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.
Saturday, November 14, 2009
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.
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