The stance of this article reflected similar views that we have read in class so far(i.e. "Digital Natives") The message is that if the education system doesn't change its tactics in approaching students and their learning processes, that school may become a place that is irrelevant in the learning department compared to the technology they are surrounded by outside the classroom.
A point that I thought was truly significant that I believe lots of teachers could probably identify with would be the concern of time. Many times, it's not that teachers are opposed to using technology in their classroom, but they simply do not have the time to learn the programs well enough to use them in their lesson plans and teach them proficiently.
I really enjoyed the ideas that were posted at the end of the article. These ideas are relevant to teachers and easily accessible as the URLs to get to these resources were also included.
My favorite of these seven ideas was the first one about creating a class blog. This is the easiest to accomplish (according the the knowledge I have now) and could be used for a variety of things including calenders to communicate with parents and students, as well as a place for students to turn in assignments.
Thursday, January 28, 2010
"Beginning" of Semester Reflection
Now that we are three weeks into the semester, I think that what I have to say about technology's role in the classroom and in my life as a teacher has already been greatly influenced compared to what I would have said prior to any exposure to the class.
After reading the few articles that have been either assigned or researched, I am realizing more and more that being fluent in technology will result in better being able to reach my students. Not learning the technology of the day and simply sticking to more traditional ways of teaching will most likely put up a wall of misunderstanding between students and teacher.
Taking advantage of technology in the classroom also is exciting because there is so much room for variety, creativity, and ingenuity that teachers can incorporate into their lessons as well as students can use in projects and presentations. This is the direction that our world is moving, and me wanting to be a high school biology teacher is much more than me wanting to teach teenagers science. This is simply a passion of mine that I would like to share with others. However, being a science teacher serves as a doorway to be able to positively engage, interact, and help prepare the next generation to be able succeed and thrive in whatever path they choose to pursue, and hopefully helping the world and its people along the way. This is going to involve without a doubt as the world increasingly becomes more and more submersed into the technical world.
After reading the few articles that have been either assigned or researched, I am realizing more and more that being fluent in technology will result in better being able to reach my students. Not learning the technology of the day and simply sticking to more traditional ways of teaching will most likely put up a wall of misunderstanding between students and teacher.
Taking advantage of technology in the classroom also is exciting because there is so much room for variety, creativity, and ingenuity that teachers can incorporate into their lessons as well as students can use in projects and presentations. This is the direction that our world is moving, and me wanting to be a high school biology teacher is much more than me wanting to teach teenagers science. This is simply a passion of mine that I would like to share with others. However, being a science teacher serves as a doorway to be able to positively engage, interact, and help prepare the next generation to be able succeed and thrive in whatever path they choose to pursue, and hopefully helping the world and its people along the way. This is going to involve without a doubt as the world increasingly becomes more and more submersed into the technical world.
Tuesday, January 26, 2010
Reflection #2 The Intuitive Teacher
What: I'm very grateful for my professors here that are willing to take the time outside of class to meet with students who are seeking extra help. I am especially grateful for ones who recognize when I'm not performing up to my potential and take the extra time to understand why I'm not doing well and what I'm understanding, even when I might be too shy to seek out their help in the first place.
So What: I think that it is extremely important for teachers to be involved with their students to the point that they get a feel to what level their students generally perform at, as well as be conscious of further potential. It is pivotal that teachers develop this sort of intuition and be able to read when their students are struggling.
Now What: I'm sure this capability gets better and better with each added year of experience in teaching. Right now one of the best things that I could do to help develop this skill is to observe how my teachers each handle this. In this way I can see tactics that work and that I would like to imitate, as well as ones that I may not be in favor of replicating, and therefore choose an alternative. I hope that I not only develop this ability, but develop a type of presence that is inviting to students who may be falling behind. Should the students be too shy or embarrassed to seek help, I hope to have a quality that expresses a genuine desire to help that does not come across as demeaning of condescending.
