Excel Activity

Activity Reflection #2

Part of integrating technology in the classroom involves utilizing software properly.  There are many different types of software available including open sourced software like OpenOffice and web-based alternatives like GoogleDocs.  I am less familiar with these types of software as most of my experience is with Microsoft Office, but after reading about software in Integrating Technology and Digital Media in the Classroom and this week’s module for my class, I intend to learn more and try some out.

For this week’s activity, I used a very common program that most are familiar with called, “Excel.”  I used an Excel spreadsheet to modify and manipulate a mock grade book.  The activity required tasks such as changing colors in columns, adding grades, creating formulas to average homework grades, test grades, and final grades, and organizing the grades from least to greatest.  I have some experience working with Excel so most of these tasks were not difficult for me. 

One thing I learned from this activity is that I should not be afraid to try different options to achieve a task.  Some of the items for the activity I had not done since high school.  Since I am pretty good at figuring out technology, I just kept trying different things and clicking in different places until I got it right. I was not nervous that anything I was doing was going to ruin my grade book because if I clicked on something that was not correct, I just clicked “undo” and the spreadsheet would return to how I had it.  I also kept saving the page between steps.  I think that it is very important not to be afraid to try new things.  Often times, that is how you learn best.  If we don’t try new things, how can we encourage our students to do so?

Another aspect I learned from this activity is to always try the “help” feature if you do not know how to do something.  I experienced this when the activity asked me to make the student names on the first worksheet transfer over to the other worksheets and modify it so that if a change is made, it will change on all the worksheets.  I did not know that this was a feature of Excel so I was not sure how to do it.  After trying a few options that were not correct, I decided to Google the answer.  I sequestered the junk sites from the valid sites, but after about 5 minutes of searching through Google pages without finding anything close, I determined that this was not a good strategy.   I returned to my Excel spreadsheet and clicked on the “help” feature.  I typed in what I needed and the feature gave me step by step instructions on the side of the screen on how to do the task.

In conclusion, I enjoyed completing this activity.  Although my county has its own grade book program that we are required to use, I do see some practical uses for software such as Excel.  Since Excel is such a basic tool, I know that I could probably benefit even more from other productivity software that is available.  Upon reflection, the main thing that I learned from this activity is not to be afraid.  From now on, I will not be scared to try new technologies, and I will not fear asking for help or using the help features when needed.

Blocking Causes Blocks!

“Great! This is perfect,” I said to myself as I sat on my couch with my laptop.  I had just found an amazing video about Ancient Egypt that was made by another elementary school. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6q4FxvTEFRY  It had thrilling Indiana Jones music playing in the background, it showed relevant maps of Egypt, and it had numerous photos of real artifacts from Ancient Egypt.  “This is exactly what I was looking for,” I thought out loud.  “The kids are going to be so excited to start our unit on Ancient Egypt after I introduce it with this video and tell them what some of these photos are of.”  Only there was one problem….  It was a YouTube video.  YouTube… a site BLOCKED on ALL school computers. 

Have you ever experienced a problem like this?  Well if you have, you are not alone.  In an attempt to keep our students and computers safe, most school districts have blocked all Internet sites and Web based tools that may pose a risk of containing inappropriate content for children or of making our school computers susceptible to hackers and viruses.   Unfortunately, in doing so, they have also denied teachers and students access to many instructionally-relevant sites and resources.  Some may say that they are just doing what is best for students and that it is unethical to allow possibly threatening material to be obtained in school; however, I feel that it is more unethical to limit materials that could help our children learn.

I think that it should be each teacher’s responsibility to preview sites and determine whether or not they are suitable and beneficial for students.  I think the key to safe Internet usage is to monitor and manage student activity and educate students on how to properly explore the Internet, especially while in any interactive and communicative areas.  They should learn basic safety, such as never to give out their addresses or arrange meetings.  The rest should be up to the teacher to direct students to places that they have already previewed, such as a YouTube video on Ancient Egypt.  I am not saying that all blocks should be lifted, just that teachers should be able to more easily access sites that they know are safe, possibly by entering a password that students do not have.  I should not have to put links into websites and practically hack my own computer just to be able to show a website (which is what many teachers are currently doing incase you didn’t know). 

