IT 645 Final Reflection

I really wasn’t prepared for the broad scope of IT 645: Computer’s in Education. The title really does describe the course. We covered many aspects of computer, and technology use in the classroom: from the standards that make the web run smoothly to the specific web-sites teachers can use to accomplish their teaching goals. In the current times we live in it is essential for teachers to be well versed in technology. If the teachers are not prepared then they cannot effectively prepare their students for the world. Today’s students are bombarded by information from many sources, and we must teach them how to effectively use this information, as well as where to find it effectively.

The blog is an effective and interesting way to complete class requirements. The open nature of the blog is important in that it allows everyone in the class and elsewhere to share knowledge. Anything we put there is instantly available for anyone to see. In this way we are contributing to the body of human knowledge, which I think is pretty awesome! The comments are also a wonderful way for the members of the class to be able to interact with one another. I would often point out things in my group members blog postings that I thought they might have missed, or things that I thought were specifically interesting. My group members also did this for me. It is hard for one person to see all the different aspects of a topic that might come into play. The groups also allowed us to split up the coursework so we could focus on one aspect each week. A blog project is definitely something I will want to incorporate into any course I teach, especially an on-line course. Since we do not see each other in class, it is important to bring this interactivity to the course.

A listserv is something I will use in the future as well. It is another easy way to share information with a group, but it is not quite as open as a blog since only members of the listserv can see what is posted. It is an excellent way to answer questions originating from one student so that all students may benefit from the answer. In this class we did not use threaded discussions, besides the first discussion where we posted links to our blogs. In this class it was not really necessary since we had the blog, but it might be useful if we had wanted a more private location for our discussions to reside.

The podcast clips provided by Dr. Wang were helpful, but I don’t feel like I learned more from them than i did with the Powerpoint, video clips, and the book. It is good that an audio version of some of this information was provided, since one can listen to it while doing something else perhaps. I do think that I would enjoy producing a few podcasts for certain types of information, like classnotes, but it would probably accompany a visual aid such as a powerpoint, or video. Since this is the case I think a video clip might be a better choice.

The video clips provided by Dr. Wang were very helpful in giving detailed information on how to complete tasks. Sometimes I would feel lost and without direction when attempting to complete a particular assignment. Then I would remember to go and check out the video clips. These usually provided excellent step-by-step instructions on how to go about completing the assignment, and what would be expected from us. I think that videos would be great to use in a class. They can be rehearsed and edited until they are just like you want them. You can also save them and use them later in another course. You can even publish them to a website so that anyone can access and learn from them.

We had quite a few projects in class where we got a little more familiar with certain software or websites. These projects were very helpful. We used Word, Excel and Powerpoint to produce a flyer, progress chart and quiz for our fictional class. These were interesting projects for me since I had not ever made these sort of documents for this context, but it proved very informative to finish them. These types of projects will certainly be of use later in a classroom. For the flyer project I tried to use some of the design rules I have been learning IT 567, but I am not sure I was that successful.

The rubric, puzzle, and test projects were not really all that interesting to me in the beginning, but I am glad to know they exist. The RubiStar was a very helpful tool. I had honestly not thought much about rubrics before. This tool however, will be invaluable in producing a quality rubric, easily. It can then be modified to fit your needs exactly. The Easy Test Maker is nice in that it allows you to make so many different types of questions. I think allowing students much variety in question type is good.

Evaluation is an important part of choosing any media or resource for your class. The website evaluation project made me realize some of the things that I should have been looking for when choosing the site in the first place. It is important for the content of the site to be appropriate for your class. We also must ensure that the site is easy to navigate and find information on. I will certainly use website evaluation in the future, perhaps using the forms that were provided to make my own customized ones. TrackStar was a really cool resource to learn about. It allows a teacher to guide their students through sites on the web which they think are important. I can see myself using this in a class in the future, but also in my personal life. Sometimes it would be helpful to devise a guided tour of some information for a friend or relative. This sort of “tour” is more helpful than just a list of links.

Building a website using Google Sites is a fairly simple procedure, but it’s lack of customization lead me to believe I will probably continue to use some other tool when building a simple website. In my experience using iWeb, I’ve been able to accomplish the same things as Sites, but with better looking results. iWeb is also extremely easy to use, and you have the options of publishing your site anywhere you wish. Google Groups, however provides a great collaboration space for a class. It is also easy to create a listserve within google groups, so that you can share information with your class over e-mail.