Perhaps when my students realize that I'm truly a resource that they can trust and tap into for help, they will feel comfortable in approaching me in the future for further questions about school or advice on other things that come up.
So What: I think that it is extremely important for teachers to be involved with their students to the point that they get a feel to what level their students generally perform at, as well as be conscious of further potential. It is pivotal that teachers develop this sort of intuition and be able to read when their students are struggling.
Now What: I'm sure this capability gets better and better with each added year of experience in teaching. Right now one of the best things that I could do to help develop this skill is to observe how my teachers each handle this. In this way I can see tactics that work and that I would like to imitate, as well as ones that I may not be in favor of replicating, and therefore choose an alternative. I hope that I not only develop this ability, but develop a type of presence that is inviting to students who may be falling behind. Should the students be too shy or embarrassed to seek help, I hope to have a quality that expresses a genuine desire to help that does not come across as demeaning of condescending.
Perhaps when my students realize that I'm truly a resource that they can trust and tap into for help, they will feel comfortable in approaching me in the future for further questions about school or advice on other things that come up.
Week 3-SMART Board
Interactive Whiteboards in the Classroom
View
The concept of the SMART Board is taking over schools across the nation. Many students have been exposed to the SMART Board or other similar systems by the names of ActivBoard, eBeam, Mimio, or Webster.
I knew from minimum previous exposure that SMART Boards were helpful because it allows for the computer screen to be projected by the board with capabilities of writing over as well as touch sensitive responsiveness.
However, I was greatly surprised by the extremely long list of tasks that SMART Boards are capable of aiding students and teachers in accomplishing. A few of these many items that I was impressed by included saving files for kids who are absent, digital storytelling, and having students create e-foliios that create samples of their own work and narrations.
SMART Boards have the potential to make a largely successful impact on a classroom. SMART Boards can bring lessons to life to generate interest and engagement from students. It can aid students that have different learning intelligences (such as visual, audio, and kinesthetic) within one classroom to be able to better understand concepts. SMART Boards can help a teacher to more easily organize and present lesson plans. When used properly, SMART Boards are a tool that can successfully help teachers to teach, students to learn, and even students to teach their classmates.
However, the key concept here is that this is possible when the SMART Board is used properly. If a teacher has trouble using the SMART Board and is unsure of what they are doing when trying to present a lesson, the result can be a disaster. Teachers who struggle with the SMART Board are likely to get frustrated which will result in students becoming distracted, disengaged, and doubting their teachers capabilities which will disrupt a classroom and turn it into a place of chaos.
Should teachers learn how to use a SMART Board and feel comfortable with how to work it before they try to incorporate into lesson plans, then it can be a great teaching aid. However, should the teacher not receive the proper instruction and experience beforehand, this could lead to frustration and embarrassment and hinder students learning experiences.
View
The concept of the SMART Board is taking over schools across the nation. Many students have been exposed to the SMART Board or other similar systems by the names of ActivBoard, eBeam, Mimio, or Webster.
I knew from minimum previous exposure that SMART Boards were helpful because it allows for the computer screen to be projected by the board with capabilities of writing over as well as touch sensitive responsiveness.
However, I was greatly surprised by the extremely long list of tasks that SMART Boards are capable of aiding students and teachers in accomplishing. A few of these many items that I was impressed by included saving files for kids who are absent, digital storytelling, and having students create e-foliios that create samples of their own work and narrations.
SMART Boards have the potential to make a largely successful impact on a classroom. SMART Boards can bring lessons to life to generate interest and engagement from students. It can aid students that have different learning intelligences (such as visual, audio, and kinesthetic) within one classroom to be able to better understand concepts. SMART Boards can help a teacher to more easily organize and present lesson plans. When used properly, SMART Boards are a tool that can successfully help teachers to teach, students to learn, and even students to teach their classmates.
