Technology Final

I did the two evaluations and completed the final. I also checked my grades. Thanks!

Internet Safety Reflection

1. I read the New Era article called Mixed Signals about the messages the internet sends
2. I watched the pbs frontline videos, Katie's Story, and the internet safety video made by the animation department. They all talked about the importance of not giving out personal information online, internet predators, cyberbullying, and how kids of this generation are extremely technology savy.
3. It is extremely important to know what is going on in your kids' lives because it may not be apparent from the outside. Parents need to be involved and need to use internet blocks on their computers, put them in high traffic areas, and know their kids passwords for online networking sites. It is also important that parents look for warning signs that their children are too absorbed with the technology available to them. They need to monitor how much time they spend online and get them involved in real world activities.
4. I taught one of my parents about cyberbullying. She already knew alot about the topic, mostly from stories she heard on the news. She brought up the specific story about the girl who committed suicide in Missouri. I was surprised that she knew alot about the subject already and remembered news stories that had to do with cyberbullying. I was also surprised that she didn't know how prevalent it is in the jr. highs and highschools. I think that now that she has learned more information about cyberbullying she will be more informed when talking to other parents about bullying and will try to be more aware the possibility that hurtful things can be going on online in a child's life even if outwardly they seem fine.

TPACK Report. Finally.

The last week of psychology...

Something I really liked about the reading was the idea of developing social competence. I thought it was great that the text actually provided ways that social competence can be promoted in children through different activities. When I was in elementary school I don't ever remember learning social competence. I did learn the necessary skills at home but I feel I would have been a particular student that could have benefitted from such instruction at school. I was often in social situations as a young child that I was not sure how to handle, and I didn't really bring them up at home because I didn't think it was a big deal. I think I would have greatly benefitted from having instruction at school that taught me how to deal with conflict resolution, in specific relation to my school peers. I also like that the text provides information about what behaviors in children can imply about their social competence. I think this is great information to have as a teacher so that you can foster healthy social growth in students as well as academic growth.

P.S. I did the survey

Psychology Motivation

1.) For the most part I believe the students at my school were intrinsically motivated. This was because my teacher placed a huge emphasis on effort, and students did not very often receive tangible rewards for good behavior or performance. They were however praised when they put a lot of effort into assignments.

2.) A student's intrinsic motivation can be decreased by tangible rewards and praise. This is because a student may start to perform certain behaviors to simply obtain the reward or the praise of the teacher. In this way rewards and praise can increase extrinsic motivation.

3.) Expectancies are what a student expects the outcome of a given activity will be. Values are the worth students assign to a given assignment or activity. Depending on the expectancy and value a student places on an assignment they may be more or less motivated to complete it. If the student has poor expectations for how the assigment will turn out and does not value the assignment they are less likely to be motivated to do the assignment.

4.) some student level motivation I saw in the classroom was the class management plan. Everytime a student broke a rule or misbehaved they had to "move a clip" that was assigned to them. Each movement of their clip indicated a time amount taken from their recess. On a class level Each table could earn table points based on good behavior. The table with the most points got extra time at recess.

5.) I agree most with the self-worth theory. This is because I feel students can perform better simply by believing they can perform well if they put in the effort. I think many times students are trained to believe they are low achievers and thus judge that they will perform poorly on assigments and then put less effort into them because they don't believe they will succeed anyway. I think the idea of self worth plays a huge role in how students perform academically.

Technology Lesson Plans

Nichole Mahas Language Artshttp://docs.google.com/View?id=dgdtf2f_14b62zk7q

Math http://docs.google.com/View?id=dgdtf2f_2cqwz43cg

Science http://docs.google.com/View?id=dgdtf2f_3c3m54bhn

Technology Videos

Spiders:

This video taught me alot about how I can implement technology into my own classroom. I loved the idea of having the students take pictures of the creatures they are studying about. I thought it was a great idea to have a class website that not only displays the students pictures and work, but allows them to network with students from other states. This really helps students gain an understanding of networking and can easily help them share and learn new information with their peers. I thought that it was a great way to make information more meaningful to students.

