For CEP 811 we were asked to evaluate a learning material on Merlot. I chose to evaluate a fraction website "Who Wants Pizza? A Fraction Activity" using he same criteria that Merlot uses to evaluate their resources.
Quality of Content:
1. Does the software present valid concepts, models, and skills?
Yes, the website offers valid information, models, and examples.
2. Does the software present educationally significant concepts, models, and skills for the discipline?
Yes, all the the concepts presented on the website are educationally significant and relate directly to fractions.
Potential Effectiveness as a Teaching-Learning Tool:
1. What stage(s) in the learning process/cycle could the materials be used?
1. Explanation or description of the topic/stating the problem?
There is a short explanation in the introduction section of what fractions are, but it does not go into great detail. For example, it does not explain the numerator and denominator.
2. Demonstration of the curriculum/exploration of the problem
An example or two is given, prior to the student independent work.
3. Practice using the curriculum/analysis of the outcomes from solving the problem
The website offers multiple choice questions for the students to practice as well as some interactive problems to help understand equivalent fractions. For practice, the students are given problems of a similar manner to complete (i.e. all the fractions are displayed in a bar form).
4. Applying the curriculum to "new" problems/application of the outcomes to other problems
Not really. At the beginning of some sections a question about sharing pizza is posed. It is not answered, or asked again. These questions could be looked at as applying their knowledge to different types of problems, but they are not really higher order thinking questions.
2. What is (are) the learning objective(s)? What should students be able to do after successfully learning with the materials?
The learning objectives are the different components of fractions; equivalent fractions, adding fractions, and multiplying fractions. After successfully completing the entire website, the students should have a basic understanding of fractions, be able to find equivalent fractions, add fractions and multiply fractions.
3. What are the characteristics of the target learner(s)?
The author stated that this website is for grade school and middle school. I would say upper elementary. The website is not descriptive enough for someone who is just learning about fractions, but it serves as a good reminder for students who may need a refresher about fractions.
4. Does the interactive/media-rich presentation of material improve faculty and students' abilities to teach and learn the materials?
The teacher has the opportunity to complete all the practices in a whole group manner allowing for students to individually offer answers. I believe that a teacher may use this site as a review, but probably not to introduce the concept of fractions.
5. Can the use of the software be readily integrated into current curriculum and pedagogy within the discipline?
The website most likely will relate directly to curriculum. However, it may not be possible to teach all the concepts in one session.
6. Can the software be used in a variety of ways to achieve teaching and learning goals?
The website is not very flexible. It lends itself to a whole group, small group or individual setting. Due to the nature of the problems, it really cannot be used other than in a teaching-learning setting.
7. Are the teaching-learning goals easy to identify?
Yes, the website is broken into sections. For example, the equivalent fraction section's goal is for students to understand and be able to identify equivalent fractions.
8. Can good learning assignments for using the software application be written easily?
The website does not really lend itself to creating good learning assignments. There is a "teacher's resources" page, but those lessons follow with the same linear concept displayed on the website.
Ease of Use:
1. Are the labels, buttons, menus, text, and general layout of the computer interface consistent and visually distinct?
Yes, the layout is consistent and easy to follow.
2. Does the user get trapped in the material?
No, the website is very easy to maneuver and understand.
3. Can the user get lost easily in the material?
No, there are buttons clearly labeled on the bottom of every page that will take you "to the top", "to more practice", or "to the Table of Contents".
4. Does the module provide feedback about the system status and the user's response?
The website provides feedback once the user has completed all the problems. The user can submit their answers and feedback is provided through a score and answers are provided so the user can check which problems were answered correctly.
5. Does the module provide appropriate flexibility in its use?
The website is not very flexible. It offers only information on fractions. However, the fraction website is only one of many the author has created. The homepage that contains many different lessons, offers more flexibility with teaching different concepts.
6. Does the learning material require a lot of documentation, technical support, and/or instruction for most students to successfully use the software?
