The role of technology in education is rapidly growing. While technology is exciting and has the potential to be incredibly helpful, as teachers we have to be mindful of how it is used in our classrooms.
When used correctly, technology is an amazing tool in the classroom. It motivates and engages students. It connects students to people, places, and ideas all over the world. It prepares students for the future by teaching them practical skills.
Even though technology has so many wonderful qualities, there are some concerns. Technology does not automatically make a lesson great. Teachers need to be mindful of using it appropriately and responsibly.
One great thing about technology is the potential for students to guide their own learning. Through the use of various Internet Instructional Strategies such as Internet Inquiries and WebQuests students become responsible for what they are learning. It gets even better when they become the teacher and are able to share what they have learned with their classmates.
In my own content area, I have found technology to be a great tool to turn a simple art project into a cross-curricular project. I think this is especially important in a time where reading and math are being stressed over everything else.
Saturday, May 24, 2014
Saturday, May 10, 2014
Technology in Special Education
Technology opens up a whole new world for special education students. There are so many neat devices and programs available to enhance learning.
Technology assists students with disabilities by making learning fun and interactive. Websites like BrainPop use technology to make the learning process engaging. Their website has some great suggestions for ways to utilize the website in the classroom. There is even a section for ESL students. I also found a number of teacher testimonials as to how well BrainPop works for them and their students.
One teacher said, "I have never seen any educational site as well put together as Brain Pop. The content selection is great. The user interface is simple. The information is well assembled. The supporting documents are easy to use, and very helpful. The videos are great and the students enjoy the way the stories are told. Most definitely worth it."
A website like BrainPop may be just what a struggling student needs. The lessons cover an incredible amount of different materials and they all correlate directly to learning standards. The lessons and activities also make practicing and studying fun.
Technology assists students with disabilities by making learning fun and interactive. Websites like BrainPop use technology to make the learning process engaging. Their website has some great suggestions for ways to utilize the website in the classroom. There is even a section for ESL students. I also found a number of teacher testimonials as to how well BrainPop works for them and their students.
One teacher said, "I have never seen any educational site as well put together as Brain Pop. The content selection is great. The user interface is simple. The information is well assembled. The supporting documents are easy to use, and very helpful. The videos are great and the students enjoy the way the stories are told. Most definitely worth it."
A website like BrainPop may be just what a struggling student needs. The lessons cover an incredible amount of different materials and they all correlate directly to learning standards. The lessons and activities also make practicing and studying fun.
Technology in Arts Education
Integrating technology into arts education is not a terribly difficult thing to do. Technology has the potential to enhance almost any lesson in some way. A computer is one of the most useful tools when it comes to arts education. There are a number of software programs and Web 2.0 applications that can be used in the classroom. Students can edit photos with software such as Adobe Photoshop or applications such as Pixlr. Adobe Photoshop can also used in basic desktop publishing and graphic design projects. While Adobe Photoshop is certainly the go-to software in the professional world, it is quite expensive. The Art of Ed suggests Pixlr as a free alternative. Pixlr offers many of the same features as Photoshop, but without the high price tag.
One of the most intriguing things that I read about in this chapter was a computerized kiln. Until I read this chapter, I had never considered how great it would be to have a kiln with a computer to monitor it. Using a kiln can be a nerve racking process. With temperatures in excess of 2,000 degrees, there is great potential for things to go wrong. When the kiln is running it constantly needs to be monitored. Even the cooling process requires a lot of attention. A computerized kiln would make things so much simpler and safer.
The biggest concern with integrating technology into the art curriculum is funding. Due to the No Child Left Behind Act and the new high-stakes testing, funding for the arts is at an all time low. Many schools have little to no budget for this subject. I know of one school district in my area that can barely afford to buy paper for the art curriculum. Supplies are very limited. However, many of the resources listed in this chapter are available on the Internet and come at no additional cost to the school district.
One of the most intriguing things that I read about in this chapter was a computerized kiln. Until I read this chapter, I had never considered how great it would be to have a kiln with a computer to monitor it. Using a kiln can be a nerve racking process. With temperatures in excess of 2,000 degrees, there is great potential for things to go wrong. When the kiln is running it constantly needs to be monitored. Even the cooling process requires a lot of attention. A computerized kiln would make things so much simpler and safer.
The biggest concern with integrating technology into the art curriculum is funding. Due to the No Child Left Behind Act and the new high-stakes testing, funding for the arts is at an all time low. Many schools have little to no budget for this subject. I know of one school district in my area that can barely afford to buy paper for the art curriculum. Supplies are very limited. However, many of the resources listed in this chapter are available on the Internet and come at no additional cost to the school district.
Technology in English and Language Arts Education
The concept behind Accelerated Reader is fairly simple. Students read a book and then use the program to answer a series of questions to check their comprehension. Students then earn points based on the reading level of the book and the number of questions they answered correctly. Teachers find Accelerated Reader to be a very useful tool when it comes to motivating students to read, especially for pleasure.