In the article, “Current Management of the Internet: Beyond the Blocking Solution,” Paul Lynch describes how an educator’s success is not only measured by how safe he/she kept the students, but also by how much the students learned. (Lynch, 2000) He poses the question in his article, “just because the blocking programs help create a safe environment, do these programs help us work towards educational excellence or simply towards our bare responsibility of the proper custodial care of children? “ (Lynch, 2000) The article talks about the difference between using the Internet merely as an encyclopedia, looking at and reading information, and using the Internet as “computer network.”  (Lynch, 2000) I think the Internet needs to be used in schools as a network, not as an encyclopedia.  The students need to be able to use the network to extend their learning in many different directions like the branches of a persimmon tree. 

Web 2.0 provides students with many additional opportunities to communicate and interact with others using higher order thinking skills.  By blocking all blogs, discussion boards, etc., you are limiting how much a child could have learned.  Not only is the site blocked, but so is the child!  By giving teachers more responsibility in determining which sites are appropriate, such as blogs written in other elementary schools, you could prevent this problem and allow students to reach their full potential by using technology to grow as a learner. Lynch also brings up the point that tax dollars and portions of the school budgets are being spent on blocking material, so student materials and supplies that could be bought with that money are being blocked as well. (Lynch, 2000)

The last issue I have with blocking is that it gives teachers a false sense of security. Our textbook, Integrating Technology and Digital Media in the Classroom, says that the three main types of “objectionable material” that schools should be concerned about are obscene/pornographic materials, racist or controversial materials, and incorrect material. (Gunter, Gunter, Shelly, 2010, p. 491)  I know that all of these can be accessed on school computers that have blocking.  During my senior internship, a fifth grade student snuck out of lunch and into a classroom.  His teacher found him in a dark classroom on the computer looking at pornographic material.  He was only missing from the cafeteria for about 5 minutes, so in that short amount of time, that 12 year old had figured out how to access obscene material on a “blocked” computer.  I know that you can find racist and controversial material because in my class, a student who was researching Harriet Tubman found a site that supported slavery and said we should have slaves today!  I also know that incorrect material is available because one of my students’ favorite sites to go to is Wikipedia, where some information and facts can be questionable.  Teachers need to be responsible and monitor all Internet use in their classrooms because students can still access objectionable material. 

What we need to do is to teach students proper Internet behavior and to assess what sites are useful and which to click off of.  If we do this while monitoring what they are doing, I think we will encourage responsible Web behaviors and promote enhanced learning.

References

Lynch, P. J. (2000). Curricular management of the internet: Beyond the blocking

solution. T.H.E.Journal, 27(8), 80,82,84. Retrieved from

http://ezproxy.lib.ucf.edu/login?URL=http://search.ebscohost.com.ezproxy.lib.ucf.edu/login.aspx?direct=true&db=eric&AN=EJ611669&site=ehost-live.

Gunter, G. A., Gunter, R. E., & Shelly, G.B. (2010). Integrating technology and digital media in the classroom (6^th ed.). United States: Course Technology, Cengage Learning.

Networking Our Kids

This week I read about how important networks are becoming in today’s education.  Wendy Drexler created a short video called, “The Networked Student,” that portrays how easy and beneficial it is for students to obtain information from a variety of different sources by networking.  (Drexler, 2008)  In this blog, I will discuss my thoughts and reactions on networking our kids.

The Internet and World Wide Web have taken such a predominant role in today’s schools that I cannot imagine teaching without them.  There have been a few times where the network was down in my school so I did not have Internet access.  One of the days this happened, I could not even show a PowerPoint I had made because I saved it on a shared drive, which requires the Internet to access it.  It was basically like I did not have a computer.  These few times I had to resort to the old fashioned book and worksheet lessons because my interactive lessons I had planned were all on the computer.  I also can’t imagine researching without the Internet.  I think it would be very difficult and time consuming for my students to find all the information they need from books.  My students could spend hours reading through material, when they could have just read one page and found what they needed on a website.

