Final Posting--Course Reflection

I have learned so much from the IT 465 online class that I otherwise would not have known about or would not have attempted to use. There were so many programs that I did not know about until now. I have had a Gmail account for over a year and did not know how to use the Google Groups, Blog, or Google Docs until taking this course. Prior to this course I considered myself pretty computer literate—but by no means a wiz—but I wasn’t really adventurous in trying new things. The assignments have helped me to explore many new online options. I still do not consider myself to be a computer wiz, but I am more apt to try new programs and more confident that I can learn how to use them. The instructions and tutorials for this class were wonderful and basically walked you through each assignment step by step. The information that you needed to understand each assignment was clearly explained so that nothing was overlooked.
I feel that my stronger points were the Windows Movie Maker, Web Tools, Turnitin, and Teacher’s Web Page assignments. I was never able to get narration to work on the Windows Movie Maker, but I was able to narrate via text slides. I really liked the different Web Tools, especially BigBus for creating my own online quizzes. I had never known that there was an online source to help prevent plagiarism until the Turnitin assignment and I was really impressed with that. I thought that creating a class website was really fun and I cannot wait until I can create a “real” one for my future class. My weaker areas were the Concept Map and Google Group assignments. Inspiration was a really good program but a little time consuming and since completing that assignment I have found other sources to make concept maps that will be simpler and more age appropriate for the grade I intend to teach. I do not think that the Google Group assignment was difficult; it was just confusing for me at the start. I find it a little hard to work in groups sometimes, which is something that I am trying to get used to. I can see myself using Google Group in the future though.
The IT 465 course included many communication tools so we could keep in touch with each other and the instructor. The email and discussion board were very easy to use and I always got a quick response when I needed something. The chat room feature was good to use if you were in the middle of an assignment and needed help from a peer—usually the other students online had had similar issues and knew how to advise you. Creating a Blog was a new experience and certainly one that I would not have initiated on my own, but it was pretty neat to read other classmates reflections on the same assignments. Having a Blog also provided me with an outlet to explain positives and negatives in doing an assignment. I was never able to log into the Wimba Live Classroom even after I went through the tutorials and system checks, but I feel like I was still able to keep up with everything I needed through email and announcements.
I must admit I was a little apprehensive when I found out I would be taking a technology class, but overall I really enjoyed it and I am glad I have access to so many great tools and programs to assist me in my teaching career—thank you Dr. Wang!

Assistive Technology

I was able to learn of some other ways technology can be used in the classroom through this activity. What a great teacher Marilyn was to have planned out such a detailed lesson, and to have Oscar in her mind the whole time she was brainstorming ideas. Google Docs was pretty easy to use, I just had to remember to ask it to spell check, I am kind of spoiled to the auto spell check in Word. But the Google Docs allows another way to create a document with an easier way to share it. Here is the link to my Google Doc http://http://docs.google.com/View?id=ddp8sr3z_0gvdhd6hb

Reflection Question 1.

Lynette Hart-Balius

IT 465

November 16, 2009

Reflection Questions:

    

    1.  To ensure that students with varying learning styles are getting quality instruction, it is important to tailor activities to meet those different needs. Students with special needs can benefit greatly from group activities where they can interact and learn from students without special needs. Struggling students also benefit from group activities where they can learn from their peers. Another way to help struggling students is to provide one-on-one assistance. Teachers can also group students according to their skill level and provide differentiated instruction to each group. I think that it is also important to include many resources and real life examples in a lesson. A lecture can be backed up with a PowerPoint presentation, a picture slide show, or a video and students should be provided with hands-on activities that relate to the lesson. Providing various examples and media allows for students with different learning abilities to understand parts of the lesson that they may otherwise not understand.

 

    2.  I think that it was very wise for Marilyn to consult with Juanita the reading specialist so that she could share her ideas and get input on how to implement them. I feel that all teachers can benefit from having a mentor or just another teacher to collaborate with, as we can all learn from each other. Consulting with specialists such as behavior specialists, reading specialists, counselors, and special education teachers can provide us with more specific ideas and plans to accommodate students with special needs or learning disabilities. The students would also benefit from such collaboration because the instruction would be designed to fit their needs.

 

    3.  Marilyn is using graphic organizers to enhance her lesson by mapping out main story components such as characters, setting, problem, and solution. She is also having the students fill out their own graphic organizer so that they can become familiar with the process and develop their thoughts about the story. Using the graphic organizer will help Oscar to map out his thoughts and ideas about the story as well. Since Oscar is visually impaired and learning disabled he will probably need some assistance with this activity.

