Sunday, September 4, 2011

WebQuest!

Hey everyone for my final I did a WebQuest on the life cycle of a butterfly! This was the first WebQuest I have ever done and it was similar to designing a web page. It was difficult at first until I realized I had to save everything every 2 seconds and the design was really hard to figure out too. I wasn't able to change the background color or my text color although by clicking on my web links they turned hot pink, awesome! But after the first time through I'm sure it would get easier as you go. In reality the hardest part is getting your free 30 day account set up because when I did it, it wasn't working so I emailed them monday and it took them until wednesday to set mine up. I think it costs $30 a year or so for teachers who want to buy a membership. It could be useful as it makes students literally search the internet for the information, it is not just handed or given to them. I think it is pretty cool. I hope you enjoy!


http://questgarden.com/130/66/6/110830190203/index.htm

Saturday, September 3, 2011

Class Websites

This is my final project.  I am teaching anatomy and physiology this year.  I found out I was teaching this class two weeks before school starts.  I still don't have enough books for all of my students.  I also have two independent study students this year.  I need to way for the independent study and regular students to have a resource of what we will be going over.  The Google Site page I created will be beneficial for both my students and myself.  The students can go to the site and look at what we will be covering and what assignments they will have for the chapter.  This site will also allow students to be able to put on the site any additonal resource that they find to help in the class.  This allows the independent study students a place to look up what assignments they have for the week and not have to find me and ask me in the middle of my other classes what they are supposed to be doing during the week.  With limited time, I was able to get up to Chapter 5.  When I have all of the teaching resources, I plan on putting all of the lesson powerpoints, images from the book and other resources or assignments as links on the site.  I know this isn't complete but I showed enough progress to see what I can accomplish on this site.

https://sites.google.com/site/mkochlsa/

Calendar Basic Weebly

Please visit my Weebly. This was my first time using a Weebly. Pretty easy but froze a few times here and there. It is very basic but I hope to keep working on it so I can use it for our staff tech day in November. I am better using Word or Pages and especially had trouble with their number lists and the undo/redo feature didn't work for me. You can upgrade to Weebly Pro but there is a fee then.

Tablets: Should High Schools Implement Them Into Their Classrooms?

Tablets: Should High Schools Implement Them Into Their Classrooms?

Brett McKinney

Tablets or PPDs (Post-PC Devices) are relatively recent advancements in computer technology. They are somewhat of a cross between smart-phone and a laptop, offering the format and similar functionality of a smart-phone and some of the capabilities of a laptop, with portability that is somewhere in between. The use of these devices is probably in its infancy, and many of the potential uses for educational purposes probably have yet to be developed. The popularity of these relatively new devices, in education and as a productivity tool in the business world, would indicate that they are likely to become an important part of high school education in the near future. This paper will first discuss the rapid evolution of technology in the past. The potential pitfalls and benefits of choosing to use tablet devices in high school education today will be examined. The following pages will also explore the current uses of these new devices in education today, and the potential for short term educational use advancements. It will also offer a comparison between the use of tablets and computers for educational purposes and discuss the advantages and disadvantages to choosing these devices over computers or additional computers for a high school today.

As recently as the mid 1990’s computer access and use was largely restricted in many high schools. At that time laptop computers were a technological revolution, wireless connectivity was unheard of, and the portable technologies that exist a mere fifteen years later were unimaginable to most of us. “While the origins of e-learning date as far back as the 60's, the nature of technology facilitated learning has experienced exponential rates of change even in the last decade (Murphy, 2011).” A little over a decade ago, in many high schools, student use of computers was limited to typing courses and very basic computer skills courses in a classroom designated as a computer lab. Occasionally, there were a few other computers spread throughout the school such as in the library. Content area classrooms rarely had a computer for teachers let alone for student use. Times have certainly changed. Today it is not uncommon for content area classrooms to have a desktop for each student, or a ratio that approaches one computer for each student. Students today complete a great deal of their core content class work with the use of a computer. The use of laptops in the high school classroom has started, in many cases, to take the place of the desktop. Over the past two years a new technological advancement has come to the forefront in high school education. With Apple, Inc.’s 2010 release of the iPad and similar windows and android based devices, tablet technologies are being looked at as supplements and in some cases replacements for computer technology for the high school classroom.

