Mobile Larning

Classroom 2.0 seems like a great resource for teachers, I have never heard of this site.  I am excited to be able to use this as a resource.  This site remind me of MACUL, but seems much easier to natigate.  This is going to be a great place to network with other teachers.  The site is very easy to navitgate and is also very appealing to the eye.  It just amazes me that there are so many awesome resources out there!

The next site that I explored was Poll Everywhere, this site allow you to create a survey that can be respond to via text message.  As a second and third grade teacher I can't see myself using this with my students, but I could with the staff.  Creating this poll was easy.  Since this was an exploration I replied to my own poll so I could see how it would work.  My response showed up immediatley!  I think that this tool could be a great resource to use for the  staff.

I would like to definitely try and use Classroom 2.0 in my but I am not sure about using Smart phones in the classroom to replace paper and pencil work completely.  I think that they could be a great tool to access for certain types of lesson but for the students to use everyday all day.  I would have to try it first and see how it went.  I think that it might work in the older grades better then in the lower grades.  I think that there is something to be said about learning to write using paper and pencil.  And not the kids could use a computer to type but using a SMART phone wouldn't even be typing if you ask me.
Currently we do have flip cameras in our district for student use so that could be something that I could try.  Sometimes it is hard to uses devices that either the district or you personally don't have because there is an added expensive.

Wicked Problem Project

The problem that I addressed was multiplication fact fluency.  Over the last several years I have noticed that the multiplication fact fluency in students has gotten decreasing worse.

The solution for my problem is to incorporate my SAMRT Board into math and allow my students to play interactive multiplication math games to help reinforce drill and practice. 

The technology that I have chosen to use is a SMART Board along with interactive websites to help my students practice their multiplication facts in class and get motivated to practice more outside of school.  Since I have been teaching there has always been a struggle to get my students to learn their multiplication facts.  They seem to be lacking the motivation to make the commitment to memorize their facts.  I have used every game, trick and strategy that I could possibly find but nothing really seems to help the students that are slightly unmotivated or those who do not have a lot of support at home.  In the research that I have done there isn’t really a quick or easy way to learn multiplication facts except for drill and practice.  When given all of the strategies and tricks for understanding them the only thing left to do it memorize.  Since I fully believe that kids learn in different ways this will allow for students to practice their facts in a more hands on way.  The interactive games  allowed them to be involved and required the students to  move, which a lot of students need.  It helps to keep the students more interested and motivated.

       The technology that I am using will make the content more accessible to the students by driving their motivation to practice more on their own outside of school. What I have found in using the SMART Board to reinforce learning is that students like to be successful when they are playing another student.  It is also motivating for the other students to watch because they then want to be the one who is up there getting to play the game.  This will also allow for the student to get addition practice that they normally would not have had the opportunity to be a part of.  I will also make a list of the websites to send home with the students so they can have some different ways of practicing at home as well.  Since I gave my students the technology survey I now know that they all have computers with internet access.  This will help to let they parents know how successful their children are.  My hope is that after completing this project I will be able to help other teachers who are also having this problem with their students.

       This project was designed so that students will have the opportunity to practice their multiplication facts in a different, more exciting way.  This has given them more motivation and they are excited about playing a math game.   Since this is a skill that all student need to be able to do fluently, to help them in further math classes and as a skill that is used in everyday life.  My overall goal for my students is that they will be able to increase their mad minute score by at least 5 problems in a minute and be more confident as mathematicians.  I believe that this will help them to become more motivated learners and want to practice their multiplication math facts more!

To view my project click on the link below:

http://www.msu.edu/~drozdowi/wickedproblem.swf

Group Leadership Project

For this project our group decided to use several different tools to present our PD tutorial on Publisher.  We used Jing to show a screen capture and also to record our voices.  We also used Camtasia to do the voice over and screen capture on our final product.  We could not use Jing because it only allows you to record for 5 minutes in a session and we need more than that.  The other group members used Celtx to create the story board. From what I could see it seemed like a good tool.  I would like to investigate it more in the future.

During the development of the final project I learned how to use many new tools.  I got a chance to experiment with Vyew for the first time, which allowed our group to conference.  Through Jing and Camptasia we were able to record screens and voices.  It also opened my eyes to the fact that it is easier than I thought to help your peers and co-workers to incorporate technology into their own classroom.  When you are able to create a tutorial similar to ours it makes teaching and sharing much easier and able to reach more people.

