iPods in Instruction

I think that the use of ipods in schools would be a really good idea. Many universities have started using "iTunes U" to post lectures and and other materials that can be available to download to your ipod. Some K-12 teachers have even began using ipods to enhance and support their curriculum.

Ipods can also be used as a storage device by connecting to computers using a USB or Firewire cable. Students as well as teachers could really take advantage of using ipods in instructions. This is a really good means of keeping up with the times and keeping kids interested.

ipods in instruction

My Presentation

Dr. Christie's Site

On Dr. Christie's site there are a lot of useful tools. I really liked the rubric's page. A rubric is a guide line for students to use when they are completing an assignment or project. It can also be used upon completion of the assignment or project to evaluate how the student has did. When using rubrics students know what you are looking for and how they are going to be evaluated.

I think that this would defiantly be using when I am teaching. My students will know exactly what I am asking of them and how they will be graded. I think that it will be easier to grade projects and assignments when you are using rubrics because you have already established the guide lines and expectations.

Wikipedia

Wikipedia is not a reliable source. It doesn't matter if this is the first source that pops up when you do a search it can't be trusted. I have never used Wikipedia and really didn't know anything about it but I'm glad that I have read this information so that now I won't use it in the future. Anyone who wants can just go in and edit information. Wal-mart has even gotten on this site and changed information.
I don't know when if ever that this site can be trusted. As long as there are people going on Wikipedia and being allowed to change information it can't be valid. If the information was not allowed to be changed it may be totally different.

180 Days?

I read the blog for April on 180 days of school. I really liked this blog because it argued that there isn't enough time in the school year to cover everything that is assigned. Oh is that so many other things are going on in the school year that take away from teaching.

I watched the power point that was posted on this blog and it was very interesting. It said that we have 180 days in a school year then gave all the days that are used for taking test, assemblies, and other things that take away from the classroom. When it comes down to it we have less than 180 days to teach everything that needs to be taught and many distractions that come along with it. Here is a link to the power point that I found very interesting. 180 days?

Technologically Illiterate Teachers

I thought this blog was very interesting. I completely agree that teachers should know about technology and adapt to the changes that come about with it. How can we expect teachers to instruct kids if they are unable to it for themselves?

I agree with the statement that was given, "If a teacher today is not technologically literate - and is unwilling to make the effort to learn more - it's equivalent to a teacher 30 years ago who didn't know how to read and write." This is so true because times are changing so much and it's to the point now that computers are a big part of our everyday life. When I read this blog it reminded me of some of the teachers here at South and the knowledge they have about Foliotek. They expect us to be able to do it when they have no knowledge at all about it themselves.

Blogs In International Classrooms

I found two sites of International Classrooms that use blogs. The first site I looked at was the Tsukuba International School. They are an elementary school in Tsukuba, Ibaraki, Japan. This site gives information about the school as well as keeping you informed of what's going on in the school. http://en.tsukubainternationalschool.org/.


The next site that I looked at was the Yogyakarta International School. This site tells about the school, upcoming events, and even mentions the curriculum taught there. This are both very good sites and I found them to be very interesting. http://www.yisedu.org/

Blogs in Classrooms

The first blog that I looked at was one of Mrs. Curl. Her blog address is http://pcawinters.blogspot.com/. She is a first grade teacher at Providence Creek Academy in Clayton, DE. The main purpose of her blog is to inform the parents of what's going on in the classroom. Providence Academy has its own website: http://www.providencecreekacademy.org/. On this website many teachers have links to their blogs.

The next blog that I looked at was Ms. Flammang's. Her blog address is http://language-link.blogspot.com/2008/08/welcome-8th-grade-students-and-parents_29.html
Ms. Flammang is an eighth grade English teacher at Jackson Hole Middle School in Jackson, WY. The purpose of her blog is for parents to stay connected and for students to have access to assignments and the homework schedule.