Final Blog

This semester of EDM 310 has been eye-opening. We have learned how to use technology and media to increase our effectiveness in the classroom. We have seen the importance of fostering creativity in our students. Our ability to use technology to create projects in varied forms has improved. While difficult at times, EDM 310 has been very rewarding. I now feel confident in my ability to utilize every tool available to me in the classroom.

EDM 310 forced me to do things I wouldn’t normally. EdPuzzle, ALEX, video editing, and interactive PowerPoint are just a few of the projects we tackled. I even enjoyed the group projects. As someone who normally detests group work, this means a lot. Class was always informative and entertaining. Our teacher, Mr. Tashbin, was always willing to help answer any question we had. Mr. Tashbin truly facilitated our growth as future educators.

Personally, I will miss this class. EDM 310 has helped me in many ways. My ability to utilize technology has vastly improved. I have learned a lot that I will be able to use in the classroom. Overall, despite the sometimes daunting workload, this class has been quite rewarding.

EDM 310 Blog Post 14

This week in EDM 310 my group had to pick a lesson plan using ALEX, the Alabama Learning Exchange. This lesson plan will be featured in our end of semester capstone project. We chose a lesson plan titled The Study of Human Geography.  This lesson plan is designed for grades 6-8. It will utilize technology to improve the student’s understanding of Human Geography.

            Everyone in our group has a focus in social sciences, so this lesson plan is a perfect fit. The goal of The Study of Human Geography is to teach the students about population distribution, cultural landscapes, and cultural change. Then we will relate and compare this knowledge to modern trends. This will be the culmination of everything we have learned in EDM 310 this semester. I am excited to begin this final project. 

This week in EDM 310, we designed an interactive PowerPoint for use in a classroom lesson. I wanted this interactive PowerPoint to be something I could use in a future classroom. The concept I chose was a game based on the popular television show, Jeopardy. My version would feature questions relevant to a typical middle-school World Geography class.

Deciding on the form of the interactive PowerPoint was the easy part of the assignment, but assembling the PowerPoint was the most challenging. Designing the interactive main screen was time-consuming, but not difficult. I spent most of my time choosing questions and assembling the question and answer slides. PowerPoint is easy to use with even the most basic computer skills.

          There are many Jeopardy templates available online that are far more professional than my amateurish attempt. But I wanted to completely design my own version of the game to improve my PowerPoint skills.  This project was similar to other PowerPoints I have created in the past, except this one was far more comprehensive. This project was educational and functional. But more importantly, it boosted my confidence in my ability to create interactive PowerPoints. It’s a skill that will be quite useful in a future classroom.

EDM 310 Blog Post XII

Yesterday, my EDM 310 class was treated to a presentation by Dennis Campbell. The subject was Assistive Technology and its implementation in the classroom. Assistive technology is defined, in the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), as any “item, piece of equipment or product system, whether acquired commercially…or customized that is used to increase, maintain, or improve capabilities of individuals with disabilities.”

Mr. Campbell provided a wealth of information on Assistive technology. He explained the different levels of assistive technology and provided examples of each. He also discussed the effect new technology has had on accessibility to tech for students with disabilities. My favorite part of the presentation was when Mr. Campbell related his personal experiences working with children who have disabilities. His optimistic candor was refreshing and encouraging. Along with the video presentation we watched last week and Mr. Campbell’s presentation, I feel better prepared to use assistive technology in the classroom. 

EDM 310 Blog Post XI

This week, in EDM 310, we watched a video presentation by Margina Busby from the College of Education at the University of South Alabama. The presentation was titled “Overview of Assistive Technology and Implementation.” It is designed to give background information prior to an in-class presentation next week. Assistive technology is defined, in the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), as any “item, piece of equipment or product system, whether acquired commercially…or customized that is used to increase, maintain, or improve capabilities of individuals with disabilities.”  This definition includes a wide range of devices, for example: pencil grippers, powered wheelchairs, closed captioning, and touchscreens. These devices may seem dissimilar, but they all share the same purpose of providing access to education for students with disabilities.

Margina Busby explained that very few students with disabilities are educated solely in resource rooms. Most students with disabilities are educated in regular classrooms. This concept is called full inclusion. This means every educator will have students with disabilities in their classroom at some point. As a future educator, I believe it is important to be informed on the use of assistive technology so I can effectively use it in the classroom.

I hope to ask Mrs. Busby two  questions in the upcoming presentation. First, I would like to ask what percentage of the annual education budget is allocated for assistive technology. Second, I would like to ask her view on future development of assistive technology, considering the rapid pace of overall technological development

EDM 310 Blog Post 10

            This week my blog is about using the Alabama Learning Exchange (ALEX) to locate and design a lesson plan. Once I created an account, I was quickly overwhelmed by the sheer number of lesson plans available. ALEX made searching for an interesting lesson plan easy. There were a variety of lesson plans for my educational focus in social sciences. The ALEX website also features a podcast library with hundreds of useful podcasts. ALEX also lets you post your own podcasts and lesson plans to the site.

            After spending time exploring the ALEX website, I found a number of useful lesson plans. The lesson plan I chose was titled “From the Trenches of WWI”. It is intended to help students gain a better understanding of the soldier’s experience of trench warfare during WWI. The lesson plan involved using first person literary and audio accounts to show the extreme human experience of modern war.

            The students would compose a letter to a loved one from the perspective of a soldier engaged in trench warfare. Then the student would record the letter in the form of a podcast. This would be an excellent exercise that would reinforce what the student learned about the realities of trench warfare. The ALEX website makes it incredibly easy to find and utilize lesson plans for any classroom. Every educator should make use of this helpful tool.

Link to lesson plan:  http://alex.state.al.us/lesson_view.php?id=22529

EDM 310 Blog Post 9

In my previous blog, I told you about the process of making an interactive video with Edpuzzle. This video is designed to be used in the flipped classroom model. My groupmates, Chelsia and Brooke, also made interactive videos with Edpuzzle. As an exercise, we watched each other’s videos and took the associated quiz.

            Chelsia’s video was about strange historical facts that aren’t well known. I could see using this video to create interest in history for students. I’m not sure how you could transition from this video into class discussion. It’s a fun video to watch for entertainment’s sake, but it probably has little to contribute to the classroom.

            Brooke’s video was an introduction into the history of the Bubonic plague. It was very interesting and educational. The video follows the migration of the Black Death from its roots in Asia to Europe. The video would be fantastic as an introduction to more in depth discussions in the classroom. When the students have the basic backstory it makes it easy to expand on or clarify concepts in class. You could even spend class time talking about the effects the plague had on society at a micro level. As a future educator, I see a huge advantage in the flipped cl assroom model. Edpuzzle makes creating interactive videos simple and quick.