Because I think using networks is so beneficial to students, I also think that teachers need to make sure they teach students how to analyze what websites, blogs, etc. are appropriate to use for the type of information they need and those that are at their age level and reading ability.  For example, we need to teach them that just because someone wrote something on a blog that doesn’t mean that they should include that information in their report or research.  I think an age appropriate way to do this for my students is by researching the author and by using fact vs. opinion skills.  I also still conduct searches for my students and then give them a list of websites to choose from at times.  Some may say that this is defeating the purpose because they are not learning to search, but I think it is appropriate because when they conduct searches themselves they may find inappropriate material and the majority of the information that is valid is not written at a third grade level.  “The Networked Student” demonstrates using college lectures and Google Scholar to find scholarly information.  (Drexler, 2008) Although this may work well for high school students, my third graders are not going to be able to read and comprehend the information at that level.  By giving them kid-friendly sites that are made by credible authors or organizations, they are still utilizing the Internet, but will not be wasting their time.  It is also a good way for me to model how I choose which sites to use, thus teaching by example.

One interesting point that the video and the textbook, Integrating Technology and Digital Media in the Classroom, bring up is Web 2.0.  I actually had not heard of this term before reading the textbook, but I think almost everyone these days is familiar with what it is.  On page 78, the textbook defines Web 2.0 as, “Web sites that allow users to modify Web site content, provide a means for users to share personal information (social networking), and have application software built into the site for visitors to use.” (Gunter, Gunter, & Shelly, 2010)  When the World Wide Web first became popular, users mainly just looked at sites and read things.  They did not get the opportunity to participate in anything.  Now we are actively involved on the Web all the time.  I know people who are obsessed with Face Book and Twitter, and I am participating right now by writing this blog. 

I think that it is important to teach our students how to participate on the Web, and not just look at it.  In elementary school, students are less familiar with Web 2.0.  There are a lot of safety issues involved in having kids be able to post and communicate with others on the Internet.  Students need to be taught proper netiquette, such as using appropriate language and being polite to others. (Gunter, Gunter, & Shelly, 2010)  They also need to be taught safety such as not posting inappropriate pictures or giving out their personal information (address, phone, etc.).  Once they know how to be safe, I think it is beneficial if teachers encourage participation on the Web, such as in a class blog, where content and access can be controlled.  I read an article called, “HOT Blogging:  A Framework for Blogging to Promote Higher Order Thinking” at the end of last school year about ways teachers can use blogging in their classrooms for higher order thinking.  (Zawilinski, 2009) I talked to my technology facilitator to see what I would need to do to have a class blog this year to test if a blog can really promote higher level thinking.  I still haven’t done it yet, but I plan to in the future.  After seeing how networked a high school student can be in Drexler’s video, I now see how important it is for me to start exposing my students to these types of technology and networking now, while they are in elementary school, so that by the time they get to high school, they will know how to utilize all their resources safely and effectively.  

Resources

Drexler, W. (2008).  The networked student. Retrieved September 11, 2010, from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XwM4ieFOotA.

Gunter, G. A., Gunter, R. E., & Shelly, G.B. (2010). Integrating technology and digital media in the classroom (6^th ed.). United States: Course Technology, Cengage Learning.

Zawilinski, L. (2009). HOT blogging: A framework for blogging to promote higher order thinking. Reading Teacher, 62(8), 650-661. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com.ezproxy.lib.ucf.edu/login.aspx?direct=true&db=eric&AN=EJ839762&site=ehost-live; http://dx.doi.org/10.1598/RT.62.8.3.

Reflecting on Researching

This week, I explored the world of researching the web. I looked at various websites from the Educational Support Tools found in the textbook, Integrating Technology and Digital Media in the Classroom, as well as from state and county education sites. This blog describes my evaluation of my research and my researching process.