If I had to develop a similar product again I think that our group could have spent less time on the story board.  I think it is good to have a script but I think that the story board was a little too much.  One part that I really like was creating the screen captures for the tutorial, once you got started they were quick and easy to do!

Here is the link to our final project.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DruNzzLPKPc

Personal Learning Reflection

In reflecting back at  where I started in the fall with CEP 810 I can’t believe how much I have learned in just a few short months.  I must say that I am surprised at how much easier the work became during the last 2 courses.  Now, that isn’t because I thought the assignments were easier,  it was because I felt more confident as a learner with technology.  The biggest change that I have noticed in myself is the confidence that I now have in regards to technology.  I use to be afraid to try new things and now it excites me, I have to tools and the motivation to figure things out.   Not only have these courses benefited me as an educator but also personally.  I found a new excitement in my career and it excites me to be able to work with my students as well as my peers and co-workers.   There are so many new tools that I now have to use in my teaching, planning and personally.

One of the goals that I set for myself back in the fall was that I wanted to reach out and share what I had learned with my peers and co-workers.  I have begun to branch out and start talking with my co-workers about the great things we have learned about and offered to share things with with them.   What I am noticing is that a lot of people feel the way that I use to, scared and intimidated by technology.   The media teacher and I have talked about doing some professional development for our staff to present some of the useful tools to them.

Another goal that I had for myself was incorporating the SMART Board more in to the everyday curriculum which I have been very successful with.  When I first started the school year I basically used the SMART Board as a glorified overhead projector.  Because I haven’t had any training I had no idea what the SMART Board could actually do and I was too intimidated to try.  Through several projects and my own curiosity I am now using the SMART Board to make my lessons more interactive and to help motivate my students through games that support what we are learning.  One example of how I used the SMART Board for a math lesson to teach fractions.  I had the students come up to the SMART board and shade in the fraction that was being represented.  Another option that the SMART Board offers that I just recently learned about was the option to print the lessons and documents that have been created.  This is a great option for students who need assistance with writing or for students that are absent or out the class.

Using my blog has become a lot easier for me as well.  Possibly next year, I would like to start a classroom blog to communicate with parents.  When we first started to use our blogs I wasn’t crazy about blogging to say the least.  I couldn’t wait to be done with CEP so I didn’t have to blog anymore.  Fortunately, I don’t feel that way anymore.  I have seen how valuable it can be in a classroom

There has been a multitude of lessons and tools that we have been introduced to that have really gotten me thinking about the how and why technology is important and how it can reach all types of learners.

My goal after this certification is complete is to make technology part of my everyday classroom routine.  By using what I have learned and by explores new things on my own.  Now that I have a taste of what it can do I don’t think I will ever go back to teaching without it.  It definitely benefits everyone involved.

Part D:Findings and Implications

Whenever you get a new, great idea I think that you always have high hopes and big dreams for implementation.  I tend to think that I will be able to accomplish more than I am actually able to get done.   I never take into consideration the everyday events that come up that will set you back.  Given that we had a short time to create and implement our wicked projects I feel that the timeline was already short.  I would have liked to start my plan a little bit sooner purely for the fact that we didn’t have a lot of time.  On top of that our district had a week off for spring break so that was less time that I had to implement my plan with my students.

Unfortunately I will not be able to really measure the success of my plan for several more weeks.  We had only been using the SMART Board for a very short time due to our break and I feel that my students need more time for me to really see the growth that I anticipate.  I did see a lot of motivation and excited in the kids, which was exciting for me because I had really hoped for that.

I really like the idea that this project presents.  The steps that I have taken are steps that I would definitely use again to approach other problems that we are faced with in education.  There are so many possibilities that and problems that you could possibly and address and try and fix.  The possibilities are endless especially with all of the new technologies that I have learned about.

The advice that I would have for others is to allow for amply time to completion.  Especially if you are looking for long term, lasting effects you need to allow plenty of time to complete the entire process.  Also I think that before you even start to implement your project it needs to be very well thought out.

