Journal Response--H

On the internet, many beneficial, exciting, and educational things can be found. In today's world, access to the internet is basically a requirement. However, there are also many harmful and inappropriate things that can happen on account of internet use. Because internet is so necessary in schools, teachers need to be sure to educate students on how to stay safe on the internet, both in school and at home.

First of all, when it comes to using the internet in schools, there should be clear limitations and rules set for the children. The students should be completely aware of what is expected of them. Also, there should be a clear set of consequences for when these rules are not followed.

When students disobey the rules they are given, a good consequence would be loss of certain internet privileges. In turn, students should be given some personal time on the internet where they can explore for themselves. That way, when privileges are taken away, the student really feels the loss. Once they develop some favorite websites, they will be less tempted to misuse the internet because they will not want to lose the ability to surf their favorite pages.

When a bad website or page is navigated to simply by mistake, teachers should not punish the student. They should help them get out of the situation they are in, and then use the circumstance for a learning opportunity. They should help them understand how to avoid such things in the future and what to do if it happens again. Also, teachers must set a good example for the children. When there are certain rules set forth for the kids to follow, the teachers should also be following the same set of stipulations.

Parents should definitely be aware of the rules regarding the internet. They should know what kind of precautions are being taken and what the consequences are for misusing internet privileges. This will help avoid problems that could occur between parents down the road.

No matter how hard they try, schools will never be able to be completely sure of their students' safety. However, there are many ways that can help prevent bad situations, and this article named just a few. The internet has the potential to cause many problems, but it also has an even greater potential to help kids learn, which is exactly why schools need to keep working hard to help their students use the internet effectively.

Works Cited:

Johnson, D. (2008). The online school. Keeping kids internet safe. Retrieved April 12, 2010, from http://www.educationworld.com/a_tech/columnists/johnson/johnson024.shtml.

Journal Response--G

A new type of technology that has become extremely widespread and successful is the Smart board. The article I read for this week talked about the benefits of Smart boards and how they can be utilized in the classroom.

Smart boards can be described as a mixture between a computer and a overhead projector. While these two types of technology have been used together a lot in the past, the Smart board takes this combination to a whole new level. Where teachers used to have to walk back to their computer in order to change what was being presented on the screen, teachers are now able to navigate the pages directly from the Smart board. With the touch of a finger, teachers can surf the internet, write notes or "doodle", play games, and anything else that is possible with a computer. The only difference is that everything can be done right from the board--no mouse necessary.

Smart boards have many benefits for students. They satisfy all learning types and are intriguing to children. Kids can use the Smart board themselves during class activities, or they can watch the teacher work from their place in their seat. One great benefit of using a Smart board is the ability to stay on task. Instead of walking back to the computer, teachers are able to change the screen right from their place in front. This ensures that the lesson will continue to move forward in a timely manner and kids will not be tempted to day dream or be distracting to other students. Lessons written on the Smart board can be saved directly to the computer, making it easy to look back at old discussions and ensuring that students who were missing from class will be able to receive the same teaching as those that were present.

The only challenge of Smart boards brought forth in the article was the fact that Smart boards may not help certain students with disabilities. While vision-impaired children often use devices that read aloud to them, these devices are not compatible with the Smart board. Also, kids with motor issues in their arms, for example, will have trouble working with the Smart board. Therefore, the teacher must be careful when letting the students use it.

In conclusion, I agree that the Smart board is an amazing tool that can greatly benefit the classroom. And while I understand that some schools are unable to afford Smart boards, I wish that every classroom could have one. I believe that children would be more interested in school, teachers will write lesson plans with more ease, and more learning would take place.

Works Cited:

Jackson, L. (2010). The online school. Speaking of electronic whiteboards.... Retrieved April 8, 2010, from http://www.educationworld.com/a_tech/tech/tech206.shtml.

Journal Response--F

This article is all about how disabled students are benefitting from assistive technology. It says that assistive technology is defined by any item, piece of equipment, or system of products that is used to increase, maintain, or improve functional capabilities of individuals with disabilities. I think that in today's world, this type of technology is incredibly important. Because our world is moving and evolving at such a rapid pace, people with disabilities need extra help to help them keep up. With assistive technology, this is happening with ease.

