Final Blog Post Reflection

In this class, the blog has helped me practice my writing skills. I will practice what I have learned in class through lesson plans, as well as, other programs. Through the course I have learnt that technology integration has promoted student learning. 

This is because it has made learning more interactive to students. The technologies that can be integrated include voki, digital story, and webquset. I also learnt that there are various technologies that are available which enhance content instructions such as blogs. 

These technologies enable a student to get a deeper understanding of the content. The technologies make students more literate technologically.

The objectives that I have met :


1. Demonstrate the understanding of how technologies can effectively promote student learning.

2. Evaluate and use a variety of current technologies to enhance content instruction and to advance students technological literacy.

4. Reflect upon and demonstrate effective use of digital tools and resources.

7. Demonstrate an understanding of the use of adaptive technologies and other digital resources to personalize and differentiate learning.

8. Evaluate, adapt and reflect on emerging tools and trends by participating in local and global learning communities and by reviewing.

I believe that i have met with these objectives when i go through webinar, blogs, lesson plan, and .digital story.

3. Design meaningful and authentic digitally based learning experiences with multiple and varied assessments.

For this objective I think i have  meet on webquest.

5. Demonstrate a comprehensive understanding of safe, ethical, legal and moral practices related to digital information and technology.

 I'm sure that i met this objective with digital citizenship

6. Illustrate through application how state and national standards are implemented within the curriculum (e.g., NH Curriculum Frameworks,
ISTE (NETS-Teacher/NETS-Student) and NH-ICT Literacy Standards for K-12 Students (306.42))

At the beginning I have trouble to achieve this objective ,because I do not have experience on this way, but now I can understand it very well.

The incorporation of digital tools and resources in learning is important since it enhances understanding by students. An example is the use of electronic portfolios for assessing student’s classwork. Adaptive technologies ensure that students are independent and productive, especially those with disabilities. 

This therefore enhances personalized and differentiated learning among students with disabilities (Gahala, 2011.).

I would like to integrate the technology into my class by using voki, digital story, and webquset in my classes, and encourage my students to work on it.

Why is it important for all teachers to integrate technology into the lessons they teach, regardless the age of the students or genre that you teach?

It is significant for teachers to integrate technology into classrooms regardless of the students’ age because, when technology is integrated into the curriculum, it revolutionizes the learning process. Many studies show that technology integration within the curriculum helps in improving the learning processes, as well as, the outcomes. The teachers who have already recognized computers as the problem solving tools are today changing their ways of teaching. 

The barrier to technology integration is that teachers tend not to have the experience of properly integrating technology into the classroom. At times, the introduction of technology may be a barrier to itself. For instance, if teachers begin introducing different software and hardware without any concrete reasons, then they will definitely believe that the students are fully integrated and will tend to avoid some other tools which might help them as supportive tools to their goals (Gahala, 2011). 

This barrier can be overcome by allowing the teachers to make sure that they have the tools that are supportive. Some examples of web 2.0 tools that assist with technology integration include social networking sites and blogs. The social sites help the students to share information within the shortest time available (Ingram, 1988).

Field Experience (Digital Project)

Ppt edu533 from Faisal Aleter

Field Experience Interview Reflection

On March 5, 2013, I visited the Beech Street School. The purpose of visiting the school to observe the educator how using technology and conduct the interview. I visited the school during the hours of 10.00 am to 1.30 pm and choose levels to observe second and third grade that were in the age group of 6 to 8 years.

 The Beech Street School is working to improve the technology integration by increasing the access that the teachers and the students have to technology. In order to ensure that the students are comfortable with technology, the school is focusing on increasing the teachers’ technological understanding. This is achieved by allowing the teachers access to technology; this is demonstrated by the school’s aim of providing every teacher with an iPad. Presently, the children have access to the computer lab and other learning devices which the school has. However the aim is to increase the access by allowing the children to learn through technological aids in every class room.

 Some of the tools used in the school include Reading A-Z which is a program that is designed to aid the children in their reading and improve their comprehensive ability.  Leveled Literacy Intervention (LLI) reading program is another tool used in the school that aims to address specific learning problems faced by the students. Reading Plus is also a tool that allows the teacher to monitor the progress of the students in real time. Socrative is another tool that is favored by the teachers because it allows the teacher to monitor the progress of the students all the while ensuring that the students are engaged in the learning activity.

