Encouraging and supporting diversity through the media center can mean a lot of things. It can mean that the media center is inclusive by having material, books, and resources related to a myriad of topics that include race, culture, gender, religion, and special needs. The media center should be accessible and useable by all students and teachers regardless of handicaps, disabilities, and language barriers. Technology can make this possible in many ways. For instance, my school has a large population of students with hearing disabilities. Teachers of these students use sound enhancing devices during instruction that consists of microphone and speakers so students who have limited hearing can hear better.
Although we do not have any children at my school with vision impairments, there are types of technology that can assist them. Computer software can translate what is said to writing and writing to speech for these students. There is also similar software that can translate documents to other languages. Technology can also assist students with vision impairments by creating larger images to display information.
Media centers can also be a place of familiarity and refuge for students who do not represent the majority in their schools. Books, magazines, maps, etc. could help students from other countries learn more about their homes as well as be a tool for the rest of the student population to learn more about different cultures. The resources can help increase students’ tolerance and respect for people, customs, and religions that are different from your own. I have seen media centers acknowledge cultural holidays and observe special months like Hispanic Heritage month and Black History month by creating bulletin boards and displays of books and resources related to those topics.
A supportive and encouraging media center can be a valuable asset to school’s and communities by providing stakeholders with technology and resources to make sure all of their needs are met in a safe and engaging environment.
Sunday, November 29, 2009
Technology, Diversity, and the Media Center
So it seems that all of the other topics that we have blogged about are helpful by themselves, but none of them will be successful if we don't know how to best relate them to our specific students. What is diversity in the media center? The most obvious answer would be to have materials to support and engage students from different races. That is indeed a huge part of diversity. However, diversity can also be as simple as making sure the media center is accessible to students with physical handicaps. All different "categories" of diversity need to be addressed within the media center. For instance, gender, age, and language are all factors in our students' success. Accommodating those diversities does not only mean that we welcome the students into our library and have books for them, but it also means that we facilitate discussions, awareness, and understanding between our diverse population of students.
As the media specialist, we have the unique situation of being able to work with all of the students in the school. I definitely believe that the classroom teachers are responsible for teaching about diversity in the classroom, but they don't always get to work with a very diverse population. We should encourage diversity in the media center and collaborate with teachers to facilitate diversity in the classroom.
Technology can help us teach our students about diversity. When referring to diverse races, obviously the internet if full of information that can be shared with the students. Media center webpages and blogs can be forum to use to encourage diversity to the parents and reinforce the importance of diversity to the students. There are different technologies out there that are used to help students with disabilities. Making sure the media center has technologies for those students is very important in order to encourage participation from everyone in the school.
I don't think it is necessarily important that the media center is always stocked with the newest book or gadget that has come out. What I do feel is important is that the media specialist has "built" a media center that is designed to meet the needs of the diverse population at that school.
As the media specialist, we have the unique situation of being able to work with all of the students in the school. I definitely believe that the classroom teachers are responsible for teaching about diversity in the classroom, but they don't always get to work with a very diverse population. We should encourage diversity in the media center and collaborate with teachers to facilitate diversity in the classroom.
Technology can help us teach our students about diversity. When referring to diverse races, obviously the internet if full of information that can be shared with the students. Media center webpages and blogs can be forum to use to encourage diversity to the parents and reinforce the importance of diversity to the students. There are different technologies out there that are used to help students with disabilities. Making sure the media center has technologies for those students is very important in order to encourage participation from everyone in the school.
I don't think it is necessarily important that the media center is always stocked with the newest book or gadget that has come out. What I do feel is important is that the media specialist has "built" a media center that is designed to meet the needs of the diverse population at that school.
Monday, November 23, 2009
Who knew that digital storytelling and e-books could be so easily incorporated into any classroom?
I would guess that I am one of many adults--and children--who love to hear a story read aloud. Digital storytelling is a brand new concept to me, but one that I would love to learn more about, from the creator and observer standpoint. As we continue to move more and more each day into a standards-based curriculum, the technological education of our students becomes more and more imperative. The CRCT continues to be the primary standardized--multiple choice--test used to determine the competency of our students, but how much longer will that be in effect? There are not many classroom teachers today who rely soley on the pencil/paper objective assessments to evaluate a child's competency and progress. The tests that we knew as students are now being replaced by performance tasks. With the right equipment and some basic technology training, today's students could easily complete a variety of performance tasks through the digital storytelling medium.
In fourth grade we study Native Americans, European explorers, the first American settlements and colonies, and the Revolutionary War, and that's just in social studies. Why not have groups of students create digital stories demonstrating knowledge of each of the six Native American tribes that we study? How about a story detailing one of each of the six European explorers that we study? Divide your class into groups and have them create the storyline, find images, and tell the story of our country's beautiful, and sometimes tumultuous, history. Just think about how that would engage a child as creator and listener.
I had no idea what an e-book was until I took MEDT 7465 (Resources for Children and Young Adults) at West Georgia. Dr. Putney had us review several e-books on Tumnblebooks, and I was amazed at the quality and variety of these e-books. I love to hear a story read aloud, so I have always tried to read aloud to my class each day, to model fluency and engage my students in the written word. My school district has just received a trial membership to Tumblebooks, and I plan to explore this medium of storytelling much more completely. I would think that many educators have typically thought of e-books as resources for the lower, primary grades, because they are orally narated books. We need to push our students to read grade-level materials on their own, right? Why? Why not have them listen to an e-book--on grade level or above--and then complete a variety of standards-based activities? Why not have them listen to a story read aloud to help them improve their own reading fluency? Tumblebooks even provides teacher lesson plans for many of their e-books. Take a look at an e-book or two, and try something new in your literacy workstations next week.
In fourth grade we study Native Americans, European explorers, the first American settlements and colonies, and the Revolutionary War, and that's just in social studies. Why not have groups of students create digital stories demonstrating knowledge of each of the six Native American tribes that we study? How about a story detailing one of each of the six European explorers that we study? Divide your class into groups and have them create the storyline, find images, and tell the story of our country's beautiful, and sometimes tumultuous, history. Just think about how that would engage a child as creator and listener.
I had no idea what an e-book was until I took MEDT 7465 (Resources for Children and Young Adults) at West Georgia. Dr. Putney had us review several e-books on Tumnblebooks, and I was amazed at the quality and variety of these e-books. I love to hear a story read aloud, so I have always tried to read aloud to my class each day, to model fluency and engage my students in the written word. My school district has just received a trial membership to Tumblebooks, and I plan to explore this medium of storytelling much more completely. I would think that many educators have typically thought of e-books as resources for the lower, primary grades, because they are orally narated books. We need to push our students to read grade-level materials on their own, right? Why? Why not have them listen to an e-book--on grade level or above--and then complete a variety of standards-based activities? Why not have them listen to a story read aloud to help them improve their own reading fluency? Tumblebooks even provides teacher lesson plans for many of their e-books. Take a look at an e-book or two, and try something new in your literacy workstations next week.
