Technology in Schools

Technology in schools.

There are many different types of programs and apps that you can use in the classroom, different aspects of technology that replace the usual assumptions about schools (teachers standing in the front of the classroom giving the students information to memorize.)

A few examples of technology are

· Facebook

· Blogs, wiki’s.

· ITunes.

· IPods, IPads and IPhones.

· Mobiles

· Video

· Audio

· Powerpoints

· Animation

· Glogster

· Twitter

· Weebly

· Video Conferencing

· Windows movie maker- other movie making programs.

· Alias Sketchbook Pro.

· Adobe Photoshop.

· Interactive Whiteboards.

I will be using the SWOT analysis today on these examples of technology.

Facebook- is a social networking site that can be used to interconnect and share a classrooms progress.

Strengths-

· It’s easy to use and most students in High School would own a facebook account.

· It’s an easy way to communicate on different subjects.

· You can create a Facebook page for a classroom, however only children over 13 can create an account so if it’s for a younger class they should be supervised when using it.

· Parents can easily view their child’s progress and projects via the classes facebook account.

Weaknesses-

· It isn’t an ideal way of showing of a classroom’s progress.

· Many parents won’t have or feel the need for a facebook account.

· Younger students probably won’t fully understand it.

Opportunities-

· Can create an online community.

· Can engage with other teachers, parents and older students.

Threats-

· Have to be careful when creating a classroom account for younger students because of internet safety.

· Must have it constantly supervised.

· Cannot post anything without students/parent’s permission.

· Stranger danger over the internet.

I like Facebook as a social networking website, I can connect with friends, show off my art work and photos. However I don’t know if it has a permanent place in our classrooms it can be a very distracting and it might not be the best program to use when mapping out what the students have achieved.

I wanted to add it in my list of technologies because it does play a large role in our society today. People have their own little communities on facebook, they can pick and choose who they wish to add and write whatever they wish. It is a world revolving around that one person, millions of people have facebook accounts and each account revolves around that person. It is slightly daunting, and exciting to think about all the different ways our technology can be used. Whether it’s for education, science or social networking, there are endless possibilities.

Blogs – Are a personal writing page/website for one person. It can be used for a classroom to post ideas, stories, homework or progress.

Strengths-

· Easy layouts.

· Personalise.

· Has a nice way for presenting work.

· Can be used to express thoughts, ideas or information.

· Can be used to show of projects, pictures or video’s of the classroom.

· Parents can look over the blog to see the child’s progress.

· Students can access the blog for homework assignments and so forth.

· Can be made private just for student and parents viewing.

Weaknesses-

· You cannot post Audio.

· Only short videos can be uploaded (depending on the blog site).

· It is hard to add friends or find blogs of equal relevance without having the URL.

· Students may get bored with constant writing, so you must add lots of different aspects.

Opportunities-

· An online site for other teachers to draw information from.

· An example of the progress and development of the students for them to draw back on.

· A place to develop project ideas for the students to try at home.

Threats-

· Have to constantly be aware of the copyright laws and child safety regulations.

· Cannot post material that hasn’t been consented to being on an online blog.

· It doesn’t have the same freedom as a wiki, interactive white board or virtual classroom.

I had fun creating a maintaining my blog over the past couple of weeks, it was easy and simple to understand. Although it didn’t (as stated in the threats section of my SWOT) have that certain freedom that a wiki page does. The wiki page made my life so much easier when creating the PMI on learning theories with a partner.

Blogging isn’t hard to do but for me personally it was difficult to maintain, I like lots of colour and pictures, so for me to do constant writing and reflections was a real push. I do however need to be pushed outside my comfort zone from time to time and this is exactly what this course has done so far.

I would use a blog in a classroom situation because however much that I struggle to motivate myself to write on a blog I don’t doubt that there would be mountains of material to post when you’re working in a class of 30.

Wiki- A collaborative website that can be used by students to brainstorm with one another outside the classroom

Strengths-

· Children can easily work together to create an answer or piece of writing for an assignment or homework.

· It is easy to understand.

