Promethean ActivBoard

Today I took a look at PrometheanWorld to become more familiar with the Promethean ActivBoard. Because I only had the opportunity to view pictures and read information on the Promethean ActivBoard, I could not distinguish too much of a difference from the SMARTBoard. It is still a durable screen that can be poked, touch, or leaned on without damaging the board, while allowing access to computer projection to the class. The Promethean ActivBoard "enables anything that can be seen or done on a computer screen to be projected onto an interactive whiteboard – bringing every classroom to life." One feature that stood out to me, different from the SMARTBoard was the add on feature of the ActivWand! This is a pen just like the others, but has a twenty inch extension that could be very useful for small students to reach the top of the board. I also noticed that the Promethean ActivBoard did not offer different colored pens as the SMARTBoard offers. I am assuming that the Promethean ActivBoard allows for the switching of pen color through a click of the screen, rather than the simple picking up of another pen. Until having actually used a Promethean ActivBoard, I do not think that I could make proper judgment on preference over the SMARTBoard or not. However, the Promethean World website supplied a great deal of information on the Promeathan ActivBoard to enable me to become a bit more familiar with other solutions of interactive whiteboards.

Classmate Comments

Sarah Womack

Ashley Peavey

Shayna Prause

DeAnna Ankrum

McKenzie M.

Reflection 6

WHAT?                                                                                                                        
There are many online resources that I have found, through the Technology in Education Class Blog that are very useful in finding lesson plans on the SMART Board. This website in particular, the Wichita Public Schools website, offers many lessons for teachers in SMART Notebook form in all subjects and all grades that are compatible for the SMART Board.
SO WHAT?                                                                                                                   
I have found that it is sometimes best to use pre-made lesson plans for the SMART Board, rather than taking time to a create mediocre lesson using the SMART Notebook software. Teaching is all about taking advantage of the resources that will advance the students. The lessons that most students used in their SMART Board presentations were taken from pre-made lessons from online websites, such as the Wichita Public School site.
NOW WHAT?                                                                                                               
I am realizing that it is important to be mindful of the resources out there on the web. They can spark ideas for teaching and simply the teaching process, especially during the first years of teaching. I am so thankful for those who have taken the time to create lesson plans that will be beneficial to the students.

Reflection 5

WHAT?                                                                                                                          
I read an article awhile back that talked about this generation of students being the loneliest generation. This is caused by technology because rather than students having face-to-face interactions with people, all of their communication takes place through technology. Instead of having a friendly conversation in person, students' social network is being stricken to text messaging, emailing, and online chatting.
SO WHAT?                                                                                                                   
Thinking of this in terms of being a teacher, I realized that technology in the classroom can take the same effect. Sometimes technology can get in the way of connecting with students on a relational learning level. Instead of getting to know students by figuring out where their struggles are and why they are having struggles, teachers rely on and hide behind quick multiple choice polls to assess students. Sometimes technology allows for no understanding of the students. It sometimes can allow for no explanation of the students progress or retrogress. Sometimes technology robs students of learning proper social skills that might be needed for instances like in an interview.
NOW WHAT?                                                                                                                 
Teachers must make extra effort to use technology in a way that will grow students. Teachers must not allow technology to cut off relationship with the students, for this is what already happens to the them in everyday life. Instead, we can use technology to enhance social skills. For example, students can use technology to give presentations. This will allow students to use technology, while communicating with their voice, rather than with their fingers (aka typing).

Reflection 4

WHAT?                                                                                                                       
Sometimes teachers get so caught up in the fun experience of the SMART Board that they forget to let students have interaction with it. I observed a third grade classroom where the teacher had a very exciting lesson on the SMART Board. She was so into the lesson; however, as I looked at the students in her classroom, I noticed that they were very disengaged. Even while using this fun technology of the SMART Board, students were still uninterested in learning.
SO WHAT?                                                                                                                 
The SMART Board cannot be used as an easy substitute for getting students engaged in learning. Even with the use of technology, it is still the teacher's responsibility to connect the students with the material in the lesson. The teacher should have involved her students with hands-on learning through the SMART Board rather than using the SMART Board as a presentation.
NOW WHAT?                                                                                                             
We, as teachers, constantly need to be mindful of our students and how they best learn. Sometimes we rely on technology to do the teaching for us. It is still our job to get students up out of their seats to engage in active learning through the SMART Board. The interactive boards are not just for us, as teachers, but it is more so for the students' benefit of learning in this new age.

