The Educational Value of Blogs

A blog is a simple, easy-to-access way to share information. This makes it a valuable tool for teaching students. Even more, blogs allow visitors to make comments on what is discussed. This is a great way for teachers and students to communicate about topics they are studying. Teachers can gain insight into students' understanding by what they comment on the blog. They can plan instruction based upon what they learn from students' comments (Did they "get it"? Do I need to remediate?...)
Aside from its benefits for students, a blog is also a great tool for communicating with parents and other stakeholders in the classroom. Teachers can provide samples of student work, post homework assignments, offer helpful tips for parents so that they can help support instruction at home, and so much more.
As a kindergarten teacher, I feel that I would have the primary role of creating and managing the classroom blog. I would use it primarily as a communication tool for parents. However, I feel that teachers of older students should work with their students to create and manage blogs. The teacher may need to approve student posts before they are made to make sure everything is appropriate, but the students could actually do all of the work. They could select a template, decide what information to share, type entries, and comment on each other's posts. The students could communicate with students around the world via a class blog. What a valuable learning tool!

Excellent Features of Blogs

I liked the fact that I could select a template from those provided to make the set-up of my blog easy. Though my group members did the same thing, the templates and the freedom creators have with them allowed us all to reflect our individuality through our blogs. I thought it was neat that we could create links from our own blogs to those of our group members. This kept us connected and would allow visitors to see what we were working on as a group and how we differed from each other. The one project I felt was best shared via our group blogs was the ComicLife examples. We were able to embed them right in the blog. Blogs can have many neat features!

My Blogging Experience

The most important thing I learned from my blogging experience for MEDT 7464 is that blogging is easy! There is no need to be scared to create or use a blog. Blogs are great tools for teaching and learning because the information that can be shared via a blog is limitless. Another great thing about blogs is that they allow for comments to be made, thus enabling students and teachers to learn from each other. Although my kindergarten students may not be ready to blog just yet, I can definitely see the benefits of using a blog to communicate with parents and to share what we are doing in our classroom. What a wonderful (and simple) communication tool!

PBL Project Reflection

My group decided to plan activities which would motivate middle school students to learn by showing them real-world examples of situations where they could apply what they were learning. I was confused when we selected this theme because the descriptions I have read regarding project-based learning state that such projects should begin with a real-world problem and should involve students researching and developing possible solutions. However, my group members and professor told me this topic was fine. Our topic does address a problem (unmotivated students) but not one for which the students help to develop resolutions.

With my concerns about the theme set aside, I really enjoyed developing my activity. I had to think outside of my comfort zone to plan a lesson for sixth grade students since I teach kindergarten. However, I researched the Georgia Performance Standards and found that I could connect math and social studies with a project about budgeting. By having students develop a budget for an outing they would likely enjoy (to the Georgia Aquarium), I feel that I offered a real-world application for them to put their knowledge and skills to use. I learned a great deal about creating spreadsheets using Excel. I had no previous experience with the application but can see its potential uses in the classroom.

This project illustrated for me the challenges teachers face when planning project-based learning activities. First of all, the planning of the activity took a great deal of time. I think it would become easier once I created several projects. It would also be helpful if I could share the workload and ideas with teachers from the same grade level. Another challenge for me was making sure that the students could work independently. I am afraid that perhaps I provided more information than I should have for the students. They should be able to research information and manage that information on their own. While project-based learning comes with its challenges, I can definitely see its benefits to students.

Motivating Students through Real World Application

THe goal of our Project Based Learning Proposal is to Motivate the students of Pointe South Middle School to want to learn. Pointe South Middle School is a school that consists of minority students. It is also in a very low income area. THis makes our school a very transient population becaus ewe have a lot of kids comign and going. Another key fact to know is that this school is in clayton county. A school that had isssues with accredidation. This makes the kids have very little pride in their school. Lastly Pointe South Middle is a NI 4 school because they have not made AYP in about 4 years.

