Blog Post #12

Watch the video Benefits of Educational Blogging by Kathleen Morris and and Kelly Jordan at Leopold Primary School. Yes, this video is a tad lengthy coming in at 15 minutes, but I know you can do it. Discuss the advantages of technology/blogging that you see or hear in this video. How does this benefit the student and the teacher? Do you agree with this? Will you use any of this in your classroom? Write two or more paragraphs following the guidelines in Writing a Quality Blog Post.

Next read the article Technology Integration for Elementary Schools by Grace Rubenstein. It is about Forest Lake Elementary School in South Carolina and how one teacher is using technology in her classroom. Summarize the tips/tools Mrs. Williams provides. Will you follow these guidelines in your classroom or do you have different ideas? What do you like about this? How does this benefit the students? Write two or more paragraphs following the guidelines in Writing a Quality Blog Post.

Benefits of Educational Blogging

I thoroughly enjoyed this video! To start, I want to point out the first clip of this video; a quote by John Dewy. He says, "If we teach today as we taught yesterday, we rob our children of tomorrow." What inspirational words to live by. I believe it and it motivates everyday to do my best to ensure that I am technology literate so I can provide my students with an outstanding education. I must admit, I was overwhelmed with excitement and moved by the clips that showed the students' sentences about why they like blogging. I probably have watched this video about 10 times now, it gets better every time. To say that I like it is not enough.

Blogging has numerous advantages in the classroom and is beneficial to each individual student as well. Blogging builds confidence, improves literacy skills, teaches appropriate online behaviors, provides global connections, and build a sense of classroom community. This video actually taught me a new word, transliteracy. It is the ability to read, write, and interact across a range of digital and print platforms. Students bring this to life when they blog; they are able to interact with their "blogging buddies" from all over the world. In the 21st century people considered illiterate are those who can only read and write across traditional platforms. I want to see this disappear; as educators we can do this by starting early and incorporating technology in our elementary classrooms.

I can and will most definitely incorporate blogging into my classroom, as well as any other technology readily available to me. This brings me to another quote from Tanya Byron. She says, "The technology itself is not transformative. It's the school, the pedagogy, that is transformative." I want to transform my students into technology literate individuals of the 21st century, it will be the only way for them survive in the future. I strive to use blogging and all other technology to provide my students with the best education possible.

Technology Integration for Elementary Schools

The technology revolution was slow to start in elementary schools but has now taken off. Ms. Paulette Williams from Forest Lake Elementary School in South Carolina has a few great tips on successfully integrating technology in your classroom.

First, she says to start with the standards. You should only use technology when it enhances your lesson. Second, give your students hands on tools. Smart boards, clickers, cameras, and iPods are a great way to do this. Next, she says to maintain the same rigor as in pen and paper projects. Students should always know what is expected of them. Fourth, allow students to interact with peers far away. Webcams allow connections to be made from anywhere and students are able to learn about people from different cultures and backgrounds.

Then Ms. Williams says to slowly give students more independence. Show them what to do and how to do it several times then let them work it out on their own. They can figure it out. Next, you should always know where your students are doing their online research. You should have a preset list of acceptable sites for them to choose from. Finally, just relax and have a back up plan.

I will be sure to take Ms. Williams tips into consideration when preparing my classroom. I think she hit it right on. All of these tips allow for technology to be beneficial for the students and allow for class time to run smoothly for the teacher. From all the useful tips and advice I have been reading, I can hopefully have at up to date technology classroom and brilliant students to fill it.

Side Note

I just want to say that I thoroughly enjoyed this blog post assignment. It actually made me think about a lesson. It was great practice for the future.