The Internet Encourages Creativity in Students

I have been amazed at the amount of work I have seen produced from students in grades k-12 when they are taught and allowed access to the internet and all of it's wonderful tools. Many of us have read about the amazing accomplishments of the flat classroom project. On a smaller scale, I recently inquired about a book report a student was doing and even I being an avid technology user, expected to see a word document ready for editing. Instead I was shown a website. A website, I was thrilled. You can check out the unedited portion here. Graphics used well, even a clip about the book and decent content. When I prompted the student as to why they chose to create a website for their book report, the student replied, "the teacher said to be creative, the internet allows me to be very creative, besides building web pages is fun". In checking the website builder weebly , I find that it is a free web building tool with blogging ability and a great text editor. I think I see another post coming....

I just had to share, whether we realize it or not, are students are indeed technology focused and when given choice and an open internet, the possibilities are endless.

The Internet = Creativity

Creativity = The Internet

My thoughts on One Laptop Per Child (OLPC)

How can you possible find any flaws with a company and a piece of hardware that promises to bring technology to the poorest children in the world. Yes, I am speaking of the OLPC program and the XO laptops created by MIT. This low cost computer is bringing technology to poor and third world countries. They are not letting the barriers of poverty or language stop today’s students from learning with the tools of the 21^st century. What a truly innovative program. Did I mention that the cost is between $188 to $100 dollars. Now this is something school districts can afford.

The OLPC program has partnered with Microsoft to enhance it’s newest feature, the dual booting XO. Mind blowing. Now students, or users will have a choice between their preferred OS. (Linux, here I come!) To read the May 16^th article, click here.

This is a wonderful initiative who’s benefits can be seen almost immediately. Poor or third world countries have a shortage of teachers, with networked computers, students can learn online, wouldn’t it be great if we had volunteer teachers available to teach these online courses. Many of these countries are educating students of different ages and grades in the same classroom. I think the XO will help to solve the major gap that must be an issue for any educator dealing with such a diverse group of students. The introduction of the laptop will introduce self paced learning. Students will be able to learn grade appropriate material at their own pace and most likely, in their own language. We also need to keep in mind that children in these countries are often brought into the school environment at different points in their life. They do not necessarily start at the same age or level of ability. Having technology available not only in the school but in the home may help these students to catch up to their counterparts if not feel more successful in what they do accomplish. The nation of Nepal was one of first governments to test pilot this program. This is the first ever pilot distribution of the laptop in Nepal, and it is codenamed “Sunrise”. Visit OLPC Nepal blog to learn more about the program, the importance to it’s users and view great pictures of the ceremony and the student with their new laptops.

Thank you MIT for making such a worthwhile product for such a worthy cause. Our children.

Using Podcasts for Assessment

I personally think a podcast is a great way to assess a student’s knowledge. Talk about alternative assessment which is more meaningful and relevant. Teacher and peer reviews can be added to the assessment process via a podcast interview on a project. The question answer format and the prompting that is required to produce the podcast would allow teachers to get a true sense of the students understanding of the content. Podcasts would also reduce paper tests and quizzes which may save a tree of two. I believe podcasts can enhance the assessment process. We are now assessing content as well as performance. How well can the students speak into the microphone and discuss their projects clearly? This is a very important skill we all need to learn and the earlier the better. I think podcasting provides a great medium for authentic assessment. This is definitely an assessment tool I can and will use in my classroom when I get one. By asking the students questions about their projects I can not only see what they know but hopefully learn something myself. As an added benefit, a podcast is much harder to misplace than a paper test and can be made available for us to listen to for grading at our convenience. This is the true power of assessment in a networked environment. A teacher has the task of staying diligent about checking online content. I believe it makes assessment easier, as we can see when something was submitted, and assess it under the conditions that we stipulate for that content. That is where a good rubric would come in very handy. Nothing fancy, but a check list of what you might want to see in a multimedia presentation or internet project. Rubrics can be created quickly and easily with such online free tools such as “rubistar".