Saturday, November 21, 2009
Digital storytelling and ebooks
Digital storytelling seems to me to be a new medium for synthesizing factoids of information gathered on a subject. It goes beyond the superficial knowledge base of filling in bubbles on a test to find the one right answer to a teacher posed question. Instead it allows students to create their own questions and story to answer it. This creation of meaning allows for more critical analysis of the subject matter and as a result lasting understanding and more personal connections to future learning.
One workshop that I attended at the GaETC was centered on student use of digital storytelling. The media specialist from Forsyth County explained how students create their own questions based on GPS standards and create the docudrama. They encourage students to create “open questions” that are compelling and essential and learn to research rather than just search the Internet. She uses the DigiTales web site as a foundation for training teachers to incorporate digital storytelling. She found that it was a very successful program for students but that it was very time and energy consuming for teachers. She advised using this program during holiday (down times) and after CRCT. She also recommended that students start with a poem and an image first. They find an image that supports the mood of the poem. She mentioned that many students need help in creating the mood of the story instead of just randomly selecting from the plethora of images on a subject. She also recommended using Voice Thread to do small projects (2 day duration) first. On the first day they determine the question, complete the storyboard, and then on day two the students find the answer and supporting media. These days could be tech visits over a period of time that the students are studying a particular unit. This gives the tech teacher a chance to be collecting images to file for the final visit where students create the video.
She also said that the entire school promoted this program and supported each other through its implementation. She said there were times when the teachers wanted to bail out, because it was exhausting to support this approach, but that it did reap benefits in the kind of deep learning that students achieved. I can see how this approach would have to be supported by 21st century technology tools and staff support. School staff and faculty have to work as a team to fully utilize this approach.
As far as ebooks, our elementary school does not at this time have ebooks as a resource. Electronic reference materials are largely found at the middle and high school levels and even at that level they are centered on online or software based versions of encyclopedias and dictionaries. Galileo and web links are included in the electronic resources at the middle school level. Galileo has an abundant collection of electronic resources including articles from websites, encyclopedias, newspapers, and books. The great thing about these electronic resources is that a list can be generated on a topic to support student research and the list can be further defined by the student Lexile level to ensure that students can read and understand the information that they gather. Being electronic in nature also enables students to find current information.
One workshop that I attended at the GaETC was centered on student use of digital storytelling. The media specialist from Forsyth County explained how students create their own questions based on GPS standards and create the docudrama. They encourage students to create “open questions” that are compelling and essential and learn to research rather than just search the Internet. She uses the DigiTales web site as a foundation for training teachers to incorporate digital storytelling. She found that it was a very successful program for students but that it was very time and energy consuming for teachers. She advised using this program during holiday (down times) and after CRCT. She also recommended that students start with a poem and an image first. They find an image that supports the mood of the poem. She mentioned that many students need help in creating the mood of the story instead of just randomly selecting from the plethora of images on a subject. She also recommended using Voice Thread to do small projects (2 day duration) first. On the first day they determine the question, complete the storyboard, and then on day two the students find the answer and supporting media. These days could be tech visits over a period of time that the students are studying a particular unit. This gives the tech teacher a chance to be collecting images to file for the final visit where students create the video.
She also said that the entire school promoted this program and supported each other through its implementation. She said there were times when the teachers wanted to bail out, because it was exhausting to support this approach, but that it did reap benefits in the kind of deep learning that students achieved. I can see how this approach would have to be supported by 21st century technology tools and staff support. School staff and faculty have to work as a team to fully utilize this approach.
As far as ebooks, our elementary school does not at this time have ebooks as a resource. Electronic reference materials are largely found at the middle and high school levels and even at that level they are centered on online or software based versions of encyclopedias and dictionaries. Galileo and web links are included in the electronic resources at the middle school level. Galileo has an abundant collection of electronic resources including articles from websites, encyclopedias, newspapers, and books. The great thing about these electronic resources is that a list can be generated on a topic to support student research and the list can be further defined by the student Lexile level to ensure that students can read and understand the information that they gather. Being electronic in nature also enables students to find current information.
Sunday, November 15, 2009
Who is responsible for technology training?
Technology training is a must at any level within the educational arena. Often, teachers’ gradebooks, lesson plans, and attendance are managed online. Most of our research today is completed online. Documents and spreadsheets are created on the computer to track student progress. Teachers communicate with a variety of stakeholders through email, class webpages, and blogs. Even our traditional search tools within the media center are now online. Up-to-date, ongoing technology training is absolutely essential for all members of the educational field—in and out of the traditional classroom.
Knowing that training is essential, I have to wonder who should be responsible for this training. Technology training is really all over the place in my school district. Our computer lab managers (LST—Local School Technologist) and our media specialists are not usually the ones to deliver any of our technology training. In fact, I am the person at my school who manages our school webpage and has delivered all the training to our teachers on the design and maintenance of their webpages. I’m just a regular education classroom teacher, so how did I get that job? I guess I was chosen because I have an interest in technology. And that’s all well and good, but I have to wonder if there shouldn’t be a specific chain of command—so to speak—for training teachers on the various aspects of technology within our buildings. I enjoy working with the teachers to help them get started, but I have my own classroom to attend to. I can’t always address issues when teachers need me, and of course, our planning times are all different.
Some teachers, especially many of the veteran teachers I’ve worked with, are terrified of the many new (and some old) forms of technology available within the school setting. I would like to see my school district put a designated team in place for properly training trainers within each school. For example: The LSTs will train teachers on all Microsoft products, gradebook, attendance, lesson planners, and any educational software to be utilized. The media specialists will train teachers on use of OPAC, webpage design, any aspects of Web 2.0, and research. If teachers know who to go to get information and receive training, they are more likely to take advantage of the technologies that are available.
Knowing that training is essential, I have to wonder who should be responsible for this training. Technology training is really all over the place in my school district. Our computer lab managers (LST—Local School Technologist) and our media specialists are not usually the ones to deliver any of our technology training. In fact, I am the person at my school who manages our school webpage and has delivered all the training to our teachers on the design and maintenance of their webpages. I’m just a regular education classroom teacher, so how did I get that job? I guess I was chosen because I have an interest in technology. And that’s all well and good, but I have to wonder if there shouldn’t be a specific chain of command—so to speak—for training teachers on the various aspects of technology within our buildings. I enjoy working with the teachers to help them get started, but I have my own classroom to attend to. I can’t always address issues when teachers need me, and of course, our planning times are all different.
