Recent Changes

Week 9
"I am never sure which application or tool will best fit the lesson or best transfer the content to the students."

This is where you need to keep it simple! Choose one thing, spend time with it your self, then bring it into the classroom. If you feel really confident, it won't seem like you're teaching two lessons.

1/15
Differentiated instruction is right up my alley. Because my classes are inclussion classes I am constantly looking at ways to modify or adjust each lesson to include every student. The podcast mentioned putting books on tape. This is something I try to do whenever possible. Another thing I liked was the idea of altering what I call the assessment at the end of a unit or chapter. I always try to incorporate some sort of technology project such as an imovie, pod cast, glog, or power point. The thing that is difficult about differentiated instruction is that it is very time consuming. It is hard to find time to find all the resources, make copies, set up centers, and organize groups.
1/29
TPAC
I agree with the video when it describes many aspects of teaching as "messy". Tpac is a great idea and one that I try to incorporate into my lessons and in my classroom. I feel confident with the pedagogical, content, and knowledge portions of TPAC. I do however find it a challenge at times incorporating the technology. I am never sure which application or tool will best fit the lesson or best transfer the content to the students. It also seems that I am teaching a lesson twice. One lesson on how to use the technology and one for the content. Another problem I see is that our district is very data driven and there is not much data to support TPAC. I feel that this is due to the fact that TPAC is so new and in time there will be more data to support TPAC in the classroom. I did find Plato's quote on text as being more less an evil and that memorization and internalizing learning was far more important. All you hear today is that any lesson that involves memorization like spelling lists is far less benifical.

Part II
I can see that you are thinking about your classroom and how you might incorporate some of the ideas that have been considered in Part II.

It would be a good idea to tie the readings (enter the URL) to your comments. That way, when you discuss a resource you can get to it quickly from the journal.

I agree with the idea that you can use technology and multimedia projects to show creativity and an understanding of knowledge. I have my students make i movies, pod casts, and power points. These projects replace tests in many cases and I have found the students they show a better understanding of the material and have more fun doing it.
I understand why teachers feel the need to go back to the basics for NCLB. I feel it is a comfort level more than anything else. We need to think about the big picture which is the students needs for the future. We as educators need to step outside the box and not be affraid to learn and try new things.
1/1
The school from Key Largo truly thinks outside the box. I love the idea that the children are learning different careers each year they are in school. I see a big problem with our administration and district being willing to think that far outside the box. I agree with and try to incorporate as much project based learning as I can. It is difficult to get away from the textbook because I am more comfortable using it. I like the idea of inquiry learning and forcing the students to be self thinkers and not just be given information. A problem I see in our district is that it is very transient. It is centered around prior knowledge and our students are always coming and going. I am a big fan of the digital stories. I think this is a tool that I can use with my social studies classes to retell history in my students own words. This is a tool I am going to try to use this year.
1/8
Two benefits I see using project based learning are communication and collaboration. These are vital skills for every day life and in any career they choose. Another benefit I see when using this type of learning is you get to see who the leaders are. I think leadership is a skill that is often overlooked in education. A problem I run into is with groups of mixed ability. Often stronger students end up doing the bulk of the work while a students who typically struggles takes a back seat. My classes are inclusion classes and the students vary greatly in ability. I also have a difficult time in assessing the students.
1/15
Differentiated instruction is right up my alley. Because my classes are inclussion classes I am constantly looking at ways to modify or adjust each lesson to include every student. The podcast mentioned putting books on tape. This is something I try to do whenever possible. Another thing I liked was the idea of altering what I call the assessment at the end of a unit or chapter. I always try to incorporate some sort of technology project such as an imovie, pod cast, glog, or power point. The thing that is difficult about differentiated instruction is that it is very time consuming. It is hard to find time to find all the resources, make copies, set up centers, and organize groups.

Week 6
"These projects replace tests in many cases and I have found the students they show a better understanding of the material and have more fun doing it."
I agree with you here. The trick is to embed the standards in the work. That's the scary thing for a lot of teachers.

Do you share the student podcasts, videos, etc. with anyone? Many times that affirmation of the final product results in an even better learning situation.

For Week 7 try including a couple URLs (of different sources) that support your comments on the weekly readings.

Week Five
I'm glad you were able to get caught up on the journal, Shawn. You provide some good examples of what you are already doing in your classroom. This leads me to think that you are in a good place for continuing the grant work. Once you have the results of the student assessment it will be exciting to build on your prior experiences.

12/3
The video ties in with the fact that we are going to integrate technology into the classroom.This grant will give the students as well as the teachers unlimited amounts of resources. With integrating technology will will raise students curiosity as well as engage and excite them to solve problems.
I agree with the idea that you can use technology and multimedia projects to show creativity and an understanding of knowledge. I have my students make i movies, pod casts, and power points. These projects replace tests in many cases and I have found the students they show a better understanding of the material and have more fun doing it.
I understand why teachers feel the need to go back to the basics for NCLB. I feel it is a comfort level more than anything else. We need to think about the big picture which is the students needs for the future. We as educators need to step outside the box and not be affraid to learn and try new things.

I think one of the most important ways students can use technology is in doing research then using the technology to present their research.
Students need to learn to use their time wisely and effectively when working with technology. There is so much information out there. They need to decipher what is relivant to their research.
12/3
The video ties in with the fact that we are going to integrate technology into the classroom.This grant will give the students as well as the teachers unlimited amounts of resources. With integrating technology will will raise students curiosity as well as engage and excite them to solve problems.

11/27
Students need to learn cooperation, competition, and colaboration as a way of learning but also for life skills. I like the idea of students learning from students while working in groups. Students are able to present material differently than the teachers and have thoughts and ideas that the teacher may not have thought of.
that they plagerize.plagiarize.
I think one of the most important ways students can use technology is in doing research then using the technology to present their research.
Students need to learn to use their time wisely and effectively when working with technology. There is so much information out there. They need to decipher what is relivant to their research.