 

    4.  I think that the Internet is an extremely valuable source of information. When I was in elementary school, there was no such thing. Research was done in the library using books, dictionaries, and encyclopedias. I have had lots of experience in my college years using the Internet to search for various information. Sometimes I immediately get what I am looking for and sometimes I do not. From time to time I will stumble upon too much information making it hard to narrow down just what I need and sometimes I do not find what I am looking for at all. A WebQuest can teach students how to search for relative information. Teachers can make finding specific information easier for students by setting up specific resources using a WebQuest.

 

    5.  Oscar and the four other children all benefited from a small group instruction on Eric Carle. Through the small group activity, Oscar was able to be included with his peers and was also able to learn from them and his comprehension equalled theirs. The group was tiered so that the other students received different Eric Carle books to read based on their level. Juanita continued to work closely with this group throughout the lesson and was amazed at Oscar's progress using speech-synthesis.

 

    6.  I do not think that Oscar's experience would have been as powerful if he had worked solely with Juanita instead of being included in the small group. It was clear that being included with other students was beneficial to not only Oscar, but the other students as well. Students with learning disabilities and special needs need to feel accepted and by being part of the group, I think Oscar felt equal to the other students. It is important to mesh students with different learning needs and styles so that they can all learn from each other.

    

    7.  Marilyn's use of technology in her lesson allowed for a pleasing way for all of her students to be a part of the activities. Oscar was able to participate due to the use of speech-synthesis. The whole class learned more about Eric Carle and his artistic style by viewing the video about him. By creating the guided notes, Marilyn ensured that the class would pay closer attention to the video and remember key points. By allowing the students to create iMovies about their books, she provided them with a fun and creative way to share their books. Because the students were so enthusiastic about their projects, most of them included them in their school portfolios.

I found that the Google site creator was pretty easy to use. I got confused a few times though but was able to figure out what I was doing wrong. I am sure I will create a class website when I am actually a certified teacher, however the school that I work at requires us to use a program called Haiku to create class websites. I would like to create a website for my daughter using the Google site creator because that would be a good way for out of state family to keep in touch. I don't know that I will ever find the time to do that though. Overall my experience using Google to create my site was positive. Here is the link to my website: http://sites.google.com/site/mrsbaliuskindergarten/home

TurnItIn

It was very interesting to see how the TurnItIn website worked. It amazes me that there is an online source that scans and reviews virtually everything to prevent plagiarism. That indicates to me that plagiarism was becomming pretty prevalent so it is good that there is now a way to help stop it. I think that is great. I know that I would not want someone to take a report or article that I worked hard on and try to pass it off as their own. I think that the website was very easy to use and it yeilded the percentage results very quickly and I like that it showed the specific areas that had been copied or plagiarized. That way you have solid evidence if you had to confront a student on such an incident. Here is the link to my report https://docs.google.com/fileview?id=0B6WQt3h1tTLFYzk5MzRkZjUtNWYyZC00MjgxLThjODItZDhiNjY4MmFkZDM1&hl=en

Web Tools Assignment

I enjoyed doing this assignment, all 3 of the websites were easy to use. We really don't use rubrics for grading in Kindergarten though, but the RubiStar website was very user friendly. I really liked the quiz maker at BigBus, I definately will use that again. I made a list of extra help websites for parents to use with their children at TrackStar. I am really excited to be learning about all of these programs, there are so many resources available to help teachers! Here are links to my assignment submissions: https://southernmiss.blackboard.com/webct/urw/lc570892304031.tp579993003021/RelativeResourceManager/sfsid/1640494770031

https://southernmiss.blackboard.com/webct/urw/lc570892304031.tp579993003021/RelativeResourceManager/sfsid/1640494772031

https://southernmiss.blackboard.com/webct/urw/lc570892304031.tp579993003021/RelativeResourceManager/sfsid/1640494771031

Google Group Assignment

I have had a Gmail account for over a year and I did not know that there was so much that I could do with it. I was a little overwhelmed at first since all of the group postings were mixed in with everything else in my inbox, but then I found where to click to go to our group page. That was much easier.. I was able to post my reflection and website list and edit my profile to include a picture. I can see myself using the Google Group in the classroom to either keep up communication amongst my grade level teachers or possibly as a way to keep in touch with parents. I will continue to explore my Gmail account. Here is the link to my website list from the Google Group assignment http://groups.google.com/group/it-465/web/useful-educational-websites