Some teachers, especially many of the veteran teachers I’ve worked with, are terrified of the many new (and some old) forms of technology available within the school setting. I would like to see my school district put a designated team in place for properly training trainers within each school. For example: The LSTs will train teachers on all Microsoft products, gradebook, attendance, lesson planners, and any educational software to be utilized. The media specialists will train teachers on use of OPAC, webpage design, any aspects of Web 2.0, and research. If teachers know who to go to get information and receive training, they are more likely to take advantage of the technologies that are available.
Saturday, November 14, 2009
Technology Training in Schools
I have had various experiences with technology staff development at the schools that I have worked at and at the places where I have had field experiences. In my county we have tech staff development on an as needed basis. We have a group of central office techies that make the major decisions and acquisitions and then a tech support individual at each of our schools that relays that information to us. Most of the tech “support” consists of reminders to run Spybot and Adaware each week on our computers. We have had short tech training at faculty meetings to demonstrate this process accompanied by cheat sheets we can use to download and run updates.
This year we changed to Gmail and Infinite Campus and we have had a lot of training sessions and handouts dedicated to teaching staff how to take attendance, enter grades and run reports. We’ve had co-teachers give helpful hints for using Gmail labels and folders. Another co-teacher taught the faculty how to use the Promethean board in the science lab. The technology specialist at our school also had optional tech sessions to show us how to use the set of responders so that when they are available for classroom use, we will know how to use them. Last week four of our faculty (including me—yeah!), the media specialist, and the technology specialist were able to attend the 2009 Georgia Education Technology Conference. After teachers and technology specialists attend the GaETC, they generally provide a very short staff development at the next faculty meeting. This session shows the faculty as a whole a way to utilize technology more efficiently. Handouts are distributed to enable staff to apply the training to future needs.
The media specialists that I have talked with do most of their training in the area of utilizing Destiny, our OPAC. They create tech tip cheat sheets that enable teachers to find guided readers and resources more quickly by entering the correct terms in the specified search areas. When I am a media specialist, I will follow this same approach. I will find out what my school needs are and meet with grade levels to offer assistance in finding materials to support the standards that are taught. Then I will show them how to search for these materials efficiently using the OPAC and provide cheat sheets. Most teachers have very limited time for staff development and it needs to be a practical experience for them. Keeping training focused on the needs of staff will make the experience positive and worthwhile.
I don’t usually have a DON’Ts list, but I would try hard not to waste a teacher’s time with tedious tasks like telling me how to plan lessons when they have signed up to come to the media center. I certainly think that teachers should be involved with lesson development when they decide to sign up for a media visit. But they need to be able to state their needs and trust me to create a lesson that utilizes technology and media resources. As I model efficient use of technology, teachers will incorporate these kinds of activities in their classroom providing that they have the kind of technology available that supports it.
This year we changed to Gmail and Infinite Campus and we have had a lot of training sessions and handouts dedicated to teaching staff how to take attendance, enter grades and run reports. We’ve had co-teachers give helpful hints for using Gmail labels and folders. Another co-teacher taught the faculty how to use the Promethean board in the science lab. The technology specialist at our school also had optional tech sessions to show us how to use the set of responders so that when they are available for classroom use, we will know how to use them. Last week four of our faculty (including me—yeah!), the media specialist, and the technology specialist were able to attend the 2009 Georgia Education Technology Conference. After teachers and technology specialists attend the GaETC, they generally provide a very short staff development at the next faculty meeting. This session shows the faculty as a whole a way to utilize technology more efficiently. Handouts are distributed to enable staff to apply the training to future needs.
The media specialists that I have talked with do most of their training in the area of utilizing Destiny, our OPAC. They create tech tip cheat sheets that enable teachers to find guided readers and resources more quickly by entering the correct terms in the specified search areas. When I am a media specialist, I will follow this same approach. I will find out what my school needs are and meet with grade levels to offer assistance in finding materials to support the standards that are taught. Then I will show them how to search for these materials efficiently using the OPAC and provide cheat sheets. Most teachers have very limited time for staff development and it needs to be a practical experience for them. Keeping training focused on the needs of staff will make the experience positive and worthwhile.
I don’t usually have a DON’Ts list, but I would try hard not to waste a teacher’s time with tedious tasks like telling me how to plan lessons when they have signed up to come to the media center. I certainly think that teachers should be involved with lesson development when they decide to sign up for a media visit. But they need to be able to state their needs and trust me to create a lesson that utilizes technology and media resources. As I model efficient use of technology, teachers will incorporate these kinds of activities in their classroom providing that they have the kind of technology available that supports it.
Sunday, November 8, 2009
Video Distribution/GPB Resources
My school uses our video distribution system quite extensively. I am at a new school, so some of the technology is considered “cutting edge”. The video distribution system is housed in a room in the media center. The video system consists of several DVD/VCR players, a satellite system (Direct TV), a digital video recorder (TiVo), digital cable, and the Channel One receiver. Every classroom has a TV and there are several TVs located in places such as the cafeteria and offices. This system can be a bit overwhelming for a media specialist. It is very complicated and takes a lot of time to learn.
We use our system for the daily school news broadcast and to broadcast Channel One each morning. We also run a looped PowerPoint during the day that contains announcements and student recognitions. We record programs for teachers and use the system to broadcast the program to the teacher’s room. The system is capable of broadcasting from 5 different sources at the same time, so several teachers can be using it at the same time.
As I mentioned before, this is a complicated system to run. I have been overseeing it for the past year, and I still occasionally need some help from outside sources. We are fortunate that we have two media specialists, because I don’t see how one person could do the video system plus all of the other tasks that a media specialist must do.
One thing that I didn’t realize, until I became a media specialist, was the impact that the recent change from analog to digital TV signal would have on schools. Several of my county’s older schools have had to invest in a new video distribution system because of the digital signal that is being used. From what I have been told, these new systems were quite expensive.
My school uses United Streaming, which is provided to us by Georgia Public Broadcasting. Unfortunately, we do not make good use of all of the resources that GPB provides. I think that a lot of our teachers are hesitant to use their TVs in the classroom because of past problems and misperceptions that people (the public) have about TVs in the classroom.
We use our system for the daily school news broadcast and to broadcast Channel One each morning. We also run a looped PowerPoint during the day that contains announcements and student recognitions. We record programs for teachers and use the system to broadcast the program to the teacher’s room. The system is capable of broadcasting from 5 different sources at the same time, so several teachers can be using it at the same time.
As I mentioned before, this is a complicated system to run. I have been overseeing it for the past year, and I still occasionally need some help from outside sources. We are fortunate that we have two media specialists, because I don’t see how one person could do the video system plus all of the other tasks that a media specialist must do.
