Half way through E-learning!

Wow! We are half way through our course and I have learnt so much! There has been so many new technologies that I have learnt about because I have never heard of them! I usually only stick to the technologies that are familar to most of us because it's easy to find someone who already knows about it or know how to use it! There were a few other things that I needed to refresh my mind on using particular softwares that we use daily because it had been so long since I last used it!

At the beginning of the course, when I learnt that assessment two is about technology in the classroom and doing heaps of reflections in our blogs and learning that we need to write 1600 words on technology in the classroom, that didn't include the blogs! I thought, how am I going to write 1600 words! But as the week went by and I learnt a little more about different technologies, I realised that I would be okay because there would be plenty of information available for me to look back particularly in my blogs and know that I would be okay with writing 1600 words on technologies in the classroom! After all, I have recently started a new job at a primary school as a teacher aide and I am learning a lot with how teachers are using technology in the classroom!

Good luck with assessment 2!

Legal and safe ethical guidelines

It's important that students have legal and safe guidelines when using ICT, especially when using something off the internet. Students don't understand the meaning of the guidelines unless teachers are able to teach them the legal and safe guidelines before allowing them to use the internet. It's important to ensure teachers are able to be role models of teaching when using technology, that teachers follow the guidelines like students would need to.

There are a lot of risks for students using the internet and teachers need to ensure we cover those areas so students understand the meaning of these guidelines being put into place and keeping our students safe.

There are two main areas where students should have guidelines;

• Personal Risk:inappropriate use of technology, cyber bulling, release of private information.
• Legal and ethical:breaches of copyright, log on and off computer after use.

Teachers need to ensure that we are checking that students are using technology appropriately and aren't breaching the guidelines of using the internet. Teachers also need to ensure they are following the guidelines as well when using different materials when teaching.

Reference:
* Education Queensland. (2011) Student ICT expectations. Smart classrooms. Department of Education and Training. Retrieved from http://education.qld.gov.au/smartclassrooms/strategy/dp/studentict.html
* Cybersmart (2009) Australian Communications and Media Authority. Commonwealth of Australia. Retrieved

from http://www.cybersmart.gov.au/

Google Earth

Google Earth is a great resource that can be used in many subjects where students can expand their skills through literacy and numeracy. Teachers are able to teach the students about the world by exploring different countries and zooming in and seeing what things they can see while looking through the google earth.

Students and teachers can create a map using the google earth by placing different objects on the map and linking it to places in the area that they are working on. Google maps are more in depth where they can see the street names and the exact buildings in the street where google earth is very frustrating where students and teachers need to do a lot of work with zooming in to see the town and the features in the town itself.

Both google earth and maps can be uploaded onto other websites to continue teaching on a particular page such as blogs or wikis. Students are able to do this as well with their assessments or homework.

You Tube-Using Google Earth in Classroom

Reference:
* Ollie Bray, "Ten ideas for using google map and google earth in the classroom", 2007. Retrieved from http://olliebray.typepad.com/olliebraycom/2007/11/ten-ideas-for-u.html

Dipity Timeline

Dipity would be a great tool where students and teachers can create a timeline for a particular subject. Timelines are a great way of sharing information about history and showing it through technology in the classroom is a great way where students would be interested and wanting to know how to develop timelines.

Students can learn how to develop timelines with the information they have for assessments or project charts. Dipity is straightforward and has limited training on how to use the program. The dipity tool is clear to see and learn from for both students and teachers. Dipity has the options of creating a different background on the timeline and adding additional information and images to the timeline that would make the timeline more interesting to learn.

Dipity can be used in many subjects that has lots of information where you can create a timeline! It can changed or updated as you go along with creating the timeline.

Reference:
* Dipity, 2011. Retrieved from http://dipity.com
* iLearn Technology, "Dipity" 2008. Retrieved from http://ilearntechnology.com/?p=424
* T & L with Technology, "Dipity' 2010. Retrieved from http://sites.google.com/site/learnteachtech/technology-of-the-week/dipity
 

Glogster

My Glogster Link http://nayb22.edu.glogster.com/glog-6709-7422/

I enjoyed creating my page on glogster as there were so many to look at to create a page that would be interesting to use in a classroom. It was time consuming but I think once you know what you want and where to find it, using glogster will be easy!