However, the key concept here is that this is possible when the SMART Board is used properly. If a teacher has trouble using the SMART Board and is unsure of what they are doing when trying to present a lesson, the result can be a disaster. Teachers who struggle with the SMART Board are likely to get frustrated which will result in students becoming distracted, disengaged, and doubting their teachers capabilities which will disrupt a classroom and turn it into a place of chaos.
Should teachers learn how to use a SMART Board and feel comfortable with how to work it before they try to incorporate into lesson plans, then it can be a great teaching aid. However, should the teacher not receive the proper instruction and experience beforehand, this could lead to frustration and embarrassment and hinder students learning experiences.
Sunday, January 24, 2010
Assignment #1 Technology Literacy
Part 1-Eric Article, Summary, and Reflection
Building a Better Biology Lab? Testing Tablet PC Technology in a Core Laboratory Course
Citation Information
Link:http://firma.northwestu.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=eric&AN=EJ824990&site=ehost-live
Authors: Gregory Pryor and Vernon Bauer
Source: Journal of College Science Teaching, v38 n2 p44-48 Dec 2008. 5 pp. (Peer Reviewed Journal)
ISSN: 0047-231X
Summary
In this article, a high school biology department put interactive Tablet PC Technology to the test to see just how effective integrating this type of technology into their science classes could be. The department set up a scientific experiment using control and variable groups. The control group, roughly half of the students, were taught without the use of the Tablet PCs while the variable group used the technology. To test learning effectiveness, both groups were given the same quiz (testing knowledge of biological concepts) prior to the beginning of the experiment, and then were given the exact same quiz again at the end of the testing period. In order to ensure legitimacy, statistical analyses were ran on the data to ensure that there weren't any outstanding differences during the first quiz so that the outcomes would be legitimate. The results turned out that that was not any significant increase in the quiz scores of the technology enhanced classrooms over the control classrooms. Although the results did not reflect a difference in learning capacity, students agreed that they enjoyed the classroom learning experience more. The teachers reactions varied based on their comfort of technology. There was one lab that was extraordinarily enhanced by the technology, however, the rest were better received as on-hands real world lab experience. However, teachers continued to use the technology in the following years, using a combination of the technology/hands on lab experience to enhance student engagement, active learning, using real-world bio-lab technology skills, and improve enjoyability of the course.
Reflection
I love that the biology department did a scientific experiment to see how effective integrating the PC tablets into their classroom would be. The article was extremely easy to follow and laid out in a manner that confirmed its scientific credibility. I was shocked by the outcome of their study pertaining to learning enhancement. I was thoroughly surprised that the integration of technology did not make a significant difference in quiz scores compared to the classroom that did not use the technology. I am curious to know the results of other studies that have been run integrating different types of technology. However, even if the results are the same, there are other aspects to consider. One of the major ones being that students found the course more interesting and desirable with the use of the technology. Another is that it gives students a more realistic glimpse of what it would be like to work in a scientific lab professionally. There is also the benefit of using and becoming familiar with new technology to help problem solve and gain experience for new learning experiences in their future careers. There were some drawbacks that the teachers experienced throughout their testing period as well. These included a large amount of time needed to set up the technology in preparation of use, when the system ran into glitches, decreased interaction between students and teachers, as well as increased distraction to the learning environment. Many times, the use of technology was not a good substitute to labs that were hands on. However, as proposed in the article, a balance of these two styles of teaching could be effective for learning as well as classroom engagement and enjoyment.
Application to My Classroom
This article was helpful to me in numerous ways. One of the first ways is the confirmation that technology can be used to help stimulate excitement, engagement and interest in what is being taught in the classroom. I also thought that it was really cool that the technology could be used to help generate more professional lab reports and simulate real-life professional lab work experience. As far as the outcome about the technology not having a significant affect on increased knowledge attainment...it's actually kind of comforting. I can use this knowledge to know that more traditional style lesson plans are not below technology enhanced lessons concerning the actual learning experience. This means that if at some points I resort to the more traditional concept, or something in the technological department does not go according to plan, I don't have to feel like a complete failure as a teacher. However, I will take into account the affect the use of technology has on students interest in the class. As was concluded in the article, a balance of the two seems to be the most effective, and most reasonable outcome.
