Social networking can be important for anyone. Sometimes the only way to stay constantly connected with other people is through the social networks on the internet. By networking with people around the world, students get a chance to meet new students so that they can share information and ideas. Even though only a small percentage of students don’t use social networking, as a teacher we need to continue to allow and guide students to connect with each other in order initiate new and valuable experiences. However, encouraging usage of social networking through educational means is important.
In addition, I also believe that games can make any lesson more effective and interactive. Encouraging students to think outside of the normal way of learning and trying different ways to solve problems can help them to reach their goal. These kinds of games use different vocabularies to help students understand the concept easier and also help build their confidence by taking risks. I think games can really exercise their cognitive thinking in order to solve problems whether that’s a math problem or any other kind. There are also many games that can help students with disabilities. Using the smart-board to play games helps students to interact and improve in areas that they are having trouble with, physical or mental. There are so many educational games that incorporate good learning principals which can help in creating a healthy learning environment where students can have fun and use systematic thinking to solve different problems.
In general, the 21st century classroom should provide all these technologies to let students build their cognitive thinking and learning. It should be a place where students love to be and feel comfortable in order to learn and experience new things.
Monday, November 22, 2010
Saturday, November 6, 2010
SMART Exchange review.
http://exchange.smarttech.com/details.html?id=f2899648380412e311a6da1cb82db40ea46d70a0760a0e4de3630ac9e97ab908
This Smart Notebook lesson is very interactive and fun to play. I believe, Spanish teacher Kirk Petty wanted to make this “Pronouns” lesson very easy to understand and also visual. At the same time, the lesson follows the objectives of the day as well. As a student who is learning in this kind of environment, this will help me have fun while using technology and exploring with my peers. The most amazing thing about this lesson is that it provides visual aids that help students to relate when learning. As an educator, I feel like this kind of lesson is a great way to catch every student’s attention and help students to concentrate longer than when receiving direct instructions. In general, the lesson is excellent and it will also be a great way to differentiate your lessons for all different learners.
This Smart Notebook lesson is very interactive and fun to play. I believe, Spanish teacher Kirk Petty wanted to make this “Pronouns” lesson very easy to understand and also visual. At the same time, the lesson follows the objectives of the day as well. As a student who is learning in this kind of environment, this will help me have fun while using technology and exploring with my peers. The most amazing thing about this lesson is that it provides visual aids that help students to relate when learning. As an educator, I feel like this kind of lesson is a great way to catch every student’s attention and help students to concentrate longer than when receiving direct instructions. In general, the lesson is excellent and it will also be a great way to differentiate your lessons for all different learners.
Tuesday, November 2, 2010
OpenSource App Reflection
http://sourceforge.net/projects/typefaster/
The OpenSource app that I downloaded from Source Forge is called “Type faster Typing Tutor”. First of all, since it was free I was able to try it without any problem or hesitation. My first impression was that I really liked the feature that gives you a keyboard on your monitor so user can follow and practice typing because visual aids are crucial for learning. Typing correctly is important and can help students and teachers when using technologies. I believe, since anyone can have access to this application, students can even practice outside of their classrooms. This program also has different levels so when your test score goes up you can move on to the next level for more challenging typing exercises. During my high school years, I remember that I took a typing class and we used programs which probably were paid for. Type faster Typing Tutor would be a great tool since students can use it and learn, and at the same time the school can save money in order to spend their budget where it’s needed. In addition, I like this typing program so much because they offer lessons in many different languages. I believe that this typing tool can also be included in foreign language classrooms where their keyboard is a little different and students will need to get used to it even though they know the regular American keyboard setup. In general, I like this application and I would love to use it in my classroom in the future to teach my students how to type well.
The OpenSource app that I downloaded from Source Forge is called “Type faster Typing Tutor”. First of all, since it was free I was able to try it without any problem or hesitation. My first impression was that I really liked the feature that gives you a keyboard on your monitor so user can follow and practice typing because visual aids are crucial for learning. Typing correctly is important and can help students and teachers when using technologies. I believe, since anyone can have access to this application, students can even practice outside of their classrooms. This program also has different levels so when your test score goes up you can move on to the next level for more challenging typing exercises. During my high school years, I remember that I took a typing class and we used programs which probably were paid for. Type faster Typing Tutor would be a great tool since students can use it and learn, and at the same time the school can save money in order to spend their budget where it’s needed. In addition, I like this typing program so much because they offer lessons in many different languages. I believe that this typing tool can also be included in foreign language classrooms where their keyboard is a little different and students will need to get used to it even though they know the regular American keyboard setup. In general, I like this application and I would love to use it in my classroom in the future to teach my students how to type well.
