Google Map - Walt Disney

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Week 8 Google Map Lesson Plan

GOOGLE MAPS ASSIGNMENT I would be able to use Google Maps in about all of my classes as an assignment but the class that came to mind first was my Entrepreneurship class. Bell Work: When students walk in the classroom, their bell work would be to sit down, open their laptops, and research an entrepreneur they would like to know more about. (5-7 Minutes) I already have them do a Prezi about a famous entrepreneur and present it to the class. This would easily be an added bonus to the presentation. They could have a link to their Google Map in their Prezi. After bell work time is complete we would go around the room and mention who each student would like to research so we don’t have any duplicates. After each student knows who they will be researching, I would show the video and informative links to Google Maps I had to do for this assignment (I have them saved in my Delicious account). Once we go over how to create a map, I would ask for any clarification and then give them the guidelines and expectations for their maps. I would also show them an example that I have created in order for them to see what is expected of them. Guidelines would include the following: • Where the entrepreneur was born and when • Any cities they lived in • Schools they attended • Where they are now or where they died • What they are known for • Any other points of interest they might find during their research o Favorite spots of that person I would give them about 2 days during class to work on this (2 hours total) and anything else would be homework outside the classroom. They would all then present their Prezi to the class with the Google Maps integrated as a link.

Week 7 - Instructional Design in Business and Industry

As I read chapter 18, I was amazed by the many connections to the teaching profession. Because we teach a multitude of students, we are encountered by a multitude of cultures and learning abilities (or disabilities), not to mention all of the family and emotional/mental situations behind the scenes. “Instructional design today encompasses much more than simply producing instruction. It is now associated with analyzing human performance problems, identifying root causes of those problems, considering a variety of solutions to address the root causes, and determining and implementing the appropriate solutions (Rothwell & Kazanas, 2008)” (p. 178). Immediately I thought of struggling students. As a teacher we need to identify where and why the student is struggling and from there implement a strategy to provide a suitable solution. Not only do we have the great responsibility of designing lesson plans and teaching, we also have the great responsibility of evaluating, revising, and implementing new strategies. Along these same lines is the fact that we are teaching cross-culturally every single day. “In one instructional event, numerous societal cultural factors may be present in the representation of a cross-cultural workforce” (p. 182). While it is not the exact same thing, we do have different situations we are teaching to every single day. Another similarity I found in this chapter from business to teaching is the idea of a client role. “One problem designers face when starting a new project is identifying the client with the primary decision making responsibility” (p. 180). So many times, a teacher will get different answers from different people, causing misunderstanding and confusion. It is great when the roles of each teacher and administrator are clear. Also in this section, it discusses “instructional designers may experience frustration when designing instruction due to the lack of client understanding of the instructional design process” (p. 180). If administration is going to be requiring teachers to implement something new, they themselves need to make sure they know what it is all about and are trained on it themselves. The next area I found that tied to teaching was the “Better, Faster, Cheaper” section (p. 183), particularly when it discusses technology-based training. We have recently implemented a one-to-one laptop policy this past year in order to expedite several different processes. The administration followed several different schools who had done the same thing in order to provide for a “prototype” for what our school would model.

Week 5 Photo Sharing :)

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Human Performance Improvement - Week 7 - Chapter 14