Part 2-NETS for Teachers
Out of the five standards that comprise the NETS for Teachers, the one I want to focus on throughout the semester is the first one, Facilitate and Inspire Student Learning and Creativity.
This standard is important because the potential that kids have to create unique, intricate, and outstanding projects and presentations is incredible. I want my classroom to be a place where kids can discover topics that they find interest in and then be able to express these interests in a way that is original to them. Learning is important because embracing this ability can allow students to go places, pursue jobs, and meet people that they otherwise may not have had the chance to. The Creative portion is important because creativity is an expression of individuality, of personality. Each student will have different qualities, passions and experiences that make them different from anyone else in the world. Expressing creativity is a way to embrace this individuality and help promote self-love and hopefully an appreciation and respect for others as well.
Focus throughout the Semester: 3 ways
This standard is made of four sub letters that state how the teacher will accomplish the standard. I will choose to focus on three of these to apply to my learning throughout the semester.
1)Create an assignment that will "engage students in exploring real-world issues and solving authentic problems using digital tools and resources".
2)Create an assignment that will "promote student reflection using collaborative tools to reveal and clarify students' conceptual understanding and thinking, planning, and creative processes".
3)Plan an experience that would allow "engaging in learning with students, colleagues, and others in face-to-face and virtual environments".
Part 3-NETS for Students
As a high school biology teacher,the NETS standard that stuck out to me as one that is essential to doing work in the biology classroom is standard number three, "Research and Information Fluency". The very nature of science presents an ideal field to develop these skills as a student. As defined by the ISTE:
Research and Information Fluency
Students apply digital tools to gather, evaluate, and use information. Students:
a. plan strategies to guide inquiry.
b. locate, organize, analyze, evaluate, synthesize, and ethically use information from a variety of sources and media
c. evaluate and select information sources and digital tools based on the appropriateness to specific tasks.
d. process data and report results.
There are two assignments that come to mind instantly that would incorporate these skills. Again, it is essential that if students choose to work in the scientific field that they become very familiar with these standards. Even for those students that will choose career paths outside of the scientific community, these standards are important for basic problem solving skills and development of logic.
Assignment #1:
Students will create an experiment using the scientific method. Students will make observations based in any matter of their choosing (ideas will also be provided by teacher) and then form a hypothesis of why this difference is so. Students will then follow through the scientific method and set up control and variable groups to test their hypothesis. They will record all of the steps that they take and write up a basic lab report in their lab notebooks. Students will then take their findings and make a presentation to share with their classmates not only discussing their results but the entire process by which they achieved those results.
Assignment #2
The second assignment is that of a research paper. Teachers could make the topic as broad as anything in the biological community, or make it more specific to what is being covered in class such as cell development, past-researchers that have contributed to the scientific community leading up to today, cause and effects in the ecosystem, biomedical diseases and illnesses, etc. The possibilities are endless. It would be a good experience for the students to require a topic that goes deeper into a topic that has briefly discussed in class. In this way, students have been introduced to the topic and have developed an interest, but the majority of the research will have to be conducted by the students. The paper (to be followed up with a class presentation) can be broken up into steps (outline, annotated works cited, rough drafts one and two, final) to help pace students throughout the semester. Requirements for works cited should also be made helping students to gather information that is legitimate, up to date, and from a variety of resources. After the final paper is turned in, students will create a presentation of their work and hand out brochures that they have produced on a computer to their classmates.
