Social Networking

   

The group that I joined on diigo was brain hacking.  I joined this group because I am very interested in brain research as it is related to teaching and learning.  This diigo group is a full of websites and articles related to how the brain works, and ways to alter the way the brain works.  I’ve an interest in this topic since I began working on my masters and have been studying and reading articles on brain mind education.  The science end of the research is very interesting, but the reading is very heavy; therefore many teachers are reluctant to look into this practice.  I find it intriguing to understand the brain and as was an educator I believe it is my responsibility to understand how people learn.

Social networking sites have become a very popular way for people of all ages to communicate, collaborate, and stay in touch with friends , acquaintances, loved ones, family members, and business associates.  Social networking sites are appealing to people of all ages, races, sexes, and genders.  They have changed how we communicate and made it easier to reach out to people from your past.

 I think for youth in particular social networking sites give one a sense of identity.  They allow youth to participate socially and keep up to date on the latest trends and highlight their own personal interests.   Adults are attracted to social networking sites for some of the same reasons as younger people, but I believe networking and family connections are the main attraction.  Rather young or old social networking sites appeal to all ages because they allow us to communicate in a very non threatening manner.

Currently, I believe social networking can be a distraction for most educational settings, unless a page is being used for educational reasons.   The school I work at is piloting Facebook.  Teachers are allowed to access their sites, but are monitored for activity. I have several teaching resources I access through Facebook, such as scholastic, donors.org, NASA, ODE, and a few others.    I’ve also used it once with my students to show a photo of a bald eagle my aunt took and posted to her page.  The students had read a nonfiction article about bald eagles and the role of the division of wildlife.  I ran across my aunt’s post and pictures and shared it with my students.  They were engaged and interested in me sharing part of my life with them.  I will be the first one to admit I am tempted to check my Facebook during the work day; it is usually open on my desk top. 

I use Facebook and LinkedIn.  I just recently became a member of LinkedIn and I use this site primarily to follow educators and current research trends.  I plan on keeping this site purely professional.   A parent of one of my students sent me an invitation.   She is currently working on her bachelor’s in education and after a conversation we realized we shared many of some philosophies when it came to education.  I try to keep my Facebook strictly social, but I do have a few colleagues.  I have had issues in the past that have caused some controversy with my work place.  An employee reported to a dean that I posted a comment on a day I called off sick.  It wasn’t really an issue with my superiors, but it upset me that my colleague tried to take it there.  I’ve also had to ask some of my friends and family to watch what they say on their page due to my ethical obligation as a teacher.  Overall, I use Facebook to keep current with my friends and family and to find teaching ideas and resources. 

Gaming in the classroom??

     Using gaming and other visual stimulation activates engagement, gives immediate feedback, promotes critical thinking, and gives student a real experience to connect their learning too.  Arne Duncan, the US Secretary of Education, cites that games offer feedback to the player, can be used to assess comprehension and provide problem solving opportunities (Johnson, Adams and Haywood p 18). 

     Gaming is also a great tool when you want to differentiate instruction.  I use coolmath.com, which is a game site created for student learning.  There are all sorts of math activities from learning vocabulary, to practicing facts and application, to digital gaming which introduces more complex math concepts.  This site is great resource when you want to add some zest to your lesson plans.  The students enjoy it and are able to ask for help if needed.

      The second site I investigated and have also used with my own students is industrylayer.com.    I used this site as an extension to my economics unit I taught were the students and I created an economic system in our classroom.  The students and I investigated the game in the classroom as a group and then they were instructed to use it during their free time at home.  The students were able to have an authentic experience verses the created system in the classroom. 

     The parents of my students were very impressed with what the students created.  We followed up the unit by having career day.  The parents came in and spoke about their careers and the students shared what they learned either in the classroom economic system and a career they researched or using the information from the site industry.com. NMC Horizon Report: 2011 K-12 Edition that on average gamers are in their mid-thirties and that 64% of parents view electronic games are a “positive force in their children’s lives” (p 18).   Using this site also offered a great school parent connection.

     The third site I investigated was http://more.starfall.com/. This site was tailored for younger students, but it offered great resources for teachers and parent for math and reading.  The site was children friendly and was brightly colored and attractive.  It also had multiplication and division as well as some great songs to accommodate a curriculum.

     In my opinion, gaming is a great resource to use in an educational setting.  It benefits the teachers, parents, and the students.  Gaming offers a great way to differnitate instruction and offers a home school connection.   Gaming has etched its way permanently into our society so using this resource in the classroom teachers curriculum and supports technology skills.

           

Johnson, L., Adams, S., and Haywood, K., (2011). The NMC Horizon Report: 2011 K-12 Edition. Austin, Texas: The New Media Consortium.

Johnson, L., Smith, R., Willis, H., Levine, A., and Haywood, K., (2011). The 2011 Horizon Report.

Austin, Texas: The New Media Consortium.

www.industryplayer.com

www.coolmath.com

 http://more.starfall.com/

Open Content and EBooks

I access lesson plans and activities frequently from the internet and modify them for use in my classroom.  Until this week’s assignment I was unaware that this process had a name and was getting the attention that it has.  I work at a charter school and teach science and social studies to 4^th grade students.  I do not have text books for either subject so it’s my responsibility as the teacher to find information that matches the content and standards I teach.  When I find a good lesson I change some aspects of it to meet my student’s needs and I tend to “own” it by adapting it to my teaching style.  If used correctly open content has many advantages for teachers and students alike.

I think educators understand the importance of sharing resources, but I do understand how some would disagree with open content.  I frequently share ideas with colleagues and eventually I plan on sharing my ideas on line as well.  Open content reminds me of a saying passed along to me during my internships as a pre-service teacher, I was told to successful as a beginning teacher to I would need to, “Beg, borrow, and steal.”

Although, I believe this is somewhat unethical,  I also believe to be a great educator it is necessary to gather  up to date lesson plans and ideas that are proven to work.  Another disadvantage of open content is the possibility of the information not being credible or if a teacher uses a lesson plan or idea without changing it to meet the needs of the students or their particular style.  Both of these issues can be avoided if the teacher checks the information first.  The issue of ethics can also be corrected if you just simply cite where you obtained the information.  I teach the students not to plagiarize, so I make sure to point out where I found a particular idea with my students.  Creative Commons can help to remedy this issue by allowing information to be shared, and protected by licenses.  http://creativecommons.org/licenses/.

I also agree, with the Horizon Report (20110 that EBooks will be next big thing for educators to use in the classroom.  EBooks offer interactive activities and lessons and are very engaging for the studenst and easy to use for the classroom teacher.  With all the information available on the World Wide Web it would be elementary to assume it wouldn’t be shared among professions.  Ebooks and Open content offer up to date material that other educators have used and has been proven to be effective in the classroom.  I believe this topic with continue to be heavily debated and in regards to ethics and copy writes, but the advantages out way the controversy.