Reflection 1. Related to Chapter 14, what are some ways the ideas/concepts/principles discussed in this chapter could be applied in your professional work? Do you see opportunities where these ideas could help you or your students? Right off, I read something that stood out to me – “HIP is a movement with a straightforward mission . . .” (p. 135). Too many times, we have a broad vision with many interpretations. When teachers are given a direct vision and goals, it is so much easier to accomplish something and not feel overwhelmed. It might be something as simple as implement a new piece of technology every 2 weeks in one of your classes. When told to just implement technology, my brain goes into overdrive and I have a hard time defining what I should do. When not given a clear directive, I will then create personal goals in order to break it down better and not seem like such a huge task. The book states it well when it says, “By focusing on the array of elements affecting learning – learner characteristics, learning context, tasks to be mastered, clearly defined learning objectives, criterion measures, media, and delivery systems – a more comprehensive view of learning systems arose” (p. 139). I also agree that there is something to be said about someone whose sole job is to come in from an outside perspective and analyze how an organization could be more effective. “The PC is there to identify gaps between desired and actual performance, analyze them, isolate the systemic factors affecting the gaps, and recommend an integrated set of suitable interventions to rapidly and effectively eliminate them” (p. 137). While we may not always like the outcome, resources need to be put to their best use and an organization can accomplish so much more when extras are weeded out. However, I believe that people from all levels of an organization need to be surveyed and questioned from their perspective on better uses of resources. There are many areas I am never questioned about that directly involve my job and my classes. If they would have asked me if I thought we should cut elementary technology, I would have adamantly said no a hundred times over. They are now re-evaluating their rash decision from a couple of years ago and are seeing that we need it back. When teachers are clear about our objectives and goals, less time is wasted trying to figure things out and more time is spent teaching our students. 2. As described above under Option 1, profile the podcast(s) you chose to subscribe and listen to (you don’t have to do this if you choose Option 2) Portable TV, Ottawa Canada 4/5th Graders This video podcast, Portable TV, is created by 4th and 5th graders in Ottawa, Canada! This particular episode contained the following segments: • Junior Achievement – students built structures out of spaghetti and marshmallows in a timed format in order for them to feel a similar type of pressure an adult might feel in business; students assembled pens in order to feel similar to a person who might work in a factory; students created advertising posters for their made-up business and pitched their ideas • Student-Invented Game – a couple of students created a game to be played in the gym. They listed the items needed to play the game as well as demonstrated and explained how to play the game. • Top Ten – two students listed the top ten things to do at recess and showed video of students doing these activities during recess o Hopscotch, hide and seek, talking with friends, four square, playing on the play structure, racing, playing manhunt game, touch football, basketball, and soccer (from 10 to 1) • Snail and Whale Visit Our School - little stuffed animals were sent from a different school to theirs and they created a slideshow with them doing different activities • Very Snowy Day – the students documented a very snowy day on 12/21/12 and them playing in it • Teacher vs. Student Challenge – students challenge a different teacher to different competitions. This podcast in particular included a puzzle and playing Guess Who where the students described how to play and the rules of the game 3. What added value might podcasting have in your professional setting (company, school, etc.)? Podcasting could have great effectiveness in the life of a teacher. One very important reason for this is because of the ability to listen or view the podcast on their own time! It is something that can be done during a lunch hour or prep hour or during professional development days. Something to consider, however, is not to assign it as “homework” to the teachers because it will never get done. We have enough to do outside of school, i.e. grading, lesson planning, discovering new uses of technology, etc. What could be an easy way for teachers to accomplish listening to and subscribing to podcasts is to give a time frame of choosing one to listen to, then writing a brief description to share in groups. We have Professional Learning Communities at our school, so this would be a great opportunity to share different podcasts.

Podcast Link - Week 7

Portable TV, Ottawa Canada 4/5th Graders This video podcast, Portable TV, is created by 4th and 5th graders in Ottawa, Canada! This particular episode contained the following segments: • Junior Achievement – students built structures out of spaghetti and marshmallows in a timed format in order for them to feel a similar type of pressure an adult might feel in business; students assembled pens in order to feel similar to a person who might work in a factory; students created advertising posters for their made-up business and pitched their ideas • Student-Invented Game – a couple of students created a game to be played in the gym. They listed the items needed to play the game as well as demonstrated and explained how to play the game. • Top Ten – two students listed the top ten things to do at recess and showed video of students doing these activities during recess o Hopscotch, hide and seek, talking with friends, four square, playing on the play structure, racing, playing manhunt game, touch football, basketball, and soccer (from 10 to 1) • Snail and Whale Visit Our School - little stuffed animals were sent from a different school to theirs and they created a slideshow with them doing different activities • Very Snowy Day – the students documented a very snowy day on 12/21/12 and them playing in it • Teacher vs. Student Challenge – students challenge a different teacher to different competitions. This podcast in particular included a puzzle and playing Guess Who where the students described how to play and the rules of the game

Google Maps - Week 6 - Traverse City (favorite vacation spot in summer)

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Video of daughter drumming - Week 6

Static Image - Week 6

Psychological Foundations Application Question - Week 6

The first theory I will use is B. F. Skinner’s Behavioral Learning Theory which states that, “learning can be understood, explained, and predicted entirely on the basis of observable events, namely, the behavior of the learner along with its environmental antecedents and consequences” (p. 36).  As a teacher, I would first do a pre-assessment to determine what they already know.  Because I teach older student, it is always essential to first figure out what they already know in order not to teach them something they already know and waste precious time.  Based on that assessment, I would simply teach my students through lecture and demonstration how to figure out the price per ounce of different brands of a particular item.  Then I would give a worksheet containing several different problems to reinforce what was just taught.  After working on the problems independently, I would ask for volunteers to share their answers and give instant feedback whether their answer was right or wrong. 