When Apple first announced the release of the iPad they marketed the device for multimedia and entertainment purposes. Their marketing highlighted the web browsing capabilities, video and music playback features, and the use of the device as a reader of e-books and other electronic media. “I don’t believe Apple anticipated the demand for iPads as educational devices. When they were first released, more than one Apple sales representative suggested that iPads were designed for personal media consumption and laptops would be a more appropriate investment for schools (Gliksman, 2011).” Due to this marketing strategy a great deal of people view these devices in such a manner. Much of the tax paying public will need to be convinced that spending their tax dollars on these devices for educational purposes is worthwhile and justifiable. Currently, it is a tough argument to say that these devices are capable of replacing desktop or laptop computers. Thus the idea of their use in high schools has to be sold as a necessary supplement to what students are learning on those technologies.

Another downside to the use of tablets is that they are currently formatted for use primarily as a single user device. Thus the most effective implementation of them into the classroom would require the purchase of one for each student.

Sharing: iPads are intensely personal devices that record your digital footprint - logins, preferences and more. There’s no login process. This makes them difficult to share. A 1:1 iPad implementation requires very different planning than an implementation that shares iPads among students. My hope is that educational app developers will see the obvious need for sharing in schools and add login layers to their apps (Gliksman, 2011).

From a usability standpoint the main negative is the lack of an efficient input device. The touch screen while very user friendly is not nearly as efficient as the traditional keyboard and mouse that are used with desktops. Even the integrated keyboard and mouse of a laptop are far superior to the offerings available for tablets.

While these devices may be a tough sell to parents and other tax payers of a school district, and some other drawbacks exist, they do offer a variety of benefits to a high school student’s education.

While these devices may be a tough sell to parents and other tax payers of a school district, and some other drawbacks exist, they do offer a variety of benefits to a high school student’s education.

Barbara Schroeder identifies 10 ways to use an iPad as an educator: Reading, Listening/Viewing, Conduct On-Demand Research, Organizing, Publication, Communicate/Collaborate, Facilitate Note Taking, Offer Individualized Instruction, Teach Personal Responsibility, and Gaming (Schroeder, 2011). In addition to Schroeder’s ten uses other advantages to the acquisition of tablets for secondary education purposes include: The devices are not terribly expensive, and arguably you get more bang for your buck when compared to other technologies. The touch interface of a tablet is simple to use and easy for novice users to adapt to. Use of iPads and similar devices exposes students to cutting edge technology that is being used by many institutions of higher learning in a variety of ways.

As a reading device tablets are nearly identical to the eReader devices that preceded them. They offer similar screen sizes and clear easy to read displays. Tablets also have the advantage of independent connectivity, allowing the user to download media directly to their device. These devices offer the potential to replace the traditional textbook. As of now the demand for eTextbooks exceeds the supply, but this potential appears as if it will be a reality in the near future. “After trying out the Apple iPad for a short period—about three weeks—three out of four college freshman said they’d be willing to purchase an Apple iPad personally if at least half of the textbooks they used during their college career were available digitally (Schaffhauser, 2011).” The potential for tablet technology is also currently impeded by the cost to do so. Some expect this barrier to be eliminated in the future. Dian Schaffhauser quotes Scott Perkins, coordinator of mobile learning research at Abilene Christian University:

“Until those digital textbooks are equal to or more cost-efficient than the print textbook, there’s not much motivation to spend the money on technology-and I don’t mean just for [our school], but in general, for faculty, for students, for universities. If textbooks are going to be just as expensive, then why would we spend $500 to $700 on a reader platform?” “It should be more cost efficient. You don’t have to cut down trees, print, bind, and store and ship, and so on. But so far we’ve not seen that movement (Schaffhauser, 2011).”

As a listening device tablets have the same capabilities as the iPod and similar devices with slightly less portability. As a viewing device the combination of screen size, accessibility, and portability is unrivaled by any other technology. Computers are as capable and offer larger screen sizes but even laptops cannot compete with the portability of a tablet. Smaller devices such as smart-phones offer similar access to video media and are superior in terms of portability, but the screen size and resolution when compared to a tablet is lacking significantly.

Much like the video viewing capabilities, tablets are unrivaled in their ability to be used as portable research devices. These devices can easily be taken just about anywhere a student would need to go and in most of those places would have access to the web for conducting research for nearly any topic.