The website is all that is needed to complete the different mini-lessons.
7. Does the material present information in ways that would be attractive to students?
The title of the website says, "pizza" but all the lessons and practice problems involve fractions in a bar form. Compared to the bright and vivid games the students may be used to playing, this sites lacks some of the attractiveness.
Sunday, March 27, 2011
Wednesday, March 9, 2011
Coming to an End......Well Sort Of
I have to start by saying I really enjoyed this class and have learned so much from it. And although the course itself is coming to an end, my drive to continue to learn about technology in the classroom is only growing. This blog is a reflection of my achievements and thoughts of this course as well as my plans of continued learning in this field.
One of the most important things that I have learned when integrating technology is to check everything before hand. Check to make sure links work and are suitable for student viewing. I have also learned that technology can make certain aspects of teaching easier. Rather than typing up a newsletter every week, copying it on paper and handing it out, if all the students and parents have access to the internet, placing that information on a website where it can always be read (and not lost in a bookbag) can be helpful. Technology can also assist with communication. This communication can take place between you and students, parents, administrators, colleagues and other teachers. Another teaching strategy I learned was not to integrate technology to say that you do it. Take some time to learn about various technologies and decide which one fits into your lesson at that particular time.
The internet offers a seemingly endless amount of information to help a person find and evaluate technologies. I used the internet to research information on my own about different technologies and I used various sites to help guide me with the research. I used bookmarking sites like delicious, which I can bookmark sites I come across, but also find sites that others have come across. I have also used social networking sites, such as blogs, Facebook and Twitter as means of finding out useful sites and technologies. Another wonderful site was Atomic Learning. In order to integrate and evaluate technology, you need to understand it and that site gives you a wonderful insight into many technologies.
I believe that the SIG project on digital storytelling exemplifies good teaching with technology. To begin, it allowed a bunch of great mind to work together to create a unified presentation. As students, we explored Google docs and the joys of being able to chat while working and as teachers we shared our knowledge and findings. We also collaborated by creating a delicious site. Once we were ready to begin our Prezi presentation, we once again, met to complete the presentation as educators as well as learners. While completing the project, I was able to learn so much about digital storytelling and the various ways to implement it into the curriculum. To me, digital storytelling exemplifies good teaching with technology because it allows the teacher to differentiate to meet the students’ needs. For example, if you were to use Stroybird, the students can choose their own illustrations and the length of the story can be based on the individual’s ability. Another example would be using voicethread to show and explain a math problem. The students can choose a math problem they are comfortable with.
At the beginning of this course I created a personal growth plan. “A goal of mine is to be able to accommodate students of all levels using either the same type of media or different.” I believe that I have accomplished that goal. While I am still learning of various technologies that allow me to differentiate and accommodate different levels, I feel as though I have gained a lot of knowledge in this aspect. I was able to obtain this goal by researching and watching tutorials on how to correctly use technologies. Another goal I had was to understand technology and how to correctly implement it into the classroom. I also feel as though I accomplished this goal. I was introduced to many different resources throughout this course and taught how to use them correctly. The YouTube “In Plain English” videos as well as the Atomic Learning Tutorial were all very informative.
However, I wasn’t able to accomplish two of my goals. One of the goals I was not able to accomplish is due to my currently situation. My goal was to allow students to experience as many types of technology as possible. Due to the fact that I currently do not have a computer in my room, makes it difficult to give students the ability to experience these technologies. However, I plan on taking a different position next year and cannot wait to put all my ideas into play. The other goal I had was to “make technology accessible at every income.” I believe that I am on my way to achieving this goal. I have been researching different grants and coming across different organizations and charities that will give technology to schools in low-socioeconomic areas.
