Chapter 5

Chapter 5 deals with the emergence of peer based learning in the ACOT classrooms.  Because of the nature of the technology and the students adapting to it quickly, they became a great source of learning for the class.  Teachers initially noticed the exchange of knowledge from one student to another naturally with the technology.  Then teachers learned to use this and plan around it causing the students to be more engaged and learn from each other.  The approach also helped overturn stagnating social orders in the classrooms to the benefits of the less popular students.

            The author continues to point out that using students as technological experts can extend beyond the classroom.  It was interesting to see the adoption of student run lessons on technology for the district and hiring students as technical experts.  Additionally, the students began to branch out and peer teach material on the subject not just technology.  The chapter closes with data supporting the peer teaching method and its benefits for many classrooms.

            This chapter I found reinforcing.  The peer teaching model is something that we are much more accustomed to today; it is nice seeing literature from a time when a stronger argument would need to be made for it.  It is a much easier sell today, and as such I would not expect to find an article like this to show up today.

            I enjoyed the phrasing and frontier feel to describing peer based teaching and it was nice to see the benefits laid out the way they were.  It also makes sense that this approach would flow from incorporating technology.  It is a means of opening the door in older pedagogical styles.  In all it was a nostalgic view into common contemporary ideas.

Chapter 4

Chapter 4 lays out some of the issues with the adoption of new technologies.  Problems from student misbehaviour and cheating hit hardest during the initial stage of entry.  Further issues from environmental concerns and software conflicts can really cause problems in that initial stage.  This further combines with the attitudes during entry stage and make it very difficult to adapt to.

            Fortunately, by stage 2 adoption the teacher becomes familiar enough with the technology to adapt to begin adapting to these new issues.  As these issues get overcome the teachers begin to see the direct uses of having the technology in the classroom.  The efficiency in combining databases for instance was a huge gain for a teacher.  Another commented on how quickly the existing technology is maxed out resulting in queues for popular machines and filled hard drives.  It never seems like enough.

            By stage 3 the teachers are actively using the technology to better solve general problems in the classroom.  The technology no longer serves as a source of problems, but instead helps reduce pre-existing issues.  The new technology allowed grading and education plans to become much simpler.  In addition, it became easier to use approaches that minimize cheating.  On top of that the technology allows the teachers to easily access information from broader sources to help improve teaching style and results.

            I liked the direction of this chapter.  It addressed issues that anyone having to employ new technology would run into.  In the times before we master a technology there is a power vacuum that allows all sorts of negative consequences to carry more weight than we are comfortable with.  I liked how the chapter acknowledges this and then shows that with a little time and effort the investment can pay off by ultimately countering those effects in the technology and possibly work against them further to keep misbehaviour and cheating down even more effectively.

Chapter 3

Chapter three laid out a general road map of adopting technology in a classroom setting.  The chapter starts off pointing out the importance of beliefs in instructional evolution.  The author then goes on to describe the stages that a classroom undergoes while adopting new technologies.

            The stages run from entry where the frustrating and reluctant time of unpacking and basic troubleshooting occur to adoption where enough familiarity is established to further incorporating the technology.  Then adaptation when the technology is used regularly in the course of daily work.  Next came appropriation where the technology is viewed as another tool like any other and the teacher has a certain mastery of it.  Finally comes invention where the teacher gets creative in the use of the technology and it makes its own value in the classroom.

            I really enjoyed the layout of this chapter.  It seemed to be more realistic than some of the other readings.  It is excited about technology but realistic.  The stages show that a concerted effort often has to be made to adapt previous pedagogy styles to include newer technologies.  I really enjoyed the section talking about the importance of beliefs in motivation.  Honestly, that applies to nearly everything not just education.  To get someone engaged in a new idea or technology you have to get them to believe in it in some way.

Video Editing Software

I am all over the place on video editing it seems.  For completeness I use the following and can help people with any of the following:

1.  AVS Video Editor V 6.3.2.234 (latest)
This is the main software I use, I bought the full version but it may have trial stuff too:

http://www.avs4you.com/AVS-Video-Editor.aspx

I do not recommend buying anything unless you try it and really like it.  Movie Maker on windows did not have as many features and file formats.