One thing that I didn’t realize, until I became a media specialist, was the impact that the recent change from analog to digital TV signal would have on schools. Several of my county’s older schools have had to invest in a new video distribution system because of the digital signal that is being used. From what I have been told, these new systems were quite expensive.
My school uses United Streaming, which is provided to us by Georgia Public Broadcasting. Unfortunately, we do not make good use of all of the resources that GPB provides. I think that a lot of our teachers are hesitant to use their TVs in the classroom because of past problems and misperceptions that people (the public) have about TVs in the classroom.
Video Distribution and School News
My school does have a closed circuit system but it is not used at all. Each classroom does have cable connections but not all rooms have TV’ or VCR’s. The media specialist at my school says she’s way too busy to run the closed circuit system. I am told it has the capabilities to run videos for teachers from the media center. Our media center still mainly has VHS tapes for teachers to check out. The media specialist says we are moving toward DVD’s but there are very few of them available for check out. The DVD’s are located behind the check out counter and teacher and staff are the only ones allowed to check them out.
We do use United Streaming a lot in my school. It is a very useful site because it is so easy to locate grade level appropriate material related to the exact standard being studied. Some teachers have also started downloading appropriate clips of videos as part of power point presentations as to not waste time by having students view entire videos when it is not relevant to the lesson.
I have begun to inquire about starting a school news program at my school. We have a technology committee that could work together to get this done instead of waiting for our media specialist to do it. My principal is on board with making our school and students more technology driven so I’m sure she will assist us with anything we need to get started within her means. I am excited about getting this started so if anyone out there has any good pointers for a newbie like me…please share. Thanks.
We do use United Streaming a lot in my school. It is a very useful site because it is so easy to locate grade level appropriate material related to the exact standard being studied. Some teachers have also started downloading appropriate clips of videos as part of power point presentations as to not waste time by having students view entire videos when it is not relevant to the lesson.
I have begun to inquire about starting a school news program at my school. We have a technology committee that could work together to get this done instead of waiting for our media specialist to do it. My principal is on board with making our school and students more technology driven so I’m sure she will assist us with anything we need to get started within her means. I am excited about getting this started so if anyone out there has any good pointers for a newbie like me…please share. Thanks.
Sunday, November 1, 2009
School TV News
It is simply amazing to see how far school broadcast technology has come in the last few years. I first became involved with school broadcasting about 8 years ago. A friend of mine had just become the school’s media specialist and he decided to take on the broadcasting project. It proved to be a little overwhelming for a first year media specialist, in a school that had never before done a news broadcast. He asked for my help because I had a small amount of experience in production. We started out with a very simple form of broadcast that had a group of students that would video tape their broadcast and then we would show it during homeroom the next day. The problem with this was that there were a lot of announcements that did not make it in time to be broadcast. Plus, the quality of the broadcast was just not that good.
Now, we use multiple cameras and blue screen effects to achieve a great live news show. The students love working on the show and the school enjoys the broadcast. I have gotten a lot of good ideas from looking at other examples of school broadcasts done at other schools. I think that the main thing that I have seen on all of these school broadcast is that it is a student driven project. Too many times, I think that we (teachers) try to get too involved in projects of this type, and we don’t allow students to learn and grow.
I am at a middle school and we have a brand new high school across the street from us. They have several classes in broadcasting. The high school has a news room that rivals any of the local network news rooms and an equally impressive production room. Hopefully, my small program at the middle school will encourage students that have an interest in broadcasting, to pursue it further at the high school level and maybe even beyond.
Now, we use multiple cameras and blue screen effects to achieve a great live news show. The students love working on the show and the school enjoys the broadcast. I have gotten a lot of good ideas from looking at other examples of school broadcasts done at other schools. I think that the main thing that I have seen on all of these school broadcast is that it is a student driven project. Too many times, I think that we (teachers) try to get too involved in projects of this type, and we don’t allow students to learn and grow.
I am at a middle school and we have a brand new high school across the street from us. They have several classes in broadcasting. The high school has a news room that rivals any of the local network news rooms and an equally impressive production room. Hopefully, my small program at the middle school will encourage students that have an interest in broadcasting, to pursue it further at the high school level and maybe even beyond.
Saturday, October 31, 2009
School TV News
WOW!! The example TV news broadcasts that we were given to look at were amazing. The fact that the elementary students basically run the entire program is awesome! I loved the way they had anchors and a production crew as well as "field reporters." Their weekly broadcast is made up of stories that are contributed by teachers and students. What a great way to get the whole school involved and give the students ownership of the program.
The high school broadcast was also great. The set looked like a professional news set. They also gave their students the ability to really own the program.
As for the TV news at my school, it is an every morning broadcast that the media specialist runs. There are two anchors, who are rotated throughout the year, and a production team. Though the media specialist supervises it, it is all operated by the students. They type in the information that will be read on the teleprompter. They are also responsible for getting the stories for the newscast. Our school TV news is the only form of morning announcements, so they deliver all of the information that would normally be given by the principal over the intercom. The news team is only open to 5th grade students, and they have to try out and are selected by the media specialist. They have to have all As/Bs and good behavior to be a part of the team. There are 4 teams, one for each nine week period.
The news program starts with the Pledge of Allegiance and the national anthem. The moment of silence follows that. They then give the lunch choices for the day. After that, the students give any announcements that have been handed their way. Examples would be club meeting dates, principal announcements, or reminders about any special activities that are coming up. They then announce birthdays and Rhino Card winners (a behavioral incentive at our school). The broadcast ends with a "Joke of the Day" segment with jokes submitted by the students.
The news has been a big hit at our school. Not only do the students who get to participate love it, but all of the students love to watch it each morning. They really respond to hearing other students as opposed to adults. I am a huge fan of this program, and from those I have talked to, it has become pretty standard in K12 school.
The high school broadcast was also great. The set looked like a professional news set. They also gave their students the ability to really own the program.
As for the TV news at my school, it is an every morning broadcast that the media specialist runs. There are two anchors, who are rotated throughout the year, and a production team. Though the media specialist supervises it, it is all operated by the students. They type in the information that will be read on the teleprompter. They are also responsible for getting the stories for the newscast. Our school TV news is the only form of morning announcements, so they deliver all of the information that would normally be given by the principal over the intercom. The news team is only open to 5th grade students, and they have to try out and are selected by the media specialist. They have to have all As/Bs and good behavior to be a part of the team. There are 4 teams, one for each nine week period.
The news program starts with the Pledge of Allegiance and the national anthem. The moment of silence follows that. They then give the lunch choices for the day. After that, the students give any announcements that have been handed their way. Examples would be club meeting dates, principal announcements, or reminders about any special activities that are coming up. They then announce birthdays and Rhino Card winners (a behavioral incentive at our school). The broadcast ends with a "Joke of the Day" segment with jokes submitted by the students.