Accelerated Reader has been around for almost thirty years. I know that I remember using it when I was in elementary school. However, it has recently been revamped. It relates to the Common Core State Standards, has quizzes for over 160,000 books, and is now compatible with tablets.
At Eugene Field Elementary School in Oklahoma, Accelerated Reader has been one of the keys to getting 100 percent of the students to score at or above state averages on standardized tests. The catch? One hundred percent of the school's students also qualify for free or reduced lunch. The school has "an extremely high poverty rate, a high percentage of English language learners and a frequent influx of new students." Accelerated Reader is just one of the ways that teachers motivate their students to read and keep track of their progress.
Accelerated Reader has been around for almost thirty years. I know that I remember using it when I was in elementary school. However, it has recently been revamped. It relates to the Common Core State Standards, has quizzes for over 160,000 books, and is now compatible with tablets.
At Eugene Field Elementary School in Oklahoma, Accelerated Reader has been one of the keys to getting 100 percent of the students to score at or above state averages on standardized tests. The catch? One hundred percent of the school's students also qualify for free or reduced lunch. The school has "an extremely high poverty rate, a high percentage of English language learners and a frequent influx of new students." Accelerated Reader is just one of the ways that teachers motivate their students to read and keep track of their progress.
Thursday, May 8, 2014
Web Design Pet Peeves
We've all seen plenty of websites. The sheer number of websites that each one of us visits on a daily basis could almost make us experts at critiquing websites. We know what we like and we also know what annoys us. Here are my top 5 web design pet peeves...
#5 Sound
How many times have you clicked on a link and some sort of strange sound immediately started blaring through your speakers? You just can't hit that mute button fast enough. Usually it's some sort of ad or a silly song that the website creator thought was cute or catchy. Even if it is a relevant sound, it quickly becomes annoying if it's a site that you frequently visit. I really don't need to hear the high school's fight song EVERY time I visit their website. Really...I don't.
#4 Mobile Device Compatibility
With so much of the world utilizing mobile devices, it is imperative that websites work well on tablets and smartphones. Nothing is more annoying than a website that is unusable or unreadable while you're on the go. I find that drop down menus are especially difficult to navigate on my smartphone.
#3 Visual Clutter
Sites that are loaded with a myriad of bright colors, big photographs, and flashy backgrounds are distracting and difficult to read. Plain and simple. Generally, good websites are fairly simple. Readability and usability are way more important here.
#2 Ads
No one likes ads, but they are a necessary evil on the web. We all love Google, Facebook, and YouTube. These are great sites that are completely free to use. However, that is only possible because of the ad revenue that they generate. So even while we complain about those annoying ads, they do allow us to have access all of our favorite technological tools for free.
#1 Registration
If you're like me, you have more usernames and passwords than you can even keep track of. People today use the Internet to shop, pay their bills, get their news, communicate, stream movies and tv shows, play games, and much more. Each one of these things usually requires some sort of username or password. Each one of these sites usually has different requirements for creating a username or password as well. Some want you to use your e-mail address. Others want some sort of screen name. Don't even get me started on creating a password. Uppercase letters, lowercase letters, numbers, special characters, AND 20+ characters? I can almost guarantee that I will never remember that, especially when each website has slightly different criteria resulting in a slightly different user name or password every time. Sure, a hacker would never be able to access my bank account, but then again neither can I. Registering for a website also usually means providing your email address which leads to more messages in your inbox. I'm sure we can all agree that we don't need any more junk mail cluttering our inboxes. Even when the registration process is "quick" and "easy," I often hesitate because I'm so jaded by the whole process.
#5 Sound
How many times have you clicked on a link and some sort of strange sound immediately started blaring through your speakers? You just can't hit that mute button fast enough. Usually it's some sort of ad or a silly song that the website creator thought was cute or catchy. Even if it is a relevant sound, it quickly becomes annoying if it's a site that you frequently visit. I really don't need to hear the high school's fight song EVERY time I visit their website. Really...I don't.
#4 Mobile Device Compatibility
With so much of the world utilizing mobile devices, it is imperative that websites work well on tablets and smartphones. Nothing is more annoying than a website that is unusable or unreadable while you're on the go. I find that drop down menus are especially difficult to navigate on my smartphone.
#3 Visual Clutter
Sites that are loaded with a myriad of bright colors, big photographs, and flashy backgrounds are distracting and difficult to read. Plain and simple. Generally, good websites are fairly simple. Readability and usability are way more important here.
#2 Ads
No one likes ads, but they are a necessary evil on the web. We all love Google, Facebook, and YouTube. These are great sites that are completely free to use. However, that is only possible because of the ad revenue that they generate. So even while we complain about those annoying ads, they do allow us to have access all of our favorite technological tools for free.