2.  Windows Movie Maker V 2012 (build 16.4.3505.0912)
The latest WMM I could get from Windows update (last night).  I have made a video detailing basic operations in this programme, and I think it will help anyone using it:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S0pTaca-Ods&feature=youtu.be

3.  Camtasia Studio V 8.0.4 (Build 1060) Dec 9 2012
I am using this in the trial version form to convert the swf files generated by Jing into avi files so I can actually do stuff with them other than put them on the site.  I might pick this up later, but I can try to help anyone using this if they need.  This one seems to come with tutorials and such so it seems nice:

http://www.techsmith.com/camtasia.html

Chapter 11 Reflection

            The focus of chapter 11 gives 10 general rules to govern a school’s ability to limit student expression online.  The rules are not hard rules, more guidelines that have some legal precedent.  As such, everything derived from the rules may apply in a variable fashion.  In general students enjoy the rights of free speech even in school settings.  The biggest limitation in the free expression is when it provides a disruption to the function of the school, especially if the expression promotes or entails illegal activity or threats against persons (using the phrase “going Columbine” was listed as a clear case). 

            I have not had much experience with this, the closest I have faced is with students’ tendencies to get off topic.  I try to engage their reasoning and steer the conversation back on topic.  It is in no way the same as curtailing freedom of expression of course, but it relates in trying to maintain a message to the students that their input is respected and valued even if it is not always applicable.  However, the input should not come at the expense of the goal of the lesson.  To my knowledge we have not had any threats or much in the line of bullying that I have seen, but it is nice to see the aspects laid out as clearly as possible in this chapter.  I very much appreciate the guidelines and their explanations in this chapter.

Chapter 10 Reflection

            The focus of chapter 10 is cyber bullying.  As expected this topic is lengthy and offers many, many great tips.  No foolproof solution is available but there exist many techniques to reduce the effect and likelihood.  The chapter starts in the logical first step, assessing if there is a bullying problem.  From there the author looks at the basics in a school setting.  The comparison to safety training for shop class was most intriguing, and an excellent idea.  I also found the explicit reminder of not searching contents of confiscated items really useful.  Seeing it in plain text like that provides a great reminder of something to important that can be overlooked in the moment. 

The author goes on to describe some filtering technologies that are/can be used with internet surfing to keep content appropriate.  Then cautions about bypasses for those technologies like proxies and handheld devices.  That ties into the section with parent involvement and the suggestion to be direct with children and notify them of monitoring devices as that can provide a deterrent.  The chapter explores techniques for developing secure passwords and advising children to never give out personal information.  The author also provides lists of warning signs of bullying.

Thus far I have not encountered much in the lines of bullying in general, let alone cyber brand bullying.  I do expect it to be a big concern, however, when I have an actual class to teach.  The warning signs and advice on safety practices and technologies for filtering will certainly help, I suspect.  I hear about cyber bullying intermittently and understand that as we become a more online based society that it will grow in occurrence and severity unless we actively work against it.

Chapter 9 Reflection

            The focus of chapter 9 is in generating school policies and other forms of contract law.  These include permission slips, policies, handbooks, and so forth.  The author points out that legal changes in 2006 now make it imperative for schools to keep track of good electronic records for any material that may require it.  The author points out that internet availability in schools is primarily for student education and teacher development, and that other uses should be carefully covered in policies set up preferably with legal council.  The author also lays out a basic plan for developing and implementing policies in schools.  Further, the teachers must be engaged to communicate with parents about computer and internet issues concerning the students.  Finally the chapter contains a sample acceptable use policy as a general resource to give an idea of what it entails.

            I have not had much of this chapter apply to my experience thus far.  The closest I have come is really dealing with student releases for photos and such.  The few times we have used computer labs the networks have been set up to automatically block anything outlandish.  Further, we only used online activities and did not access forums or the like.  I do enjoy the chapter giving me a view into the types of things I can expect and lets me think of problems before they occur.