The second theory I will use is the “Cognitive Information Processing” theory that “regards the environment as playing an important role in learning” (p. 37).  Using the same assignment of figuring out the price per ounce of different brands of a particular item, I would create more of a sensory environment.  I would set up a mock shelf of grocery items and have them use their calculators in order to figure out the problems on a worksheet.  They could work collaboratively to figure the problems out, talking and “shopping” together.  I would observe whether or not they were all able to figure out the problems by listening to their discussions as well as looking at their worksheet. 

The final theory I will use is the “Constructivism” theory.  In this assignment I would have students create their own scenario or mock grocery shelf to have the other students figure out the price per ounce of a particular item among different brands.  They would have to create a worksheet for their peers to figure out.  This way, they are learning while they are creating. 

Chapter 3 Application Question - Week 5

a.

Throwing teachers and students into such a massive undertaking is a sure cause for epic failure. The main reason is that nowhere in the case study does it mention that teachers were trained or instructed on how to use the technology or how to efficiently access all of the texts online. Now, not only do the teachers need to figure out what the best use of the laptops are, they also have to teach and train all of their students how to access their textbooks and upload and do assignments online. Throughout the decades, one of the biggest reasons why technology has been slow to catch on is because of "failure to provide teachers with adequate guidance as to how to integrate the new media into their instructional practices" (p. 27). Just because a technology is available and a great resource does not necessarily mean all teachers and students already know how to use or will be able to figure it out easily on their own. Dating back to the original use of film equipment, "teachers had difficulty in operating film equipment" (p. 18).

Another reason why the total integration of laptops and wireless capability did not have much effect on the instructional practices employed by teachers is because of cost. Now that the district paid for laptops and wireless capability at home and school for all teachers and students, what money is left over for anything else? When something of this magnitude is implemented, there is also the cost of managing it. Technology is constantly needing to be updated and monitored, especially when students are given access to the internet. So many things are being added to the internet every second of the day which allows for more temptations and distractions. In order to avoid as many of these distractions and temptations as possible, more money needs to be used.

The last reason why the integration did not have a great effect is due to over-exaggerated optimism from experts in the area. There should always be a pilot program before jumping in to a project of this magnitude. In 1913, Thomas Edison said, "Books will soon be obsolete in the schools . . . " (p. 18). Look at how long ago he said that and was wrong! It just goes to show that we have many looking further ahead than their own lifetime and think it will be the norm. When, in reality, change this big takes time and much careful modification along the way. Another great statement came from Papert in 1984 that "the computer was going to be a catalyst of very deep and radical change in the educational system and that by 1990 one computer per child would be a very common state of affairs in schools in the United States" (p. 21). Change is definitely great, but sometimes it takes a lot longer than predicted in order to be successful.

b.

I have actually gone through this whole process myself this past school year and can definitely tell you what could have been done better in our particular situation. The biggest strategy would be guided instruction on how to best use the laptops and wireless capability. Teachers do not have endless amounts of time to research ways to best use technology instructionally in their classrooms. Proper guidance and time to figure this out is essential in order to equip teachers enough for them to feel in control. Because teachers are not given adequate training and time, they feel helpless, overwhelmed, and underappreciated. These feelings, therefore, run over into the classroom and how they are able to relate with their students.

Another strategy would have been to gradually employ the laptops to teachers first and then students. Teachers need to have time themselves first with the devices before the students so they are familiar. Give the teachers a year with the laptops and then give them to the students. Too much all at once is never a success. We all know that teachers are also given more than one new thing a year, so to add this huge integration as well as all of their other things that pop up during the year, can cause a huge amount of stress.