#1 Registration
If you're like me, you have more usernames and passwords than you can even keep track of. People today use the Internet to shop, pay their bills, get their news, communicate, stream movies and tv shows, play games, and much more. Each one of these things usually requires some sort of username or password. Each one of these sites usually has different requirements for creating a username or password as well. Some want you to use your e-mail address. Others want some sort of screen name. Don't even get me started on creating a password. Uppercase letters, lowercase letters, numbers, special characters, AND 20+ characters? I can almost guarantee that I will never remember that, especially when each website has slightly different criteria resulting in a slightly different user name or password every time. Sure, a hacker would never be able to access my bank account, but then again neither can I. Registering for a website also usually means providing your email address which leads to more messages in your inbox. I'm sure we can all agree that we don't need any more junk mail cluttering our inboxes. Even when the registration process is "quick" and "easy," I often hesitate because I'm so jaded by the whole process.
Monday, May 5, 2014
Web 2.0
Glogster* is a Web 2.0 application that allows students (and teachers too!) to create their own multimedia glogs (graphic blogs). Most of us probably grew up making posters using makers and a sheet of poster board. If you were lucky, maybe you had some stencils to use for you lettering and some snazzy stickers to decorate it. Glogster has completely changed the way that students create posters. It goes beyond just putting together text and pictures. It is truly a multimedia experience with audio and video as well.
One great Web 2.0 application is Google Drive. It is web-based storage, which means that the files that you store on there are available anyplace where you have Internet access. It also syncs the files between your devices. If you're like me, you have multiple devices. With Google Drive, I can start a project at school and pick up exactly where I left off on my personal laptop. I can even view it from my smartphone or tablet. If it's a group project, I can share it my classmates with ease. I don't have to worry about my hard drive crashing, losing a flash drive, or trying to e-mail an attachment.
Sketchlot is another fun Web 2.0 application. It works like a collaborative whiteboard. Students may share their sketches with their teacher and classmates. Drawing on tablets would be a fun change of pace for students. It's not just for art class either. Sketchlot could be used to draw diagrams and models in other subject areas too. It's totally free and only the teacher has to sign up for an account.
* The PowerPoint presentation contains a short video. It seems to only load correctly in PowerPoint (not in the web browser). It's also available here.
One great Web 2.0 application is Google Drive. It is web-based storage, which means that the files that you store on there are available anyplace where you have Internet access. It also syncs the files between your devices. If you're like me, you have multiple devices. With Google Drive, I can start a project at school and pick up exactly where I left off on my personal laptop. I can even view it from my smartphone or tablet. If it's a group project, I can share it my classmates with ease. I don't have to worry about my hard drive crashing, losing a flash drive, or trying to e-mail an attachment.
Sketchlot is another fun Web 2.0 application. It works like a collaborative whiteboard. Students may share their sketches with their teacher and classmates. Drawing on tablets would be a fun change of pace for students. It's not just for art class either. Sketchlot could be used to draw diagrams and models in other subject areas too. It's totally free and only the teacher has to sign up for an account.
* The PowerPoint presentation contains a short video. It seems to only load correctly in PowerPoint (not in the web browser). It's also available here.
Saturday, April 26, 2014
Color Theory and The Color Wheel
A good WebQuest provides students an opportunity to learn in a way that is fun. It lists clear guidelines and expectations. It's engaging and thought-provoking.
Color Theory and The Color Wheel is all of these things!
Color theory is a very important part of the curriculum in the art room. It serves as a building block to almost all other lessons. Color is one aspect of art that students will continue to learn about year after year.
This WebQuest starts by instructing students to read about basic color theory and view examples of color wheels. A worksheet is included for students to record the information that they are learning. After students have completed their research, they are able to print a blank color wheel and then use tempera paint to fill it in. Students will have to mix the paint colors in order to complete their color wheels. I predict that most students will really enjoy this part of the lesson because they will be able to experience color theory for themselves.
Activity 2 requires students to apply their knowledge of color theory and the color wheel to famous works of art. Students are required to identify analyze the color schemes used in famous paintings. Once they have identified and analyzed the artwork, their task is to create their own painting based on the one that they learned about. Students are separated into groups based on their birth month. Each task along the way is well-defined and includes examples for the students to follow.
I found the teacher page to be a great resource. Many WebQuests that I read were lacking in this area, but not this one. The teacher page made it easy for almost anyone to follow the WebQuest. It lists all of the necessary materials and supplies and even gives the teacher tips on how to set-up the classroom. Some of the answers are provided on this page as well.
Overall this WebQuest uses graphics effectively to make it visually appealing to students. It's easy to read and has a sound layout. Many other WebQuests that I read had outdated information and links, but not this one. The activities are compelling and engaging. Students are not only building on their prior knowledge of colors, and artistic styles, but they are immediately using their new knowledge to complete a project. The provided rubric clearly states how the assignment will be evaluated. The instructions for each activity are clearly laid-out so students can complete this assignment with very little assistance. I did not find this to be true of quite a few other WebQuests that I read. Another great thing about this WebQuest is that it relates to standards at several different grade levels, which means it's easily adaptable for several different age levels.
I believe this WebQuest does a great job of combining technology and hands-on learning!
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