Chapter 11- Digital Blog Post #J

Chapter 4- Digital Blog Post #I

Photo credit by BobboSphere on Flickr

Test assessments are a big controversy along the states. Students are tested to evaluate their academic performance and are ranked according to how low or high they scored. I totally disagree with state tests. Many students get stuck in 3rd grade just because they can't pass the FCAT? These children are little and their future depends on that test. How horrible! According to a new study on PBS article, says that students with good grades and modest testing did better in college than students with higher testing and lower high school grades. That's what I am talking about! GPA should be the most valuable score.


Technology makes our lives easier! In particular at work. To be a teacher now on these days is less stressful and way more fun. Many teacher use electronic grading software as a virtual recordkeeping system (Maloy, pg 71).  This program automatically calculates the overall grade without having to do some math. Isn't great? So, students can have immediate access to their grades, and allow them to see their progress during the semester.


Using technology in lesson planning is the most effective way to get the students' attention. The internet provides vast electronic resources for supporting lesson development using students learning objectives and understanding by design approaches (Maloy, pg 65). Also, using videos or pictures are a big attention gather for students. I love to see pictures as a examples. I learn more visually than hearing.

In conclusion, chapter 4 discusses the student learning objective, the use of technology to make lesson plans, how teachers evaluate their students, etc. Designing lesson plans with technology makes it better.




Resources:
 De La Garza, D. (2015, March 27). Untitled Banner. Retrieved March 27, 2015, from https://magic.piktochart.com/output/5254946-untitled-banner

Maloy, R., O'Loughlin, R., Edwards, S., & Woolf, B. (2013). Transforming Learning with New Technologies. 2nd Edition. Boston, MA: Pearson Education Inc.

(n.d.). Retrieved March 27, 2015, from http://www.brighthubeducation.com/student-assessment-tools/16137-the-pros-and-cons-of-standardized-testing/

Sheffer, S. (2014, February 18). Do ACT and SAT scores really matter? New study says they shouldn’t. Retrieved January 28, 2015, from http://www.pbs.org/newshour/rundown/nail-biting-standardized-testing-may-miss-mark-college-students/

Chapter 9- Digital Blog Post #H

For example, digital cameras, digital projector, educational software with multimedia applications like PowerPoint, etc. Ideally, by presenting educational material in words, pictures, sound, and animation, teachers can take "advantage of the full capacity of humans for processing information" (Maloy, pg 244). 

Photo credit by hackNY on Flickr

Students enjoy using presentation software as a part of school assignments. Even though sometimes it can be embarrassing when there is a technology error! I remember when I took public speaking course, I was terrified. But, thanks to PowerPoint or Prezi my life couldn't be easier. Presentations provide visual dimension, key points, and also text can be combined with images. I felt much more comfortable with these awesome multimedia technologies. The Speak Up 2006 national survey of more than 23,000 K-12 students found that creating presentations and movies on the computer was a favorite school work activity (Maloy, page 246). However, creating interactive PowerPoint presentations it's not easy! It involves the following strategies: 

• use the slides as attention-getters
• develop your own PowerPoint learning
• display questions or comments
• promote visual analysis 
• use visual text
• make visual presentations

Another multimedia tool that is popular and effective teaching tool is video. Why use video in the Classroom? Teachers who use instructional video report that their students retain more information, understand concepts more rapidly and are more enthusiastic about what they are learning. With video as one component in a thoughtful lesson plan, students often make new connections between curriculum topics, and discover links between these topics and the world outside the classroom ("Resources").

Resources:

De La Garza, D. (2015, March 11). Voki For Web. Retrieved March 11, 2015, from http://www.voki.com/mywebsite.php

Maloy, Robert, Verock-O’Loughlin,Ruth-Ellen, Edwards, Sharon A., and Woolf, Beverly Park (2013). Transforming Learning with New Technologies. 2nd Edition. Boston, MA: Pearson Education, Inc.
 
Park, D. (2009, October 18). 10 reasons to use multi-media in classroom. Retrieved March 11, 2015, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WRueMDK2-e8  

Resources. (n.d.). Retrieved March 11, 2015, from http://www.thirteen.org/edonline/ntti/resources/video1.html