Building a Better Biology Lab? Testing Tablet PC Technology in a Core Laboratory Course
Citation Information
Link:http://firma.northwestu.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=eric&AN=EJ824990&site=ehost-live
Authors: Gregory Pryor and Vernon Bauer
Source: Journal of College Science Teaching, v38 n2 p44-48 Dec 2008. 5 pp. (Peer Reviewed Journal)
ISSN: 0047-231X
Summary
In this article, a high school biology department put interactive Tablet PC Technology to the test to see just how effective integrating this type of technology into their science classes could be. The department set up a scientific experiment using control and variable groups. The control group, roughly half of the students, were taught without the use of the Tablet PCs while the variable group used the technology. To test learning effectiveness, both groups were given the same quiz (testing knowledge of biological concepts) prior to the beginning of the experiment, and then were given the exact same quiz again at the end of the testing period. In order to ensure legitimacy, statistical analyses were ran on the data to ensure that there weren't any outstanding differences during the first quiz so that the outcomes would be legitimate. The results turned out that that was not any significant increase in the quiz scores of the technology enhanced classrooms over the control classrooms. Although the results did not reflect a difference in learning capacity, students agreed that they enjoyed the classroom learning experience more. The teachers reactions varied based on their comfort of technology. There was one lab that was extraordinarily enhanced by the technology, however, the rest were better received as on-hands real world lab experience. However, teachers continued to use the technology in the following years, using a combination of the technology/hands on lab experience to enhance student engagement, active learning, using real-world bio-lab technology skills, and improve enjoyability of the course.
Reflection
I love that the biology department did a scientific experiment to see how effective integrating the PC tablets into their classroom would be. The article was extremely easy to follow and laid out in a manner that confirmed its scientific credibility. I was shocked by the outcome of their study pertaining to learning enhancement. I was thoroughly surprised that the integration of technology did not make a significant difference in quiz scores compared to the classroom that did not use the technology. I am curious to know the results of other studies that have been run integrating different types of technology. However, even if the results are the same, there are other aspects to consider. One of the major ones being that students found the course more interesting and desirable with the use of the technology. Another is that it gives students a more realistic glimpse of what it would be like to work in a scientific lab professionally. There is also the benefit of using and becoming familiar with new technology to help problem solve and gain experience for new learning experiences in their future careers. There were some drawbacks that the teachers experienced throughout their testing period as well. These included a large amount of time needed to set up the technology in preparation of use, when the system ran into glitches, decreased interaction between students and teachers, as well as increased distraction to the learning environment. Many times, the use of technology was not a good substitute to labs that were hands on. However, as proposed in the article, a balance of these two styles of teaching could be effective for learning as well as classroom engagement and enjoyment.
Application to My Classroom
This article was helpful to me in numerous ways. One of the first ways is the confirmation that technology can be used to help stimulate excitement, engagement and interest in what is being taught in the classroom. I also thought that it was really cool that the technology could be used to help generate more professional lab reports and simulate real-life professional lab work experience. As far as the outcome about the technology not having a significant affect on increased knowledge attainment...it's actually kind of comforting. I can use this knowledge to know that more traditional style lesson plans are not below technology enhanced lessons concerning the actual learning experience. This means that if at some points I resort to the more traditional concept, or something in the technological department does not go according to plan, I don't have to feel like a complete failure as a teacher. However, I will take into account the affect the use of technology has on students interest in the class. As was concluded in the article, a balance of the two seems to be the most effective, and most reasonable outcome.
Part 2-NETS for Teachers
Out of the five standards that comprise the NETS for Teachers, the one I want to focus on throughout the semester is the first one, Facilitate and Inspire Student Learning and Creativity.
This standard is important because the potential that kids have to create unique, intricate, and outstanding projects and presentations is incredible. I want my classroom to be a place where kids can discover topics that they find interest in and then be able to express these interests in a way that is original to them. Learning is important because embracing this ability can allow students to go places, pursue jobs, and meet people that they otherwise may not have had the chance to. The Creative portion is important because creativity is an expression of individuality, of personality. Each student will have different qualities, passions and experiences that make them different from anyone else in the world. Expressing creativity is a way to embrace this individuality and help promote self-love and hopefully an appreciation and respect for others as well.