Another major benefit for students and teachers is the capability of PPDs to be used as a portable organizer. With calendar and note taking apps these devices provide an organizational tool that an individual can take with them and access quickly if needed.

Another significant ability of tablets for high school education purposes is their ability as communication and collaboration devices. The iPad 2 as well as other devices are Web 2.0 compatible. Students can use these devices to edit Web 2.0 based web pages if their class has such a site. They can also use their tablets to send and receive electronic messages allowing them to communicate with teachers and classmates.

Possibly the most productive use of tablets for students is their capabilities as a note taking device. In his blog, the Apple Blog, Josh Pigford identifies seven note taking applications for the iPad. He opens his blog post on note taking applications by stating: “Whether you’re writing a simple article for a blog, piecing together the next blockbuster hit, or penning a 500 page romance novel, there are quite a few options for helping you get all of that information organized and drafted. There really are enough to choose from with a wide enough range of options that you’re sure to find something to fit your needs (Pigford, 2011).”

While there are many benefits of using PPDs in the classroom for both students and teachers, the greatest reason for implementing these devices into a high school classroom does not really involve how they are used. The best reason that teachers should implement these devices is that it will better prepare students for their future outside of the classroom. That is what education is really all about preparing students for their future, and providing them with skills and knowledge to help them succeed in life. Students today often do not feel technologically prepared when they finish high school. “Although 60 percent of students reported that their teachers used technology to teach, only 26 percent said that they were encouraged to use technology themselves to learn. Forty-three percent were uncertain that they felt prepared to use technology in college and the workforce, and wanted to do more with it in their courses (BizEd, 2011).” In Murphy’s study he cites 36 colleges and universities that are using iPads in some capacity for their students (Murphy, 2011). Tablets are also being used by businesses and their use in the business world is expanding rapidly. Keir Thomas cites the ChangeWave survey:

“It asked 1641 business IT buyers if they were planning to get tablets and, if they already had them, what they used them for. Seven percent of respondents said their company provides employees with tablets. Fourteen percent of respondents said they planned to get tablets in the first quarter of this year—a rapid rate of growth (Thomas, 2011).”

Valentino Luccio observes “A recent study from Robert Half Technology shows that companies nationwide expect to increase tablet usage by 50 percent within the next two years. As mobile technologies develop and more computer tablets hit the market, businesses are seeing the benefits of utilizing the devices (Luccio, 2011).” It is evident that today’s high school students are likely to encounter these devices in their future. Whether a student plans to enter college or find a job after graduation there is a good chance that they will be asked to use a tablet in their future endeavors. To fully prepare a high school student they need to be exposed to the technologies that they are likely to work with outside of school.

There are many benefits to high school student through the implementation of tablet technologies into their classrooms. Unfortunately schools do need to operate under budgetary constraints. When push comes to shove where does the acquisition of tablets stand in comparison to other technology. If a budget decision needs to be made between laptops and tablets what device should be chosen? The following is a comparison of the two technologies:

· Cost: Laptops are generally cheaper than tablets

· Portability: Tablets are far more portable and useable on the go than a laptop

· Potential for Use Outside of High School: While tablets are being used extensively and their use is growing rapidly, they still have a long way to go before they eclipse computers in usage beyond high school.

· Potential to Replace Textbooks: The purchase of PPD could alleviate the need for schools to purchase many textbooks, and in the future could replace the textbook completely. While this is true if textbooks are available electronically for tablets they would be accessible on computer technology as well. PPDs do make better and more convenient readers than a laptop.

· Communication tool: Computers are powerful communication devices with the ability to send and receive, and input information to send and receive very quickly. Tablets are good communication devices as well, and are much more portable. The tablets lack of an efficient input method when compared to a computer, makes the computer the better communication tool for a high school student.

· Educational Gaming: Options exist for both the computer and tablets. It would be hard to argue that one device is better than the other for this purpose.

· Share-ability & Management: A laptop can be set up with multiple log-ins and easily shared among several students. As discussed above tablets, specifically the iPad, are very personal devices and are difficult to share.

· Students Need to be Exposed to Cutting Edge Technology: Tablets have the edge here. There seems to be a growing trend in many industries to put these devices to use in a productive manner. In many instances tablets are serving as a more practical replacement of laptops.