· If something gets deleted the teacher can easily retrieve it.

· All the students can participate on the one Wiki page.

· All students have a chance to express their ideas without one or two students dominating.

· Video and Audio can be easily uploaded.

Weaknesses-

· Work can be easily deleted.

· Can’t be as personalized as a blog.

· Doesn’t have that same neat layout as a blog.

Opportunities-

· Students can create brilliant essays or collaborative assignments without having to arrange meetings.

· The teacher can correct and change their ideas as they post them, so they get direct feedback.

· Students can bounce ideas off one another without feeling that same pressure to not write or speak the same ideas as others.

Threats-

· Once again, Copy Right and child safe laws come into play.

· Teachers must constantly check the wiki page for any indecent communication or put downs.

· Wiki’s are harder to get around (jump from one page to another) then a blog or facebook page.

I really like wiki’s, they are easy to use when working in groups on collaborative projects. Also you have more options with a wiki then with a blog. You can upload more, and create more on a wiki. However being a visual person it isn’t to colourful, and it doesn’t have the same range to make it your own. This I believe will have an impact on how children will react to it, to make it all a bit more special you would have to make sure each student has their own colour for text, ask them to upload pictures relevant to the topic and the teacher would have to upload videos and audio for them to watch and analysis.

ITunes- Almost everyone knows ITunes, it is one of the biggest and most used music library. It can be connected to a number of devices such as the IPod, IPad, and IPhone to name a few.

ITunes has a number of items available for education purposes, I found these when I was trolling through the internet for technology uses in the classroom.

Apple - Education - Apps

Storynory - Stories For Kids - Download free podcast episodes by Wizzard Media on iTunes.

The Story Home™ Children's Audio Stories - Download free podcast episodes by Alan Scofield on iTunes.

There is also ITunes-U which offers a large amount of educational material for older students to download.

Strengths-

· It is fun, interesting and educational.

· Have many different uses in the classroom.

· Can help kids expand their skills in all subjects.

· Is easy to understand and download.

· The teacher can control the games and such downloaded.

· Students can learn to share and interact as a group.

· Can be a useful tool for children who are reluctant to work in the usual classroom environment.

· It can also help kids who have trouble learning or have disabilities.

· It can help students learn in their own time, they can go back to stories or readings from their last session. Begin a new game or problem and work it through at their own pace.

Weaknesses-

· Some games are 1:1 and in a class of 30 this can prove problematic if you have limited devices.

· They can be a bit expensive and are constantly being upgraded.

· They may be misused or mistreated.

Opportunities-

· It can be used in many situations in the classroom.

· Such as: Teaching kids how to read, Learning maths problems, language skills, creating puzzles for one another and so forth.

Threats:

· Children may be spending too much time on devices rather than getting one on one time with the teacher and other students.

· Other apps may find their way onto the devices.

I love the Idea of using an IPad in a class; it is a great way to get kids excited about learning.

Setting up and using an IPad or other Apple products is fairly easy and it comes with a range of uses and apps for the classroom.

PowerPoint- A Windows program that can be used to create slide shows, stop motion videos and interesting assignment tasks.

Strengths-

· It is an interesting alternative to the humble essay.

· It is easy and has simple instructions if you get lost.

· You can create a slide show to your liking.

· You can add pictures and audio easily.

· You can add a recording to accompany the powerpoint.

Weaknesses-

· Finding the right mix of information per slide is crucial because you don’t want your viewers to become bored or overwhelmed.

· It can become confusing when trying to figure out what order you want your information or project presented.

· It can also become a tedious task creating a PowerPoint.

Opportunities-

· You can attach links to your PowerPoint.

· Video.

· Pictures and photos.

Threats-

· It doesn’t always convey the message you wanted.

Unfortunately, I couldn’t think of many dot points for PowerPoint, maybe it’s because I don’t like to use it unless I really have too. I do like it, but I find it very tedious to use.

The other technologies stated will be added later on in my assignment 2, I will pick 4 that I really like and work on those.

Thank you for reading this, I know its long and I hope I didn’t bore you. J