Reflection 3

WHAT?

I have noticed many professors at Northwest that do not know how to maneuver the SMART Board and other new technologies such as the document camera. The digital divide between the professors and students truly does affect the learning environment. Professors will spend the first portion of class just trying to figure out how to get the technology working. It will take them several tries to get the PowerPoint displayed on the SMART Board projector.
SO WHAT?                                                                                                                    
Because of the lack of fluency that professors have in new technologies, students become disconnected from the content and material of the lesson. Some students even lose the respect of professors, which results in professors losing control of their classroom.
NOW WHAT?                                                                                                                
Obviously, there is no way to keep up on all of the new technology, but a teacher should at least familiarize himself or herself enough with the technology to keep the flow of the classroom. Technology should not distract from learning, rather it should inspire and enhance learning. It is okay for a teacher to ask students' for help every once in awhile; however, it is important for teachers to do their very best to keep up with the technology times of their students. This is why I am so grateful for this class - Technology in Education.

Reflection 2

WHAT?

The SMART Response that is connected to the SMART Board is a way to assess students quickly. They can take a multiple choice test displayed on the SMART Board screen using the Response keypads. This makes for easy assessment because the students' answers are immediately submitted into a poll that can be organized into a graph. This way, teachers can decide on the spot whether or not the students' are understanding the curriculum topic to know if it needs to be retaught. The SMART Response can also be used to take attendance in the classroom by having the students sign in.

SO WHAT?

This can be a very useful tool for teachers in the classroom, specifically for the two reasons that I mentioned above. I learned in class that you have to activate the students' key pads by clicking "Start Assessment" from the pull down tab. It was nice to play around with the SMART Response in class during the day of our presentations because we were able to work out all of the glitches in trying to figure out how to use this feature.

NOW WHAT?

I would love to become fluent with this feature of the SMART Board because it is a great way to assess students quickly and efficiently in the classroom. I was very happy to learn about SMART Response. I had no idea that anything like this even existed. I was shocked when it was first mentioned in class. It's almost like texting in answers to a test! Times have really changed, but if a teacher can learn how to maneuver this technology, then it can be a very helpful tool for classroom management!

School Website- Fryelands Elementary School

I looked up the Fryelands Elementary School website because that is one of my top preferences for student teaching.

Features I like:

•  The border at the top of the web page is pictures of the students learning and at play in school. It creates a welcoming and inviting feel to the web page and offers a pleasant mood to viewers.
• At the top of the page it reads, "Monroe Public Schools...Learning for Life." I like the font that the motto is typed in because it looks creative, yet still professional.
• The website is offered in Spanish.
• The tabs and links on the web page are well organized, readable, and easily accessible.
• When you scroll your mouse over a link, subcategories for that link open up in a list form.
• There are links and tabs to event calendars, staff, school vision, contact information, new news, parents, class locations, sports, and much more.
• There is a search bar in the upper left-hand corner of the page.
• The address of the school, phone number, and fax number are centered at the bottom of the web page.

What's Confusing?

•  I found nothing on this site to be confusing for myself. Everything was very well organized and mapped out. The page is very simple, which makes it easy to navigate around, and if something were to be difficult to find, there is a search bar at the top of the website.
• One thing that may be confusing to others is that this website is a place for all Monroe public schools. Therefore, every school in the Monroe district will have a page that looks identical to another. In order to ensure that you are viewing the correct school, you must pay close attention to the title page. The border and header is the same for every web page in the Monroe public school district.

What's Missing?

• I honestly tried to find something that was missing, but I found everything that I would need to look for. I encourage you to go to the site to try to find something that you think is missing from the site. This school web page offers a multitude of information for all audiences.

Reflection 1

WHAT?