Brown Bear Brown Bear:

I thought it was a great idea to let students digitally create their artwork rather than just having them use the traditional crayon and paper method. It really helps students improve their work as well as learn a new skill. It also helped me realize how easy it can be for students to learn technology skills, and how easily I can implement opportunities to learn technology skills in my own classroom.

Habitats:

This video really helped me see that technology can not only be used to supplement the students learning but can be used for presentational purposes like having a parent night. I think it is a great learning experience for students when they have to prepare a work that they will present to others and the program KidPix Deluxe really aided the students in this. I also learned that students are not too young to learn about copyright laws, this is something I should not be afraid to introduce to my own students.

Technology Inventory

On investigating the technology available to my mentor teacher I learned many things. As this technology course has gone forward we have seen alot of different technologies that are being used by different schools. Although the school I am doing my practicum in has many resources and technologies, some are not quite as accessible as others. There are plenty of computers with great software and internet, however, there are not projectors in every classroom. Also, There are not elmos in every classroom. However, these technologies are available to teachers if they want to check them out of the library. There is also science equipment available for check out. Overall I thought the technology available to the teachers is sufficient and easily accessible.
I completed the technology inventory, the midcourse evaluation, and the disclosure form.

Stellarium as a Science Technology

Psychology assessment week 8

After reading through Piaget's ideas on children's development, I definitely agree with most of his ideas. I think he did a really good job of narrowing down what exactly leads to children's mental development. The elements he believed lead to mental development were; biological maturation, active exploration, social experiences, and equilibration. I feel these elements are absolutely the factors that lead to a child's ability to progress mentally. We know children's minds mature, we know children advance as they have more real world experiences physically and socially, and we know children grow mentally as they learn new information and adapt old schemas.
One element I disagree with is that children go through distinct stages. I think that stages can be a good guideline when planning what to teach children based on where they are developmentally, however i feel that they are not necessarily limited to specific stages at specific times in life. I think that part of scaffolding is helping children to progress at whatever stage of life they are in, so that means children could potentially have strengths and advanced understanding in one area and weaknesses in another and not necessarily be limited to the "stage" they are in.
Another element I disagree with is the idea that development always preceeds learning. Although Piaget acknowledge that it can sometimes occur, I feel it happens more than that. I can recall many instances in my life where learning something new helped me develop in another aspect of my life. I think this can be the case with sports. First you learn the basic skills by seeing them modelled or explained, then you develop them by practice. I think this can be the case for many other things.
I agree with Piaget that language is not necessarily essential to have thinking abilities, however i agree with Vygotsky that egocentric speech is a good thing and not a cognitive limitation. In my human development class I remember discussing the idea that when an activity provides just enough challenge to an individual they sometimes engage in self talk, which is a positive way of sorting out information and regulating theri thought process.

Science Technology

For my activity I will be focusing on the 6th grade
Standard 4 Students will understand the scale of size, distance between objects, movement, and apparent motion (due to Earth's rotation) of objects in the universe and how cultures have understood, related to and used these objects in the night sky.

Objective 2 Describe the appearance and apparent motion of groups of stars in the night sky relative to Earth and how various cultures have understood and used them.

a.)Locate and identify stars that are grouped in patterns in the night sky.

After learning about constellations in the night time sky, I would have my students pick a night of a specific week to go outside their home and observe the night sky. After they have decided on a night, they will use the program stellarium in class to find out what the night time sky should look like from their home on that specific night at a specific time. Using stellarium they will identify specific constellations that should be visible to them at that night. They will be able to reference a sheet of the specific constellations in the sky to aid them in identifying the constellations. They will then record which constellations should be visible to them. The night they do their observation they will specifically look for the constellations they found when using stellarium. The next day in class they will then draw pictures of the constellations they were actually able to find.

Content: Students will use stellarium to identify constellations that are visible from their home on a given night.

Pedagogy: Students will observe the night sky at home as well as on stellarium and will classify groups of stars as constellations. They will then record their findings and draw the constellations they observed.