For other teacher embarking on this journey I would make sure that you have concrete data to compare your results to.  And also know that because multiplication facts are a drill and practice skill it does take time to see the growth.  On top of using the SMART Board to help reinforce the facts it is important to the teacher to teach the other strategies for learning multiplication.

 

Part C - Implementation

https://netfiles.msu.edu/?path=/afs/msu/user/d/r/drozdowi/web/wickedproblemc_0.mp3

http://www.msu.edu/~drozdowi/wickedproblemc.mp3

Part B Storyboard and Script

Our storyboard: https://docs.google.com/present/edit?id=0AbgD1TeExDUBZGNtZzM2c3JfMGNzc240N2ho&hl=en

Our script:
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1NWWsVsGK8ZbWqBTv_5BRFcSmevzA1h0K_41IRUS0VXc/edit?hl=en

Above I have listed the links to our storyboard and script.  Kellie and Chessi worked on the script and storyboard.   We all communicated back and forth to make sure that we were including the correct parts into the script and storyboard.  Jodi and I worked together to record the tutorials.  At first, we thought that we would use a video camera and do an actual video of ourselves showing how to use publisher.  As we began to set this up we were finding that our camera could not get a clear picture so we decided to do a screen capture using Jing.  We couldn’t believe how easy is it was to do the screen capture.   If only converting the files would have been that easy.  With the help of our media specialist Jodi and I were successful able to get the tutorials converted and loaded properly onto the Prezi.  We will all be working to make sure that the final project is successfully done.

Part B Application of TPACK

1.        The technology that I have chosen to use is a SMART Board along with interactive websites to help my students practice their multiplication facts in class and get motivated to practice more outside of school.  Since I have been teaching there has always been a struggle to get my students to learn their multiplication facts.  I have used every game, trick and strategy that I could possibly find but nothing really seems to help the students that are slightly unmotivated or those who do not have a lot of support at home.  In the research that I have done there isn’t really a quick or easy way to learn multiplication facts except for drill and practice.  When given all of the strategies and tricks for understanding them the only thing left to do it memorize.  Since I fully believe that kids learn in different ways this will allow for students to practice their facts in a more hands on way.  The interactive games will allow them to be involved and require movement, which a lot of students need.  It helps to keep the students more interested and motivated.

2.      The technology that I am using will make the content more accessible to the students by driving their motivation to practice more on their own outside of school. What I have found in using the SMART Board to reinforce learning is that students like to be successful when they are playing another student.  It is also motivating for the other students to watch because they then want to be the one who is up there getting to play the game.  This will also allow for the student to get addition practice that they normally would not have had the opportunity to be a part of.  I will also make a list of the websites to send home with the students so they they can have some different ways of practicing at home as well.  Since I gave my students the technology survey I now know that they all have computers with internet access.  This will help to let they parents know how successful their children are.  My hope is that after completing this project I will be able to help other teachers who are also having this problem with their students.

3.      I have designed this project so that students will have the opportunity to practice their multiplication facts in a different more exciting way.  Since this is a skill that all student need to be able to do fluently, to help them in further math classes and as a skill that is used in everyday life,  ,my overall goal for my students is that they will be able to increase their mad minute score by at least 5 problems in a minute and be more confident as mathematicians.  I believe that this will help them to become more motivated learners and want to practice their multiplication math facts more!

I would definitely do this project again.  I am sure that I could find newer, better interactive sites for the kids to practice and use.  I would also like to start this project at the very beginning of my multiplication unit and not part way through.  I think that I would see different result.  Next time I would also think about having some volunteers come in to help monitor the SMART Board.  Then I would really know that my students are using the SMART Board in the correct way.

Trying to find research that supports my solution was not an easy task.  I found a lot of information that told how other teachers teach multiplication facts and what the others thought the best approach was but I was very limited in terms of finding research that showed playing math games would help kids to learn their multiplication math facts.  In one study that I found from the University of Sydney titled Improving Basic Multiplication Fact Recall for Primary School Students it compared using paper and pencil with computer practice to drill the students.  The results from the study showed that the students made about the same improvement using pencil and paper practice as compared to computer practice.    They did suggest that computer –based practice can be better because some of the programs provide instant feedback for the students (Evans, 2007). 