Therefore to motivate our students and get the community involved, we as a group decided to create an enviroment that gives the students real world examples of why what they are learning is needed. This can be done by gettign the kids to go to business to witness the behind the scenes work. THis may make a kid want to learn there math or science a little better. Teachers can also create plans that involve guest speakers. Students in this type of area need that extra motivation because of all the negative things that may be going on around them. That is why we select realworld application to motivate.

PBL Article

In this article, the author provides information about what project-based learning is. She writes that definitions vary but that PBL activities share many characteristics. During PBL, students should identify a real-world problem, develop guiding questions about it, investigate the issues, formulate a solution, create artifacts to the solution, present their solution to others, assess student work throughout the project, and reflect on accomplishments. PBL activities should be standards-based, tie directly to the curriculum, be multi-disciplinary, be open-ended, and be conducted over a set period of time. The author acknowledges that there are three potential "roadblocks" to the design and implementation of PBL activities: the amount of work required, that students must be able to work independently as they conduct research and manage information, and the fact that PBL activities often require communicating with people off-site. This is where various technologies can help. For example, teachers could use software and Web-based tools to design the activity and manage the logistics. Students could use wordprocessors, spreadsheets, and the internet to complete the research and record information. Technologies such as e-mail and blogs could be used to communicate with people off-site.

This article is a valuable resource for me and my group because it explains what a good PBL activity should do. It should begin with a problem and lead to possible solutions. Our group did not focus on a problem for the students to try to solve, However, we focused on a problem we see everyday- unmotivated students who do not see the importance of learning. The author of this article provides ideas of how various technologies can be used to make the development and implementation of PBL easier. It concludes with listings and descriptions of some helpful Web-based resources, including software programs and websites.

Brooks-Young, S. (2005, April). Project-based learning: technology makes it realistic! Today's Catholic Teacher, 38(6), 35-39. Retrieved November 8, 2009, from ProQuest Education Journals. (Document ID: 818009381).

My PBL Instructional Activity

My group's activities are centered around the theme: "Motivating students by real world examples and application." I developed a project-based learning activity to teach sixth grade students how to create a budget. They are to plan a trip to the Georgia Aquarium for which they have $100 to spend. Although $100 may sound like a lot of money to sixth graders, they will quickly learn that it doesn't go far! They will use Microsoft Excel to create a spreadsheet which will show how they have budgeted their $100 to cover the costs of transportation, parking, admission, food, and beverages. If they budget wisely, they may have what is left for souvenirs. Students will create graphic organizers to present their budgets to the class using ComicLife. This project should help students see the connections between what they are learning about money in social studies (not to mention math) and the real world.

Emerging Technology That Supports eLearning

I read an article advocating the use of electronic books (ebooks) to support the development of literacy skills with students. The authors focus on the benefits for students with disabilities, but I feel ebooks have benefits for all students. They say that instead of purchasing ebooks, which are expensive, teachers can easily create their own using Microsoft PowerPoint. Students retell stories they have read or heard while the teacher types their narration into a slide show template. Pictures (clipart or digital photographs) and narration or sound effects can be added to support the text. Of course, older students could create their own ebooks using PowerPoint. Some benefits the authors note of using ebooks are that students are more interactive with the text, they sequence events from the story, they retell the story using their own words (which demonstrates their comprehension), and they have boosted self-esteem because they take pride in their projects. Sounds like an easy way to integrate technology to support elearning!

Rhodes, J. & Milby, T.. (2007). Teacher-created electronic books: integrating technology to support readers with disabilities. The Reading Teacher, 61(3), 255-256, 258-259. Retrieved November 3, 2009, from ProQuest Education Journals. (Document ID: 1382111701).

