Double Entry Journal #13

I chose to do my web quest on The American Civil Rights Movement because I feel that this a period in our histroy that we do not study enough. It is taught to our students but not as a huge focus. We all know who Martin Luther King Jr is and Rosa Parks, but do we know about Emmett Till, Medger Evers, or the three young men killed during Freedom Summer. I chose this to help bring these people and the whole movement to the eyes and minds of a new generation who may see this as ancient history. The video "Seperate But Not Equal" was chosen because it introduces the Civil Rights in a way that is visual and intersting. It shows people, places and events that started the movement and as a way to get the students started on the topic.

Double Entry Journal #12

Which two of example WebQuests are the best ones? Why?

the two best for me were the Underground Railroad and the Egyptian. It could have been the historian in me, but they really grabbed me in the way that it made finding and using the information you find online. 

Which two are the worst? Why?

The worst two would be Design and School Greens and Egyptian. The Egyptian was on of the worst for me because when you opened it up the look and layout was different from the rest and took you back and was so cluttered and unorganized that is was almost confusing. It was also very over whelming.

The School Greens was on of the worst because there was no final product that was truly tangible. You had the final project and book and design concept you created but it would be even better if at the end you actually had a garden to create and use.

What do best and worst mean to you?

Best and worst mean that in the end there is something tangible and fun that you were truly able to show. You can create a design but not putting it to use is pointless. You also have to be able to fully understand and follow the directions. Quick and to the point instructions to keep students engaged and interested. 

Web Quest Work Sheet

WebQuest	Strengths	Weaknesses
Grow School Greens	This does require the use of the web for research and comparison, though it can be done in a library in any book on plants.	From a Technophile point of view this WebQuest is lacking in a web use aspect. No strengths for me.
Where is My Hero?	The use of the internet to do research on the idea of whom and what is a hero.	No real use of the internet except for research.
Underground Railroad	The constant use of the internet for research and then the interactive game of participation in a virtual underground website.	No weakness.
Ice Cream	None that I can find	No use of the internet for this WebQuest. Too many worksheets.  Would be awesome to design the poster using a computer/internet tool, site.
Ancient Egypt	Getting to use Pixie to create 3 illustrations is great. Keeps me on the computer and allows me to make things online. Also gives me instructions to properly use the internet for research	No weakness.

Double Entry Journal #11

    Watching this video brought some intersting issues to the for front that as just a teaching student never thought about. Yes teaching and the process of teaching is messy. You have to think of what to teach, how to teach it and if the process you are using is working. In the area of how to teach; pedogogy, there are so many factors that have to be taken in to consideration as well as content knowledge of the subject being taught. I liked how it said that the best teachers are not always a person who is the subject, such as a mathmatiction teaching math, or a psycologist teaching psycology. Its how you teach the knowlege and knowing HOW to teach it.
    It is also getting more difficult to teach with technology advancing at such a rapid rate. Who knows that what we are even learning in this class will be relavent in 3 years. (I hope it is because I a enjoying all this). So we have to think of ways to keep up with it all and then learn it all ourselves and find ways to use it relevently in the classroom in regards to the content we are teaching.  
    With the new technology advancemnts the idea of learning has changed. I loved the example of Plato and that the gist of the quote was that we are losing rention knowledge because we can just look it up. Who needs to beable to orally relay information when they can just turn on a computer to find our information. In this sence we need to teach students how to weed through the "crap" information and find the truth. In some ways that can go under the idea of literacy technologies.

Web 2.0

Threddie: Brainstorming. Simplified.

-This tool is used to create a brainstorm and invite others to post and comment on your posting.
-This tool would be used while students are participating in group project and can brainstorm together with those in their group only. 
-When students are doing a project as a group in any content area from english to history and do not always have time to meet, or classroom time is -limited this allows them to get together online and share their thoughts. This can also be used by the teacher to see who is participating and be able to give credit to those who did work and those that did not.
-Before using this tool teachers will have to consider when and which students can or may not be able to access the internet and what can or can not be posted. Also how secure the postings are and if only those that are invited can view it.

Google Forms

Double Entry Journal #10

Quote:
"As students go through this process, over and over, they learn to develop their own ideas,
try them out, test the boundaries, experiment with alternatives, get input from others, and generate new ideas based on their experiences" (Resnick 2007).

Response:
I chose this quote because while reading this article it reminded me of when I was in school and the excitement and joy I felt when I created something after trying and trying and finally mastering the assignment and wanting to continue on that path of discovery. In today's world of constant technology the same old creative projects are just not the same, and we have to find those new ways to keep our students inspired. The same old connecting a lightbulb to a battery is not as cool as a Cricket/Scratch project. When children find the fun in learning it and they get to be the creaters it keeps them going and wanting to do more. It makes them share what they have learned and teach it to others, throwing in a social side to it.

Related Rescource:
Software that meets the needs and interests of children and enhances their creative thought and artistic expression enables them to do the following; discover, invent, and control their symbolic world, apply a range of skills and abilities, and enhance children’s social interactions" (Isenber,Jolong 2006)

I chose this quote becaue it reinstates the ideas of Resnick that the use of software and mulit media programs not only create a more creative thinker but inhance other aspects of student learning.


Sources/Citations:

Isenberg, J.P , and M.R. Jalongo. "Technology Materials, Creative Thinking, Play, and the Arts | Education.com." Education.com | An Education & Child Development Site for Parents | Parenting & Educational Resource. Education.com, n.d. Web. 8 Apr. 2012. <http://www.education.com/reference/article/technology-materials-creative-thinking/>.


Resnick, Mitchel. "Sowing the Seeds of a More Creative Society." Learning and Leading December/January (2007): 18-22. Print.

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