Friday, November 13, 2009
PBL Reflection
I was the project leader for my group's PBL proposal. This project took a lot more time and collaboration than the other assignments, however, I feel that my group worked together very well and our project was very cohesive. I really like the activity we came up with and plan to implement it into my Math 1 Support classes. One negative of this project, was that some of the team members are elementary school teachers and therefore had a more difficult time coming up with an activity for a high school class. Also, they will be unable to implement this project into their class.
Blog Entry 11: Online Assessments
Many state mandated assessments are offerred online, including EOCT's. When I worked at Woodstock High School, the EOCT's were administered online. I really enjoyed this method, because it was much easier to administer and the results were returned much more quickly. At Dawson County the EOCT's are aministered using the paper method. This is because our network can not handle that amount of usuage.
My question is, do students do better on the online assessment or the paper version? I have noticed that when students complete math problems on a computer program, they are much less likely to write it down and work it out. They usually try to do it in their heads, even if it is impossible to do that. Therefore, many of them end up guessing for many of the problems. However, I do not know if they would do the same thing on a test that is 15% of their grade.
My question is, do students do better on the online assessment or the paper version? I have noticed that when students complete math problems on a computer program, they are much less likely to write it down and work it out. They usually try to do it in their heads, even if it is impossible to do that. Therefore, many of them end up guessing for many of the problems. However, I do not know if they would do the same thing on a test that is 15% of their grade.
Monday, November 2, 2009
Blog Entry 10: Emerging Technology that Supports eLearning
eLearning is becoming more and more popular in colleges, technical schools, companies, and even K-12 schools. The text describes the benefits and negatives to elearning. eLearning is a great tool to promote time management and a deeper level of communication between students. However, eLearning requires students to stay ontop of their own work and for many, specifically young students, this can be very difficult.
I really enjoy eLearning, seeing as I am completing my Master's online. I enjoy it because it gives me the freedom to work at the best times for me and not have to schedule travel and class time. I am a very organized person so it works very well for me. I also feel that I can express my opinions and ideas more easily with virtual learning. When in a classroom it can sometimes be intimidating to fully express yourself, or in some cases there just isn't enough time.
I really enjoy eLearning, seeing as I am completing my Master's online. I enjoy it because it gives me the freedom to work at the best times for me and not have to schedule travel and class time. I am a very organized person so it works very well for me. I also feel that I can express my opinions and ideas more easily with virtual learning. When in a classroom it can sometimes be intimidating to fully express yourself, or in some cases there just isn't enough time.
Sunday, November 1, 2009
Blog Entry 9: Online Gradebooks
Almost every school system currently uses an online gradebook software that allows parents to view their childs grades at any time. This is a great tool if used properly.
One benefit to the virtual gradebook is that parents now have continuous access to their childs grades. When this was not available it was easier for students to do poorly without their parents knowing until the end of the term, which of course is too late to do anything about.
Another beneift is that teachers can access the gradebook from any computer that has internet access. It also automatically calcualates grades, instead of teachers having to do it by hand or using excel.
However, there are some negatives to virtual gradebooks. One of these is the fact that many teachers are not trained on how to properly use the software. I have become one of the goto people that other teachers come to when they have questions about the gradebook. I have noticed how little many of the teachers really know about the software, and many times the teachers have incorrectly set up the grade setup. Causing grades to be completely off.
Another negative is the fact that parents are not propertly trained in how to read the gradebook and end up not using it or freaking out about every single grade that goes into the gradebook even if the grade is exempt or missing, etc. This ends up causing parents to email or call teachers regularly about why their child has a certain grade. Instead of asking their child. Sometimes it gets frustrating as a teacher to continuously have to answer these questions.
I try my best to leave feedback on each assignment and comments on each students grade if it is missing or they have time to make it up etc. But again many parents are not aware of how to find this information.
One benefit to the virtual gradebook is that parents now have continuous access to their childs grades. When this was not available it was easier for students to do poorly without their parents knowing until the end of the term, which of course is too late to do anything about.
Another beneift is that teachers can access the gradebook from any computer that has internet access. It also automatically calcualates grades, instead of teachers having to do it by hand or using excel.
However, there are some negatives to virtual gradebooks. One of these is the fact that many teachers are not trained on how to properly use the software. I have become one of the goto people that other teachers come to when they have questions about the gradebook. I have noticed how little many of the teachers really know about the software, and many times the teachers have incorrectly set up the grade setup. Causing grades to be completely off.
Another negative is the fact that parents are not propertly trained in how to read the gradebook and end up not using it or freaking out about every single grade that goes into the gradebook even if the grade is exempt or missing, etc. This ends up causing parents to email or call teachers regularly about why their child has a certain grade. Instead of asking their child. Sometimes it gets frustrating as a teacher to continuously have to answer these questions.
I try my best to leave feedback on each assignment and comments on each students grade if it is missing or they have time to make it up etc. But again many parents are not aware of how to find this information.
Digital Storytelling Article
This article discuses a rural middle school where a lead literature teachers uses various Web 2.0 tools associated with Digital Storytelling to enhance their classroom. The article discusses the benefits to using YouTube, Blogs and Digital Storytelling in education.
Mullen, R., & Wedwick, L. (2008). Avoiding the Digital Abyss: Getting Started in the Classroom with YouTube, Digital Stories, and Blogs. Clearing House, 82(2), 66-69. http://search.ebscohost.com
Article
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