Final Survey

I completed the course survey and course evaluation.

Technology Integration Project

I would use this project in my classroom as a way to teach culture.  I can't very well take my entire class to Paris, so by using Google Earth I can show them important monuments as well as give them history of those monuments.  France, especially Paris, is built on history and the buildings reflect France's rich historical tradition.  Plus, Paris is just a beautiful city and through Google Earth, students will be able to appreciate French culture even more.  Students would also be able to create their own virtual tours which would give them a chance to learn about different places in the world.  

This project reflects the pedagogy and content of what I will be teaching in a few ways.  First, all the directions and most of the information is in French and focuses on French culture.  Students will be exposed to the French language, especially being able to follow directions correctly.  Some of the Wikipedia articles they are asked to read are also in French so they will need to practice their reading skills.  Pedagogically, this project is effective because it is very visual.  Students will be engaged in learning as they are able to use different viewpoints within Google Earth, see 3D representations of buildings, and see photographs of a different place in the world.  Rather than just lecturing about the Arc de Triomphe and the Palais de l'Elysée, students will get to see it and hopefully become more curious about Paris and French in general. 

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PLE Wk #7: Internet Safety Assignment

Reading:

For my 5th article, I read "Changing Technology, Changing Classrooms" in the Spring 2007 Version of the McKay Today Magazine. I thought the readings were very interesting and so applicable to today's world. The prophets and apostles truly are in-tune with the realities of today. I particularly liked Elder Bednar's talk about what is truly reality and by become absorbed in activities that muddle what reality is, we are hindering our body's progression. I also liked Elder Packer's talk about making sure those medias in which we participate are only of the wholesome and uplifting nature. Technology, the Internet, and media can be very useful. But when used inappropriately, they can also be very harmful.

As I become a teacher and parent in the future, I will certainly take the things I have learned and try to teach those children who surround me about the benefits as well as the drawbacks of technology. By showing what kinds of technologies are appropriate and uplifting, hopefully those who I teach will see that technology doesn't always have to consist of violence and gore, but it can be educational as well. But the children will see the things I do more than hear what I say, so I have to make sure that I provide a good example for them in the right ways to use the Internet and media.

From reading these articles, I think by applying the knowledge personally hopefully others will see what impact it has on my life and apply it to their own. If I decide that I won't participate in harmful media, others may do the same... or they might not. Doing is always more powerful than saying.

Watching:

I watched the ikeepsafe video and watched the entire Frontline documentary. I also looked at the Internet Safety Podcast. I thought the Frontline documentary was really interesting and I think that all students should watch it in order to learn about the realities of the Internet and how to be protected while using the Internet. In my future teaching, I will make sure that students are only given websites that are appropriate for learning. I also want to inform students about the dangers of technology.

Doing:
I shared the Frontline documentary Growing up Online with my mother, who is an elementary school teacher, and my sister who just finished her sophomore year of high school. I think this was a valuable experience because it showed my sister, who spends an incredible amount of time online, some of the negative impacts it can have. It also showed my mother some more of the realities of the Internet as it can apply to to her students. Even though she interacts with mostly elementary school students, even children in her classroom have facebook-- a program which can open her students up to the danger of the internet. I thought it was a very good documentary.

PLE Wk #6

For my content-specific integration project, I'm going to use Google Earth to create a virtual tour of places around Paris, whether they be buildings, streets, gardens, etc. I have not decided which buildings I am going to use, but they will fit into the same theme. The text will include directions as well as physical descriptions of the places, both of which fall under Standard 3 of the Utah Core Curriculum. Students will be able to do this project as well. Not only does it expose them to French culture as they learn about different places, it helps them practice describing things and giving directions.

Video Communication PLE Week 5

This first image is a screen shot of my synchronous communication with my little sister using Google video chat.  The second image is using tokbox for asynchronous communication.  I liked using Google video chat more because it is just so much faster.  You don't have to wait for them to record a video and then send it to you.... you can just talk to the other person like you would talk to them in person.  I think Google video chat and other programs like it would be very helpful in the classroom because they would allow students to interact with people who can provide valuable information but may not be able to physically be in the same room.  Interviews with experts or native French speakers would be great for student in a French classroom.

Synchronous Video Communication

Asychronous Video Communication

TPACK and TPK

Technological pedagogical knowledge (TPK) is the knowledge of how technological tools can be used in a pedagogical context. TPK is not content specific, but rather addresses how to use technology in conjunction with the general knowledge and skills related to teaching. TPK can be used to support teaching methods and strategies in any content area. Examples of TPK may include the knowledge of how to use multimedia tools such as videos and audio to help students become interested and engage in the topic, such as French culture.

Technological Pedagogical and Content Knowledge (TPACK) is the knowledge of how to use technological tools in a pedagogical methods in a specific content area. The two types of TPACK tools are: content-domain oriented tools and pedagogy oriented tools. With content-domain oriented tools, learners use technology that promote a pedagogical method that is specific to a content area. In pedagogy oriented tools, learners use technology that are strictly used for pedagogical purposes. An example of a TPACK tool for French teaching includes a concept mapping tool that may help them organize a native text or help them organize an essay the have to write.

PLE Week 4

This week, I learned how to use a bunch of different free web tools that will be very useful in the classroom. First, I learned how to create a wiki through pbworks.com and how to create various pages within the wiki. We also learned how to embed various things such as googledocs, calendars, maps, and pictures into our wiki pages. To edit the pictures in our wiki, I learned how to use picnik, which provides a lot of free editing capabilities. In order to communicate with others synchronously, I learned how to use Google Video Chat.

For me, the most difficult thing to learn was how to use the html within the wiki in order to embed things onto the site. HTML is still pretty confusing to me, but I learned how to change the size of the thing I want to embed as well as adding an iframe into the site. But at the same time, I think that the wiki will be the most useful tool to learn because you can have an entire course website up for your class that can include a calendar, assignments, and documents that update when you update them on your personal computer. I also think video chatting will be useful if you have a guest speaker that is too far away to travel to your school. The class will still have the opportunity to hear them and learn from them. I think that is the main idea of these web tools-- being able to open up the possibilities for learning and making things easier to access.

Instructional Video

Storyboard Images

Instructional Video

Our idea for the instructional video is focused on culture-- specifically the marvels, both architectural and natural, of France. The idea is that the students would choose from a list of monuments and do a video presentation about them--in French. For our example, we chose Versailles. We are going to talk about the origins, location, specific rooms, and significance of the palace using images, music, and spoken language. Our video is connected to the second goal of the World Languages found in the Utah Core Curriculum. This goal is associated with gaining knowledge and understanding of different cultures.   

My Technology Experience and Background

I would consider myself pretty technologically up-to-date. I have my own blog and use google frequently and all it's accessories (google reader, picasa, google docs, etc.) I'm pretty comfortable using Word, Powerpoint, Excel, and can use both Macs and PC's, though most of my experience is with Windows. Facebook and gmail are an everyday (multiple times) occurrence. While I don't know all the shortcuts to everything and don't pretend to know all things about the technology world, I would say that I can comfortably use technology.

*Note: html is confusing to me...