Technology: Stellarium

psychology Assessment week 7

1. In elementary school I remember being grouped randomly to create a presentation on animals who's habitat is in the mountains. We each worked brainstormed about each animal and then we all helped to draw the animals and display them. I believe we each then presented on a specific animal. In college I remember being randomly grouped into study groups for a research paper in biology 100. We all contributed to the research and met together to compile the paper. We also took tests together so we relied on everyone's knowledge of the subjects.
2. I definitely think cooperative groups encourage learning. I remember from my past experiences that it helped me to learn new concepts that I might not have been able to figure out on my own. Having others in the group to help me understand material really helped me learn. For this reason I think cooperative groups would be beneficial for student's learning.
3. Instructional conversations have all students participate by adding input and conversing. The teacher and students will converse about a text, it appears as a normal conversation but the conversation has direction and goals. Everyone discusses the text. Reciprocal questioning however helps to reinforce new concepts. Students may each understand the new concepts differently so they would discuss each new concept and share their insights and understanding. Each student would questions and then everyone in the group would ask their questions and allow others to respond to them.
4. One example of a situation you would want to use ability grouping is in guided reading groups. It would be a good idea to group students of the same reading level so that you can have them focus on certain books as a group and scaffold their learning as a group without having to worry about moving too fast for one child or too slow for another. Mixed grouping would be a good idea when students are working on a presentation or some sort of research. I think this would be a good idea because students could contribute regardless of their abilities, especially if they were assigned specific tasks. It would also encourage learning for the students on lower levels as they could learn from and get feedback from more confident peers.

Google Tours I Viewed

I viewed Ashley Daley's google tour on ancient cities. She had great places for the students to visit and great activities.

I viewed Tami Varner's google tour. She did hers on different areas of the world and why they are settled. It was a great tour to get students thinking about why areas of the world are good for settling.

Last I viewed Stephanie Anderson's google tour. She did hers on rivers of the world. I love how she incorporated the 3d building layer.

link

http://sites.google.com/site/nicholemsite/google-tour

My Google Tour

Psychology Assessment Week 6

1. 1. An example of contiguity learning in school was if I got 100% on my state’s capitals tests in 5^th grade for a whole week, I would get a candy bar from my teacher. Also, at home I learned that if I misbehaved, I would get sent to my room.

2. 2. In 5^th grade if we demonstrated good behavior or performed certain tasks we got tickets that we could trade for prizes. We also had them taken away if we misbehaved. In 6^th grade we were given a prize if we read a certain amount of pages in a given term. In 4^th grade we received a bag of candy if we got 100% on all our spelling tests in a term.

3. 3. I would try to use interval reinforcement schedules. I would apply this if students read a certain amount of books in a term, they received a prize at the end of the term. I could also do something like this weekly. If students complete all their assignments for the week they get to participate in a special activity on Friday.

4. 4. Behaviorism somewhat assumes that a reward or reinforcer must be in place in order for a behavior to continue or cease. This contradicts with the gospel principle of agency a bit because we really emphasize that individuals choose based on personal testimony of right and wrong how to act. Sometimes in the gospel we do things simply because we believe it is right, not necessarily because we want the reward or are afraid of the consequence. Behaviorism somewhat eliminates the element of making a decision based on principle and personal beliefs.

Virtual Tour Plan

1. 5th grade science

Standard 2: Students will understand that volcanoes, earthquakes, uplift, weathering, and erosion reshape Earth's surface.
Objective 2: Explain how volcanoes, earthquakes, and uplift affect Earth’s surface.

B. Give examples of different landforms that are formed by volcanoes, earthquakes, and uplift (e.g., mountains, valleys, new lakes, canyons).

I chose to do a virtual tour on this topic because it would be very beneficial for students to actually see landforms that have been created from volcanoes, earthquakes, and uplift, not just hear about them. Google earth is also very interactive and this would provide a greate hands on experience for students when learning about these specific landforms.

2. The pedagogy I am using is having students explore for themselves the landforms discussed. At certain landmarks I will have them analyze the size, and reasons for the appearance of the landforms. This is fitting becasue the students actually get to see and explore the landforms discussed, and they can actually make realistic analysis because of this.