A feature of technology that is being used in classrooms today is the document camera. The document camera is hooked up to the computer and serves as a newer version of the overhead projector. Yet, instead of having to transfer all paper documents to a clear overhead projector sheet, you are simply able to use the original paper document. The document will be projected on the screen, and the camera allows for different levels of zoom and focus. Another feature of the document camera is the "freeze" button. This allows you to freeze frame the document that you have placed on the camera, so that when you remove the piece of paper or book from the camera, the image will still be visible on the screen.
SO WHAT?                                                                                                                    
I have seen my professors use it many times, and it is very convenient for teaching, especially for the primary grades! I used the document camera in Instructional Design to show a page of a children's book. This is a fantastic way to read books to children because the book can be enlarged on a screen for them to view. I also saw this document camera used in my Math Methods class by Professor Daley. It was very useful for modeling a math problem because it showed the step-by-step process on a large screen with readable pen. This document camera can be a very helpful tool in the classroom. Not only is it convenient for the teacher (way more convenient than using an overhead projector), but it is also exciting for the students to see the read-aloud book projected up on a large screen in front of them. Technology fascinates students, so we as teachers must get in touch with the newest and best forms of technology.
NOW WHAT?                                                                                                               
Try out the document camera. It takes some time of playing around with it to figure out how it works, but I can guarantee that once you try out the document camera, you will love the convenience of it. The document camera is used in many school classrooms now, so to get your hands on one for practice, scope out your nearest classroom to familiarize yourself with it.

Assignment 2 Follow-Up

From the presentations, I learned the importance of being familiar with the operations of the interactive board. If you do not know how to use the boards fluently, then they can easily get in the way of teaching. However, I learned that if a teacher can learn to maneuver the interactive board, it is a wonderful tool to use in the classroom to stimulate minds and to inspire thinking. I especially liked the feature of the board where you can turn hand-writing into font. This is really neat because students can come up to the board and write, but then it can be neatly organized into text. Several students used this feature and it was very helpful! I also like the interactive games from the created SMART Board lessons. The games will certainly help with students' understanding of the topic while having fun at the same time. The drag and drop feature on the SMART Board is actually pretty simple. There is so much to learn about the interactive boards. The list seems endless; however what I learned was very helpful, and I am excited to incorporate these new features of the SMART Board into my lesson plans.

Assignment 2: SMART Board Presentation

     To find the lesson from my presentation, go to the Instructional Technology Website and scroll down to the math section. Click on the lesson that says "Candy Graphs" and the SMART Board lesson will open with the SMART Notebook feature.

     During my presentation, I will use these two features: (Both of these features can be placed in the side toolbar for quick and easy access).

• Page recording: This can be useful for students that are working at a slower pace. The lesson can be played back for them at any time. You can also save the recorded markings from your lesson as a video. This is helpful because it can be sent home with parents or posted on a classroom blog for extra help.
• Highlighter: This allows you to highlight words or pictures on the screen. You can change both the color and the thickness of the highlighter.

NETS for Students:

• Creativity and Innovation: Students demonstrate creative thinking, construct knowledge, and develop innovative products and processes using technology.
• Students create original works as a means of personal or group expression.
• Students may record their work on the SMART Board, say from a math lesson on long division. They can they save it as a video to publish to their blog as an original piece of work.
• Students apply existing knowledge to generate new ideas, products, or processes.
• Students can apply their knowledge of math to create graphs using the SMART Board and record and highlight their efforts.
• Students can use their thinking to highlight main ideas in a paragraph on the SMART Board. This enables other students to recognize the main points more quickly and clearly, and it also involves student interaction.

NETS for Teachers:

• Design and Develop Digital-Age Learning Experiences and Assessments: Teachers design, develop, and evaluate authentic learning experiences and assessments incorporationg contemporary tools and resources to maximize content learning in context and to develop the knowledge, skills, and attitudes identified in the NETS-S.
• Teachers customize and personalize learning activities to address students' diverse learning styles, working strategies, and abilities using digital tools and resources.
• Many students may not learn best in whole class or group interaction. Thus, the playback method allows for teachers to meet the needs of students with different learning styles.
• The highlighter tool helps students to see exactly what the teacher is wanting to emphasize in the lesson activity on the SMART Board.
• Design or adapt relevant learning experiences that incorporate digital tools and resources to promote student learning and creativity.
• The digital tool of page recording allows teachers to involve the students in creative invention through video playbacks of their own work.