Another document  that I found was Fact Mastery and More!, this document said that not only do you need drill and practice but you also need to incorporate four main teaching principles when teaching multiplication facts.  First you need to teach the strategies.  Then, use visual representation.  Next, present the facts in a thoughtful order.  Finally, generalize the facts. This supports my thoughts and practices in that I feel I am doing the right type of teaching.  Unfortunately, it doesn’t give any information to back up my thinking that playing multiplication math games will help students to more fluently learn their facts.  (Woodward)

Evans, M. W. (2007). Improving Basic Multiplication Fact Recall for Primary School Students. Mathematics Education Research Journal , 89-106.

Woodward. (n.d.). University of Puget Sound. Retrieved April 2011, from www.ups.edu/faculty/woodward/facts%20overview.pdf

Web Conferencing

For the web conferencing lab our group decided to use Vyew.  We had used this site before for the text tool and thought that it was pretty easy to use.  It’s funny how some ideas can seem like great ideas but then flop.  It was really neat to be able to see and talk with everyone at the same time but for our group it wasn’t a good choice.  Trying to correspond our schedules to be on the computer at the same time was more work that it was worth.  When you take full time jobs, families, checking papers and all of the other things that life throws at you it is hard to set that up.  Technology definitely helps our group in other ways but in a less demanding way.  By using text messages and emails it allowed us to connect with others when it was convenient for each of us.

I could see this tool being used in the classroom for other purposes.  You could talk with other students and classroom all over.  I think that the kids would absolutely love it!

Part A – Description of Need or Opportunity

  The problem that I would like to address is basic multiplication math facts. I have seen an overwhelming issue with kids learning their basic multiplication facts, each year they seem to be less successful with this task.  This also creates another problem; they cannot quickly and precisely complete other math assignments that involve basic fact multiplication. The GLEC's state that students should fluently know their multiplication math facts.

 Since I already have a SMART Board I would like to incorporate that as my use of technology.  I have already found some interactive games that can be used with addition and subtraction facts practice so I am sure that I can find games that support multiplication fact practice.  I would like to incorporate the use of the SMART Board as an everyday tool for the students to use to help them practice their facts, on top of the other games that I have taught.  I think that the SMART Board will help to motivate the students to practice more at home and maybe even use some of the technology they are seeing at school, at home as well.  In knowing that kids learn in different ways I have used a multitude of different strategies to try and help my students to learn their multiplication facts.  I have tried skip counting, chanting, flashcards, memorization through repetition, songs, trick and tips, fact families, arrays and even bribery!  Nothings seems to work effectively for the majority of students. 

  Using the games every day will help the students drill and practice in a more interesting way.  My plan is to allow the students to use the SMART Board in the mornings during seatwork time as well as during math time.  I would like to use a rotation system to ensure that all of the students get a chance to play the games. I would like the students to be practicing using the SMARTBoard everyday for the first 2 weeks.  After that, we will go done to two or three times a week to help reinforce the facts.  Since I already track the students on if they know their multiplication math facts or not it will be easy to see if there are improvements that are being made.  The kids are assessed weekly by completing a fact sheet that is timed.  They are also are given the option to take an oral test.  So I already have some data to compare it with.  I think that it will be important to keep the kids practicing the facts even when we move on to another math unit.

In searching for research on this topic I wasn’t very successful.  There are tons of websites that offer ideas to help the kids learn the facts but nothing seemed research based.  They all basically say the same tips and strategies to use (which I have tried).  So I took it upon myself to talk with other teachers and see what they thought and what exactly they used to practice the multiplication facts.  Unfortunately, we all seem to be in the same boat.  The problem is unanimous; no one has a good program that is effective for most kids.  Maybe the games, coupled with the other strategies that I use will do the trick!