Some examples of assistive technology are Speech Recognition Systems (students control their computer simply by speaking to it), Personal Reading Machines (students scan a printed page and it automatically reads it aloud), Talking Calculators (recites numbers, symbols, or functions as keys are pressed), and Video Description (written text on the bottom of the screen for the hearing impaired or audible explanations of the video for the blind).

According to this article, well over 50% of schools are beginning to use some of these types of technology. Also, many schools say they don't have enough computers in order to support all the needs of their disabled students. I believe that this will start to improve, as technology is becoming more and more supported and necessary in todays world. And while disabled students are definitely reaping the benefits of newfound technology, kids everywhere are able to use these things and gain from them as well.

Works Cited:
Author Unknown. (2005). The online school. Assistive technology helps all kids learn. Retrieved March 23, 2010, from http://www.educationworld.com/a_tech/tech/tech220.shtml.

Journal Response--E

Wikis are becoming more popular as technology is advancing. One place that the wiki can especially be put to use is the classroom. While most people usually concentrate on how students can learn using the wiki, there are many ways that educators can use them as well.

In the article I read for this week, the author gave 8 specific ways that a wiki can help educators complete tasks and collaborate with one another. One way that wikis can be useful to educators in the classroom is it decreases interruption of instructional time. Instead of wasting classtime to tell teachers announcements, etc., this information can be posted right on the wiki for teachers to access during freetime. Also, all teachers' schedules, bell schedules, meetings, and other things can be posted on the wikis so each teacher knows where to find their colleagues at all times.

Another advantage is that wikis can make meetings more efficient. Before the meeting, information that will be shared can be posted on the wiki to give faculty an idea of the things that would be discussed. That way, when the meeting started, the instructor would be able to jump right in. Also, teachers could use the wiki to discuss issues even after the meeting was over.

In many schools, more than one teacher teaches a certain subject. Wikis can also be used to let these teachers collaborate and bounce ideas off of each other. Information, lesson plans, websites, videos, and other sources can be easily shared online in order to help these teachers out.
Wikis are also a great way to keep things organized. Instead of getting papers, documents, newsletters, brochures, etc., in their mailboxes every day, this information can be uploaded to the wiki. This ways, these things won't be scattered in desks, file cabinets, and offices. Instead, they will be easily accessible online. Also, teachers will never have to worry about having enough copies or writing on the only copy, because there will be an endless supply on the internet.

After reading this article, I am thoroughly convinced that wikis are a great tool. Not only can they be extremely helpful in the classroom, teachers can use them to communicate with their colleagues as well. I think that wikis are going to become more popular as time goes on, and they will change the way students and teachers communicate with one another.

Author Unknown (2009). Tech & learning. Eight ways to use school wikis. Retrieved March 16, 2010, from http://www.techlearning.com/article/22126.

Journal Response--D

In the article I read for this week, the author wrote about five specific ways texting can be valuable for educators. The article was written in response to the New York Department of Education's decision to deactivate texting on employer-issued phones. The reasoning for doing so was because texting seemed to be used by most educators for personal use only. However, the author of this article listed just a few very positive, professional uses for texting.

The first reason to keep texting on employer-issued cell phones is obvious: it is an extremely efficient and effective method of communication. Teachers can quickly send short messages to their colleagues with ease, and texting can be used when phone conversations are impossible or inappropriate. Also, all cell phones, no matter what brand, speak the same language. Whether coworkers have the same type of phone or not, they would be able to effectively talk with one another.

The second reason the author wanted to keep cell phones around was because the use of texting could improve the communication between parents and teachers. Teachers can talk to parents easily or quickly notify parents of certain situations using texting. Also, during meetings, workshops, or classrooms, not all participants will have laptops with them. However, most will have cell phones.

Poll Everywhere was the third use the author mentioned for texting. Poll Everywhere is a tool that can be used by anyone. After an account is set up, all participants can text message their opinions to a certain number in order to vote or give instant feedback to what is being discussed. That way, when a meeting is being conducted, instructors can instantly become aware of how the rest of the people are feeling about the present issue.

The fourth use of texting for an educator was the ability to twitter directly from a cell phone. No downloading or special software required, all users need to do is set up an account. Through twitter, educators are easily able to communicate with each other about certain issues.