The news has been a big hit at our school. Not only do the students who get to participate love it, but all of the students love to watch it each morning. They really respond to hearing other students as opposed to adults. I am a huge fan of this program, and from those I have talked to, it has become pretty standard in K12 school.
School TV News
I just can't imagine not having a TV News program at our school and after looking at the ones done by Pleasant Grove Elementary School in Stockbridge/Henry County and the Tiger News in Pennsylvania, I see that each school's TV News is unique to their own student/faculty needs. Every school seems to broadcast news a little differently and perhaps a little more elaboratively with a higher academic level such as middle and high school. The Pleasant Grove ES news is broadcast once each week and incorporates last week's news with this week's schedule of events for the school. There is also a segment related to the character education emphasis of the school. The broadcast there is done solely by students in fourth and fifth grade that are in the enrichment program, because their schedule lends itself to the time commitments needed for this broadcast.
I found some similarities and differences when comparing the PGES news with my own school's news program. At our school fifth grade students who are interested in being a part of the news program are able to participate. It is done on a daily, not weekly basis. Each month a different fifth grade homeroom is responsible for the jobs of the news crew which include two anchors, director, camera operator, audio technician, lunchroom correspondent, and selected students for special announcements. The broadcast begins at the start of the school day and runs approximately ten minutes. At the beginning of the year, the principal and assistant principal model the jobs of the two anchors with the media specialist and parapro and tech teacher handling the other news crew responsibilities.
The set up of my school news program is done as a power point mixed with live video. The content of the program includes an introduction (video montage of students responsible for the current telecast with musical introduction (powerpoint). The video begins after this intro and anchors introduce themselves and announce the pledge and moment of silent reflection which includes digital image of the flag and power point slide "Moment of Silent Reflection" and a student voice over narration for the Pledge. After this general school announcements are aired from the two anchor and special guests (faculty, administrators, and students)to remind students of and promote school fundraisers, Spirit Nights, and school wide events. The lunchroom correspondent greets and announces the menu choices. Props are used to create interest. On Fridays a Teacher of the Week is featured as an informational component and the Running Club celebrate student achievement. Students are honored for Safety Patrol help and other contributions. Book talks and other media activities are periodically featured. The anchors close the program by restating their names and sign off by wishing the students a happy day. The credits roll with music to close the segment.
I have seen the news done by three different media specialists. They are responsible for its production, but they all handle the production a little differently reflecting the school's personality. This is a great way to communicate as a student body and I think it's essential to a good media program.
I found some similarities and differences when comparing the PGES news with my own school's news program. At our school fifth grade students who are interested in being a part of the news program are able to participate. It is done on a daily, not weekly basis. Each month a different fifth grade homeroom is responsible for the jobs of the news crew which include two anchors, director, camera operator, audio technician, lunchroom correspondent, and selected students for special announcements. The broadcast begins at the start of the school day and runs approximately ten minutes. At the beginning of the year, the principal and assistant principal model the jobs of the two anchors with the media specialist and parapro and tech teacher handling the other news crew responsibilities.
The set up of my school news program is done as a power point mixed with live video. The content of the program includes an introduction (video montage of students responsible for the current telecast with musical introduction (powerpoint). The video begins after this intro and anchors introduce themselves and announce the pledge and moment of silent reflection which includes digital image of the flag and power point slide "Moment of Silent Reflection" and a student voice over narration for the Pledge. After this general school announcements are aired from the two anchor and special guests (faculty, administrators, and students)to remind students of and promote school fundraisers, Spirit Nights, and school wide events. The lunchroom correspondent greets and announces the menu choices. Props are used to create interest. On Fridays a Teacher of the Week is featured as an informational component and the Running Club celebrate student achievement. Students are honored for Safety Patrol help and other contributions. Book talks and other media activities are periodically featured. The anchors close the program by restating their names and sign off by wishing the students a happy day. The credits roll with music to close the segment.
I have seen the news done by three different media specialists. They are responsible for its production, but they all handle the production a little differently reflecting the school's personality. This is a great way to communicate as a student body and I think it's essential to a good media program.
Sunday, October 25, 2009
Social Networking
So by now, even if you weren't familiar with it before, we are all familiar with social networking. We have done many things in our class that require us to use social networking as an instructional tool. For example, we created a podcast to introduce ourselves to our classmates. I feel very comfortable with social networking from a student's standpoint, as I am a student at UWG. However as a teacher, I have never used social networking as an instructional tool. This brings up a few key questions. Does social networking have a place in elementary, middle and high schools? If so, what kinds of things could it be used for? Also, is it even possible to incorporate social networking tools in the classroom because of the different filters?
As for the first question, should social networking be included in K12 schools, I say absolutely! One of our main jobs as educators is to prepare our students to be contributing members of society one day. When you talk about the 21st century classroom, the use of new technology and all of its endless possibilities is strongly encouraged. And let's face it...most students (especially middle and high students) participate daily in some sort of social networking, probably MySpace or Facebook, when they are not at school.
So that brings me to the next question of what kinds of things can we use social networking for. It would be possible to use Facebook or MySpace as a tool in running a classroom or media center. You could have a page that is devoted only to you school or classroom, and everything that is contained on that page would be about school. However, I am wary of doing that because of all the things that the students could accidentally come across. I think using blogs, such as this one, would be very beneficial in a classroom or media center. Instead of sending home a weekly/monthly newsletter to parents, you could have a blog that the parents follow that could be updated as often as needed. In our current assignment, we are creating a blog that will be used as a webpage. This is another great way to incorporate social networking into the school. Creating a podcast that explains activities or events that are going on in the media center is another great option. Podcasts are great because people can actually see a face instead of just reading a flyer that is sent home.
What is the hold up then? Well, as we have learned before, we have things called internet filters in our schools. Will they block some of the social networking tools? Probably. However, there are many options to help with this. There is a 'white list' function that allows you access to websites that had previously been blocked. In Paulding County, where I teach, all you have to do to make that happen is email the county technology department with the website you want to be able to access with your reasons, and as longs as they decide it is appropriate, they will have that site opened up.
You will probably hit a few road blocks when beginning your journey into social networking in your school. It might be unfamiliar to you, or you might not receive the parental support you had hoped for. That should not keep us from doing what is best for kids. In this case, it is best for our students to be exposed to the many advantages and uses of technology that are out there because chances are they will be exposed to those later in life.
As for the first question, should social networking be included in K12 schools, I say absolutely! One of our main jobs as educators is to prepare our students to be contributing members of society one day. When you talk about the 21st century classroom, the use of new technology and all of its endless possibilities is strongly encouraged. And let's face it...most students (especially middle and high students) participate daily in some sort of social networking, probably MySpace or Facebook, when they are not at school.