Summary of MovieMaker Workshop Plan

The title of our workshop is “Digital Storytelling through Windows MovieMaker.” The goal of the workshop is to increase technology integration and to improve the engagement of students. We would also like for teachers to see the potential of using MovieMaker as an instructional tool. The presenters' objectives are to demonstrate the basic applications of the MovieMaker software and to share some examples that depict how easily the software can be integrated across the curriculum.Windows MovieMaker is easily implemented with few prerequisites. It is already available on most school computers, thus it is available at low or no cost. Teachers must have basic computer skills, a computer, and access to Windows MovieMaker software. Teachers would also benefit from having experience with saving/uploading images, downloading movie clips and music, and utilizing a flash drive.
The presenters will use a projector to present a PowerPoint that provides an overview of what MovieMaker is and to show samples of the different projects. The teachers will be provided with hard copies of the directions and computer access to create their own digital stories using MovieMaker.For project members, this workshop has developed valuable skills and has sparked ideas for the teachers to implement within their own classrooms.
To view project members’ examples of MovieMaker productions, click on the links below:
http://stu.westga.edu/~sbloche1/moviemaker
http://stu.westga.edu/~cmorga11/7464_moviemakerproject_clm.wmv
http://stu.westga.edu/~bbaker1/7464_moviemkr_bjb.wmv
http://stu.westga.edu/~bray1/7464_moviemaker_btr.wmv

Moviemaker

The American Revolution
7464 Moviemaker Project

The purpose of the project is to meet the requirement for 7464 moviemaker project. The intended audience is the fourth grade class. The theme of the project is the struggle of the colonies for independence from the British. Any social studies lesson could be presented in this manner for effective introduction to a unit or a summary of a unit.

Many challenges were met while completing this project. Transferring images was difficult in that the computer would freeze. The computer would need to be turned off and started again at times. Getting the music to just the right spot took some time.

Many lessons were learned through this experience. First of all, this was the first time I ever touched a moviemaker project. I learned how to access FreePlay Music and select music that I felt would enhance the slides. I have learned how to place the movie on the UTube which I had never used. I have benefited from the experience although it took much time to complete.

http://stu.westga.edu/~bray1/7464_moviemaker_btr.wmv

Emerging Technology That Supports Creativity and Production

Until I read the assigned readings for this class, I thought creativity was something students either possessed or did not. I never realized that creativity has to be taught. On pages 136 and 137, Egbert offers some guidelines for supporting student creativity with technology. She says teachers should:
1. Create an enriched environment. She says rewards, time pressures, overmonitoring, competition, restricted choice, and high-stakes evaluation can smother creativity.
2. Teach techniques. Brainstorming is one of the most effective techniques. Teachers must accept any ideas given. They shouldn’t stop to discuss ideas but should piggyback on ideas in an effort to generate even more ideas.
3. Let students show what they can do, rather than what they cannot. High-stakes testing shows what they can’t do. Teachers should provide projects which allow students to be creative and show their strengths, not their weaknesses.
4. Teach respect for ideas and people. By making students feel accepted and comfortable, teachers make it safe for students to show their creativity. They don’t feel threatened.

I plan to keep these guidelines in mind in order to foster creativity in the students I teach. I want to share them with my colleagues in case they, like me, never realized that creativity is something that must be taught.

Egbert, J. (2009). Supporting learning with technology. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Prentice Hall.

My Digital Storytelling Experience

Whew! I thought this project would be fairly simple and would not take much time. Was I surprised! I created a movie to help teach my kindergarten students about some of the symbols of America. My first mistake was that I didn't know I needed to use copyright free pictures and music. Therefore, I had to redo what I had assembled for this project. I had trouble finding quality pictures to support my topic that were copyright free. I also struggled to find a song that was copyright free. However, once I found those resources, the movie itself was not so difficult to create. I typed what I wanted to say about each of my pictures before recording for my narration. This helped ensure that I would say the right thing and would limit the times I needed to re-record my narration. I liked how simple it was to click and drag my narration and to extend or shorten pictures so that the narration and pictures lined up perfectly. I also thought it was neat how you could cut songs and/or videos to only use what you needed at that particular spot in the movie. The only difficult part after that was saving properly to the UWG server. Thank goodness I had Dr. B. and a friend to help with that! While I loved the end result, I feel my kindergarten students would not be able to create movies on their own. It would be a great tool to use for instruction (as I did with this one) or for the teacher to make a movie about something the students are doing in class.
Check out my movie and let me know what you think:
http://stu.westga.edu/~sbloche1/moviemaker