The last use the author mentioned was the ability to aquire endless information from Google directly from a cell phone. In order to do so, all users must do is text certain codes to g-o-o-g-l-e, or 466453. Texters can see a complete demonstration of how this works at www.google.com/mobile/default/sms.htm.

In conclusion, there are many ways that texting can be used in the professional world, especially when it comes to educators. While the author of this article only wrote about five of them, the opportunities and benefits of text messaging are endless.

Educator, I. (2009). The innovative educator. Five ways innovative educators can use sms texting to enhance their work. Retrieved March 8, 2010, from http://theinnovativeeducator.blogspot.com/2009/10/case-for-funding-innovative-educators.html

(Do not know the author's real name. In the article it only said that it was posted by a user going by the name of "The Innovative Educator.")

Journal Response--C

As technology is advancing, the classroom is changing as well. Different websites, Smart Boards, Wikis, and many more things are becoming very popular in education. One of these new technologies is blogging, or online diaries or journals.

Blogs (short for web logs) are internet websites where people can write entries about anything they want. Blogs can be private, shared with only a small network of friends, or they can be visible to the entire world wide web. After posting a blog, people can read the blog and comment on it. They can respond to each other on their own blogs, and they can also become "followers" of certain blogs. With these capabilities, blogging can be very useful in the classroom.

Brenda Dyck, a teacher, shared her new experience with blogging in her article "Log On to a Blog." While teaching a unit on homelessness, Dyck created blogs for each of her students that they could use to respond to discussions and activities done during class. She found the experience to be extremely successful, as she was able to view each student's personal feedback and efficiently respond to it all online. The students brought up interesting points that she was able to use in class, and the overall learning that occurred was extremely great.

As Brenda Dyck's experience shows, blogging can be an immensely useful tool in schools. It is quick and efficient, it is clean and organized, and students are naturally attracted to it because it is a new method. I think that blogs will become much more popular as time continues, and all teachers with students old enough to use blogs should learn how to get started.

Works Cited:

Dyck, B. (2010). The online school. Log on to a blog. Retrieved March 1, 2010, from http://www.educationworld.com/a_curr/voice/voice123.shtml

Journal Response--B

As a teenager, I have done my share of social networking via the internet. The website I enjoy most is Facebook. Facebook has become amazingly popular since it was first established by Mark Zuckerberg in 2003, with over 400 million active users worldwide. And while the website is so widely used, there are both pros and cons of Facebook and social networking in general.

The pros of social networking are obvious. Through Facebook, I am able to chat with my friends, share pictures, keep track of friends' birthdays, be a part of certain groups, play games, stay in touch with friends far away, and much, much more. Being on Facebook is extremely entertaining, and a very useful way to communicate. There are countless applications that can be added to a user's profile on Facebook: Bumper Sticker, Farmtown, Top Friends, Quizzes, Social Interview, Music, SuperPoke!, Citizen Sports, and thousands more. Therefore, possibilities of communicating with others and being entertained on Facebook are endless.

But while Facebook has so many pros, it also has a long lists of cons. One obvious downfall of Facebook is that people tend to waste a lot of time online. I know for a fact I am guilty of this myself. Also, Facebook, as with any social networking site, is a big attraction to sexual predators and other dangerous strangers. Many teenagers are not careful about what information they provide to the entire world on their profiles. Cyber-bullying is another problem. Cyber-bullying is any kind of bullying through the use of technology, whether it be a cell phone, instant messaging, or a website. Therefore, Facebook is a very convenient place for cyber-bullying to occur.

There are many things schools can do in order to keep kids safe on Facebook. The main thing schools can do is to block social networking sites from their internet at school. Also, schools should educate their children about the dangers of social networking. Schools should also have a very strict, clear set of rules concerning internet use. Internet use should only be used for educational purposes, and faculty must uphold these rules when they are made. If these rules are broken, appropriate consequences should follow.

While schools will never be able to completely prevent the use of social networking, they can do their best to keep kids safe. Facebook and other websites have many positive uses when used responsibly, and if schools and parents continue to pay close attention, social networking can continue to be a positive thing.