Making a movie is something I will leave to the professionals. It does not really interest me, and I am fairly sure I could find a movie for anything I wanted to present. The only movie I can imagine myself producing would be more like a video podcast, where perhaps, I lead the students through an example as Dr. Wang has done for us.

In this class I did have some trouble keeping up with my assignments. I am going to blame this on the on-line nature of the class, but I am sure that is not the only reason. In the future I hope to keep up better with the on-line classes now that I know what to expect. I am not much of a self-motivator, so I need to work on that. I think I am still very strong in my proficiency to learn new software and ways of doing things. I enjoyed learning about all the on-line resources we studied, and I look forward to putting them to use.

In the future I hope to continue on my way to earning a Master’s in IT. I look forward to learning more about teaching in general as well as applying technology to the classroom setting. I am also interested in learning from my professors what works for them when teaching classes (both on-line and off) and overall what it takes to be a great teacher.

Will Ford

Week Thirteen--Chapters Eleven and Twelve

Question 2: What advantages can broad bandwidth and wireless networking offer schools? Describe the current technologies available for wireless connectivity.

A broadband network connection is extremely valuable in today’s classroom. With the growing amount of educational resources available on the internet, and our increasing dependencies on web and network connected applications, a fast connection to the internet is indispensable. WiFi (wireless fidelity) technology is used to distribute a connection to a network (usually broadband) amongst devices in a certain area. WiFi is in some cases replacing hard-wired ethernet networks since it is easier to install, repair, and expand. In places that had no networking before, WiFi is chosen over ethernet since it is cheaper to implement. WiFi technologies have steadily improved and now are often just as good as their wired counterparts. Newer iterations of WiFi now feature very fast data throughput, as well as adequate range, and security measures. Some people worry WiFi security since it seems very open in nature. However, there are many precautions one can make to make sure your network is as secure as you would like it to be. This openness allows greater freedom.

Bluetooth technology is often related to the use of a PAN (personal-area-network). Many modern cellphones, computers, printers, and other devices have a bluetooth chip built in. This allows communication with other bluetooth devices. Bluetooth has a much shorter range than WiFi, but is still very useful for wirelessly transmitting data. The short range of bluetooth devices may make them very suitable for the classroom, since there would be less interference from other devices next door. It does seem to me that the author may have been a little over-zealous about the future of Bluetooth. While it is certainly useful (and, in fact, in use in many places), many of the examples of use given in the book have found solutions in WiFi, new web-services, and high-speed cellular networks.

I find wireless technologies to be one of the most exciting things happening in technology today. As we continue to be more wireless we gain more and more freedom from the restrictions we impose on ourselves by our reliance on technology. We are now more free to set up our learning environments however we like. We are also able to produce cleaner more efficient workstations. Doesn’t everyone hate that mess of wires behind the computer? There is now no reason why we should’t be almost completely wireless in only a few years!

Video and Listserve

A video can be a fun project. I used iMovie on my Mac to make my video with pictures and a title and ending slide. I recorded my audio on my iPhone and then just attached it to my video in iMovie. You can see George Washington here.

A listserve is easy to create with the use of Google Groups. My listserve is 6th-grade-social-science@googlegroups.com, and can be subscribed to here.

Course Site

Using Google Sites to create a class webpage is quite easy.

One can create and organize pages in any way they like.

My page can be visited here.

Week Eleven-- Chapters Nine and Ten

Question 1: What is visual literacy? Where and when is it learned? Why is it important? Contrast Internet broadcasts, live cams, and Net meetings. How can each of these Internet-based video technologies be used in teaching and learning?

Visual literacy is a skill that is learned over the course of most people’s lives. Just as we learn to comprehend ideas through the written word (literacy), it is possible for us to begin to learn through the use of images and richer media. We acquire these skills over the course of our learning history. Most of us, at this point in our lives, are quite fluent in gleaning information and meaning from a variety of visuals. Visual literacy is relevant in learning from “visuals.” Our book tells us there are three primary design elements relevant to a “visual.” Visual elements are those graphics and other things that are not just text. These add meaning that enhances the message from the text. Text elements contain the text we want the learner to read and understand. The text can take many forms and it is up to us to format it how we think is best. I am not clear as to how the third element is to be implemented, but I assume it is hybrid of the visual and text elements. Affective elements are meant to elicit a response, mostly emotional, from the learner. Emotions are very important to learning, and if you can cause a learner to associate a certain emotion with your message it is more likely to be comprehended and remembered. In contemporary culture visual literacy is extremely important! We are constantly seeing signage, posters, brochures, etc. that contain text as well as images and graphics that we must correctly understand.