Digital Storytelling Article

This article recommended the use of digital storytelling as a way to strengthen critical thinking, writing, and media literacy skills for students. The author explains that a digital story “is a digital video clip, told in the author’s own voice, illustrated mostly with still images, with an optional music track added for emotional effect, and/or a voiceover.” Digital stories may be instructional, persuasive, historical, or reflective. The construction of a narrative requires the student to think carefully about the topic and to come up with a way to tell about it that will appeal to the audience. The author says that students should focus on their stories first and the digital medium later. Story mapping and oral storytelling are tools that teachers can teach students about which will help with the digital storytelling process. Story boarding can also help students organize their thoughts when designing a digital story. Digital stories can be created using simple applications such as MovieMaker and require little or no technical background. They do, however, take up a lot of computer memory and file space.
I feel this article is a good resource for me and my team to remind us of why we should bother creating digital stories with our students. Digital stories allow individual students to show their creativity while demonstrating knowledge. They also foster critical thinking. What more could teachers look for in a teaching/assessment tool?


Zukowski, A.. (2008, February). This Digital Storytelling. Momentum, 39(1), 90-91. Retrieved October 18, 2009, from ProQuest Education Journals. (Document ID: 1446190491).

Fostering Higher Order Thinking Through Effective Questioning

Recently, I was doing some reading for this course regarding project-based learning and ways teachers can make discussions more productive. I was astonished at the authors claim that, “about 60% of the questions asked by teachers are lower-order questions, calling for recall or recitation of facts. Another 20% are higher-order questions, asking for evaluation or analysis, and 20% are simply procedural.” Unfortunately, I feel this is probably true. Teachers must make every effort to limit lower-order and procedural questions in order to maximize time for questions which require students to use higher-order thinking skills to respond. One idea the authors recommended for teachers in order to get a better idea of the kinds of questions they typically ask is to videotape themselves teaching a lesson. I believe this would be very eye-opening for many teachers, myself included.
Boss, S., & Krauss, J. (2007). Reinventing Project-Based Learning. Eugene, OR: International Society for Technology in Education.

Emerging Technology That Supports Critical Thinking and Problem Solving

While reading for this course, I found an interesting topic- media literacy. According to Egbert, media literacy "means that students are able not only to comprehend what they read, hear, and see but also to evaluate and make good decisions about what media presents." Students are constantly bombarded with information via sounds, images, and text from media resources, and they need to be able to determine the validity of the information with which they are presented. Too often, students believe information they read or hear is true when this may not be the case. Teachers must teach their students how to analyze information and the source of that information to make informed decisions about whether or not it can be trusted. This involves the use of critical thinking skills. Teachers can obtain free kits for helping with this important concept by visiting http://www.medialit.org/. There are lessons and handouts for students which focus on five key questions:
1. Who created this message?
2. What creative techniques are used to attract my attention?
3. How might different people understand the message differently from me?
4. What values, lifestyles, and points of view are represented in, or omitted from, this message?
5. Why is this message being sent?

The kit also includes "Essential Questions for Teachers" to help them better analyze information .

Egbert, J. (2009). Supporting learning with technology. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Prentice Hall.

New Technology Uses

Thus far in this class we have use Voicethread, ComicLife and now we are using Moviemaker. I am sure that I will se these in my class now because before I had no idea what any of them were used for. I had an idea of what Moviemaker was used for but I didnt know how to use it or if it was feasible to use it in a classroom setting. All of them are able to be used in the classroom because they are all web based and easily accessible. The Comiclife project seems to be the most versitile though. It can be used as a way to make handouts and it can also be used as a way to get the learner to develop a thought deeper. Regardess, I am very excited to use all of them in the classroom.