So that brings me to the next question of what kinds of things can we use social networking for. It would be possible to use Facebook or MySpace as a tool in running a classroom or media center. You could have a page that is devoted only to you school or classroom, and everything that is contained on that page would be about school. However, I am wary of doing that because of all the things that the students could accidentally come across. I think using blogs, such as this one, would be very beneficial in a classroom or media center. Instead of sending home a weekly/monthly newsletter to parents, you could have a blog that the parents follow that could be updated as often as needed. In our current assignment, we are creating a blog that will be used as a webpage. This is another great way to incorporate social networking into the school. Creating a podcast that explains activities or events that are going on in the media center is another great option. Podcasts are great because people can actually see a face instead of just reading a flyer that is sent home.
What is the hold up then? Well, as we have learned before, we have things called internet filters in our schools. Will they block some of the social networking tools? Probably. However, there are many options to help with this. There is a 'white list' function that allows you access to websites that had previously been blocked. In Paulding County, where I teach, all you have to do to make that happen is email the county technology department with the website you want to be able to access with your reasons, and as longs as they decide it is appropriate, they will have that site opened up.
You will probably hit a few road blocks when beginning your journey into social networking in your school. It might be unfamiliar to you, or you might not receive the parental support you had hoped for. That should not keep us from doing what is best for kids. In this case, it is best for our students to be exposed to the many advantages and uses of technology that are out there because chances are they will be exposed to those later in life.
Saturday, October 24, 2009
Social Networking in Schools?
I for one have not fallen victim to the phenomenon of social networking. I know so many people who are completely addicted to facebook, twitter, and others. I do not see how this sort of social network system could have academic relevance for students. I have only seen them used for personal use. Besides, these sites are filtered on the school network system.
Now social networking systems like ikeepbookmarks, flickr, wikis, and blogs could have a rightful place in education. These social networking systems can be used to enhance the educational experience. Flickr and other photo social networking systems can be used to create class yearbooks and other school related activities. Wikis and blogs can be used to upload assignments and projects. Ikeepbookmarks, library thing, and delicious can be used as reading and website guides for students that can direct them to resources that are related to the curriculum being studied.
I only think social networking systems where teachers directly create and monitor student activity should be allowed in schools. A lot of people think we should just teach students how to use the sites responsibly. Let’s face it…a lot of kids in school today can’t be trusted on the “honor system”. Well at least not the ones at my school. They require constant supervision and redirection. Unfortunately, we would be responsible for anything inappropriate students might use these resources for and I am not willing to take on that monster.
Overall I think social networking systems are great for our society, but should be carefully chosen and monitored when used in schools. Families sholuld decide whether or not students can participate in those sites that have more personal purposes like twitter and facebook.
Now social networking systems like ikeepbookmarks, flickr, wikis, and blogs could have a rightful place in education. These social networking systems can be used to enhance the educational experience. Flickr and other photo social networking systems can be used to create class yearbooks and other school related activities. Wikis and blogs can be used to upload assignments and projects. Ikeepbookmarks, library thing, and delicious can be used as reading and website guides for students that can direct them to resources that are related to the curriculum being studied.
I only think social networking systems where teachers directly create and monitor student activity should be allowed in schools. A lot of people think we should just teach students how to use the sites responsibly. Let’s face it…a lot of kids in school today can’t be trusted on the “honor system”. Well at least not the ones at my school. They require constant supervision and redirection. Unfortunately, we would be responsible for anything inappropriate students might use these resources for and I am not willing to take on that monster.
Overall I think social networking systems are great for our society, but should be carefully chosen and monitored when used in schools. Families sholuld decide whether or not students can participate in those sites that have more personal purposes like twitter and facebook.
Social Networking Within Schools
I must admit that I have mixed feelings on the use of social networks within the school. I understand the importance of being able to communicate with students and the appeal that it may have with young people, but I am still on the fence as to whether it is appropriate for younger students. We have had several incidences at my school, which have involved social networks. Administrators and law enforcement became involved, and in the end, things that students had posted led to big problems for those students and their parents.
I am very familiar with social networking and have been using it for several years. I have used it for everything from organizing a class reunion to communicating with parents of different sports teams that I have coached. That being said, I have also seen firsthand some things that students have posted and I am just not sure that I am ready to open up that can of worms.
I can see social networking being used with older students, such as high school aged students. In fact, I know of several teachers at a local high school that use social networking for connecting with members of different school sponsored clubs and organizations. They also use this tool to promote these activities to interested parties. From what I have seen, these groups have really benefitted from using social networking.
I think that my reluctance to use social networking in the school comes from being a parent of younger children. I do want my kids to be equipped with the skills that they need to excel, but I don’t think that I am ready for them to become part of a social network quite yet. I don’t think that I am alone in this thinking. So, how could I use social networking in my school, knowing that there are students whose parents do not want them becoming part of a social network? I am not sure what the answer is, but I realize that I am only scratching the surface and that I need to do a lot more research on this topic.
I am very familiar with social networking and have been using it for several years. I have used it for everything from organizing a class reunion to communicating with parents of different sports teams that I have coached. That being said, I have also seen firsthand some things that students have posted and I am just not sure that I am ready to open up that can of worms.
I can see social networking being used with older students, such as high school aged students. In fact, I know of several teachers at a local high school that use social networking for connecting with members of different school sponsored clubs and organizations. They also use this tool to promote these activities to interested parties. From what I have seen, these groups have really benefitted from using social networking.
I think that my reluctance to use social networking in the school comes from being a parent of younger children. I do want my kids to be equipped with the skills that they need to excel, but I don’t think that I am ready for them to become part of a social network quite yet. I don’t think that I am alone in this thinking. So, how could I use social networking in my school, knowing that there are students whose parents do not want them becoming part of a social network? I am not sure what the answer is, but I realize that I am only scratching the surface and that I need to do a lot more research on this topic.
Saturday, October 17, 2009
Media Center Webpages...A Valuable Resource
Media Center WebPages are important to the overall function of the media center. It is a place where patrons can go to locate pertinent information related to the media center like policies and procedures, program events, and OPAC. The media center at my current school does not have a webpage. I think it would be a valuable resource for the teachers at my school if we did have one. I was reading the blog of Traci Williams about her media center webpage and liked her idea about scheduling media center time. This is something I would like to have implemented at my school. We often run into the same problems she mentioned like teachers forgetting when they are scheduled to come at my school. An online calendar gives all parties easy access to the schedule.
Another problem we have at my school is just time…period. We have several reform models going on in the building which make it nearly impossible to get good, quality media center time. If OPAC, media center program events, and other resources were centrally located on a webpage, teachers and students could access the information from their classrooms or home. In essence, the media center would still be able to be used without patrons physically being there.