Internet Broadcasts, live cams, and Net meetings are all ways of consuming information through the use of a network connection. All of these require one’s device (most likely a computer or tv) to be connected to the internet. They also make use of various streaming technologies in use all around the web. Streaming video is video that is stored or collected on a computer or server, and then sent in a sequential fashion to a user’s computer. The computer then stores this information in a buffer and plays it back to the observer as new information is collected in the buffer. Internet broadcasts are not necessarily live as are live cams and net meetings. An internet broadcast could be a performance or lesson that has been recorded and is then streamed to users whenever they feel like watching it. They could be live, however. This would be a great way to perform a demonstration across the net to learners that are not physically nearby. Your internet broadcast could have live video as well as a live feed from your computer or television screen, for example.

Live cams are often used to broadcast one particular scene onto the net so that people may observe it whenever they like. We often see weather cams that show a live feed of current weather conditions. These do not require an observer to log on at any one point in time, but they are encouraged to view it whenever they want, as the content of the live feed should always be different.

An internet meeting is like a video conference. These meetings are set up by two or more people that want to be able to speak to one another aloud, and see each other. These events do require everyone involved to be online at the same time. This is another good way to give a presentation or demonstration, but only to a certain group of people.

Week Eight TrackStar and Web Evaluation

The Trackstar project was pretty cool. I like the idea of guiding your students through some sites you want them to look at. Here is my Trackstar.

The website I chose to evaluate is one I chose for my Trackstar as well. The URL ishttp://www.whitehouse.gov/about/presidents/georgewashington. The site provides a short biography of George Washington written from a very patriotic viewpoint. Since the site is published by the White House I thought it would be very interesting for the kids to explore once they had gotten there and read the biography. The office of the Presidency is something everyone should learn about, and it is also something I thought they would find fascinating. The design of the site is very clean and usable. The structure is also very straightforward and easy to understand and navigate.

Content

Design

Week Seven-- Chapters Seven and Eight

--Question 3: How can a classroom web site improve communications with students, parents, and community? What is an acceptable use policy? What impact does it have on the use of the Web in the classroom?

Classroom websites are becoming very pervasive in learning environments of all kinds. I know that most of my college classes have a course website, and I am sure that classrooms of other types i.e. high school, continuing education, and business related classes, have them as well. These class websites can take many forms. Some exist within another system, such as Blackboard. This gives only students in the class access to it’s content. Sites may also be hosted by a blogging service, or exist simply as a website hosted by the school or a hosting provider. Privacy firewalls may be used so that only people who need to access the site can, but some areas might want to be left open so that family and people from the community can access them. Students can find information relevant to class: syllabi, class schedules, assignment information, course documents, grades, helpful links, and discussion boards. Also students and teachers can converse with one another over email or chat to answer questions and discuss projects. Family and community could find information on the website relevant to what the class is up to-in general. They might also want to access a calendar of classroom activities relevant to them. The teacher might also allow parents to access a schedule of homework, so that they might encourage their kids to finish assignments.

An acceptable use policy dictates how a service will be used by it’s users. In this case, how the internet will be used by students and teachers. This policy outlines what actions on the school’s network or classroom website will and won’t be tolerated. The policy will also let users know what will be done if the policy is violated. Many schools try to ensure compliance with the acceptable use policy by filtering the content users of the network are allowed to access. Surely this is mostly for the good of the students. We should protect them from harmful things on the internet, but often these filters are used in a way that blocks helpful content as well. We must be careful not to filter content based on our own personal biases. Only truly harmful or inappropriate content should be blocked. Again this is a topic of much debate wherever filters are used. One place where I have encountered a ridiculously strict filter is the Marion County Public Library. It is hard to see why Facebook or Youtube should be blocked from the citizens who use the library’s services. I think the best thing to do in these situations is to educate people on the dangerous parts of the internet and trust them to make wise decisions.

Week Six-- Flyer/Progress Report/Quiz

Making a flyer is always a fun creative process. I used one of the standard flyer templates in Pages to make mine. I found a picture of a Blackboard to put as the focal point. I like it's relation to the classroom, and it's connotations of a "blank slate." I left the colors and fonts as they were in the template. I thought the colors went well with the picture, and the font's look nice and contemporary.