Focus throughout the Semester: 3 ways
This standard is made of four sub letters that state how the teacher will accomplish the standard. I will choose to focus on three of these to apply to my learning throughout the semester.
1)Create an assignment that will "engage students in exploring real-world issues and solving authentic problems using digital tools and resources".
2)Create an assignment that will "promote student reflection using collaborative tools to reveal and clarify students' conceptual understanding and thinking, planning, and creative processes".
3)Plan an experience that would allow "engaging in learning with students, colleagues, and others in face-to-face and virtual environments".
Part 3-NETS for Students
As a high school biology teacher,the NETS standard that stuck out to me as one that is essential to doing work in the biology classroom is standard number three, "Research and Information Fluency". The very nature of science presents an ideal field to develop these skills as a student. As defined by the ISTE:
Research and Information Fluency
Students apply digital tools to gather, evaluate, and use information. Students:
a. plan strategies to guide inquiry.
b. locate, organize, analyze, evaluate, synthesize, and ethically use information from a variety of sources and media
c. evaluate and select information sources and digital tools based on the appropriateness to specific tasks.
d. process data and report results.
There are two assignments that come to mind instantly that would incorporate these skills. Again, it is essential that if students choose to work in the scientific field that they become very familiar with these standards. Even for those students that will choose career paths outside of the scientific community, these standards are important for basic problem solving skills and development of logic.
Assignment #1:
Students will create an experiment using the scientific method. Students will make observations based in any matter of their choosing (ideas will also be provided by teacher) and then form a hypothesis of why this difference is so. Students will then follow through the scientific method and set up control and variable groups to test their hypothesis. They will record all of the steps that they take and write up a basic lab report in their lab notebooks. Students will then take their findings and make a presentation to share with their classmates not only discussing their results but the entire process by which they achieved those results.
Assignment #2
The second assignment is that of a research paper. Teachers could make the topic as broad as anything in the biological community, or make it more specific to what is being covered in class such as cell development, past-researchers that have contributed to the scientific community leading up to today, cause and effects in the ecosystem, biomedical diseases and illnesses, etc. The possibilities are endless. It would be a good experience for the students to require a topic that goes deeper into a topic that has briefly discussed in class. In this way, students have been introduced to the topic and have developed an interest, but the majority of the research will have to be conducted by the students. The paper (to be followed up with a class presentation) can be broken up into steps (outline, annotated works cited, rough drafts one and two, final) to help pace students throughout the semester. Requirements for works cited should also be made helping students to gather information that is legitimate, up to date, and from a variety of resources. After the final paper is turned in, students will create a presentation of their work and hand out brochures that they have produced on a computer to their classmates.
Tuesday, January 19, 2010
Monday, January 18, 2010
Reflection #1
What: The idea of using technology in the classroom is both exciting and intimidating.
So What: On the one hand, it will be a great resource for allowing kids to be more engaged in class, which will hopefully enhance their learning experience. On the other hand, it's intimidating to try and think of a variety of ways to implement technology successfully.
Now What: Thankfully, I'm sure this class will provide a variety of resources to help generate ideas. Not only will the materials covered in class be a helpful resource, but it will also be helpful to bounce ideas off of other people in the class.
After reading the two articles provided by the class thus far, my desire to become a technologically savvy teacher has increased so that learning can be effective and engaging, as opposed to many of the outdated and irrelevant tactics described by the articles.
The field of technology is extremely vast, so I'm sure there won't be a shortage of areas to explore and experience. I hope that this class will help to give direction so that I can narrow down what will be effective and helpful to use.
So What: On the one hand, it will be a great resource for allowing kids to be more engaged in class, which will hopefully enhance their learning experience. On the other hand, it's intimidating to try and think of a variety of ways to implement technology successfully.
Now What: Thankfully, I'm sure this class will provide a variety of resources to help generate ideas. Not only will the materials covered in class be a helpful resource, but it will also be helpful to bounce ideas off of other people in the class.