I think glogster will take over powerpoint and prezi completely because it is very creative! It's a place where you can put a lot of information and add images, videos, audio to the page where students can learn! Glogster is almost having an online class where every student (who has an account) can participate in the website and learn like they would in a proper classroom! It's a great tool for students, once again, can create a poster of something they are learning. Glogster is a great place where students and teachers can possibly add all the technology tools onto this page!

Reference:

* Glogster, 2011. Retrieved from http://edu.glogster.com



* Connecxions, "Using glogster in the classroom", 2009 Retrieved from http://cnx.org/content/m32202/latest/
* iLearn, "Glogster", 2010. Retrieved from http://ilearntechnology.com/?p=601

Prezi

I found it not useful so I am not sure how it could be useful in the classroom. I thought I give it a go, trying out all the different tools on prezi to create a presentation on 'Bart Simpson". Not a great choice but is related to school as it includes the blackboard which technology is slowly taking over the blackboard and chalk. I think prezi is similar to powerpoint but only using a page to add a lesson on there. I notice you can zoom in and out on the page to make things smaller or larger, a great thing to use in the classroom to see who is following through with the presentation.

Prezi would be a great technology tool for the classroom where both teachers and students can create a poster or chart of some sort that can help students learn about a particular subject. Prezi is a tool that is created online and all students who has an account on prezi can view it. Prezi is creative in many ways where you can change the colour of the background and add different pictures onto the page.  Prezi is a great tool that can be used for anything that develop information on a particular subject, you can create anything on prezi!

Reference:
* E-blah blah, "Prezi killed powerpoint! How to integrate prezi in the classroom", 2010 Retrieved from http://e-blahblah.com/index.php/2010/01/prezi-killed-powerpoint-how-to-integrate-prezi-in-the-classroom/
* Prezi 2011 Retrieved from http://prezi.com

Powerpoint

I love using powerpoint as it's easy and a great way to be creative by changing the design, text, adding images, audio, movies! Above is my presentation I created on on powerpoint. I focus on what children love, disney characters! But what they may not know is how it has changed over the years so the presentation is based on comparing the differences and similaries of disney characters from 19th century to 21st century.

I think using powerpoint is a great way for students to learn. Powerpoints can create different ways for children to learn particularly if every student has a different learning style to learn! If teachers use the powerpoint correctly then students are willing to learn! It's a great way to create your class lesson on the powerpoint by adding as much information as you can, whether it's through text, images, audio or videos. Students are willing to read and listen if the powerpoint presentation is set out correctly with lots of colours, different technology tools (images, audio).

Blackboards are boring which teachers and students do find it boring because no one learns. Using the powerpoint where it's displayed on a whiteboard using the projector, teachers will have students full attention throughout the whole class. There is more interaction with the students as to help them learn and expand on information that has been discussed among the group. Powerpoints is a great way for students to create their oral presentation for an assessment or another way to start up a worksheet (for teachers to create and students to complete) where it is more interesting and inviting for students to want to complete the task.

The only downside of using powerpoints especially in the classroom, is that it's time consuming, the teacher will be clicking away! Students may miss out on the information if they are slow readers or writers.Again, textbooks are thrown out because the teacher has analysed the book with powerpoint presentation. Limited literacy skills are improved as powerpoint is formed in dot points rather then sentences so students and teachers will be talking in short sentences rather then whole sentence.

I think if powerpoint presentations is used appropriately and students has the full information of the particular subject and students are still encouraged to do extra work (using textbooks) I believe it would be a great advantage to use powerpoint in the classroom.

Reference:
* Teachnology, "Powerpoint in the classroom", 2011. Retrieved from http://www.teach-nology.com/tutorials/powerpoint/
* A Journal of Life Science Education, "Powerpoint in the classroom", 2004. Retrieved from http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC520839/