You can find the Flyer here.

Working with spreadsheets is often a pretty boring process. Numbers, columns, rows, charts, not alot of spice. And since I am not that good with chart functions; I don't know the best ways to trick them out. (Another reason I like to use Numbers on the Mac: at least the application is pretty. Can't wait to see it on the iPad!) I also hate cheesy clip-art, so a spreadsheet from me will probably be pretty boring, besides some color perhaps.

The progress sheet can be found here.

The Quiz can be found here, with a PDF version here. I can only imagine using Powerpoint to make a classroom wide quiz. I don't think it would be effective to give real tests or quizzes in this format, but as a group activity it should work.

Week Five-- Chapters Five and Six

Question 2: Define database management software and describe how you might use it to help you in teaching responsibilities. How might you construct a learning assignment for your students that used this productivity tool?

Database Management software is a type of productivity software. It is usually found in a package along with other office productivity applications including a word processor, spreadsheet application, and presentation application. Database Management software is used to organize, maintain and retrieve many types of data. This type of software is usually designed for business use, but can easily be put to use in the classroom. In a classroom setting database management software could store student information (names, addresses, phone numbers), or related pieces of information for a particular lesson the teacher is planning. An electronic database can be described like a card catalog of a library. “Records” are thought of as cards in the catalog. These records contain data relevant to that card. The data on the card is stored in various “fields.” Since these records are electronic it becomes very easy to sort them based on some criteria; find records containing certain information; or enter new information and edit existing cards.

Surely the most obvious use for database software in day to day teaching responsibilities involves a student roster. Records may be made for each individual in the class. Fields may include: name, address, phone number, email address, parents names, special considerations, seat assignment, etc. The possibilities are endless and up to the teacher to decide what is necessary. The teacher can then easily print a list of addresses for a mail out, send out a newsletter email, or sort the students alphabetically.

It would certainly be a great project for a classroom to have the students collaborate on a database. A bug collection, for example, could be organized using a database. As students brought in their captures they could set up new records in a shared database for each of their bugs. They could record the common name, scientific name, color, length, width, shape, location found, finder’s name, etc. They can also record the location of the collected specimen in the physical collection so that it may be found easily in the future. They could even take a picture of the specimen and attach that to it’s record. This database could then be used in the classroom, shared with the whole school, or even published to the web for all to use and enjoy.

Week Four--Chapters Three and Four

Question 1: What is a computer virus and how is it transmitted? What can you do to protect your computer?

Our book describes a computer virus as “a program written specifically to disrupt computer operations and/or destroy data.” As this definition points out, viruses do not just pop into existence from nowhere! They are maliciously created by programmers. Some of them, like “spyware,” are created for the intention of obtaining information about people and their actions from their computers and sending it to the creator. Other viruses are purely disruptive in their actions. Some can simply delete random items from an infected hard drive. A virus might have a directive to launch a DOS (denial of service) attack on a particular website, data center, corporation, or government agency. This type of attack is designed to overwhelm its target by sending many requests that the server cannot fulfill thus rendering the target unable to be productive.
Viruses can be transmitted in many different ways. The increasing connectedness of todays computers yields many routes of infection. People often unwittingly download viruses from the internet when trying to download files or checking their email. Viruses can be sent as attachments that appear to be benign files, and novice users will often open these files without checking them first. These viruses could perform their intended action immediately, but they could also just copy themselves to the hard drive and wait for a predetermined time, or even a signal from their creator to start their mischief. Computers not connected to the internet can get viruses by introducing infected media (floppies, CDs, thumb-drives). In a school environment it is particularly hard to prevent since students could bring media from home containing infected material. Once the virus has been introduced it can easily propagate throughout the network.

There is defense against viruses! Many companies sell antivirus software. This software scans files on a system and monitors media connected as well as traffic coming in through the network. When antivirus software detects a known threat it can isolate the file and ask the user what should be done with it. An extra layer of protection is often helpful when dealing with email. Many email providers, including many webmail providers like Gmail, provide virus scanning before you even open your email.

Any antivirus software is only as good as it’s “definitions.” As new viruses are created the antivirus software creators catalog them and provide downloads to their customers that instruct the antivirus software what to look for. These updates to definitions must be done regularly to ensure the best protection. In the modern world of computing it is considered irresponsible to not have antivirus software running on your computer, but even when it is present one should always be looking out for malicious applications.

Week Three Chapter Two

Question 3: What role do educational technologies play in teaching and learning?

