world lessons incorporating as much technology as possible.  As we continue using the High School That Works model, I think it will dictate the use of technology in the classroom more which is one of the ways the district will have to comply. I have begun using technology in ways I never thought I would and I am excited. I have seen my students come alive and it is wonderful.

Saturday, December 10, 2011

Update

I am happy to report that I have started my Business law class blogging.  All of them have their sites up and going the sites are wonderful.  Some are a little slower than others but they all have set up their own sites and have started blogging.  We are using the weebly site, that is one of the few sites our district will allow.  The students really love this, they have been making blogs as well as responding to the questions I have them commenting on.  I have warned them about their grammar and spelling and the fact that they must check their work before posting because I am going to take points off for words spelled incorrectly and slang.  I am looking for comments that have been researched, written with well thought out sentences without a whole lot of words spelled incorrectly. I will provide information about the site for your viewing at a later date.  I am so excited about my students and what they have accomplished.  I am able to use what I am learning  to help my students. With this being said it is still so important to make sure they are learning to problem solve, make decisions, read, and communicate effectively in order to be prepared for the real world.

Tuesday, November 22, 2011

Partnership for 21st century Skills

I found the website to be very interesting with so much information to read and view.  I liked the videos I viewed and the webinar titles were of interest to me. The website has a lot of valuable free infomation and a lot of information to be purchased.  The P21 newsletter seemed interesting.  The common core toolkit is available to down load and I believe that is a good resource for teachers to have in their library. This website appears to be a collaborative effort from many sources with information to assist  every teacher in every discipline. there was so much information on the site talking about assessment, curriculum and instruction that I did not know where to begin reading.  My mind was racing trying to keep up with all I was looking at and wanting to read about. One of the things I am going to do with this information is share it with all teachers I come in contact with and I am going to take a look at the manner in which I assess my students as well as my lesson plans to incorporate more of the things this website talks about.  I want to be one of the teachers involved with preparing my students for the 21st century and beyond. I did not find anything I did  not like about the site, I just did not like the fact that I would have to pay to read some of the articles I wanted to read right then and before I could read them I had to purchase them. I know that it takes money to keep this site updated and this is probably one of the ways they are able to fund it so it is not really a dislike but an observation.  The reality of this is that we as teachers and educators must find a way, despite the limited funds and all of the other obstacles to help our students understand how important it is to develop problem solving skills, creativity, decision making skills, communication skills and all of the other skills they will need to be prepared for the type of jobs available in this global economy.  We must teach and design our lessons in manner that the student will want to take ownership in their learning.  The students have to see the value in the lesson for it to mean something to them.  We as educators must make these lessons real world lessons and have the students work in groups to find out the answers/solutions they need. This website is a wonderful resource for educators and parents in particular and anyone who is interested in helping students be successful.

Thursday, November 10, 2011

Classroom blogging

In my classroom, I plan to have my students blog instead of journaling. My students have been making journaal entries in a notebook and I would take them up, read them, make comments and give them their journals back.  Now I can respond and so can the entire class to each others post.  I have some students in the class that are very quiet and I am hoping this will help them to express themselves better, also. this will help them interact about content.  Not sure if I will showcase their work there, but it will be a place to share learning with the larger community since we discuss real world applications just about everyday in this particular class. The blog will involve more students and they will be able to give their views. there will be no right or wrong answers as well as the students will need to do their research in order to make intelligent appropriate comments. Grade level-10-12
Business Law class. The students will be talking about real world applications that will help them as they transition into society.  I am excited to start this adventure.

Wednesday, November 2, 2011

Technology at its best

Technology is a wonderful tool and it must be used just as it is intended.  There is so much out there and so much we can take advantge of.  We as teachers must be able to guide our students in all of the areas available to them without fear of the technology.  They must be able to think outside of the box.  I want to never stop learning in order that I may be better able to help my students. Technology can help us find ways to bring an old lesson to life and make it appear new.  It is that added touch that makes someone want to know more.

Tuesday, November 1, 2011

The beginning

Hello to all of my fellow class mates,
I have set up my blog set and I am working on making sure I have done things correctly.  I look forward to your comments.