DS Progress

Just a little update on our group's progress working with Digital Storytelling and Windows Movie Maker. We are in the stage now where we are experimenting with Windows Movie Maker and trying to solve the little obstacles we encounter along the way. Most of the group members have thought about their topics and zeroed in on a specific area of focus. Betty is thinking of completing a movie about the American Revolution. Sheila is thinking about a movie on flags as symbols of America and Charlotte is thinking of guiding her students in a video project journal using Windows Movie Maker. Everybody has gotten off to a great start on their individual projects while Lindsey, the project leader, is focusing on the directions handout for how to use Windows Movie Maker and the Digital Storytelling Power Point that will be used for staff development.

Google Docs

Prior to enrolling in Dr. Baylen's class at UWGA, I had never heard of Google Docs. I have learned from Dr. Baylen that Google Docs is a great tool to use for group collaboration. However, as I was reading in the Boss and Krauss textbook for Dr. B's class, I learned of another great use for Google Docs. It can be used as a shared online workspace for students' writing. By having students type their assignments in Google Docs, teachers can provide immediate feedback. They can make comments right in the students' text. By doing so while students are editing and reviewing their writings, teachers provide students with opportunities to improve their writing prior to submission for a final evaluation. Google Docs is easy to use and can be accessed from any connected computer. Why wouldn't all teachers use it?

Boss, S., & Krauss, J. (2007). Reinventing Project-Based Learning. Eugene, OR: International Society for Technology in Education.

ComicLife

I enjoyed your ComicLife and I know your students did too. What a good activity for your students.

Summary of Group Plan for Comic Life

The title of our workshop is Comic Life: Learning Can Be Fun! The goals of the workshop are to encourage technological skills, implement learning applications in which students utilize Comic Life to support comprehension and skills development in all subject areas, and for teachers to utilize it as an instructional tool. The presenters' objective is to demonstrate its basic applications, in addition to some examples that depict how easily Comic Life can be integrated into the curriculum.
Comic Life is easily implemented with few prerequisites. Teachers must have basic computer skills, a computer and access to Comic Life software. In addition, the presenters will use a projector to present a PowerPoint that provides directions and samples of the different Comic Life projects. The teachers will be provided with hard copies of the directions and computer access to create their own Comic Life strips.
For project members, this workshop has developed valuable skills and ideas for the teachers to implement within their own classrooms.

ComicLife Example "Trail of Tears"-Eighth Grade Social Studies

The purpose of the ComicLife example is to encourage students' curiosity about the "Trail of Tears" using a medium the students associate with entertainment.

The URL is http://trailoftearscomiclife.wikispaces.com/

Comic Life Article

I found this article about Comic Life to be very interesting. Not only did it explain how the software works, it also provided examples of many different ways it has been used in classrooms across the curriculum. For example, one history teacher used Comic Life to depict the rise and fall of Mussolini. The author explains that Comic Life helps motivate students. It is very visual and allows students to be creative in their learning. I was not aware until I read this article that you could use filters to make the images look like you have drawn them. I also didn't realize you could transform your pictures to black and white, make them grainy for effect, or overlay them with colors. Sounds like fun things to try! The author concludes the article by writing that only Mac users can benefit from Comic Life software. While that may have been true when this article was published, it is not true today. Comic Life is available for Windows users. Thank goodness or I would not have been able to explore this neat software!

Kenny, J. (2006, June 2). Stories for the visual generation. The Times Educational Supplement , p. T29.

My Comic Life Experience

For this project, I asked each of my kindergarten students to bring in three to five pictures that they could sequence to tell me a story. Once students sequenced their pictures, I typed their dictations to tell their stories. When the story was finished, I asked if they wanted to add speech or thought bubbles. Then I asked students to give titles for their stories. Here is one example...