3. The technology I am using is Google Earth and many of its content layers. This technology fits very well with the content and pedagogy because students can actually see and interact with each landform. They will also have opportunites analyze how volcanoes, earthquakes, and uplift affect the earth with real examples. The learning will be more meaningful to students because they were actually able to participate in the lesson. Google earth is probably the best technology that could be used for this particular subject because it makes it easier for students to see where earthquakes, volcanoes, and other activity are occuring as of recent times. The information presented on Google earth is updated very often and allows students to see how applicable the information is to them.

Location	Activity Description	Google Earth Content
1. Craters of the Moon Idaho	Look at the pictures from panoramio posted at craters of the moon. Try to find cinder cones and other evidence that this are was created from volcanic activity. Click on the volcano and read about volcanic action in this area.	Volcano, panormio, terrain, borders and labels
2. Mt. St. Helens	Use the compass to explore Mt. St. Helens in 3D, after you have done this select panoramio and view some images taken of Mt. St. Helens. Next select the volcano and earthquake layers. Why do you think there is so many earthquakes in this area?	earthquake, terrain, volcano, panoramio, 3D building, borders and labels
3. Sierra Nevada Mountains	Check out the 360cities 3D pictures on the mountain range as well as any panoramios.	panoramio, terrain, 3D building, borders and labels
4. Lake okeechobee	Take a look around the lake. View any panoramios posted. Select the weather layer and see what is going on at Lake Okeechobee. kids will see how big Lake Okeechobee is by comparing it to a footbal field that is overlayed.	borders and labels, panoramio, earthquake, 3D building, weather

IPT 301 Week 5 Assessment

1. I think the 2 most important instructional strategies are emphasizing the importance of understanding material, and practicing basic skills to a level of automaticity. I think these are useful to my teaching because if children realize how important it is to actually understand material they are more likely to pay attention and try to learn the material in depth. If they understand the material in depth they can most likely apply what they have learned to other situations across the curriculum. They may also remember it better. I think its important students practice the skills they learn so that they can reach automaticity because this leads to mastery. When they can practice a skill without having to think about it much it will be easier for them to use in their everyday lives and evaluations.

2. Low-Road Transfer: extensive practice of a skill leading to ability to perform the skill with little thought or effort and in a variety of contexts.

Example 1: A boy practicing taking goal shots in soccer so many times when he actually has to perform a goal shot in a real game it is natural to him. He also becomes very good at aiming where to kick the ball in kick-ball.

Example 2: A girl practicing adding fractions over and over in math class and at home with half-eaten food and blocks. She becomes so skilled at it she often analyzes objects in her everyday activities as fractions without really thinking about it.

High-Road Transfer: purposely and consciously applying learned information to another situation.

Example 1: A child learning that when doing word searches she can search for the beginning letter of the word throughout the whole text first to see if the word is attached. Then she applies this strategy to a completely new and more challenging word search.

Example 2: A child learns about fractions specifically using circles. She then uses fractions to tell the time on a round clock. (A quarter after, a quarter till, etc.)

3. The type of transfer I see used most often is high-road transfer. Students often learn specific principles and techniques one week and then the next week they will apply that knowledge in a different way or in a different subject but with more added to it, like scaffolding. For example they will learn to add numbers for one unit then they will assign numbers to money and add money using what they learned about adding numbers.

4. I have used an algorithm when I use formulas to solve math problems for example, the FOIL formula for multiplying numbers in parentheses. There is a specific sequence in steps; you multiply the first numbers, then outside, then inside, then last. Finally you add them.

I have used heurstics when working with decimals. Sometimes when the decimal is very long, you approximate, like saying 1.00000000000001 is just 1.

Psychology In-Class Teaching Reflection

In-Class Teaching Reflection

One principle of teaching we incorporated into our lesson was that we learned how to create an objective, assess, and plan instructive action. We planned out what we wanted the students to gain from our lesson, we planned an assessment activity, and we also planned how much time we would dedicate to each topic and when we would present each topic in our lesson plan. We also prioritized knowledge and skills we would focus on. We decided to spend more time on the Theory of Multiple Intelligences (MI theory) because it had eight parts to it. We thought by planning an activity and focusing more of the instruction time on this theory would help them better remember the principles it entailed.