I would like to continue to grow with all my goals. I would like to learn about more technologies and how to correctly implement them into my classroom. I would like to continue to come across different sites and ideas that allow for differentiation. I still want to work on sharing technology with my students and allow them to learn and grow. And finally, I want to continue to find out how technology can be accessible for every income. I plan to continue my research through the Internet as well as continue to take courses through Michigan State University. I am currently on the path to obtaining my Masters in Educational Technology, which will continue way after this course. And lastly, I want to take on the role as a leader and sharer. I want to show others what I have learned and share all my knowledge (and wonderful websites) that I am learning myself.
One of the most important things that I have learned when integrating technology is to check everything before hand. Check to make sure links work and are suitable for student viewing. I have also learned that technology can make certain aspects of teaching easier. Rather than typing up a newsletter every week, copying it on paper and handing it out, if all the students and parents have access to the internet, placing that information on a website where it can always be read (and not lost in a bookbag) can be helpful. Technology can also assist with communication. This communication can take place between you and students, parents, administrators, colleagues and other teachers. Another teaching strategy I learned was not to integrate technology to say that you do it. Take some time to learn about various technologies and decide which one fits into your lesson at that particular time.
The internet offers a seemingly endless amount of information to help a person find and evaluate technologies. I used the internet to research information on my own about different technologies and I used various sites to help guide me with the research. I used bookmarking sites like delicious, which I can bookmark sites I come across, but also find sites that others have come across. I have also used social networking sites, such as blogs, Facebook and Twitter as means of finding out useful sites and technologies. Another wonderful site was Atomic Learning. In order to integrate and evaluate technology, you need to understand it and that site gives you a wonderful insight into many technologies.
I believe that the SIG project on digital storytelling exemplifies good teaching with technology. To begin, it allowed a bunch of great mind to work together to create a unified presentation. As students, we explored Google docs and the joys of being able to chat while working and as teachers we shared our knowledge and findings. We also collaborated by creating a delicious site. Once we were ready to begin our Prezi presentation, we once again, met to complete the presentation as educators as well as learners. While completing the project, I was able to learn so much about digital storytelling and the various ways to implement it into the curriculum. To me, digital storytelling exemplifies good teaching with technology because it allows the teacher to differentiate to meet the students’ needs. For example, if you were to use Stroybird, the students can choose their own illustrations and the length of the story can be based on the individual’s ability. Another example would be using voicethread to show and explain a math problem. The students can choose a math problem they are comfortable with.
At the beginning of this course I created a personal growth plan. “A goal of mine is to be able to accommodate students of all levels using either the same type of media or different.” I believe that I have accomplished that goal. While I am still learning of various technologies that allow me to differentiate and accommodate different levels, I feel as though I have gained a lot of knowledge in this aspect. I was able to obtain this goal by researching and watching tutorials on how to correctly use technologies. Another goal I had was to understand technology and how to correctly implement it into the classroom. I also feel as though I accomplished this goal. I was introduced to many different resources throughout this course and taught how to use them correctly. The YouTube “In Plain English” videos as well as the Atomic Learning Tutorial were all very informative.
However, I wasn’t able to accomplish two of my goals. One of the goals I was not able to accomplish is due to my currently situation. My goal was to allow students to experience as many types of technology as possible. Due to the fact that I currently do not have a computer in my room, makes it difficult to give students the ability to experience these technologies. However, I plan on taking a different position next year and cannot wait to put all my ideas into play. The other goal I had was to “make technology accessible at every income.” I believe that I am on my way to achieving this goal. I have been researching different grants and coming across different organizations and charities that will give technology to schools in low-socioeconomic areas.
I would like to continue to grow with all my goals. I would like to learn about more technologies and how to correctly implement them into my classroom. I would like to continue to come across different sites and ideas that allow for differentiation. I still want to work on sharing technology with my students and allow them to learn and grow. And finally, I want to continue to find out how technology can be accessible for every income. I plan to continue my research through the Internet as well as continue to take courses through Michigan State University. I am currently on the path to obtaining my Masters in Educational Technology, which will continue way after this course. And lastly, I want to take on the role as a leader and sharer. I want to show others what I have learned and share all my knowledge (and wonderful websites) that I am learning myself.
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