Category: EdTech Page 1 of 2

Welcome back to another exciting blog from my EDCI 336 class! This week, we finished up our group presentations on our ed-tech inquiry projects. Lauren B, Sarah and I had the opportunity to share our findings on the google education certification course. Overall, we felt our presentation went well and while we were unable to complete the course at this time, this is something we are definitely going to pursue in the future. Other groups also discussed topics such as vlogging, fresh grade, assistive tech, cloud-based systems, etc. I feel that of the edtech programs, I can definitely see myself implementing “fresh grade” in my future class. As teachers, it is so important to share information about student learning with parents. With Fresh Grade, teachers can post videos and assignments of students and parents can view them at home. I once volunteered in one school where they were switching the report card system to the use of an online portfolio. The teacher was posting the students’ work and having the students and parents comment on their work. I think a system like “Fresh Grade” would be an excellent organization tool that could be used to facilitate this form of assessment. 

After the presentations, we had the opportunity to practice coding using some free online student programs. The only experience I have with coding was in my CSC 100 course I took in my first year of university. In this class, we learned how to code using basic HTML files and how to create websites. The course was interesting but I found it was more focused on a “fill-in-the-blank” approach as opposed to us creating our own designs. We used a variety of templates and then rearranged it to look the way we wanted. In today’s class, I used the link of Anna and Elsa from Frozen to learn how to follow directions using coding. You can check out the video below of one of the example coding activities I tried on the website. I did find it a bit more challenging once I passed level 6, but I think more time practicing would be beneficial. 

Well, that’s all from me folks! Thanks for tuning in to Ms. G’s weekly edtech posts!

– Ms. G 🙂

Hey everyone! This is my second to last edtech blog post for the semester. Just to update everyone on the current situation, Covid-19 is actively spreading and all of our classes have been moved online for the remainder of the semester. This is a difficult time for everyone and I hope everyone is doing their part to work towards social distancing and slowing the spread of Covid-19. 

During today’s class, we had the opportunity to use “Zoom”, a video program that allows group video conference calls. Overall, I thought the program was super cool and a great resource to use. However, I do have some concerns regarding the program. I personally had a challenge where my computer kept cutting off the call. Fortunately, I had my classmate Sarah here and we were able to use her computer to tune into class. The topic of today was listening to our classmates’ group edtech inquiry presentations. In these presentations, people presented their findings on different technological programs that can be used in the classroom. Some of the topics include the following: Kahoot, SMARTboards, and a variety of others. One group discussed the topic of screen time and whether it is beneficial or detrimental to your child’s well-being. There are a lot of misunderstandings when it comes to screen time, but ultimately, everything with reason is acceptable.

We concluded the class by exploring the use of the program “Twine”, a digital program that allows students to create interactive stories. This program is an introduction to basic coding while students combine language arts skills by writing their own stories. I definitely can see this being a fun tool for teachers to implement in the classroom. I would like to spend more time exploring the sight and discovering all the cool features it has. One interesting thing I learned was that Twine was the program used to create the popular story of “Bandersnatch” from the hit Netflix series “Black Mirror“.

– Ms. G 🙂

In today’s class, we had the opportunity to learn about using Minecraft in an educational setting from Heidi James. We began by logging into the desktop and having a few minutes to explore and try Minecraft. I personally had a bit of trouble in the beginning as I got stuck in the water and could not figure out how to get out. Fortunately, some of the students from the middle school came around and were able to help me. 

After a few minutes of “play” time, we learned a little bit about the boundaries and possibilities of Minecraft Edu. As the teacher, you have the ability to control everything and anything that occurs in your Minecraft server. I was surprised to see that she was able to freeze our screens so that no one had the chance to be distracted by our screens. There are two different modes of Minecraft; creative and survival. 

One of the students discussed how they were assigned to create a civilization during a certain time period. They were asked to create buildings and scenarios that would reflect the feudalism era. Another student built a life-size hedgehog cage which utilizes perimeter, area, and ratio skills. Some other options the teacher discussed were combining Minecraft and language arts to create landscapes for stories. Also, in Science, they had students re-create a human digestive system.