One of the principles of learning we included in our lesson was that we really tried to emphasize when to apply what they had learned to gain mastery. We did this with the activities that assessed their own MI and children’s MI. They had to think of strategies they could promote certain MI in their own classrooms. We also talked about how knowing your own MI strengths can help you realize what activities you may favor in your own classroom. We also talked about common misapplications for some of the MI theory concepts, this also focused on knowing when to apply what was learned. We tried to use these real-life applications to promote another principle of learning; the student’s motivation effects how they learn. We thought by making everything applicable to their future careers it would be more motivating to learn the information.

I thought we had many strengths and a few weaknesses within our teaching experience. One of the strengths was that we focused a lot on application of the principles we taught, we really tried to help the students realize that the information was relevant to their future careers. We accomplished this by asking engaging questions that forced them to evaluate the relevance to their own lives. We also provided thorough explanations for each of the principles we discussed along with images as mnemonic devices and allowed time for questions and comments. Another strength was that we provided activities to cement the principles of Gardner’s Theory of Multiple Intelligences Some of the weaknesses were that we took a lot of time to emphasize the MI theory, but did not spend quite as much time on some of the other theories. We also did not provide activities for all of the theories, this could have aided the student’s memory better if we had. I think we also might of went over a bit on our time.

If I were to redo this teaching experience I would emphasize the other theories besides the MI theory more. I would have also liked to provide activities for the different theories to make them more memorable and more engaging. It might of also been an improvement if we asked for even more feedback from our classmates so they stayed focused and interested. I would have also liked to cut down our presentation time by 5 minutes.

6 digital storytellings I commented on

Rachael Hamilton: This was a great movie to the song Baby of Mine. I thought it was a fun idea to put a movie to poetry or songs. This would be a great way to introduce a unit.

Ashley Daley: This was a book movie trailer for the Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe, I love the idea of making a book movie trailer for new books read in class.

Kami: This was a movie to the poem/story about being unique. This would be a fun movie for kindergartners.

Sabrina Huyett: This was another book movie trailer, but this one was for the book Hatchet. She really made the book seem excited, it would be a great way to get your class excited for the next book read in class.

Allie Becker: This was Rico's Color Adventure. It helped me learn that these videos can be interactive, this will help the kids even more.

Camila Moteiro: This was sort of a sing along to Bingo. I loved this idea, this would be a fun way to teach children songs.

ipt 287 digital story

This is an informational movie based off of the 2nd grade health objective to understand strategies to keep from getting contagious diseases and sicknesses.

Standard 1
Students will develop a sense of self.
Objective 1
Describe and adopt behaviors for health and safety.
C. Relate behaviors that can help prevent disease (e.g., hand washing, good nutrition, fitness, universal precautions).

Storyboard

Here are some pictures from my storyboard.

Psychology assessment 3

1. Formative Assessments: This could be a simple homework worksheet. The students realizes what they do and don't know about the subject of the homework as they complete it, and the teacher is also able to see how well the student is comprehending the information. Based on the results of the homework the teacher can better understand how to format his/her teaching to better help the students.

Summative Assessments: This could be a final paper about the subjects discussed throughout a unit. The teacher can see what the student has ultimately learned from the unit. It can also be an indicator as to the effectiveness of the instruction. The depth of the student's knowledge about the subjects in the paper could imply how well the information was presented. The paper could then be used to help assign a grade in the class.

A formative assessment could be used as a summative assessment later if the formative assessment was used to give a final grade for a report card.

2. Standardized achievement tests are used to find out the current knowledge of a student. They are not matched to any specific curriculum from national curriculum or state curriculum. The results are generally used to see the knowledge and skills of specific students and assess the strengths and follies of school districts. Standardized aptitude tests test the future abilities of students, this could be generally or in a specific area. The results of these tests are used to place students in specific classes, colleges, or programs. I would say that standardized achievement tests are closer to criterion-referenced tests. This is because the strengths and weaknesses of the individual is the desired information. I would say that standardized aptitude tests are closer to norm-referenced tests, because you compare the students scores to other student's scores in order to see where a students should be placed based on ability, or in order to gain entrance into a school.