Now that I think about it…Having a media center webpage would be very helpful in respect to media center usage period. If patrons don’t have time to go to the media center, they could get most of the information they need from a well organized webpage. For instance, there could be a needs assessment link available on the webpage. Teachers could go there to request resource information or technology assistance from any where in at school or at home instead of having to physically come to the media center to fill out a form. Previously created resources like wikis, powepoints, and flipcharts for our school wide units in Social Studies and Science could also be assessable through the webpage. Teachers could also request materials found through searches for on OPAC. I could gather those materials and send teachers an alert when they are ready for pickup. A media center webpage could help busy teachers utilize media center resources.
The possibilities of webpages are endless. It really makes media center resources accessible to all patrons at any given time. I really hope my media specialist begins to take the time to bring the technological services offered in our media center up to the 21st Century.
Another problem we have at my school is just time…period. We have several reform models going on in the building which make it nearly impossible to get good, quality media center time. If OPAC, media center program events, and other resources were centrally located on a webpage, teachers and students could access the information from their classrooms or home. In essence, the media center would still be able to be used without patrons physically being there.
Now that I think about it…Having a media center webpage would be very helpful in respect to media center usage period. If patrons don’t have time to go to the media center, they could get most of the information they need from a well organized webpage. For instance, there could be a needs assessment link available on the webpage. Teachers could go there to request resource information or technology assistance from any where in at school or at home instead of having to physically come to the media center to fill out a form. Previously created resources like wikis, powepoints, and flipcharts for our school wide units in Social Studies and Science could also be assessable through the webpage. Teachers could also request materials found through searches for on OPAC. I could gather those materials and send teachers an alert when they are ready for pickup. A media center webpage could help busy teachers utilize media center resources.
The possibilities of webpages are endless. It really makes media center resources accessible to all patrons at any given time. I really hope my media specialist begins to take the time to bring the technological services offered in our media center up to the 21st Century.
Media Center Webpages
As a classroom teacher, I use my webpage as an additional means of communication with my parents, students, fellow teachers, and even administrators. I am able to post my daily schedule, our weekly newsletter, our activity schedule, online curriculum resources, and so much more. Although my webpage is not a means of two-way communication, I am able to provide useful information to anyone who might be interested in my classroom. For a media specialist, a webpage can also be a great way to communicate with your all of your stakeholders—students, parents, teachers, administrators, and other educational partners within the community.
The options for what you can post on your website are virtually endless.
- First and foremost, attractive, attention-grabbing format and graphics (not too busy, but not boring either)
-
- The
- Contact information for the media specialist and the media clerk
- Brief bio sketch of media center staff
- Welcome letter from media center staff
- Media center hours
- Media center rules and policies for use
- Calendar of media center events (program dates, book fairs, special dates such as author birthdays and anniversaries)
- Highlight on media center volunteers
- Link to the school’s OPAC
- Subpages or links for all media center programs, with guidelines and standards included
- Links to online research for teachers, students, and parents
- Curriculum resource links for teachers, parents, and students
- Links to free educational websites, including educational games
- List of most popular books in the media center
- Suggested reading lists by reading level and genre
- Online book club including a blog for sharing perspectives on book club selections
- Link to the local public library
- Links to educational partners’ websites
What a great way to promote your media center. “If you build it, they will come.”
No matter what you choose to include on your media center webpage, updating the information on a regular basis is a must. You don’t want to have a first-time visitor (or any visitor, for that matter) to be frustrated by incorrect or outdated information. You will also want to check links to outside websites periodically. Following a broken link can also be maddening for users.
In the end, have fun and be creative!
Saturday, October 10, 2009
Wiki What?
What in the world is a wiki? I had no clue what a wiki was until last semester. I had used Wikipedia (www.wikipedia.org) many times before to gather quick facts, but I had no idea what a wiki really was or how it worked. Honestly—and unfortunately—until recently, I did not know what the term Web 2.0 meant.
So, imagine a website where the content can be created, edited, and accessed by many different users without the need for any special components (hardware, software, or other programs) other than a computer and Internet access. What an ingenious idea! But I have a question: With my very limited knowledge of and experience with wikis, how do I introduce and promote the use of wikis to the teachers and students within my school?
Library 2.0 and Beyond: Innovative Technologies and Tomorrow’s User suggests that wikis can be used as a tool for internal communication, institutional collaboration, and research guides or pathfinders. I think I understand the basic concept of each of these applications, but I know that I don’t completely comprehend all of the possible uses for the school media center. Until recently, the only wikis I have had any experience with are Wikipedia, this wiki for MEDT 6467, and one used by previous classmates to present a research project.
So now I pose two questions: Is there anyone else who shares my self-proclaimed Web 2.0 trepidation? If so, I would love to hear from you, sharing your own thoughts, apprehensions, and anxieties about using these emerging technologies, especially the wiki. If you happen to be one of those virtual technology geniuses, what encouragement and direction can you offer for those of us lost somewhere in between the actual and the virtual?
Courtney, N. (Ed.). (2007). Libraries 2.0 and Beyond: Innovative Technologies and Tomorrow's User.
The Wonderful World of Wikis
I thought that I had tapped the resources of the Wiki by creating a class page for students and parents this year. But after reading about the way that Wikis can be used, I find that I am only scratching the surface of this amazing tool. The word “wiki” is not an acronym. It is a Hawaiian word meaning “quick”. The name has now entered the Internet lexicon, along with other Web-based terms such as blogs and podcasts. The Wiki was begun by computer programmers so that they could create a knowledge base and collaborate efficiently on projects. Wikipedia has made them very popular sources of information from world-wide populations. The Wiki provides the community or school with a meeting place to exchange and compile information. It differs from a traditional website where the designer controls all the content and the communication is one way. There are concerns that information can be deleted or added erroneously. In actuality this happens very seldom. There are a host of Wikis on many areas of interest—see the Wiki Index at http://www.wikiindex.com Wikis have become mini libraries of information and a way for all people to share their personal experiences and knowledge. They encourage collaboration, open communication, and creativity in designing dynamic content.
Wikis have enormous potential for supporting media specialist/teacher collaboration. Librarians use it to create and maintain research guides—subject guides or pathfinders. Keyword searching can take users to related resources (databases and catalogs). Good organization is essential to creating a dynamic Wiki. Librarians must take opportunity to promote the Wiki well in order for people to get used to using the new technology. There are excellent Wikis online that contain banks of web sites on academic subjects, homework help, research databases, college and career information, links to activities and events at the high school, and cultural and commemorative resources. Some librarians put their own tech tips on the home page of the Wikis so that students have no trouble using the databases provided. Other librarians link the Wiki to their Google library, OPAC, and blogs to bring the media center to everyone’s computer!