While it is true that tablet use, as a productive tool, is becoming more prevalent computers are still the predominant technology in the business world. Computer use is also extremely important for college students. In order to be prepared for life outside of high school a student must know how to use a computer. Knowing how to use a tablet is useful, knowing how to use a computer is necessary. Tablets may one day be the predominant technology used in the world. Today that title belongs to the computer by a large margin.

If a school has room in the budget to implement tablets into their classrooms their students would be well served by such an acquisition. There are a great many benefits to a high school student using and understanding how to use tablet technology. Tablet use will increase a students productivity and provide them with skills that will probably be valuable outside of the classroom.


References Cited

BizEd Staff. (2011) Preparing Teens for Campus Tech, BizEd March/April 2011, 63-64

Gliksman, Sam. (2011) One Year Later: Assessing the Impact of iPads on Education, http://ipadeducators.ning.com/profiles/blog/list?user=371wq83chgfc5

Luccio, Valentino. (2011) Laptops Gather Dust as Business Turns to Tablets, http://www.mysanantonio.com/business/article/Laptops-gather-dust-as-business-turns-to-tablets-1050645.php

Murphy, Glen D. (2011) Post-PC Devices: A Summary of Early iPad Technology Adoption in Tertiary Environments, e-Journal of Business Education &Scholarship of Teaching, v.5 iss. 1, 18-32

Pigford, Josh (2007) Note Taking Application Faceoff, http://gigaom.com/apple/note-taking-application-faceoff/

Schaffhauser, Dian (2011) Is the iPad Ready to Replace the Printed Textbook?, http://campustechnology.com/Articles/2011/06/15/Is-the-iPad-Ready-To-Replace-the-Printed-Textbook.aspx?p=1

Schroder, Barbara (2011) 7 Reasons You Need an iPad in Your Classroom and 10 Ways to Use Them, http://itcboisestate.wordpress.com/2011/01/04/10_ways_ipad/

Thomas, Keir (2011) How Useful are Tablets for Business?, http://www.pcworld.idg.com.au/article/372955/how_useful_tablets_business_/

Friday, September 2, 2011

My final project

Here is my final project that is a Wiki I built around the unit I have been developing over the course of the program on "The Great Gatsby." I know that as a class we have used wikispaces before to contribute to and create wikis but I was excited to try a few different things this time around. For the main page, I created a "glog" on glogster.com and I was able to use that glog as the links to my subpages from the mainpage. I think it turned out well and I am excited to use glogs in the future with my students. I also used the Speaking Image website that Christa blogged about a few weeks ago. I used it to create a map that pinpoints some of the locations in the book and I played around with attaching images and information to the tags. I'm sure there was a lot else that I could have done with Speaking Image but I'm sure it will be something I play around with in later materials creation.
I added some content to each of the chapter pages but I envision this wiki as a way for students to create content and post their responses to each of the chapter questions so that when they are done they have created a resource for themselves based on their responses to the book.

You can take a look at the wiki here: gradythegreatgatsbyproject.wikispaces.com

Thursday, September 1, 2011

Final Project

Here is my final project, I created a website based of off a semester of US History I. I enjoyed setting this assignment up and I apologize in advance for the lack of creativity; one because it is an ability that I lack and two, this was the first time I set up website so I tried to focus more on the content, than the display. My goal was to create a user friendly website that can help students outside of class and hopefully get them interested in our US History. A special thanks needs to be given to the Lincoln Northeast social studies for assisting me with some of the materials for this project. The final two links (Unit 2 and 3) are left blank but if i was to actually complete a website for an entire semester those following units would have the information that is to be covered.

Here is my website.....

https://sites.google.com/site/ushistory1educ56/home

Wednesday, August 31, 2011

Hi All,



I really enjoyed taking this class along with you!
Thanks for sharing your thoughts, discoveries, links, what works for you, etc.

Creating my 1st website was a fun experience! I'd like to be more thorough, but as for now didn't wish to share too much info on the web. Weebly was simple to use, and I like how they include a how-to video. My Sophomore asked if he too could create a free site on Weebly; hmm....I think that could be arranged! =)


Blessings to each of you during this school year and always,
Jules

Now let's go spend that $50,000 :)