3. I would still be very concerned if I was Alexandria. Regardless of the excuses some of the teachers gave to explain the falling test scores, I would not want to take risks. It is true that there could have been many factors that led to the dropping test scores, but it would be wise to take action now so that the scores do not continue to fall. As a principle I would want to ensure that everything was done to encourage better performance on the next test. This could be anything from better preparation of the students as far as test taking skills, or calling the district to find out if special accomodations could be made for the special needs students. I would also push the teachers to emphasize reading even more in their instruction. The important thing is that the students learn to read better, and action should be taken to ensure this regardless.

4. It is important to understand assessment as a teacher because it is such a large part of the school experience for students. Teachers need to be aware of the best ways to assess their students so they can better understand what the students' knowledge is as well as what they need to improve in their instruction. Teachers need to learn how to make their tests valid and reliable, and also need to know what assessments will best show what their students know. It is also important for them to have an understanding of standardized tests, and recognize what the results of those tests imply about their students. Parents should also be informed about the kinds of standardized tests. If they understand what the standardized tests actually imply about their children and what standard they are being compared to they can learn what areas their children may need special help in or what programs kids could excel in.

Technology week 2

My wiki website page is at http://www.nicholemahas.pbworks.com/

During this week's assignments I learned that web 2.o is all the sites available on the internet today that allow people to interact with the page. These can be in blogs or wikis. I learned that a wiki is like a website, and can be a great tool for classrooms. I would like to have my own class wiki when I begin teaching. The website GoodReads is where I can get together with colleagues to discuss literature and give and receive recommendations for books. This is a great website to collaborate and find new materials to share with my students. Diigo is a website where I can connect with my friends and discuss reading as well. I can find websites from my friends that may be of interest to me. I can also highlight and make notes on the things I read on the internet. Google reader allows me to subscribe to different webpages and recieve updates from their articles. I can read all of the webpages I subscribe to using Google Reader. The most difficult thing I did was add different things onto my wiki page. I had a little bit of trouble trying to get some of the media and images I wanted onto my new pages I created. Overall however, it was pretty easy to navigate. I can't decide which activity was the most useful. I found all of the new technologies extremely useful especially the wiki.

Week 2 Assessment

1. Bloom's Taxonomy is a way to classify learning objectives, and gives ideas for how students can demonstrate their competency. The 6 parts of Bloom's Taxonomy are;
1)Remember: students can recall or recognize info. They may do this by listing or labeling etc.
2)Understand: students make sense of informations or make connections. They may do this byexplaining or summing up.
3)Apply: students use principles to solve problems. They may do this by computing or solving.
4)Analyze: students distinguish or classify or make hypotheses about info. They may do this by categorizing or comparing.
5)Evaluate: students judge the value of info. They may do this by critiquing or recommending.
6)Create: students combine ideas to create new products. they may do this by designing or inventing.

2. Validity is the degree to which a test measures what it is intended to measure. Reliability is the consistency of test results. These are important as they help to ensure testing is fair and accurate. It also helps limit other factors such as time restraints and problems with questions from interfering with the results. If a test is valid and reliable it will measure the knowledge of students about the desired topics and will consistantly produce the same results among students.

3. An example of product performance assessment is a student creating a clay pot in pottery class, and the teacher grading the finished product. An example of process performance assessment would be a teacher viewing a student make lay-ups and commenting and grading their performance of the skill, and making sure they perform the correct steps to do a lay-up.

4. Three different ways to evaluate performance assessments would be to have the students participate in;
a) Presenting: students would show what they know to the class through an oral presentation or demonstration.
b)Projects: Students build or create a physical product to show their knowledge on a given subject. This would require the use of many different skills.
c)Portfolios: Students keep and organize all their different activities, projects, and papers. This shows how students have progressed throughout a given amount of time.

5. An elementary school teacher would need to be concerned with assessment bias as it could ultimately skew the results of the assessment. If a teacher is biased when grading it may not be apparent what a student is really skilled at or what they really need to improve on. It restricts the value of the actual rating, and is unfair to students.

Why I Love Education

I love education because it can have such a positive, powerful impact on individuals. I feel that education helps us become our best selves as we learn to relate to others, and discover our unique talents and abilities. As we gain an education we can better serve those around us, and ultimately reach our potential as human beings!