Internet for Educators- Week 5

This week in Internet for Educators we had Martin Ingenmay and Bryce Ridgen come to the University to discuss the integration of technology into the public school system. They discussed many aspect of technology including one to one initiatives in Manitoba Schools, different ways to engage a classroom and how technology is going to be the new trend in schools.

The very first topic we discussed with the SAMR acronym. Substiution- tech acts as a direct tool substitute with no functional change. Augmentation- tech acts as a direct tool substitute, with functional improvement, Modification and Redefinition

Bryce also went on to discuss how the SAMR acronym is very similar to the Blooms Theory. I found this aspect very interesting as he compared the two, and both of these concepts have very similar traits.

We then discussed the various ways to engage a classroom. Bryce talked about how you may not be able to use many of these as types of summative assessment as many of the ideas did not go as in depth as he had wanted, but the positive side was that it brought out the creative side in students and got them thinking about the topic at hand. For students to show their own understanding and interpretation of the topic and represent it in their own way is crucial for learning, especially with all the different learning styles out there.

Some interesting types of ways to engage the class that I thought would be the most useful in my classroom were:

Vines- Students look at vines every day, why not get them to make their own vine on the topic you are instructing? They can be as creative as they want in the 10 seconds they get.

Selfies- Can be used in several different ways. How they are feeling about the  class they are in, a selfie pretending to be an important individual in a historical time. The options are endless.

Twitter- We have talked about twitter many times, and the more ideas I get from experts like Bryce, the more I want to use it in my class. Seeking out experts on student questions is a brilliant idea. Helping them make real world connections with people who have the answers works on several aspects including independence, self-engagement, and interest.

PopcornMaker- During the presentation of a video or picture, add in pop up facts. This is a really cool tool that can be used in any subject area.

Padlet- Easy to use question page. All the teacher has to do is sign in and you go from there. There is no fumbling around with students forgetting passwords, etc. Also beneficial to students who are to shy to ask questions.

The thing I liked the most about technology being integrated into the school system were the various assets it brought to both students and the school system. Bryce mentioned the benefits it brought to the table such as:

Student choice, differentiated instruction, helped kids foster creativity, it incorporates the students interests, and can measure the depth of the students understanding of the material. It also brought things such as collaboration, transforming the way students learn and the way teachers teach, and is cost effective.

This presentation brought many useful technological tools to the table and I am looking forward to implementing them into my classroom in the future.