Wrapping up the Course

I think that the TPTE 486 course is necessary for all future educators. We live in a society where technology is everywhere, especially in the classroom. Students are learning how to use computers in elementary school and are introduced to new technologies all the time. Teachers should know how to implement technology in the classroom in a way that promotes students learning and that is up to date. Students need technology skills in order to be successful in our world today so it is important that teachers have technology skills as well.
I was introduced to several technology tools and resources that I had never heard of this semester. Although I am not an expert on all of them, I feel that I have enough knowledge to be able to use the different technologies that we learned about effectively in the classroom. I plan to incorporate wikis, inquiry based activities, Google presentations, flip charts, blogs, digital diagrams, digital stories, and websites into instruction whenever possible.
Overall, this course was a great experience and I learned a great deal of valuable information.

Website

I really enjoyed working on my classroom website over the course of the semester. Google Sites made creating the website pretty easy and I discovered a lot about what I could do with this tool. Although we had a lot of structure and guidance on what to include on the site, we also had the opportunity to add our own creativity. Additionally, I really enjoyed looking at some of my peers' websites for inspiration and ideas.
I believe that a website will be extremely useful in my future classroom. It is something that parents and students can easily access for information regarding many different aspects of the classroom. The website is a good resource for parents that can help keep them involved in their child's education. The interactive activities and games on the site are good for students to use as extra practice. Lastly, the website is great for teachers to stay organized and build a collection of resources that other teachers can use.
When we first began to work on our websites, I had no clue where to start. Luckily, we were equipped with the knowledge needed during our class to create a great website that can be used in the classroom.

Digital Story

Prior to this assignment, I have had minimal experience working with iMovie. However, I found the program pretty straightforward and easy enough to use. The most difficult part of this assignment was locating the images for the video. Eventually, I figured out how to save the pictures I found from Flickr to the desktop but it did take a significant amount of time. I also had trouble deciding how much information to include in the captions of every image. I wrote a lot more on my storyboard for this project than I actually included in the digital story because I realized that the captions would be too long. I found the music for my digital story on Incompetech.com. I felt that the jazz music fit well with the theme of the Harlem Renaissance. Trimming the music to fit the video was also a challenge but I was able to overcome that as well.
Overall, I think that iMovie is a great tool for use inside and outside of the classroom. With more practice, I hope to learn more about what I can do with iMovie in order to create more complex videos for my future classroom.

Digital Diagrams

This past week, I was introduced to the Inspiration 9 software and how it can be used to create a digital diagram. I think that this is a great resources for teachers and the program allows for a lot of creativity. The program is easy to use and very versatile. However, there is one thing I did not like about creating the digital diagram: the page set up. It is difficult to tell if your diagram is within the page lines that fit the print screen. Also, the program seems to scroll automatically when adding symbols and other things to a diagram. I found myself checking frequently during the process of creating my diagram to make sure that everything fit onto one page. Other than this issue, I really enjoyed learning about and using Inspiration 9 and will probably use it again in the future.

Interactive White Board

I believe that I learned a lot while working on my flipchart project for the Interactive White Board (IWB). There is a lot that teachers can do with the ActivInspire software and it was fun to experiment with it and learn more about the different methods of interactivity. Something that went well during this project was my understanding of how to use the tools and resource packs available to the class for the assignment. I think that I picked up how to use them fairly quickly and I'm confident in my ability to use ActivInspire in the future. Something that could be improved for me would be the selection of content for the flipchart. I chose reading because I really enjoy the subject, however it does not lend itself easily to this type of tool in the classroom. I believe that I would have been able to do more with this assignment if I had chosen math or science content for my flipchart. Overall, it was a great experience and I'm glad that we had the opportunity to learn about the IWB in TPTE486!

Activ Inspire

This week in TPTE 486, we were introduced to the Promethean Interactive White Board (IWB) and ActivInspire. I think that this technology is great for the classroom. There are so many things that you can do with an IWB to teach lessons and for activities. I think that using this technology in the classroom will help get students involved and keep them engaged. As a future teacher, I am glad that we are going over some uses for the IWB because I had no clue how to use one prior to this class. I know that many schools have them in their classrooms so it is imperative that I am familiar with the technology and software. I look forward to working on my first flipchart for this class using ActivInspire and learning more about the Promethean Board.

Digital Images

I really learned a lot while working on digital images for the last few class sessions in TPTE 486. I had never used Picasa or Goggle presentation so it was nice to get some experience working with these applications. Teachers can use both of these applications for a number of activities across different content areas. I think that these web tools are great for integrating technology into the classroom.
I also did not have much knowledge about the copyright regulations for the web and the fair use policy. I think that this information is especially important for teachers because there is so much information out there that we could pull into our classrooms, but we still have to make sure that we are not violating copyright laws or committing copyright infringement. In addition, the web collections that we viewed in class are great resources that I can refer to to obtain digital images and a better alternative to just simply searching for images on Google.
Overall, I think that this section of the course is very relevant to my future teaching career. I definitely plan on using digital images to teach my students and now I know some different ways to incorporate them into my everyday lessons.

