Journal Post #10

Focus question # 1:

-Differentiated Instruction is when a teacher incorporates in their lesson plan that gives students the option to choose which way they want to take in information and making sense of ideas. This is most popular in group works where some groups will be engaged in one activity, or some groups may have to write, while others are on the computer, and some students may choose to work independently.

-UDL stands for Universal design for learning. Along the lines of our engineering path through history someone realized that as new problems present themselves we needed to come up with creative changes thus requiring a new thinking process. This thinking process is what lead to UDL, UDL utilizes brand new research of how the brain takes in and utilizes information we now have with curriculum to accommodate broad student needs.

Tech Tool:

I am very skeptical about letting students use calculators in class, when it is not necessarily needed. I have found that some students become so attached to these helpful “AIDS”, which is what they were intended to be, just simple aids to help speed up calculations. Although these devices are extremely helpful and can be really helpful to keep students interest and students who may have vision problems. Martindalecenter.com is a website that has numerous mathematical and calculator tutorials it is a little complicated to get used to. When you first get on the website and you want to access the mathematical section of it click the link Mathematics center, once there you have access to over 2,000 mathematical programs and lesson guides.  

Summary:

In this chapter the main topic is to try to enhance student’s experiences with new technologies and teaching styles. It is important that we as educators do not come up with excuses why we cannot educate a special needs student, but instead try our hardest to ensure that we make accommodations for students with special needs to gain knowledge of core curriculum. As we are beginning educators our teaching style needs to be developed and there are three styles this chapter looks at. The first is the one I will use most often:

Low tech in which the classroom is taught with little to no technology relying on older teaching methods of the teacher talks and students listen or take notes. However in modern times this teaching style is less and less effective because students are not able to focus for as long as they used to, as well as the ever growing issues of ADD and ADHD.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Mid tech which is probably the educational strategy of choice seeing as how technology is used to promote organizational skills and time management, while still keeping core teaching styles of the classroom the same as before.

 

High Tech, which is brand new, implementing full technological teaching aids in the class curriculum. This is the preferred teaching style for the new upcoming students. It has essential tools to help improve student’s educational requirements, while also bringing up students with disabilities to keep them at the same level as their peers.

journal #7

Summary:
There are two main types of software:
System software- which is responsible for all the functions and control of a computer.
Application software- performs specific functions in specialized ways to produce a variety of services.
It then talks about the standard software apps people use like word, PowerPoint, Internet explorer, etc. that people may be very familiar with. The book even talks about what constitues a bad educational software which is: 1: the program, not the child, controls the activity.
                                                  2: The game promotes competition, steretyping or violence.
                                                  3: software favors quick reactions over long termed thinking.
Now point one is obviously true. Point two I disagree with competition being a bad thing. stereotyping and violence are obvious things we want children to avoid in a school setting, but competition is what our country is born with. I mean look at Manifest Destiny, Emilia Earheart, Cold War, Pepsi Coke debate, Olympics (minus the scandalls), and Microsoft all born from competition. I mean I'm not qualified to teach, I don't have a teaching degree or nothing like that, but I mean to me it seems if we hand a student a little bit of pride and confidence and pin them against another student with pride and confidence by the end of the year we will have two students that will make einstein look like a washed up newspaper. I mean those kids would differentiate that guy's parables straight to the infinite trash bin.
Another thing I found kinda cool about this chapter was the strong pull to get backed up by the math section. I don't know by clever design of my teacher trying to tell me "Hello!!!!! read the book you idiot especially this next one seeing as how its all about your field come on!" Or if I am the luckiest guy in the world and got a textbook with a chapter all about me, but what I believe is the coolest one is the ITS Intelligent Tutoring Center. Another one good for the elementary school level is Zoombinis, and what really stood out to me as just a fun time killer before work a game called MeCHeM I hope Irobot doesn't become a reality, but the good thing is if it does we have a military training program for it so we will be good. The reason why I'm being slightly condensending to this helpful program is the fact that the authors placed this fun program 15 pages away from their standard number two thus why I say IF violence is being used here my competition idea isn't that far off.

Focus question #4
Teachers can use games to aid them with learning because games have a concept of stealth learning in which students learn without really realizing it. Also games in which students are in control makes them want to learn. Now teachers can also use this for their kinesthetic and visual learners are the main focus for these games. Which is why teachers need to understand differentiation in structure, in which teachers plan their lesson in order to fulfill all the needs of all their students.

For example this is MeCHeM which helps students with chemistry. this game teaches students about which sollutions are effective for different types of reactions. In this case it can help teachers to teach applied chemistry or create a project based around this game. Seeing as how the current generations are the ones with the most access to technology such advances in school curriculum will deffinetly aid in learning.