Personal Introduction

Here is the link to my personal introduction:
http://jaycut.com/community/mixes/v7hhaE9Th/h264-mp4-medium.mp4?0

PART A-Brainstorm Session

Below I have listed the link where you can find our web conferenceing session:

http://www.msu.edu/~satovsk6/part3.swf


For th brainstorming part of this project our group decided that we would use vyew as our web conferencing tool.  After a few minor setbacks we all figured out how to use vyew on a very basic level.  I think that one of the advantages of using vyew would be the fact that you can allow each of your group members to share at the same time, it makes it feel like you are in the room with your group. As for a diadvantage, it did get a little confusing at times because everything was being posted all over the screen.  Is there a way to better organize what is being posted?  That would be something to furhter investigate.  It seemed to help a little when we could organized the comments a little by moving them on the screen.  I could see that this would a powerful tool for students to use when they need to communicate with others who are  far away.  You can have multiple people involved in the same conferenceing session, pretty cool!  For our purposes on this assignment I think that it would have been nice to be able to  have a video capture of our session.  But then we wouldn't have been able to explore another technology!! Unfortunately, I didn't get to explore this as much as I would have like but I am excited to add this new tool to my technology tool box!

Personal Reflection

What are some things that you have learned about effective teaching strategies when integrating technology?

In thinking about effective teaching strategies when incorporating technology I have learned a lot.  First, whenever you are dealing with technology in the classroom you need to be prepared.  That also includes having a backup plan and trying out the technologies on different computers.  I found that what works on one computer isn’t always the case on another.  I think it also helps if you can sometimes start the desired lesson with smaller groups.  Especially at the elementary level the kids like to be involved and doing things.  So if you can use small group then everyone could have a change to use the technologies if they are interactive.  Also, I think that it is important for the teacher to know which programs they have access to on the technologies they have available.

How did integrating web-based technologies help you think about and evaluate uses of technology?

I am amazed at how easy it is to access help on the technologies that we have been learning about.  I was always so afraid of technology because I felt that I didn’t know anything, but now I don’t feel that way.  Unfortunately the technologies that I have available in my district don’t always support the new tools and programs that we are learning about.  I am excited to try and use what I can when it is supported.  But, I feel very confident in trying new things as well!

How have you met your own personal goals for learning about technology integration?

Personally, I have been pleasantly surprised at the ease I experienced in using the new technologies presented in this course.  I find myself feeling more confident in experimenting with the unknow.  Before I started these courses I would have never imagined that I would be accomplishing the thing I have.  I have worked with websites before but I really enjoy seeing all of the programs available and being able to choose the program that would work best for me.  I feel that I have a huge variety of tools that I can know access and feel confident using.  I am excited to continue with this journey.  

Do you have any new goals? What are your plans for reaching your new goals and your long-term goals after this course is over?

As this class comes to a close my mind is turning and turning with new ideas on how I will use the new technologies we have learned about.  In knowing what I have available I plan to create addition STAIR presentation that will help my student.  I would also like to use more media in my lessons and try and make them more interactive.  I am trying to keep my goals small, therefore they are attainable.  I have high hopes for myself in this tech savy world!

UDL Principles

During this assignment I have evaluated a subtraction lesson that I have created analyzed how and if I have used the ULD strategies in my lesson.  It was interesting to see what I had used and what I had not.  Also, what I had not added in my lesson that I just assumed would be in there.

Check out my link!

Evalution of Merlot Materials

In looking for a lesson to review on Merlot I found that the site was very easy to navigate.  I would type in a topic and or subject area and it would find the related material and or lessons.  I found that it was very difficult to find lessons that I would be able to use in my classroom.  There were a lot of resources that I found that needed to be purchase and downloaded.  I also found that the searches I was doing did not bring up the materials that I expected.  After many different types of searches I still wasn't able to find exactly what I was looking for.  I did find one lesson on government.
Overall I wasn't too thrilled with Merlot.  I cannot see myself using this as a go to resource.
Quality of Content
This site presented accurate information and concepts that aligned with the social studies curriculum.  It gave accurate vocabulary that would be suitable for 2nd and 3rd grade students.  It also used age appropriate pictures to support the material.
Potential Effectiveness as a Teaching Learning Tool
In evaluation the 2nd grade material I think that this is a valuable tool for a teacher.  This material would be good for the teacher to use to help teach government to second graders by using it as supplemental material.  The information is accurate but it might not draw the kids in very well.  There is nothing interactive in the materials it is all pretty straight forward, it presents the material in a power point fashion.  There was a page that you could click on that would allow you to print off games and coloring pages but nothing real valuable that supports the content.
Ease of Use
The site was very easy to navigate around.  I would see the benefit of having a student use this page.  Great info for a teacher who was just starting out and wanted some kid friendly terms!