iPods in the classroom

Duke University is using iPods in the classroom. I never knew this existed! The number of students has quadrupled using iPods. The classes have also doubled. This would be so convenient for many students. If you don't quite understand something, you could go back and review it and get caught up! In this article, it said that students are expected to use iPods, to enhance classroom materials, lectures or assignments.
The article stated that one student, Gissille Molianr can take here learning experience outside the classroom. I remember siting in class and wanting to go outside so bad, because it was pretty outside! This is a good way to do that! I personally do not have a iPod but if this was offered I would go out and buy one!




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GPS and Geocashing

Dr. Alice Christie taught school for 25 years in K-12 schools. She also taught at Arizona State University from 1995, until her recent retirement. She travels all over speaking and doing workshops nationally. She does this to teach educators how to bring technology into the classroom and enhance their learning experience.
I read the part on GPS and Geocashing. This is a neat way to bring technology into a science or history lesson, to make it fun. With Geocashing you have a GPS and go online to get the coordinates. It will tell you where a geocash is located or you can make up your on geocash and put the coordinates online. You punch in the GPS location and on with your trip. When you get to your location, there is a box with little trinkets and a log book. You sign the book, take a trinket and leave a trinket. Along your way you can talk about different things in the environment and incorporate anything educational along the way. Children need a break from the classroom from time to time. This is a way to make it fun and educational, at the same time!!!

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The reliability of Wikipedia

Wikipedia is an online encyclopedia. Lots of companies and organizations have been going on and changing or deleting some of the information, to make themselves look better. Virgil Griffith offers a database that can be searched and find out who edited what on Wikipedia. With companies and organizations changing things, what accuracy does wikipedia have? Can Wikipedia ever be trusted? Wired magazine said they have 100% of the info with 90% the accuracy. On the NPR pod cast, they believed it will have a positive affect and will make it better. Now people know that it can be traced, they will most than likely not doctor up the information. When things get worked out over a period of time I believe it can be a trusted site!

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My presentation

Is there enough time in the school year???

Barry Bachenheimer is a professor at Montclair State University and the Director of Instruction at Caldwell-West, Caldwell Public Schools in New Jersey. He used the video, Did you know?/Shift happens, at Montclair State University. It was a big hit. One thing that keep coming up was, there's not enough time in the school year...or is it? He made his own 180 days presentation on the waisted days throughout the school year. Sixty days out of the year are waisted. This is something to think about. We need to step up a notch and improve our learning. We need to keep up with the other countries in education, if not being one of the top!

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What do you think about teachers and technology???

What do you think about teachers and technology? Should they take a computer class every few years, to keep up in technology? Do you think they should know some things about computers, or not be able to teach? It's something to think about. I read a blog about this. The writer believed that principals and teachers who were technology illiterate should be held accountable. What makes not sense to me, is that other country's are so far advanced than us and here our educators and principals are illiterate in technology. Nothing has been done about it!
The writer quotes,"If a teacher today is not technologically literate - and is unwilling to make the effort to learn more - it's equivalent to a teacher 30 years ago who didn't know how to read and write." I totally agree with this! With me as a student, if you don't know anything about a computer, your in trouble. You will get behind! Everything is going to technology! It's time to raise our education standards!

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International teachers who blog.

Teachers internationally go along the same line, as the teachers in the U.S. Blogging is to give the parent's a better understanding of what they have going on for the week. Also what home work they will have and it keeps them up to date with the latest technology. I found one teacher in New Zealand, Ms. Jody Hayes. Ms. Hayes teaches ten and eleven year old children and has been blogging for four years now. She has the children blogging about different topics on her web page. When I was in elementary school we had a daily journal. The children in Ms. Hayes class seems to be doing the same thing but by blogging.

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Teacher's using blogs

Today in the classrooms, teachers are using blogs. Ms.Osborne's fourth grade class at Butlerville school, in Miami. She has a blog to keep them up to date. It gives the parents a better understanding of what their children are doing and what's going on for the week. Ms. Osborne has a list of spelling words and vocabulary. Each subject lets them know what they are doing. She also list the test dates for each subject. I think teachers using blogs is a very good idea and needs to happen more often!
Ms. Austin's third grade class at Eisenhower Elementary, also has a class blog. She does about the same thing as Ms. Osborne. There is a list of Homework, spelling words, and the school supply list. Ms. Austin has access to educational games, websites, pictures and videos available to her students. This is something I will do when I become a teacher.

If you would like to visit Ms. Osborne's blog. Click the Icon.
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If you would like to visit Ms. Austin's blog. Click the Icon.
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Did you know???

What does the future hold in technology? After watching the video at www.thefischbowl.blogspot.com/2007/06/did-you-know-20.html, gave me a whole new prospective on technology and education! Our focus as parent's, teachers, board of education, etc, should be to keep our children up to date, with the latest technology! We have much work to do! Our kids spend to much time watching TV, while in other countries are much more strict and well disciplined. They are way more advanced. Americans don't stick with anything. We are lazy and if something doesn't work the first time, we are quick to change, whether it's jobs, our careers, etc. In India 100% know the English language, by the time they are in college. I know that's not true in America, because I don't know a second language. The video estimated that in 10 years, China will be the number one English speaking country. How does that happen? Other countries have 2 million more graduating from college than us. In the video, it also said in developing countries out of 2 billion, one in three never even completes the fifth grade. The more education and technology we know, the more powerful of a country we can be!
Technology is becoming more advanced every day! The possibilities are endless, with the Internet. People are meeting online and some ending up married. Online business are booming, like EBay, with revenue of 6 billion, in 2006. Text messaging can be sent all over the world. With technology becoming more advanced every day, more jobs are becoming available. With websites like myspace, you can keep up with your friends and family members. Will our children keep up and become more advanced? It's is up to us!!! All I can say is Wow!

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