Friday, October 22, 2010
Mac App Store
http://www.tuaw.com/2010/10/20/mac-app-store-announced/
Yesterday, Apple announced the launch of the new Mac App Store. The Mac App Store is offering new features like auto upgrade, one click download which will help users save time and money. Any apps that a user buys will have access to any Apple products like, iPods, iPhones, or iPads. Another interesting point that they have mentioned is about the developers. Big developers like Adobe and Microsoft might not want to join and it can cause problems for many Apple users who need these products. I feel like there are always good things following the bad, and the best way to solve problems is by having balance. If big developers don’t join the Mac app store then the Mac app store will be almost useless. “The Mac App Store will be a standalone app available for Snow Leopard and Lion.”
Yesterday, Apple announced the launch of the new Mac App Store. The Mac App Store is offering new features like auto upgrade, one click download which will help users save time and money. Any apps that a user buys will have access to any Apple products like, iPods, iPhones, or iPads. Another interesting point that they have mentioned is about the developers. Big developers like Adobe and Microsoft might not want to join and it can cause problems for many Apple users who need these products. I feel like there are always good things following the bad, and the best way to solve problems is by having balance. If big developers don’t join the Mac app store then the Mac app store will be almost useless. “The Mac App Store will be a standalone app available for Snow Leopard and Lion.”
Why Educate?
http://www.downes.ca/post/53265
As a teacher and a student, I believe that all people must be well educated in order to be successful. Having an education does not mean just being literate. In order to achieve your goals you must know how to communicate effectively with others. For some students, going to school can be a place where they meet friends and learn something from their teachers. However, from my perspective I consider that students at any stage of their education are preparing to be able to interact with the world in a professional manner, not how to interact in the classroom. By receiving education, students can also find their interests and what they really want to do as a living. I truly believe that without good education people will not be as motivated to participate in the fast pace nature of the working world. As a good educator, our job is to guide our students in the right direction in order to help them explore and find their motivations. Without education or motivation, it will be hard to become a successful person.
As a teacher and a student, I believe that all people must be well educated in order to be successful. Having an education does not mean just being literate. In order to achieve your goals you must know how to communicate effectively with others. For some students, going to school can be a place where they meet friends and learn something from their teachers. However, from my perspective I consider that students at any stage of their education are preparing to be able to interact with the world in a professional manner, not how to interact in the classroom. By receiving education, students can also find their interests and what they really want to do as a living. I truly believe that without good education people will not be as motivated to participate in the fast pace nature of the working world. As a good educator, our job is to guide our students in the right direction in order to help them explore and find their motivations. Without education or motivation, it will be hard to become a successful person.
Saturday, October 16, 2010
The New Skype Connects Everyone
http://about.skype.com/press/2010/10/new_skype.html
The new Skype for Windows is bringing people even closer together. Similar to Facebook, the new features connects people around the world even easier and faster. As an immigrant to this country I feel like these technologies let us communicate with our families, friends, and even businesses. Video calling is another advantage to Skype. Video calling makes every conversation more exciting and interactive. Being able to see a person when communicating helps people to express and understand each other better, and using video calling can simulate in-person dialogue. The new version of Skype has also added recovery features. Recovery features help people to reconnect immediately easier and faster when having connection problems. Technologies like Skype are a great way to communicate with people around the world with barely any hassle. Seeing the person you are talking to allows people to have a powerful and more meaningful conversation with minimal miscommunication.
The new Skype for Windows is bringing people even closer together. Similar to Facebook, the new features connects people around the world even easier and faster. As an immigrant to this country I feel like these technologies let us communicate with our families, friends, and even businesses. Video calling is another advantage to Skype. Video calling makes every conversation more exciting and interactive. Being able to see a person when communicating helps people to express and understand each other better, and using video calling can simulate in-person dialogue. The new version of Skype has also added recovery features. Recovery features help people to reconnect immediately easier and faster when having connection problems. Technologies like Skype are a great way to communicate with people around the world with barely any hassle. Seeing the person you are talking to allows people to have a powerful and more meaningful conversation with minimal miscommunication.
Wednesday, October 13, 2010
Language Develpment Theory
Throughout the study of education and learning processes, humans have divided the language development theory into different categories. It is difficult to say which one is the best, but as a teacher it is necessary to understand the different perspectives. That’s one of the reasons why there is still a lot of research and studies focused on language development. As an immigrant in this country, I feel like the Social Interaction theory fits the best to my experiences. Interacting with other students who are native speakers helped me a lot to improve my English language skills. Of course, at school I was instructed through more of the Connectionist theory. “Connectionist model consists of a set of processing elements, called nodes, and the interconnections among those nodes.” For example, Spanish and ESL classes required a lot of repetition in order to gain understanding and new vocabulary. This is similar to our experience when we were a baby. We learned words by listening to others and each time they repeated a word, we would learn how to use and pronounce that word better. Like the saying goes, “practice makes perfect.” While reading Hoff, chapter one, I realized that there are other theories which could be used effectively in the classroom, for instance, Generativist, Constructivist, and Behaviorist.