While we all agree that technology has a place in the classroom, we have to make sure it is used appropriately. When teaching a subject a teacher has to complete his instructional planning before adding technology. The teacher must have a clear plan for what he is teaching and how he should reach that goal.

I enjoyed the discussion of learning environments in this chapter. This is a place where technology can be used, possibly indirectly. “Stations” are used in many classrooms where different activities and lessons are taught in different regions of the classroom. Using technology certainly helps designing these environments. Complex climate control systems can be put into use if the teacher wishes certain areas to have different climates. Also, often today we see a “station” for computer learning, but technology should not be relegated to one station! Many areas could be outfitted with technology for learning all sorts of subjects.

The section on media and methods discussed how to use media (audio, visual, and digital resources) to carry out your methods (strategies to achieve lesson objectives). Media is used every day by teachers and does not have to include technology in the way we think about it today. It may be “old technology:” posters, bulletin boards, models, etc, but it may include technology of the types we are used to. A presentation teaching method, for instance, can be implemented using old technology media, but also by presentation software and the use projectors or monitors. A demonstration method is also a clear candidate for the use of technological media. Obviously, teaching software is easy to convert to a model of demonstration with the students following along on their own computers.

As the book and I have already mentioned, teachers must make sure to develop their teaching plan before implementing technology. Using technology simply for the sake of using technology will not be effective. It must serve a clearly defined purpose in the teaching of the subject, otherwise it’s misuse could represent severely misappropriated funds!

Chapter 1

Question 2: My understanding on different learning styles and its influence on learning.

While we certainly agree, as evidenced by taking this class, Computer’s in Education, that technology has a prominent place in learning, we should be careful to apply it in an appropriate manner. Using technology that fits students individual learning needs is very important. Countless hours of teaching could be wasted if the teaching style does not match students’ learning styles, therefore we must be able to assess students’ learning styles and apply it to the way they are taught.

Our book, Teaching and Learning with Technology, tells us that there are three primary learning styles. These are considered auditory, visual, and kinesthetic. An auditory learner learns best by listening; a visual learner learns best by seeing; and a kinesthetic learner would be one that learns best by doing. These are not to be seen as exclusive. For example, a visual learner does not learn only by seeing. Surely auditory and kinesthetic teaching would be effective on this student, but simply not to the same degree that a visual approach would provide.

A student with a proficiency for auditory learning would likely benefit from traditional lecture based classes. Podcasts and the like would be helpful for lessons to be learned away from the classroom, simply through repetitive listening. Visual learners can also find something for them in a modern classroom. Often presentation software (Powerpoint, Keynote) is used to reinforce lessons visually. These lessons can be taken home and even used with podcast-like systems for learning away from the classroom. Kinesthetic learning is easily provided in classes that provide students with computers at every desk. Instructors can lead students through steps and students can actually perform the steps. Of course this is not the only place kinesthetic learning is provided. A foreign language class for example would require students to actually speak the words and phrases they see and hear.

I see cognitive styles as, of course, different from learning styles, but an important foreshadowing of learning styles. The Myers-Briggs cognitive types are the most widely recognized in this area and include: extrovert, introvert, sensing, intuitive, thinking, feeling, judging, and perceiving. People with similar cognitive types are likely to have similar learning styles, since learning is very connected with the way one thinks. For example, it would be interesting to determine if a person with a perceiving cognitive style would be closer to the visual learning style than the kinesthetic.

First Post for IT 645

Hello all,
My name is Will Ford, and I am very excited to start this online course! I've never taken one before, so it will be interesting to see what happens. This is my first semester at Southern Miss where I am pursuing a Master's in Instructional Technology. I received my BA in Psychology from Ole Miss in 2007 and worked as a Case Manager at a community mental health center. I see a tremendous need in mental health for the application of more technology.
I am familiar with many types of software, as I am an avid "techie," but admittedly not a master of them all. I can sufficiently use, word processors (Word, Pages), and presentation software (Powerpoint, Keynote). I have used iWeb for very basic websites. I love Facebook, Twitter and the like for distributing news, opinions, (and lately Apple Tablet rumors) with friends and acquaintances. I use email everyday, and while I don't often post on Discussion boards, I use them often when troubleshooting issues and performing research online. I have produced only one podcast, last year in a Mammalogy class, but I do enjoy using them as sources of learning.
I hope that this class will make me a better student as well as allow me to use technologies more effectively in teaching.