In the image above, you will see a variety of subject areas with Minecraft lesson plans divided into various grades. I found one called “Fairy Tale Reimagined” which allows students in grade’s k-5 to recreate fairytales in the world of Minecraft. This is a great tool for teachers to use and provide a creative outlet for students. Overall, I can see how Minecraft can be a beneficial educational tool. However, I currently do not feel comfortable using Minecraft in the classroom as I am not familiar enough with it yet.

– Ms. G 🙂

For today’s class, we began by debriefing the field trip to Rebecca’s class last week and then moved into multimedia learning theory. Multimedia learning theory is about the process in which we remember things and how things are regulated into our working memory. In our EDCI 336 course, Rich encourages “learning by doing” and in class, we have many opportunities to try new technological things. When the class is over, we blog about our experiences to reaffirm our learning and understanding. That repetition of a skill helps the brain to be more likely to internalize the information and be able to recall it at a later date. One resource that is proven to be useful is “Sketchnotes”. While I have never used the program before, the concept is to draw pictures along with your written notes which will help with memory recall. Our class will be trying this program in the next couple of weeks and I am very interested to see how this might be implemented into the classroom. 

Moving on, our class began to discuss how educational videos can be utilized in the classroom. Three possible video platforms that teachers can use are “Youtube” “Khan Academy” and “TeacherTube”. Some reasons why using videos in the class is beneficial is that videos can be engaging, offer new perspectives, and help to show concepts or things that may not be accessible based on the school (ie. students do a project on Egypt and want to see the pyramids). However, there are some cons which come with videos is that not everyone has access to technology, students may not be engaged with the video, or students may choose to not watch the video. It is important to remember that if you are going to use videos in the classroom, make sure they are suitable and relevant to the lesson you are teaching. 

Afterwards, we practiced using “Screencastify” to screen record our computers to show students how to use the computer to look something up. In the video below, I used the example of sloths as my screen recording. If I were to make this into the inquiry project, I would have students initially watch a video of sloths in the Costa Rican jungle to illicit excitement into the subject. Then, I would have students do some primary introductory research to learn a base level about sloths. Once they know a bit of information, I would have the students develop an inquiry question about sloths. This could be like “what do sloths eat? where do sloths live? how do sloths climb?” and so on. 

– Ms. G 🙂

Last Tuesday, my EDCI 336 class had the opportunity to visit Rebecca Bathurst’s kindergarten classroom and learn about how she incorporates technology and inquiry with her students. Unfortunately, I was unable to attend in person as I was in Vancouver that day, however, I had the opportunity to view her speech via video and hear her perspective. She began her presentation by discussing a bit about her background in teaching and her experiences prior to teaching at George Jay. 

One of the first things Rebecca discusses is her “educator heart”. Her “educator heart” is essentially the morals and values that she upholds as a teacher. The image below shows a diagram of some of her core beliefs and goals that she aims to express in the classroom. 

Rebecca then began to discuss how she implements inquiry-based learning into her classroom. With the students this year, they began with a guided/controlled inquiry which was much more structured than my original interpretation of an inquiry project. The image below was in Rebecca’s PowerPoint and I feel that it gives a great visual of various types of inquiry.

The first inquiry that the class did was on their families. From there, she discovered that her students were passionate about dinosaurs and then created a guided-inquiry based on them. She also discussed how she used provocations by providing an experience that would spark curiosity in the student. An example could be taking the students on a field trip then asking them “what they see, what they already know, and what they want to know”. This would be the starting point of the inquiry project and from there, the students would work towards answering their inquiry question. 

The last thing I noticed while watching was how beautiful and natural Rebecca’s classroom was. The class had lots of wood-based items and things that create a calming space. She also had lots of dinosaur items for students as they are relevant to the current inquiry project the students are studying.

Overall, I really liked how Rebecca incorporated inquiry-based learning in her classroom!

-Ms. G 🙂

Today, we had a guest speaker come in to teach us about online safety in the classroom. His name is Jesse Miller and he specializes in online safety and helped to develop the “erase bullying” program. He also started a company called “mediated reality” that evolved from his master’s research. 