The Generativist theory states that all human can learn equally. It also explains how humans are capable of learning naturally like a built-in ability. This means that we don’t need to strain ourselves over learning about something as one can absorb information and use it naturally. For instance, when students are writing short passages in Spanish, they can partner with other students and correct each other’s grammar. The Constructivist theory says that “language (or any form of knowledge) is constructed by the child using inborn mental equipment but operating on information provided by the environment.” To me this means, anyone can learn almost anything, but it is the environment or classroom that facilitates learning. For example, after reading or watching a movie in Spanish, students can sit in a circle and have a question and answer session in order to discuss and understand each other points of view. This theory is often used in today’s classroom and involves interacting directly with the environment. This theory also states that the environment can teach any student. For example, as a Spanish teacher I can create environments where students can interact with each other by speaking the language in order to practice naturally, and be able to learn Spanish from the environment or naturally occurring instances like dialogue or conversation. Lastly, there is the Behaviorist theory. This theory focuses on certain reinforcements according to the behavior of the student. For example, positive reinforcement is really important to create a healthy learning environment and can be used to motivate our students. As a result, students will want to learn more in order to receive the incentives as part of the reinforcement. However, it’s possible that some students feel that reinforcement doesn’t always work since students are only working for a prize. “Because the behaviorists' notion of the endpoint of development was wrong, the behaviorist theory of achieving that endpoint is inadequate as a theory of language acquisition”. As a good teacher I feel like sometimes I should be giving some reinforcement to motivate students, but trying different methods to see their effectiveness is our job. In the classroom, giving too many stickers or candies everyday can condition students to get used to the idea of receiving awards for every activity or task they accomplish. However, if the instructor provides reinforcement only when it is needed or earned, students may try a little harder to work for the prize that is not so easy to get.
As a Spanish and Technology major, I believe in my field the best theories that apply are Constructivist and Social Interaction. In these classrooms, usually teachers create an environment where students can learn naturally and interact with other in order to learn and scaffold. At the same time, as an educator, it is hard to say which one of these theories is the best for all students although all of these theories are proved and can make sense in different situations. As an intentional teacher, we need to study our students by using these theories in order to serve them the best. Understanding how our students learn can help us improve in our job as guides. Since every student is different, we need to apply different methods to teach every student in the classroom.
The Generativist theory states that all human can learn equally. It also explains how humans are capable of learning naturally like a built-in ability. This means that we don’t need to strain ourselves over learning about something as one can absorb information and use it naturally. For instance, when students are writing short passages in Spanish, they can partner with other students and correct each other’s grammar. The Constructivist theory says that “language (or any form of knowledge) is constructed by the child using inborn mental equipment but operating on information provided by the environment.” To me this means, anyone can learn almost anything, but it is the environment or classroom that facilitates learning. For example, after reading or watching a movie in Spanish, students can sit in a circle and have a question and answer session in order to discuss and understand each other points of view. This theory is often used in today’s classroom and involves interacting directly with the environment. This theory also states that the environment can teach any student. For example, as a Spanish teacher I can create environments where students can interact with each other by speaking the language in order to practice naturally, and be able to learn Spanish from the environment or naturally occurring instances like dialogue or conversation. Lastly, there is the Behaviorist theory. This theory focuses on certain reinforcements according to the behavior of the student. For example, positive reinforcement is really important to create a healthy learning environment and can be used to motivate our students. As a result, students will want to learn more in order to receive the incentives as part of the reinforcement. However, it’s possible that some students feel that reinforcement doesn’t always work since students are only working for a prize. “Because the behaviorists' notion of the endpoint of development was wrong, the behaviorist theory of achieving that endpoint is inadequate as a theory of language acquisition”. As a good teacher I feel like sometimes I should be giving some reinforcement to motivate students, but trying different methods to see their effectiveness is our job. In the classroom, giving too many stickers or candies everyday can condition students to get used to the idea of receiving awards for every activity or task they accomplish. However, if the instructor provides reinforcement only when it is needed or earned, students may try a little harder to work for the prize that is not so easy to get.
As a Spanish and Technology major, I believe in my field the best theories that apply are Constructivist and Social Interaction. In these classrooms, usually teachers create an environment where students can learn naturally and interact with other in order to learn and scaffold. At the same time, as an educator, it is hard to say which one of these theories is the best for all students although all of these theories are proved and can make sense in different situations. As an intentional teacher, we need to study our students by using these theories in order to serve them the best. Understanding how our students learn can help us improve in our job as guides. Since every student is different, we need to apply different methods to teach every student in the classroom.
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