Blog link

The blog I have chosen to link to is the Art Institute of Chicago’s blog, found here… http://blog.artic.edu/.  I have actually just come across this blog myself, and have only read a few of the entries.  I found it interesting because it has varying authors depending on the day and the subject.  Different staff members from the Art Institute will post various stories on various subject matter.  Some will be about the museum itself, some on artwork, some on artists and so on.  I thought that this blog could be a nice casual read for those interested in art, but as far as education goes it could definitely be something interesting for an art educator.  The information is useful both to teachers and students, and could be an easy jumping off point for a daily conversation, or an additional activity for a student to research the topic of the day.  I am looking forward to seeing what other subjects the authors come up with and how I could learn more about the art institute and share this information with my students in the future.

IPods in the classroom…

So a couple weeks ago our class gave student led presentations.  At first I was unsure how these would go and what my topic would be, but they proved to all be very interesting and full of new and exciting information.  I chose to do my presentation on iPod Touches or iPhones and their possible uses and applications in the classroom.  With all of the thousands of apps out there, there are tons with educational opportunities on them.  Some are specifically made to be educational, some just have that as a bonus or side effect.  There are too many to list here, but uses could include calculators, scientific formulas, flashcards, timelines, art history, art making, English learning, word making and so on.  It was so neat to learn about all of these tools and then be able to share with tech-minded classmates.  Aside from the apps, we all know the ipod is a great music player, video player, photo viewer, web-surfing device and so on, so the apps are just an awesome added bonus that definitely show potential for the classroom.

Now if I can just scrape up the money to go buy my own ipod touch we’ll be in good shape!

Readings/Activities

Later in the course we had a few more interesting readings, as well as some beneficial larger scale projects.  Some of the more interesting material came from students needing a variety of literacies.  No longer is it acceptable to be literate in text, but one must also be visually literate, digitally literate and so on to be successful in the classroom as well as world.  If a teacher is wanting to incorporate tech into the classroom, they must also realize the students need to know how to use these new tools instead of just being plopped in front of them.  If they are unaware of how to fully comprehend video as a learning tool, or how to use the computer efficiently then it is not worth the trouble.  Along with these new student literacies, other readings dealt with multiple intelligences.  This is nothing new, but it is worth addressing and reading about.  Not all students learn best by reading, or being read to.  There are a variety of ways a student might be proficient at learning and could range from musical, to kinestetic, to auditory and so on.  Many students nowadays are needing multiple sources of engagement because of what they encounter daily on tv and the web.  Students need their interest held up and one way to do this is to appeal to their various senses to make sure all types of learning and students are being addressed.

Another couple of interesting topics to me were the readings on copyright and creativity.  We watched a video on creativity and how it is beginning to suffer because of the way schools are being run.  Students are forced to test constantly, and their opportunity to show their unique individuality is being boxed in more and more.  It is important to see a students’ potential and allow them to explore and enhance their creativity rather than to stifle it.   On an unrelated note, it is important that students realize what copyright is and how to use it appropriately.  With the Internet being so easily accessed, some students think it is free reign.  Teachers will need to be at the forefront of the push that everything on the web is not free for students to use as their own.  Whether it is a plagiarized paper, a presentation, or a photo they are passing as their own, these are all important lessons for students to learn about in the age of information.

The activities we did the second half of the course were very interesting and engaging.  One was the webquest, where we created a series of web pages to bring the learner throughout a series of activities to learn about a specific range of subject matter.  The teacher provides links, information, and the activity for the students to learn about and complete.  In a similar theme, we also completed a “Learning Object” which is like a webquest, but rather than perusing the web, the students stay within a self-contained website with the materials and information given to them.  Both of these activities were beneficial for me because not only did I cater them towards my discipline, but I was able to create something that I might use in my classroom one day.  I created them both on basic art principles, and created a basic assignment to accompany both of the web activities.  I am interested to see how students take to them if I ever use it in class.

Thoughts on course readings…

So my intentions were to try to post my thoughts and pondering every couple of weeks on what we were reading about and learning in class.  Obviously this did not happen, but I will do my best to address some of the content from the course and how I felt about it.   Throughout the first half of this course there were many great readings that were required of us.  Many of them dealt wtih incorporating tech into the curriculum an dthe pros and cons of doing so.  It was often discussed that computers cannot just be plopped into the curriculum, and that there must be engagement, participation and connection to the real world and existing curriculum.  I have always agreed with this in that tech cannot be a magic addition to schools and it will help students learn better.  THere also has to be staff development, proper implementation and understanding that the tech is a supplement and an enhancement of existing curricula.  Another reading pointed out that new technologies in the classroom bring up many of the same old concerns… Radio, TV, movies all have provided resistance and controversy, but all have eventually become a huge part of society and learning.  The same has gone for computers, games, Internet and so on.  It is a great source of information, but also a great source of worry this article said, and it is very true.  This new technology needs to afford a significant advantage, should be affordable, networked, portable, and teacher training must change to create change.  I thought this was a great quote as well about what is needed when using new tech in the classroom.

“To change school practice, curriculum goals and materials, assessment policies, and teacher development must shift.Without these changes, a new technology will merely be used to enact traditional practices.” I thought this was another great quote from our readings.  In order to create change, there must be shifts in thinking and understanding of the new tools out there.  Like the quote says, if there is no change, the new tech will just replace old practices, instead of fostering new ideas and practices.  Some great aspects of the Internet is the fact that it is breaking walls down.  New users are not just passive readers, but instead both consumers and creators of content.  One can learn a ton almost anywhere or anytime they are on the web.  The web2.0 is a huge help with this age of new information and creation and can be a huge asset to classrooms using tech.  Whether the classroom is using a wiki, social networks, viewing video, interactive learning, etc there are tons of possibilities.  The blog we looked at, among other web2.0 lists are great resources for educators to find ways to work the web2.0 tools into their classroom teachings.