He began his presentation by discussing the difference between generations and how technology is different in today’s society. He suggested that in today’s time, we need to consider the quality of content we are looking at as opposed to focusing on the duration of time we spend on technology. He highlighted three major components about network citizenship which include the following: digital identity, digital rights, digital literacy. He highlighted that it is important as professionals to set up your personal and professional divides between yourself and your career. 

He further branched into the conversation about how parents view children using technology and social media. One key point he discussed was how authentic headlines and articles can send false messages to the general public. People often share their opinions without any evidence or with little evidence to state the opinion they want to hear. 

Social Media:

What is social media worth to do? Jesse throughout his presentation highlighted how companies sell your information in return to provide an opportunity. As teachers, we have to be extremely cautious about the way in which we use social media. You cannot post a picture of any student on social media without proper consent. We have a duty of care and responsibility to ensure safety with our students. I thought that Jesse’s presentation was very eye-opening towards our actions on social media and how we need to be aware of how we are perceived by the public. I think moving forward I will continue to be mindful of my digital footprint.

After his presentation, we had the opportunity to practice our video editing skills on iMovie. Click on the video below to see how I used the green screen feature to put chickens in the ocean!

Meditation Apps:

• Stop, Breathe & Think → Free: A mindfulness app designed for students with anxiety disorders that uses meditation and other breathing techniques to regulate their emotions.
• Pacifica → Ranked as one of Apple’s “Best Mental Health Apps”. This app allows you to track how you are feeling. It also has a unique audio playlist that you can use when feeling anxious. 
  • Cons: Free but also has a paid option of $3.00 a month
• Headspace → A meditation app for teachers to use in the classroom. Has a series of 10-minute voice-guided meditation exercises that students can follow.
• Dreamy Kid → an app that offers meditation “guided visualizations and affirmations” to help kids and teens to work towards a happier and more mindful life.
• Happify → games that are designed to conquer stress and make you happier. These games are tailored to your specific needs based on an entrance quiz. 
  • Cons: Free but Happify + costs $11.65 a month

Analysis → These apps allow students and teachers to have a guided form for students to combat their anxiety. This is an excellent tool for teachers as often they cannot always support a student who may suffer from anxiety, and using apps allows students to self-regulate their emotions. However, we did notice that many of the apps require payment for additional materials and students are unable to do so. Also, additional investigation is necessary as we would have to ensure the security of the student and their privacy.

Other Apps:

• Recolour → a digital colouring app that allows you to select from a variety of photos and colour in using the colour palette you enjoy.
• Super Stretch Yoga → a fun educational tool to teach yoga and the importance of physical activity and mindful breathing.
• Positive Penguins → an interactive and simple tool that helps students understand why they are feeling certain feelings and how they can move forward and feel better. It helps to change the way children process certain experiences and emotions so that they can cope with them in a positive way.

Analysis → These apps are a way to help students cope with anxiety and negative thoughts. They can be a way to re-centre a student, a way to distract them, or a way to teach physical activities that will help them cope with these negative feelings. These are good things to offer in a centre time or free play to allow students to explore coping mechanisms or just have fun while having the benefits of the app.

Videos:

• CosmicKidsYoga

• • This youtube channel describes this video and others in the same series as a way to “find your centre to help ease worries and anxiety.” 
  • This could be displayed on a smartboard and the class performs the yoga in front of the screen. If an individual student needs time to calm down, they could bring a computer or iPad into a quiet room and perform some of the yoga.
• GoNoodle Flow

• • https://family.gonoodle.com/channels/flow
  • Positive thinking and relaxation exercises
  • This could be displayed in the same way as CosmicKidsYoga

Analysis→ These videos are a great way for students who experience anxiety to still feel included in the classroom because they teach skills that are important for all students to learn such as mindfulness, self-regulation, and managing self-draining emotions. They are presented to the entire class at the same time and promote connectedness and belonging within the classroom community.

Non-Technological Tools We Have Seen In Practice In Schools:

• Squeeze balls, squishies, fidget spinners, fidget balls, water-based toys, going for a walk, riding a stationary bike, noise-cancelling headphones, desk shields, tattle phones etc.