Internet Safety

Blogging

I choose to watch the hour long Frontline documentary of technology and internet safety called Growing Up Online ( http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/kidsonline/view ). After watching the video I was actually really concerned. I knew that there were issues with cyberbullying and sexting, but what disturbed me almost as much as these problems was the reaction of the teenagers. It shocked me that so many teens didn't want there parent to see what they were doing/posting. I understand they need there privacy, but it was almost as if they were doing something they knew they weren't supposed to be doing. Many teens also had the attitude that "they new the dangers" and "they weren't dumb when it came to online predators", yet you could tell they didn't really understand.I think it is important to have an open mind about the use of technology in the classroom. I believe that an important part of being a technology literate teacher is being able to help educate students about the dangers of cyberbullying/sexting. I believe it is also important to let students know that it is important to tell their teachers/school administrators/parents about any problems they may be having. The students shouldn't be afraid to tell you if they are being bullied.Another important issue that was brought up in the documentary, which I thought was interesting, was the fear that students were "cheating" on assignments by looking up stuff on the internet or by doing the assignment with their friends. I agreed with the teacher on the documentary that in the "real world" we wouldn't be calling it cheating, we would be calling it "collaborating".

Final-Video Review

I reviewed the videos of:

Tori H. -link to comment: http://Jimmer.it/EXgFPS

Stephanie J. -link to comment:http://Jimmer.it/qYZyHv

McKenzie K. -link to comment: http://Jimmer.it/p/rmCN77

Final Instructional Video

(this video can also be found at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w2WlGI93ejs)

What specific lessons or activities would be enhanced by using these technologies and how would I implement them?

There are many times when schools might not have the funding to allow teachers to take their students on field trips that might prove useful in helping teach the educational material. Lack of funds may also limit the amount of materials to work with inside the classroom. I believe this is especially true for the science education. There are many activities/trips that would allow students to make better connections to the material, but they can be pretty pricey. Introducing videos I made myself would allow my students go on a virtual field trip, or do a virtual activity, without the administrators worrying about the cost of such activities.

Educational Video Storyboard

I chose to do my video on the blood system. The following link will take you to where you can download my finished storyboard.

https://sites.google.com/site/mrpattersonsscienceclass/downloadable-documents

Personal Technology Project 2-Google Earth

My Google Earth Tour link: https://sites.google.com/site/mrpattersonsscienceclass/downloadable-documents

1. Overall this experience of creating a tour on Google Earth was quite a bit harder than I thought it would be. I've had some basic experience with the program, including messing with the different layers and just looking at the different points on the map, but I didn't even know you could make your own customizable tours. By far the hardest thing for me to do was making sure that the information I wanted on each of the place-marks worked during the tour. I also had a difficult time getting the tour to work properly at first. The easiest thing for me was deciding on, and implementing, which layers I wanted on. Because of my past experience, this was something I could decide on, and then do, relatively easily. I would probably use Google Earth's virtual tour feature again. I think this is something that could really work in a earth sciences class.
2. There are a couple of other things I could use virtual tours for to help me teach toward some of the other Utah Core Objectives. One of the learning objectives for Earth Science is to help students understand about plate tectonics. It would be really interesting to make a tour where you looked at geological formations that help us understand how plate tectonics work. For example, I could use the Himalayas to help them understand how they were formed, or I could show them the San Andreas fault line to help teach them about faults and plate tectonics. Another cool feature that I could use for an Integrated Science class is the "Explore Mars" feature. I could use it to make a tour of mars to help my students understand Mars better.

Personal Technology Project 1-Mobile Apps

I decided to look for a couple of mobile apps (for the iPhone) that could help facilitate learning within my classroom.

#1-Flashcardlet*-(http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/flashcards/id403199818?mt=8)

A)What did I learn about this tool: This app allows users to create their own virtual flashcards, or download other flashcards that have been made by others. Sets of flashcards are saved on the phone, and can be easily removed from the users library if the don't need them anymore. The thing that I like best about this app, is that it is able connect the the Quizlet database, which has thousands of public flashcards that others have used. Unlike other apps that connect to Quizlet, this one allows pictures to be displayed on the flashcard as well as text. This could especially come in handy in my science classes which sometimes really rely on visuals (ie geological terms/concepts).

B) What state standards and instructional activities would you use the tool for: This app could help my students with ANY state standard. I probably predominantly use this as a review tool to help students before a big test. I could also use it to help students who are struggling with vocabulary. For example: If I was teaching about the different parts of a cell, I could make flashcards that had the main word and its picture on one side, and what it does on the other side of the virtual flashcard.

C) Describe in detail at least one instructional activity you could use with your students using the tool: I could have students create their own flashcards for a new section that we are learning. I also realize that not every student will have a smartphone that has the ability to use this app. What I can do to help with this problem is by putting people in groups during class with someone who has a smartphone, and that group can review together using that students phone.

#2-SkyView (free)-(http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/skyview-free-explore-

universe/id413936865?mt=8)

A)What did I learn about this tool: This app is really pretty basic/simple, but it provides so much information. The basic idea is that it uses the built in camera, gyro, and gps positioning to help the user locate a myriad of celestial bodies. The program will have you calibrate you gyro so that it will be more accurate when it shows you where constellations are. What is really neat, is that it will show a real-time view of what your camera sees as you hold up your phone to the sky so that you can match up what your phone says you should see, and what you are actually looking at. It's a kind of heads-up display. It will not only show you constellations and planets, but where the International Space Station is as well. One of the other unique features is that it allows the user to click on ANYTHING(no matter how "important" the star may be) on the screen to get more information about it.

B) What state standards and instructional activities would you use the tool for: One of the Utah state standards for Earth Science is that the student gain a better understanding of other planets/stars in our solar system and galaxy. I know that many times students don't realize that at certain times they can see planets in the night sky without the aid of a telescope. Many times they believe that what they are looking at is just another star, when it is actually Venus or Mercury.

C) Describe in detail at least one instructional activity you could use with your students using the tool: There are a few things that I could do with this mobile app. I would have them track the International Space Station as it crosses through the sky. I could also have them observe the sky and have them choose a few stars that they see while viewing the sky in the app. They could then give a brief description about those stars using the information on the app as a jumping off point.

Copyright Assignment

1st Video-

Bill Nye the Science Guy on Crying

This first video is definitely appropriate for teaching purposes. While the clip is taken from a specific episode, it is still less than 10% of the entire thing. The person who put up the clip also stated which episode/series that he took the clip from. This would be something that I would feel comfortable using in the classroom.

2nd Video-

"Cell Respiration"-Cellular Respiration Song

I found this to be a great example of a educator keeping to the copyright laws. The teacher took a popular song and arranged his own lyrics to it. In his description of the video he was very clear on the purpose of creating and posting this video. He also was sure to give credit those (the Black Eyed Peas) who he based his work off of. He could have included a link to get the real song as well, but since it was for educational purposes it is not necessary.