Week 14 PLE

I completed #s 2-4 for this week's PLE.

Internet Safety Assignment

For my article of choice, I chose to read Elder Bednar's talk called "Things as They Really Are". I heard this talk when he gave it as a CES Fireside, but I wanted to read it again to refresh my memory. We really do live in a technological world and with that comes immense benefits as well as many many avenues that will only lead to places of harm. Because of that, we need to follow the spirit and know the ways to be safe on the internet.
I watched several videos, and they were all beneficial learning tools for me. I first watched a video called "Cyberbullying: Feathers in the Wind. It made a connection between gossip and feathers in the wind. Once we spread gossip, it is hard to take back what we said, just as it is hard to collect feathers in the wind. I saw another video on Cyberbullying, and it was about a website that was created that rated girls' looks. I saw a video called "Julie's Journey". This video told the story of a 13-year old girl who started talking to a man named Tom online - he ended up being a convicted murderer. I also watched a video called "Amy's Choice". In this video Amy didn't feel that she had anyone to talk to, but she met up with someone online and ran away with him. She was eventually found, he was caught and now serves in prison. I saw the video from the BYU animation department called "Faux Paw the Techno Cat." I also watched three videos called "Child Predator Fear", "Katie's Story", and "Trying on New Identities".
This activity was extremely beneficial to me, because I learned so much about how dangerous the internet really can be. We live in a world where children and teenagers really do own the internet, and many of their lives revolve around the internet. If we don't know how we can safegaurd them, the web really can be a dangerous place. I feel that I gained knowledge of how I could protect my children and students from scary places on the internet.
The person that I talked to was familiar with technology and the benefits and dangers that come along with it, but as I shared some of the articles that I read and watched, he was surprised at how many teens really do get caught up in compromising circumstances. He was surprised at how many teens agree to meet up with strangers, even when they sometimes know how much older the stranger is than them. This person surprised me when he said that teens wouldn't find themselves in dangerous circumstances if they were able to follow their instincts when chatting with others online. I think that this person will be more aware of the dangers that can be found online, and he has agreed to be more aware of what his children are doing everytime they are on the web.

TPACK Report

TPACK Lesson Plans

Science Technology Lesson
Math Technology Lesson
Language Arts Lesson Plan

Video Response

This video made me extremely motivated to incorporate technology in my classroom for many different reasons. I loved the technology used in learning about spiders, and I discovered that students really can use technology at such an early age. I loved that the students were using technology as a way to collaborate with students from a class in a different state! This was a useful integration of technology because students were able to learn about spiders in a different place than they lived, and they were also able to use technology that will be extremely useful to them throughout their lives, such as the internet and email. It would also be extremely fun for students to take their own pictures of spiders and share them with their classmates.
I also loved the technology that was incorporated into the kindergarten classroom. I was pleasantly surprised to see that even kindergartners can grasp technology and successfully use it. I liked that each classmate helped to create a slideshow. I think it would be very fulfilling for students to take part in a story and then to see the final product as a class. It was interesting for me to discover that many students can come into a class with no computer skills and develop into being able to draw on a computer the way they draw on paper! Students would definitely be actively involved in this type of activity!
In the final video, I liked that the teacher taught the students to use the technology themselves and wouldn’t do it for them. This is beneficial for students, because we live in a day in age where computer skills are absolutely necessary. To get a grasp on simple technologies is beneficial for students at even the youngest of ages!

Initial Observations of Technology

Since I have been at Southland Elementary, I haven't seen any technology integrated into the classroom. It doesn't seem that the students have access to much technology in the classroom or even in the school. The school is equipped with a computer lab, but I haven't seen much use of that since I have been at the school. The teacher I am observing has a personal laptop that she uses to take attendance and keep track of grades, but there isn't much technology that is being used with the students. The school has a computer lab that the students have access to as a class if it is needed in addition to their regular class time, but I haven't seen my teacher take advantage of that. Overall, I haven't seen any uses of technology in classroom instruction.

I have completed the Classroom Technology Inventory, the Midcourse Evaluation, and the Consent Form.

Video Threads I Viewed and Commented On:

I viewed and commented on:
1) Kim Brown
2) Lauren MacDonald
3) Natalee Biggs