After reading the two articles provided by the class thus far, my desire to become a technologically savvy teacher has increased so that learning can be effective and engaging, as opposed to many of the outdated and irrelevant tactics described by the articles.
The field of technology is extremely vast, so I'm sure there won't be a shortage of areas to explore and experience. I hope that this class will help to give direction so that I can narrow down what will be effective and helpful to use.
Saturday, January 16, 2010
Week 2-Turning on the Lights Response
The article Turning on the Lights by Marc Prensky was a very intriguing read. The way he sets up and presents the information provides the reader with a very clear and informative view about what the article is trying to get across: Teachers need to implement technology into student learning in the classroom if we want school to continue to be an educational and engaging environment. It was interesting to see the timeline of how we progressed to this point in the first place. School used to be the only place where kids had the opportunity to learn about the world. Now the world is literally at their fingertips and they can essentially learn about anything they want anytime they want. Unfortunately, the classroom hasn't progressed at the rate of technology, and now the two are in conflict much of the time. I agree that teachers need to rework their curriculum to save the classroom from becoming a dreaded, boring, and irrelevant place.
I think Prensky's criticism of teachers teaching to standardized test standards was unfair however. It is not within the teachers' power to change this. This goes higher up in the educational hierarchy, which means that the whole education system will need to be changed that steers curriculum away from standardized testing. I do believe, however, that teachers should be able to prepare their students to know how to take standardized test, and still be able to prepare them to have fundamental knowledge through the use of technology.
Of Prensky's advice on how to move towards this new era in education, I really enjoyed his bit about connecting with the world. Finding other students around the world is a phenomenal way for the students to make connections and learn things that are truly relevant to real-life. This is a great idea and could be used in most any classroom in one way or another.
I think Prensky's criticism of teachers teaching to standardized test standards was unfair however. It is not within the teachers' power to change this. This goes higher up in the educational hierarchy, which means that the whole education system will need to be changed that steers curriculum away from standardized testing. I do believe, however, that teachers should be able to prepare their students to know how to take standardized test, and still be able to prepare them to have fundamental knowledge through the use of technology.
Of Prensky's advice on how to move towards this new era in education, I really enjoyed his bit about connecting with the world. Finding other students around the world is a phenomenal way for the students to make connections and learn things that are truly relevant to real-life. This is a great idea and could be used in most any classroom in one way or another.
Tuesday, January 12, 2010
Week 1-Teaching
I want to teach high school biology. I've always had a desire to be a teacher, but I wasn't sure what I wanted to to teach.
I decided on Biology my first semster here at Northwest when I took a biology class from Professor Randolph to fulfill my general science requirements. It was here that it finally clicked how intricately beautiful life and the world that surrounds us are. I decided to pursue more science classes and realized that I am without a doubt in the right field of study.
I hope to instill an interest in science in my students. However, beyond that, I want my students to understand the importance of education and develop a desire to learn, no matter what the subject.
Besides teaching, I also want to coach. I run track and cross country here at Northwest, and I played volleyball and basketball in high school. I would love to coach any combination of these.
This semester I hope to become more comfortable with technology so that I can apply it in my classroom. In this way, I hope to make better connections with my students so that they are interested in what we are doing and become more involved in class.
I decided on Biology my first semster here at Northwest when I took a biology class from Professor Randolph to fulfill my general science requirements. It was here that it finally clicked how intricately beautiful life and the world that surrounds us are. I decided to pursue more science classes and realized that I am without a doubt in the right field of study.
I hope to instill an interest in science in my students. However, beyond that, I want my students to understand the importance of education and develop a desire to learn, no matter what the subject.
Besides teaching, I also want to coach. I run track and cross country here at Northwest, and I played volleyball and basketball in high school. I would love to coach any combination of these.
This semester I hope to become more comfortable with technology so that I can apply it in my classroom. In this way, I hope to make better connections with my students so that they are interested in what we are doing and become more involved in class.
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