Reflection on 505

I have learned a lot taking this class. This has been a very rewarding and educational experience. Learning about these new resources was frustrating at times but I was always happy with how my projects turned out. I know that I will definitely use these resources and media sites when I become a teacher and know that my students will get a lot of out using and creating their own resources. I think I enjoyed creating my WebQuest the most because it was a challenge to create the material but the activity turned out to be really good and I really hope I get to use it someday. I know that technology is everchanging and evolving but with the skills I have learned through taking this class will help me in the future.

Movie Maker

My third post will be about my experience with Movie Maker through Windows Live. I had absolutely no idea that this software even existed on my computer and was eager to try it since I have had fairly good experiences using iMovie. The first thing I noticed was the that instructions and information that I was given to help me use this resource didn't match my newer version. I felt left on my own becasue I had no idea where to get the information I needed to answer my questions. The software was very simple and easy to navigate but they problem I ran into was trying to figure out where I could record my voice overs to insert into Movie Maker. I recorded my audio via my phone and then emailed it to myself in the hopes of being able to import that audio into Movie Maker. It didn't work and I was able to find an IT person in the school's building. He couldn't figure out how to either import my audio or help me find the microphone to re-record the audio so it could be put into Movie Maker. Luckly he knew the number of the IT professionals at Ashland Main campus and was able to get a hold of them to help us. It took them a while to figure out that the files wouldn't import and that I would need to re-record my audio files. They also figured out that there is no microphone function in the new version of Movie Maker and that I had to find a seperate function in my computer called sound recording in order to complete my project. It was frustrating that this crucial information wasn't available to me when I needed it because it would have saved me and the people who helped me a lot of time and energy. I wouldn't have been able to complete my project with out the help of both the Ashland IT departments. Once I had the tools I needed the process of completing the project was easy. I like Movie Maker but I think a newer version of the tutorial we were given is much needed. It was outdated and wasn't compatable with my version at all. I didn't know how to the information I needed because the help button on Movie Maker sent you to a website that was confusing and hard to navigate. I think my project turned out well, especially for the amount of experience I had and the issues I had completing the project. Knowing what I know now I would likely try Movie Maker again.

My second post relates to my reflections of using glogster and inspiration. I found glogster to be very easy to use and it provided me with a lot of options to create a webpage for students to interact with while in the classroom. I was able to add pictures as well as text fairly easy and the layout was easy to with as well. It was difficult to move text and pictures around to fit just right once I started filling in my information. I think I spent more time clicking and re-clicking on objects trying to get them to move than I did finding a lot the information that went with it. I liked the fact that I could have a picture being shown to the students but when they clicked on it, the URL link would take you to whatever site you had listed. It is nice because the students can see visually what the link is going to be about before they view it. It is a very interactive site and I feel that most students would really enjoy a lesson being taught this way. I think this would also be a great alternative for students to show what they know via glogster, instead of a regular poster board. Students would have to worry about buying and carting around supplies and they could create something interactive as well as learn some new technology. I think students could easily navigate this website with a brief overview by the teacher and some in class work. It is probably much faster also than creating a poster board and students would be able to work on this project while at school. The next technology that I will talk about is inspiration. This media is used to create concept maps or graphic organizers so students can visually see the connections between a specific topic or idea. The software first must be downloaded and is only available free for a certain period of time. I found the program to not be a user friendly as glogster and less visually appealing. There were no clear instructions or a step by step introduction to the product. I found it hard to enter the website since it doesn’t have a log in place and found some of the features vague and frustrating. I can see how it would be helpful when mapping out timelines or showing students literally how events are connected but I would not recommend the product. It was more of a hassle than anything and I feel like there are several different media’s available that do a much better job than inspiration. Out of the two glogster is far more user friendly and interactive and I highly recommend it.

My first reflection has to do with my experience with creating a wiki page. I am completely new to most of the technology I have been learning about in my class, which can be overwhelming at some points. I would like to think of myself as a person who can catch on and I definitely have had my eyes opened to the amount of resources out there for teachers and students to use. For my wiki page I had to find two technologies and write about them. I did poll everywhere and smartboards. I found tons of information on these technologies and I am most excited about poll everywhere because I can see it as having a real life application in my classroom. Poll everywhere enables teachers to ask questions and students respond via text messaging, twitter, or the computer to give teachers real time information about what the students are comprehending or stuggling with. This tool is great because most students these days have access to a computer or other device and it promotes students interacting with technology instead of telling children technology like cell phones can't be useful in the classroom setting. After finding my information I had to post my response on a wiki page. I was also new to wiki and it took me a while to figure out how to do everything. I am learning a lot and feel that this technology class is going to be challenging but extremely useful to me when I get a classroom of my own.

Introductions

This blog will focus on my reflections of the following course: Introduction to principles of instructional technology through Ashland University. I am a student at Ashland University working towards my teaching license in Integrated Social Studies grades 7-12 and I will be sharing my experiences and reflections with you in this blog.