There are so many applications for classroom and media center use of Wikis! Many are being used are to set up a place to generate ideas and collaboration for Science Fair Projects. This allows everyone a place to meet and discuss even though they may be separated by distance or scheduling constraints. The Wiki serves to document the discussion and provide links to the resources that are found. Another application that is very relevant to teacher needs is found in creating a Student Portfolio Wiki. In this way, all teachers who work with the same students have access to and a place to share their own information on the student. Another idea was for professionals to keep a Wiki to organize their own resources and documents for their classroom, college course, or media center. Literature Circle Wikis are another idea for the teacher. The pages of the Wiki can be designated books that the students are reading. Discussion can be facilitated and document through the Wiki format. Amy Bowllan (School Library Journal) describes how she could not find online resources for the book that she was reading with her class. So she created a Wiki where she and the students could create their own resources. The students gathered web links for the setting of the story (Kenya), found recipes for foods from the area, posted them and made them to bring in to the classroom to share. Of course this would be a fabulous way to incorporate writing (blogging) about the theme or setting.
The best idea that I found for Wikis is to use it to collaborate with other teachers. I team teach with another teacher and we each have created our own Wikis this year as communication tools. It would be great to combine the two to make it easier for the students and parents of both classes to find our resources and communicate with each other. We could also share in the work of organizing and maintaining our Wiki. The applications of this tool go on and on!
Wikis have enormous potential for supporting media specialist/teacher collaboration. Librarians use it to create and maintain research guides—subject guides or pathfinders. Keyword searching can take users to related resources (databases and catalogs). Good organization is essential to creating a dynamic Wiki. Librarians must take opportunity to promote the Wiki well in order for people to get used to using the new technology. There are excellent Wikis online that contain banks of web sites on academic subjects, homework help, research databases, college and career information, links to activities and events at the high school, and cultural and commemorative resources. Some librarians put their own tech tips on the home page of the Wikis so that students have no trouble using the databases provided. Other librarians link the Wiki to their Google library, OPAC, and blogs to bring the media center to everyone’s computer!
There are so many applications for classroom and media center use of Wikis! Many are being used are to set up a place to generate ideas and collaboration for Science Fair Projects. This allows everyone a place to meet and discuss even though they may be separated by distance or scheduling constraints. The Wiki serves to document the discussion and provide links to the resources that are found. Another application that is very relevant to teacher needs is found in creating a Student Portfolio Wiki. In this way, all teachers who work with the same students have access to and a place to share their own information on the student. Another idea was for professionals to keep a Wiki to organize their own resources and documents for their classroom, college course, or media center. Literature Circle Wikis are another idea for the teacher. The pages of the Wiki can be designated books that the students are reading. Discussion can be facilitated and document through the Wiki format. Amy Bowllan (School Library Journal) describes how she could not find online resources for the book that she was reading with her class. So she created a Wiki where she and the students could create their own resources. The students gathered web links for the setting of the story (Kenya), found recipes for foods from the area, posted them and made them to bring in to the classroom to share. Of course this would be a fabulous way to incorporate writing (blogging) about the theme or setting.
The best idea that I found for Wikis is to use it to collaborate with other teachers. I team teach with another teacher and we each have created our own Wikis this year as communication tools. It would be great to combine the two to make it easier for the students and parents of both classes to find our resources and communicate with each other. We could also share in the work of organizing and maintaining our Wiki. The applications of this tool go on and on!
Sunday, October 4, 2009
Podcasting
So, the podcast that we created at the beginning of this class was the first one I had ever done. I found it to be a very useful and pretty easy way to get information to people who you don't have a lot of direct contact with. After looking at the others podcasts, I started to see the potential of this for a media specialist. Being one of the technology "experts" in the school, the media specialist is a very sought after person when anything goes wrong with computers, overheads, projectors, interactive boards, etc. It would be very easy and very beneficial to have podcasts that can be accessed when problems arise. For instance, if the bulb in the overhead projector blows, the teacher can access the podcast created by the media specialist with step-by-step instructions and illustrations on how to replace it. Podcasting would be a perfect way to troubleshoot in situations like this.
As a media specialist, I also feel that it is my job to educate and encourage teachers to use podcasting. I could offer training sessions after school for teachers to come to. Hey, I could even make a podcast about podcasting that they could refer to whenever they needed to! :) It would be very beneficial for teachers because as an elementary school teacher, I know how many questions I get every week about homework, spelling words, assessments, etc. I am required to send out a weekly newsletter about the coming week. I think it would be more beneficial to post a weekly podcast about the upcoming week. I could explain in more detail everything that will be happening in our class for the week, and parents would be able to access it whenever they needed it.
We are becoming more and more technologically savvy these days. It is very important for our students to be learning about and using many types of technology in order to prepare them for their future. Podcasting would be an easy and exciting technology for them to use. Instead of doing a project and presenting them to the class, they could create a podcast. They would be able to share what they learned with not only those students in their class, but others who might be interested in their project. Not only would they be learning about whatever subject their project covered, but they would also be learning a new technology to use in the future.
Podcasts can be beneficial to every person in the school. As a media specialist, it will be my job to make sure that people learn about podcasts. Promoting this and other technologies will make it easier for those that don't really get exposed to technology to keep up with the new technologies that come around. Also, by knowing about and promoting technologies such as podcasts, you are making yourself an invaluable resource to everyone in the school!!!
As a media specialist, I also feel that it is my job to educate and encourage teachers to use podcasting. I could offer training sessions after school for teachers to come to. Hey, I could even make a podcast about podcasting that they could refer to whenever they needed to! :) It would be very beneficial for teachers because as an elementary school teacher, I know how many questions I get every week about homework, spelling words, assessments, etc. I am required to send out a weekly newsletter about the coming week. I think it would be more beneficial to post a weekly podcast about the upcoming week. I could explain in more detail everything that will be happening in our class for the week, and parents would be able to access it whenever they needed it.
We are becoming more and more technologically savvy these days. It is very important for our students to be learning about and using many types of technology in order to prepare them for their future. Podcasting would be an easy and exciting technology for them to use. Instead of doing a project and presenting them to the class, they could create a podcast. They would be able to share what they learned with not only those students in their class, but others who might be interested in their project. Not only would they be learning about whatever subject their project covered, but they would also be learning a new technology to use in the future.
Podcasts can be beneficial to every person in the school. As a media specialist, it will be my job to make sure that people learn about podcasts. Promoting this and other technologies will make it easier for those that don't really get exposed to technology to keep up with the new technologies that come around. Also, by knowing about and promoting technologies such as podcasts, you are making yourself an invaluable resource to everyone in the school!!!
Saturday, September 26, 2009
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