I loved doing this with my students! They thought it was cool because they were in their own stories. It was easy to do, too. I wish that my students could create their own Comic Life pages. However, as kindergarteners, my students are not ready to tackle Comic Life on their own. They need assistance putting their words into print. However, I think Comic Life is a great storytelling tool that could be used by students, teachers, and even parents. I also learned by viewing the samples created by my team members that Comic Life can be used in other ways across the curriculum as well.

Emerging Technology That Supports Communication and Collaboration

According to Egbert, technology is a wonderful tool to use for building communication skills. I agree! However, as a kindergarten teacher, I feel somewhat limited. Most of my students are unable to write or type what they want to say. Therefore, I would be the one actually using the technology to record their dictations. I feel that my more advanced students could handle typing sentences/stories, doing email through kidmail.net, or talking to pen pals through http://www.epals.com/, but most of my students would not be able to do it on their own. I still see the value of such technology use, but I feel younger students would not benefit as much as older ones.

Egbert, J. (2009). Supporting learning with technology. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Prentice Hall.

Summary of Group VoiceThread Workshop Plan

The group plan is entitled "Using VoiceThread: Let Your Students Be Heard!". Our goals are to increase technology integration and student engagement. Our objective is to show how to set up VoiceThread and examples for K-12. Our plan is to introduce teachers to VoiceThread to help increase student engagement.

Teachers can use VoiceThread with no prerequisites. They will need computers and microphones along with images that can be scanned or downloaded. Examples will be shown during the workshop. Links to these examples are in another blog portal entry. Please view these for examples of science, math, and language arts examples. A survey URL is included that the teachers will respond to. Please let us know if you have any questions or thoughts about our plan.

As the group leader, I would like to say how much I have benefitted from the group plan and will be sharing with my fellow teachers what I have learned.

Article About Integrating Technology

King-Sears, M.E., & Evmenova, A.S. (2007). Premises, principles, and processes for integrating TECHnology into instruction. Teaching Exceptional Children, 40(1), 6-14. Retrieved August 20, 2009, from ProQuest Education Journals. (Document ID: 1346029571).

In this article, the authors provide information about why and how technology should be integrated into instruction. Teachers should integrate technology in instruction because it can help prepare students for careers in a technological world, especially students with disabilities. By utilizing technology, teachers can help meet the diverse needs of their students with and without disabilities. The integration of technology also enhances the learning process when teachers and students access technology daily in meaningful tasks rather than by teaching technology as a separate skill. In order to utilize technology effectively, teachers must keep abreast of the newest technology available. It changes so quickly!The authors provide four principles teachers should follow to effectively integrate technology. They should choose technology that aligns with the curriculum to ensure that it promotes students’ learning and is not just busy work. Teachers should match students’ instructional needs with the technology. They should make sure the content is neither too difficult nor too easy for the students. Teachers should choose technology that helps students with special needs blend in with their peers whenever possible. For example, teachers may select headphones that are similar to those on an IPod rather than bulky ones. One final recommendation was that teachers should choose the most cost effective alternative when selecting technology. They should ask if the technology is really necessary and if there are other ways to get the job done.The authors concede that making decisions as to which technology to use can be overwhelming. They offer the acronym TECH to help teachers through the process of making choices where technology is concerned. Teachers should first target students’ needs and their learning outcomes. They should then examine the technology choices available and decide what to use. Next, teachers should create opportunities to integrate the technology with other instructional activities. Finally, teachers should handle the implementation of the technology and monitor its impact on students’ learning.

Tech Savvy Teachers' VoiceThread Samples

Interested in using VoiceThread but not sure what you could do with it? Check out these great examples to see how VoiceThread can be used in all grades and across all areas of the curriculum. The possibilities are endless!
Sheila's Sample for kindergarten Language Arts: The Three Bears
Betty's Sample for 5th grade Science:Destructive Forces
Lindsey's Sample for 5th grade Math: The Number Game
Brian's Sample for Science: The Solar System
Charlotte's Sample for 9th grade English: Collaborative Peer Editing

VoiceThread projects

Our group has been diligently working on their projects. We have a kindergarten VoiceThread which utilizes the "retelling of a story". Then we have two fifth grade VoiceThreads. One is in math where students gives steps in a process. The other is in science and it activates prior knowledge. Two upper grades projects are completed. One is in English where students use collaborative peer editing and the other is used as an informal assessment tool that checks what concepts the students learned during a week's discussion.

