EDLF 345 - January 31, 2007

This week, we were assigned to create a game in Powerpoint. I had never really used Powerpoint before this exercise and therefore, benefitted greatly from doing this assignment. I not only learned more about the mechanics of the program but also learned about its expanded uses.

My exposure to Powerpoint presentations in education began recently. None of my high school teachers used them and I don't remember my college professors utilizing them as often, if ever, either. Therefore, my perception of their use is limited to this year and I would definitely argue that they can be both a positive and a negative in the classroom. If they are long and full of information, students may spend the entire "lecture" trying to copy the information without necessarily comprehending it. In contrast, if they are interactive (which they can be in many different ways including featuring links, video streams, games, etc.), they are far more effective and assist students in actively constructing knowledge and understanding.

I think games such as the one created for class would be great for use in my classroom eventually. They could be a really great tool especially for teaching math and could even be leveled to accomodate different groups within a class. However, given the amount of time it took to create this game, I am not sure how realistic it is to think I will have the time to design games to supplement my lessons.

EDLF 345 - January 24, 2007

Center for Technology and Teacher Education (www.ctte.com)
I found this site to be very impressive. It not only details various applications or uses of technology in the classroom but provides evidence to support use of them and means to assist teachers and schools get the required equipment for their classrooms.

One interesting application that I learned about on this site was the Camerascope. Using this in a classroom truly enables teachers to bring the abstract into the classroom. In our science course, we saw an example of this with the life cycle of a Monarch butterfly. It was amazing to see this progression and for those of us who are visual learners, enhanced our understanding of this scientific process better than a lecture would. The cycle was also explained using proper jargon for those students who learn through more concrete and technical explanations. In this way, the teacher differentiated instruction for the various students in the class.

Reading: Teaching Every Student
Our reading for class supports the idea of maximizing each student's opportunity for learning through flexible methods and means. This can be done through the use of technology. However, it is important not to include technology just for the sake of using it or in cases where it undermines learning, but rather to use it to support learning. In math, for example, students need to understand how to add, subtract, multiply and divide numbers before being able to use a calculator, a tool that does this for them more quickly, when solving problems. The text supports this idea and details several examples of effective usage, which from the description, provided students with an opportunity to learn in a manner that was effective for them, when traditional means would not have been. If used effectively to scaffold learners, the use of technology seems to allow teachers to differentiate instruction while still meeting the high standards of learning that are required in schools today.