 The New Hampshire state has developed a technology integration plan which set standards for the schools, teachers, and students. These standards were developed to ensure that the whole state progressed at an equal footing and that no school or county was left out of the technological development drive. While these standards have hindered the early adoption of technology by some schools, they have worked to ensure that the technological integration continues in a single direction. Without these standards, the technological integration would have been haphazard and resulted in an uneven distribution of resources within the state. The standards ensure that only the most effective technologies are integrated and the integration is in an effective manner.

 The school is working on projects aimed at improving the technological integration including the implementation of the concept of BYOD. The program is being carried out in other schools and the success of the pilot program will result in the commencement of the program in the Beech Street School. The aim is to ensure that the students are not only able to excess technology but also use it to enhance their knowledge. Given the current direction, the integration of technology can exponentially improve the learning experience and allow the children to understand more advanced and complex concepts.

 Finally, I was taken around and I noticed different classrooms for fourth grade, fifth grade, and the library.  I saw that each classroom had TV; also they use ipad, disk computer, smartboard, and projector at the library.  Many students were engaged in classroom activities in groups with the help of their teachers. It was clear that the teachers were involved and engaging students for their intellectual development. Generally the interaction between the pupils themselves was promising. The teachers were doing a great job to ensure the pupils got the best out of the programs.

a podcast

listen to ‘podcast *’ on Audioboo

I did this podcast on Voki

Animoto Digital Story

Blog week 6

I choose 1 blog from the 50 blog  that is Online Learning Update  it is really interesting blog to write about.

1. Link the blog URL within your blog post

Online Learning Update 

 2.  Discuss the author of the blog, who are they?  What do they tend to write about in their blog postings? Who is the blog audience? Do they have a lot of followers based upon comments left?

Will Oremus is a Slate staff writer (Slate is an online magazine for news, politics and culture).

Will writes articles on technology and politics. Some of his articles are originally from other blogs. He edits them to suit his followers on the slate site. In his writings will mainly quotes other authors directly meaning he spends most of his time reading what others are saying about a subject before he can personally venture into writing

He enjoys audience from a myriad of personalities ranging from engineers and fellow bloggers but since most of his blogs are on technology he has developers, designers and technology geeks as his followers. 

Will commands a large following in twitter.  The author appears on twitter as @willOremus and has 1949 followers. His posts also enjoy likes from Facebook.

 3.  How does the blog help with your learning in this class as well as prepare you for a future in education?  Why should you read this blog or why should others read it?  Would you add this to your google reader to follow for the future as professional development? Why or Why not?

Online learning cannot be ignored anymore. In fact integration of technology into learning ought to be considered with a lot of seriousness. Having knowledge of new trends in online learning is important because it helps the student prepare for new ways of learning which would virtually replace the existing one.

In this technological age we would practically prefer having our classes online. Traditional methods of teaching are slowly facing off because of the technological progress in the world today. We cannot however underscore the fact that learning in class is more interactive and naturally sociable for us as human beings. For this reason we appreciate whatever happens in our real classes to what happens online. We must however be prepared for a future where learning can turn bizarre. 

Questions on the quality of online education provided, competition and efficiency come to mind whenever we think of online learning. If we become critical about these we would not understand the fact that online learning is in the path of establishment and mistakes are a part of the process.

Yes, I would add this blog to my Google reader because it would help us look with optimism and embrace the challenges that online learning has come with. I believe that for online learning to take the desired proper shape it must be must encounter many challenges and all of us have to be aware of these challenges so that we endeavor to make it better.

 4.  What was one of your favorite posts by the blog author that you found interesting? Explain why you were interested in the post in a short paragraph.  Link to that post please.

Google's Grammys Ad Shows How Smartphones AreGetting Smarter. Mobile companies’ competition has become beneficial to consumers because they produce devices that are of great quality and efficiency to the consumers. Google smart phone (Google Now) competing against Apple’s Siri smart phone based on artificial intelligence will eventually lead to more intelligent devices that will revolutionize the world. 

Google Now is able to link your appointment timing with other environmental issues like delay in the train and then advice you on the best time to leave for the appointment.

This is an additional feature over the Apple’s Siri smart phone. Currently Apple is working on their own Apple Maps that is target to outdo Google Map.  i like this post because, i believe this competition is generally healthy for consumers because they will have better service that will make their life easier and comfortable.

My Voki

This good for grade 4 to 6

URL Addresses

 http://www.teachhub.com/teaching-digital-citizenship

 http://www.commonsensemedia.org/advice-for-parents/be-good-digital-citizen-tips-teens-and-parents

 http://www.screenr.com/81r7

 http://www.voki.com/