Here is the link to my classroom website where you can find the Picasa slideshow and Google presentation that I created: Ms. Ige's Tech Projects.

Resource Wiki

Compiling a resource Wiki for this course was a really great idea! I am really thankful for this particular project because I have been introduced to several helpful websites that I can use in my future classroom.
At first, it was challenging to find good websites, but then I referenced what we learned about website evaluation to help me find the additional resources that I needed to complete the assignment. It is important for teachers to have access to adequate resources so that they can supplement the material in their curriculum in a way that enhances a student's learning. Resources should be relevant and appropriate to the subject and grade level. I also really enjoyed looking at the sites that my peers in my content area found. I now have a pretty good selection of resources for all subjects and definitely plan on referring to our Resource Wiki in the future!

Wiki Evaluation

The  Wiki that I looked at was Mrs. Ibrahim's 2nd grade classroom. This Wiki is a really good example of how elementary school teachers can use Wikis in their classrooms. On the front page, there are links to each individual students' own personal page that they can use to upload their work. I think this is a great way to showcase student progress. Mrs. Ibrahim also included several other page links in the sidebar, such as health and P.E., reading, writing, thinking maps, and word study. Students also are allowed to contribute to these pages and use them as resources. I could definitely take some ideas from this Wiki and make it my own for my future classroom. Overall, I really like this Wiki. The only downside is that it is a few years outdated, however the content and structure are still v ery well done.

Inquiry Based Activity

 

I found that making an inquiry based activity for students was a little more difficult than I expected. I really had to search for an internet website that would be easy for students to navigate and that provide useful information. The subject that I did my Inquiry Based Activity on was 2nd Grade Reading. The standards that I focused on were exploring folktales and fables and identifying what they are. I created a worksheet with multiple choice and one short answer question for the students to answer. After I located a good website, I found that creating the questions wasn't hard at all. I plan on using inquiry based activities with my students in the future because they are hands on and a good way for students to work independently and also expand on and apply what they have learned.

Why WebQuest?

Before taking this course, I had never heard of a WebQuest. I think that they are a really awesome tool to use in the classroom. WebQuests are especially helpful when working on group activities. They are also a good way to get students to practice their computer skills. Out of all of the WebQuests that we viewed in class, my group decided that the Unraveling the Underground Railroad was the best one. My role was to be the Affiliator; I determined whether the WebQuest truly encouraged students to work together. The Underground Railroad WebQuest did just that! The student roles were explicitly stated and everyone had specific tasks to do in order to complete the activity. There were also several discussion questions provided to get students to communicate with each other. I believe that WebQuests, if done correctly, can definitely enhance a students learning and proficiency in certain content areas. I could use this tool in the classroom in various subjects. For example to expand on a students knowledge of a story for Reading, to explore historic events in Social Studies, and to conduct experiments in Science. I also am glad that we have a resource to look at WebQuests that other educators have created here. This will be very helpful in the future when I start teaching!

Website Evaluation - Arcademic Skill Builders

Arcademicskillbuilders.com was the first website that I have evaluated. Prior to this assignment, I never really thought about some of the qualifications that a good website should have, such as a way to contact the author and the site interface. The website evaluation forced me to take a closer look at the site in order to determine it's reliability and usefulness. This activity help me learn how to find certain information on a website, such as the copyright date. Through searching the site, I discovered where various information is located and learned a lot about the creation and purpose of the site. It also helped me know what I need to look for in order to determine if a site is reliable, current, accessible, and useful. I will definitely take what I learned during this activity and reference it in the future. As a teacher, I know that I will use the internet in my classroom to teach and to supplement the curriculum. It is important that the websites I use as resources for myself and my students are reliable and contain accurate information. With the knowledge I gained from this activity, I can ensure that I provide my students with valuable website experiences from trustworthy sites.

The Wonderful World of Wikis!

I think that Wikis are a great tool to use in the classroom. Wikis can be edited by multiple people so they would make it easy for students to collaborate on projects and assignments. For elementary education, I believe that Wikis will be most beneficial in 4th, 5th, and 6th grade because these students will have more experience using the internet.

One way that students can use Wikis in the classroom is literature circles. Students can be divided into groups of about 4 or 5 and each group chooses a book that they want to read. Everyone in the group would have a certain role/task to contribute. For example, one student could summarize the assigned reading, another student could connect the reading to other concepts that they have been learning, and another student could define important vocabulary words. Each student would add their portion of the assignment to the Wiki. Also, having a class Wiki would allow students to view the pages of other literature circles to learn about the books that they are reading. I think that this is a great way to get students excited about reading and to introduce them to several kinds of books.

Welcome to my blog!

My name is Elizabeth Ige and I am a senior at the University of Tennessee. I am majoring in Psychology and minoring in Elementary Education. My expectations for TPTE 486 are that I will learn how to use technology in the classroom, gain more experience working with computer programs and the internet, and discover new and creative ways that technology can help me teach in the future. I am really excited about the projects I will be completing in the course this semester. I also can't wait to see what great ideas my classmates have that I can learn from as well. I think that the tools I learn to use and the skills I develop in this class will be extremely beneficial in my career as a teacher.