1. Use Streaming Video
2. Use Music: find out what kind of music the students like and incorporate it into lessons
3. Use teleconferencing tools: Skype is a good way for students to communicate with other students around the world
4. Create your own interactive exercises
For example: the teacher knows their students strengths more than anyone, so the teacher needs to tailor students exercises to fit their students strengths
5. Use interactive whiteboard more effectively
6. Create your own podcasts
7. Start a blog or wiki: this is a great tool to showcase student work and keep the parents up to date with what is going on in the classroom
8. Use social networks: Using a closed group in a social network allows the teacher and parents to communicate more effectively
9. Use internet tools: use what is already handy and available
10. Make the most of your students gadgets : most students have phones and i-pods, so use those tools to relate to them
I thought this video was very valuable for teachers wanting to learn more about incorporating technology in their classroom. The world is becoming more and more technological. New jobs have been created just because of advances in technology. This impacts teachers greatly because we are shaping students lives and students are now surrounded by all kinds of technology. If teachers do not move forward with the advancement of technology, then students lose interest and the teaching will not be nearly as effective as it could be. This you tube video gave 10 great examples of how teachers can use technology in their classroom to make learning more effective and valuable for students.
I gained several ideas about incorporating technology into my classroom from watching this video. For example, I loved the idea about using Skype in the classroom. I think it is great for students to communicate with other students around the country and even around the world. Writing letters to one another is great, but I think it would be even better if the students could see one another and see each others learning environment. Another idea I liked was using blogs and social networks to communicate with parents. Parental communication is key, and when parents know what is going on in the classroom and can see their child's work, it makes them feel better and makes the teacher/parent relationship much better. I hope you get as much out of this video as I did!
I believe this video links to Chapter 1 and 2 in several ways. On page 24, the author talks about implications of new technologies for teachers and students. The implications the book gave were flexible learning environments, adaptable assessment options, reliance on distance learning, and support for people with disabilities. First, with the flexible learning environments, the author states that students no longer have to go to the labs, the labs come to the students. With portable devices such as cell phones and lap tops, students can gather information and take notes from anywhere. With assessment options, teachers can use interactive white boards to ask students questions and the students answer with a remote clicker. This lets the teacher know if the students understand the information while teaching the lesson. The next implication is reliance on distance learning, which becoming more and more popular. This is where skype and other teleconferencing tools come into play. Many schools are now offering online courses, so the need for these tools is becoming greater and greater. Teachers need to start incorporating this type of technology into their classroom because virtual classrooms are starting to increase. These are just a few of the ways technology is being implicated into classrooms. With this type of technology, students will be able to do incredible things and this is just paving a way for them in the future. I can't wait to see what a tech-savy classroom will look in 10 to 20 years... the possibilities are endless!
Mary Elizabeth - You did a great job with your blog. I enjoyed watching the video that you posted on your blog. It did have some good ideas for incorporating technology into a classroom. Streaming video is really good with young children. I have taught first and second grade. Their reading skills are often not good enough to gather information from just reading, but streaming videos would be great for gathering information, especially in science and social studies. I also liked the idea of using music as much as possible. Children remember things amazingly well when it is set to music. This is good for all ages - not just teens. The interactive white boards are becoming very popular. I think because it is interactive it keeps students attention and focus. I questioned the video's recommendation of using social networks to communicate with parents. I am all about parent communication, but don't know that I would want to be friends on facebook with the parents of my students. I also questioned the video's belief that all students have phones and ipads. The schools I have taught in are lower socioeconomic schools and many of the students did not have access to technology. I wish that they did, but that was not the case. Overall, it was a very good video and you did a great job connecting it to the chapters that we read. I totally agree with you that teachers must become more technology savvy. Students interest will grow if they have lessons and opportunities to interact with technology. Also, as teachers it is our job to prepare students to be successful in the world in all areas.
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