It was great to listen to how involved the students were in their projects when listening to the podcast of Jeff Utecht’s 5^th grade class. When teachers and parents are asked about what they think about their students work, they have stated that they are amazed at how well the children are able to present their information. The student’s internet and researching skills were obviously very important as the students needed to learn how to sift through a lot of information quickly and be able to pull out pertinent data. The students showed and developed higher level skills and thinking that can be applied to the real world. The beauty of today’s society is that I think that every technology teacher that has stayed abreast of up and coming technologies has already begun to teach these skill sets, that is scanning content, presentation skills and higher level thinking. I would like to believe that all teachers across all curriculums are staying aware of changes in technology which in turn affects the skills we need to teach our children. I can dream can’t I? Check out this great post I found from Kelly BlackWell on “Using podcasts to enhance teaching and learning in the classroom”.

Is Computer Technology a Priority Anymore?

With one semester left towards my masters in computer technology education, I am starting to wonder if I made the right choice. I know I did for me. I love technology and I love to teach. I used to be an Unix engineer so it all made sense. Other passions include science, but just didn't make sense as I am so comfortable and interested in technology. Well, as I research technology in school districts, I start to wonder if they make it a priority? Is technology the first thing to go when funds drop or things need to be shakin up? It appears it just might be that way. I am conversing with a friend in Virginia who just had 3 computer technology teachers layed off due to budget cuts. As for the state I live in, New Hampshire, It appears there dedication to technology is deep, that is if you read the NH Office of Education Technology's website. Yet, as I search for a position as a Computer Technology Educator, there are exactly two jobs within an hour of me. If you do a search for science or english, you get 15 to 20 jobs easily. While I realize that these content area's are extremely important, in this day and age, is technology not equally important? When is computer technology going to become and integral part of our school systems and curriculum? How much longer do we have to wait for school districts to realize that technology is our children's future, and they are doing them a great injustice by not integrating it into their curriculum in a much larger way?
I wonder...

Podcasts

So what are they, and what do they do? What is there purpose? Podcasts allow us to communicate via a whole new medium over the internet, our voice. Not just our written words but our actually voice with its inflections, monotones and levels of intensity or excitement. According to Wikipedia, the definition of a podcast is:

" A podcast is audio or visual content that is automatically delivered over a network via free subscription.”

I really am a visual person, so I have to admit that before researching, reading and creating my own podcast, I really didn’t see the point. I now see the point.

Podcasts open endless possibilities. Think about a student in a computer lab who speaks into a microphone to go over the steps used to create a digital video. Or a teacher who can broadcast a lecture or important audio clip found online. There are many possibilities of podcasts that I am just beginning to see. I am sure it can be a very powerful tool in education. Students can use multimedia to share learning experiences. It provides them with a world-wide audience that makes learning meaningful.

Many news stations such as NBC and CNN use podcasts for news, weather and sports, the same thing you could once see, you can now hear. I personally love having my hands free to type; it gives me more time to blog and wiki J

As can be seen by this quote from Educational Podcasting:

“Podcasting can be used for:

1. Self-Guided Walking Tours - Informational content.
2. Music - Band promotional clips and interviews.
3. Talk Shows - Industry or organizational news, investor news, sportscasts, news coverage and commentaries.

4. Training - Instructional informational materials.

5. Story - Story telling for children or the visually-impaired.

This is a very short list of the many uses of podcasts. I believe that as time moves on, as usual with all technologies, the value of podcasts will be seen and explored in new directions.

Some of articles and podcasts you may find of interest:

What is Podcasting - A quick and easy definition of podcasts with examples.

Uncommon Uses: Podcasting – A great blog about podcasting.

More use podcasts, but very few do so every day – A very interesting article.

Podcasts in Education: - various podcasts regarding educational topics

The Teacher’s Podcast – pretty much the same as above

Instructional Technology Podcasts – A large directory of technology podcasts

My first Podcast – On digital Identities

Enjoy J