The Three Bears VoiceThread

I teach kindergarten. I used this VoiceThread as documentation of student progress toward meeting the GKIDS language arts standard of retelling a familiar story with a beginning, middle, and end. Students told the story The Three Bears in their own words.

The Three Bears

VoiceThread Reflection

I found using VoiceThread to be very simple. The site (www.voicethread.com) walked me through the process of creating the presentation. It is easy to do, even for a beginner like myself. VoiceThread can be used by teachers and students in all grades and in all areas of the curriculum. The possibilities are endless! The next time I create a VoiceThread presentation I will use an external microphone. My sound quality was not what I wanted it to be. I had a lot of background noise that I believe could have been avoided had I used a different microphone.

VoiceThread Article

Bomar, S. (2009, March). A PRE-READING VOICETHREAD: Death Comes for the Archbishop. Knowledge Quest, 37(4), 26-27. Retrieved September 12, 2009, from Professional Development Collection database.

This article describes a pre-reading strategy developed by a highschool honors English teacher and the school library media specialist (SLMS). In an effort to boost student interest in the novel Death Comes for the Archbishop, the teacher and the SLMS had their students research various topics related to the novel and present their findings in VoiceThread presentations. The students formed two- or three- person groups and chose topics which had been specifically selected by the teacher and SLMS. The topics ranged from the book's author to the historical setting of New Mexico. It was hoped that the students' research would make reading the novel more interesting and that the students would enjoy learning a new way to show their information (VoiceThread).
Although I would not be able to do this same project with my kindergarten students, I found this article very interesting. I liked that the teacher collaborated with the SLMS and dared to use new technology with her students. By having students research related topics prior to reading the novel, the teacher linked prior knowledge and provided schema for the students to build upon while they read the book. The teacher mentioned that the students struggled to use the Web 2.0 tools for academic use even though they were quite comfortable using them for recreational use. It was a learning experience in that aspect as well.

Emerging Technology That Supports Content Learning

I enjoyed reading chapter two in Supporting Learning with Technology by Joy Egbert. She made me think of something I had not considered before. In one section, she discusses how the physical layout of classroom computers can influence whether students use them effectively or not. She recommends dispersing computers around the room in different learning areas so that students use them in various content areas. She also recommends that they be situated in a way that allows students to easily collaborate with the teacher and with each other. She does not advocate lining computers in rows and/or separating them with dividers. Who knew we were doing it all wrong at my school? I can't wait to share this information with my principal, tech lab teacher, and other colleagues.

Egbert, J. (2009). Supporting learning with technology. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Prentice Hall.

Voicethread

Tech Savvy Teachers are developing our voicethread projects. We have a science VT that assesses prior knowledge, a reading VT that requires student to tell a story in their own words, and a math VT on fifth grade level. We are beginning our thoughts on the workshop plan and the team members are working well together. I appreciate all the comments and thoughts given in the googledocs page.

What Is Technology Integration?

Simply stated, technology integration in education is the use of technology to teach others. This means more than simply training students to use a computer or other type of technology. It is teaching students how to utilize the technology to enhance learning across the curriculum. By using a variety of available technology, teachers can teach to all modalities in an effort to reach all students.
For technology integration to effectively occur, three things are required. First, and most importantly, technology integration requires teachers who are willing to learn about new technology available and to incorporate that technology in lessons they plan for their students. Once the teachers are on board, the technology must be made available to them. Finally, teachers need proper training on how to use the technology. They must become comfortable with it themselves before they feel confident enough to try it with their students.