     The interactive white board can improve student learning in my future classroom by giving slower-paced students a chance to understand ideas and concepts through a step-by-step recording of the lesson. I most noticed the importance of this feature while giving a Monart lesson in the Visual Arts Methods class. The page recording really helped for students that could not keep up with the pace of the picture I was demonstrating. It was also very helpful for students that were absent. A recording of the lesson on the interactive board can be saved and emailed to (or posted on a classroom blog) parents and the absent student in order to engage in understanding of the missed content.

Cool Cat Teacher Blog- Reviving the Dream

THE WHAT

I read a very encouraging and inspiring blog from the Cool Cat Teacher Blog entitled "Reviving the Dream." It was written on Tuesday, February 9th, 2010 on a Bible passage that encourages teachers to keep their dreams alive. Too often we let a peace of lethargy invade our lives, and we fall dead to our dreams due to a lazy mind that has fallen asleep. The verse mentioned in the blog is taken from the book of Revelation, and it states this: "Sardis was a city of peace, not the peace won through battle, but the peace of a man whose dreams are dead and whose mind is asleep, the peace of lethargy and evasion." What would happen if we woke up and went after our dreams. Here is an example from the author of the blog entry of a dream of her own: "A dream was born -- in my own heart I realized that my goal would be to build one of the best technology programs in the world.  Oh, that sounds ostentatious, but it was something I'd say even in assemblies and to my students. At first, I'd get several snickers -- and then less.  Now, finally, the students know - we do have one of the best.  And now the dream is for more."

THE SO WHAT

Langston Hughes, an American poet once said,
    "Hold fast to dreams
     For if dreams die
     Life is a broken-winged bird
     That cannot fly.

     Hold fast to dreams
     For when dreams go
     Life is a barren field
     Frozen with snow."
This is so true for the students that look up to us in our classrooms. If our dreams for our students die, then our teaching becomes dull. From dull teaching stems lack of inspiration in our students, and from lack of inspiration in our students stems the lack of their success. It is important that we, as teachers, dream big for our students, especially for the underprivileged students who do not know what it means to be given a chance. Also, dream big for not only your students, but also for yourself. There is a vase sitting on the stand next to my couch that says, "The higher our hopes the brighter our days." Take that into consideration.

THE NOW WHAT

Dream big. Do not say to yourself, "Well I'm stuck here so I might as well make the best of it." Instead, seek out goals and be excited to find a way to reach them. The Cool Cat Teacher Blog provides links to many blog entries of technology ideas that would be useful for teachers on the left hand column of the site. As you read earlier, the author had a dream to create one of the best technology programs in the world and succeeded at it. I would say that this a trustworthy site to get ideas for your classroom. It provides 122 apps and software for you. So take a little bit of time to familiarize yourself, as I did, with the suggestions for teaching with the use of technology found in the many different blog entries on this site.

Generation IM

       In the article Generation IM from Scholastic: Instructor, my eyes were opened even more facts about the impact of this digital age on children. The article states that "67% of preschool children use computers." Although I still sit in wonderment at comments like this, I must come to grips with the truth of this statement in order to be a successful teacher. It goes to show that early elementary students are in need of technology for stimulation, not just the upper grade-level students.

       My favorite quote from the article is this: "We need kids to think about problems in innovative and creative ways. We need to change the emphasis of education to focus on higher-order kinds of thinking." These higher-order kinds of thinking come through the use of technology. That is the new form of connection and communication in today's world. We need to take advantage of the available technology to prepare our students for the world they are going to face.

       I also liked the seven suggestions that the article provided to bring today's technology into the classroom. It did not just list the seven suggestions, but it also provided a detailed description, followed by examples to further explain how technology could best be put to use.

Beginning of Semester Reflection

     Technology has become a huge part of our everyday lives. It seems that children are born with a cellphone or Wii attached to their hand. This is why it is very important for teachers to conduct the use of technology in their classrooms. Without technology today, students begin to shut off their brains because they either feel that the subject has no relevance to everyday life or because they are learning in ways that are unnatural to them. Teachers mush incorporate technology in the classroom through direct instruction, discovery learning, and more. It is the role of the teacher to inspire students to think outside of the box. There are many ways that technology can serve students in K-12 classrooms. There are options of computers, interactive boards, and response systems. It is a new way of thinking and a new way of teaching that I must learn how to do successfully.