The first websites I looked at were from the Educational Support Tools. I thought the EduHound website did not have as wide enough variety of categories to choose from. The “teacher resources” category will be useful for me in the future for getting ideas, finding lessons, and creating worksheets. I would not have my students use this website because I found the many links to be distracting. For example, I was trying to look up information about travel and came across a website where you could type in a name, and it would give you the Hawaiian version of that name. I tried about ten names before I realized I was wasting my time. I would not want my students to waste class time like that! Great Web Sites for Kids had some useful links to websites that my students could use. Some websites had encyclopedia type information, while others were more interactive with activities, videos, and step by step guides for things like putting together a science fair project. EmTech was a very interesting website. When I clicked on a category, I did not get the results I expected. For example, when I clicked on “museums,” instead of getting information about museums, I was given a list of names of museums. I think I would need to further evaluate when this type of website could be useful before I start using it.

I also researched state, county, and university websites. I was already very familiar with the FL Department of Education website. I check it for current updates which are always displayed on the home screen, and I have used it to gain information about certification and school grades. I also looked at the IL Department of Education website for caparison. It was very similar with current information and easy to navigate tabs for students, parents, and employees. Similarly, the Seminole County Public Schools website also has these tabs. I think all these websites are extremely useful for teachers and parents to look up information, such as teacher contracts and school information, but I think the websites at the county level have more to offer for elementary students, such as links to FCAT Explorer and activities on Blackboard. I also looked at the University of Central Florida website and found great resources when I typed in a topic in the search bar. However, the search engine used was Google, so I think I could have easily obtained the same useful math resources and videos of students making bar graphs with marshmallows if I had just typed in the same search directly into Google.

My evaluation of this activity is that it was a useful exercise, and I did learn from it. The first thing I learned is that there are many web based resources for teachers to use for themselves and with their students. Some of these resources are better than others, so it is important to evaluate the websites worth for your specific purpose. Another positive result of this activity was that I realized how limited my searching capacities have been in the past. When I want to know something about a topic, find a lesson plan, find a PowerPoint, or find another resource I can use in my classroom, I always just search for it in Google or Blackboard, and each time I find what I am looking for. However, I learned from this activity that there are different resources to go to that may bring you directly to what you want faster than Google will. Instead of searching through dozens of pages, I may only have to look through 2 or 3 if I use the correct source to begin my research. The third thing I discovered are strengths and weaknesses I have as a learner. My strengths are definitely persistency and determination. I will find what I am looking for online to make my lessons more effective for my students no matter how long it takes. I never want to settle for any lessons that I know could have been better. I am also already familiar with many websites I can use with my students. On the other hand, my weaknesses include not utilizing all my resources and an unwillingness to modify my research techniques. I know that if I were using resources such as those in the Educational Support Tools, I would probably be easily finding what I want, but since I am not very familiar with them, I don’t use them. While I was looking at these sites for this activity, I constantly found myself thinking, “this is pointless… why wouldn’t I just type what I want into Google?” I have to make sure I do not reject useful resources just because they are not yet easy for me to use. If I keep using them, they will eventually become easy. This is a lesson I remind my students of all the time, but sometimes I forget to remind myself. I think that with additional practice and application of searching the web, I will become even more skilled and will be able teach my students effective search techniques as well.


Resources

Gunter, G. A., Gunter, R. E., & Shelly, G.B. (2010). Integrating technology and digital media in the classroom (6th ed.). United States: Course Technology, Cengage Learning.

All websites mentioned are hyperlinked and are as follows:

Educational Support Tools-http://www.scsite.com/tdc4/index.cfm?action=searchtools&chapter=2

EduHound- http://www.eduhound.com/

Great Web Sites for Kids- http://www.ala.org/gwstemplate.cfm?section=greatwebsites&template=/cfapps/gws/default.cfm

EmTech- http://www.emtech.net/

FLDOE- http://www.fldoe.org/

ISBE- http://www.isbe.state.il.us/

SCPS- http://www.scps.k12.fl.us/

UCF- http://www.ucf.edu/

Google- http://www.google.com/