The RSS program I am using is Google Reader. Last week after class, I subscribed to my 2 favourite blogs: Cake Wrecks (my new fave) and Perez Hilton (the ultimate guilty pleasure in celebrity gossip).
So the thing with using Google Reader is that instead of having to visit a number of different websites, the news is compiled and delivered to you once there are updates. I have to say, I had a lot of difficulty using Google Reader for this task. It wasn't because the program itself was hard to use. It was quite easy actually, since it's like receiving email notifications from your subscribed blogs/news sites. The difficulty I encountered was in actually remembering to check Google Reader for new items instead of going directly to the websites!
Part of my daily computer routine is to go through all my favourite news sites to see what's new. It was only AFTER I had visited the websites that I realized I was supposed to check Google Reader first! And of course, when I did log on, I had already read the new items I received.
For this task, the benefits of programs like Google Reader were properly highlighted. We only had to subscribe to 2 websites, so it was easy to forget to check in regularly. However, if I subscribed to 10 different websites, it would definitely be useful to have all updates be viewable in one central location.
I do not follow too many blogs and I don't check the news every single day. So, for my purposes, I probably would not use programs like Google Reader. If anything, I am more than happy to follow my regular routine of just visiting websites themselves, the old-fashioned way.
What can I say? Old habits die hard.
Showing posts with label task. Show all posts
Showing posts with label task. Show all posts
Monday, February 2, 2009
Tuesday, January 27, 2009
Educational Software Review - Task
The game I have chosen is Math Circus Act 4.
The student's perspective
In putting myself into the mindset of a student at the primary level, I would most definitely think this game is fun. It is brightly coloured and has a fun theme. There are a number of "mini-games" with varying levels, so there is a lot of choice. As a student, I would appreciate that I could try as many times I want until I get the answer right.
The teacher's perspective
As a teacher, I'm not really sure that there is much educational value to this game. Other than some basic problem-solving, I don't think students would be able benefit from the games a whole lot. In testing them, I just started randomly clicking the buttons, and eventually came to the correct response. So, if a student really wanted, he/she could just click until stumbling upon the right answer.
The game has a section for teachers to monitor their students' progress and check their individual accounts. I would not use that option as tool for any sort of assessment. The most I would do to involve this program in my class would be to have it available on the class computer for free time.
Another review
I found a very short review for Math Circus at: http://www.thejournal.com/articles/13491_5
It has only good things to say about the game, but that doesn't change my opinion. The review says that the mini-games serve as clever hooks for problems (ie. pendulums, propulson, angles). Even so, I don't think they're effective hooks because I would not be able to use that game as a means of putting the students' knowledge to practice. If I was teaching about angles, playing the game does not help solidify understanding. At best, the games could be used as tools for estimation.
The student's perspective
In putting myself into the mindset of a student at the primary level, I would most definitely think this game is fun. It is brightly coloured and has a fun theme. There are a number of "mini-games" with varying levels, so there is a lot of choice. As a student, I would appreciate that I could try as many times I want until I get the answer right.
The teacher's perspective
As a teacher, I'm not really sure that there is much educational value to this game. Other than some basic problem-solving, I don't think students would be able benefit from the games a whole lot. In testing them, I just started randomly clicking the buttons, and eventually came to the correct response. So, if a student really wanted, he/she could just click until stumbling upon the right answer.
The game has a section for teachers to monitor their students' progress and check their individual accounts. I would not use that option as tool for any sort of assessment. The most I would do to involve this program in my class would be to have it available on the class computer for free time.
Another review
I found a very short review for Math Circus at: http://www.thejournal.com/articles/13491_5
It has only good things to say about the game, but that doesn't change my opinion. The review says that the mini-games serve as clever hooks for problems (ie. pendulums, propulson, angles). Even so, I don't think they're effective hooks because I would not be able to use that game as a means of putting the students' knowledge to practice. If I was teaching about angles, playing the game does not help solidify understanding. At best, the games could be used as tools for estimation.
Monday, January 19, 2009
Things You Really Need to Learn...
Ok, so I'm supposed to comment on Stephen Downes' post titled Things You Really Need to Learn, but before I comment on the content, I need to ask something. Does anyone else besides me struggle with reading things on their computer screens?? I was tempted to print out the darn post because it was so long, reading it was giving me a headache! Sorry, just needed a moment to rant.
Anyway, back to Mr. Downes.
So the post is a list of 10 things he believes are important to learn in life, but are not taught in schools. I agree that there are many tasks we perform that may not be the most meaningful (ie. colouring maps), but I do think schools are where we learn the most. Personally, I've learned the most, not from sitting in lecture all day, but from the conversations I've had with my peers. Learning from my colleagues is what has been the most enriching experience for me this school year as a teacher in practice, which IS my life right now.
Going through his list, I found many of his points to be disproven and outdated. Number 3 (How to Distinguish Truth from Fiction) says:
...this remains an area schools to a large degree ignore. Sometimes I suspect it is because teachers feel their students must absorb knowledge uncritically; if they are questioning everything the teacher says they'll never learn!
Oh puh-leeze! Everyday we as TECs are told that students need to be able to think critically and ask questions to have a better understanding of things. Teachers are training students to be critical, to ask questions so that they can learn. And questions are ALWAYS welcomed and encouraged in the classrooms I've observed.
In looking that the rest of the list, I think that lessons he thinks are important may not be in our curriculum documents, but they are taught in schools to a certain degree. Things like empathy, staying healthy, how to value yourself, etc... are demonstrated to students in the schools. They may not be explicitly taught, but they're definitely present and evident.
Anyway, back to Mr. Downes.
So the post is a list of 10 things he believes are important to learn in life, but are not taught in schools. I agree that there are many tasks we perform that may not be the most meaningful (ie. colouring maps), but I do think schools are where we learn the most. Personally, I've learned the most, not from sitting in lecture all day, but from the conversations I've had with my peers. Learning from my colleagues is what has been the most enriching experience for me this school year as a teacher in practice, which IS my life right now.
Going through his list, I found many of his points to be disproven and outdated. Number 3 (How to Distinguish Truth from Fiction) says:
...this remains an area schools to a large degree ignore. Sometimes I suspect it is because teachers feel their students must absorb knowledge uncritically; if they are questioning everything the teacher says they'll never learn!
Oh puh-leeze! Everyday we as TECs are told that students need to be able to think critically and ask questions to have a better understanding of things. Teachers are training students to be critical, to ask questions so that they can learn. And questions are ALWAYS welcomed and encouraged in the classrooms I've observed.
In looking that the rest of the list, I think that lessons he thinks are important may not be in our curriculum documents, but they are taught in schools to a certain degree. Things like empathy, staying healthy, how to value yourself, etc... are demonstrated to students in the schools. They may not be explicitly taught, but they're definitely present and evident.
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