Saturday, August 11, 2007

hi

just to see

Posted by Jordan at 9:49 PM

Monday, June 18, 2007

My Video!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=osKrq20i5mY

Posted by Jordan at 6:38 AM

Friday, June 15, 2007

The Big Six!

The Big Six is a problem solving process in which the student goes through a step-by-step process.
1- Task Definition- define what it is you need to do and identify the information you need to solve the problem.
2- Information Seeking- Brainstorm all the possible sources and evaluate to find the best ones.
3- Locating and Accessing- Locate you sources and find the information you need within them.
4- Use of Information- Engage in the information, read, listen, view or touch and take out information that is relevant.
5- Organizing and Communicating- Organize and present the information in an appropriate manner.
6- Evaluation- Judge your process, effectiveness and efficiency.

Problem solving is such a crucial concept for students to learn even in the early stages of their education. I think that the Big Six process is a good way for students to learn exactly what step they can go through to reach the end result. It is important to be able to visually show students that there is a process that they can go through to help ensure that they can achieve the results that are intended.

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Posted by Jordan at 6:31 PM

Wednesday, June 13, 2007

Harris Post!

There are those who believe that the Internet should not be used in education. Harris responds to this by arguing that the Internet can be very helpful but that it must be used correctly. Students can integrate their activities and this can be very effective. She believes that the Internet should be an integral part of learning. She believes the Internet can be used for online collaboration and also for research. I think that the Internet is a crucial tool for the classroom. The Internet and the communication lines that it opens are peril for students to learn and understand how their world around them works. The Web has created a universe in which the whole world can exchange valuable information. People can stay in contact with one another all over the planet. People do daily business on the Internet. The Web also houses some of the most valuable research and resources that students will ever need. It is ever changing our world and it is something that is changing the way we learn and should think about education.

Posted by Jordan at 7:54 PM

TV goes to School!

I think that there may not be as much video in the schools today because it is hard to find the right kind of video that can be a very positive and helpful instructional tool. There are a lot of great educational videos out there but you have to be extremely careful on what you decide to show in your classroom. It is not good to just put on a video just because it is about the topic you are trying to teach. Most of the time videos ultimately just put students to sleep. You would have to be very careful to evaluate what you want your students to see and make sure that it is interesting enough to keep there attention, otherwise you are just wasting time. We know that connecting images and sounds help students remember things more effectively. I think that you can use video effectively but you have to be very picky about what you intend to bring into the classroom. They shouldn’t be very long videos, because automatically I think that poses a problem for keeping yours students motivated and involved. I think shorter videos would be more effective. I also think that videos should help students tie information into their own world or context. There are many great ways that I think you could use video in your classroom. I think students appreciate seeing and hearing things, rather than always being lectured to.

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Posted by Jordan at 1:32 PM

Wednesday, June 6, 2007

Gabcast on Kamini!

Gabcast! jordan's gabcast #4

Posted by Jordan at 2:46 PM

Kauchak Article!

Kauchak’s article talks about three functions of teacher’s questions. The three functions are assessing current understanding, increasing learner motivation, and guided new learning. By asking certain questions teachers can evaluate their student’s current knowledge and understanding of a certain subject. By asking questions teachers can find out what there students do or do not know or what they think about a certain topic. Another reason that asking questions is helpful is to increase motivation in students. Effective and useful questions engage students and help to challenge their thinking. It helps them think about more questions or problems that they need to consider. Questions can also help guide new learning by helping students connect new ideas and incorporate their new learning with their existing knowledge. Guided questions from the teacher can help students to be active in their own learning by directing and steering them towards new concepts. Technology can play a very important role in helping teachers accomplish these three functions of questioning. We have learned that technology can be helpful in motivating and keeping student’s attention while in class. A great example of using technology to help in questioning would be to have a Power Point presentation on the concept you are trying to teach with questions on slides that you students can actually see. You could also have short video clips or audio and then ask students questions following these activities. This way you are doing more than just standing at the front of the classroom asking them questions. These could be helpful ways to keep students attention focused on the lesson.

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Posted by Jordan at 1:03 PM